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CHAPTER ONE
Invasion. “We cannot burn the ships now – there are slaves onboard and many are children!” The Lady Elite stood on the high cliffs of Peak’s Watch, her chief commander at her side, the fresh breeze buffeting their cloaks. She gazed at the bay below where several cutters stood at anchor, the crews loading the last of the captive villagers aboard from dinghies. “Dealing with the raids in Merl and Trento cost us too much time,” she said with a frown toward the Gaian commander beside her. “We were spread too thin… these dogs have already razed Westerlea!” She turned to look inland over the burning village and beyond to a dust cloud of fast-approaching riders. “I was mistaken to think we could fire every ship before it landed. I misjudged the numbers… they were cloaked by wards I have never encountered before.” She glanced along the rocky headland to her dragon, perched on the highest point as he observed the scene below, flicking his tail restlessly. “There are too many, even for Ra!” She chewed her lip in a rare show of indecision. “All the same,” remarked the silver-eyed warrior at her side. “They look about to cast off… they’ll escape if we do not do something quickly!” He smiled grimly. “Sometimes efficiency is at odds with humanity, my Lady. Weigh the alternatives. Perhaps a quick death by fire is better than what awaits them across the Western Sea… if it were my child…” Lady Espira frowned disapprovingly at General Xandor, who looked equally unhappy with that choice, despite his words. “A last resort, my Lady,” he amended, “However, I urge you to consider it – only if our alternative fails. There is still time to steal the wind from their sails… slow them down. But we can only do so much… the air currents out on the ocean are numerous and changeable, more difficult to control. It is possible that more than one of those ships could strike a favourable breeze. They are seasoned mariners. Whether they are aware of our magic or not, if we rob them of sail, they will set the captives to the oars without mercy to get out to open sea. They are desperate enough to think they can escape that way… and, in fact, they would not be entirely wrong!” “Set the airbenders to the wind without delay, then,” instructed Espira. “We must disable as many vessels as we can. It might not take much… by the look of some of the ships, they suffered damage on the voyage here. Form six squads of four flyers. I shall lead them myself.” “But, my Lady, my men and I can do this—” Espira’s raised her hand, silencing the general’s protest. “General Xandor, I know you only seek to protect me, nonetheless, you know that I can search out the leader, read him, and kill him faster than anyone else! If you and the fliers cut down the rigging and deal with the other captains, it will leave them without command, helpless to escape while you tackle the crews. That will buy time for Captain Ji and his cavalrymen to row out, board the ships, and get the prisoners away. Once they are all clear, I can fetch Ra and burn the fleet to ash. It is past time we put an end to this slave trade!” “Of course, my Lady,” deferred Xandor, but his eyes glittered with protective fervour. “You know this will not be the end. This is yet another small fleet in what appears to be an endless invasion. I think we should let one vessel escape – send a message to their overlord – though I expect it will stir up a hornet’s nest!” “Yes, I already know this campaign will take us across the Western Sea; vast as it is, our Gaian warriors cannot fly it and Baram does not have a sea-going force. Apart from Parnis, the entire western seaboard has little more than fishing trawlers. As you know, we have been promised the use of the Parnisian fleet, but it is insufficient. We must augment it with other ocean-going vessels.” She perused the enemy cutters. “These will be the last ships we destroy – except for one, as you suggested, purely to send a strong message. Any others that come, we must take for our own, and hopefully they will be in better shape than these! The raiders are Cerulan. Even though we repelled them from Yengi, years ago, just this year, they have become far too bold… the frequent raids now threaten the entire coast. We know almost nothing about their homeland, or of the ruler there.” Espira paced a few steps, glancing again at the vessels now weighing anchor. “So far, we have taken no prisoners, but we need information from the enemy… for that I must get closer. I can sense there is far more than a slave trade to deal with!” Espira checked her complement of arrows and loosened her sword from its scabbard, moving towards the cliff edge. Alert on his rocky perch, Ra read her intention, flexed his pinions, and clarioned his objection far more loudly than General Xandor had, drawing the attention of the slavers on the ships in the bay who, catching their first sight of a dragon, launched into even more feverish action to get under sail. Espira cast Ra a stern look and a thought which effectively quietened him before she turned back to Xandor with a small smile. “He knows it is my choice when and where to use the Destroyer… he will stay here. Perhaps, the message we send will carry even more weight now they have seen Ra! Hurry, bring the men to me before the ships get too far out for our rowers.” Xandor nodded, hastily mustering warriors from the grassy