even while talking, sneaking, or fighting. Only spell casting could disrupt his counting.
His students rushed past him and moved into their attack positions, following a narrow trail he’d spotted when scrying, a trail their enemy apparently didn’t know about, or had forgotten. Most of these templars had probably been children when the temple was destroyed.
Fifty-seven, fifty-eight, fifty-nine… "Uurta Kalara!” yelled Jaska using the voice he’d stolen from the templar. “All's clear!"
Jaska did not follow his men. Instead, he took a different, more difficult route. Using a spell of darksight, which allowed him to see through the night’s veil as if it were early twilight, Jaska scurried over boulders and talus with ease.
On the backside of the shrine's courtyard, he reached a sheer rise the height of three men. Jaska spoke another spell. The magic crawled down through the tendons and muscles of his legs. Once he felt the muscles tighten until it felt like they might burst, he knew the spell was ready.
He leapt up and caught the ledge.
Quickly, he glanced into the sparse courtyard. To his left, twenty yards from the shrine, the mountain's flattened summit fell into the Gasrah River Canyon. To his right the shrine melded into the surrounding rock. Opposite him, a gap in the crumbling defensive wall marked the location of the former gate.
Two templars paced the cliff edges, but currently, neither patrolled close by. The remainder waited in the courtyard's center. Within the shrine, the priestess chanted her profane rituals. He didn’t see the templars’ captain anywhere. A sixty-count passed with no reply from Uurta and the templars stiffened.
Suddenly an arrow whistled on the wind then punctured a templar's eye. The victim writhed and moaned as he died. A second arrow thunked against a readied shield as the templars took defensive positions.
Kasap and his brothers Denar and Tebyn charged through the gap and crashed into the nearest templars. Kasap swung a battle-axe in sinister arcs while Denar and Tebyn slashed with their sabers and tiger claws. The templars recoiled in surprise.
After a few moments, the three palymfar retreated, as if they were overwhelmed, drawing the templars along with them.
When the two patrolling templars rushed to join the others, Jaska climbed up into the courtyard. Blended with shadows and rain, he passed unseen and entered the shrine.
A short hallway opened into a torch-lit sanctuary thick with the dizzying smoke of burning leaves and incense. Jaska's breath caught in his throat. On the dais stood the pristine statue of the White Tigress. At the altar below knelt the priestess Zyrella. Her pale, naked flesh bore painted tiger-stripes that trailed from her onto the floor and up the dais to the statue.
Though he needed to kill Zyrella swiftly, Jaska eased forward with lethargy. Already her presence was mesmerizing him. But he willed himself on, knowing he must strike before she turned this strange force directly against him.
Buy Wrath of the White Tigress
Storm Phase
A teenage wizard burdened with a mysterious destiny, a cat-girl ninja he can't help but fall for, and a bat-winged daemon that doubles as a diary embark on a journey of self-discovery in a world teeming with monsters and magic. Perfect for fans of Percy Jackson and Avatar: the Last Airbender, this enchanting Asian-inspired fantasy series delivers fast-paced adventure for readers young and old.
Book 1: The Storm Dragon’s Heart
Turesobei dreams of adventure and a chance to prove he's no longer a child. Wizards should be careful what they wish for.
Destined to become his clan's next and perhaps greatest ever high wizard, Turesobei feels smothered under everyone's expectations. And he's fed up with people treating him like he's still a child, especially his grandfather, the current high wizard. After foiling an assassination attempt on his treasure-hunting dad, his grandfather
His students rushed past him and moved into their attack positions, following a narrow trail he’d spotted when scrying, a trail their enemy apparently didn’t know about, or had forgotten. Most of these templars had probably been children when the temple was destroyed.
Fifty-seven, fifty-eight, fifty-nine… "Uurta Kalara!” yelled Jaska using the voice he’d stolen from the templar. “All's clear!"
Jaska did not follow his men. Instead, he took a different, more difficult route. Using a spell of darksight, which allowed him to see through the night’s veil as if it were early twilight, Jaska scurried over boulders and talus with ease.
On the backside of the shrine's courtyard, he reached a sheer rise the height of three men. Jaska spoke another spell. The magic crawled down through the tendons and muscles of his legs. Once he felt the muscles tighten until it felt like they might burst, he knew the spell was ready.
He leapt up and caught the ledge.
Quickly, he glanced into the sparse courtyard. To his left, twenty yards from the shrine, the mountain's flattened summit fell into the Gasrah River Canyon. To his right the shrine melded into the surrounding rock. Opposite him, a gap in the crumbling defensive wall marked the location of the former gate.
Two templars paced the cliff edges, but currently, neither patrolled close by. The remainder waited in the courtyard's center. Within the shrine, the priestess chanted her profane rituals. He didn’t see the templars’ captain anywhere. A sixty-count passed with no reply from Uurta and the templars stiffened.
Suddenly an arrow whistled on the wind then punctured a templar's eye. The victim writhed and moaned as he died. A second arrow thunked against a readied shield as the templars took defensive positions.
Kasap and his brothers Denar and Tebyn charged through the gap and crashed into the nearest templars. Kasap swung a battle-axe in sinister arcs while Denar and Tebyn slashed with their sabers and tiger claws. The templars recoiled in surprise.
After a few moments, the three palymfar retreated, as if they were overwhelmed, drawing the templars along with them.
When the two patrolling templars rushed to join the others, Jaska climbed up into the courtyard. Blended with shadows and rain, he passed unseen and entered the shrine.
A short hallway opened into a torch-lit sanctuary thick with the dizzying smoke of burning leaves and incense. Jaska's breath caught in his throat. On the dais stood the pristine statue of the White Tigress. At the altar below knelt the priestess Zyrella. Her pale, naked flesh bore painted tiger-stripes that trailed from her onto the floor and up the dais to the statue.
Though he needed to kill Zyrella swiftly, Jaska eased forward with lethargy. Already her presence was mesmerizing him. But he willed himself on, knowing he must strike before she turned this strange force directly against him.
Buy Wrath of the White Tigress
Storm Phase
A teenage wizard burdened with a mysterious destiny, a cat-girl ninja he can't help but fall for, and a bat-winged daemon that doubles as a diary embark on a journey of self-discovery in a world teeming with monsters and magic. Perfect for fans of Percy Jackson and Avatar: the Last Airbender, this enchanting Asian-inspired fantasy series delivers fast-paced adventure for readers young and old.
Book 1: The Storm Dragon’s Heart
Turesobei dreams of adventure and a chance to prove he's no longer a child. Wizards should be careful what they wish for.
Destined to become his clan's next and perhaps greatest ever high wizard, Turesobei feels smothered under everyone's expectations. And he's fed up with people treating him like he's still a child, especially his grandfather, the current high wizard. After foiling an assassination attempt on his treasure-hunting dad, his grandfather
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