Henrik sat with his back against an apple tree, watching the colors of the sky change over the valley. The calmness of this place was like a blanket of peace draped over him; not something he was used to, but he was growing to like it.
He took a bite of the strange red fruit. Rasud wouldn’t stop talking about them. Well, they were quite tasty. Maybe he was onto something there.
Further to his left, Rasud guided Shel through the garden, pointing out all of the different plants an...
2024-08-02 18:03:15 +0000 UTC
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First, a big thank you to everyone that has subscribed to my patreon. It truly means a lot to me, and I appreciate every one of you.
The first book in the Dragon Riders of Etrea trilogy is done! I've run it passed some beta readers and made a few changes (especially to Tobias) and it'll come out on August 5th. As long as it sells well, audiobooks will be made.
Book 2 will have slightly less action but plenty more spice, as Henrik must start winning over the dragon riders. He also...
2024-08-02 17:57:07 +0000 UTC
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It took them two days to get back to the dragon’s lair.
After suffering such grevious wounds, both Rasud and Henrik were left weak. A good night’s sleep helped; Tossyth was gracious enough to stand watch over them. Henrik tore off his blood-soaked clothes and to his surprise, Anslie laid with him on his bedroll. She didn’t say anything about it and he didn’t ask her.
They kept their horses at an easy pace the first day. The poor animals had been terrified the entire ...
2024-08-01 18:32:57 +0000 UTC
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A large orc wielding a wicked spiked axe saw Henrik standing outside of the wall and booted his horse forward. The orc shouted some kind of battle cry. It sounded pathetic.
Henrik waited for him to draw near. The orc leaned low in his saddle, reaching out with his axe. Henrik dropped and rolled across the ground, his sword taking one of the horse’s legs off at the knee.
The animal screamed in pain and crashed to the ground, and the rider with it. Henrik leaped to his feet ...
2024-07-31 16:59:15 +0000 UTC
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It seemed the moment Henrik closed his eyes, Rasud was gently shaking him.
“Hey, wake up,” Rasud said quietly. “It’s time for your shift.”
Henrik rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. “How long has it been?”
“A few hours,” Rasud said. “It’s been full dark for at least an hour, so I figured I’d wait up with you for a bit before going to sleep.”
“Probably for the best,” Henrik said. He stifled a jaw-cracking yawn, then pushed himself ...
2024-07-30 18:40:12 +0000 UTC
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Tobias’s horse was a fine animal, so Henrik tied the reins to his saddle to keep it near. Besides, out there in the wastes, there was nowhere for the horse to really go except to an untimely death at the hands of orcs, predators, or the heat itself.
The small chest containing the egg was lashed to Tobias’s saddle. They left Tobias’s grave and hurried north, moving as quickly as they could without wearing out the horses.
“At least now we don’t have to fight him for the eg...
2024-07-29 19:47:10 +0000 UTC
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It took a bit of convincing to get Shel to ride with them. Although she agreed with giving the egg back, she acted like she was committing a grave sin against her people.
“Years of living beneath a tyrant can convince you of things like that,” Rasud said as he lifted her saddle for her. He fastened her bulging saddlebags behind it. His voice sounded tired. Working with that much magic tended to be exhausting, from what he had told Henrik.
“I can assure you that you hav...
2024-07-29 02:53:33 +0000 UTC
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The only thing that kept the orcs from attacking was their fear of Henrik. Sometimes his temper came in handy like that. Still, they eyed the group while fingering the hilts of their weapons.
Henrik grit his teeth through the pain of Rasud’s healing. Tobias alternated between watching him warily and keeping an eye on the orcs.
“I almost thought we lost you for a minute there,” Rasud said as he examined Henrik’s stomach.”
“It’s getting worse,” Henrik said. “...
2024-07-27 17:27:41 +0000 UTC
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Henrik walked out of the tent with his head high. The orcs had formed into a loose circle, and Yakha stood in the center with his sword in hand.
Tobias and Rasud stood on one side of the circle. Tobias had his shield ready, and Rasud had that look in his eyes that said he was only seconds away from burning the entire camp down. The witchman’s gaze fell on Shel and he winked at her. Henrik heard her laugh behind him.
“There he is,” Yakha said, pointing at Henrik with his thic...
2024-07-26 13:36:29 +0000 UTC
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The three men approached the orc encampment on horseback as the sun was thrice its own height above the horizon. On their way, Rasud chanted, calling upon his ancestors to grant Henrik strength and speed. They couldn’t do much, but every bit helped.
