Revelations of Doom Read online

  Revelations of Doom

  Volume 1

  The Light Warden series

  By Jedidiah Behe

  Smashwords Edition

  Copyright © 2012 Jedidiah Behe

  All rights reserved

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return toSmashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1 - The Hunt

  Chapter 2 - The Pleasant Call of Power

  Chapter 3 - The Fall of an Emperor

  Chapter 4 - Eyes of the Seer

  Chapter 5 - The Pain of Shadow

  Chapter 6 - When Death Stalks

  Chapter 7 - The Rage Within

  Chapter 8 - A Tribe Scorned a Ruler Forgotten

  Chapter 9 - Between Dream and Darkness

  Chapter 10 - The Stone Lion

  Chapter 11 - In Search of Shadow

  Chapter 12 - The First Capture

  Chapter 13 - A Fleeting Hope Destroyed

  Chapter 14 - Despair

  Chapter 15 - Fear of the Unknown

  Chapter 16 - The Dark Apprentice

  Chapter 17 - To Stare Death in the Eye

  Chapter 18 - The Fortified Spirit

  Chapter 19 - Hands Covered in Blood

  Chapter 20 - A Warriors Resolve

  Chapter 21 - Hope Rekindled

  Chapter 22 - When Shadow Meets Darkness

  Chapter 23 - Light Filters In

  Chapter 24 - The Brush with Blade

  Chapter 25 - The Trap Set

  Chapter 26 - Claw and Fang

  Chapter 27 - Mother of Beast and Swamp

  Chapter 28 - Through Fog and Death

  Chapter 29 - The Revelation

  Chapter 30 - Cat and Mouse

  Chapter 31 - Fight or Flight

  Chapter 32 - Stone, Steel and Iron Will

  Chapter 33 - Friend or Foe

  Chapter 34 - Misplaced Faith

  Chapter 35 - New Visions Bring Shadows

  Chapter 36 - The Sting of Treachery

  Chapter 37 - A Brother’s Love

  Chapter 38 - The Dream of the Apprentice

  Chapter 39 - The Calm before the Bloodbath

  Chapter 40 - Deceit and Doubt

  Chapter 41 - The Agony of Anticipation

  Chapter 42 - The Power Within

  Chapter 43 - The Siege

  Chapter 44 - Retribution Comes

  Chapter 45 - What Witches Brew

  Chapter 46 - Drums Still Beating

  Chapter 47 - Darkness Descends

  Chapter 48 - The Lion Falls

  Chapter 49 - As Shadows Give Way to Light

  Chapter 50 - The Aftermath

  Chapter 51 - The Weight of Responsibility

  The Hunt

  The two hunters dashed through the woods, darting around trees and shrubs, barely making a sound. Lucian leapt a small creek, landing in a crouch to observe the tracks of their prey.

  Eliath scanned the forest with trained eyes. "He must have an injury to one of his legs."

  Lucian gave a short nod. "Yes, he seems to be favoring it some. And look ahead, he is being reckless in his flight." He pointed at the nearly invisible trail they followed. "Look at the broken branches, he knows we hunt him."

  Eliath came up alongside of Lucian. "Maybe he smells us, or he senses our presence. We must move quickly or we will lose him."

  "We know where he is heading,” said Lucian, taking a relaxing breath. “If we try to catch him he will outrun us. We have to outsmart him. If we cut across the river over there and follow it to the area where he will most likely try to cross, we will have him."

  Eliath gave a quick nod in agreement and the two hunters made their way to the ambush point and waited patiently. Lucian settled down low behind a thick brush about fifty paces from the riverbank. Eliath lay behind him looking toward the river. Lucian couldn’t see it from his position, so Eliath would signal him when the prey crossed. He slowly slipped his bow from over his shoulder and notched an arrow. Lucian would take the kill shot because out of the two hunters, he was the better archer. Eliath doubted that there was anyone that might match Lucian’s skill with a bow. Lucian waited, slowing his breathing, steadying himself. He felt the slight touch from Eliath on his ankle. He blocked out everything around him, the shaking leaves, creaking trees, whispering wind and the rush of the river. He honed in on the closing footfalls of his quarry.

