1 The Rider

The Sorcerer's Shadow

CHAPTER 1

The Rider Dudda-lump! Dudda-lump! Dudda-lump! Horse hooves drummed frantically across the forest floor. Prince Lucas, Clara, and Ruskin stopped to listen. Lucas had just rescued a nest of baby birds that had fallen from a tree. He gently rested the nest in the crook of a thick branch so the mother bird would find her babies safe and sound. Then he climbed down the tree and jumped to the ground. The pounding hooves drew closer.

"Someone sure is in a huge hurry," Lucas remarked as he looked down the trail. "I wonder if something's wrong." The rider roared into view and thundered right by them. Lucas and Clara had to shield their faces from the dirt kicked up by the rider. "It's a knight!" Clara exclaimed.

Lucas nodded. "He's probably headed for the castle," he said. "Let's follow him!" Ruskin, Lucas's dragon, took flight. The two best friends jumped on their horses and galloped after the rider, who had ridden far ahead. Lucas and Clara

slowed to a canter when they got to the village. The villagers had spilled into the street to see who was in such a big rush. The butcher, the blacksmith, and the chandler had all left their shops and were standing in the midst of a crowd. They watched through the churned-up dust that the rider had left in his wake. Clara waved to her father as they sped past her family's bakery, the Daily Bread. "What's going on, Clara?" her father asked. "I don't know," she called over her shoulder. "But we're going to find out!"