Henrik positioned himself front and center, ensuring he would be the first one seen and addressed. That also meant he’d be the first one attacked, so he had to do this just right. The orc camp drew near, and Henrik studied it closely.&nb...
2024-07-25 19:25:14 +0000 UTC
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For the rest of the day they alternated between a canter and a fast walk and the horses never acted tired. Their energy seemed almost infinite.
“How far do you think we went today?” Tobias asked.
Henrik thought for a moment. “A fast horse can run a mile in two, two and a half minutes. We spent at least two hours at that pace, and since then we’ve continued to move quickly. I wouldn’t be surprised if we went seventy or eighty miles today.”
Tobias whistled between ...
2024-07-24 16:11:58 +0000 UTC
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His walk back to their makeshift campsite took a quarter the time as walking to the dragon’s cave. Henrik made no effort to stay quiet, although the last bits of Rasud’s spell still clung to his boots. When he came near, he picked up a small rock and threw it at a tree to announce his presence.
Rasud’s head peered from behind the tree, and his eyes widened when he saw Henrik.
“You’re back! But no egg. What happened, Henrik? Tobias, wake up. He’s back.”
Tobias j...
2024-07-22 16:33:55 +0000 UTC
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Hey there everyone. I've been really analyzing how my books sell and what people expect from the Micky Carre pen name, and I've come to the conclusion that people want extra spicy books from me. So, going forward, I will be writing super smutty series like Goblin Breeder under the Micky Carre pen name, and my more action-based stuff like the Hero of the North trilogy and Dragon Riders of Etrea will be released under the name Hans Ohlsen. To keep things simple I'll probably still use just one ...
2024-07-21 12:32:40 +0000 UTC
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Henrik watched the woman for a moment, looking for any signs of trickery. “I need your word that you aren’t going to have your pet dragon try to eat me.”
She flashed him an angry look. “She is not my pet, thief.” She took a deep breath to calm herself. “Tossyth is right about you. Without even realizing it, you see yourself above everyone else.” The hot anger in her voice suddenly turned as cold as a northern winter. “And trust me, if she wanted to eat you, there would b...
2024-07-20 11:53:12 +0000 UTC
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The moment the sun went below the horizon, Henrik readied himself. His sword and scabbard were back with his horse—it was too large and heavy for sneaking, and would only get in the way. He wore fresh clothes to lessen the chances of the dragon smelling him. His shirt was black, to blend in with the night. He was as ready as could be for something as crazy as this.
Rasud had called upon his ancestors to cast a spell upon Henrik’s boots. The spirits worked their magic, and now Henrik...
2024-07-19 12:44:38 +0000 UTC
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Henrik woke to the sound of rustling. He looked over and saw Tobias pulling the looking glass from his saddlebags.
“Everything alright?” he asked.
“Yeah, I just have a feeling,” the soldier replied. “Now that we’re getting close, I’d like to be as careful as possible.” He walked up the shallow angle of the ridge and stood at the peak for a while, watching in every direction with the looking glass.
“Rasud,” Henrik said. “Time to get up.”
“Let m...
2024-07-18 16:03:08 +0000 UTC
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Morning came far too early.
The sun was just peeking above the horizon when Henrik’s eyes slowly opened. His aches and pains were all but gone, but he still felt a haze of tiredness after taking such serious wounds the day before.
Lifting up his shirt, he checked his side. Although Rasud’s magic had healed his wounds, a faint scar traced its way along his ribs. Well, it was just one of many.
Tobias was up shortly after. Rasud had healed him as well, but Tobia...
2024-07-17 13:24:51 +0000 UTC
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They set up camp for the night between the rocks—once they had dragged away the bodies, of course. After searching the orcs’ belongings, they released the horses into the wild. The orcs didn’t have much that was useful. Mostly just weapons, which they already had enough of.
Two twisted trees were within walking distance, so Henrik spent some time with his knife and wound up with a double armful of branches. A fire would be good tonight.
Tobias grumbled about the travel...
2024-07-16 14:28:13 +0000 UTC
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It didn’t take the orcs long to close the distance.
Five of them in leather and hide armor sat astride galloping horses, roaring and shouting as they raced toward the rock formation. The orc holding the horn blew a loud, strong note as they raced across the dry ground, scaring the horses. Rasud rushed to them, trying to keep them calm.
