The Storm's Own Son (Book 2) by Anthony Gillis Read Free Book Online Page A

foolish enough to stand in his way, Talaos descended. He grinned with the feral joy of the hunt, ready to face the unknown prey below. His beasts, he thought, were now leading hunts of their own. Behind him, companions on his hunt, were his ravens Firio and Imvan, and his wild, ravening men of death.
     

 
    4 . Blood and Wrath
     
    Talaos leapt down the winding stairs as the sounds of battle raged all around. They circled twice, and he came to the landing of the next floor down. There was a sturdy door with an iron handle and a lock. His lock picks from Carai were with the remnants of his old gear in camp. The door was sturdy, he thought, but not so strong as the doors outside. He gave it a kick with the same force that had knocked a man ten feet, and the door flew open.
    On the other side, there was a scene of struggle as a large mass of enemy in the center fought his own invading men at the doors from the towers on the opposite side. To the center front and center back of the place were huge iron and wood mechanisms to operate the gates.
    Facing him, however, were spearmen crouched low in a line behind large round shields, bearing white clouds and thunderbolts, and behind them a line of archers in dark gray tunics.
    The bowmen fired. Talaos leapt backwards out of the way, fast as the arrows, and blocked Imvan and Firio behind him. Arrows clattered against the stone where he'd stood. He missed his throwing daggers. Then another idea came to him.
    He sheathed his swords. Briefly, he showed himself around the doorway. The bowmen in the room were quick, and another volley of arrows struck the wall.
    In the mere seconds available, he darted forward, and to the shock of all who saw it, he ripped the heavy, thick wooden door from its hinges, and then took it by its sturdy handle like a tower shield in his left hand. He drew his long blade with his right.
    Behind him, Firio whistled with an intake of breath.
    He charged forward. For a moment, the enemy soldiers were too stunned to react. Then they fired more arrows uselessly against the door he carried in one hand. Behind, Imvan fired an arrow and put it through an archer's throat. Firio threw two daggers in quick succession, faster than the strikes of a snake, and each went through the eye of a bowman.
    Then Talaos was upon the enemy. He turned the door sideways and threw it into the faces of the spearmen before him. Blood sprayed where it struck as the men behind toppled. He leapt over the ruin with blades flashing, and cut down the archers left and right. As the startled remaining spearmen turned to deal with him, his grim warriors poured through the doorway and were upon them. Imvan stayed at the stairs, selecting targets, while Firio crept into the room, seeming unimportant as always, and began to deal stealthy death.
    On the other side, his men had cleared the areas around the doorways of enemies and fought their way forward with Larogwan and Epos in the forefront. The enemy fell back and formed a defensive position in the center of the vast room.  There was an officer in the center, directing them to form a shield wall while bowmen readied behind.
    Talaos picked up his door shield, thick with gore on its underside. It was cracked, but held together by its iron bracings. He stepped in front of his men and hurled it like a discus into the center of the enemy. The officer and those around him went crashing in ruin. Then Talaos howled, and he and his men descended like wolves on the startled, leaderless enemy.
    It was over in moments.
    He gestured to the mechanism at the front of the room. It was flanked by a pair of narrow windows, and then several arrow slits on each side. Then he roared, "Larogwan, take some men and open the gates! The rest of you, to the floor below!"
    With that, he raced back to the tower stairs and down with men charging behind. Above, he could hear Vulkas bellowing as he brought more men down the stairs. Elsewhere, Kyrax and Halmir shouted as they