Forged Destiny [Book 6: Ch. 15]

Cinder snarled. It was almost in slow motion that she swung her arm forward, summoning a great gout of flame and hurling it towards me. I knew her thoughts as she did. I was no longer a Blacksmith, therefore my one defence against her fire was lost. In elevating myself, I'd weakened myself.

It was something well thought out.

And yet equally flawed.

Ducking low, I surged towards the fires, eyes flashing once as I shifted in a way I instinctively knew how. The words above my head changed – my perception of the world changed – and suddenly I was returned, a Blacksmith once more. My left hand touched my armour a second later and the heat was back, roaring to life as my armour turned bright red. All of it happened in the space of a few seconds and yet Cinder did not see it, her view obstructed by her own attack. I powered through it, emerging from the other side with an angry roar.

My mind clicked. New information, new strength, rushed into me. When our blades clashed, I was a Swordmaster once again.

[...]

Cinder broke away, leaning back at the last second to avoid certain death. She summoned some fire, but let it go when I shifted into a Blacksmith. Instead, she lunged back in, trying to take me before I could turn back.

The transition was all but immediate now, however. It cost me a little each time, and I could feel mental fatigue building up.

—Forged Destiny [Book 6: Ch. 15]