Ascension of Death
Page 45
The cutthroat streets of Praamis will test her mettle, and she must learn to dodge the City Guards or swing from a hangman's rope. But a more dangerous foe lurks within the guild walls. A sadistic rival apprentice, threatened by her strength, is out for blood.
What hope does one girl have in a world of ruthless men?
Fans of Sarah J. Maas, Scott Lynch, and Brent Weeks will love Queen of Thieves…
Book 1: Child of the Night Guild
Book 2: Thief of the Night Guild
Book 3: Queen of the Night Guild
To read about Aisha’s trials,
try Traitors’ Fate:
One Death Changes Two Cities Forever
Ilanna, Master of the Night Guild, has waged a war for eight years to cleanse her city of the rival criminal organization that nearly destroyed it. When she uncovers a ring of slavers trafficking young girls for sexual servitude around the continent, she is forced to venture into the city of Voramis, the seat of her enemy's power, to hunt down the true culprit and put an end to the enslavement of innocents.
But her enemies will not be so easily eliminated. She must turn to the one man certain to get the job done: the Hunter, legendary assassin of Voramis.
The Hunter willingly accepts a fortune in gold to kill one of the richest men in his city. A mansion fortress and a private army should prove no match for his inhuman abilities.
But as he stalks his target, he unmasks a bloodthirsty conspiracy in the guise of a holy mission. If he doesn't stop the men responsible, the gruesome murders will continue and people—including those he has sworn to protect—will die.
Note: This book is a standalone that takes place after the events of Queen of Thieves Book 3.
Traitors’ Fate (Queen of Thieves/Hero of Darkness Crossover)
Take a glimpse into Evren and Hailen’s origin,
dive into Hero of Darkness
The best assassin in the world doesn’t come cheap. Betraying him will cost your soul.
The Hunter is a name feared by all in Voramis. He is an outcast, driven by a cursed dagger with an unquenchable thirst for blood and death.
Yet he follows one simple code: kill those who truly deserve to die. His creed is put to the test when, deceived by a shadowy employer, he unknowingly slaughters an innocent man.
With the most powerful criminal organization in the city after his head, the Hunter must fight for his life and find a way to atone for his mistake. When his enemies harm the people under his protection, it will take much more than an army of criminals to stand in the way of his revenge.
If you love anti-heroes like the Punisher or Dexter in a breathtaking fantasy realm, then immerse yourself in Hero of Darkness today! Dive into an epic tale of one man’s struggle to survive in a world of magic, blood, and death.
Book 1: Darkblade Assassin
Book 2: Darkblade Outcast
Book 3: Darkblade Protector
Book 4: Darkblade Seeker
Book 5: Darkblade Slayer
Book 6: Darkblade Savior
Book 7: Darkblade Justice
Different, Not Damaged: A Short Story Collection
About the Author
I am, first and foremost, a storyteller and an artist--words are my palette. Fantasy is my genre of choice, and I love to explore the darker side of human nature through the filter of fantasy heroes, villains, and everything in between. I'm also a freelance writer, a book lover, and a guy who just loves to meet new people and spend hours talking about my fascination for the worlds I encounter in the pages of fantasy novels.
Fantasy provides us with an escape, a way to forget about our mundane problems and step into worlds where anything is possible. It transcends age, gender, religion, race, or lifestyle--it is our way of believing what cannot be, delving into the unknowable, and discovering hidden truths about ourselves and our world in a brand new way. Fiction at its very best!
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Glossary
Gods of Einan
Kiro, the Master: God of virtue and nobility
Deralana, Lady of Vengeance: Goddess of warriors and vengeance
Garridos, the Apprentice: God of ventures and enterprise
The Maiden: Goddess of purity, devotion, and festivities
The Illusionist: God of coin, success, and madness
The Bright Lady: Goddess of healing
The Swordsman: God of war, heroism, and metal-smithing
The Mistress: Goddess of trysts, secrets, and whispered truths
The Bloody Minstrel: God of sickness, plague, and horrible music
The Watcher: God of the night, god of justice and vengeance. Thieves and criminals know him as “the Watcher in the Dark”.
