A Realm of Shadows Read Online Free PDF

on the back of Andor. He wondered if she was safe, and
prayed that she was.
    Kyle had fought
brilliantly, for hours, one man up against both these armies, and had killed
thousands of them. Yet now, he knew, he was too weak to go on. There were just too
many of them, and their numbers never seemed to end. He had found himself in
the middle of a war, the trolls flooding the land from the north while the
Pandesians streamed up from the South, and he could no longer fight them both.
    Kyle felt a
sudden pain in his ribs as a troll rushed him from behind and jabbed him in the
back with the shaft of his ax. Kyle swung around with his staff, slashing the troll
in the throat, dropping him—but at the same time two Pandesian soldiers rushed
forward and smashed him with their shields. The pain in his head overwhelming,
Kyle dropped down to the ground, this time, he knew, for good. He was too weak
to rise again.
    Kyle closed his
eyes and there flashed through his mind images of his life. He saw all the Watchers,
people he had served with for centuries, saw all the people he had known and
loved. Most of all, he saw Kyra’s face. The only thing he regretted was that he
would not see her again before he died.
    Kyle looked up as
three hideous trolls stepped forward, raising their halberds. He knew this was
it.
    As they began to
lower them, everything came into focus. He was able to hear the sound of the
wind; to really smell the crisp, cool air. For the first time in centuries, he
felt truly alive. He wondered why he had never been able to truly appreciate
life until he was almost dead.
    As Kyle closed
eyes and braced himself for death’s embrace, suddenly a roar pierced the sky.
It snapped him from his reverie. He blinked and glanced up to see something emerge
through the clouds. At first Kyle thought it was angels, coming to take away
his dead body.
    But then he saw that
the trolls above him were frozen in confusion themselves, all searching the sky—and
Kyle knew it was real. It was something else.
    And then, as he
caught a glimpse of what it was, his heart stopped.
    Dragons.
    A flock of
dragons circled, diving down in fury, breathing fire. They descended rapidly, talons
extended, letting loose their flame and, without warning, killing hundreds of
soldiers and trolls at once. A wave of fire rolled down, spreading, and within
seconds, the trolls standing over Kyle were all burnt to a crisp. Kyle, seeing
the flames coming, grabbed a huge copper shield beside him and took shelter
behind it, curling up in a ball. The heat was intense as the flames rolled off
it, nearly burning his hands, yet he held on. The dead trolls and soldiers
landed on top of him, their armor further shielding him as yet another wave of
flame came, this one more powerful. Ironically, these trolls and Pandesians
were now saving him from death.
    He held on,
sweating, barely able to stand the heat as the dragons dove again and again. Unable
to stand it any longer, he passed out, praying with all he was that he was not
burned alive.

CHAPTER SEVEN
     
     
    Vesuvius stood at
the edge of the cliff, beside the Tower of Kos, staring down at the crashing
waves of the Sorrow, the steam still rising from where the Sword of Fire had sunk—and
he grinned wide. He had done it. The Sword of Flames was no more. He had robbed
the Tower of Kos, had robbed Escalon, of its most precious artifact. He had,
once and for all time, lowered the Flames.
    Vesuvius beamed,
giddy with excitement. His palm still throbbed from where he had grabbed the burning
Sword of Flames, and he looked down and saw the insignia branded in it. He ran
his finger along his fresh scars, knowing they would stay there forever, a mark
of his success. The pain was blinding, yet he forced it from his mind, forced
it not to bother him. In fact, he taught himself to enjoy the pain.
    After all these
centuries, now, finally, his people would have their due. No longer would they
be relegated to Marda, to the northernmost