  The prey burst into view, charging up the path only thirty yards ahead of him. Lucian felt Eliath touch his foot so he stood and drew the bowstring back in one fluid motion. Just as soon as he pulled full tension into the string, he let loose, sending the arrow sailing toward the target. The missile struck its mark, slicing in between the ribs and penetrating the heart. The Fen hit the forest floor hard, slamming against a tree.

  The two hunters rushed over to their prey. Lucian knelt down beside the Fen, a deer like creature only much larger. This one was almost twelve hands high with shiny coppery fur. It had a stunning array of horns protruding from its head that were sometimes used in defense but mostly against other male Fen's in a challenge. It was one of the most beautiful creatures of the wood, a treasured gift from the heavens that would feed Lucian's family for a month. And the fur would provide warmth in the winter. It was a great hunt as well. Fens were among the toughest prey to track, they were very intelligent and fast. Very few men would have been able to take one down while in mid run. It was a near perfect shot. Lucian ran his hand along the creature’s magnificent coat. He brushed some of his dark brown strands of hair behind his ear as his bright golden eyes took in the creature’s beauty.

  "Thank you Great Father for providing this gift to my family."

  Eliath bowed his head and nodded in agreement as Lucian looked over the powerful prey, studying it closely. "Look at its left hind leg."

  Eliath followed his gaze and saw the injury. “That type of wound could only have come from a worvak!"

  Lucian agreed. "He was lucky to have escaped such a predator."

  Both hunters bristled at the thought of the worvak, neither man nor beast, but a cruel melding of both, created by witches long ago with great power. With an unquenchable hunger for death, they scour the lands, attacking anything they can find. Their palate held no favorites.

  A concerned look crossed over Lucian’s face. "There have been many worvak sighted as of late, why are they coming down from the northlands?"

  Eliath's brow drew down as he looked off into the distance, deep in thought. His eyes met Lucian’s after a moment. "I have no answer for that, my brother."

  Lucian studied his friend’s light grey eyes. He believed Eliath did indeed know something, but he didn’t press him about it, he never did when Eliath got that look. Lucian trusted him with his life, and for good reason. He had come to know Eliath when he was being robbed on the outskirts of the village near his home. He was only in his fifteenth year and had been attacked by three young men. He didn’t have but a few pieces of copper on him, so they were angered, and decided that they would teach him a lesson for not having money that they could steal.

  †††

  They started at him, grinning at the thought of pummeling him into the dirt. Lucian never liked to fight. He hated it as a matter of fact. He always tried his best to avoid confrontation, but it seemed to always seek him out. He was quick witted and usually found a way out
of such incidents, but not on this night, his words only seemed to make the young men angrier. Even though he was at least two years younger than the roughnecks he was almost their size, but they had been at the business of beating on people for quite some time now and were good at it. One of the thugs buckled Lucian over with a crushing blow to his midsection. Another grabbed his hair and was about to punish Lucian’s face with his fist when suddenly a large hand came slicing down to the side of the bully’s neck. He didn’t scream or anything. His grip loosened. His eyes rolled back, and he just toppled to the ground, smacking his face in the dirt. The other two robbers spun toward the new threat, their eyes going wide. A young man was standing there with his massive arms crossed over his thick chest, glaring at the two thugs. He was a mountain, towering over the two cutpurses. His light grey eyes lanced through them. Long, raven black hair partially shadowed his face and hung well past his shoulders. Lucian felt like melting under the gaze he fixed on the thugs.

  "Want to end up like your friend here?" said his rescuer as he pointed to the unconscious man lying in a heap at his feet. The two thugs looked at each other and rushed off in opposite directions through the alleys of the town.

  "The name is Eliath," said the oversized young man as he stood, looking down at Lucian.

  Lucian reached out to his savior’s outstretched hand, "Uh…Lucian, nice to meet you."

