Bloodline: Book 1

By Faith Birmingham

Rayla has never known her family, nor where she comes from. For the first part of her life, she was forced to live on the streets of her home province in the kingdom of Rathús. It was there that she met her only friend, Raiden. The two grew closer together over time, although Rayla's past has left the girl with the natural instinct to remain independent. When the province's swordmaster sees Rayla defending herself from several troublesome boys one day, he enrolls her as the kingdom's first female battle student. Since then, Rayla has been training with the hopes of one day becoming a province guard, while her best friend Raiden is trained by one of the few remaining bowmasters in the kingdom. Soon, however, their lives are changed when Raiden is attacked by a man who claims that Rayla has special powers that could be a danger to the kingdom. When Rayla is forced to risk everything to save her friend, the two discover that she is the holder of a legendary magical power that lies within her lost bloodline. This power has attracted a particular enemy to the kingdom, and Rayla and Raiden find themselves, along with several new friends, on a race to discover just how much danger they are all in. Through all of this, Rayla is forced to face the question of where she comes from, and how she became the holder of her powers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Feb 1, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098350048

Book preview

Raiden

chapter 1

Rayla

Of all the places in the world, these woods were Rayla’s favorite. Not that she had seen many other places to compare.

But the way the sun filtered through the leaves and cast shadows across the forest floor made Rayla feel at peace. This was where she liked to walk to settle her mind. Any time something was troubling her, any time she needed to think, any time she needed a break, the woods were there. On this particular walk, her thoughts were focused on her training.

Rayla lived in one of the most prosperous kingdoms of her time. Rathús was small, but it had a very strong military. To keep order throughout the kingdom, five provinces had been established long ago. Each section was given an allotted portion of the kingdom’s guards to keep the peace, and a lord had been placed in charge of each one to govern them. Lord Hightower governed the Maith Province, which was Rayla’s home. The King himself, Ladear III, governed the central, capital province. The remaining three provinces also had lords, but Rayla had never bothered to learn their names.

The provinces themselves seemed to take on their own unique characteristics. There were, of course, certain provinces that required special attention. One of the worst provinces was Riraveth, known for its high levels of criminal activity. Others, such as the quiet Seol province, had few problems with crime and conflict. Nevertheless, there were plenty of highly-trained guards to go around.

This was largely because of Rayla’s home province. Here, Rathús’s renowned battle school trained the majority of the kingdom’s knights and guards. The Maith battle school was among the most widely known organizations in the kingdom. Every year, a number of trainees would finish their training. The majority of these newly trained soldiers would become guards and were sent off to whichever province needed them most. However, a small portion that could be picked out as the most promising were sent to Rathús province and continued their training to become knights.

Rayla, among her fellow trainees, was due to end her training a mere three months from now. Already, she could feel the pressure of her final test weighing down on her. This test would decide how far she would make it as a warrior.

The test wasn’t the only thing weighing on her mind. Throughout her years of training, Rayla had been forced to endure more hardships than the other trainees.

For one thing, Rayla didn’t have a family. It wasn’t something that she allowed herself to indulge in pity about. She’d simply never had a family. For as long as she could remember, she had been alone. She had, at one point, been raised by an old farmer who had taken her in as a child. She could remember his cottage in a village outside of Maith’s walls. Still, she didn’t consider that man to be her family. As soon as she had gotten the chance, she’d run away. She had only been a child at the time, perhaps six or seven, but she hadn’t liked the way the man had treated her. He’d made her clean his animals’ pens before she was given food. She’d been forced to sleep at the foot of his bed in case he had woken in the night and needed anything. She’d been punished if the cottage wasn’t cleaned to perfection. And so she had decided to leave him.

Over time, she had learned to fend for herself. Begging for food had rarely worked, so she resorted to finding her meals elsewhere. There were several kinds of berries she could forage off bushes around the province. And there were a variety of trees that offered juicy fruit or delicious nuts that she could eat. Water was a little more difficult to come by. In the winter, she had often been staring death in the face before a kind soul would offer her a drink and a place to stay. Summers, however, were a slightly different story. After wandering deep enough into the woods one day, she had found a stream that provided her with cool water to sustain herself with. Until, that is, it froze over the next winter.

It was for this reason that Rayla trusted nature more than people. The woods would always provide, she had learned, unlike the selfish human nature of the citizens within Maith’s walls.

Suddenly, a sound brought Rayla back to reality. She stopped short, tilting her head in the direction from which the noise had come. Nothing. Quickly, she analyzed the possibilities. It could have been a deer or other animal. After all, she was in the forest. But what if it were a human? Her lonely upbringing had taught her to be overly cautious in any situation, and this was no exception. Deciding she’d rather be safe than sorry, Rayla kept her senses sharp. Don’t give any clue that you’re aware of their presence, she told herself.

