by Sam Ferguson
Then, the rumbling stopped and the group reached the top only to discover a horde of seventy trolls standing in a semi-circle around the opening, waiting for them.
“Didn’t they all run away last time?” Jason asked.
“Looks like they aren’t running this time,” Ziegler said.
“What are we going to do?” Jonathan asked.
Miranda then gently pulled away from the two brothers and took in a deep breath. She turned to the angry, snarling horde of trolls and stood there, staring at them.
“Miranda,” Jonathan called. “Come back, get behind me.” Jonathan moved to step in front of her, but she shot him a warning glare and shook her head. The amulet around her neck was glowing so brightly that a ball of purple light engulfed her as she turned back to the trolls and screamed with all of her rage and hate. Fire swirled out from her hands and formed a protective ring around the group while a stream of white flames shot out of her mouth and engulfed the enemy horde. Shrieks and howls went up around them, and then all was turned to silver ash as the trolls were destroyed. Miranda’s black hair flowed out behind her as the power continued to surge through and around her. Then, her hair turned as white as snow and the fire faded away. Her knees went week and she collapsed to the side. Jonathan rushed in to catch her just before she hit the ground.
“Miranda?” he cried.
Ziegler was there in an instant, with a finger on her neck. “Her heart still beats,” she is just exhausted. “Come, let’s go and take shelter.”
“Think there are any more trolls?” Jason asked.
Ziegler glanced to the piles of ash and then shook his head. “I don’t think so. We’ll be safe enough now. Come on.”
“What are we going to do?” Jason asked.
Ziegler sighed and took Miranda in his arms to carry her. “When we were captured, Ruben overheard the elves talking about the missing crystal in Shuldern. We should try to go there.”
“You mean the Astral Shard?” Jason pressed.
Ziegler shook his head. “No, there is some other crystal Brykith was looking for. The elves didn’t realize that Ruben could understand them, so they spoke fairly freely. It’s something like the one we found in Tomyn. Ruben described them as pieces to some sort of large, magical scrying device that can be used to find the location of the Astral Shard.”
“If Brykith can teleport, we may not reach Shuldern before he does,” Jonathan put in.
Ziegler nodded. “We can’t carry Miranda that far over our shoulders. Besides, Ruben said they only thought the crystal was there. It didn’t sound like they were going to march in and take it from the dwarves. Ruben said that it sounded as though it was something they were planning to do at some point in the future, after they released the demon. But, seeing that now they failed to release the demon, I will bet that the elves involved will have to act much more covertly from this point on.”
The group moved into the nearest structure and located a bedroom to lay Miranda down in. Then, Jonathan and Jason went out to surrounding buildings to find food and other supplies.
As soon as Miranda was ready, they would begin the journey to Shuldern.
EPILOGUE
Nagé sat upon a cloud as it drifted over Tanglewood Forest. She always loved riding the clouds at night. It made Terramyr appear so much more peaceful than it really was. Up here, she could almost forget about the troubles and strife she had witnessed since the dawn of time. Her deep brown eyes watched the quiet trees so very far below as she gently floated eastward upon the cloud. The moon rose high in the sky, bathing everything in its silvery light below. It was her favorite time of day; the few moments in the quiet of the night, just before she started her rounds retrieving the souls of the dead that had died during the day, and were worthy enough to be brought to her husband Tangui, Icadion’s younger brother. Of course, the gates to Bifrost had been closed for millennia, and only few souls ever justified opening the bridge to Volganor, but Nagé and Tangui did their best to provide a peaceful rest in Zintara, where Bifrost connected with Terramyr.
She stood on the cloud and unfurled her great, white wings, preparing to take flight and search for the just souls waiting for guidance below, but just then something caught her eye. Even from her position high up within the night sky, she could see a great building collapse upon itself down below, just east of Tanglewood Forest and west of the Nahktun Mountain Range.
Nagé knew the place well, for Inghali was a city of ill repute among the gods, known for the bloodthirsty souls that thrived there. A great sound of weeping rose up through the air and filled her ears. Her heart grew heavy for the suffering they experienced. Her head dropped low and a tear formed in her left eye. She closed her eyes and looked away as the sounds of crying and screaming grew louder, for it was not only the mourning survivors she heard, but also the souls of the dead, who were only now becoming aware that they had been ripped from their mortal bodies.
