A Choice of Blades: The Blade Remnant, Book One

by D. N. Woodward

  "My family and our clan are some of the last remnants of a nearly extinct tribe of people. We lived on the far western side of those mountains," Kyra flicked a hand back at the towering peaks to their west. "Well, outside the protective borders of Fayden. We were shepherds, raising Slowfoot Grazers in the foothills of those mountains." Leon didn't know exactly what sort of animal she referenced, but he suspected it was some sort of ruminant livestock and opted not to interrupt.

  "Over the past two years, an army of foreigners slowly formed along our territorial borders. Last year they began attacking our people. Our clan was one of the strongest of the mountain clans, but we were no match for the thousands upon thousands of invaders who pushed us out of our hillside homes and up into the refuge of our summer hunting camps, in the high mountain meadows."

  Kyra shuddered but bravely continued her story, "My parents and most of my clan were killed as those invaders continued to hunt us down. My three brothers and I alone escaped through the mountains last winter."

  "You came through the mountains in winter?"

  She nodded back. "The high passes are hard but not impossible if you know how to cross them, even in winter." She let out a long sigh. "Still, it didn't do us much good. Those filthy slavers attacked us the day after we made it over!"

  "How did you escape?"

  "Pretty simple really. Grumpy and I were out hunting mountain herbs when I heard the shouting. When I went to investigate, three of the slavers broke off and ran me down. Lucky for me, they only sent three. By the time those three realized I wasn't alone, it was too late for them. Grumpy ruined their day and carried me up into the high country, clear of their trackers.

  "I know little of the people of this land. It was always forbidden for any in our clan to venture here, but the choice was either come here or die there. All I know now is that I will follow that caravan until I rescue my brothers."

  "How long have you been trailing them?"

  "A little over a week. They were moving north along the east side of the mountains when they found us, then turned east to follow this river the next day. I only move at night and lay low during the day."

  Leon’s heart melted for the girl's situation. Beyond that though, he thought her plan for following at night showed some shrewd strategy. It was a much better tactic than what he had been considering, which included little if any planning at all. He decided to make her an offer.

  “Here's the deal, I’m going to try to get my friends back when the slavers reach their destination, the North Fang capitol called Hollinger. How about we team up to track this bunch and you help me to stay hidden along the way? Then, when we get there, I’ll do what I can to see about freeing your brothers as well as Reed and Haddie? I've got friends who should be there when we arrive to help buy them all back, and if worse comes to worst, I've recently come into some wealth of my own.”

  Initially, Kyra didn’t seem to like the idea of waiting to free her brothers, but she apparently knew enough to admit she stood little chance of saving them without being captured herself. The practicality of the offer eventually won her over. They would work together until they made it to Hollinger.

  “There’s something else I need you to answer.” She stood stock still while she waited for Leon to respond. It was obviously a pretty loaded question.

  “What’s that?” Leon asked.

  “What Clan is your father?”

  “What do you mean? I honestly don’t even know my Tribe, Gus, my grandfather, adopted me as a child when he found me near some woods, and I have no memories before that. He raised me in…well, like I said earlier, in a place that wasn't within the borders of Fayden.”

  “Well, you might not know who or what you are, but I'm sure I do…your hair gives you away. You may be small for our kind, but there aren’t many of us left where I'm from and, I don't know, maybe my clan's just big for our tribe?” Her words were crafted so as not to give offense, but Leon didn't care a lick about that, his palms grew clammy over the notion that she might be able to answer a question. The question! The one that had eluded him for so long.

  “What exactly is our kind, Kyra?”

  She searched him with a questioning glare. “You don’t know?” It was his turn to freeze in place, “You are of the Lost Tribe, Leon…you’re a Bearskinner, there’s no doubt in my mind.”

  Hadn't that Vin said something about the Lost Tribe before Merle ended him?

  “A Bearskinner, huh?” Leon tasted the word for the first time and pondered the implication as she continued.

