Free The Wyrmling Horde by David Farland

another. All husbands would love their wives, and hold to their wives alone. All children would love and emulate their fathers, for their fathers would be worthy of their love. There would be no need for armies, for there would be no wars.
    â€œCan you imagine what kind of world that would make? So much of our labor is only a waste. We wage an endless war against the evils among us, and it drains our every resource—our time, our wealth, and even our very hope.
    â€œBut that’s the kind of man I knew—a good man, a just man. Perhaps he is just a memory. Perhaps you’re right. Maybe he has been tormented beyond all reason, and his mind has gone to waste. He might now be nothing more than a maddened animal, craving his own death.
    â€œBut I hope for something better. There was a firmness in Areth Sul Urstone that put iron to shame. Never have I known a man of stronger resolve. I believe that he resistedhis torturers through these years. I have been told that upon the shadow world, his shadow self was great indeed, and that he was a king beloved of his people more than any other. It is said that even the earth loved him, and granted to him great powers to protect his realm. Thus he was called an ‘Earth King.’
    â€œIt is my hope that now that the worlds have combined, he may become such once again. I believe that he still lives, and it is my intent”—Emir Tuul Ra’s voice suddenly turned to a snarl, as if terrible passions had long been building inside and only now fought their way free—“to
bring him home
!”
    At that some of the older men cheered and raised their battle-axes and danced in celebration. Some of the older women swiped tears from their eyes.
    But Talon felt little. She had never known the prince. He’d been captured when she was just a toddler. Most of the younger generation had never met him.
    She had met his shadow self, of course—the Earth King Gaborn Val Orden. But how much like him could Areth Sul Urstone be? Areth Sul Urstone was from a world that had never heard of Earth Kings.
    The Wizard Sisel hoped that with the binding of the worlds, the Earth Spirit would grant that title to Areth’s shadow self. But Talon wasn’t sure if that would happen.
    â€œWhat would you have us do,” Drewish Madoc shouted at the emir, “squat here in the field while you plot some mad rescue? We should get going. We should devise some fortification, prepare for battle. The wyrmlings will be upon us after dusk.”
    â€œWhat fortification would you suggest?” the emir asked. “Shall we dig a trench and build a nice little battle wall? How will that help us, when the wyrmlings took Caer Luciare—one of our greatest fortresses—only hours ago? It would be madness to fight them, and there is nowhere to run.” He jutted his chin toward Daylan. The immortal stood calmly. “But Daylan Hammer has a plan for escape, one that is not without its own risks. I will let him tell you of it.”
    Daylan stepped forward a few paces. “As you know, our passage is blocked to the north. With the colliding of the worlds, a great sea is emptying and filling the River Dyll-Tandor. It has flooded to the north and the east, and it is filling the valleys to the west. We cannot escape in those directions. The mountains to the south might seem the only logical choice, but you all know the dangers. The weather there is likely to be harsh, even at this time of year. But there is another danger: with the great change that has been wrought, the mountains themselves will be unstable. Landslides are common enough in the wet season, they will be far more likely now. I do not think we should venture south.
    â€œThat leaves only one hope. You folk of Caer Luciare have no memory of how the worlds were formed. Among the wyrmlings it is taught that the Great Wyrm formed the world, and that is half-true.
    â€œBut a better world than this existed