"Terence West - Darkness" - читать интересную книгу автора (West Terence)
as the creature's fangs broke through the flesh of his neck.
Slashing down with his sword, Cole easily lopped the head from his first target. Bright blue flame surged
from the creature's body as it writhed on the ground in agony. Slowly, red embers began to flit into the air
as its body was reduced to ash. Snapping his head around, Cole struck again and again. As an unholy
blue fire blazed around him, he lifted his sword high into the air. "Death to all vampires!" he roared.
Turning, he saw his men falling quickly to the advances of the vampire army. Rage gripped him. This was
not a battle they were destined to win. The vampire's numbers were far too great. The Esgobaeth had
sent them carelessly to their deaths. All his men would be sacrificed on this field. For what cause, for
what future purpose would this serve? Hundreds would die here tonight. Gritting his teeth, Cole decided,
at that moment, he would not be one of them. He would fight until there were no vampires left standing.
Spinning around, he charged blindly into the waves, killing everything he saw.
As the last remaining soldiers under his command fell, he found himself surrounded on all sides by leering
golden eyes. His steed whinnied and bucked, almost knocking him free of his saddle. He held on tightly
knowing that the horse was his only advantage. The wave of darkness surged forward again, ripping and
tearing at him. His steed whinnied and bucked again and again as it tried to escape the claws and fangs,
but it was no use. There were simply too many of them. As his horse was brought down, Cole continued
to fight, slashing wildly with his sword. The screams of his men filled his ears as his mount came down
hard, pinning his right leg beneath it.
"The Wraith will never give up," he grunted in pain. "I promise you!"
horrible movement, they surged toward Cole. He flailed wildly as the razor-sharp claws and fangs dug
into his exposed flesh. Piece by piece, his armor was ripped away, exposing the clothing and flesh
beneath. He roared in rage as the claws of unseen bodies began to tear at the golden crest of his family
emblazoned on the purple shirt he wore. As the claws ripped through his shirt, he lifted his eyes toward
the heavens. Blocking out the pain, he uttered a silent prayer in the hopes that God would look after his
wife and child. He screamed in agony as the first set of fangs dug into his flesh.
'
CHAPTER ONE
The room was bathed in darkness as the hopefuls were led inside. These were the chosen few, those
who had completed the training and excelled in their courses. This would be part of their final test. If they
passed, they would continue the crusade begun centuries ago; if they failed, it meant certain death. Such
as it had been for hundreds of years, so would it continue to be with this new generation. As the hopefuls
were led through the darkness, each was instructed to kneel with their hands clasped behind their backs.
If they were to break the link of their hands at anytime, this test would become null and they would lose
their chance to complete the training. There would be no make-up day if they failed, no do-overs. This
portion of the test was far too important.
Each of the seven-the largest graduating class the academy had seen in some time-were blindfolded to
keep them from seeing the members of the High Council. This was done for not only the student's safety,
but also for the council members. Though it was not revealed at any point in the training, as a Wraith
aged, their features became more and more vampiric in nature. It was becoming increasingly difficult to
differentiate between actual vampires and the oldest members of the order. It was also required to keep
the student from knowing which member of the council had chosen them for the ritual. Each member of
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