They Were Born Upon Ashes by Kenneth Champion Read Free Book Online

of his body.
    He flapped his wings up and down, then he realized that his black-scaled wings had transformed back into his arms. There was nothing but darkness; he could not see a thing.
    He was free falling in a black abyss and all he could think about was if Penny was safe. The blackness finally shed into light as Nick flew through a mist of white clouds. The clouds broke open and Nick realized he was falling from the sky with the tower directly below him. He looked around in the distance and saw the giants still burning on the muddy and barren landscape.
    Nick fell through space. His body tumbled and thrashed about the air with no signs of stopping. He was about to hit sandy ground right next to the tower. His clothes vibrated in the wind. He covered his eyes as he was about to hit the hard ground. There was no impact.
    Nick opened his eyes to realize he was still falling from the sky. This time, however, he was falling along side the great mountain he had climbed earlier. Above him was a blue sky.
    He maneuvered himself so that he was no longer facing the rocky mountain. Below him he saw the dirt road he had traveled and the acres of trees on either side of the road.
    He came closer and closer to hitting the dirt road. This time he did not shield his eyes. When he arrived at the dirt road at unreal speeds he simply went through it as if he had gone through a cloud.
    He was still free falling and a few hundred feet below him was the grand king’s room. The golden throne sat there idly as Nick hurled towards it. Within seconds Nick fell directly onto the throne.
    Nick’s eyes sprang open and his body rose up from the bed of leaves. He startled Andrew, Jeffrey, and Jacob. He breathed heavily and sweat flew down his face.
    “You made it,” said Andrew. “Good. Very good.”
    Nick still breathed heavily as he remembered every single event that had just taken place in his mind.
    “Lie back down, Nick,” said Andrew. “Tomorrow will be filled with nothing but sleep and more sleep after that for you, Nick.”
    Nick was exhausted. The supreme Reza transformation had taken a toll on his entire body. He lay back down on the bed of leaves and closed his eyes. He instantly fell asleep.

Chapter Four
    Penny Goldstem found herself to be in a terrible situation. She had just arrived in Genold City on the night the king was slain in front of the public’s eye. She was in the crowd of people in the courtyard that witnessed the horrid act.
    She had came to Genold City to surprise Nick and to be by his side. She made the decision to leave her home to her parents’ dismay. She made the choice because what she felt for Nick was unparalleled.
    She had no idea where Nick was but she knew that he was in the city somewhere and that he was meant to serve the king. She had no idea that Nick was standing at the front of the crowd with Jeffrey, while she stood in the back.
    When the king’s throat was cut there was a massive panic. People all around her began to scream and push and shove as they franticly tried to return to their homes for safety.
    She had no home to run to. She had no one to run to. She was simply there alone in a state of panic of her own. She immediately felt unsafe and decided to run with the crowd.
    Hundreds of people ran down an alley just south of the grand courtyard. Penny kept up with the momentum of the crowd. She knew that if she tried to slow down that there was a chance she would get pushed to the ground and then trampled over.
    She was not the tallest girl; she was average in height. Although she could not see over the majority of the people in front of her, she still managed to see a family going into a small home in a left alley along the main dirt street. She squeezed her way past a few people to her left and ended up in the alley.
    Just as the door was about to close, she yelled, “Wait!”
    She ran over to the propped open door to find a family of Reza on the other side of the door. There was a short,