embankment behind them. “Elite flyers, to me, six of four!” As Espira surveyed the few small fishing skiffs scattered along the beach and further into the foreshore, the riders were arriving. Captain Ji reined in his distinctive striped samblar and looked up towards her, shielding his eyes with his hand. Warmed by the familiar thrum of their connection, she acknowledged his salute with a thought. Then, he and his samblar-men leapt from their mounts, tethered them in the dunes, and dragged the small boats towards the breakers. The usual apprehension snaked in her gut at having to protect her human reinforcements, particularly her husband, Ji. She made no effort to hide her anxiety, turning to Xandor who had returned to her side with the flyers. He gave her a sympathetic smile. “I know what you suffer in every battle, my Lady. I feel similar responsibility for all my men, human and Gaian alike.” She sighed. “If only we had more Gaian and hybrid warriors, though, we would not have to endanger human soldiers at all. Leaving our warriors to guard and protect in so many coastal towns, we are spread too thin…” Her wistful expression hardened. “But there is little we can do to change that.” She raised her cloak, extending her mind-shield over the fifty soldiers on the beach. “Let us do what we can now!” She launched out from the clifftop, aircloaking towards the slave ships, Xandor and his flyers in her shadow. Espira made one pass over the fleet as it spread out in a line making for open sea, the unfurled sheets picking up the natural offshore breezes. Casting her mind-sense out for the leader, she made her choice of vessel and swooped in with four flyers, while Xandor and his men peeled away to tackle the other ships. Soon, sails flapped, robbed of wind by Gaian magic, slowing the cutters’ seaward run; the lead ship reached the choppy water of the inner reef, starting to roll violently, bereft of the speed and balance of the wind. Gliding in, the Gaian fliers slashed rigging on the way down. Straight away, the order to oars was barked out along the line, the crack of whips resounding from below-ships. Every vessel surged forward again under the rowing power of terrified captives. Landing on the stern of the leading vessel, Espira’s men spread out to engage the crew. Espira’s senses singled out the captain, gleaning information from his mind – names, places, fortifications, weaknesses – in the few seconds it took to reach him. The man turned from the wheel, startled by a yell from the ship’s mate, but barely had time to grasp the hilt of his cutlass before Espira ran him through the heart. He wobbled, surprise pasted on his face, and toppled back over the forecastle railing to the deck below, joining dozens of his downed crew, Gaian arrows jutting from their bodies. Aft to fore, the deck seethed with disorientated seamen, stumbling over dead bodies, trying to fight off the flyers, slashing wildly with their swords, many outmatched by Gaian skills. At the height of the skirmish, confusion reigning, it seemed no one had yet noticed the captain fall. Espira and her men – outnumbered six to one – fought hand-to-hand for a long, crawling duration. Meanwhile, to the crack of the lash and screams of the rowers, the ship lurched further into the swell of churning water over the reef. The heavy boom, free of tethers, swung back and forth across the deck, weighed by tons of loosened sails. The vessel listed and rolled with it. Mid-deck, Espira downed two more opponents, almost too easily, and cast a glance towards shore. Several skiffs were free of the breakers and headed in her direction, Ji and his men rowing furiously. A flotilla of dinghies spread out towards the other vessels. Distracted for an instant, she was hurled to the deck face-down as the ship listed, the boom barely missing her as it swept by. The deck tipped the other way, flipping her over, and she used the momentum to jump to her feet, planting them firmly ready to fight; however, with enemy numbers thinning significantly, she found a moment’s pause, as a mighty crack sounded from above. Towering overhead, the main mast creaked and swayed ominously. It leaned, bereft of rigging on one side and damaged by the weight of wildly flapping sails, strained against one taut rope, swinging port to lea and back with the swell. The massive oak mast groaned and teetered with each wave. Beside her, long cracks widened in the mast base. She noted Ji and his men approaching portside in the dinghies, envisioned the danger, and cast a protective mantle, in case the mast broke that way. Adrenaline surged in her veins, and she seized a chance to avert the disaster as the vessel banked leawards, racing forward to sever the last rope and control the direction of the fall. One slash of her great-sword, mid-leap, she sliced through the straining fibres which released with a whoosh; the damaged mast cracked under its own weight, toppling slowly seaward. Her momentum carried her forward, ducking around beneath the falling mast. She landed back on the deck, deflecting the swipe of another enemy blade and despatching the man overboard, as the mast crashed through the starboard deck rail and splashed into the sea. With her men safe and realising her own peril, she withdrew protection to herself, but a second too late, she was struck across the chest by the rigging rope as it whipped back in recoil. She was flung backwards with