Chapter 1 Excerpt The inky blue-black sky began to lighten into a cold bright blue. It touched the wooden thatched houses and lit the empty-stalled market. Its pale glare woke sleeping animals and snuck into vegetable gardens plucked completely bare. The light seemed to reach everywhere but the dark, thick forest. The pines and cedars that engulfed the Kingdom of Twickerth could grow to over 60 feet; these trees were both prized and uprooted, as wood was the industry of the kingdom. However, the cutters were careful with their felling, the tree must be allowed to re-grow less the wood and work disappear. ‘The tree may be cut but the forest must remain’ was the common saying. This wood would soon be felled again but for now these tall trees provided a line of cover surrounding their target, the village of Twickgrove. “Dawn has come and soon they will all awake.” The speaker was tall, with a bald head and dark skin. He was dressed in simple black cloth and black leather with no armour other than a mail vest and crude pot helm. It was no different for most of the company of men he had joined, poorly fitted out for the work ahead, unlike the leaders. The company had been created by five leaders and these men were known as the five heads. The purpose of the company was simple: they were swords for hire, usually hired for distasteful work. The dark-skinned man had been granted the rank of second commander, which meant only the commanders and leaders were above him, but it also placed him in the front line. Just to the left of him were the five leaders of the company, who were in front only because of their rank and not because they would be in the thick of the fight. The leaders were a mixture of men; short, tall, white, dark, fat and thin, but all had an air of menace. Their garb was similar, black and simple, but the five heads also wore finer pieces of armour and even fine pieces of jewellery; this was their method of keeping their wealth close to their person. The dark man was new to the company, so had no such wealth to display. He had needed work and they had been recruiting fighters who weren’t afraid of blood, and he had very little fear in his life at all. The conscription had gone well; an additional 20 or so men had been gathered to the company ranks. Each new recruit had been further tested in skill of arms and general intelligence. The results of this test determined their place and rank. As a son of a knight the dark man had gained rank but not respect. None of the new recruits were trusted, they would have to show their commitment first. Finishing reading Chapter 1 here. Rowena Redman's Author Bio: For as long as I can remember I’ve always been making up stories in my head. As a small child, I made up tales for my barbies and beanie babies. It was only later that I began writing them down and even then, just for fun. Despite my dyslexia and difficulties translating the ideas in my head to the page, I continue to explore my passion for writing. I wrote my first full novel by the age of eighteen and knew that I wanted to take things to the next step. So, I chose to study creative writing at university to hone my craft. I graduated from Bolton University in 2014 with a 2:1 grade excited about the tools and techniques I had learned. After university, I began to apply these to my writing over the following years and now, I feel ready to be published. I am independently putting my writing on the open market, and I do hope you will be supportive. Connect with Rowena: X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/RowenaRedman Author's Website: https://rowenaprice92.wixsite.com/rowenaredmanauthor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorrowenaredman/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085135987877 If you like this page, you will love our newsletter. So subscribe today by clicking the button in the right hand sidebar. Thank you!
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