  The two clasped wrists and since that day have been inseparable. Lucian had grown into a man of about six foot, four inches. He was larger than most and powerfully built. Countless hours stalking prey through the woodlands had shaped his body into a predator’s physique. Eliath however, was nearly a head taller than Lucian and was quite the spectacle with his hulking stature. Despite his size, he moved like a mountain lion. After that fateful day with the ruffians, Lucian had begged Eliath to train him in combat and it seemed that when they were not out hunting for food, they were in the barn, or out in the fields sparring.

  Lucian had yet to see anyone that could come close to Eliath's skill in combat. He wished he knew where the man learned how to fight so well.

  Eliath had told Lucian that he was alone, having no parents and so Lucian’s family had taken him in. The two friends were like brothers now. They mostly stayed to themselves, and spent a lot of time in the vast woodlands. Initially the reasoning was to avoid such pointless quarrels with other young men in the village that had something to prove, but Lucian had become very fond of the woods and the warm feeling that seclusion offered. He loved nothing more than spending nights under the tree canopy, looking out into the amazing array of stars that were scattered throughout the sky among the two moons. His father had taught him how to use those same stars as a map, to keep himself going in the right direction while they hunted game.

  Lucian was in his twenty-third year now. He assumed that Eliath was much older because of his vast knowledge of things, and his wisdom even though he still looked young. He never understood that part of Eliath. The only thing that seemed old about the man was his light grey eyes. They seemed to hold ages of truth. Truths that Eliath would never took to mentioning. To Lucian, it was the strangest, most peculiar part of his adopted brother.

  †††

  The two friends found a branch about one and a half meters long and several inches thick. They tied the front and rear legs of the Fen to it, then hoisted it up onto their shoulders and made for their home. Lucian’s parents would be overjoyed at the gift they were bringing with them. They had been out in the wild for a week, hunting the Fen. Lucian was proud of how the hunt went. The week out in the woodlands had been beautiful. It didn’t rain at all and the skies had stayed perfectly clear the entire time.

  As they followed the trail leading back to their home on the outskirts of the village, Lucian stopped abruptly. "Great father protect us."

  The whisper came so soft from his mouth that Eliath almost missed it. "What is it?"

  Lucian set down his end of the branch and walked over to a tree just off the path. He cocked his head, inspecting the marks imbedded in the tree. "What manner of creature would you say made these marks brother?"

  Eliath walked over to the bark, "A very large one no doubt."

  The gouges in the tree were deep, and unmistakable to a knowing eye. Lucian stepped back, his brow drawing in tight. "This is a worvak marking. They use trees to work down their massive claws. Judging from the height of these, this worvak must be taller than you Eli." He paused and gave a concerned look to his friend, "And their fresh."

  The two men started peering around the woods. It was getting later in the day now, shadows were being cast everywhere. The trees of this wood were massive, twice as wide as a man, and reached high into the sky. They creaked and moaned as the wind pushed at them. Orange and yellow leaves shook and clapped high above. Suddenly every shadow seemed to be moving, lurking, and watching them. They both studied the shadows and listened for some time, but there was nothing.

  "He may have marked this tree and moved on. He could be miles from here by now." Eliath glanced over to Lucian to see if he heard him, but he hadn’t.

  Lucian was stone still, partially crouched, and ready to burst into movement, his every muscle straining. His senses spiked, and the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Something was close. A cold shiver ran through him when he felt a drop of liquid hit his arm, too thick to be rain. Instantly he was in motion, diving to the left and rolling. He heard Eliath scream out in warning to him but he already knew. Just as he was rolling away, a large figure came crashing down on the spot where he had been standing. He heard the deafening roar as he came out of his roll, his small hunting knife at the ready. He turned to see the huge worvak leaping at him, letting out a deep, trembling growl. Its teeth glistened, dripping with the thick saliva that had hit Lucian’s arm while the beast was perched in the tree above him. Lucian used his momentum coming out of the roll to backpedal away from the lunging beast but its powerful leap closed the gap quicker than he could react.

