Teaser Three: This time its Personal
Once again I am putting off Thralls to work on getting my series finale of Domains of the Chosen out before the new year. Here is a taste:
He took guilty pleasure in watching the giants and the Chosen. He could not believe the size of the Hittans, towering over the houses in many sections of the city. They made short work of barricades and small formations of Legionnaires, but in turn attracted the attention of Chosen. It was his experience as a spectator of the battle so far that watching the giants was the best way to see the best fighting because they always attracted the best among the Krassian forces.
Even at this distance the roar of the new Long Barrel cannons, weapons similar to what the fleet had been using for decades, was deafening.
The storm had subsided as well, so the crow’s perch wasn’t bobbing much at all. It was idyllic really. He had nothing to do but watch the horizon for storms, and watch the action on land. The Legions would route the Wirn, they always did.
Distantly, he saw a whirlwind surge through a street, tossing men aside like dolls. He could not tell if it was a spell or some manifestation of the strange weather. He watched a pair of giants sparring with a stubborn Legion formation, attacking it from afar with spear lunges that could cover almost a dozen paces. The giants would rend furrows in the Legion ranks, only to have them reform a moment later. Zhintis was wondering why they did not retreat when a cannon shot took one of the giants in the shoulder, sending him toppling back with a spray of blood. The Legionnaires charged the fallen giant, swarming and hacking until his companion could drive them off. The fallen giant could not rise and a moment later a second cannon ball screamed into his companion, felling him as well.’
“That’s what you get, big bastards,” muttered Zhinitis.
The giant still on his feet bellowed and charged the Legionnaires, who scattered this time, disappearing down alleys and into tunnels.
His view of what happened next was obscured as the ship shook and shuddered as if they had just scrapped a sandbar. Zhintis looked down. The water was cloudy. Before he could make a thorough examination his attention was drawn to the Mazurin III, a nearby Ironclad. Something was moving along the starboard side, huge and purple, pushing out of the water. It was the size of a whale, but no whale. Every sailor knew and dreaded what he saw.
