The Archon's Apprentice by Neil Breault Read Free Book Online Page A

Dryos.
    “Yes,” said Perim, “but I want to know where the mage was who was controlling this man. Sunder Omoni for dispatching the wardens. We could use their knowledge of these mages. Burn this body and set up camp for the night.”
    “Is that wise?” asked Dryos. “The enemy presumably knows where we are.”
    “We have been ready for a battle. Better that we choose where to fight it.”
    ***
    An alarm rang out in the middle of the night while Perim slept. He bolted out of his tent, activating the runes along his body. A shimmering glow emanated from the ethereal armor that now encased him. It did not take him long to reach the edge of the camp and see what had caused the alarm. His soldiers circled the bodies of five unknown men in foreign garb sprawled out on the ground. Several bolts stuck out of each them at odd angles. Each one had a thin curved blade clutched in his hands. He also noticed they were oozing blood like the spy earlier in the day.
    “What happened?” asked Perim.
    “Sire, we posted advanced guards out in the fields to give warning if someone approached.”
    “Did you move the bodies? They are quite close to camp.”
    “No sire. They actually walked past private Jobi without alerting him right away.”
    “Were you asleep at your post? How did you not see them? How did they get past you?”
    “No, sir! I was not asleep. I didn’t see anything, because there was nothing to see. I actually... I felt something,” said Jobi.
    “What? You felt something? What do you mean?” asked Perim.
    “I ... I felt something in the air. I don’t know how to describe it, sire. But I looked up and saw something walking towards camp.”
    “So you saw the men?”
    “No. No, I saw something. I could see right through it, but not very clearly. If it wasn’t for that lantern over there I wouldn’t have seen anything.” Jobi pointed to a lantern that hung on the outside of a building. “The light looked strange. It was like looking through a dirty window. I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming so I shot my crossbow at it. When the bolt struck true and a man appeared I hollered and readied another bolt.”
    “I heard Jobi rustling around,” said the first soldier, “and when I saw a man suddenly appear I shot my bolt at him. I was surprised when my bolt hit another man instead. I suspect he was actually between me and the man I was aiming for. I called out the alarm, and that’s when we saw the other three men. They were brought down quickly.”
    “I want every inch of this village searched again thoroughly with lanterns and torches,” said Perim. “If anything seems out of the ordinary, stab it or burn it ... or both. Find out what it is later. I will not have my camp infiltrated.”
    ***
    No further alarms were raised that night. Before the sun had risen above the horizon the army had already broken down camp. The sheer size of the army prevented quick advancement to the next village. Everyone kept looking over their shoulders and closely watching the fields for any invisible enemies, which only exacerbated their slow pace. They found a suitable empty field between villages to set up camp. Perim ordered twice as much guard as the night before and for the whole perimeter of camp to be encircled by lanterns and torches. Perim went to his tent and lay down. He had not planned on sleeping, but when the alarm sounded he bolt upright. As he arrived at the perimeter he saw a similar sight to the night before. Several dead men were sprawled out in the field, riddled with crossbow bolts. They burned the bodies and Perim went back to his tent.
    This went on for two weeks as the army made its way along the edge of Enhurst. During the day they saw nothing, and only during the night did they have any contact with a hostile force. The first two villages held no further clues. No signs of battle or distress were found in or around any of the abandoned buildings. Every night held a similar encounter with near invisible