Songforge

James Beckingham

Description

A centuries old battle is about to erupt, and the future of all the races rests upon the most unlikely people in the Empire.
Aerik is a slave, his life surrounded by squalor and death. By day he works in the fields, at night takes solace in a secret slave bar, entertaining his friends and helping them escape the grim reality of life. When the Drakes destroy all he holds dear, Aerik is left with a burning desire for revenge...
Honoured SongForger, Kelkh Ironbound is one of the rare few Drakes gifted with the ForgeSong, a magic that allows him to create weapons of immense power. He encounters Annah, a human outcast shunned by her own people.

Sujets

• Fantastique
• Fantasy historique
• Médiéval-Fantastique
• Epic Fantasy
• Epic
• Fiction
• Fantasy

Informations

• Publié par: James Beckingham
• Date de parution: 01 avril 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780645599671
• Langue: English

Extrait

Publisher: Audiobooksradio
website: www.audiobooksradio.com.au
This edition published 2023
Copyright James Beckingham 2023
Cover design and illustration by Myke Mollard ( bushcreatures.com.au )
Typesetting: WorkingType ( www.workingtype.com.au )
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
The right of James Beckingham to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
ISBN: 978-0-6455996-6-4 eISBN: 978-0-6455996-7-1
For Cath, whose patience and encouragement has made all this possible. I couldn t have done it without you.
P ROLOGUE
S amurai General Ibaz watched impassively as the last of his troops moved into position in readiness for the assault of the walled keep. The war had been raging for close to a full decade and now it was one assault away from finally being over. The Drakes had pushed their enemy back step by step until this keep was all that remained.
But despite all that, there was still no guarantee of victory - not against this foe.
Are the infantry in position? Ibaz asked his aide, without taking his eyes from the battlefield.
Yes, my lord. They await your command to begin the attack.
They have it, Ibaz said. Tell them to begin their assault on the north and south walls, then send a messenger to make sure the Forgers and Sorcerers are ready to bombard the gatehouse.
The aide saluted and sprinted away into the horde of troops but Ibaz had already forgotten him. He was calculating his next tactic as he saw the infantry lurch forward to attack.
It was a strangely graceful sight, watching the Drake army charge the walled city. Drakes had once been human, or so the legends said, until their Dragon gods had blessed them with a fragment of Draconic power and changed them forever. They were still mostly human shaped, but the similarities stopped there. A dragon s head now sat on their shoulders, two leathery wings sprouted from their back and a thick tail extended to the ground. Their bodies were covered by hard scales and they were stronger, faster and more resilient than any human could ever hope to be. They charged the city walls without hesitation, confidant that they were superior to their human enemy in every way.
Tell the cavalry to be ready, Ibaz said to another aide. As soon as those humans poke their heads up from behind the wall I want a cavalry charge to knock them right back down again!
Five minutes later, Ibaz watched the cavalry shoot towards the battlements, fifty Drakes mounted on Keldarkan battle dragons, flying in an arrow formation as they assaulted the archers who had started to fire on the advancing infantry. The dragons hit the walls hard and fast, causing as much chaos as they could before the humans could form a proper resistance, then they leaped into the sky to wait for another opportunity.
Ibaz nodded grimly as the infantry crossed the last few metres to the city walls - the cavalry had kept the human archers distracted and unable to pepper his Samurai with arrows as they approached. Now, as the Drakes threw ladders and grapnels up against the battlements, the archers were of little use. It would be hand-to-hand combat as soon as the Drakes reached the top of the walls, and Ibaz would back a Drake against a human in melee every time.
Come on, Taan, Ibaz muttered. You re going to lose the walls unless you show yourself. Come and stop us.
In the distance, the Drake infantry scaled the city walls while the dragon cavalry strafed the defenders. The walls had become a chaotic mess of fighting and dying as Drake Samurai expanded their foothold and pushed the humans back into their own city.
Come on, come on, Ibaz said. You ve got to show yourself now or it will be too late.
The human lines wavered as more and more Drakes clambered up the ladders and reinforced their comrades. A moment longer and the lines would have collapsed completely, but the humans still had some tricks of their own to play.
