Faith And Blood: The Family Of Thunder, #2

By S. Wallace

Al'rashal and Urkjorman are back. This time they are in swamp full of menace and danger hunting for something more precious than life. The Urdrail swamp will not just test them in body but in soul. What will Al and Urk choose when their faith in themselves and their faith in each other is tested. Can monsters ever have the kind of stable loving relationships that others know and when one of them falls prey to a deadly poison what then?  The clock is on, a cure must be found, a monster must be slain and even if they survive the tests of the Urdrail there is no guarantee their relationship will.

• Language: English
• Publisher: S. Wallace
• Release date: May 14, 2024
• ISBN: 9781964166025

Book preview

Faith And Blood

By. S. Wallace

Forward

I did it twice! Self publishing that is. If you have read my previous Forward for A Meeting Of Monsters I assure you I will not be counting every time I release a published work. For me the second and third iteration of a thing are magical.

Anyone can do it once. - Some smug prick ... probably.

Though that's not entirely true it does bear some consideration. Somethings are only done once, only need to be done once and that's fine. Other things are a process a continuation. As I put it, they are a verb, not a noun. That is to say they are an active thing you partake in. Love, relationships, being a good person, all these things are things you do by doing. For me, being an author is one of those things.

Doing this again proves to me it wasn't just a one off fluke, it proves to me that I can do this, actively. And if you are one of the people who read and enjoyed my previous book it means I did something right. You adventured with me, met these wonderful characters and decided, I want to visit them again. As an author I can have no greater reward.

If this is your first time stepping into one of my stories I assure it will be a fun ride, going back and reading the previous tale will help but it is not necessary. If you like fantasy, monsters, adventure and a bit of romance this is the story for you!

Whether you are a long time reader, first time buyer, someone curious or anyone else I thank you for coming with me into this tale. Read on my friends, read on.

Champions and Monsters

Lightning curled his spine as the alligator sank its teeth into his, calf and fear flashed through his mind. Not because it had attacked—that had been expected—but because few things could pull the feet out from beneath a minotaur. Urkjorman was not used to being dragged like a child by a scornful parent.

Urk's fingers hunted for purchase in the ponds depths and found nothing but mud and water. His hand wrapped around a stone, halting his trail through the depths, for a moment. Another jerk, and his fingers slipped free. The alligator pulled him through the water's surface and slammed him down. He hit the water with a crack like thunder that sent stars exploding behind his eyes.

The alligator towed him through the water again. It shook him left and right, to force air from his lungs and drown him. But Urk was as much sailor as warrior, and he could hold his breath for a very long time. His fingers wrapped around a root deep in the muck, halting the attack with a violent tug.

The massive albino monster tugged once more, trying to dislodge its prey, and then twisted.

Pain, bright and pure, lanced through Urk's body as his right knee dislocated. A roar escaped his lips, more fury than pain, as he dragged his ax through the water and into the side of the alligator's skull. Urk could feel the blade of his iron ax skitter across bone and peel away bits of the leathery hide. The alligator released his leg and pulled away, hurt but far from dead.

Urk planted his good hoof and pushed up through the murky water. Hoots and wails washed over him as he broke the surface. On the shore, the tribe of reptile creatures had joined his companions in cheering him on. All save the two centaur. Omil was coal black, in stark contrast to Al'rashal's golden coat, and he seemed more interested in Al's attention than Urk's victory.

Al seemed just as interested in giving it to him.

Rage.

Finish the fight.

Urk beat his knee back into place and focused his anger on it. Rage like threads of fire wound about the joint bracing tendons and knitting muscle. It would recover soon, but now he needed to focus on the alligator. The creature was circling him now, blood pouring from one side of its face, wearily approaching as it swam faster. It drew close then away, swam to the left, then the right, all to disorient Urk, all to twist him about and charge the minotaur's back.

The alligator dove, little more than a swell of water now and charged Urk like a wave bent on murder.

Good. Let's make this quick.

Urk pulled his ax into both hands and inhaled. He could feel the radiance of Kurgen'Kahl flowing through the weapon to fill his lungs. It was as though a tempest raged in his chest, struggling to burst free, but Urk held on to it, waiting until the wave was barely a dozen feet away. The alligator pushed itself into the air, jaws opening wider than the sky.

Urk opened his mouth, and the Voice of Thunder pushed past his lips. Water parted. Birds took flight. And the concussive force stunned the alligator in midflight almost halting its progress through the air. It hung, free of gravity for just a moment and Urk brought his ax about, removing half of the animal's skull. 

The crowd cheered and the cacophony was joined by the roar of a minotaur but not even one centaur.

Allowing himself to calm, Urk limped forward and grasped the alligator's corpse and lifted it from the water. Here, he shouted. Your champion is defeated!

The cheers stopped. Silence swiftly rolled over the assembled to be replaced by agitated murmuring.

I said that in the Tongue of Kings, right? Urk wondered. He still had difficulty switching to the foreign language when filled with rage.

His eyes swept through the crowd to find Omil talking to one of the reptilians. The centaur reared back in surprise, as though struck before shouting to Urk.

That wasn't it!

What? asked Urk.

That wasn't the champion! answered Omil. That was the ... Omil stamped a hoof impatiently as he consulted with the reptilian chief.

The what? prompted Urk.

The, ah ... appetizer?

Urk was about to shout What? again when pain circled his hips and jerked him backward.

The minotaur was dragged through the water several feet before he drove his ax into the churning soil and brought himself to a halt. Having a moment's respite, he looked down at what was wrapping around his torso to find a bone-white tendril of bark sinking teeth like barbs into his flesh. With a swing of his ax, he severed the limb and turned about to face the new threat.

"That, is the champion!" shouted Omil.

The tree? asked Urk as he cast the severed tendril aside.

The shattered fragments of the moon bathed the swamp in its light, turning the ivory bark of the tree silver—though the thing was as close to a tree as a minotaur was to a bull. Gnarled white branches stretched into the sky, but they were not draped with leaves but barbs—or if Urk was honest, teeth. It twisted in place like a coiled serpent stretching in preparation to attack. while roots and branches swayed in Urk's direction. Finally. as though at