  “Our kind were once the pride of the seven Tribes. Father told us stories as kids of how we were revered as the warrior champions of Fayden. Then we were betrayed. People thought we were stoking some rebellion to enslave the other tribes, but it was a lie, and it tore the kingdom apart. Each of the tribes withdrew into themselves, but for a time they all rose together against us. Thousands were killed, or murdered, however you want to look at it. Now, there are very few of us left. Our people are scattered, and our heritage, disgraced.

  “I grew up in exile, but if what I've been told of this land is true, we will not find much sympathy for our kind at this Hollinger place you mention. The only fact we may have going for us is that Bearskinners have not been present in the territory of the Fayden for many generations. Maybe people have simply forgotten us?”

  His head buzzed with the repercussions of what Kyra had just divulged.

  She continued, “I don’t believe its random chance that I found you, another Bladed Bearskinner,” she pulled a Blade out from under her poncho and held it up for him to see as she continued, “out here in the middle of nowhere. Perhaps something more is at work? Even so, we’ve got to weigh our options carefully, not take too many chances, you understand?”

  He didn’t. Leon was still lost in thought. “So, a Bearskinner…that means we are…bear skin-changers. Our ancestors could somehow take the form of a bear, like Grumpy.”

  Kyra nodded a slow yes, but he already knew. Somewhere deep down in his gut, he had known all along. It just never clicked into place until she put it into words. Somehow, he managed to find the strength to turn the conversation back to the task at hand.

  “Thank you, Kyra. Seriously, you don’t know how long I’ve waited to hear someone explain all of what you just parsed out.” He paused to gather his thoughts, then continued, “So, we may not be well received in Hollinger, but we’ve got to try, don’t we?”

  She nodded. “Yes, we’ve got to try. There’s just one more thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “War is coming. As soon as the higher passes thaw, I expect the giant tribes will be marching on the border walls.”

  “Who?”

  “Giants.”

  “As in really tall people?”

  She nodded back with a flat expression before arching a brow, like she knew he really didn't understand what the word meant, “Their kind is at least as tall as Grumpy when he stands." She gave the bear a wordless thump on his shoulder, and he rose on two hind legs. He was almost twice again Leon’s height.

  Leon swallowed. “They're coming here to raid these lands? You’re sure?”

  “There are thousands of them. They are an unstoppable force of nature. They can't be reasoned with or appeased. They only come to take and to tear down.”

  For the first time that night, Leon saw a flash of fear in her eyes. “The faster I rescue my brothers, the faster we can flee.”

  # # #

  If he couldn’t sleep before, there was no way Leon could go back to sleep after hearing all of what she had to say. He quickly broke camp, stowed his gear, and took one last look at his peaceful river cove. With a shrill whistle, Reed’s missing owlet came hoping out of a tree to plop down on his shoulder. Its silky blue feathers reflected a dark luster in the starlight, but its body was still that of a small pudgy owlet.

  Leon shook his head. Reed’s gift must have pushed the little owl's plumage well beyond the pace of no
rmal development. He hoped its little body would catch up someday. He still suspected the small owl would grow to be a beautiful bird.

  Before they started on their way, Kyra whistled at the full extent of his traveling zoo. She was especially amazed at the little griffin.

  “I’ve never heard of one taming a griffin!”

  Leon laughed. “This coming from the person riding a giant bear!”

  She shrugged. “Many Bearskinners have a bit of a natural affinity with bears. It’s a gift linked to our tribal heritage. My gift for taming animals doesn’t go beyond bears, though few do.” Was that new appreciation in her eyes?

  “Well, he isn’t exactly tame, but I bet little Ahab grows on you.” She scrunched her brow and gave him a look.

  “Leon, tell me something? Do you have griffin flocks where you are from?”

  Leon chuckled. “No, ma’am, no griffin flocks in Texas.”

  “Then you have never seen a full-grown griffin?”

  Now it was Leon’s turn to shrug, “No, he and his brother came straight out of a crate. He's an awkward little creature, though, isn't he?”

