The heavy, iron-shod boot swung through the cold rain and slammed directly into Brandon’s jaw. There was a sharp, sickening crack. Pain exploded behind his eyes, bright and blinding, like a flashbulb going off in a dark room. Brandon’s face hit the ground hard. Foul, freezing mud splashed into his mouth. He tasted rust, copper blood, and the bitter flavor of rotting garbage. He tried to take a breath, but his ribs screamed in protest. For a few long, confusing seconds, his brain could not understand what was happening. Just moments ago, he had been in a pristine, white laboratory on Earth, running tests on high-heat thermodynamics. Now, he was lying in a filthy, rain-slicked alleyway, wearing clothes made of cheap, rough wool."Please! Don't! Leave him alone!" A high, terrified voice pierced through the ringing in his ears. Brandon blinked, his vision swimming. Through the heavy curtain of freezing rain, he saw two large men in dark grey armor. They were dragging a small, struggl

The rain fell in thick, cold sheets, turning the narrow streets of Camelot’s slums into rivers of dark mud. Brandon ran. His lungs burned as if he were breathing in hot ash, and a violent cough ripped from his throat. A spray of red blood painted the muddy stones in front of him, but he did not stop. He could not stop. His arms screamed in pain from the weight of his ten-year-old sister, Veronica, who was clinging to his neck like a frightened monkey. Behind them, the deep, bone-rattling boom of the Inquisitor’s horn was replaced by a new, more terrifying sound. SimmonsAwoooooo!Simmons! It was a howl, but it did not sound like a normal dog. It sounded like metal scraping against stone, mixed with the roar of a starving beast. The armored hounds had been released. "Brandon!" Veronica sobbed, her face buried into his wet wool collar. "They are coming! The Empire’s dogs are coming!""Don't look back, El, just hold on," Brandon gasped, his voice raspy and weak. He forced his broken b

Veronica’s feet kicked wildly in the empty air. She hung three feet off the ground, her small hands clawing frantically at an invisible vice around her neck. Her pale face was rapidly turning a sickening shade of blue. She tried to cry out for her brother, but the magic gripping her throat was too tight. Only weak, choked gasps escaped her lips."Veronica!" Brandon roared, his voice cracking with panic. He lunged forward, raising the heavy iron hammer in his left hand. With all the strength he had left in his battered body, he swung the hammer directly at Inquisitor Voss's head. The hammer stopped dead in mid-air, a full foot away from Voss’s face. It felt as if Brandon had struck a solid wall of invisible steel. The shimmering dome of warped air around the Inquisitor rippled slightly like a puddle hit by a raindrop. The force of the rebound jarred Brandon’s arm so violently that the hammer slipped from his grip, clattering uselessly to the floor. Brandon scrambled backward, his mi

Brandon tasted bitter leather and old sweat. He was biting down so hard on a thick leather strap that his gums were bleeding. He did not know how the strap got into his mouth, but as his eyes snapped open, he saw Veronica’s small, shaking hands holding the ends of a leather belt against his face. She was crying, whispering for him to stay quiet. If he screamed, the guards outside would hear him. If he screamed, they were dead. So, Brandon bit down on the leather and endured the absolute agony. The glowing red brand—the parasitic magic that had ripped itself from Inquisitor Voss’s dead chest—was digging into the back of Brandon’s right hand. It did not just burn his skin. It felt like tiny, hot wires were crawling under his flesh, sliding up his arm, and plugging directly into his spine and his brain. He squeezed his eyes shut, his entire body trembling violently. The magic was forcefully fusing with his nervous system. Then, just as suddenly as it had started, the blinding pain st

Brandon was dragged backward across the rough stone floor. The thick, purple vine wrapped around his left ankle pulled with the strength of a raging horse. The sharp thorns dug deep into his skin, sending waves of burning pain up his leg. He kicked with his free foot, but it was like kicking solid iron. Just a few feet away, the center of the wooden planter box had ripped completely open. A horrific, jagged mouth made of twisted wood and sharp thorns snapped wildly in the air. Glowing, purple sap dripped from its wooden teeth. Wherever the sap hit the stone floor, it hissed and melted the rock like powerful acid. The mutant plant let out a terrible, high-pitched scream. It sounded like rusted metal grinding against bone. It was hungry, and it was pulling Brandon directly into its deadly mouth. “Weapon. I need a weapon!” Brandon’s mind screamed. He had dropped his heavy iron hammer when the vine first grabbed him. He frantically scraped his hands across the dirty floor as he was d