Nature's Peril Part 1 (The Nature Mage Series) Read Online Free Page B

the holiest place in the known lands, the sacred heart of worship for the followers of El-Amyari. Even small fragments of that altar are imbued with the power to resist and maybe even destroy all but the very highest demons. If we can obtain those fragments, we will have obtained a powerful weapon to use against Shirukai Sestin.”
    “How do we know that’s not just a myth?” Taurnil asked.
    “Because I have seen it first hand,” Voltan answered. “A fragment of that altar saved me from a bale-beast. The demon almost overwhelmed me, but at the last moment I remembered the fragment, which I wore as an amulet. I pulled it from around my neck and shoved it down its throat. The demon was destroyed instantly.”
    “That works for me!” Taurnil said, clearly satisfied with the explanation.
    “But hasn’t Pell been overrun by ogres?” Lydia asked.
    “I see we have a student of history,” Hephistole responded with a smile, his eyes twinkling momentarily with a fraction of his customary enthusiasm for scholarly endeavour, but then the smile dropped away and his eyes became distant again. “Yes the Ogre Nation currently holds Pell within its territory, so instead of drawing together an army, we have formed this group. If you are willing to do so, you are to infiltrate Pell, and steal as many fragments of the altar as you can manage.” There were sharp intakes of breath from around the room.
    “Yer not serious? ” Baard said.
    “How can we get past thousands of ogres?” Talmo asked.
    “It sounds like suicide,” Zlekic said in heavily accented common.
    “Agreed,” his brother said.
    “Peace!” Hephistole said, holding out his hands placatingly. “Peace!” he repeated, and the mutterings died away. He looked at Voltan, and the warrior mage stepped forwards.
    “I know it sounds like suicide,” Voltan said, “but with such a weapon available to us, I don’t think we can refuse the opportunity to obtain it.” He looked around at the group. “We can’t make you go on such a perilous mission, but consider what we’re asking of you first before dismissing it. We’re not asking you to battle ten thousand ogres. This quest will be accomplished more by stealth than by force. The aim is to avoid combat altogether, but if it becomes unavoidable, some of you are magicians, and the rest are formidable fighters. We will not go down easily.”
    “Too right! ” Taurnil said. Gaspi sighed quietly. Since Everand’s death, he found it hard to care about pretty much anything, but Taurnil was the opposite. Everand’s murder had galvanised his best friend’s resolve, and a dangerous quest of this sort was exactly the sort of thing he would undertake without a moment’s hesitation.
    “Should you choose to take part in this quest, you shall be fully equipped to accomplish it,” Voltan added, glancing meaningfully at the cloth-covered weapons rack against the wall. “But before we get into that, who is willing to go?”
    “Count me in ,” Baard said, echoed by Taurnil, Sabu and the twins. Gaspi held back, partly because he wanting to speak to Emmy about it first and partly because going on the quest meant he would be miles away from Jonn. He’d promised not to try and help his guardian, and he intended to keep his word to a point, but if something happened and Jonn was in mortal danger, nothing in the world could stop Gaspi from intervening. If he was hundreds of miles away seeking fragments of an altar in Pell, that was no longer an option, which bothered him immensely. He glanced at Emmy, Lydia and Rimulth to see what they would say to Voltan’s question, but they didn’t give a response either.
    “There is no shame in choosing to remain here,” Hephistole interjected.
    The girls looked at each other, and then shared a glance with Rimulth. “If the spirits were here…” Emmy said, trailing off. Rimulth put a hand on her shoulder and spoke for all three of them:
    “ If the Measure has taught us anything, it