A Warrior's Legacy Read Free Page A

may never come back from.
    “You should prepare for the quest Gavin.
Gather up whatever materials that you think you might have need of
to minister the Holy Scriptures to this people strange to us. They
may not speak our language, which is something you will need to be
prepared for. Picking the men for this quest that will accompany
you will be your brother’s responsibility.”
    Gavin nodded and got up preparing to
leave.
    “One more thing Gavin.”
    Gavin stopped and looked at his father
expectantly.
    “I’m giving your brother complete authority
and leadership of the mission. You will obey and not question his
leadership choices during the mission, whatever the situation is
and whatever his choice may be. Do I make myself clear Gavin?”
    Gavin nodded solemnly and then left quietly
closing the door behind him.
    Krista looked at her husband steadily, “He’s
right dear husband. Zevin will not like leaving your side and
service. It’s something he sees as his sworn duty.”
    Roric looked at her and said, “I know.”

Chapter Two
Slaughter in the Forest
    The musky woodsy smell of the targano tree
bark behind my back filled my nostrils with its aromatic essence. I
pulled in air slowly and deeply preparing my body for the sudden
and chaotic paced moments ahead of me.
    The branch I stood on was thick and the
arrows that I would need were already lightly staked to it near my
feet close to the trunk of the tree. In my hands rested a powerful
composite bow that I made myself.
    The sounds of a few solitary woodland
creatures could be heard, but the usual cacophony of forest sounds
was muted much more than usual for this southern realm of the
Attorgron forest during the late morning hours. The reason for the
departure from the norm could be heard in the stamp of feet and the
jingle of harnesses.
    The sound of an army on the move.
    In this case it was a large raiding party of
Zoarinian troops, which were headed deeper into the forest in
search of the Attorgrons. As the revival brought about by the
dispensation of the words of the Creator in its entirety to the
peoples of my world had developed and grown a surprisingly positive
result had been the wholesale change of heart that had taken place
within the peoples of the Attorgron forest.
    They forsook their wicked ways and accepted
the salvation of their Savior over their lives and became a new
people.
    Even cannibals and pagan priests had
recanted of their evil ways and had been washed clean by grace as
they had felt the Creator’s mercy extended even to them.
    All Scripture was true and in the verse that
stated that “God is not a respecter of persons” could not have been
better illustrated by the transformation of the Attorgron
peoples.
    Their new religious step of faith had not
come without consequences though. Enmity had formed between the
Attorgrons and their free living neighbors the Zoarinians. The
Zoarinians chose not to embrace the faith in the Creator. Growing
alarm over the likely alliance of the Attorgrons with the Valley
Landers in joint force against them they had acted swiftly to
destroy their neighbors.
    They had destroyed the city of Santarus.
Literally burning it to the ground and slaughtering its entire
population. The Attorgrons had responded and fought back halting
the advance of the Zoarinian forces further into their forest
world.
    In the bitter fighting that had ensued it
became clear that the Zoarinians did not have the military forces
to overwhelm the entrenched Attorgrons so they reverted to the
tactic of raiding and pillaging. A tactic that they hoped that in
the future would weaken the Attorgrons and bring them to their
knees.
    My father would not let our new friends
fight and die alone however. He marshaled the Valley Lands and the
Southern Settlements and fought fire with fire.
    The entire northern Zoarinian border was a
site of constant conflict, which tied up the bulk of the Zoarinian
forces, as they feared the breach through by any of my