Eye of the Wizard: A Fantasy Adventure Read Online Free PDF Page A

it down. I will fight like Lady Lenore, fearless. She narrowed her eyes and held her sword high as they rushed toward her.
    Their claws reached out, dripping slime, and Jamie's blade flashed left and right. Severed moldmen hands flew against the trees, and the creatures screamed so loudly, Jamie's ears ached. One severed hand caught her foot, still alive on the forest floor, tripping her. Jamie fell with a yelp, the moldmen swooping down onto her.
    She thrust up her sword, impaling one of the creatures. He writhed on her blade, snapping his teeth at her. His drool hit her face, hot like dripping wax. Jamie screamed, eyes narrowed, and shoved with all her might. She managed to push the moldman off, then slashed her sword left and right, cutting the other two moldmen. She kicked wildly, knocking off the severed hand that clutched her. It flew.
    The moldmen were wounded, but still alive, limping toward her. Jamie snarled, rage filling her, and ran toward them with a scream. She spun her sword, rage flowing through her, chopping the moldmen until they moved no more.
    They lay dead.
    Jamie stood above them, panting, their blood and moss covering her. Her own blood dripped from her leg, where the severed hand had clutched her. She saw that hand still writhing on the forest floor, and she slammed her sword into it, finally killing it. She wiped her brow, only smearing slime across her face.
    Catching her breath, Jamie looked around the forest, waiting for more moldmen to arrive, but none did. Her mind reeled. What were moldmen doing here? She had never seen such creatures, but all knew of them. Parents told their tales to scare errant children, and drawings of moldmen filled scrolls in church libraries. Centuries ago, the moldmen were human outlaws, terrorizing the countryside. A warlock had buried them underground, sending them into an enchanted sleep, bidding they wait for a day that he should summon them. The warlock died soon after, and the moldmen remained buried, sleeping. As the years passed, mold, mushrooms, and snails grew across their rotting bodies, and still they waited underground for their lord to summon them.
    Who had woken them, summoned them here today? And why? Jamie could not imagine, and she clutched her sword, remembering the last time a warlock had led monsters into her town. Jamie shivered.
    Did Scruff meet these creatures too? Is he wandering this forest, or back at Burrfield? Jamie did not know, and she felt dizzy. The moldmen's blood and slime covered her, stinking so badly, her head spun. She looked over her filthy clothes with disgust. To hell with Scruff, I'm going to take a bath. She started walking back toward Burrfield. If moldmen attack him out here, the brute deserves as much for wandering off. She gave an annoyed grunt that blew the hair off her forehead.
    Bloody and slimy, Jamie found her way back into Burrfield. She walked down cobbled streets, townsfolk covering their noses as she passed by, and entered Fort Rosethorn. She crossed a courtyard where an old caregiver was sweeping fallen leaves and petals, shooing away peacocks that came begging for crumbs. Behind three old pines—among the few leafy survivors of Grobbler Battle—Jamie found the fort's bathhouse.
    It was a squat, brick building covered with ivy. The place always made Jamie wary; she would bathe here sneakily, praying nobody caught her. If anybody saw her naked, her secret would be out. Luckily, squires were a stinky bunch, and most bathed only monthly. The bathhouse was usually vacant when Jamie desired a bath, which she often did; unlike the boys, she hated being dirty.
    Peaking around, Jamie tiptoed into the bathhouse. She saw several clawfoot tubs, towels hanging on the walls, and shelves lined with brushes and soap. A fireplace crackled in the back wall, casting orange light. Pots of water bubbled there; servants often kept hot water ready should Bramblebridge desire a bath post haste. Luckily, no servants were here today.