“He farms his daughters out like a slimy pimp,” Quinn spat.
“He doesn’t seem to be himself,” Estry said, looking over Mansel’s shoulder at Quinn.
“No, he needs help. He’s got a few busted ribs and some bite wounds that won’t heal. But it’s his temperament that’s changed.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Estry left, and Mansel saw to it that Quinn didn’t leave their rooms. The next day a soldier came to the inn to escort Quinn and Mansel to the castle. They were taken into a small room on the first floor and made to wait for nearly an hour, and then Branock walked into the room. He was completely confident, even when Mansel drew his sword.
“There’s no need for that,” the wizard said. “Although that stone is interesting. I take it Zollin fashioned that weapon for you?”
“Get out,” Mansel snarled.
“Tisk, tisk, I thought you needed a healer?”
“I won’t let you touch Quinn.”
“I’m fine!” the carpenter complained.
“I healed you once, as I recall. Although that was before my unfortunate accident,” Branock said, waving to his head.
“You mean before you tried to kill us?”
“I was a different man then,” Branock said. “And you’ll find that things have changed here. Zollin knows of my work with the king. I can sense that something is amiss with Master Quinn. Leave him here with me and I’ll see to his needs.”
“No,” Mansel said angrily.
Branock opened the door and waved at a group of Royal Guards, who were waiting outside. The men came into the room with weapons drawn.
“That wasn’t a request,” the wizard said.
“I’ll kill you before I let you take him,” Mansel said angrily.
“No, you won’t,” Branock said, almost as if he were bored.
Mansel stepped in front of Quinn, raising his sword, but the handle was suddenly hot. It was like trying to hold a red hot iron just pulled out of the fire. Mansel screamed, fighting to hold onto his weapon, but the heat was too severe. He dropped the sword, and the soldiers moved in, backing Mansel into the wall.
“Quinn will stay with me,” Branock said. “His care requires it. You are free to stay in the city, but if you return to the castle I’ll have you banished from Yelsia. Is that clear?”
Mansel could see the look of determination in the eyes of the soldiers. If he fought them, they would fight to kill. And as strong as Mansel was, he didn’t think he could defeat the soldiers unarmed. And Branock had already made his own power clear. Without Zollin, Mansel had no hope of saving Quinn. He’d been led into a trap by Brianna’s father.
“Come with me, Quinn,” Branock said. “We have many things to talk about.”
To Mansel’s utter disbelief, Quinn went willingly with the wizard. The soldiers backed out of the room slowly. Mansel’s hands were blistered from holding his sword, and when he picked up his weapon, he could still feel the heat on the handle. He carried the sword gently by the blade as the guards escorted him out of the castle. He saw Quinn following Branock up a flight of stairs, then his dearest friend was gone from sight.
The crushing weight of his grief fell on Mansel as soon as he stepped outside. He had failed Nycol, and now he had failed Quinn. The only reason Mansel had for living was to help his friends, and it was becoming clear that he could no longer do that. His guilt and grief were so overwhelming he didn’t think he could go on. And death was the only way left to escape his pain.
Epilogue
Brianna was conscious, but she was too tired to fight back. As the dust cleared in the cavern, she saw the fire giant towering over her. It seemed unharmed, and she guessed that it probably wasn’t hurt by her stunt, but that had never been the plan. She only needed to distract the Bollarg and make sure the dwarves escaped. She had done her part, and so she waited, trying to regain her strength before rushing off to join the dwarves.
All around her the mutated creatures waited and watched. Their only joy in life was watching others suffer, and from the way they acted, they had high hopes for Brianna’s punishment. But they were all keeping a safe distance from her as well.
Some looked almost human, but with shriveled limbs and faces that looked like strange animals. There were fat, blubbery creatures with tiny arms, and long, spindly beings with twisted limbs and mutated faces. Almost every creature had burns across them. Brianna guessed that even the lightest touch from the fire giant left its mark on his horde of soulless wretches.
The fire giant had no face to speak of, just the flaming outline of a head, but it was looking at her. She could feel the incredible pressure on her mind again, almost as if her mind was being cracked open like a walnut to reveal all her private thoughts and secrets. She fought the feeling, trying to resist, and then she saw the huge fiery hand coming down for her. It was the moment she had been waiting for. She sent a wave of heat into the ground beneath her and dropped into the molten rock. She was just about to swim away when she felt something grab onto her.
Brianna bristled with heat so intense that the lava around her boiled, but whatever had hold of her didn’t let go. It was the fire giant. She had thought that she could simply swim away from the cavern but she had been wrong. Nothing else could keep up with her once she slipped into the molten rock, but the fire giant was a powerful being and, like Brianna, was not deterred by her intense heat. It had her in its massive hand, and nothing she could do would help her. She struggled, but the hand just tightened its grip. She was exhausted, but even if she hadn’t been, the fire giant was much too strong for Brianna to escape its grasp.
“I have you now!” it said, the massive voice echoing off the stone chamber.
Brianna tried everything she could think of, but the fire giant would not let go. It ordered some of its minions to remove the debris from its throne, and others to pursue the dwarves. Brianna could only hope that they could make it back to the surface before the Groslings caught up with them. How much time passed Brianna couldn’t only guess at. She grew weaker and weaker, but the fire giant did not relinquish its grip. She was trapped, and her hopes were thin. Maybe, she thought, Zollin might come for her. But even if he did, the chances of escape were almost impossible. The gods of old had imprisoned the fire giants in the underworld. Not even powerful wizards wanted to test the strength of the Bollargs. And Zollin might not even want to come after her. It was a reality she had to accept. She had made her decision. If she was ever going to escape the fire giant, it would have to be up to her.
Author’s Note
The story of the Five Kingdoms is constantly growing in my mind. I want to thank you for going on this incredible journey with me. Into Chaos is the ninth book in the Five Kingdoms series with more to come and if you’ve gotten to this point you’ve probably left a review on Amazon somewhere along the way. But if I may ask one more favor from you, it would be to leave an honest review for this book. It is one of the many ways you can show your support for my work. Thank you all so much for your constant encouragement.
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Table of Contents
Title Page
Books By Toby Neighbors
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
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Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Epilogue
Author’s Note
Into Chaos Page 25