A Clash of Honor Read Free

behind her, carrying her brother, following her out the bar and into daylight.
    They began to hurry down the crowded back streets of King’s Court, towards the healer, and Gwen only prayed that it was not too late.

 
    CHAPTER THREE

 
 
    Thor galloped across the dusty terrain of the outer reaches of King’s Court, Reece, O’Connor, Elden and the twins by his side, Krohn racing beside him, Kendrick, Kolk, Brom and scores of Legion and Silver riding with them, a great army heading west to meet the McClouds. They rode as one, heading east to liberate the city, and the sound of hooves was deafening, rumbling like thunder. They had been riding all day, and already the second sun was long in the sky. Thor could hardly believe he was riding with these great warriors, on his first real military mission. He felt that they had accepted him as one of theirs. Indeed, the entire Legion had been called up as reserves, and his brothers in arms rode all around him. The Legion members were dwarfed by the thousands of members of the king’s army, and Thor, for the first time in his life, felt a part of something greater than himself.
    Thor also felt a driving sense of purpose. He felt needed. His fellow citizens were under siege by the McClouds, and it was left to them to liberate them, to save his people from a horrible fate. The importance of what they were doing weighed on him like a living thing—and it made him feel alive.
    Thor felt security in the presence of all these men, but he also felt a sense of worry, too: this was an army of real men, but that also meant that they were about to face an army of real men. Real, hardened warriors. It was life and death this time, and there was far more at stake here than he had ever encountered. As he rode, he reached down instinctively and felt reassured by the presence of his trusted sling, by the presence of his new sword. He wondered if by the day’s end it would be stained with blood. Or if he himself would be wounded.
    Their army suddenly let out a great shout, louder even than the horses’ hooves, as they rounded a bend and on the horizon spotted for the first time the besieged city. Black smoke rose up in great clouds from it, and the MacGil army kicked their horses, gaining speed. Thor, too, kicked his horse harder, trying to keep up with the others as they all drew their swords, raised their weapons, and headed for the city with deadly intent.
    The massive army was broken down into smaller groups, and in Thor’s group their rode ten soldiers, legion members, his friends and a few others he did not know. At their head rode one of the king’s army’s senior commanders, a soldier the others called Forg, a tall, thin man with a wiry build, pockmarked skin, cropped, gray hair and dark, hollow eyes. The army was breaking down into smaller groups and forking in every direction.
    “This group, follow me!” he commanded, gesturing with his staff for Thor and the others to fork off and follow his lead.
    Thor’s group followed orders and fell in behind him; as they went, he found they were forking farther away from the main army. Thor looked back and noticed that his group forked farther than most, the army becoming more distant, and just as Thor was wondering where they were being lead, Forg shouted:
    “We will take up a position on the McCloud flank!”
    Thor and the others exchanged a nervous and excited look as they all charged, forking until the main army was out of sight.
    Soon they were in a new terrain, and the city fell out of sight completely. Thor was on guard, but there was no sign of the McCloud army anywhere.
    Finally, Forg pulled his horse to a stop before a small hill, in a grove of trees. The others came to a stop behind him.
    Thor and the others looked at Forg, wondering why he had stopped.
    “That keep there, that is our mission,” Forg explained. “You are young warriors still, so we want to spare you from the heat of battle. You will hold this position as our