Kareen flew about the great hall, visiting every perch she could. Most had dyed their wings black or brown, so there wasn't much color in the great hall today, but that was the point. She checked in on all the women she had trained in bows with, asking if they were ready.
She asked Jendra the baker's wife. She was big for an eagle woman, with brown wings, and when asked she said, "I'm ready, and my husband is good with fire from his furnace. Let's see how these goblins like flaming arrows."
Kareen also spoke with Hawla, the widow, whose feathers had turned grey, and she replied, "Some of my children will be defending the gate, and my husband taught me to shoot before many here were born. The goblins had better beware. I'm not happy."
She may have been one of the elderly Kareen intended to protect, but Kareen was happy for her bow all the same.
She talked to others of all shapes and sizes, including her sister Lailen, who was only armed with a sword. It wouldn't keep goblins away from the elderly and children as far as a bow could, but it would have to do.
Afterwards Kareen flew to her own perch, where she saw her children in a makeshift tent made from chairs and a bed sheet. She could see them silhouetted against the sheet from a candle. She couldn't help but wonder if she was ready for this.
She picked up her own bow and fired at a lightning bug pinned to the wall. The arrow struck dead center. Her aim was good. She was still afraid for her children, but knew she could protect them.
"Ready," she said to herself.
...
Terin watched the horizon while standing on the battlements. For the longest time everything was still. The dark cloud was completely over the sky now, blocking the sun. The goblins would be there any moment, and then he saw it.
The swarm.
From the distant horizon he saw a mass of figures flying up. It was like a swarm of locusts, but Terin knew it was really goblins coming to destroy them. As the great host flew towards them he could hear the buzzing, as if a thousand wasps were coming to sting. He looked and knew...
The battle was upon them now.
ESTÁS LEYENDO
Wings in the Darkness
FantasíaKareen is worried, and why shouldn't she be? The Eagle Men have never had to defend their home before. Their palace flies out of the reach of all other nations. Even the fearsome goblins that have wings of their own cannot leave their caves for f...
