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Chapter 50: True-Self
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The Black Hellblade Chapter 1: A Fleeting Dream
Harsh winter winds blew freezing powder against the Nightblade Temple of the Serpent. In the temple's courtyard, Trainees shivered. The young men and women stood shoulder to shoulder in thick snow up to their knees. They were bundled in fur cloaks and hoods, and their lightweight leather armor stuck uncomfortably to their bodies with nervous sweat and sleet. Cold cut the trainees to the bone, and the enormous and twisting stone walls of the Temple of the Serpent did little to keep the weather out from the training grounds.As the Trainees huffed bitter air and watched their jagged breaths turn to mist in front of them, their leader, Master Titanoboa, trudged shirtless through the tall snow. Both of his muscular arms were covered with tattoos of large blacks snakes that spanned from the tops of his shoulders down to the bottom of his hands, where the snakes' mouths opened wide bearing a set of fangs by each of Titanoboa's palms. His braided brown beard fell to his chest, and he carried
The Black Hellblade Chapter 2: Snakes Born in Flames
"If it's too cold out here, I'm sure there are potatoes that need peeling in the kitchen, Ronan," a Trainee cackled. "I think he'd slice his fingers off before he even finished skinning a single potato," another Trainee giggled. The Trainees clamored and looked at Ronan in disgust. "That's enough," Titanoboa said, not really wishing to protect Ronan but wanting to get on with his lesson. "Before you is a torch."Titanoboa paused at the torch closest to him, then waved his hand. A fireball sprung from his palm and ignited the torch. With his other hand, Titanoboa closed his fist, and the flame on the torch died out immediately. "If you want any chance of surviving outside of our temple," Titanoboa said, "then you must master the Serpent Nightblade magic of fire manipulation."The Trainees looked on at Titanoboa with eager faces despite the chill making them tremble. Titanoboa set a hand on his snake tattoo and said, "You all bear the Mark of Serpent, which means our fire magic
The Black Hellblade Chapter 3: The Serpent Sorceress
When Ronan was finished polishing the swords and he had finally earned his measly half-bowl of soup, night had long since crept over the temple. The entire time he struck soot and ash off the weapons, cutting his arms and hands on the sharp blades, he had heard Trainee Robyn's celebration echoing up from many flights of stairs below him. As he coughed from the clouds of dirt and grime he pulled off the swords with the polish, he fantasized about his own celebration, and of performing a feat so stunning the other Trainees would shower him in love and approval. But Ronan didn't really care all that much about fame or glory. He didn't need to be idealized or have songs created about his heroic actions. He knew what it was like to live in a world of weakness and fear, and he wanted to protect others like himself. Ronan shifted on his stiff and uncomfortable straw cot, imagining a hot dinner of roasted pork ribs, steamed potatoes, and vegetables cooked over a blazing fire. He thought ab
The Black Hellblade Chapter 4: Crystal Clairvoyance
Sensing the woman's immense power, Ronan noticed the silver snake tattooed onto her arm. It glimmered in the lantern's light. Beneath the snake were 12 tally marks, and if she had achieved Serpent Rank 12 on only one arm, that meant she was significantly stronger and more attuned to magic than Titanoboa. Ronan dare not look at the sorceress' other arm. He'd never been alone and trespassing before somebody so strong, and he knew he was not in the good grace's of the occupants of the temple.Ronan swallowed and said, "Sorry, Sorceress Yvette. I've been struggling to access my magic and hoped to find a book that would help me unlock my abilities."Yvette's smile grew and she said, "It was in your favor to not lie to me. I've been watching you each night, young Ronan. 74 days in a row you've entered here, and you've read twice as many books."Ronan remained silent, his knees shaking. He gave Yvette a small nod. "How do you purify a pond tainted by a Naiad?" the sorceress asked, leanin
The Black Hellblade Chapter 5: Darkness Invades
The next explosion knocked Ronan off of his cot, and shook the fading oil lantern off its hook and to the floor. Glass shattered near Ronan's feet, and flames caught onto the furs and fleeces he was wrapped in. Ronan wrestled out of the fiery blankets. He shuddered at the sound of shrill screams just beyond the door to his room. "We're being attacked!" a voice shouted from outside and down the corridor before fading into a gut-wrenching gurgle. Ronan leapt up from the floor and away from the spreading flames, his mouth dry and heart hammering in his chest. He pressed his back to the door and trembled as his windowless little cupboard of a room continued to catch fire. What little he had and was given by Yvette was burning before his eyes. Feeling like he might be able to at least salvage something of great importance, Ronan reached over the rapidly growing flames for Yvette's purple crystal ball on his nightstand. Flames bit at his wrist, and the crystal ball cracked and fractured
The Black Hellblade Chapter 6: A Hero's Sacrifice
Titanoboa ran in long strides down the opposite end of the corridor from which he'd come, leaving behind the bodies of the Trainees. He checked over his shoulder and gave Ronan a look that seemed to suggest a deep regret and disappointment, and Ronan tried to offer a silent agreement that while the fallen could not be saved, if there were survivors, he and Titanoboa would need to save them."What are these things?" Ronan asked, fighting to keep pace with Titanoboa. The two dodged debris as an explosion struck at the wall to their right. Amazingly, the sharp stone missed the two. "I don't know," Titanoboa confessed. "But they are in great numbers and are immune to our magic." Ronan was stupefied at this information, and Titanoboa had to grab the Trainee by the shoulder to get him moving again. At the end of the corridor was a staircase leading down to the dining hall, and the large, magically sealed doors to the library. Right at the tip of the stairs, Titanoboa collapsed to a knee
The Black Hellblade Chapter 7: The Bread Man
Although the sky was bright and sunny, nothing was beautiful. The town street Ronan had landed on through the portal was damp, cold, and smelled of horse droppings. Nearby, gray brick and mortar houses looked as though they were on their last legs. Each door and window shutter was hanging on by loose screws and covered in cheap, chipped paint. The chimney on one home at the edge of the street had long since collapsed, leaving ashy rubble in the road. Ronan sat up in great pain over his still bleeding wound. Disoriented, he rummaged for his sword. It was nowhere to be found, and he determined that he had dropped it when traveling through the Serpent Sorceress' portal. The portal too had disappeared, and Ronan realized he was on his own and weaponless. For the first time in over a decade, he was outside of the temple. Ronan fought his way to his feet, then felt a faint and nervous smile creep its way on his face. He was in rough shape, but he was alive, and he would fulfill his obj
The Black Hellblade Chapter 8: Fallen Butterfly
For the next few hours, Ronan slipped in and out of consciousness. The bits and pieces he could remember felt dreamlike. First, he recalled two dapper Nightblades standing over him. One of the man's lips had pursed when he asked, "Should we leave him? He's about as clean as a rat."Secondly, Ronan remembered the deafening clank of a large set of pliers on an iron table beside him. Somebody in the room had said, "There's no way this thin mutt will survive."Lastly, Ronan recollected screaming so hard his vision went black.Then, he was awake and lying in the comfiest bed he'd ever been in.His old and itchy wool clothes had been replaced with a matching set of cool gray fencing trousers and a breezy doublet. Ronan's hair had been combed, and his skin washed. He smelled of blueberries and rose water. Most importantly, through his opened doublet, he could see that the shard inside him had been removed and that his stomach had been bandaged. There was no sign of infection, or any b
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- The Black Hellblade Chapter 50: True-Self
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