Trial and Glory
Authors: Joshua P. Simon
Tags: #Science Fiction & Fantasy, #Fantasy, #Epic, #Historical, #Sword & Sorcery
Trial and Glory
Book Three of the Blood and Tears Trilogy
By
Joshua P. Simon
Copyright © 2013 by Joshua P. Simon
These stories are works of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from Joshua P. Simon.
ISBN: 978-0-9846988-6-8
Visit the author at
http://joshuapsimon.blogspot.com/
.
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[email protected]
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Cover art by
Brooke White with Sprout Studios (Houston, TX)
www.sproutstudio.us/
Editing by
Joshua Essoe
www.joshuaessoe.com
Works in the Blood and Tears World
Warleader - A Blood and Tears Prequel Short Story
Rise and Fall - Book One in the Blood and Tears Trilogy
Walk Through Fire - A Blood and Tears Prequel Novella
Steel and Sorrow - Book Two of the Blood and Tears Trilogy
Hero of Slaves - A Blood and Tears Novella
Trial and Glory: Book Three of the Blood and Tears Trilogy
Table of Contents
Excerpt of
Walk Through Fire - A Blood and Tears Prequel Novella
Excerpt of
Hero of Slaves - A Blood and Tears Novella
Maps
Prologue
Cassus sat with his back to the wall at the end of the dimly lit bar. The Orchid, the toughest bar on Slum Isle, was not a place in which you grew lax.
At least not by yourself
, he thought.
One hand never strayed far from the hilt of his dagger. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t even be at the place alone. However, the ship he chartered to Cadonia would be leaving in a matter of days, and he needed as much information about recent happenings as he could find.
The Orchid might be a dive, but Cassus knew no other place in Mudhole Bay would have what he needed.
“So, you were saying the queen won?” Cassus asked the man across from him.
The man nodded, one eye rolling haphazardly around its socket as he did. “Aye. Defeated Duke Conroy and that other one that took over for his old man. Mathas, I think.”
“Markus?”
“Yeah, that’s it.”
The man gulped the last of his ale.
“You said there was more.”
The man stared at his mug. “Awful thirsty tonight. How about you?”
Cassus sighed and rapped his knuckles against the bar, motioning the bartender for another round. A fresh mug appeared, loosening the man’s tongue.
“So yeah, just when everyone thought the fighting was done, Thurum decided to attack the High Pass.”
Cassus grunted. “That’s nothing new. They’ve done that off and on for a couple hundred years.”
The man shook his head. “Nah. This time it’s different. I heard they got something like five hundred thousand men.”
“Five hundred thousand men? That’s impossible!”
The man motioned with his hand. “Alright. Quiet down. It was only half that. Can’t a guy embellish a little? It adds flavor to the story.” He took another drink.
“Two hundred fifty thousand is still unbelievable.” Cassus got up to leave.
“Wait. Sit down, I’m serious.”
Cassus eyed the man. He appeared too calm, too sure of himself, for Cassus to doubt the story further.
He sat down, head spinning.
One Above, two hundred fifty thousand men?
The drunkard belched. “I heard they got people from a strange land with them.”
“How is Cadonia fairing?”
The man shrugged. “I don’t know. The last I heard, they were holding out. But against those numbers the whole country could be overrun by now.”
Cassus hunched in his chair as the man nursed his drink.
After all this time, there might not be a home to return to.
He thought of his friends in the Hell Patrol as well as Elyse.
One Above, what are they having to go through?
He pushed himself from his seat, and then walked out the door toward the docks.
Every moment I waste here is one less I’ll have with them.
Chapter 1
Perched on a cliff in the Cataric Mountains, overlooking the valley leading to the High Pass, a light breeze tickled Nareash’s skin as he watched the battle unfold.
Guwan, his commander, had initiated the assault against the fortress an hour after the High Mage had appeared before Kaz and Elyse. Recalling the shock on their faces brought a smile to Nareash’s face. He couldn’t wait to see how they reacted to him up close. As tens of thousands marched past him, his smile grew wider. He could not imagine anything capable of removing it.
Not unless Amcaro himself comes back from the dead
.
Squinting through a spyglass, he watched the men his ally, Hezen, had managed to recruit from the various tribes of Thurum swarm the battlements of the outermost wall. The defenders of the fortress struggled against such large numbers.
Kaz sprinted back and forth along his lines, red and blue armor shimmering in the afternoon sun, as he strengthened those sections.
Such a waste of effort. The animals on his armor are a nice touch though. There is no denying the man’s skill, but he can’t hold forever.
Kaz seemed to be everywhere, rallying his men just when it looked like a part of his line would collapse. The image caused Nareash to think of Tobin. He wondered how the two brothers would fare against each other after so much time apart.
They seem so evenly matched now. Too bad neither will get the chance to settle that dispute.
He clicked his tongue, mood souring. His friendship with Tobin had not ended as he had hoped.
But what do I care?
He thought about the bonds he shared with others from his past.
Amcaro, Essan, and even Gauge. None of those relationships ended well. None really understood me. I didn’t need them, just as I don’t need Tobin.
Nareash blinked. Satisfied with Guwan’s distribution of forces, and the effectiveness of the mages led by Colan, he aimed the spyglass upward, toward the great keep. The structure loomed behind the three curtain walls of the fortress like a stone guardian. Elyse stood in a window near the top, flanked by members of the Royal Guard. She stood taller than when he saw her last, yet he did not doubt that she felt helpless.
His shoulder ached at the bitter memory of their last meeting.
Where did you put the scepter, Elyse?
He shook off a burning desire to hold the weapon once more, returning his attention to the battle.
Where is this mage Hezen keeps going on about? Kaz barely has a handful of yellow-robes at his disposal. Is Krytien afraid? Or has he already died? It doesn’t matter. Kaz’s men are tired and won’t be able to hold much longer
.
Near one of the siege towers, Guwan began pushing his men around, directing them with sharp, jabbing motions. Nareash searched for what could have riled his commander.
A wave of men dressed in the colors of Cadonia rushed across the long catwalks separating the interior and exterior walls to support the weakening lines of the defenders.
Nareash sighed.
Reinforcements. This may take longer than I thought.
A burst of lightning-like sorcery cracked in the air, crawling over Guwan’s men. He searched for its source. Behind the lines of defenders, a cluster of mages, attacked in unison.
Colan and his mages adjusted their focus. Bursts of blue light and red fire filled Nareash’s view as the two sides exchanged attacks. Though the defenders held the advantage, Colan managed to stretch the skills of the mages at his disposal. His efforts bought Guwan enough time to gain a few more feet of the wall.
At this rate, they might hold us off for another day. That’s unacceptable.
Nareash climbed down the cliff, angling his way over the sloping brown and red rock toward a waiting mount. He took to the saddle and entered the wide valley, pushing his way through the thousands of warriors waiting to storm the mountain fortress.
He stopped in their midst, atop a small hill, closer to the fortress. Its height rose just high enough for him to see over the outer wall.
The soldiers gave his mount a wide berth. He scanned once more for the cluster of mages fighting against Colan. He found them, confused that their attacks had lessened.
Why? They hold the advantage in skill. They should press.
A round, white-haired man wearing gray robes appeared at the center of the group. The others made way for him. The mage’s face twisted in concentration.
Is this the famed Krytien? Enough of this. I have a kingdom to conquer and an empire to build.
He folded his hands, closed his eyes, and tuned out the sounds of the anxious battle-ready men swarming around him.
Let them see what a High Mage can do.
The power had just begun to enter him when the muffled screams of battle shifted from anger to fear. He felt the air thin as a wealth of power drew toward the fortress.
His eyes fluttered open.