The Way of the Brother Gods Read Online Free PDF Page A

her.
    Taking a chance, she whirled around, letting Viper slice at anything in its way. Two heads rolled and the rest of her attackers stepped back for a second. It was all the time she needed.
    Malja dashed away from the group, sprinting until she reached the crossroads. "Fawbry!" she bellowed as she turned down the street.
    Many of the creatures were too deformed to chase after her, but enough of them had speed to be dangerous. Their sharpened claws clicked against the cracked pavement as they closed in on Malja. Slobbering and snarling, they would catch her before she could reach Horse and the boys.
    "Fawbry! Get —"
    Something wet and strong wrapped around her throat, yanked her off her feet, and smacked her into the ground. She looked back. The same four-armed, white-haired bastard stood with its mouth wide open. Its huge, muscular tongue stretched out from its mouth to Malja's neck. With her free hand, she tried to pull it off, but the tongue tightened its grip. She struggled for air.
    More creatures arrived, circling Malja, waiting for White Hair to kill her so they could feast. Malja rose to her knees, ignoring the jeering of the crowd, and tried once more to pull the tongue off her neck. No good. White Hair laughed — a disgusting sound with its tongue out.
    Lack of air slowed Malja's thoughts, but one idea stood out — she had only used her left hand to pull at the tongue. Why? Because I'm still holding Viper in the other hand! Not wasting time to chastise herself, she flicked Viper over and slashed upward. White Hair laughed no more.
    She pulled the severed tongue from her neck and watched White Hair run off, its clawed hands covering its mouth as it blubbered in pain. It left behind a trail of blood that a few creatures decided to lap up. The others had grown cautious, but hunger still ruled them. They inched forward, closing any gaps around her.
    Bright flashes erupted from one building. The building Tommy and Fawbry were in. Sizzling sounds and anguished screams followed more flashes. All the creatures and Malja looked up.
    The windows on the second floor exploded outward. Flames shot in the air. A fiery ball soared out of each window and struck the ground. Just before they hit, Malja realized they were not balls of fire but bodies of fire. The odor of cooked flesh pulled many of the creatures away from her.
    From the hole where the window had been, Tommy floated out. Malja had seen him do this before — sitting cross-legged in the air with his hands resting on his knees — but she had never seen the way his eyes blazed in concentration. Fawbry peeked out from the second floor as Tommy hovered just above the street. All the creatures were mesmerized by him. They even stopped eating their charred friends to watch.
    Nothing more happened for a moment. The still night air lacked any noise — all the surrounding animals waited to see the outcome. When the creatures attacking Malja seemed to think nothing more would happen, they attacked again. Two grabbed for Malja while four others charged Tommy.
    Malja dropped to the ground, sweeping Viper through the legs of her opponents. Tommy raised a hand, his eyes fixated on his tattoos. Flames shot from his hand, lighting up the street. All four fell — one of them burned to ash.
    This proved to be enough of a threat to outweigh their hunger. The creatures rushed away, whimpering like wounded pets. A few bold ones dragged the cooked corpses with them, but none dared to look at Tommy. In seconds, the street emptied except for Malja and Tommy.
    Pulling debris from his hair, Fawbry stepped from the building and said to Tommy, "They're all gone. You can stop now."
    But Tommy continued to float. Though the look in his eyes no longer blazed, it had not returned to normal either. His eyes had turned pinkish, and he looked ahead as if focused on nothing. And his sickness was gone. All the fever, all the weakness, had mutated into a floating magician.
    "Tommy?" Malja said, her