The goddess flew down toward the ruin as the dust settled.
Flashes of light twinkled through the ruins and the rubble even before she reached it.
As she had expected, there were far more scarlet hued lights than there were blue.
The souls began pouring out from the ruin, wandering around, confused and in shock. When she stepped down in the midst of four Pes’Tai nobles, they cowered away from her. They could not see their own lights, Nagé knew; that was only a gift she and a couple other gods possessed. However, those who had been unjust in their mortal life were brought to feel their guilt and shame before her as she walked among them.
A young Pes’Tai girl, who was perhaps only four years old in terms of time upon Terramyr, stood up from the rubble and grew into a full woman before Nagé. The soul twinkled blue, and Nagé pressed her thumb to the elf’s forehead. The elf smiled and drifted away toward Zintara.
Nagé looked upon all of the others with pity, for none of them had the blue light that signified they were worthy to go to Zintara.
A great streak of black lightning broke from the ground and grew into a rift before her. Nagé waited patiently as Khefir, the son of Khullan, stepped through the rift. He was a god, like Nagé, but he no longer had a body of flesh like she did. Icadion had punished him many years before, and stripped him down to a skeleton as retribution for an injury Khefir had inflicted.
His loose, black robes hung around the skeletal hand that reached out to point at the nearest soul that twinkled scarlet. Like Nagé, Khefir could see the lights. His job was to collect the souls of the unjust, and lead them away to Hammenfein, where his older brother Hatmul would pronounce judgments in accordance with their wicked deeds, and assign them an appropriate level of hell.
Many in the mortal realm cursed Khefir, as did many of the souls revile against him now as he appeared, but Nagé understood his role for what it was. She bowed her head to him, and then continued walking as he began to collect souls and send them to his brother.
Nagé saw only two more blue souls in the rubble. They were not elves, but human. One of them was extremely tall and muscular, the other shorter, but by no means short. In them she saw something that she rarely saw, even among the souls found worthy enough to send to her husband. In the center of their blue lights there was a bright orb of white.
She smiled at them and reached out her hands. They stepped forward and each placed a hand up to hers. As they did so, she saw their lives from the moment they were born, until their tragic, self-sacrificing deaths.
Nagé wept for them and then pulled her hands back. “Moose and Bull,” she said in a soft voice. “Your sacrifice here has done more than you could have possibly known. You have brought down the largest clans of the Pes’Tai, which will put an end to their unjust, vicious wars against the Kratii for many years to come. You have saved countless lives. More than that, you made it possible for your comrades to escape.”
“Will they find Raven?” Moose asked.
Nagé smiled and looked to the tall man and shook her he
ad. “I do not see the future, for I do not have such gifts. However, I can tell you that I have not seen Raven’s soul. He is still alive.” She stepped forward then, moving closer to them and flared out her wings. Neither of the men flinched in her presence. They stood tall, and proud. She smiled at this, and made her final decision. “If you will accept it, I have a special role for the two of you to play. Reach out your hands, and I will make you instruments of my will.”
Moose and Bull reached out without hesitation. A shining light, like a bright star, formed in their hands as she placed her palm over theirs. A loud, high-pitched ring expanded out over the air around them, and then all three vanished into the night.
About the Author
Sam Ferguson is a fairly average guy.
That’s it.
No, really, that’s it.
Oh- you are actually reading this?
Well… the truth is that Sam is a very lucky guy. He juggles work in such a way that he makes sure to spend enough time with his loving wife and five sons. He is blessed to be writing full time now. In his spare time he is an avid powerlifter, and competes from time to time.
He spent nearly five years serving as a U.S. Diplomat and absolutely loved the experience, but decided to move back home. Outside of the U.S. he has lived in Latvia, Hungary, and Armenia. He speaks Russian, Hungarian, and Armenian. (He used to speak some Latvian too, but he has no one to practice with anymore…)
He has a large, happy dog.
He plays the Elder Scrolls series.
His favorite superhero is Wolverine, but Batman is a close second.
If the kids go to bed at a reasonable hour, he will cuddle up with his wife to watch Scrubs reruns, the Big Bang Theory, Castle, and Burn Notice.
See, really just an average guy after all.
