Read The Way of the Brother Gods for Free Online Page B

Tommy and slammed hard into a barrier neither could see. Horse took it the worst, crumpling to the ground, dazed. The abrupt hit sent Malja over Horse's head and into the invisible wall, knocking the air from her lungs. She rolled to the ground, popped back to her feet, and held Viper in a sturdy fighting stance.
    Two long tentacles broke through the dirt, each one like a dead root flailing around for nourishment. Malja wasted no time in cutting them. When she struck, a deep moan vibrated through the ground.
    Fawbry rushed over to Tommy's unused horse, trying to calm it enough to mount. Malja glanced at her own mare. Horse had stood up but still looked wild-eyed. And just beyond Horse, Malja saw the long roots of a tree hanging over a mini-butte.
    "Fawbry," she said. "Climb!"
    As Malja made for the root system and Fawbry hurried to follow, the ground underneath Tommy's horse swelled. Malja hated to see it happen, but in seconds the earth opened up and pulled down the horse. Climbing up the roots, Malja peeked over her shoulder and saw row upon row of teeth, rolling up to the surface like waves.
    "Help me," Fawbry said from below. With only one hand, he couldn't climb the roots well.
    Malja jumped down and placed her shoulder underneath Fawbry. As she reclimbed the roots, Fawbry reached up to anything he could hold on to, helping lighten her load a little. She groaned under the weight but managed to get off the ground and into the roots.
    Horse blew air through her nostrils and paced beneath them. Malja strained her muscles to hold position even as her heart beat against her ribs. She didn't want to see it happen, but the ground beneath Horse rose.
    "I'm sorry," she whispered to Horse.
    Whether or not Tommy reacted because he heard Malja, she never knew, but Tommy did react. He spun around, checked the tattoo on his left pectoral, and waved his right hand at the swelling ground. Four tentacles shot out, but they lacked purpose and strength. They shot out more like a gasp for air.
    And they were stone.
    In fact, Malja now saw that the ground beneath her, beneath Horse, also looked like stone. A light-gray mass of rock. Tommy had petrified the creature.
    As simply as he had acted, he returned to his hovering position and waited. Malja and Fawbry eased to the ground, avoiding the hard surface of petrified creature as they attempted to regroup. Fawbry's face reddened as he stomped over to Tommy.
    "Korstra's bed-mate! You couldn't have done that sooner? We were almost killed."
    Malja hiccuped a laugh. "I've never heard 'Korstra's bed-mate' before."
    "I just made it up and don't try to change my thinking. Tommy can be awfully selective about when he decides to use his magic to save me. For you, he does it without a thought. But me? I don't appreciate him holding back like that."
    "He holds back because I've asked him to do so," Malja said, all trace of amusement leaving her. "Look what's happened to him because of magic."
    "I know, I know. I just —"
    "You were almost eaten by a ... whatever that thing was. It's okay. Just don't take it out on Tommy. He's a good boy."
    Fawbry's face pinched in but before he could speak, a familiar rumbling came in. It was a sound they all knew well — an engine.
    A grounder with a hardtop drove in and skidded to halt, its engine idling loud as dark smoke poured out its back. The door opened, and a tough-looking, helmeted figure emerged. The figure pressed a button on its belt and the invisible barrier flashed blue. The figure stepped through where the barrier had been, observed them for a moment, and pulled off the helmet.
    The lovely, dark-skinned face of Cole Watts peered out. "Faw-Faw? Dear, is that you?"
     

Chapter 6
    Cole Watts drove through the twisting passages of dried-out swamp with familiarity while Malja leaned back and watched the landscape soar by. Tommy floated above the seat behind Cole, and Fawbry kept him in place with a safety restraint.
    "Don't worry about your horse," Cole