Casually, she walked over to a fallen tree branch and sat down behind it. Her breath was quiet and even. For several minutes, she listened. But no sound came and she decided it was nothing. Dusting off her breeches, she continued down the path.

Her mind wandered again. There was more than just her past that separated Rayla from the rest of the battle school’s trainees. She was the only female battle student in, from what she could tell, the history of the kingdom. She had been given a spot in the school because her mentor and instructor, Sir Luca, had seen her fend off a couple of boys who had tried to grab her in the market square one day. Luca had asked her to meet him at the school the next day, and she had. That had been several years ago.

Now, Rayla was in the last stretch of her training with Sir Luca. All the while, she had endured the scorn from the young men around her, telling her that she should stick to cleaning and cooking for her future husband. Some of the more vulgar boys had even asked if she was in need of a partner to cook and clean for, though they didn’t use those words exactly. In the several years that Rayla had been subjected to these comments, she’d mastered the art of turning her anger and indignation into her motivation. As a result, Rayla had found herself at the top of her class.

On top of everything else, there was one more reason she had escaped into the woods today. Painfully, she recalled the dream.

Bright, yellow-brown eyes peered down at her with joy. Then the joy turned to fear. Fear turned to absolute panic. Then chaos. In the eyes, Rayla saw the reflection of fire in the background. Where there had once been laughter, screams suddenly filled the air. She couldn’t speak, couldn’t move, couldn’t help anyone. She was lying down, but she couldn’t see her own body. Her head was stuck, peering up at the startling eyes. Then, suddenly, there was a loud, urgent crash, and the dream ended.

Crunch! Rayla jerked her head up as she heard the sound again. It was much closer this time, and she was sure it had been real. She scanned her surroundings briefly, taking note of any peculiar shape in the shadows. Nothing. Rayla shrugged her shoulders in an attempt to look indifferent, but kept her senses tuned for any sound.

There it was again. This time, she could tell that the sound was coming from directly behind her. She suddenly whirled around, hoping to catch the intruder off guard. Still nothing. Frustrated, Rayla huffed a sigh and marched down the path another few meters. And turned again.

This time, she saw something. A shadowy figure, just barely visible from behind a tree. The figure stood stock still, but Rayla could still make out the shape of a burly man. His head was misshapen, as if he was wearing a cowl or hood. Slowly, she inched her hand toward the knife at her belt. In an instant, the knife was in her hand, and in another she flung it over handed at the man. Rayla felt a surge of pride from the throw. The aim was perfect and the spin spectacular. She looked at the figure, hoping to see him drop to the ground, but instead saw something even more shocking.

Nothing.

No man hiding in the shadows. No body lying on the ground, writhing in pain.

Momentarily stunned, Rayla’s eyes widened. She rarely missed a throw. But now the man seemed to have never even been there.

Then another noise struck behind Rayla. She reached for her sword at her side. In one fluid motion, she unsheathed it and let her training take over. In less than a second she had the intruder pinned to the ground, the tip of her sword pointed straight at him. Her eyes focused and she heaved a sigh. The stranger was, in fact, no stranger at all. His familiar blue eyes stared up at Rayla in horror. His dark hair was swept across his forehead. His thin, athletic frame, a vast contrast to the burly form she had seen moments before, was frozen in fear. Her knee pressed into his chest, which was heaving with terrified breaths. She looked closely at the well-toned arms that were now crossed over his face in a defensive position.

What the devil are you doing, Rayla! he exclaimed. Rayla merely shrugged.

You startled me, she replied, removing her knee from his chest and sheathing her sword. She held out a hand and helped him up.

I wasn’t aware that startling someone could get you killed!

What did you expect, sneaking up behind me in the woods? Did you follow me?

Oh, what? the boy laughed sarcastically. A man can’t take a nice stroll in the woods without being accused of spying?

You’re not a man yet, Raiden, she said in a matter-of-fact tone. And you weren’t just ‘taking a stroll.’

Raiden hesitated for a few seconds before he finally sighed.

Okay, fine. I was sent to keep an eye on you.

By who? Rayla demanded.

Sir Luca…

Blood rushed to Rayla’s face. The nerve of him! Why can’t he just let me—

Rayla, he is worried about you! You’re not paying attention in your training and Sir Luca has noticed!

It isn’t as if I’ve totally been unaware of what’s going on, Rayla laughed airily. Just a little distracted is all.

Rayla, please. If anybody knows you better than Sir Luca, it’s me. And he has a point. Something’s obviously bothering you.

Well… she began slowly. I am close to finishing my training, and the stress is—

Don’t say ‘getting to you,’ Raiden rolled his eyes. I swear, if you say the stress is getting to you, I will unsheath your sword and chase you all the way back to your house.

