AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I need to end this quickly. I have no way of knowing what’s happening in Tyron right now. The longer the undead roam my lands, the more dangerous the situation becomes.
I can’t allow the people of Tyron to face that sort of danger.
If I can destroy the necromancer in one fell swoop, the threat will be gone.
For the first time in my life, I’m truly grateful for the powers that have been bestowed upon me by my mother’s rare vampiric blood. For the first time, I’m not left wondering. Perhaps that was her parting gift to me—the gift ofknowing.
The cool afternoon breeze whips my hair as I soar through the skies, high above the red-tiled rooftops of the outskirts of Lukiria. My body feels light, thanks to Finley’s intoxicating blood. The warmth of the setting sun touches my face without burning me. The broadsword sheathed at my waist feels light as a feather, and my armor hardly weighs me down.
I feel invincible.
Dangerously so.Caution.I can’t afford to become overconfident and complacent.
I drop through the clouds; through the deepening darkness, as evening descends upon the capital. The short winter day has passed, and night is settling upon the land once again.
I land on the parapet of an outer wall, just for a heartbeat. With a single leap I’m in the air again, my legs generating immense force; enough to propel me for several leagues.
I soar over the outskirts of the capital; blocks upon blocks of small, haphazardly constructed dwellings. Rickety lean-tos made of salvaged timber and thatch. Clay brick houses with small bent chimneys exuding lazy plumes of woodsmoke, fires burning as the residents prepare for the onset of the bitterly cold night.
This place has grown since I was here last. There must be thousands living here; entire families squeezed into dwellings less than the size of my own chambers.
The narrow streets are made of packed Earth. Refuse lines the gutters. I catch a tendril of scent; of bodies and cooking and woodsmoke and waste.
For all the empire’s riches, people still live like this. My father’s always had a habit of turning a blind eye to them.
But I won’t.
I leave the outskirts of the city behind, travelling over a scattering of farms and industrial areas. There’s the forest, up ahead. I descend. Land. Leap. Again and again, gathering momentum, moving faster than I ever thought I could.
I follow the map that’s etched into my mind. Over forests and rivers and rock formations. Across roads and well-trodden paths. I pass villages and hamlets, their windows suffused with the warm glow of lamplight.
Warding against the darkness; against the things that cause terror in the night.
Like me.
The air changes, becoming warmer, infused with a hint of humidity. The gleaming Ophirion river system stretches out before me, burnished golden by the glow of the setting sun.
The forests change, leaves appearing on the trees; there are more evergreens here. The fragrance of early spring fills my nostrils.
The scent reminds me of my betrothed.
Hurry.
I can’t afford to become distracted by thoughts of her right now.
And I’m filled with an increasing sense of urgency. I can’t afford to let anything happen to her mother. I know how important she is to Finley.
I swear by Hecoa, I’ll protect anyone and anything that’s important to her.
What’s hers is mine now.
What’s mine is hers.
I land at the edge of the river, where the snaking water coalesces into a wide delta filled with reeds and birdlife.
The welcome cloak of darkness is settling upon the land. I embrace it. I feel comfortable in the midst of it, for I can see perfectly under the cover of the night that hides.
I’m pretty certain I’ve crossed into the Talavarra lands by now. I’ve only been here a handful of times, but I recognize the distinctive vegetation; the wide, flat leaves, and spearlike trees that look more like gigantic grasses. The branches and trunks are covered in patches of green and silver lichen, mosses draped across them like remnants of some ghostly, ethereal being.
