Praise for BC Powell’s “KRYMZYN”
“Thrilling and spellbinding, “Krymzyn” drew me in from the very first page.”
Roxanne Kade, author of “The Bloody Crescent”
“Unique? Original? Captivating? All of the above? Yes. This book is truly one of a kind!”
Ethan Gregory, One Guy’s Guide to Goodreads
“This book has gotten into my brain, and I don't want to let it go. It was truly beautiful!”
Tiffany Williams, imabookshark.com
“Very original plot, dark and intriguing . . . a gripping book.”
Mamta Madhaven, poet
“Krymzyn is a page turner . . . a strong start to a very promising series.”
Lorena Sangui, Reader’s Favorite
A Traveler’s Fate
by
BC Powell
book three
The Journals of Krymzyn
Table of Contents
Copyright & Publisher
Special Acknowledgments
Maps of Krymzyn
Prologue
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
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Copyright & Publisher
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Text copyright 2020 © BC Powell
All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the author.
First Edition
Library of Congress Control Number: 2020906977
Published by BC Powell
facebook.com/bcpowellauthor
Cover design and artwork by Ravven
ravven.com
Special Acknowledgments
To Ron Guyatt for the fantastic maps. To Ravven for another amazing cover. And a huge thank you to all the book bloggers and readers who support this series.
Maps of Krymzyn
Prologue
Standing on a barren hilltop, the woman watches a streak of light arc across the horizon. One of her hands instinctively reaches for the spear stabbed in the ground at her side. Her other hand remains pressed to her stomach, protectively holding the curve hidden beneath her tight, black shirt. As she studies the luminescent shape in the distance, she decides it’s moving far too fast to be one of her kind. And it’s heading directly towards her.
It could be the man responsible for the child growing inside her, returning from the Desert sooner than expected. It could be a lone Traveler soaring across the stark wasteland for reasons unknown. It could even be the extraordinary Hunter on one of her solitary treks through the Barrens. The figure is still too far away to determine who it is, but the tiny hairs on the back of the woman’s neck stand upright, prickling her skin.
She leaps into a shallow crevice concealed behind a ridge on top of the hill. As she lands in a crouch, lines of firm muscle crease the pants that hug her slender legs. A long braid of shimmering black falls down her back, a few white strands radiating the pallid light from the sky above.
The woman cautiously raises her head and peers over the jagged rocks that conceal her. Less than a mile away, the beams of light disappear behind a hill and almost immediately stream over the top. On the flat ground in front of her, the speeding figure cuts sharply to the woman’s left. Brilliant rays recede from the air and form the body of a young female—a Traveler of the Delta, the woman knows, from vibrant blue highlights in ebony hair. As the Traveler glides to a stop in front of a lone sustaining tree, long straight bangs fall over her eyes.
Did a glint of light from the stake lodged in the tree’s bark catch the Traveler’s attention? the woman wonders. The stake is old and weathered.The Traveler should assume it’s from a raid on a transport long ago.
Fortunately, I didn’t need to bind the upper branches of the tree. The few limbs that remain attached to the trunk reach straight up to the dark clouds, unable to bend downwards without ripping themselves from the trunk. The Traveler would undoubtedly tell others in the Delta of a tethered tree.
I would prefer not to kill her. An errant blow during a fight might harm the child growing inside me. But I won’t hesitate to end her life if I must.
When the Traveler looks around her, the woman ducks her head below the ridge. After a few moments pass, the woman raises one eye to a narrow crack between two rocks. The Traveler finishes scanning the terrain, apparently wanting to make certain she’s alone. Standing profile to the woman, her spear in the grip of one hand, the Traveler returns her attention to the trunk of the tree.
I know who that Traveler is, the woman realizes. She’s young, several inches shorter than I am. I’ve heard stories about her from the man who created my child with me. He helped train her to fight with a spear when they were children of the Delta.
The Traveler steps forward to the tree. Sparse gray leaves growing from gnarled branches dangle high over her head. Stopping just a few feet from the trunk, she squints at the stake. After reaching out a hand, she clenches her fingers around the shaft of the steel spike, pulls it from the bark, and holds it in front of her face. To the woman’s surprise, the Traveler drops her spear to the dirt.
The Traveler glances over each of her shoulders, but the woman doesn’t move. Confident that she’s well hidden behind the ridge, she continues to spy through the rocks. The Traveler soon returns her eyes to the stake. With the fingertips of one hand, she twists the point of the spike to make sure the hollow tip is open.
Slowly tilting her head back, the Traveler raises the steel to her lips. Thick red liquid drips to the Traveler’s mouth. As soon as she swallows, the Traveler rips the stake away from her face. Her entire body trembles from the rush of wild sap shooting through her veins.
A curious young Traveler, the woman thinks to herself.
