Servants and Followers (The Legends of Arria, Volume 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

happened between Basha, Iibala,
and the birds just before the militia tryouts. Perhaps he had
confessed too much to Iibala when he had told her what happened to
him on the night Berevus had betrayed his militia, but it was
necessary for him at the time . S he had been complain too much
about his odd, mournful behavior, which worried her, and he had to
tell somebody the truth before all of the lies and rumors swallowed
him up.
    “ Anyway,” Nisa said
now, crossing her arms as Sir Nickleby turned back to her, “You
should be more careful from now on. The boys are getting restless.”
She said.
    “ How do you know
that?” Sir Nickleby asked.
    “ They took off three
minutes ago down a side trail.” Nisa pointed. “They said they would
race a mile down the trail and back before you got back out of
these bushes.”
    “ What?” Sir Nickleby
said, running out of the bushes as Nisa shook her head. The Old Man
would have been upset with her to learn that she had allowed the
boys, especially Basha, to get out of her sight, but she thought
that Sir Nickleby deserved to learn a lesson of his own about
ignoring his duties.
    Sir Nickleby mounted
his horse and took off , galloping the wrong way. He went
down the main road instead of the hunter’s path that he must have
missed.
    “ Sir Nickleby! Wait!”
Nisa cried, coming out of the bushes and seeing his misdirection.
However, she was forced to hide herself again when she heard the
approach of two horses coming onto the main road from the hunter’s
path . S he witnessed the crash of the falcon into Basha, Oaka’s
appearance, and the Wolves.
    Nisa lifted her head as she saw the
last of the Black Wolves running after Basha and Oaka, unaware of
her existence when they were concentrated on their prey. She
muttered, “You’re not getting them,” and quickly went to fetch her
bag. She should have been more careful with her own charges.
    His horse galloping down the road, Sir
Nickleby muttered to himself, “Why can’t they just wait for me? Is
it so hard for them to sit still?” He paused and muttered to
himself, “Better make it ‘lords and ladies,’” still thinking about
the speech.
    He peered about in
search for the side trail until a howl echoed throughout the forest
and Sir Nickleby’s horse reared up as he pulled on the reins. He
could not figure out where the noise was coming from.
    “ Sir Nickleby!” Basha called out, from behind him.
    Sir Nickleby turned
his head around, and saw one of the most horrific sights he had
ever seen before, coming his way. The boys were riding their horses
like all of the demons of the shadow worlds were after them, and
they were. Black Wolves, Hyena Wolves, a whole pack of them, like
the one that should have been there when he had discovered the
scout in the forest last Suma. They were after the boys, they were
after Basha. He couldn’t believe how time slowed down as everything
moved, fast as lightning, towards him.
    “ Well, I suppose I shall have to do my job!” Sir Nickleby
called out, and jumped down from his horse as the animal bolted. It
was harder than it looked to make such a jump. He managed to land
on the ground with a roll, and stand up again, unsheathing his
sword. He was too old for this sort of action, leave acrobatics to
young people like Nisa.
    “ Keep going, boys!” Sir Nickleby called out to them as the
boys were trying to rein in their horses. “I’ll catch up!” He waved
them on, still sore.
    The horses ran on
again, as smoothly as lightning streaking across the sky in jagged
lines, when the boys could not stop them, and then Sir Nickleby
strode out into the middle of the road. “Come on, you bunch of dogs
from in-bred mothers!” Sir Nickleby roared. “Have at me, Wolves!”
He cried out as the pack launched itself at him; he would not die
without some pain. Oh, Iibala, he was sorry…
     
    Something had
happened, or was happening, Doomba sensed, opening his eyes behind
the mask in the Wastelands, south