The other orcs leaned low over their horses necks, urging speed from them. Some of them shouted curses and threats from their saddles.
“B...
2024-07-15 17:01:42 +0000 UTC
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2024-07-15 13:00:07 +0000 UTC
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Henrik waited until a few minutes after the sun rose to wake Rasud. The small man was keeping them alive, so it was the least he could do. Rasud was still cranky when he woke, but he did appreciate the extra sleep.
“When are you going to burn that wood?” Tobias asked as he walked his horse towards their group.
“When we have meat to cook over it,” Henrik replied. “When we see more deer, I plan on sneaking closer to them and getting one.”
“Good luck,” Tobias sa...
2024-07-14 19:28:21 +0000 UTC
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They did, in fact, wake with the sunrise. Henrik was naturally an early riser, so he tidied up his things and grabbed some strips of dried meat to snack on as he waited on the sun to finish rising. With all that would be happening in the upcoming days, the peace and quiet were welcomed.
Tobias was next. The soldier rubbed his bleary eyes and looked around for a moment, as if forgetting where he was. He sat up and remained there for a moment, then stifled a jaw-cracking yawn behind his f...
2024-07-13 18:02:28 +0000 UTC
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They woke two hours later, although Rasud had to be shaken to get off the ground. He would have snored the rest of the day away, had they let him.
Feeling more refreshed, they mounted their horses and continued the boring journey through the monotonous lands. It was wild grass as far as the eye could see, and where it wasn’t grass, it was farmland. Henrik felt like he hadn’t seen more than a handful of trees the entire day.
As the hours dragged on and the sun passe...
2024-07-12 12:08:47 +0000 UTC
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They kept their horses at a gallop as they passed through the town. Fortunately, most people were asleep at that hour, with the exception of the group wielding torches far behind them.
“That could have ended in disaster,” Henrik said, slowing his horse to a fast walk once they were well outside of the town.
“Thankfully, you smashed that poor man’s face against the wall,” Rasud said with a bit of his usual lightness. “And to think, I was just going to set them all...
2024-07-12 05:51:57 +0000 UTC
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The preorder is live for this book in case anyone plans on picking up a copy!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D96R6QW5
2024-07-11 12:04:25 +0000 UTC
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It was the sound of angry shouting that tore Henrik from the depths of his slumber.
He snorted himself awake and was on his feet in an instant. Not even bothering with his boots, he rushed towards the door, beside which he had set his sword. But his sword wasn’t there, and it wasn’t just hiding in the darkness of the room. His sword belt was there, but the sword had been removed from the scabbard. Had he forgotten to lock the door last night? He grabbed his knife and pulled the door...
2024-07-11 12:02:32 +0000 UTC
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Henrik was used to the towering buildings and dense crowds of Selfoss, so his first sight of the small town was an eye-opener. Most of the buildings were made from fieldstone and cob—Henrik expected wooden houses, but then he realized trees were in short supply in this area—and none of them were over two stories tall. Most buildings lacked fireplaces as well; this far south, it wasn’t really a requirement. Only one building had a chimney, but no smoke rose from it.
“Right there,...
2024-07-11 00:36:33 +0000 UTC
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Bedrolls and saddle pillows weren’t the most comfortable things to sleep on, but the calm nature of the grasslands had them all out in no time. Henrik slept deeply, uninterrupted by dreams or loud drunks stumbling about on the street. It had been quite some time since he had slept that well, in fact. While he loved living in a city, the simple nature of sleeping peacefully had him reconsidering things.
Rasud was the last to wake, although all three of them woke with the sunrise. He st...
2024-07-10 12:39:59 +0000 UTC
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I decided to change Garlen's name to Henrik. Sounds a bit manlier, don't you think? Anyways, you'll notice the name is different in all future chapters posted. I just wanted to take a moment to explain it.
Micky
2024-07-10 02:30:11 +0000 UTC
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As their path continued east, the farms grew further apart and eventually disappeared altogether, leaving them riding through wild grasslands. With the lack of buildings to block the view, the sky itself almost seemed larger. Henrik took a moment to enjoy the simplicity and beauty of it all. Life was often complicated, but a cool breeze was not.
“How long until Limestone?” Henrik asked.
“We should get there tomorrow evening,” Tobias said, still looking around him.
2024-07-10 02:29:08 +0000 UTC
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