Circle of Thieves: Legends of Dimmingwood Read Online Free PDF Page B

see through the
thick layers of furs and feathers they had adorned themselves in to realize
they were actually humans, despite the animalistic quality of their screams.
They surged over the tiny village like swarming ants and already were beginning
to drive villagers out of their homes.
    The terrified villagers fled, screaming into the night, but
most were being swiftly cut down even as they tried to make for the shelter of
the trees. The fierce invaders indiscriminately slaughtered any who fell in
their path. A few of the attackers were trying to set fire to the cabins, but
the damp eves refused to catch, and the steadily falling rain swiftly drowned
out the flickering flames. Even so, those villagers who had bolted themselves
indoors once they saw the invaders’ intent began spilling out doorways and
climbing through windows to escape the houses. Many of the villagers were
fallen upon by the enemy before they had fled a dozen steps. A few
quick-thinking individuals took up any tools at hand to defend themselves.
    I took all of this in during the three seconds I hesitated
before plunging into the fray. I caught the eye of one of the attackers along
the outer fringes just as he caught sight of me, and we made straight for one
another. Just before we met, he hefted the long spear in his hand and hurled it
through the air at me. I dodged the flying javelin, feeling the rush of air as
it missed my shoulder by a hair.
    In a single motion I swept my knives from their sheathes and
released one to arc through the air. The spinning blade flew true and lodged
itself deep into the throat of the oncoming enemy. The strike was a deadly one,
but the invader staggered forward a few steps, propelled by his momentum before
crashing to the ground. I slowed only long enough to retrieve my knife before
running into the thick of the fighting, armed now with the knowledge these
fearsome attackers could be killed the same as any other men.
    After what seemed like an eternity but could only have been
a matter of minutes, it became clear we hadn’t a hope of driving them off. We
were vastly outnumbered and facing an enemy of warriors.
    I noted a group of women and children fleeing into the open
doors of the meeting hall where evidently a large part of the village
population had taken refuge. Foolish of them, they were only trapping
themselves, saving the invaders the trouble of rounding them up. Already a
number of invaders were converging on the spot.
    I fought my way through the melee, collecting as many of our
fighters as could hear my call or disengage themselves enough to answer it, and
we cleared a path to the door of the meeting hall, arriving just ahead of the
invaders. We organized ourselves enough to form a line to hold the invaders
back.
    I started out at the front of this line, fighting toe to toe
against our attackers, but suddenly during the fighting, I became aware of a
sibilant wordless whisper at the forefront of my mind. I fell still and
listened to what the bow was telling me. That pause was nearly the end of me as
an enemy spearhead almost caught me in the ribs. A gray-bearded villager saved
my life by deflecting the strike.
    I took the brief opportunity the villager bought me to step
behind the wall of fighters and drag the bow from my shoulder. Aiming my arrows
up and over the heads of the line of villagers, I fired away into the mass of
the enemy until the moment I reached back to find I had nothing left to shoot.
I realized then that the main body of the enemy was falling back. Why? We had
finally organized some defense, but it was scarcely enough to hold them back.
    Nevertheless, many turned and flowed off into the woods.
Within minutes only small knots of fighters remained, those either too near
victory or too deeply engaged to give up the fight. I left our line of
defenders, the meeting hall now secure, and drifted off to join the smaller
frays, lending my aid to the villagers who still fought for their lives.
Sometimes I