Son of Khyber: Thorn of Breland Read Online Free Page A

Thorn and her companions couldn’t give these enemies time to bring magic to bear.
    The target’s just ahead
. Mayne’s thoughts pressed into her mind, calm and steady.
Just ahead, beyond a narrow corridor. Two guards in the chamber
.
    If the information is good
, Thorn replied.
    Mayne shrugged.
    Thorn slid along the nearest crate, peering carefully around the edge. She could see the passage, and it was narrow indeed. Barely wide enough to walk through, let alone swing a sword. She fixed her eyes on a point at the very center of the entrance. Watch and wait.
    As she’d expected, there was a faint ripple, something an untrained eye might dismiss as a trick of the imagination. Thorn knew better. She drew a lens froma belt pouch and stared through the glass at the empty space; then she rotated the lens, looking through the other side.
    An alarm
, she thought.
And the hallway becomes a chokepoint for whatever they can bring to bear
.
    Can you silence it?
Lharen’s thoughts were a comforting presence in Thorn’s mind.
    Given time. But the focal point is inside the corridor. I’d be completely exposed, and with the amount of time it’s likely to take—I’m sure they’d see me
.
    So turn invisible
.
    Thorn shook her head.
Not all of us are master sorcerers. I drew on all the energy I could muster to hide our tracks. If this is the end, I think surprise and confusion are our best weapons
. She pointed to the ring on her left hand.
Time to put these to work
.
    Lharen nodded.
Night’s shadow
.
    As far down the corridor as possible. Mayne, take point and left. I’ll follow. Lharen, stay back. Cover if you can, but we can’t risk you getting caught in the fire
.
    She could feel Lharen’s reluctance. He hated staying back when she was in danger. But his mystical skills were the key to accomplishing their mission. Thorn and Mayne were expendable, but Lharen needed to reach the target alive.
    Mayne caught Thorn’s eye and raised his arm. A rectangle of shimmering energy appeared across his forearm, a shield almost as wide as the passage itself.
    Thorn reached out for Lharen with her thoughts.
Now
.
    Stepping out from the crates, Lharen swept his hand toward the hallway.
“Mabar asht tol!”
he said, flexing his fingers in an intricate pattern. A bolt of energy flowed from his hand, a narrow column of dark mist that moved with astonishing speed. The murkybeam expanded as it moved forward, filling the corridor entirely.
    Mayne charged, his shield raised in front of him. Thorn was right behind him.
    She stepped into the shadows, and everything went black. But only for a moment. The ring on her finger was enchanted to let her eyes pierce the dark, and even as she pressed forward, her surroundings snapped back into view, painted in stark shades of black and white.
    She felt a burst of heat, and Mayne staggered as something struck his shield. But the guards ahead were casting blind. They couldn’t see what was coming.
    Mayne slammed into the soldier standing in the archway ahead, knocking him back and to the side. Thorn slipped in behind him. The second knight had raised his wand and was tracking Mayne’s movements, following the sounds of battle. Thorn knocked the wand from his hand and followed the blow with a quick thrust at his throat. She didn’t expect it to be that easy, and it wasn’t; the soldier was fast and called out a word of shielding the instant his wand slipped from his grasp. Thorn’s dagger flew back from his neck, and it was all she could do to keep hold of it. He made a sharp gesture with his hand. A wind rose in the room, a gale that pounded into Thorn, pushing her back from her foe.
    No time to waste. The soldiers were blind, but there was no knowing what alarms or wards they could activate. The knight raised his hand to cast another spell, and Thorn threw her dagger. The blade lanced straight through his outstretched palm, the point driving through his hand and pinning it to his chest. Hardly a lethal