A tale of the Eight Lamentations, Josh Reynolds’ short story The Tainted Axe follows Sir Roggen as, post-the events of Spear of Shadows, he embarks on a quest in the Realm of Ghyran at the behest of a handmaiden of Alarielle. Though wounded in body, Roggen remains strong in faith, and ventures deep into an old and dangerous forest accompanied only by his loyal demigryph and a spiteful forest spirit. There he hopes to find and return with a foul weapon that has been tainting its surroundings with its Nurgle-infused filth.
Though ostensibly a sequel to Spear of Shadows, this works nicely as a standalone story. There’s plenty of detail to Reynolds’ depiction of Sir Roggen, and likewise his rather dubious Sylvaneth allies, and an unlikely friendship cleverly grows as the story progresses. It’s a pretty standard quest plot, but there’s extra depth provided by the unusual relationship between Roggen and the Sylvaneth, whose deity his Order serves but who perhaps aren’t quite as comfortable with the arrangement as you might expect. Reynolds as ever seems to enjoy fleshing out another corner of the Mortal Realms, while telling a satisfying little story complete with typically entertaining dialogue as well as the expected lashings of action.
Click here to check this out on Amazon, and support Track of Words while you’re at it.