  “Awkward?! That awkward little creature will grow in a few years to have a wingspan of twenty paces and to stand taller than Grumpy! The wild flocks of the southern Anderle range would sometimes move north and raid our pastures when I was a child, they were supreme stalkers of the sky. Even our larger herd protectors, like Grumpy here, were hard-pressed to defend the calves when griffin flocks chose to attack.”

  Gulp.

  Considering Kyra mentioned her people herded some sort of large hairy creature using ginormous bears, he suddenly had a new and different appreciation for Ahab.

  Guess that solves what the Hootsi were afraid of along Ferschall’s western trail!

  “Um, no. No one bothered to mention that in the fine print when I adopted him. He’s a good boy, though, aren’t you, Ahab? Aren’t you? Who’s a good little griffin…yes you are!” His baby talk turned muffled as he reached down and patted the griffin, causing him to dance enthusiastically back and forth around his legs.

  “Perhaps because they all assumed someone who knew enough to tame a griffin would know enough to understand what they were taking on.” She held enough of a poker face that Leon couldn’t tell if it was a matter-of-fact statement or thinly veiled disdain.

  Either way, he tried to pretend it would all work out in the end, though he knew his little friend could someday become a huge liability. If he ever did find a way home, there was no way he was gonna be able to bring something like Ahab along. He would need to think more carefully before attempting to tame any more animals in the future, but there was no way he was giving up on the cub just yet.

  “So, you know I can tame animals with my Gift, and I know you can befriend bears…anything else you can do? I mean, we may as well know what each other can do if we're going to be working together, right?”

  Kyra flinched, obviously not used to his friendly bantering tone of the conversation, but she soon recovered and eased into a thoughtful response, “The Blade…it does give me a little extra strength when I need it. It isn’t the limitless kind of strength an Unbladed person can leverage on a moonless night, but I hold my own.”

  Leon thought back to her handshake. Her hand around his wrist had been like a steel vice when she squeezed.

  So, no arm wrestling the bear girl if you want to keep your man-card, got it!

  “I told you one of mine, what about you? Anything else the Blade allows you to do?”

  He paused as he considered what to say, “So, when it gets dark and I have a hard time seeing, I touch the Blade, and it’s like I can see in the dark.” Leon looked over expectantly, waiting to see what she thought.

  “Well, yeah. But that's kind of a given, right?”

  He gave her a look, and she held up a hand, “Sorry, I keep forgetting you are new to this. But yeah, seeing in the dark is another gift most Bladed can access.”

  “Most?”

  “I just know that all of us in my father’s clan had the ability. They said it was normal.”

  Well, that explains why no one else had a hard time running through the dark field the other night.

  Leon’s thoughts turned to Grumpy. The furry beast plodded along beside him, large as an ox. “Are all mountain bears as big as him?”

  “Some are, but not many. Grumpy’s special. He’s only three years old!” she said grinning from ear to ear. “I raised him from a cub, but last winter I kind of accidentally figured out I had one other gift.”

  “Well, don’t hold back now. What is it? I just want to know, in case it is something that can help us, in case we have to fight.” He pointed forward, in the direction of the caravan they pursued.

  “It’s not likely to be much help if that happens, but I don't suppose there's any harm in sharing." She shrugged, "I can help things grow beyond their full potential. It’s not a flashy growth gift. I was taught that most of those are limited to only allowing something to grow into what it is meant to be. Those gifts usually work really fast to grow something into its full potential. You can barely see mine at work at all, but over time, it makes quite a difference. Grumpy was a runt!” She beamed up at her furry giant.

  Leon thought of Reed and his gift. He had a feeling he knew why his owl’s wings were coming in so quickly while the rest of him hadn’t yet changed. He immediately asked her to use it on all his creatures.

  "Sure, I agree, but only on one condition."

  "What's that?"

  "That you allow me to test it out on you as well!"

  He couldn’t decide whether she was messing with him or not, but he agreed just the same.

