Sir Quinlan and the Swords of Valor Read Online Free PDF Page B

breath and turned to leave, but the beauty of the sunset once again captured his attention. His mind took some time to clear, but he felt better with each passing moment. Strangely, it felt good to have his shoulders free from the weight of the paytha, and his mind finally seemed at peace without the animal’s constant chortling. He felt … free, and his thoughts turned once more to the Prince. He knelt down.
    “I haven’t much to offer, my Prince, for I am unskilled, ill-equipped, and unworthy.” Twitch opened his hands and spread his arms out before him. “Yet I offer myself to You. If there is something more to following You, then show me and I will see. Command me and I will obey. Lead me and I will follow. If my feeble life can be used by You, I give it. I am Yours, my King and my Prince.”
    Twitch bowed his head. He had never dared speak such words before, for he knew such an oath demanded pursuit, but this moment and place had caused his heart to spill out. It felt good … and a little strange. Twitch shuddered with the sense that a curtain had been drawn open behind him … a curtain hiding another world.
    Overwhelmed by the thought, Twitch ducked his head and glanced to the right—just in time to see Sir Baylor lunge straight at him with shoulder lowered.
    Twitch tried to stand, but Baylor hit him square in the chest, and they careened to the ground, rolling perilously close to the ridge that fell off far below the clearing. Twitch gasped, his lungs collapsing from the force of the blow, as Baylor scrambled to his feet and drew his sword.
    Twitch reached for his chest with his left hand and his sword with his right. His response seemed like slow motion compared to Baylor’s. His confusion mounted as Baylor turned his back to him. The mighty knight assumed a two-handed hanging guard stance, facing something Twitch had only imagined in his nightmares.
    Just beyond Baylor stood a massive dark warrior, who growled and cursed as he recovered his sword from a vertical cut that had split the ground where Twitch had just been kneeling. The warrior unleashed a volley of cuts and slices toward Baylor. Their swords collided in brilliant, ear-piercing clashes.
    Twitch instinctively backed away on his elbows, still trying desperately to regain his air. The grip on his lungs finally released, and he drew a shaky breath.
    Twitch rose up to one knee as he saw Baylor catch a slice with his sword and quickly counter with one of his own that caught the dark warrior off guard. The warrior cursed and stepped back, and Baylor capitalized on this slight advantage. He feigned a thrust but then quickly changed to a powerful two-handed slice that blasted into his enemy’s shoulder. Thrown off balance, the warrior stumbled toward the ridge. Baylor advanced with a thrust, and the warrior lost his footing. He screamed and grasped for the edge of the ridge as he tumbled over. Baylor then turned to engage another massive warrior who had come at him from behind.
    “Move, kid!” Twitch heard a different voice scream from his right. He turned just in time to glimpse another grisly blade arcing toward him.
    Twitch’s stomach rose to his throat. He dove forward, away from the deadly cut, and felt the tip of the blade slice through the back of his tunic, grazing his right shoulder. He hit the ground and rolled to his back again.
    What is happening?
he wondered, fear filling his heart as yet anotherdark warrior loomed over him. There was nothing Twitch could do to stop the inevitable. He closed his eyes and turned his head away as the glinting steel thundered down like a lightning bolt.
    This time, the clang of metal on metal was so close to his head it hurt his ears. The scuffle of boots cast dirt and pine needles into his face. He looked up to see a knight maneuvering his sword so deftly that Twitch could hardly follow it. Slowly the warrior retreated as the knight advanced. Twitch once again crawled away from the fray and quickly