Free The Shadow Realm (The Age of Dawn Book 4) by Everet Martins Page A

from the fire lighting Nyset’s eyes. Nyset ducked, wincing as Claw’s blade whooshed by her ear and thudded into something behind her.
    Nyset squirmed on the ground, face-to-face with a beast whose mouth had been replaced by a mass of stretched flesh. Its eyes pulsed with a golden glow, slitting with rage. It smashed its head into her face and hot pain spread out across her cheeks, light bursting across her eyes. She rolled away, hands protecting her face, teeth gritted.
    The beast whimpered, grasping at Claw’s blade standing straight from its chest. Beside it was a discarded long sword, amber runes lined from hilt to tip. Senka fell on it, ramming daggers in each hand into its eyes. Senka let out a shrill scream, blades against her hips poised to thrust into it again. She rammed her blades under its neck and they came out, splitting flesh apart under the jaw.
    “Are you alright, Mistress?” Claw was standing over her and sucking in air. His eyes were wrinkled and an ugly grin was plastered on his face. Madness. Madness she wanted at her side.
    Nyset was on her bottom, knees propped up and watching Senka. “Yeah.” She wiped her hand across her nose and pulled away blood. Her heart was beating in her skull, the world ringing.
    Senka groaned and sheathed her daggers. Her face twisted in pain and she dropped to her knees. She clutched her bandaged wrist, fighting back the tears welling in her eyes. Her lips trembled and she let out a hoarse scream.
    The Skin Flayer lay on its side, the glow dimming in its eyes. One of its hands pawed at the stones, fingers twitching. Breath rasped out from the yawning throat wound while blood bubbled out of its nose and neck. It crept underneath it between the cobbles. It was black in the haze. Bright red where a shaft of light cut through the clouds above.
    Claw walked over to the creature. “Strange thing,” he muttered. The street had mostly cleared of people, some cowering behind shop doors. Heads poked out like gophers over the edges of windows from the houses lining the walls. Claw put a hand on its shoulder and extracted his curved blade. How had she missed that before?
    “Thank you,” she said, nodding at him.
    “Just doing my job, Mistress.” Claw wiped the blade on his robes, smearing blood over the dried dirt.
    “Can you heal her?” Nyset directed to Senka. The girl was taking ragged breaths, blood trickling out from her bandages and around her shaking fingers.
    “Think I can.” Claw laughed as if it was the most brilliant idea he’d ever heard.
    Nyset stood on wobbly knees. It shouldn’t have affected her so much. It was the shock of it more than anything. There was no place she could find peace. Its violet robes had taken on the pattern of the stones and shifted to match the blood oozing into it. Nyset thought the robes could be useful, then remembered what happened to Walt after he put on the Cerumal armor.
    He kneeled in front of Senka and beckoned for her hand. The tendon’s tightened in her neck and she looked up at Nyset.
    “He’ll heal you, fix your hand. Don’t be scared.”
    Senka sniffed and gave a crisp nod, putting her wrist in Claws opened palms. Claw’s hands hummed and pulsed with the cool glow of the Phoenix. Senka moaned and arched her back, grinning. “It feels amazing. All the hurt fades from my arm and my body. How is it done?”
    Claw responded, but his voice faded in Nyset’s ears. The street was quiet. Maybe everyone was too scared to speak, seeing a creature like this for the first time. The wind felt cold through Nyset’s wet silks. She flexed her toes in her sweat soaked boots. Eyes were watching her all around. A butcher scratched the back of his wiry neck, knuckles white against the handle of his wide knife. A tall woman clutched a sack of potatoes close to her chest. One fell from a hole in her sack, thudding onto the cobbles. It rolled in front of a mangy dog who snatched it up and ran with its prize, bushy tail excitedly