The Curse in the Gift (The Last Whisper of the Gods Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

approached, if not before then.
    This was the first time Sorial had been above ground in nearly five weeks. During that long period, he had made a deep, inaccessible underground cavern his domain. There was a clear stream running through it to provide water and fish, and his rock wyrm “pet” procured other food for him. As much as he loved the earth and all it offered, he had found himself increasingly desirous of seeing the sun and sky. So he had made this trip, riding the rock wyrm as it burrowed up through the earth to emerge in a grotto deep within The Forbidden Lands.
    His thoughts turned to revisiting the lands of men. His desire to be reunited with Alicia hadn’t diminished during his self-imposed exile. If anything, it was stronger than ever. He wondered if she knew about his success at the portal. He had entrusted the message to Warburm but the innkeeper’s chances of survival were questionable. There was no guarantee he had made it back to Vantok. If he hadn’t, Alicia would be waiting and worrying, her despair growing with every passing day.
    Yet he couldn’t return, at least not yet. To attempt it would be folly. His sister was out there, somewhere, and she had pronounced a death sentence upon him, contingent on his surviving the portal’s initiation process. They were both wizards now, two of four, but her experience outweighed his by more than a decade. She could do things he could only imagine. Surviving a confrontation with her didn’t demand that he be able to match her in skill and power, but he needed to possess a greater understanding of his abilities and their limitations than he currently did. He had learned much in his five weeks of solitude, but there was more to be probed and investigated.
    Sorial waded into the pool, allowing the water to embrace his body, washing away the dirt. He found the act of bathing oddly refreshing, although it represented the caress of a foreign element.
    Sorial hadn’t thought much about the future even though it was growing ever closer to converging with the present. His mind frequently wandered to Alicia while waking and asleep. She was a recurring distraction. Beyond claiming her, however, he hadn’t formulated a plan of action. He would return to Vantok and, if King Azarak’s offer was worthy, pledge himself to serve the city as its first wizard in nine centuries. Beyond that…? Part of the problem was that he wasn’t sure what he wanted. Marriage to Alicia and a comfortable life, to be sure. But what else? He was unmoved by thoughts of wealth and power. And what would be required of him? Putting an end to the heat wave would be his first task but he suspected his service to the city would culminate with him pitted against his sister and The Lord of Fire. He wouldn’t stand a chance.
    Sorial wasn’t yet convinced that a life-or-death struggle was the only way things could be resolved between him and Ariel or, for that matter, between him and The Lord of Fire. He didn’t view either as an enemy, although his goals and theirs weren’t aligned. If there were only four wizards, it made sense for them to form a common alliance. Infighting seemed pointless and counterproductive, although Sorial could understand how they might view him as a threat. They had been the sole practitioners of magic for years; his uninvited initiation into their small circle interrupted carefully laid plans.
    Still, if Ariel would provide him with an opportunity for discourse, Sorial felt certain he could convince her that they need not be enemies. He was less certain the same could be said of The Lord of Fire. If the wizard’s goal was to destroy Vantok by baking its lands and citizens, Sorial was bound to intervene. He didn’t love the city where he had grown up the way some residents no doubt did, but he felt a responsibility to defend it. Until he had departed late the previous year on the trek that had led to his disfigurement and transformation, he had known no other life