Kevin McLaughlin

Chapter 188 - The New Order

It was the day of the council meeting, and everything was in place. We decided to hold it in the same KingsHaven hall that Peter had used to welcome Clay and I when we first visited. The ide...

Chapter 187 - Strength and Honor

The next few days went by fast, with all of us working so many hours of each day that sleep felt like something we used to do and feeling rested was more a memory than a familiar th...

What's next?

If you're a paid reader here, then you can see we're fast approaching the end of the third book! Things are heading toward resolution now, and while I'm not 100% sure how many chapters remain, I've...

Chapter 186 - Judgement

I followed Peter down as he dropped. About halfway to the ground he must have recovered enough to use his Flight spell again, because he began slowing down. It wasn’t enough to stop him fr...

Chapter 185 - Breaking Chains

More than anything, Clay wished he’d gathered more stat crystals. He’d done what he could, and as one of the leaders at the Farm, he’d certainly been given more access than many to wha...

Chapter 184 - Duel of the Skies

The dragons spun wildly as they continued to claw at one another. I was only remaining attached thanks to the rope I’d used to tie myself to Tenebris. How the hell Peter was managing, I di...

Chapter 183 - Not Leaving You!

Peter reacted as soon as he saw us starting to move. He urged Big Red into a quick ascent so that he could catch us before we reached the tower. But we dropped from the sky too quickly for h...

Chapter 182 - Violence in the Vault

After continuing down the corridor through three more passages filled with three different kinds of traps, Clay decided that Eddings had clearly spent too much time watching Indiana Jones mo...

Chapter 181 - It’s a Face Off

Time for a face off. Tenebris settled himself on the battlements of the tower, his skeletal claws cleaving into the stone. I peered over toward Peter, highlighted from behind by some flames ...

Chapter 180 - Check For Traps!

Clay opened the door and almost tumbled down the steps just inside it before he caught himself. He swore under his breath. That would have been painful and embarrassing. But the sta...

Chapter 179 - Tyranny of Rank

There he was. I clenched my hands into fists at the sight of him, fury roaring through me. I wanted to unleash hell on the man, wanted to drop the heavens on him and destroy him for what he'...

Chapter 178 - Risky Plans

Tenebris and I waited silently overhead while our friends fought their way through the enemy castle. We kept shadows wreathed around us long enough to hit the clouds, which hung low over the...

Chapter 177 - Whispers and Walls

Clay was moving the moment his feet his the deck. In so many ways, this new world was a blessing as much as it ever had been a curse. He used to be one hell of a security operator, way back ...

Chapter 176 The Second To Last Error

A gentle touch on my shoulder roused me to wakefulness. Everything was still pitch black. Even the moon was hiding. I was on my feet and reaching for the sword at my side before I realiz...

Chapter 175 - The Seeds of Revolt

It didn't take long for us to reconnect with my friends. Tenebris spotted them as we sped by overhead in a second pass, and we set down next to the abandoned barn they'd holed up inside. Hop...

Chapter 174 - Soaring Darkness

We made quick work of gathering up all of the crystals we could find. I didn't want to linger; the risk of Peter returning far outweighed the reward of finding one or two more stones. If he ...

Chapter 173 - The Bones Danced

I had a big finish in mind. Something that would end this battle for sure, and maybe give me a decent chance against Peter, next time we ran into each other. More than that, if my plan went ...

Chapter 172 - Buried Hopes

I woke to the sensation of being trapped, stuck in place. I couldn't move anything at first, and a panicked yell escaped my throat before I could stop it. Where was I? What the hell was goin...

Chapter 171 - We Have An Accord

The lightning flashed, bright enough to blind Peter for a few moments. But that was nothing compared to the explosion that followed. The blast tossed him from his feet, sending him crashing ...

Chapter 170 - Scorched Earth

I let the tears fall for a minute. Losing Sue hurt. I’d had the dinosaur by my side through so much that it was hard to imagine that being over. I couldn’t afford to grieve for long. Tho...

Chapter 169 - Terminal Ferocity

The look on his face was priceless. Peter clearly hadn’t expected me to answer that way. He spluttered for a moment, then shook his head and gestured wildly with his hands.

“Why al...

Chapter 168 - Hope for Peace

I had three siege towers rolling my way, backed by something like nine hundred orcs. That was a rough guess, mind. I felt sure he’d left some of the army back at Carver’s fortress to kee...

Chapter 167 - Bones and Ashes

I was ready to make my stand by the time the first orcs broke free of the woods. We’d cleared the area around the Farm out to a good distance, at Carver’s advice. His fortress was in the...

Chapter 166 - Indecent Proposal

An hour later, my people were all long gone. Kara, Clay, and Alfred led them out through the underground tunnel. I wished them well as they took off, striding down the dark and not particula...

Chapter 165 - Fire and Flight

We rode hard, dashing down deserted streets as fast as Sue could carry me. All the while, I kept looking back over my shoulder for that damned dragon. I knew full well that Peter wouldn’t ...

Chapter 164 - Kneel or Burn

We made excellent time down the stairs to the courtyard. We didn’t run, but Carver kept a pace which was swift enough that it would have left me huffing for breath, back in the old days. F...

Chapter 163 - An Hourglass Filled With Sand

By noon the next day, all our preparations were well underway, and I decided it was well past time to pay Carver a visit. If he did know more than I did about what was going on, I needed to ...