Read The Elder Blood Chronicles Bk 1 In Shades of Grey for Free Online Page B

at
her.
    “No elf would be caught in this weather or
place. They have better sense than that,” the man on the dark horse
muttered.
    “I’m not exactly an elf, but I can explain
that later.” He glanced back toward his companion and shook his
head in silent rebuke. “My name is Victory, this is Avalanche.” He
motioned toward the horse and then to his companion as he
continued. “And that is Havoc, my traveling companion.” He offered
his hand to her in greeting.
    “Did you really just introduce your horse
before me?” Havoc asked in a tone of disgust. “You know most people
don’t even introduce horses.”
    “In order of importance, my dear friend, so
yes, Avalanche comes first,” Victory replied smoothly. Havoc gave a
grunt in reply and Jala felt herself relax a bit. Neither of them
was acting much like an evil sorcerer.
    “My name is Jaladene,” she replied, trying to
sound older by using her full name. It sounded odd to her, though,
so she hastily added, “Mother and father call me Jala, though.” She
looked around at the bleakness and looked back to Victory. “Did my
father send you to find me?” she asked hopefully.
    Victory frowned for the briefest of moments.
“No, he didn’t send me, but now that I have found you, I would like
to help.” He offered his hand again, and she took it hesitantly. He
squeezed her fingers lightly and frowned again. “Far too cold,
child! Let’s get you on Avalanche and out of this rain.” He stood
gracefully and lifted her onto the massive horse. “Havoc, give me
your spare cloak,” he called over his shoulder before mounting
behind her.
    Wordlessly the other man dug through his pack
and produced a dark bundle of cloth. “Not sure how dry it is Vic,
not much is dry in this mess,” he said, tossing it lightly to the
knight. Victory caught it easily and wrapped it around her. It
smelled of horse and sweat, and reminded her a bit of her father.
She felt herself relax further and realized how cold she truly was.
Her teeth chattered lightly, and Victory pulled her back against
him. She tried to ignore the cold metal of his armor as he gathered
the reins and urged his horse into a walk then to a trot.
    “We need to get north as quickly as we can,
for she is near frozen and needs shelter and a fire.”
    “Nothing I’ll argue with,” Havoc replied
turning his own horse to ride alongside them. “I’ve seen enough
devastation and ash to last me a lifetime.”
    “Would be that we never see it again,”
Victory agreed. She felt herself drifting a bit as they talked, her
mind becoming as numb as her body.
    “I’d love to know how a child her size
survived it, and no one else seems to have.” Havoc spoke quietly,
and she fought to ignore what he was saying. “Didn’t Badger settle
somewhere in these parts with that girl he saved? What was her
name? Molly, Martha…” his voice trailed off.
    “Maggie, her name was Maggie, and yes he did
if I am judging the area right. It’s hard to tell with no
landmarks.
    “Hope to the gods he moved before the
property value dropped.”
    “He wouldn’t have. He was from Merro. I
remember him talking of it often. He loved this land. The last that
I heard, he was doing well for himself.” Victory spoke softly, and
silence followed his words for a long while.
    “Well then I hope his life was a happy one
before this. He deserved it.” Havoc’s words were the last she heard
before she drifted into sleep, trading one nightmare for
another.
     
    She awoke later, bundled heavily in blankets,
and for the first few moments, she didn’t remember. In her
sleep-fogged mind, she was at home in bed, and everything was
normal. Then reality set in and she recognized the sound of fire
cracking lightly and another sound of metal being sharpened. She
could smell smoke and the scent of food cooking.
    “She’s awake.” It was Havoc that spoke,
though it took her a moment to recognize the voice. She felt her
stomach clench and wanted