This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.
Cover artwork by Jordan Grimmer
https://jordangrimmer.co.uk/
The4threalm.com
Kris Kramer, the author of this work, is part of the4threalm.com, a group of writers who work, edit, critique and publish collaboratively. He would like to invite you to see more of his work, along with that of several other talented people, at the site below. And be sure to participate in the discussion. We're nothing without our readers, and we want to know what you think!
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Acknowledgements
For Kassidy
Special thanks to:
Patrick, Aaron and Russell for helping me make these characters more than just names on paper.
My mother, for her ideas and input.
Chapter List
Prologue
1 – The Mission
2 – Farewell
3 - The Cliffs of Lharsil
4 – Duren Olan
5 – Tyr
6 – Old Friends
7 – Nentini Oln
8 – The Group Splits
9 – Betrayal at the Honest Soldier Inn
Excerpts from The Histories of Iador by Autilis
Prologue
Words are a terribly wonderful thing. Or perhaps they’re wonderfully terrible. I think either description will find ample supporters, although I usually find myself leaning more toward the former. How else, but through the almighty power of words, could I relate to you, my readers, the tales I have to tell? Or keep alive the exploits of valiant and worthy heroes whose names should be remembered and celebrated?
Let these words convey to you stories of fearless men and women flying sleek magical ships through the air; a heartbroken warrior and a desperate wizard caught in the throes of prophecy; a captive man and woman, once enemies, who bring peace to their people; a battle in the mountains that unites long-bitter enemies; a city of the dead that leads to a new life. And all these heroes surrounded by the specter of war against a great enemy, one that arrived from a place we knew only as Beyond, and the people who rallied together to face not only that enemy, but their own history and fears as well. And because of their resolve, the world was changed forever.
But who am I, you ask? I am no one important. I am merely a chronicler of a time long passed, albeit a time that shaped the world as it exists today. I am here only to tell you of a place that was never quite what most thought it to be. A land at the top of the world, surrounded by vast, unending water, and filled with people who never suspected the role they would have to play. A meager collection of nations and kingdoms, with names like Trohm, the Outerlands, the Senin Valley, and the Lore Valley. It is the Lore who carries the title of these stories, however, because that is where this tale truly begins, and where it ultimately ends.
-Autilis, Excerpts from his Tales of the Lore Valley, Volume 1