The Shadow Realm (The Age of Dawn Book 4) (26 page)

“So long, old friend.” Walter stared down into the grave while Grimbald tirelessly worked. He kept one hand on its edge, as if that would somehow connect him to his friend. “Can’t believe this happened like this.”

The other mourners shuffled away, people Juzo must have met at some point.

“Good words,” Grimbald said, leaning on the shovel.

Walter sniffed. “Not sure how many more times I can do this.”

Grimbald grunted. “Won’t be the last, I reckon.”

“Yeah,” Walter murmured. “Not the last. I’ll dig for your Pa. As long as it takes.”

Walter peered through the jagged trees to the south, wondering what state they’d find Breden in. It had to be better than this.

N
yset peered
out over the battlements, one boot wedged into a slit. The wind tugged a coil of hair around her jaw, rigid with tension. The dark mass that had been seen cresting the horizon fifteen minutes ago came into view. It was a small horde of Death Spawn, enough to test their defenses she guessed. She was surprised to see so many. How had their numbers grown so quickly?

Archers on either side of her bristled. One man spat and another tested his bowstring over and over, twanging in her ears. One of her apprentice’s nervy fingers unfurled a blue string from her robes. The wind scoured the land, lifting a curtain of sand into the air. All they could do now was wait. She bit her lip, stopping before drawing blood.

Claw grinned at her from the other end of the battlements, arms crossed over his bony chest. Isa wove between the men and women, fixing gear and tightening buckles. Someone coughed, echoing down into the walls between the Middle and the Dirt Ring of Helm’s Reach.

“What do we do now, Mistress?” Senka said from behind.

Nyset knew the question was coming. Had been expecting it and dreading it at the same time. She swallowed and looked over her shoulder, meeting Senka’s eyes. “We wait.”

T
o be continued
in Book 5 of The Age of Dawn. Go here to be notified once it is released
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F
irst of all
, I would like to thank you, reader. Without you I wouldn’t be writing. I truly appreciate every one of you. I would like to also thank my editor, Lynette Patterson, and my book cover illustrator and map creator, Promit. Thank you for all of your help.

E
veret Martins writes
stories of the fantastic. His first foray into the published realm is Stormcaller - Book #1 of The Age of Dawn Series. It has the type of visceral action and fun he had always dreamed fantasy could be.

Living in New Hampshire, Everet finds inspiration for his books within his exciting life. He has always loved getting lost in role-playing games and novels. In his youth, he was notorious for being found with his face lost behind the cover of a book. Fascinated by the written word and always wanting to try putting pen to page, he started writing short stories, and eventually a novel.

As a young boy he was exposed to the rigors of martial arts and continued to practice them throughout his adult life, dabbling in various styles. The love for physical fitness morphed into other bodily challenges such as strength training and long distance running.

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his book is
a work of fiction. The names, characters , places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2015 Everet Martins.

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/ use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.