by Todd Herzman
The seeker cleared her throat. ‘In many ways, you have both proven yourselves worthy of becoming seekers, worthy of wielding my, or any other, Starblade. However, only one of you can be charged with this duty.’
She stood and walked around the table, coming to stand in front of Jercolf. ‘Jercolf, you are skilled and strong. Wise and brave. You handled yourself well in the field and would make a wonderful seeker. Unfortunately, I only have one sword to give. Should you still qualify upon the next Choosing, you shall be looked upon with favour.’
Jercolf bowed his head. ‘Thank you, Seeker Ailena.’ He glanced at Lilah before stepping back into the crowd.
Lilah checked her posture. Though she had expected it, she wasn’t sure she deserved this honour. It had been Serena who’d defeated the blood mage, not her. But had anyone else gotten to the Red Rose first—her father, Seeker Ailena, Jercolf or one of the other recruits—they would have attacked Serena. They would have seen her magic, seen what she was doing to Kellan, and they wouldn’t have hesitated—they wouldn’t have shown mercy. Lilah had read Serena’s letter a thousand times since she’d gotten it. Poring over the words again and again.
Know that not all magic is evil. Some of it deserves your mercy.
Lilah may not have been the one to defeat Kellan, but she knew in her heart that she deserved to be a seeker, and if she were to be one, she would be a righteous one. She would stay her blade where others would not.
Seeker Ailena stood in front of Lilah and undid the buckle of her sword belt. She held her Starblade, safe in its sheath, in both hands.
‘Lilah. You have proven yourself a great warrior, an adept woodsman, a devout disciple, and a just person in the eyes of myself, my fellow deciders, and in the eyes of the emperor. Will you accept your duty, as the next seeker, to find evil wherever it may lay, and mete out justice as you see fit?’
Lilah let out a breath. ‘I will.’
Seeker Ailena lowered her gaze to the Starblade in her hands. The hilt had a meteorite breaking through a starfall etched upon it—the symbol of the seekers. ‘This Starblade was forged five hundred years ago, when our order was still young, when there were even less of us than there are now.’ She drew the blade halfway. Its surface was darker than the night sky and seemed to pull at the light about it. ‘It was forged during the third emperor’s reign, by his own personal blacksmith. Its name is Justice from Above.’ She sheathed it with a click. ‘May it serve you as well as it has served me and every other seeker who has wielded it in centuries past.’
Seeker Ailena placed the blade in Lilah’s waiting hands.
Lilah stared down at the sword. She’d always imagined Starblades to be heavier than normal swords, despite knowing that starstone wasn’t as heavy as steel. Justice from Above was light in her grip. She wished to draw it, to test its swing, to feel its balance. A rush of pride spread through her as she looked down upon it. Her ideas of magic and justice may have changed the night the Red Rose burned, but she had been training for this her entire life, for as long as she could remember.
Now, she held her future in her hands.
To continue reading in the world of the Hollow Fate series buy A Dark Inheritance (Hollow Fate Book 1) today or read it FREE on Kindle Unlimited.
You can see the cover and read the blurb below.
Their parents are long dead. They were never told of the power that runs in their family. Nor the dangers that power could lure toward them…
Ruben is a prisoner. His captor, a blood mage, commands loyalty with an unbreakable bond. As Ruben tries to resist the blood mage’s pull, he realises he has a power of his own. His desire to become stronger takes him to dark places, driving him to do even darker things. If he can gain his freedom, will he be able to return to the life he once knew, after all he has done?
When Ella’s brother Ruben is kidnapped, she vows to rescue him. But Ella’s never left her village, never swung a sword. On her journey, she finds a courage she never knew she had. And something else—a strength deep within. An Affinity for magic she yearns to understand. While her newfound power buoys her confidence, the discovery of who holds her brother captive makes her wonder if it will be enough.
Marius, his brother and sister gone, doesn’t know what to do with himself. Until a Tahali monk, a man who can move things with his mind and heal with a touch, comes to town. When the monk discovers Marius’s powers—powers Marius never knew he had—he offers him the chance to become an apprentice. But the road to the Tahali mountains is no longer safe, and a dark evil hounds them on their way.
A Dark Inheritance is the first instalment in the Hollow Fate series, an epic fantasy by author Todd Herzman.
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This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
THE SEEKER AND THE SWORD
A Hollow Fate Novella
Copyright © 2019 Todd Herzman.
All rights reserved.
Written by Todd Herzman
Cover Designer: Germancreative