A blades rebirth, p.1
A Blade's Rebirth, page 1
A BLADE’S REBIRTH
THE CHAIN BREAKER BOOK 13
D.K. HOLMBERG
Copyright © 2023 by D.K. Holmberg
Cover by Damonza.com
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CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Author’s Note
Series by D.K. Holmberg
CHAPTER ONE
The trembling of magic practically called out to Gavin Lorren like a song that carried on the wind. He could feel it humming inside him, as if it were a great power he’d always been meant to feel. He allowed himself to be drawn by it, and it moved him quickly outside the boundary of Yoran.
An enormous battle spread out in front of him. Everything about it sung of power being wielded in ways that seemed almost unnatural.
He stood off to the side, marveling at the fighting rather than getting involved. There was no reason for his involvement, anyway.
Men and women wielding swords faced off against a line of sorcerers, whose magic was impressive. The power they were able to use came from dozens upon dozens of different spells Gavin had rarely seen used, and never in a battle like this. They were the spells found in stories, the kind of magic that made people fear those able to cast them.
The sorcerers tossed walls of massive flames outward and made the ground quake, sending chunks of earth flying. Bolts of lightning streaked downward, called from the heavens above. Even the wind reacted, swirling and shimmering and becoming translucent.
The display of magic was overwhelming. And so far, relatively useless.
The swordsmen were repelling everything, though not because they weren’t affected. Gavin found it difficult to tell from his vantage whether they felt the effects of the sorcerers’ magic, but it seemed like the power they used simply reflected the magic. Some of their defenses came from enchantments, Gavin was certain, but for the most part, everybody out on the battlefield was forming the traditional Leier sacred pattern that Imogen had long called Tree Stands in the Forest, which allowed the Leier to repel most attacks, magical or otherwise.
“What do you think?” Imogen asked as she strode over to him. She had on a black jacket and pants, both of which flowed in the wind around her. She looked comfortable, at ease in a way he hadn’t seen from her before she’d left to rejoin her people. Most of that change stemmed from the fact that she now had a purpose, but then again, of course she would. She had become the Leier general, and she led her people well.
“I think you’re too close to the city,” Gavin said. He motioned to where Yoran rose in the distance, barely visible as little more than a series of buildings that stretched above the horizon. But the city was near enough that he knew they should fear random explosion of magic. If something were to streak away uncontrollably, he feared what might happen to the townspeople behind the walls.
“We’ve placed defensive enchantments around the boundaries of this battlefield,” Imogen said, pointing to a stone pillar nearby. “They can contain pretty much everything being used here.”
Gavin arched a brow at that comment. “Pretty much? I’m guessing the townspeople wouldn’t be satisfied with only containing most of the power you’re throwing around.”
Imogen snorted. “As if the city is in any real danger. You and I both know that there are enough protections around it to ensure nothing gets through. Even if I were to want to attack Yoran itself, I doubt that my people would be able to overpower the defenses.” Gavin was quiet at this, and she shrugged. “Fine. My people wouldn’t easily be able to overpower those defenses.”
“Seeing as how you and your shamans have placed many of those protections, I’d think you’d at least know what would be involved.”
“I do,” she agreed.
Another burst of heat exploded, and a fireball came hurtling in his direction. Imogen waved a hand, and a shimmering cascade of what looked like tree branches formed in front of her. He knew the gesture was more for his benefit than for hers, as Imogen didn’t need to make any movements to form that pattern. The fireball bounced off the protections, dissolving into nothingness.
“See?” she said.
“I see that you can diffuse magic,” he answered. “And considering the Leier’s views on magic, that’s not entirely surprising.”
“My people have no interest in using magic the way it once had been used. They also don’t have any interest in destroying magic the way they once did. We only want to make sure we can fight and protect each other. If it comes down to it.”
One more of Imogen’s preparations, he knew. She was nothing if not prepared.
It was a side of her that he’d never gotten to see before she’d left the city with her brother, and it was a side of her that he was thankful she’d gotten to reveal. She seemed like a fuller, richer version of the woman he’d known before. He wondered if she saw herself in the same way.
“Can I help with anything out here?” Imogen asked him.
“I just came to see what was going on,” he said. “I was curious.”
“Were you, now? Or was this more about you finally coming to train?”
