So, here it is, the last part of the story. I hope you have enjoyed this. It’s been a bit of an experiment so if you have enjoyed it please let me know.

If you missed previous instalments, you can read Part One Here, Part Two Here, Part Three Here, Part Four Here.

~~~*~~~

Old Friends: a Tale of the Holtlands

Part Five

The light burst into a million fragments, whirling about them like a nest of fireflies struck in two. Reese gasped for breath, as if doused in water. The shock from the breaking of his spell, and horror to see how close he had come to succumbing covered his face. He stumbled back, clinging to Elysse.

The Enchassa screamed a curse. Her body swirled to smoke and shadows and, an instant later, she reformed right beside the lovers. She lashed out towards Elysse and the twisted claws she bore for nails sliced into the girl’s throat. Reese tried to turn, to defend his betrothed but too late. His mouth distended in a silent scream. The Enchassa turned on him, ready to finish the slaughter. But before she could, the power Tyria had always sensed in him detonated.

Continue reading Free Read: Old Friends, Part Five →

Today its part Four of Old Friends. If you missed them, you can read Part One Here, Part Two Here and Part Three Here.

~~~*~~~

Old Friends: a Tale of the Holtlands

Part Four

Tyria only heard the faintest sound to warn her of attack. Turning, she caught the Fell’s stomach with the swinging blade, disembowelling it. It kept coming, momentum propelling it. The extended claws sliced through the heavy leather of her jerkin.

Armour, she thought through the wave of pain that engulfed her. I need armour. She kicked the next attacker in the gut, and beheaded it. Lots and lots of really strong armour.

Hot slick  blood spread through her cotton undershirt.

Keep moving, she ordered herself. Don’t think about them, about Reese, about anything. Keep moving. If you stop, you die.

The blob of light moved further out over the lake of blood and all around her the dark shadows, with claws as sharp as steel, writhed and thickened. Their own rancid blood pooled beneath her feet, and splattered across her face. She spat it out.

Continue reading Free Read: Old Friends, Part Four →

Part Three of Old Friends today. If you missed it, you can read Part One Here and Part Two Here.

~~~*~~~

Old Friends: a Tale of the Holtlands

Part Three

The cave, which formed the entrance to the abandoned mine, was a dark cleft in the rock face, as if a giant had smote a gash through the side of the mountain. Nothing would induce the horses to go any nearer. They couldn’t have taken them in there anyway. But the reaction told Tyria all she needed to know. Dancer’s instincts were good and Tyria trusted the horse. There could be no doubt now. Too many pieces slotted right into place. Tyria drew her sword and lifted it as if in salute. Closing her eyes, she whispered a prayer to Al-V’Annin the Bright, Warrior god and Avenger of the Lost. He remained the one god in whom she felt able to place her trust and here, now, she needed his protection. The metal pressed cold and hard against her palm. It sucked away every last weakness from her. Her foster sister, had once declared that the sword was Tyria’s true love, her one and only bedfellow. Sometimes that thought was a comfort but there were also times when Tyria prayed for it not to be true.

Continue reading Free Read: Old Friends, Part Three →

Part Two of Old Friends today. If you missed it, you can read Part One Here

~~~*~~~

Old Friends: a Tale of the Holtlands

Part Two

They rode through the forest Tyria remembered as bright and green, filled with birdsong and the rustling of living things. Around the manor, the forest remained the same, but as they climbed into the hills, the birdsong died away, and shadows clung to the edges of her vision. Fewer flowers crowded the edges of the path, and finally they vanished, leaving only briars and weeds.

Reese sagged in the saddle, more affected by the change than she was.

“Are you all right?”

“Yes. But it hurts inside, as if this will never recover. Can’t you feel it? The earth itself is fighting a sickness.”

“What sort of sickness?” She knew, or could guess, but she asked anyway to keep him talking. It always started like this. A poison, a curse, the Fell.

Continue reading Free Read: Old Friends, Part Two →