Even Gods Must Fall Read Online Free PDF Page A

tone.
    “Venten, Aurec is all grown up and you’re responsible for the person he’s become. Take it as a compliment. I’m comfortable with him leading the army. You should be as well.” Thorsson turned his head and spit a wad of brown phlegm before wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve. “We can win this war. Hopefully the mountains will be clear by the time we come home. I’m tired of winter.”
    “Winter? Thorsson, there are more inherent dangers in what you’re about to attempt than the prospect of another storm.”
    The lifelong soldier grinned savagely. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. Take care, Venten. The war may be finished here but Rogscroft is not a safe place.”
    “Stay lucky, my friend.”
    They shook and Venten finally headed back to his company. They’d set out for the capital in the morning, giving Aurec and most of the main body time to begin their short journey back into combat.

THREE
    New Allies
    The Dwarf army from Drimmen Delf, nearly four thousand strong, continued the long march towards Delranan. King Thord strode at the head of the winding column. It had been many years since the Dwarves last went to war with any other race than their own. Thord harbored no personal feelings on the matter, insofar as he was concerned he was simply repaying a debt.
    The rebellion of the dark Dwarves cost Drimmen Delf dearly but the toll would have been much higher if not for the intervention of Anienam Keiss and Bahr of Delranan. Their combined efforts helped drive Thord’s enemies from the field and secured a lasting friendship between the Dwarf Lord and Bahr, the Sea Wolf. Thord agreed to send an emissary along with Bahr on his quest to recover the Blud Hamr. When the Elf Lord Faeldrin informed him of the dire need to march west to the wars of Man, Thord was honor bound to accept.
    Cool winds blew across the Dwarf’s face, at least the parts not covered by the thick moustache and beard. Marching across frozen plains was not in the Dwarf’s best interests. He was infinitely more comfortable spending his days underground in the warmth and familiarity of his halls. Life above ground was meant for others. Still, Thord almost relished the freedom of having an entire world open and exposed before him. The sounds of his army marching behind him comforted him in ways only a soldier would understand. The jostle of armor. The accidental clank of steel on steel. The grumbling, cursing, and joking of soldiers as they marched. All were sounds so ingrained in the Dwarf Lord that he managed to take comfort in uncomfortable situations.
    Wagons laden with spare weapons, feed and grain for the animals, and supplies for the army trundled along behind agonizingly slow. The cannons came next. Each was pulled by four oxen and followed by three additional wagons carrying the newly invented ammunition and gunpowder. Armorers roamed the camps at night, repairing the black-powder pistols and axes as necessary while the infantry recovered strength. The road to Delranan was long and Thord planned on having his army arrive, in fighting condition, by the end of ten days. Five had already passed.
    Elf scouts of the Aeldruin ranged the fields and forests for sign of the enemy. Reports of the initial battle along the banks of the Fern River reverberated throughout the army. One hundred Dwarves gave their lives against an army estimated at more than fifty thousand. The Dwarves made the Goblins pay but not even Thord’s main body was strong enough to repulse an army that strong.
    Dwarves and Elves shared no love lost yet were far from being considered enemies. Most of the Elves on Malweir were too aloof, self-absorbed in their own ways, to bother caring what the other races did or didn’t do. Thord was taken off guard when Faeldrin and his mercenaries arrived in Drimmen Delf offering to assist the Dwarves in their civil war. Very few individuals in the modern world offered aid without expecting something back in return.