He shrugged. She wasn’t wrong. She’d been talking to him about training with her for quite a while now. Some of it was his own hesitancy to focus solely on the Leier patterns, but increasingly, Gavin had witnessed just how beneficial they were. He knew he needed to learn whether there would be anything more he might be able to uncover from that fighting style that would help him deal with other threats. Magic could be wielded in many different ways, and it could be countered in many different ways. He had trained to handle physical combat, but he had not always trained to handle magical combat.
“I thought it might be useful,” he said.
“Good. I’ve been waiting. What would you like to start with?”
“You’re the master, so I suppose I’ll let you lead.”
She flicked her gaze over the battlefield. Three sorcerers were marching forward, all of them channeling different types of power. They weren’t true sorcerers trained in the Society—those sorcerers rarely became battle-ready like these magic wielders. These were shamans who had once been enemies of the Leier, but when their homeland had been destroyed, Imogen had been incorporated them into her people.
Fighting this way gave the Leier a chance to hone their skills, but Gavin guessed that it also gave them an opportunity to hash out old grudges. Not that he would ask her about that, because he wondered if any of them would ever even be willing to acknowledge they still carried old grudges. At least not while Imogen led them.
A section of the ground rippled, heaving upward. Jorend, a tall Leier man with a simple metal blade, just stood in place. As the ground began to swell toward him, he still didn’t move. The ground barely shifted as that wave of magic struck his Tree Stands in the Forest pattern. Several other assaults began to hit him at the same time, wind and fire and even one from somewhere behind him that Gavin hadn’t even seen. None of that fazed Jorend.
“Does it worry you that the Leier have the advantage?” Gavin asked Imogen.
She didn’t turn toward him. “They are all Leier, so they all have the advantage.”
“I guess what I’m saying is, does it worry you that the shamans can’t stop sacred sword masters?”
She shot him a look.
Gavin shrugged. “Are they not sword masters?”
“Not all. Not many, in fact.” She walked away from him and called, “Should we begin with what I was taught as the most basic of our sacred patterns?”
“Tree Stands in the Forest,” he said.
“Yes. And while you have some familiarity with it and, admittedly, some passing skill with it—”
Gavin arched a brow.
“—you are not truly a master of that pattern,” she finished, ignoring his reaction. “There are different elements involved.”
“Even though I can form different trees out of it?” he asked.
“That’s not a measure of mastery. I can create an entire forest of different tree types, if I so choose.”
His jaw dropped. “Wait. You can create an entire forest?”
“If I so choose,” she repeated.
He’ d seen Imogen use that pattern, and he knew that it was incredibly potent. Seeing her people using it on the battlefield with sorcerers blasting magic at them helped him realize just how powerful it could be. But an entire forest…
“What could you stop with it?” Gavin asked.
“Many things. Most of the time it’s not necessary. But the real question is, can you form more than one type?”
“Why do the different tree types make a difference?”
He was genuinely curious. He didn’t really understand, nor did he know why it mattered, but he believed she was telling him the truth.
“It’s not so much the type of tree that makes much of a difference. I suppose, in some ways, it does matter, but it’s more about the reflection of the kind of power that it’s drawing on that matters the most. The different trees represent different manifestations of yourself, different elements of your own power, and different ways for you to harness the energies of the world. Once you manage to do so, you can express that power out from you, and you can use it against dangers you might face.”
“So you can form protections,” he said, “and you can use them to defend against different types of magic. Also, from the way you’re saying it, I’m presuming that you mean you can use them to defend against different types of magical users, not just different spells that sorcerers use.”
“Exactly,” Imogen said. “The key is harnessing that power, and focusing it inwardly enough that you can understand just what that power is meant to do, and how it could work for you.”
He nodded as he thought about what exactly she was saying.
“Would you like to work?” she asked.
Gavin shrugged. “We do have some time.”
“We have time now, but I’ve often believed that it’s not just about having the time, but making the time. Considering what we have faced, and you in particular, I think you’d benefit from training appropriately.”
Gavin smiled slightly. It had been a long time since someone had admonished him about not taking the time to train. Even when he’d been working with Tristan, Gavin had rarely needed such talking-tos. He had always dedicated himself, always taken the time to ensure that he was as trained and ready as possible.
“I appreciate your concern for my dedication to my preparations.”
“I don’t say it to upset you,” she said.
He chuckled. “Oh, I know. Anyway, let’s start with whatever pattern you think I need.”
“I have said it already.”