If you enjoyed this book, then join Sam Ferguson’s Facebook page, sign up for alerts on his Amazon page where we would encourage you to leave reviews on the books you have read, or you can follow Sam on his author blog:
www.talesfromterramyr.com/ and on his weight lifting blog: www.steeldads.blogspot.com
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See the full collection of Dragon Scale Books by visiting:
www.dragonscalebooks.com
About Terramyr
This book is a story from the world of Terramyr, a world which is part of a grand fantasy universe.* The world of Terramyr is rich in stories of adventure and magic, where struggles of the small and mighty alike are worthy of being told. Each story reflects a different point in time where the course of Terramyr’s history is affected; all paths leading to a moment when the life of Terramyr will be weighed in the cosmic balance.
Terramyr is a palimpsest of fantastic history and magic, where different ages of gods and mortals have given rise to heroes and villains of all sorts, from each corner of the world.
The life of Terramyr is measured in five major eras of time, each a testament to the strength of will of mortals and those who would seek to become gods. Covering over 12,000 years of Terramyr’s history the struggles of each race, from orcs to demigods, from elves to gnomes, are recorded by author Sam Ferguson.
We invite you to take a walk in the wild jungles of Prirodha, explore the verdant seacoast of the Elven Isles, climb the snowy peaks of the Dryden Range, delve the mighty caverns of the Dwarves of Roegudok Hall, discover the hidden treasures of the merpeople of the Ilion Ocean, and to share the adventures which take place in many more beautiful, exciting locations across the world of Terramyr.
You can learn more about the World of Terramyr at
Terramyr.wikia.com
And
www.TalesFromTerramyr.blogspot.com
And
www.DragonScaleBooks.com
*Related worlds include Kendualdern, a world where dragons rule.
While each series or stand-alone book which is part of the World of Terramyr can be enjoyed on its own, the more you explore, the more you will find easter eggs, learn about the mythology and history of the world, and the more you may come to discover the extent of the powers interested in guiding Terramyr to its final end.
You can enjoy the stories in any order you choose, but for readers who are interested in knowing where in the chronology of Terramyr a given story falls, here is a chronological list of the stories (those currently available, and those yet to come) that take place on the World of Terramyr.
Pre–history and Creation Era
The Dragons of Kendualdern series
The Dragons of Kendualdern: Dominion (Coming Soon
The Dragons of Kendualdern: Hunted (Coming Soon)
The Dragons of Kendualdern: Rebellion (Coming Soon)
The Dragons of Kendualdern: Annihilation (Coming Soon)
The World Seed (Coming Soon)
Ancient Era (1,000 years)
Dark Ages aka The Era of Kings (3,500 years)
Flight of the Krilo (Year 365)
Age of Demigods (5,000 years)
The Haymaker Adventures (Year 3,500)
The Sorceress of Aspenwood Series (Years 3,676 – 3,677)
The Dragon’s Champion Series (Years 3,709 – 3,711)
The Netherworld Gate Series (Year 3,710)
Winter’s Ghost (Year 3,710)
The Wealth of Kings (Year 3,711)
The Crystal Spire (Year 3,715) (Coming Soon)
The Fur Trader (Year 3,720)
Common Era (1,700 years)
Enlightened Era aka Age of Wonders (1,000 years…?)
Other Books by Sam Ferguson
The Sorceress of Aspenwood Series
The Dragon’s Champion Series
The Wealth of Kings
The Netherworld Gate Series
The Dragons of Kendualdern series
The Fur Trader
The Haymaker Adventures
Flight of the Krilo
Winter’s Ghost (Novella)
The Moon Dragon
The Beast of Blue Mountain
The Dwarves of Roegudok Hall comic Episode 1
Other Books by Dragon Scale Publishing
The Lost City of Alfarin by Keaton James and Sam Ferguson
The Protector of Esparia by Lisa M. Wilson
Kingdom of Denall Series by Eric Buffington:
The Troven
Secrets at the Keep
The Changing
Tales of the NoWhere and NeverWhen by Jason Hauser
Wisp the Wayfinder
Puck the Pathwinder
Nobb the Nightbinder
Also available exclusively on the
Dragon Scale website:
Tharzule’s Tome of Wishes by Malinda Smiley
Orcs and Elves by Bethan Owen
For the latest updates, follow Sam’s Author Page, Blog, Twitter @Author_SamFerg and Facebook
You can enter monthly giveaways for books and other prizes by signing up for Dragon Scale Publishing’s newsletter and keeping up with the authors and publishing company via Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.