such force she had no time to recover and slammed into the splintered railing. Winded, she thought, numb with shock, gasping for breath, her heart pounding in her ears. Sudden, unimaginable agony ripped through her body. A dragon screamed in the distance. Closer, she heard voices in her mother tongue. Her men? Gritting her teeth against the pain, her mind flashed with her mortality, and she looked down, observing with abject horror the timber stake which protruded from her belly. It had pierced her leather armour from back to front, impaling her on the rail. Bright crimson bubbled around the jagged end, soaking her tunic, running with an unexpected warmth down her legs though she felt ice cold. Through the fog of pain, she sensed Ra’s dive from the cliffs, even as she heard the call of the Ancestors awaiting her soul. And not hers alone… The sense of death clawed at her mind and she cursed her mistake with nauseous dread, entreating Fate, Why this? So much depends on me… Her head swam with information she had gained from the captain. This enemy is even more dangerous than we thought! She struggled to hang on to the vital details, to remain conscious, to keep another beloved soul within her protective shield. A relentless, agonising tide spread from her core, her iron will crumbled, her last thoughts stifled by crushing darkness. Chapter One - INVASION
“We cannot burn the ships now – there are slaves onboard and many are children!” The Lady Elite stood on the high cliffs of Peak’s Watch, her chief commander at her side, the fresh breeze buffeting their cloaks. She gazed at the bay below where several cutters stood at anchor, the crews loading the last of the captive villagers aboard from dinghies. “Dealing with the raids in Merl and Trento cost us too much time,” she frowned at the Gaian commander beside her. “We were spread too thin… these dogs have already razed Westerlea!” She turned to look inland over the burning village and beyond to a dust cloud of fast-approaching riders. “I was mistaken to think we could fire every ship before it landed. I misjudged the numbers… they were cloaked by wards I have never encountered before.” She glanced along the rocky headland to her dragon, perched on the highest point as he observed the scene below, flicking his tail restlessly. “There are too many, even for Ra!” She chewed her lip in a rare show of indecision. Dear Readers, to provide some insight into the beliefs and mystical talents of the Lord of Fire and his people - the magic system of The Fire Chronicles - here is a summary... GAIAN PHILOSOPHY and ELEMENTAL MAGIC “Existence has no beginning, and the notion of an ‘end’ is purely relative. Consider this phenomenon, Existence, as a series of interdimensional cycles, an ebb and flow of destruction and regeneration that can sometimes – not always – be altered by our choices. Each Realm is governed by a different set of laws, yet all are interconnected by the Eternal Flame and the inexorable Thread of Fate. The question has ever been: How do each of us find meaningful – that is to say, higher – purpose in the cycle into which we are born? Without a doubt, we must use our powers wisely.” (ext. ‘Handbook of the High Arts’ by Grand Master Churian.) The Forces of Nature Perception and Control (possessed in some measure by all Gaians, these skills require constant training and practise). Of… Material Forces, ie., Wind, Water, Earth Of… Material and Ethereal, ie., Emotions, Virtues Of… Supreme Forces, ie., The Fires: (only ever attained by dragons and the Lord of Fire) The Fire of Destruction The Fire of Love The Fire of Despair The Fire of Hope and Healing The Fire of Rage and Anger Dear Readers, I'm very excited to announce the launch of all new covers for the whole series plus the upcoming Book 4, Guardian launching 1st February 2021. Cover art by Robert Hazelton. Here's a peek.... Hi everyone, my cover for 'Lord of Fire' has been nominated for cover of the month. Please take a moment to vote for my contest entry. Help me win this thing. https://allauthor.com/cover-of-the-month/8817allauthor.com/cover-of-the-month/8817/
Epic Fantasy readers.... Great news! YA Fantasy Books has a great selection of FREE and 99c reads to share. Find your next great adventure here wp.me/p2XzvR-mp
I can personally recommend 'Cloak of the Two Winds' by Jack Massa. During July, I am running a quiz on Lord of Fire (Amazon "look inside" feature extract). Simply read the extract on Amazon, www.amazon.com/Lord-Fire-Susi-Wright-ebook/dp/B012DLSOX8 , answer the ten questions below and email them to me [email protected]. The first five correct submissions get a free ebook of Lord of Fire!
July Quiz Questions 1 Q- Name five aspects of training (mental and physical) undertaken by young Gaian warriors. 2 Q- How do Gaians prefer to travel? 3 Q- Name the younger brother. 4 Q- Who won the race and dive from the cliff? 5 Q- What item entranced the younger sibling and drew him to mischief? 6 Q- Name Chadren's wife? 7 Q- Name Chadren's trading assistant. 8 Q- In whose villa did Chadren and Fralii stay when they were in Splendo? 9 Q- Name the young samblar-handler employed by Chadren to teach Fralii to ride her new samblar. 10 Q- What incident created a great upheaval in their journey north? |
AuthorAuthor of the The Fire Chronicles Series, Susi pens her fantasy worlds for others to explore. Archives
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