The Legend Thief Read Online Free Page B
Author: Unknown
Frustrated, Sky closed his eyes, opened his senses, and let his mind fill in the blanks a trap-building technique Phineas had taught him years ago.
He imagined himself standing in front of a window. Through the window, he imagined the Piebalds flapping and cawing, the moon rising, the trees growing, until the image in his mind vaguely resembled his actual surroundings. He spot ted the nearest Piebald and imagined a rope leading from the window to the Piebald-from his body to the Piebald's body, as it were.
Sky opened his imaginary window and stepped to the Edge, doing something Phineas had never taught him-something he'd figured out after edgewalking with Errand last year.
A strange wind picked up, arising from everywhere and nowhere, buffeting Sky. He struggled to hold his imagined world together, fixing more and more details until the winds calmed down. Normally, he'd spend several minutes working on details and shaping the Edge-the strange space his mind had to cross to reach the Piebald-until it was stable and safe, but he only had seconds, not minutes.
Taking a deep, calming breath, he stepped onto the rope and lurched forward, leaving his body behind. Almost immediately the winds rose up again, stronger than before. Sky made the mistake of glancing down. The road below shifted and the asphalt began to boil. Frantic, he pushed on, focusing on the rope and the Piebald.
The wind uprooted the trees and sent them flying through the air. Sky's imagined world fell apart around him. A raging storm of darkness and crackling energy seeped through the road. Sky focused, recalling detail after detail. But as the road re-formed-driving the storm back-the tightrope began to shake and the Piebald's feathers shifted color. Sky focused all his attention on the rope and the Piebald, letting the rest of his world fall apart.
The storm roared in from all directions, throwing the fractured remnants of his world to the four winds. Boiling light and freezing darkness tore at his mind. He stumbled and, for a moment, feared he'd fall as he had the first time he'd edge walked, when Errand had pushed him into Rauschtlot's mind and he'd tumbled through that storm and felt his conscious ness torn apart until he'd nearly forgotten who he was.
The tightrope slipped away and Sky jumped the last few feet, reaching for the Piebald. As he touched it, the world shifted around him and he was suddenly in the Piebald's head, seeing the memory it wanted to show him, the whole complicated process over in less than five seconds.
And what he saw terrified him.
Chapter 3: Unexpected Guests
Frantic, and hoping the monster hunters noticed his collapsed body, Sky forgot about all else and leaped from Piebald to Piebald, heedless of the distance and the rushing storms ripping at him- the tightrope barely formed before he jumped to the next. Sky moved faster and faster, ignoring more and more details until Piebald stick figures flew over childlike landscapes that ripped apart the second he entered them. He leaped before the next Piebald's image even formed in his mind. Wings sprouted from his back and the storm exploded around him. He sailed through the hidden forces of the world , the chaos of the Edge.
Gale-force winds pounded him, tearing at his mind, ripping him apart.
He smashed into the last Piebald and the storm finally disappeared. In seconds, he'd leaped across a distance that would've taken a Piebald precious minutes to fly.
Pimiscule Manor spread out below him with its domed tower, wandering corridors, and sprawling wings, and he saw in real time what he'd only glimpsed in the Piebald's memory: dozens of dark figures creeping through the woods, gardens, and fields surrounding the manor, closing in on his home and his unsuspecting family within.
He heard a rumbling on the cobblestone drive, and then Hannah, his sister, pulled up in front of the manor in her beater car-a gift for
He imagined himself standing in front of a window. Through the window, he imagined the Piebalds flapping and cawing, the moon rising, the trees growing, until the image in his mind vaguely resembled his actual surroundings. He spot ted the nearest Piebald and imagined a rope leading from the window to the Piebald-from his body to the Piebald's body, as it were.
Sky opened his imaginary window and stepped to the Edge, doing something Phineas had never taught him-something he'd figured out after edgewalking with Errand last year.
A strange wind picked up, arising from everywhere and nowhere, buffeting Sky. He struggled to hold his imagined world together, fixing more and more details until the winds calmed down. Normally, he'd spend several minutes working on details and shaping the Edge-the strange space his mind had to cross to reach the Piebald-until it was stable and safe, but he only had seconds, not minutes.
Taking a deep, calming breath, he stepped onto the rope and lurched forward, leaving his body behind. Almost immediately the winds rose up again, stronger than before. Sky made the mistake of glancing down. The road below shifted and the asphalt began to boil. Frantic, he pushed on, focusing on the rope and the Piebald.
The wind uprooted the trees and sent them flying through the air. Sky's imagined world fell apart around him. A raging storm of darkness and crackling energy seeped through the road. Sky focused, recalling detail after detail. But as the road re-formed-driving the storm back-the tightrope began to shake and the Piebald's feathers shifted color. Sky focused all his attention on the rope and the Piebald, letting the rest of his world fall apart.
The storm roared in from all directions, throwing the fractured remnants of his world to the four winds. Boiling light and freezing darkness tore at his mind. He stumbled and, for a moment, feared he'd fall as he had the first time he'd edge walked, when Errand had pushed him into Rauschtlot's mind and he'd tumbled through that storm and felt his conscious ness torn apart until he'd nearly forgotten who he was.
The tightrope slipped away and Sky jumped the last few feet, reaching for the Piebald. As he touched it, the world shifted around him and he was suddenly in the Piebald's head, seeing the memory it wanted to show him, the whole complicated process over in less than five seconds.
And what he saw terrified him.
Chapter 3: Unexpected Guests
Frantic, and hoping the monster hunters noticed his collapsed body, Sky forgot about all else and leaped from Piebald to Piebald, heedless of the distance and the rushing storms ripping at him- the tightrope barely formed before he jumped to the next. Sky moved faster and faster, ignoring more and more details until Piebald stick figures flew over childlike landscapes that ripped apart the second he entered them. He leaped before the next Piebald's image even formed in his mind. Wings sprouted from his back and the storm exploded around him. He sailed through the hidden forces of the world , the chaos of the Edge.
Gale-force winds pounded him, tearing at his mind, ripping him apart.
He smashed into the last Piebald and the storm finally disappeared. In seconds, he'd leaped across a distance that would've taken a Piebald precious minutes to fly.
Pimiscule Manor spread out below him with its domed tower, wandering corridors, and sprawling wings, and he saw in real time what he'd only glimpsed in the Piebald's memory: dozens of dark figures creeping through the woods, gardens, and fields surrounding the manor, closing in on his home and his unsuspecting family within.
He heard a rumbling on the cobblestone drive, and then Hannah, his sister, pulled up in front of the manor in her beater car-a gift for
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