Novel Excerpt: Arrows

Read time: 1 min.

An excerpt from my work-in-progress novel The Song and the Tempest.

“A fire demon in the forest? I do not expect you to get frightened by children’s tales.”

“With respect, Sir, children’s tales don’t fire bloody arrows.”

“Keep a civil tongue in your head when you address me, Sergeant.”

“‘Bloody’ is a precise description of the arrows, Sir. Each was covered with blood when it was fired. Fresh blood.”

Aiyana, listening outside the tent, congratulated herself. She hadn’t expected to have so much fun protecting her home, or that the invaders would actually be fooled by the berries and mud she dipped the arrows in.

“You should’ve used real blood,” her Aunt Nasrin whispered. “If they think to smell or taste it, they’ll know.”

“If they smell it, the swamp mud should mimic blood smell just enough to confuse them; if they try to taste it, I’ll turn it real on their tongues. Then they’ll really doubt their senses.”

“That’s my girl.”