“Fine,” he said. “Let’s start with whatever tree pattern you think I need.”
“Why don’t you start with what comes most natural to you?”
“The bralinath tree pattern, then.”
Imogen stepped back, holding her blade at the ready. He was surprised that she had a weapon on her at all, especially given that she rarely wielded one around him anymore. Most of the time now, she used her sacred patterns, and the magic that they summoned, to fight.
She waited for him, seeming to recognize the moment he solidified his bralinath tree.
Then she moved.
Gavin still hadn’t fully come to terms with just how much of Imogen’s power had changed in the time he’d known her. The fluidity to the way she moved and the ease with which she glided forward still caught him by surprise.
She drove her blade at him, and it began to slide through his protection.
He held on to the tree pattern, trying to fortify it and brace for her at the same time.
This was about fighting with only the Leier patterns. It was why he used Tree Stands in the Forest and nothing else. This was what Imogen wanted for him.
“I don’t remember you being quite so capable of overpowering this before,” Gavin said through gritted teeth.
“You aren’t the only one who trains, Gavin Lorren,” she said.
As he continued to focus on the tree, he realized what she was doing: She was finding a way past the different branches he’d formed. He had to fortify them and furnish the trees with more strength. Gavin attempted to add more elements of defense to the pattern, beginning to bridge more power into it.
It slowed Imogen, but it didn’t stop her altogether. She slipped past his barrier, and when she was just a hair away from striking him, her blade stopped.
But not because he had stopped her.
“Well,” Gavin said. He had known he was in no real danger. He had never feared that Imogen was going to harm him, but the idea that she had been so capable of bypassing his defenses had still caught him off guard. “You would’ve been able to kill me.”
“Only if you kept holding that,” she said. “You felt what I was doing.”
“I did.”
“And do you think you’d be able to do the same?”
He frowned. If there was one thing he could do—and which Imogen knew he could do—it was pick up on the use of power around him and identify patterns. He had always been able to do that. It was what Tristan had trained him to do.
“I think I could,” he said.
“Good. Now you demonstrate.”
“I don’t have a blade.”
“You don’t need a blade to be the Champion any longer, do you?” Imogen asked.
He shrugged, but she was right. He had been using a blade generated out of his core reserves, fortified with the power of the bralinath trees. Now he felt that power blooming, and it formed a blade of faint white energy.
Gavin darted toward Imogen. He wasn’t able to get far, and he didn’t overwhelm her the way he’d been overwhelmed by her. He tried to slip past her defenses, but it didn’t work.
After attempting several different things, he finally stepped away from her. He shook his head. “You’re still the master.”
“Of course I am,” she said. There was no arrogance in the way she said it, just confidence. “Now, let’s get you to train with the sacred patterns a little more, and you can see if you can start to use the proper terms for them.”
He gave a small smirk at that.
They backed away from each other, and Imogen bowed her head in a polite nod, before rushing toward him.
They sparred. Back and forth they went, both of them flashing between the sacred patterns, and Gavin quickly saw just how overmatched he was. At least, using this fighting style. But he couldn’t help feeling as if it was still beneficial to have the opportunity to practice with Imogen like this. As they fought, she called out the names of the different patterns, including Tree Stands in the Forest, Petals on the Wind, and a dozen or so others. Gavin didn’t really care about the names, but it was important to Imogen, so he would make it important to him. At least when he was using the patterns.
But he could never overpower her using the sacred patterns alone.
When they took a break, she regarded him with amusement in her eyes. “You didn’t deviate from the sacred patterns.”
“The intent was for me to practice them.”
“You don’t want to try to do so while mixing in your other abilities?”
“I find it better to spar with a singular focus,” he said. “Today was about trying to get a little more competent with these sacred patterns.”
“You’re definitely competent. And had you been able to fight like this even several years ago, you would’ve been considered one of the greatest sword masters in all the Leier.” She looked over the battleground. “Much has changed. I would like to think for the better.”
“So would I,” Gavin said.
“And has it?” Imogen asked.
“Things are quiet now, I suppose. The order isn’t a threat. We’re able to explore and experiment and—”
Imogen bowed, then sprinted away. She spoke quietly to several Leier, who then used the Lightning Strikes pattern, shot upward, and landed on three circling renral that Gavin hadn’t even noticed. Or maybe they hadn’t been there before and had just been summoned.
