The Cyber Chronicles - Book I: Queen of Arlin Read Free Page B

lunged, sank long yellow teeth into a third man and lifted
him off the ground, flinging him into the trees like a rag doll,
trailing an agonised scream. Tassin clung to the saddle as he spun
and lashed out with his hind legs, two solid thuds testifying to
his accuracy.
    "It's a
warhorse!" a man cried, and the circle of soldiers closed, their
blades flashing towards the stallion. Falcon reared again,
propelled himself forwards with a powerful thrust of his hind legs
and smashed two more men down with steel-shod hooves. A sword
clanged against his armour-clad shoulder in a shower of sparks, and
he staggered. Tassin drew her sword with a hiss of steel, slashing
at the dodging men. Falcon lashed out with his hind feet again, but
more men streamed from the woods, too many for a scouting
party.
    Gathering up
her reins, she urged Falcon forward, overriding the command to
fight. The stallion plunged ahead, thrust men aside with his chest
and squealed with pain as a soldier's sword opened a gash in his
flank. He lashed out with his hind feet in retaliation, then they
were beyond the soldiers, flying through the moon-silvered wood.
Tassin crouched low over his neck as the trees whipped past.
Branches lashed her, scratched her skin and ripped her clothes.
Hoof beats thundered behind her, and she glanced over her shoulder
at the party of horsemen that pursued her. Their drawn swords
glinted, and Torrian's roars of rage goaded them after her. She
clung to Falcon's mane, praying that a branch would not scrape her
from his back.
    Falcon crashed
through the forest, his hooves sliding on the treacherous leaves,
almost sending him skidding into a tree. They burst into the open
with Torrian's men close behind, their faster horses gaining on the
warhorse. As they drew alongside, one reached for her reins. Falcon
lunged at him, knocking his horse down. Man and beast rolled in a
tangled heap, and Falcon turned his head to snap at the horse on
the other side, making it shy away.
    Tassin struck
at the rider who drew alongside to replace the one who had fallen,
her sword bouncing off his armour in a shower of sparks. The man
slashed at Falcon's neck, cutting a gash in the thick muscle. The
stallion squealed, lashing out sideways with his hind feet. The
blow snapped the other horse's leg with a crack, and it ploughed
head-first into the ground. The warhorse was tiring fast, his
wounds sapped his strength and his blood splattered her face.
Ahead, men ran from the castle, alerted by the lookouts to the
Queen's peril. Two of her knights thundered across the drawbridge,
their armour flashing in the moonlight.
    One of her
enemies darted closer and raked Falcon's flank with his sword,
seeking to cut her girth. The weapon narrowly missed her leg,
slipping under it. The stallion lashed out, sending the cavalry
horse staggering away, but Tassin's saddle slid back. Grasping
handfuls of Falcon's mane, she kicked free of the stirrups and let
the saddle fall. Another rider closed, his sword aimed at Falcon's
hamstrings.
    "Kick!" Tassin
bellowed, and the warhorse lashed out, smashing the sword from the
soldier's hand. Tassin urged him on as her knights reached her,
engaging Torrian's soldiers in a clash of steel and roars of rage
from their warhorses. She thundered over the drawbridge, glancing
back at her enemies, who fled from her knights, their prey out of
reach.
    Falcon's hooves
skidded on the courtyard's stones as he propped to a standstill,
steam rolling up from his heaving flanks. Tassin slid off, her legs
trembling with shock as she clung to his sweaty, blood-streaked
neck. She leant against him, patted him and murmured soft words of
gratitude into his twitching ears. The clatter of hooves and boots
echoed around the yard as her knights and warriors returned, the
portcullis rumbling down behind them. A groom led Falcon away, and
she noted that the stallion was lame, casting a worried look at her
head groom.
    "Tend to his
wounds at once."
    The groom
bowed.