  What am I getting myself into here, Leon?

  # # #

  They continued walking along together into the wee hours of the morning, sometimes in companionable silence and at other times comparing the menial day-to-day work of the different forms of animal husbandry they practiced in their previous lives. Leon could tell Kyra was clearly as fascinated as confused at the concepts of training horses and roping cattle, but she remained polite and didn’t probe too deep in her questions.

  He couldn't help but wince every now and again as he thought about how much Gus might have thoroughly enjoyed hearing the woman talk about the types of things she took for granted as she casually reminisced how easy she had it as a herder on her Clan’s lands. By comparison, his normal ranch work on the CW sounded more like a seat in the lap of luxury…something Gus ardently attempted to convey to him throughout his teen years.

  He did continue to avoid broaching the subject of his passage and arrival through the Royal Tree. Not that he didn’t feel like he could trust her, he just didn’t want her to think he was crazy so soon after meeting her.

  Eventually, just before sunup, they stopped and made a small camp when Merle, who Reed had sent ahead to scout, returned, and warned them to go no further. In the sunrise of that first morning together, Leon finally saw Kyra in the light of day. He had just offloaded his kit from the Thunderbird and turned to ask her something about saddles when he was stopped cold in his tracks.

  She shrugged out of her fur poncho and tossed it down on a nearby rock. Beneath the poncho, she wore a sleeveless pale linen smock trimmed and lined in a tight leather vest above rawhide leggings that ended in furry boots. She took a moment to stretch her legs before reaching up to untie her gear and unsaddle Grumpy’s tack.

  She turned, and he caught a profile view of her face. Those exotic features he had noticed in passing upon their meeting the night before coalesced into smoky blue eyes, full lips, and a square jaw. She used a water bag to wash away her facial paint, which she had explained was a design to display her clan symbol when on the warpath, and Leon noticed the absence of the paint served only to accentuate those natural features.

  There are certain things a guy can’t help but notice in a glance and while he wasn’t one to stare, Leon was definitely noticing all of those things. Kyra w
asn’t just a natural, albeit aloof, beauty the way he initially presumed, she was a total knockout. The amazing part was she seemed clueless as to the effect her beauty might have on him, much less any other man.

  He must have gone a bit wobbly on his legs because when she turned back to toss down the riding leathers and saw him standing there with his nose to the clouds, pretending to enjoy the morning air, she gave him a skeptical look. She then suggested they take turns standing watch during the day and insisted on taking first watch.

  Things are bad, but they just got a little more bearable!

  The next day bled into the next as they continued their journey together. Kyra remained distant and pensive, but Leon learned it wasn’t due to any fault of his own. She was just a young woman whose youthful vigor was worn thin by all the tragedy and trauma she had been dealt in life. His heart broke for the hurt that she carried buried so close beneath the surface. He could only really glimpse its presence at times in the way she would hug Grumpy or cry in her sleep, but it spurred him to crawl out of his shell in an attempt to get her to crawl out of hers. In fact, traveling beside her at night, without the distractions daylight provided, somehow made it easier for him to focus more on conversation meant to foster her interest and encourage her laughter. The tension he might normally feel when visiting with pretty girls faded a little more with each setting sun, and they never ran out of topics to cover.

  Their nightly activities grew into more of a routine as well. Leon and Kyra traded turns sleeping in the dark confines of his solo tent each day. Ahab continued to gain proficiency in catching fish from the Somber and, at the break of dawn each morning, Leon went hunting with Rezz’s longbow. Out on the grassy plain, he was able to consistently take down some type of large furry critter that looked to him to be a toothy relative of a prairie dog the size of an actual dog.

  Kyra made her unique contributions to their meals. She used Grumpy to sniff out tubers growing along the riverbank and sporadically taught Leon a bit of general knowledge regarding which types of berries and herbs were safe to eat. She even showed him how to render oil from a juicy seed she called a dimple-berry. She would pile the berries up in a pot and boil them down on the rare occasions they felt safe to light a fire.