  Just as the worvak was about to collide into Lucian, Eliath threw himself into the furry creature, slamming it into a tree. The beast didn’t hesitate. Its claws slashed out with blinding speed as it hit the ground, but Eliath had already rolled out of the way. The worvak gathered itself up and was crouched with its arms stretched out wide, its large clawed hands flexing with its heavy breathing. It looked back and forth from Eliath to Lucian with glowing yellow eyes, probably trying to decide who better to eat first. Its lips pulled back revealing long disgustingly sharp teeth. Lucian and Eliath stood several yards apart facing the beast, waiting. They knew they couldn’t outrun it and they couldn’t think of how to go about attacking it, having never encountered such a creature.

  The worvak made the decision, leaping toward Eliath who was the closest. Eliath ducked the deadly swiping talons and came under the beast’s snapping maw, slamming his shoulder into its stomach. He stayed in motion, spinning around behind the creature and slammed his knife into its back, aiming for a lung. He buried the knife to its hilt but the worvak ignored the sting. The beast spun around, catching Eliath on the side of his head with its large forearm. The strike lifted him off the ground and sent him through the air. Eliath slammed into a tree but landed on his feet. His head throbbed from the blow, but he couldn’t stay still. The worvak was turning his way.

  As it crouched to leap onto Eliath, a large rock slammed into the back of its head. It howled in fury and turned toward the attack. Lucian dove low, avoiding the creature's swiping claws, and slicing at its tendons behind the knee as he rolled past. He came up behind the beast as it dropped to its injured knee and threw its head back, letting out a dreadful scream. Lucian didn’t waste the moment. He slammed his knife into the back of the creature, aiming for the other lung, and ducked under a thick arm as the beast spun to strike him. Lucian's thrust was true, but the worvak didn’t topple from it, and Lucian could not avoid its other arm as it slammed into his chest, sending him reeling backwards through the air. His
thin leather hunting gear did nothing to absorb the blow.

  The worvak crouched, ready to spring on top of the stunned Lucian when Eliath came up behind it. He pulled both knives free from its back, and slammed them into the sides of the beast’s head, instantly dropping it to the forest floor.

  Eliath stumbled over and slumped down next to Lucian against a tree. His long black hair was matted with blood on the side that had been struck. Both men sat there, eyes closed, regaining their breath.

  "You have learned well Lucian, I’m glad that when I fail to protect my brother, he is able to protect himself."

  Lucian let out a muffled laugh. "You have always protected me brother, must you act as though it is your duty to do so?"

  Eliath just smiled to himself.

  "And besides, you didn’t fail in protecting me, you defeated the beast. It was my own carelessness that caused me to get struck."

  Eliath stood and turned toward the Fen lying several yards away, his voice barely a whisper, "I said when I fail."

  Lucian couldn’t make out the mumble that came from his good friend, probably just some flippant remark. He deduced that Eliath was probably upset with himself for not killing the beast before it could engage Lucian. He didn’t understand why, but Eliath seemed to hold his own life forfeit next to the protection of Lucian’s. Eliath was like a brother, and Lucian would just as soon lay down his own life for him as well, but with Eliath, it seemed more than that, as if his sole purpose was to protect Lucian. Sometimes it bothered him to think about it that way but he had come to accept it, knowing that he could not change how his adopted brother felt. Either way, he was glad to have such a friend. He knew that if it weren’t for Eliath, the worvak would probably have killed him.

  They looked over the large beast, in awe as much as contempt. It was a monstrous creature that stood nearly eight feet tall with long, muscular limbs ending in large hands sporting razor sharp talons. Thick, coarse fur covered the bulky humanoid body. Its large head resembled a man’s but for the protruding snout and jaw that was filled with disgustingly sharp teeth. Lucian had never seen one alive before, but he almost felt a deep sorrow for the creature, remembering the stories of its tortured existence and how the worvak came to be. He had also heard accounts of them coming into villages and killing five or six men before they could be brought down.