Read Legends: Stories By The Masters of Modern Fantasy Online
Authors: Robert Silverberg
Legends: Stories By The Masters of Modern Fantasy (97 page)
The weave of Spirit was one of the most intricate known to Aes Sedai. It wove around him, settled into him, vanished. Suddenly she was aware of him, in the way that Aes Sedai were of their Warders. His emotions were a small knot in the back of her head, all steely hard determination, sharp as his blade’s edge. She knew the muted pain of old injuries, tamped down and ignored. She would be able to draw on his strength at need, to find him however far away he was. They were bonded.
He rose smoothly, sheathing his sword, studying her. “Men who weren’t there call it the Battle of the Shining Walls,” he said abruptly. “Men who were, call it the Blood Snow. No more. They know it was a battle. On the morning of the first day, I led nearly five hundred men. Kandori, Saldaeans, Domani. By evening on the third day, half were dead or wounded. Had I made different choices, some of those dead would be alive. And others would be dead in their places. In war, you say a prayer for your dead and ride on, because there is always
another fight over the next horizon. Say a prayer for the dead, Moiraine Sedai, and ride on.”
another fight over the next horizon. Say a prayer for the dead, Moiraine Sedai, and ride on.”
Startled, she came close to gaping. She had forgotten that the bond’s flow worked both ways. He knew her emotions, too, and apparently could reason out hers far better than she could his. After a moment, she nodded, though she did not know how many prayers it would take to clear her mind.
Handing her Arrow’s reins, he said, “Where do we ride first?”
“Back to Chachin,” she admitted. “And then Arafel, and …” So few names remained that were easy to find. “The world, if need be. We win this battle, or the world dies.”
Side by side they rode down the hill and turned south. Behind them the sky rumbled and turned black, another late storm rolling down from the Blight.
Endpaper art by Darrell K. Sweet.
Frontispiece by Michael Whalen.
Frontispiece by Michael Whalen.
The Little Sisters of Eluria,
copyright © 1998 by Stephen King; illustration courtesy of Erik Wilson
copyright © 1998 by Stephen King; illustration courtesy of Erik Wilson
The Sea and Little Fishes,
copyright © 1998 by Terry & Lyn Pratchett; illustration courtesy of Paul Kidby
copyright © 1998 by Terry & Lyn Pratchett; illustration courtesy of Paul Kidby
Debt of Bones
, copyright © 1998 by Terry Goodkind; illustration courtesy of Tor Books, publishers of
The Sword of Truth
, copyright © 1998 by Terry Goodkind; illustration courtesy of Tor Books, publishers of
The Sword of Truth
Grinning Man
, copyright © 1998 by Orson Scott Card; illustration courtesy of Tor Books, publishers of
Tales of Alvin Maker
, copyright © 1998 by Orson Scott Card; illustration courtesy of Tor Books, publishers of
Tales of Alvin Maker
The Seventh Shrine
, copyright © 1998 by Agberg, Ltd.; illustration courtesy of HarperPrism, publishers of the
Majipoor Cycle
, copyright © 1998 by Agberg, Ltd.; illustration courtesy of HarperPrism, publishers of the
Majipoor Cycle
Dragonfly
, copyright © 1998 by Ursula K. Le Guin; illustration courtesy of the author
, copyright © 1998 by Ursula K. Le Guin; illustration courtesy of the author
The Burning Man,
copyright © 1998 by Tad Williams; illustration courtesy of the author
copyright © 1998 by Tad Williams; illustration courtesy of the author
The Hedge Knight,
copyright © 1998 by George R. R. Martin; illustration courtesy of Bantam Spectra, publishers of
A Song of Ice and Fire
copyright © 1998 by George R. R. Martin; illustration courtesy of Bantam Spectra, publishers of
A Song of Ice and Fire
Runner of Pern,
copyright © 1998 by Anne McCaffrey; illustration courtesy of Michael Whelan
copyright © 1998 by Anne McCaffrey; illustration courtesy of Michael Whelan
The Wood Boy,
copyright © 1998 by Raymond E. Feist; illustration courtesy of Avon Books, publishers of
The Riftwar Saga
copyright © 1998 by Raymond E. Feist; illustration courtesy of Avon Books, publishers of
The Riftwar Saga
New Spring,
copyright © 1998 by Robert Jordan; illustration courtesy of Tor Books, publishers of
The Wheel of Time
copyright © 1998 by Robert Jordan; illustration courtesy of Tor Books, publishers of
The Wheel of Time
All other in-text illustrations copyright © 1998 by Michael Whalen, except for p. 146, which is illustrated by Keith Parkinson, copyright © 1998.
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this anthology are either fictitious or are used fictitiously.
LEGENDS: SHORT NOVELS BY THE MASTERS OF MODERN FANTASY
Copyright © 1998 by Agberg, Ltd.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form.
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
Tor
®
is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
®
is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
Book design by Susan Hood
eISBN 9781429966573
First eBook Edition : September 2011
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Legends : short novels by the masters of modern fantasy / edited by Robert Silverberg.
p. cm.
“A Tom Doherty Associates book.”
ISBN 0-312-86787-5 (hc) ISBN 0-765-30035-4 (pbk)
1. Fantastic fiction, American. I. Silverberg, Robert.
PS648.F3 L44 1998
813’.0876608—dc21
98-23593
CIP
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