NonstopGarbage6

(novel library)

Your people roam the Great Steppe, chased and challenged by the fearsome Tribe of the Black Wolf. Their leader, the shaman Zhan-Ukhel, calls forth savage magic from Chernobog, the god who rules their tribe. Your tribe must have a leader who can call down protection from the gods. That leader is you, and this is your saga.

Rule your tribe as an iron-fisted chieftain or as a benevolent guardian. Will your allies support you on the field of battle? Will the gods come when you need them most? Do you even need the gods to smite your enemies, or will you seize divine power for yourself?

Horses in the Falcon

Before she can reply, a horn blast sounds from outside the walls of the tower. You run to a window and look out. The mist has receded from around the edge of the island, and there, approaching slowly across the causeway, is an army of riders, their ragged banners fluttering in the wind, emblazoned with the sign of the Black Wolf. It is Zhan-Ukhel's army, and in a matter of minutes, they will have reached the island.


"I am a powerful sorcerer," says Muyal, "but there are those whose power dwarfs my own. Zhan-Ukhel sought me out in the spirit world and asked that I draw you here. I must yield to his demands."


As Zhan-Ukhel's army continue their approach, groups of them split off, circling around the island to cut off possible escape routes. If you act quickly, though, there may still be time to get out of here.


You run down to the village and immediately start giving orders for the caravan to depart. Your mounted warriors move to the fore and, on your instructions, form up into a wedge—the tip of a spear with which to pierce the ring of Black Wolves surrounding the island.


"Are you sure about this, Basileios?" says Drazha from beside you. "If this fails, we're dead."


"I know," you say, and bring your arm down, signaling the charge.


As the Tribe of the Red Bear emerges from the forests on the north side of the island, you are greeted by a number of sprawling, ragtag groups of enemy warriors. They hastily ready their weapons before your vanguard smashes them aside, creating a gap through which the caravan can pass. Although you lose one hundred and one of your warriors, you have successfully broken though the Black Wolf lines, and it is not long before the land begins to rise and the mists and the waters to recede as you leave Blightmarsh behind and continue north.


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