in mutual understanding.
“Please, I’m not as fast of a runner as you and Ean,” she said, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “And think of the Hero. If the creature sees us, there goes his chance to take it by surprise, making his job all the more difficult, not to mention dangerous.”
Clever girl, Ean thought. For someone so head-over-heels over Bran, Jaslen had a good idea of how to steer him in the right direction.
“You’re right, as always.” Bran flashed her a warm smile, and the two seemed to get lost in each other’s eyes. Ean felt the sudden urge to dunk both of their heads into the bog. As much as he adored Jaslen, Ean knew his chances with her were not existent as long as Bran was around. And the two were around each other all the time. Pushing his own frustration down deep inside, Ean turned his attention back to the mine.
By the time the hero came into view, the sun was half hidden by the mountains with long shadows starting to stretch across the valley. A strong wind had started to blow down out of the mountains as well, which sucked the warmth right out of the area. The three observers huddled by the end of the bog, watching the Hero as he approached the entrance to the mine with large confident strides. He had both swords drawn, twirling one in each hand as he approached the entrance. He stopped a few short paces from the mine and yelled into the entrance, but the howl of the wind drowned out his words.
But not even the wind could drown out the creature’s reply; a roar that echoed from deep in the mine shook the earth.
“By the gods,” exclaimed Bran, “what was that?” His hand moved down to the pommel of his sword. A quick glance at Jaslen found that her expression mirrored Bran’s words. Her mouth hung wide open, and she clung to Bran’s left arm with an iron grip. The older boy looked like a man ready to charge.
Ean placed a restraining hand on Bran’s sword arm, shaking his head. “Don’t even think about it.” He held tight until Bran’s arm relaxed and fell to his side. One crisis avoided, Ean turned his attention back to the mine.
The Hero had moved back a bit, realizing that killing this beast wasn’t going to be an easy feat. He stood there, face locked in the direction of the mine, the wind blowing the grass at his feet. Another roar came from inside the mine. The three of them flinched. It was much closer this time. Ean almost jumped out of his skin when Jaslen grabbed his hand as well. It was a shock at first then gave him courage as he squeezed her hand back. And then the beast emerged.
In the fading sunlight, the creature seemed larger and more terrifying than it had before. Ean’s first instinct was to run, but the pressure of Jaslen’s hand on his own rooted him to his spot.
Twice the Hero’s height, the beast seemed to hold itself up in a more human fashion than Ean remembered. It was also wearing some kind of armor that seemed patched together, with the rest of its exposed body covered in red scales that shimmered and reflected the sunlight.
It moved toward the Hero with slow and deliberate steps, its tail swaying hypnotically like a huge snake. Even though it was nowhere near the Hero yet, it reached out towards him as if it could snatch him up even from far away. The Hero was back peddling with slow, measured movements, but still appeared confident as he returned to swirling the swords in his hands. He moved with the grace of a dancer at the Harvest Festival, which Ean hadn’t expected from the robust man. The Hero might have a chance if he could out-maneuver the beast.
The beast lunged for the Hero. The distance between them closed in an instant, its giant right claw sweeping towards the Hero’s armored body. The claw passed over the Hero’s head as he ducked and rolled to his right. Ean had underestimated the overweight man’s ability. A spark of hope flared up deep inside of Ean’s chest, and he found himself rooting for the
“Please, I’m not as fast of a runner as you and Ean,” she said, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “And think of the Hero. If the creature sees us, there goes his chance to take it by surprise, making his job all the more difficult, not to mention dangerous.”
Clever girl, Ean thought. For someone so head-over-heels over Bran, Jaslen had a good idea of how to steer him in the right direction.
“You’re right, as always.” Bran flashed her a warm smile, and the two seemed to get lost in each other’s eyes. Ean felt the sudden urge to dunk both of their heads into the bog. As much as he adored Jaslen, Ean knew his chances with her were not existent as long as Bran was around. And the two were around each other all the time. Pushing his own frustration down deep inside, Ean turned his attention back to the mine.
By the time the hero came into view, the sun was half hidden by the mountains with long shadows starting to stretch across the valley. A strong wind had started to blow down out of the mountains as well, which sucked the warmth right out of the area. The three observers huddled by the end of the bog, watching the Hero as he approached the entrance to the mine with large confident strides. He had both swords drawn, twirling one in each hand as he approached the entrance. He stopped a few short paces from the mine and yelled into the entrance, but the howl of the wind drowned out his words.
But not even the wind could drown out the creature’s reply; a roar that echoed from deep in the mine shook the earth.
“By the gods,” exclaimed Bran, “what was that?” His hand moved down to the pommel of his sword. A quick glance at Jaslen found that her expression mirrored Bran’s words. Her mouth hung wide open, and she clung to Bran’s left arm with an iron grip. The older boy looked like a man ready to charge.
Ean placed a restraining hand on Bran’s sword arm, shaking his head. “Don’t even think about it.” He held tight until Bran’s arm relaxed and fell to his side. One crisis avoided, Ean turned his attention back to the mine.
The Hero had moved back a bit, realizing that killing this beast wasn’t going to be an easy feat. He stood there, face locked in the direction of the mine, the wind blowing the grass at his feet. Another roar came from inside the mine. The three of them flinched. It was much closer this time. Ean almost jumped out of his skin when Jaslen grabbed his hand as well. It was a shock at first then gave him courage as he squeezed her hand back. And then the beast emerged.
In the fading sunlight, the creature seemed larger and more terrifying than it had before. Ean’s first instinct was to run, but the pressure of Jaslen’s hand on his own rooted him to his spot.
Twice the Hero’s height, the beast seemed to hold itself up in a more human fashion than Ean remembered. It was also wearing some kind of armor that seemed patched together, with the rest of its exposed body covered in red scales that shimmered and reflected the sunlight.
It moved toward the Hero with slow and deliberate steps, its tail swaying hypnotically like a huge snake. Even though it was nowhere near the Hero yet, it reached out towards him as if it could snatch him up even from far away. The Hero was back peddling with slow, measured movements, but still appeared confident as he returned to swirling the swords in his hands. He moved with the grace of a dancer at the Harvest Festival, which Ean hadn’t expected from the robust man. The Hero might have a chance if he could out-maneuver the beast.
The beast lunged for the Hero. The distance between them closed in an instant, its giant right claw sweeping towards the Hero’s armored body. The claw passed over the Hero’s head as he ducked and rolled to his right. Ean had underestimated the overweight man’s ability. A spark of hope flared up deep inside of Ean’s chest, and he found himself rooting for the
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