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The Hunter’s Quarry – Extract

A Black Library Publication

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The Hunter’s Quarry

Colin B Harvey

‘Hold,’ she intoned, her voice crisp and clear. ‘It’s a trap.’

The Kosargi looked down in surprise at the hand restraining his great muscular arm, preventing him from crossing the threshold. She could see that he was struggling to conceive how so slight an individual could possibly restrain him.

His gaze travelled up her taut arm until it reached her pointed features. Croxis stared at him levelly, urging him to recall her true nature, to understand why she possessed such strength. Finally, his features cleared and she saw that he had remembered who she was and what she was. The vampire let a smile cross her thin, almost translucent lips, briefly revealing her elongated fangs.

The ogor turned his gaze instead to his patrol. They, too, had come to a faltering, confused stop. Now they stood, caught between bewilderment and expectation. The lead soldier let out a low hiss, returning his view to the figure lying some twenty feet distant, his heavy brow furrowing in confusion.

‘Prey,’ he gurgled, gesturing emphatically with his chipped, bloodstained bardiche towards the prostrate figure. The rest of the Kosargi patrol group rumbled their approval. Croxis, though, merely smiled and nodded. It was true, the figure was indeed their prey, and the Kosargi’s instinct was to chase their prey until it could be chased no more.

Yet Croxis’ instinct was altogether different, so she had stopped the chase at the very last instant. Something about their quarry had unsettled her. She had caught sight of the figure – a young Kurnothi female – grabbing some sort of ornamental wooden plate from the reeds near the stream from where it had been hidden. Presumably it held some religious or familial significance to the girl, sufficient for her to sneak back into the forest when all of her kith and kin had long since fled or perished.

Croxis had commanded the patrol group of Kosargi Nightguard to grab up their bardiches and join her in the chase. They had pursued her all the way here, to the extent of the Weald, where they had come to a halting stop on Croxis’ say-so.

Ahead of them lay the Kurnothi girl, having apparently tripped and hit her head on the gnarled root of an outlying tree, the ornamental plate lying smashed some short way distant. To Croxis’ mind, given the girl’s obvious dexterity and the merry chase she had just led them on, this seemed an unlikely outcome. Something was clearly afoot.

‘Prey,’ urged the lead Kosargi, struggling against her iron grip. Croxis considered. The sweet aroma of the Kurnothi girl’s blood was difficult to resist.

‘Oh, very well,’ muttered Croxis, releasing the monstrous arm. ‘Do what you must.’

Unleashed, the lead Kosargi roared in triumph and staggered forwards, the rest of his patrol following suit. The quartet of undead ogors lumbered from the confines of the forest towards the fallen Kurnothi, raising their blades and slavering excitedly.

The figure remained inert until the very last moment, when she abruptly turned and launched a fragment of the wooden plate at the lead soldier with absolute precision. It hurtled through the air and embedded itself in the Kosargi’s leering face with a tremendous squelchy crunch, causing him to stagger back in surprise.

‘Told you it was a trap,’ muttered Croxis witheringly.

‘It is,’ agreed a sardonic female voice behind her. ‘And so’s this.’

Croxis hissed, wheeling around to see the grinning Kurnothi archer standing before her. She recognised her from her reputation, but it wasn’t the extraordinary antlers rising from her headpiece or the matching, majestic bow. It was the unflinching gaze and the piercing emerald eyes that confirmed her identity beyond doubt.

Qulathis. An assassin of legendary skill and ruthlessness, the one individual whose name was liable to strike terror into the hearts of Croxis and her vampire brethren. They regarded each other for a moment in which time seemed to slow, almost to a halt. Croxis watched as the arrow sailed through the air, following its path until it entered her chest. She looked up to Qulathis, and knew the archer was smiling behind her mask. Croxis could do nothing but let out a shriek of impotent outrage as she burst into a million spinning particles of dust.

Elsewhere on the field of battle, one of the Kosargi was emitting a titanic roar of frustration, desperate to avenge its leader by eviscerating Mira, who had been the bait, with its bardiche. Mira, however, had other plans. She easily evaded the lumbering creature’s efforts, laughing as she did so. Mira was having sufficient fun not to notice the other two Kosargi crashing towards her from behind.

Seeing his fellows bearing down upon her, the first ogor let out another roar, this time of triumph. Mira turned too late to see the leading Kosargi raising its bardiche, ready to slice her in twain. In that moment a silver streak raced through the air, piercing the Kosargi’s helmet and causing the beast to collapse sideways in an ungainly heap. Mira saw her chance and leapt out of the way of the remaining beasts as they converged on her position.

Lanstarn, a muscular male Kurnothi, launched himself from the trees towards the other ogors. The first spun around with its mighty blade but was too slow for the fast-moving assailant, succeeding only in decapitating his fellow. Lanstarn meanwhile retrieved his silver javelin from the skull of the prone ogor, and as the Kosargi bore down on him thrust it up in a fluid movement, through the monster’s chin and into its slow-acting brain. The creature crumpled on its front, embedding the javelin still further.

This left only the first Kosargi, who had finally succeeded in pulling the fragment of wooden plate from the middle of its face, leaving a sizeable fissure in its skull-like features. It continued its advance towards Mira, its mangled countenance intent on revenge.

Behind the last Kosargi, Qulathis stepped forwards, arrow nocked. She unleashed first one shard and then another in rapid succession into the ogor’s trunk-like leg. The creature fell forwards, grabbing Mira’s ankle, and dragging her towards its gnashing teeth. The girl struggled to extricate herself but to no avail.

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