Category: Fantasy Publisher: C.J. McKee
ISBN-10: 1511424761
Type: Fiction
Pages: 256
Copyright: April 2015
ISBN-13: 9781511424769
Price: $1.99 (eBook)
Niamh, a young, reclusive farm girl becomes the focus of an outcast Dragon terrorizing the village of Dunmuir. Now she must face the wrath of the entire village. But, does she have a secret?
Niamh, a young, reclusive farm girl, wishes nothing more than to have a quiet, normal life; until she becomes the focus of an outcast Dragon terrorizing the village of Dunmuir. When her farm comes under attack and the Dragon seemingly appears wherever Niamh is, she is thought to be a witch and responsible for calling down the outcast Dragon.
The village Administer sends a message to the Dragon Sage, Galddor, to assist with expunging the outcast Dragon. Now, facing the wrath of the entire village, Niamh must plead with the Dragon Sage of Arydd in order to protect her life from the outcast Dragon and the villagers.
But, does Niamh have a secret?
A side story adventure in the Realms of Arydd, not directly part of the Dragon Sage Trilogy.
Excerpt
Chapter 1 – Outcast
The explosive rush outside their home awakened the farmer and his wife. They watched in confusion through bleary eyes as orange shadows danced on the wall of their bedroom. Vaporous, streaming light shone through their shuttered windows like fingers reaching out for their souls. Concerned about their children, the couple got out of bed and called out to their daughter and two boys as they walked swiftly across the wooden floor on legs weak with fear. Just as they reached the window an ear-splitting roar vibrated the jars on the shelves and shook the walls. Colin and Evain stole a glance through the slats of the shutters.
Intense heat from yellow-orange flames turned night into day, searing the ground and igniting the grain fields. Rodents caught in the blaze shrieked and ran from the fire. Some didn’t escape so easily, their fur singed and tails burned to stubs, while others were instantly incinerated. Hot sparks of glowing, orange ash sprayed into the night air like stars in the evening sky. The embers ignited smaller fires as they landed in dry grass or on stacks of bundled grain.
A nearby tree exploded as flames climbed the large trunk and leapt from branch to branch like tiny imps, chattering, searing everything in their wake. An impact tremor shook the ground as something heavy landed in the meadows. A bellow echoed across the village of Dunmuir, causing nightbirds to flee the safety of their nests and highland cows to moan in protest. When the bellowing stopped a lone, agonizing cry of a cow assaulted the smoky air and then fell silent, replaced by the sounds of ripping flesh.
The farmer’s wife, Evain, screamed when she saw the dark form of a Dragon silhouetted against the blaze in the fields. The Dragon’s shadow reached across the pasture and made it appear as if it stood right next to the house. Its wings were outstretched behind it blocking the light from the flames for a moment as its nose pointed toward the sky. More flames issued from its mouth into the air like a huge, angry torch. Then it made a cackling sound as it dropped to all four legs, causing the ground to rumble.
The children ran into their parents’ room shrieking their fear; Niamh, a girl of fifteen, and the boys Eamon, ten and Banan, eight. Confused by the sounds and frightened by the fire blazing in the fields, the boys huddled close to their mother for comfort. Niamh stood near the window and stared with fascination at the chaos of fire and scales writhing in the field. She shoved the shutters wide and her long, red hair fluttered behind her in the breeze caused by the heat waves.
Peering into the mass of ash and flames, she grimaced when the Dragon bit down into the sides of the cow. It bellowed and writhed in the Dragon’s mouth, then fell silent. The Dragon shook the cow violently and bared its teeth as it sank them deeper into the cow’s singed flesh. A sickening sound of bones cracking and snapping came from the Dragon’s mouth and organs slid from the cow’s gaping wound. Although horrified by the sight she found she couldn’t tear her eyes away. Niamh had only heard of Dragons, but never actually seen one. If not for the gruesome display of rending flesh to sate its appetite, the Dragon appeared beautiful to the young girl’s eyes, graceful yet clumsy in its attack.
As quickly as the Dragon appeared it vanished into the woods with ease and swiftness, leaving burning fields and the gruesome corpses of half devoured cows scattered in the meadows. The moist night air soon turned the flames into mere steam and smoldering ash.
The only sounds remaining were the pops and squeaks of red-hot wood as it smoked and hissed. The family raised their heads to join their daughter at the window. Colin scowled when his eyes met the charred grounds of his land. In the distance the Dragon gave one last bellow, which echoed between the hills and throughout the valley.
Lugh and Una, Colin and Evain’s closest neighbors, arrived at their doorstep just as the last of the Dragon’s roars thundered between the hills. The neighbors stopped, eyes wide, and mouths open ready to scream in horror as they watched the last of the flames licking at the leaves of a tree near the end of the pasture. The branches and trunk collapsed, weakened by the fire chewing its way into the bark and the soft pulp underneath, sending flaming splinters everywhere. The only part left standing was a charred, tall stump jutting from the scorched grass like a stone sentinel.
Lugh turned and pounded on Colin’s front door and shouted above the sound of his fist against the wood. “Evain? Colin?! ‘Tis me, Lugh! Open the door!”
Silence.
Lugh and Una stared at each other, and then leaned toward the door with their heads cocked. The flames died down in the pasture and a distant hiss lingered in the darkness. The floorboards on the deck creaked and thumped beneath their feet; footsteps growing louder from inside the house. The neighbors pounded on the door again. A latch scraped along a metal bar and Colin opened the door so fast, Lugh lost his balance while cocked to strike the door a third time.
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