A Quest of Heroes (Book #1 in the Sorcerer's Ring)

boar charged right for him. It missed
him by a hair.
    The
clearing broke into chaos. The boar charged the others, ferocious, swinging its
tusks every which way. In one swipe, it managed to slice O’Connor’s arm, and
blood burst out as he clutched it, screaming.
    It
was like trying to fight a bull, but without the proper weapons. Elden tried to
jab it with his long spear, but the boar merely turned its head, clamped down
on it with its enormous mouth, and in one clean motion bit it in two. Then the
boar turned and charged Elden, hitting him in the ribs; luckily for Elden, he
narrowly missed being torn apart by its tusks.
    This
boar was unstoppable. It was out for blood, and it would clearly not leave them
alone until it had it.
    The
others rallied and broke into action. Erec and Kendrick drew their swords, as
did Thor, Reece, and the others.
    They
all encircled it, but it was hard to hit, especially with its three-foot long
tusks that kept them from getting anywhere close to it. It ran in circles,
chasing them around the clearing. As they each took turns attacking, Erec
scored a direct hit, slashing it on its side; but this boar must have been made
of steel, because it just kept going.
    That
was when everything changed. For a brief moment, something caught Thor’s eyes,
and he turned and looked into the forest. In the distance, hidden behind the
trees, he could have sworn he saw a man with a black, hooded cloak; he saw him
raise a bow and arrow, and aim it right for the clearing. He seemed to be
aiming not at the boar, but at the men.
    Thor
wondered if he were seeing things. Could they be under attack? Here? In the
middle of nowhere? By who?
    Thor
allowed his instincts to take over. He sensed that the others were in danger,
and he raced for them. He saw the man aiming his bow for Kendrick.
    Thor
dove for Kendrick. He tackled him hard, knocking him to the ground, and as he
did so, a moment later the arrow flew by, just missing him.
    Thor
immediately looked back to the forest, looking for signs of the attacker. But
he was gone.
    But
he had no time to think: the boar was still sprinting madly about the clearing,
only feet away from them. Now it turned in their direction, and Thor had no
time to react. He braced himself for the impact, as the long, sharp tusks bore
down directly for him.
    A
moment later there came a high-pitched squeal; Thor turned to see Erec, leaping
onto the beast’s back, raising his sword high with both hands, and plunging it
into the back of its neck. The beast roared, blood squirting from its mouth, as
it buckled to its knees, then crashed down to the ground, Erec on top of it. It
came to a halt, just feet away from Thor.
    All
of them stood there, frozen in place, looking at each other—and wondering what
on earth just happened.

CHAPTER
TWENTY TWO
     
     
    Thor,
carrying Krohn inside his shirt, was overwhelmed by the noise as Reece opened
the door to the alehouse. A huge group of waiting Legion members and soldiers,
crammed inside, met them with a shout. It was packed and hot inside, and Thor
was immediately sandwiched in between his brethren, shoulder to shoulder. It
had been a long day of hunting, and they had all gathered here, at this
alehouse deep in the woods, to celebrate. The Silver had led the way, and Thor,
Reece and the others followed.
    Behind
Thor, the twins, Conval and Conven, carried their prize possession, the boar,
bigger than anyone else’s, on a long pole over their shoulders. They had to set
it down outside the tavern doors before coming in. As Thor took a last glance
back, it looked so fierce, it was hard to conceive they had killed it.
    Thor
felt a squirm inside his jacket and looked down to see his new companion,
Krohn. He could hardly believe he was actually carrying a white leopard pup. It
stared up at him with its crystal blue eyes and squeaked. Thor sensed he was
hungry.
    Thor
was jostled inside the alehouse, dozens more men streaming in behind him, and he
proceeded deeper into the small, crowded place, which must have been twenty
degrees warmer in here—not to mention more humid. He followed Erec and
Kendrick, and in turn was followed by Reece, Elden, the twins, and O’Connor,
whose arm was bandaged from the boar’s slice, but had finally stopped bleeding.
O’Connor seemed more dazed than hurt, his good spirits had returned, and their
whole group shuffled deep into the room.
    It
was packed shoulder to shoulder, so tight that there was barely room to