You unsheath my sword without my permission, Rayla cautioned, And I’ll take one of your arrows and shove it up your—

"Okay! The point is… Raiden cut in, I want to know what’s bothering you. And so does Sir Luca."

Rayla sighed, too tired to fight any longer. Okay, I guess you deserve to know.

Raiden crossed his arms, eyebrows raised expectantly.

I’ve been... Rayla trailed off. It all sounded so stupid. It was just a dream. Lots of people that she had spoken to in her seventeen years of life had mentioned waking up from bad dreams that made no sense. And yet…

Nobody has mentioned having the same dream for months on end, she thought. It sounded like something they locked people away for. Something that only crazy people would admit to.

I hurt my ankle a few weeks ago, Rayla finally blurted. Raiden blinked, momentarily stunned by the words. Rayla hadn’t mentioned her ankle hurting recently.

You what? he asked. Rayla backed away as her friend moved to grab her arm. Rayla, you shouldn’t be walking on it.

It’s not that bad! I’m not even limping, see?

Rayla hopped from one foot to the other. She watched as Raiden’s face moved from worry to doubt, and finally to something she couldn’t quite read.

Rayla. His voice was so low it was almost a whisper. What’s really going on?

Rayla stood awkwardly before her friend. He deserved to know the truth. She had known him for the larger part of her life. Ever since he had found her on the streets when she was young, they’d been nearly inseparable. They’d both been around eight at the time, and when Raiden had told his parents about her, they had been kind to her too, though she had begged Raiden not to tell them where he’d found her. She’d fended for herself for so long already, she hadn’t wanted anyone’s pity. So, though they might have eventually guessed the truth, Raiden’s mother and father didn’t ask about Rayla’s family, and she didn’t tell them anything beyond just the minimum.

Raiden was her only true friend. He knew everything about Rayla. If she couldn’t confide in Raiden, who could she talk to? Not to mention the fact that trying to figure it out on her own had caused her hair to start coming out in strands.

Okay, she exhaled. It’s… it’s this dream I’ve been having… Rayla cleared her throat. She stared intensely at the grass under her boots. It doesn’t make any sense. But it comes back almost every night. I haven’t gone through a full moon cycle without it coming up at least once.

Slowly, she glanced up at her friend’s face. His mouth was partially opened, but no words came out. Feeling uncomfortable, Rayla shifted from foot to foot.

A full moon cycle? he finally asked. Why haven’t you said anything?

Does it sound like something a sane person would admit? Rayla questioned. I’ve heard of people getting locked up in the leather coat because of the ‘visions’ that keep haunting them. I’m not about to have everyone I know pointing at me like some foamy mouthed lunatic. Besides, it’s just a dream. It has nothing to do with you or me.

Which wasn’t entirely true. She had a feeling the dream was somehow very personal. Maybe it was from her past. The eyes in her dream… they sometimes had a face. A young boy, with dark hair. The face always struck Rayla as familiar. She’d seen a face that looked like that. Every time she looked at a puddle or a lake, and her own face was looking back. She wasn’t sure how, but the boy felt like family somehow. Not like Raiden’s parents, or even Raiden, but like her real family.

Raiden stared at her for some time, trying to decipher her thoughts. Finally, convinced that Rayla wasn’t going to give up any more details, he frowned.

Alright, was all he said.

I should head back, Rayla replied, anxious to change the subject. That footwork that Sir Luca is trying to teach us isn’t going to just magically study itself. She headed down the path once more.

You need to get a life, she heard Raiden mutter. But despite his annoyance, he jogged to keep step with her. Rayla glanced over at her friend’s face. It was dirty and tired-looking. He looked like he was utterly exhausted.

He’s probably just worn out from trying to avoid my keen eyes, Rayla thought, smiling to herself as they walked back to the castle gates.

chapter 2

Rayla

Her sword was a blur of blue and gray, whirling in an elegant arc. Each stroke sent another trickle of sweat down her face and into her eyes. Her arm ached and her breath was coming in rapid gasps. Her shoulder and back muscles were tense. Exhausted, she lowered her sword, glaring at the practice dummy. She had been practicing for some time now, in a clearing she’d found off to the side of the market square.

Rayla took a deep breath and cleared her throat. I guess a water break can’t hurt, she thought. She walked over to her leather water canteen and sat on the grass, opening the container and taking a large gulp. The liquid was cool and refreshing as it slid down her throat. Satisfied, she fastened the stopper back on the canteen and took to examining her sword, looking for any dents or scratches.

She used a simple shortsword. The grip was wrapped in leather to make it easier to hold. Above that, the guard piece gave a more glamorous appearance to the weapon. Beautiful designs swiveled and swirled across the surface, meeting up to a small pair of hands etched in the center. The hands were cupped and holding a magnificent blue jewel that drew the eyes of all onlookers. From the guard of the sword, a sturdy blue-gray blade rose. The tip and sides were sharper than most. Rayla had sharpened it regularly for years. The tip of the blade was bluer than the rest of the sword; helping to balance the color from the blue jewel on the guard piece.