The stone of the walls melted and twisted, forming onto a giant hand that held the Drakes in its palm. Before the stunned Samurai could react, the hand closed into a fist and squeezed, then hurled the debris back at the attacking army. The single, bloody hand then writhed and split, breaking onto a multitude of smaller limbs which attacked any remaining Drakes, hurling them and their ladders from the wall to land in a broken heap on the ground. Ibaz watched impassively, mentally recording each death to add to the tally of crimes that his enemy would pay for.
Is it him, sir? a lieutenant asked. Is it Taan?
No, it s not him, Ibaz replied. He s sent his pet Baradiarche out to play. Still, with them occupied it might be all we need. Signal the Sorcerers to attack - the Forgers are to wait five minutes, then hit those gates with everything they ve got.
It took a minute for the command to be passed down and his troops to mobilise, then Ibaz saw the Sorcerers turn in unison and unleash their magic. Wave after wave of fire crashed into the massive city gates, scorching the ground for fifty metres in every direction and sending smoke billowing into the sky. They didn t even scratch the gates, but then, they were never meant to. They were just a distraction, giving the newly discovered Forgers the time to work their magic.
Under the cover of smoke and fire, the sound of singing rose over the chaos of the battlefield. It was haunting and beautiful, and totally out of place amidst the carnage. But everyone could feel the power in that music and the humans on the battlements stared in disbelief as they realised the Drakes had found their own Forgers. They were so shocked they barely reacted when five fountains of metal burst from the ground in front of the gate and started shaping themselves into huge, cylindrical battering rams.
It s time I joined my command, Ibaz said as he saw the rams po nd against the gates, unimpeded by the defenders. I want to be there when the gates fall and I want Taan s head on my blade.
Ibaz yanked on his dragon s reins, launching it into the air towards the mass of Drake Samurai lying in wait for the gates to fall. As he swept across the plains he heard the splinter of wood and the cries of human defiance as the gates sagged and prepared to shatter completely.
Infantry, charge! Ibaz shouted as the cavalry formed up behind him. The roar from the Drake army drowned out the shriek of tearing hinges and shattered locks. When the gates crumbled, they sprinted forward to claim the honour of being the first warrior inside the keep.
The humans had set up a hasty defence, setting their most heavily armoured warriors in a phalanx in the front courtyard. To their credit, they held for several minutes as the Drakes poured through the gatehouse and crashed against their spears, but they were fighting a losing battle. Ibaz spearheaded a dragon charge that shattered their formation, and with their cohesion lost they were easy pickings.
Ibaz left the fighting behind as he shot through the courtyard to the base of the huge tower that dominated the keep centre. On his barked command, his mount dropped to all fours and swung its powerful tail to smash the door to kindling. Ibaz had slipped to the ground and was running up the tower stairs in an instant, not even waiting for his guard to catch up. He knew Taan was the key to this battle, and if he wasn t removed quickly then everything could still be lost. Time was of the essence.
The further Ibaz charged into the tower, the more his fears grew. There were no guards and no servants; there was no one at all to stop them. Surely Taan s inner sanctum should be guarded more than this? It was only when Ibaz heard the beautiful sound of the ForgeSong echoing off the stones that he understood, and that dread pushed him faster up the stairs.
No, no, no, he shouted. Not this time!
His breath was coming in ragged gasps as he finally reached the top of the tower. He ran up the last few stairs and dropped his shoulder to the door that barred his way. The lock gave way with a satisfying crack and Ibaz slid through the archway on his knees, holding his sword at shoulder level to ward off any attacks.
He found himself in an open room at the very top of the tower, surrounded by two dozen frightened humans who were huddled around the outer wall of the room. In the centre stood an old man in vivid rainbow robes, holding his hands to the sky as he sang at the top of his voice.
Taan!
Ibaz raised his sword in challenge but the old man ignored him. He arched his back as the last notes of his song filled the room with power, then he looked at Ibaz and smiled. The room filled with a kaleidoscope of colour and thunderous noise which hurled Ibaz back down the stairs. Then there was nothing.
What in The Dragon s name happened in there? one of Ibaz s guards asked as he rounded the corner.
Taan, Ibaz snarled.
He scrambled to his feet and ran through the door to face his hated enemy, but the tower room was no longer there. It had been blasted apart, leaving nothing but scorched stone floor and swirling ash. The howling wind swept away Ibaz s cry of rage and the last remnants of Taan s command room.
Find him, Ibaz said, turning to his guards. Scour the city and the surrounding countryside. He had at least twenty humans with him, so look for group tracks!
But Ibaz knew it was futile. Ta