Free Demonkin by Richard S. Tuttle Page A

K'san's voice clearly as the priest spoke to one of the black-cloaks.
    “Forget the Eulena woman. Choose the next one on the list. It is time to go.”
    Then the king's scream ushered forth from his lips. Elves ran forward to put out the flames burning on the king's chest, and as the pain struck home, darkness overcame his mind.

Chapter 5
Wandering Mage
    The young couple crawled quietly to the edge of the ridge and peered down at the Calusa Road. The woman grabbed her long, brown hair and forced it down the back of her tunic so that it didn’t fall across her eyes as she gazed at the group of travelers below. The man turned his head as he detected the motion beside him. He glanced at the woman for only a moment, but her eyes instantly glared back at him.
    “You should tie it,” Lymm remarked softly.
    “When your hair gets longer than a knuckle,” taunted the Rhodan, “then I might be interested in your advice.” Lymm sighed and shook his head. Chimene turned her gaze back to the road and the group of travelers below. “What do you find so interesting with this group? They do not appear to be a threat.”
    Lymm hesitated before answering. He subconsciously ran his hand through his short, black hair as the Rhodan’s taunt still echoed in his mind. “Do you see nothing unusual about the group?” he eventually asked.
    “I see four men and a woman,” answered Chimene. “They are not heavily armed, and they do not appear to have taken any particular care in choosing their campsite. They obviously are not concerned with being attacked, and they do not appear to be capable of attacking anyone. They are just travelers. What did you see that caused us to leave our horses behind and crawl up here?”
    Lymm stared once again at the small group having their morning meal around the campfire alongside the Calusa Road. “The group appears to have spent the night alongside the road,” Lymm stated. “That alone causes me concern.”
    “There are no inns along this section of the road,” frowned Chimene. “Where else would you expect them to sleep?”
    “It is not so much that they slept where they did,” explained Lymm, “but rather that they were able to do so without us knowing about it. There were no reports of these travelers approaching this area yesterday, and there was no report of a campfire last night. Boric gets regular reports of everyone coming and going along the Calusa Road. This group has never been mentioned before.”
    “Are you sure?” asked the Rhodan.
    “I am sure.” Lymm nodded. “First off, they are not lightly armed; they are unarmed. I do not see a single weapon among them. That alone makes me suspicious. Boric has worked hard to let everyone know that the bandits own this road. To travel along it without protection speaks of carelessness.”
    “Maybe they do not fear bandits because they have nothing to steal.”
    “Look again,” instructed Lymm. “Those horses are Occans. Each of them is worth a fortune, and they even have spares with them. There is something strange about this group, but I cannot tell what it is. Still, I must report them to Boric. You stay and watch them.”
    Chimene stared at the group as Lymm backed away from the edge of the ridge. She saw one of the men rise, say something to the others and then walk into the woods. She hurriedly slid backwards and raced to the horses to catch Lymm before he road away.
    “We are not supposed to separate,” she said to her partner. “If you return to camp, I must go with you.”
    “Are you afraid to stay in the woods alone?” taunted Lymm.
    “Would you care to try your sword against me?” Chimene scowled in return. “I am not afraid of you or anyone else. Yortana told us to stay together, and I know how to follow orders.”
    “Then what is the purpose of both of us being out here?” snapped Lymm. “We are just wasting resources. We have done nothing that couldn’t have been done by just one of us.”
    “I will not