Here's an excerpt to whet your appetite for what you can expect to read in Forge of Time:
The throng
murmured, many of its members turning to each other with furrowed brows, but
the disturbance died down when the judge raised a hand.
“If you’re
trying to incite unrest,” he said, “you’ll fail, and you’ll earn yourself a
worse punishment. You should keep quiet, while you’ve only lost your tongue.”
He signalled to the other two leather-clad thugs. “Arrest her.”
The men shoved
through the mob towards her.
“What you’re
doing is wrong!” she yelled. “If this
is the kind of justice those blue bastards impose, they’re as bad as dark gods!
They’re monsters!”
“Your heresy
just earned you a death sentence.” The judge turned to the jailers on the
podium. “What are you waiting for? Get on with it!”
“No!”
Ashryn scrambled
over the railing, and the crowd below surged aside as she dropped. She landed
lightly, the hawk tattoo on her back tingling, and headed for the judge, people
shuffling out of her way. He swung to face her, and the jailer with the hatchet
quit the scaffold to intercept her. As he seized her arm, her golden snake
tattoo glimmered, came to life and slithered up his sleeve. He released her
with a yell and recoiled, searching his clothes for the viper that slid under
them, its progress marked by a long, coiling bulge. The judge’s mouth flopped
open and the other jailer stared. The youth wrenched free of his captor’s
slackened hold and dived into the throng.
The spectators
were agog as the first jailer swore and squirmed, hunting for the elusive serpent.
He stripped off his jacket and flung it down, then grabbed at his chest as a
gleam of gold vanished under his shirt. He yelled and ripped off the garment,
spraying buttons, and the viper slithered into his trousers and coiled around
one leg. Ashryn smiled as the brawny man yanked down his trousers and made a
grab for the snake, which slid into his undershorts with a hiss. He rummaged
inside his remaining garment, his face twisted with dread at the threat to his
most sensitive parts, and she held out her arm before he resorted to extreme
measures to evict the snake, doubtless to the crowd’s disgust. The shimmering viper
reappeared on her skin and returned to its dormant state. The jailer groped
around for a minute longer before realising it was gone, then turned his back
and dragged up his trousers, darting her murderous looks as the onlookers
tittered.
The judge closed
his mouth and scowled at her. “So, you must be the sorceress I’ve heard about.
Our gods will want to meet you, and yet… The tales tell of how everyone
understands each other near you, but these people are still speaking their own
tongues.”
“You know
nothing, because you’re a moron!
You’re a spineless lackey, too.” She raised a finger, making him blanch and
step back. “You leave these poor people alone from now on.”
“Since you have
magic, our gods will deal with you.”
“They’ll have to
find me first, and I reckon I just gained the favour of the downtrodden masses
here, so good luck with that.”
Ashryn spun on her heel, and the crowd parted to
let her through. The thugs who had been sent to arrest her stepped into her
path, looking apprehensive, but the judge flicked a hand and they let her pass.
Evidently he wanted to avoid another demoralising magical display in front of
so many witnesses. Jeharad caught
up when she was halfway back to the shack.
“What the hell
was that?”
“How much did
you see?”
“Everything;
after you jumped off the balcony, I climbed up.”
“That was myth
magic, for defence.” She smiled. “It was quite entertaining, huh?”
Jeharad chuckled.
“I thought he was going to strip right off.”
“He might have,
if I hadn’t recalled it.”
His mirth faded.
“You shouldn’t have called so much attention to yourself.”
“Maybe not, but
I couldn’t let them cripple that poor boy. I think the locals might help to
hide us now, too. It’ll be beneficial to get in their good books.”
“I wouldn’t
count on that. If they’re loyal to their gods, you’ll have made matters worse.”
“Who would be
loyal to such barbarous gods?” she asked.
“Desperate
people who know they won’t survive long without them.”
