Clutch Of The Cleric (Book 4) by Craig Halloran Read Free Book Online

Ettin’s hairy legs. It wavered. Teetered and toppled and crashed to the ground.
    The second Ettin turned to me, grunting. Scratching its heads. A worried look grew on its faces.
    I had another arrow aimed right at it.
    “ HMRPH,” it said. “We think about this.”
    “You do that, Ettin. In the meantime,” I said, pointing my bow at i ts brother, “I’ll keep a close eye, a very close one, on your brother.”
    “No shoot!” It said. “No shoot!”
    Its chest rose up and down under my feet. I could feel its heart beating in my toes. Heavy rapid thumps. It was worried. The more worried the better. It gave me control.
    For some reason, I was thirsty. I felt really hot and uncomfortable, not to mention the Ettin’s hot breath was so foul and nasty. It took away my appetite. Still, something else was gnawing at my stomach.
    Earlier, I ’d felt great. I had two Dragon arms. I was bigger, faster, and stronger. Now, I felt so small and ineffective. I wasn’t sure how to fight a monster over thirty feet tall. Its hands were so big that it could squeeze my head off. Snap me like a twig. Perhaps I wasn’t such a big deal in Nalzambor afterall.
    The second Ettin turned and took a knee, facing me and its brother. It spoke quieter.
    “Let my brother go and we’ll bring back your women,” the head on the left said.
    “I thought you said they were all dead?”
    “I didn’t say they were alive ,” he head on the right said, “but at least you could bury them.” It chuckled and showed a toothy grin.
    Now I had to wonder, did one head lie? Did the other head tell the truth? It was best to assume they both lied. But it angered me. It was a horrible thought, them killing innocent women. I adjusted my bow. Drew it tight. Aimed at the last head that had spoken.
    “I’ve had enough! Take us to the women or your brother will suffer.”
    “Alright! Alright!” It said. “We’ll take you. Just, please, put down your bow. We don’t want to lose a head. We don’t want to have a hole in us.” It leaned back. “You win, Dragon Man.”
    “That’s better.” I un -nocked my arrow.   “Now, tell me where—”
    “ ACHOO! ”
    The first Ettin sneezed. My footing shifted, and I dropped to my seat. The disgusting spray was all over me.
    “Yuck!” I said, slinging my hands and wiping my face.
    Snap! Snap! Snap!
    The first Ettin ’s bindings were breaking. A howl of villagers and soldiers went up in the air.
    “What is going—”
    Whap!
    A big hand swatted me from its chest. I tumbled to the ground and Akron fell from my grasp. Above me, the second Ettin was cutting the cords with a stone knife I hadn’t noticed earlier. I dove for my bow. The first Ettin slapped its hand over it.
    “No ‘Boom Boom’ for you, Dragon Man!”
    They had me surrounded. A pair of great hands clutched after me. I ducked under a swinging fist and hopped over a clutching hand. They were quick for being so big. Their size negated my speed.
    Wham! Wham! Wham!
    Fists bigger than barrels shook the ground. Big fingers grasped for me. I went for my sword.
    Swat!
    The second Ettin back handed me and flattened me to the ground. The first Ettin scooped me up in both hands, pinning my arms to my sides.
    I flexed my Dragon arms. I tried to kick. But I could only move my toes.
    The Ettins chuckled.
    “Look what we have here, Big Brother,” the first Ettin said. “We got us a Dragon Man. Let’s take him, throw him in a pot, and turn him to stew like the others.”

 
    CHAPTER 12
     
     
    The ground shook. Bayzog sh uddered. Pictures of angry Ettins danced in his head. He had to run. Hide. Do something. He muttered a protection spell. A mystic surge coursed through his blood. Calmness and security followed.
    He sighed.
    “That’s better.”
    Thoom.
    The footsteps were distant and he didn’t have to be an Elven ranger to know that. But how close was too close?
    Something else caught his ears and he hunkered down in his saddle, eyes searching. The