The Undead Hordes of Kan-Gul Read Free Page B

situation, but he saw no use in angering them further. Why ask for more trouble when there was no guarantee they’d outlive their immediate circumstances? It just didn’t seem wise.
    He stared out over the waves and then saw a flash of movement again out of time with the rest of the flow of the sea. A shadow streaked horizontally across the waves in front of the bow. Ran was about to say something when he felt the breeze of the harpoon shooting past him, its silver barbed tip almost buzzing as it cut through the rain and streaked out beyond the ship. Ran watched it arc and then fall into the waves and the dark bulk just beneath.
    Malkyr laughed again. “How’s that for a shot, eh?” He nodded at the first mate. “Excellent job.”
    But the answer from the first mate was drowned out by a sudden screech as something rose up out of the waves ahead of them, spraying red foam across the bow and the deck. Ran caught the stench of brine and blood mixed together. The harpoon may have struck the creature, but just as Malkyr might have done with the gods, it had merely angered the beast.
    And now the creature seemed intent on attacking the ship.
    Ran glanced back at Malkyr. “Do you have other weapons on board this ship?”
    “Another harpoon, and then we have our swords.”
    “Any spears?”
    Malkyr frowned. “No.”
    Ran unsheathed his sword. “I suggest you call your men to arms.” As he said this, he felt the ship shudder. Ran turned and saw a massive tentacle come over the side of the ship. It crashed on the foredeck and shattered a wooden crate, spilling grain all over. Ran immediately rushed forward, swinging from high to low and severing the tentacle as far up as he could reach. The finely honed edge of his sword sliced through the muscled limb. Blood spouted from the stump, and the beast screeched again.
    Ran didn’t stop. He spotted another tentacle rising out of the surf. Even as more rain slashed at him, he leaped high and cut horizontally, shearing another piece from the leviathan. He heard shouts behind him and risked a quick glance. Another tentacle had entangled one of the crew, its suckers already attached to his body. The man howled over the roar of the storm as his friends desperately tried to free him.
    But in another blink, the tentacle vanished back into the sea, dragging the crewman to his death.
    Malkyr shouted orders at his crew, but it was obvious that panic was setting in. The first mate tried to keep some measure of control, but then a rogue wave tossed the ship, and the first mate went over the side and vanished. Another tentacle appeared and smashed into the mast in the center of the boat. Ran heard the splintering of wood and looked up to see the mast breaking.
    “Look out!”
    Even as he shouted a warning, the timber crashed down onto the deck, crushing another crew member. Ran dodged the ruffled and drenched sail and the lines that threatened to spool around his feet. He’d spotted another tentacle lashing at the midships and struck out with his sword, cutting deep into the flesh and muscle of the suckered tendril. Dark blood poured from the gaping wound, spilling onto the already slippery deck. Ran jerked his blade free, and almost instantly the tentacle slid back into the deep.
    His breath came in spurts now, and the adrenaline flowing through him made his pulse drum in his ears. He took several deep breaths and managed to calm his heart rate. He turned and saw the crew still trying to clear the wreckage of the mast from the deck. Men worked feverishly to cut the lines and toss the timber overboard.
    Movement in his peripheral vision made him turn in time to see a massive tentacle streaming straight at him. Ran ducked and then heard the song of steel as another sword cleaved through the tentacle. He looked up to see the old drunk launching a series of lightning-fast cuts that severed the tentacle in several places. The wounded stump shrank back over the side of the ship.
    Ran rose on his