To most people, a sword was simply a weapon. It didn’t matter what it looked like so long as the blade could cut. Rayla, however, had been given this sword on her second day of training five years previously. She could remember the event like it was only yesterday. She had loved swordplay immediately. Sir Luca had taken notice of her natural talents and had foreseen the greatness she could achieve, given the proper weapon. He gave her the elegant, one-handed blade, allowing her to take it as her own under one condition; she was to practice with the straw target he was also giving her. Rayla, thrilled to finally have some sort of personal belonging in the place of any long-lost family heirloom, had eagerly accepted.

Now, five years later and sitting on the grass, Rayla still considered the sword to be her most prized possession. She practiced nearly every day in her free time. She dreamed of becoming a Rathús Knight, though she knew the chances were low. Most students were offered a position as a guard of one of the five provinces. Rayla knew that, as the first and only female, she would likely be overlooked, and possibly disregarded altogether, at first. For her, any position would only come with practice. A lot of practice. She had to prove her worth.

And so I will practice, Rayla told herself. She lowered her sword and stood up, ready to begin going through her exercises again. She pictured the new moves she would have to perform. The overhand block was a basic technique in which the soldier would tilt his blade diagonally over his head and parry the enemy’s downward arch. However, she’d need an actual opponent for that maneuver. For today’s practice, she’d settled for a move that she herself had made up by accident one day. Again, she imagined herself, feigning an overhead cut and quickly turning her wrists and arms to direct her sword to her enemy’s unprotected side as he would instinctively raise his weapon to block her first stroke.

As Rayla took a step toward her target to resume her practice, her limbs ached in protest. She hadn’t realized how exhausted she was until now.

She glanced up to the sky, searching for the sun’s position. It was nearly sundown. She sighed and decided it would be better to wash up for the night. After all, she did have lessons at the battle school the next morning. She sheathed her sword, tucked her canteen under one arm, and grabbed the rope that was attached to her target’s stand. Raiden had kindly offered to build the stand for Rayla after he’d seen her dragging the target around town one day. The wheels, Rayla noted, made transporting the target much easier.

It only took a few minutes for Rayla to reach her house. She dropped the target’s rope by the door and pushed through into the cottage. Dragging her feet, she made her way to the kitchen area, where she dropped off her canteen.

Her house looked like a simple wooden shack from the outside. Battle students were sent to live in barracks based on their ages and levels of training. However, seeing as how Rayla was the only female, Sir Luca had managed to find her a small home just outside the battle school grounds. Her house consisted of one front door and one window to the kitchen. The walls were made of wooden logs and the window was simply a rectangular hole in the wall, usually closed up by a wooden board at night for protection. Every door and window had a wooden latch that could be used to lock the entries into the house when Rayla was sleeping or wanted privacy. Altogether, the small exterior made the house appear modest.

Despite the misleading outward appearance of her house, the interior was quite cozy. Upon entering the front door, a hallway stretched down the length of the house. From the middle of the corridor, two sets of double doors, one set on each side of the hall, led into the kitchen or her sleeping area. The kitchen was furnished with wooden chairs and a small table. The sleeping quarter had a soft, deerskin mat for Rayla to sleep on. Coming from the front door, the kitchen was to the left, and the sleeping room to the right. At the end of the hallway was a supply closet, where a straw broom was kept, along with several cloths used specifically for cleaning.

Rayla had to admit, the sleeping room was by far her favorite. There were few items in the room, which Rayla felt was an accurate representation of herself. She had, however, been able to trade some berries and nuts for a few lanterns. Such a deal was unreasonable for most people, but Rayla had helped the shop owner once, sending off an unsatisfied customer by pointing out that his lantern wouldn’t light because he had obviously doused it with water. The man had been trying to squeeze another free lantern from the shop owner. Rayla had done nothing more than called the man on his bluff. Still, the shop owner had been grateful.

Now, sweating and tired, Rayla made her way into the sleeping room. When she entered, she laid her sword down and took off her boots and woolen socks, allowing her feet to get some air. She curled her toes several times before she reluctantly gathered a set of clothes to change into and headed back out to the bathhouse to wash up.

° ° °

I just don’t see how you manage to keep up with yourself, Raiden was saying as they walked up to the Maith battle school the next morning. Laughing to himself, he continued. "I mean, you always find time to practice swordsmanship lessons a full week before we actually learn them in class!"

I don’t know, Raiden. It just comes to me.

Rayla, of course, was telling the truth. It was far too obvious to Raiden when she lied so she rarely ever bothered to do so.