Another Excerpt and a Trailer for Children Of The Mist

Another snowy excerpt:

They were able to gallop across the narrow
stretch of plain before the mountains and gain precious time. As the veils of mist drifted off the lower ground, they found themselves in bright
su n sh i n e .

Nidhogg’s Glacier lay before them, glowing in
various shades of blue against brilliant white.

Skirting the huge ice mass, they hugged the base of the mountains. Here, the reed-choked grassland, littered with crumbled stone and rocky outcrops where the glacier had eaten into the ground on its endless journey, forced them to slow to a walk.

At last, they reached the narrow, twisting trail that would lead them across the mountain range. They made slow progress up the track, looking back at the blue and white of the glacier, gleaming in the sunlight and contrasting markedly with the rock’s blackness, as they made the gradual climb above it. Black rock and white snow were all that lay ahead, although here and there the colour of the rocks changed to green or red as if splashed with a gigantic paintbrush.

At times, the trail petered out altogether and Vidarh, leading the way, was thankful the ponies were so sure-footed. He had spent days at a time in these mountains. Each twist and turn, each pinnacle of rock or small, misshapen tree somehow maintaining a tenuous hold on the unfriendly surface, was familiar to him.

Even so, his task was not easy. They each
had a spare pony to watch, as well as their own mounts. As they rode, thoughts of Tamarith filled Vidarh’s mind and he tried repeatedly to contact her, without success.
The air grew colder the higher they climbed,
and he pulled his coat around him, glad of its warmth. The mist from the peaks swirled in ghostly drifts, at times so thick he could hardly see ahead of him. He had to trust his pony’s instincts to avoid slipping over the edge. Sometimes the mist disappeared completely, so he could see into the valley far below. At such times, the glacier below was so dazzling it hurt his eyes to look at it.
The pinnacles of the mountains towered,
black and sinister above him, so high he could not see their summits. The air, as well as growing cold, was also becoming thin.

Vidarh glanced behind him to see how Dahll and Jess were coping. He was relieved to note they did not appear to be suffering from the altitude or the rarefied atmosphere.
Melind rode immediately behind him, Dahll in
front of Jess, with Gullin at the end of the string and Malmooth trotting along behind. Vidarh urged his pony on a little, extending its stride. Darkness would be falling in a few hours and he wanted them to be off these mountains before them.

A plaintive, drawn-out call sounded in the
still air. Vidarh stared up at the azure sky. A snow eagle soared and dipped high above him, its whiteness contrasting with the sky’s deep blue, the eagle’s wings tipped with black. Vidarh’s attention was still on the bird when he heard a commotion behind him, a crashing and rattling of grit and boulders slamming down the mountainside.

He reined in his mount and looked back to
see Melind’s pack pony sliding down the face of the mountain as her mare, Melody, reared straight up on her hind legs, hoofs flailing the air. He watched in horror as the girl, losing her balance, screamed and fell from the saddle and over the edge of the precipice.

(No animals were harmed during the making of this story – although the same cannot be said of the humans! LOL)

This is the trailer I made for Children Of The Mist. I had a lot of fun making it – hope you enjoy it!

http://www.blazingtrailers.com/show/500/