The Lonely Goddess: Goddess of orphans and broken hearts
The Beggar God: God of outcasts, the destitute, and the needy
The Long Keeper: God of death.
Kharna – Serenii that sacrificed himself to feed Enarium and fight the Devourer to protect Einan
The Devourer of Worlds, the Great Destroyer – force of chaos seeking to unmake the world
Ascension of Death Characters
Listed according to appearance/mention
Issa: 17 year-old Earaqi, chosen to serve as a Keeper’s Blade, resilient, strong-willed, determined , daughter of Lady Callista and the Pharus (Chapter 1)
Tethum, the Iron Warlord: Groebus’ master, true power behind the attacks and chaos in Shalandra, covers his face with an iron mask, a demon (Abiarazi) in human flesh (Chapter 1)
Tinush: High Divinity, oldest member of the Keeper’s Council, a priest of the Necroseti, servant to the god of death, fell off a balcony to his death in Secrets of Blood (Chapter 1)
Madani: high-ranked priest of the Necroseti, most powerful member of the Keeper’s Council, cunning and deceitful, smug bastard (Chapter 1)
Callista Vinaus: Lady of Blades, highest-ranked military official in Shalandra, rules the Keeper’s Blades and Indomitables, stern, proud, warrior, Issa’s mother (Chapter 1)
Tannard: commanding Invictus of the Keeper’s Blades of Shalandra, commandeered Issa’s training, cruel, ruthless, callous (Chapter 1)
Aleema: Issa’s Savta (grandmother), maid in the house of a Dhukari (Chapter 1)
Nytano: Issa’s Saba (grandfather), laborer in the farmlands outside of Shalandra, slain in the riots (Chapter 1)
Evren: 17 year-old former pickpocket and clever thief from Darkblade Slayer, former apprentice in the Master’s Temple in Vothmot, recruited to the Hunter’s mission of feeding Kharna (Chapter 2)
Hykos: veteran Archateros of the Keeper’s Blades of Shalandra, Issa’s trainer, friendly and welcoming, two years older than Issa, handsome (Chapter 2)
Kodyn: 17 year-old apprentice to House Hawk, third-story thief of the Night Guild, son of Ilanna the Guild Master and Ria the Master of House Phoenix, protective (Chapter 3)
Hailen: child cared for by the Hunter and trained by the Cambionari, descendent of the ancient Serenii, the Hunter’s ward, possesses mysterious magical abilities (Chapter 3)
Briana: daughter of a high-ranked member of the Secret Keepers in Shalandra and Keeper’s Councilor, graceful, elegant, intelligent, studious, rescued by Kodyn and the Night Guild from kidnappers (Chapter 3—see Darkblade Justice)
Arch-Guardian Suroth: Briana’s father, high priest of the Secret Keepers in Shalandra, member of the Keeper’s Council, mute, slain by the Gatherers in Trial of Stone (Chapter 3)
Ennolar: high-ranked Secret Keeper, member of the Venerated, lover of banquet delicacies, provides Kodyn and Aisha a map of the Serenii tunnels, set to replace Suroth as Arch-Guardian (Chapter 3)
Groebus
: nom-de-guerre “Dayblood”, hunchback, priest of the Long Keeper, mastermind orchestrating the chaos (Chapter 3)
Uryan: sharp-faced, high-ranking Guardian of the Secret Keepers, has a link to the spirit of Thimara (Chapter 3)
Thevoris: tall, dark-bearded Secret Keeper, administers “torture” potion to captive Hallar’s Warrior (Chapter 3)
Tianath: high-ranked Guardian of the Secret Keepers, alchemist, travels to the Hall of Bounty to collect grain samples to analyze for poison in Storm of Chaos, purple-haired (Chapter 3)
Aisha: 17 year-old former trafficking victim rescued by Ilanna and the Night Guild (see Traitors’ Fate), apprentice to House Phoenix, Kodyn’s best friend, child of a Spirit Whisperer (Chapter 4)
Amhoset Nephelcheres: Pharus of Shalandra, Servant of the Long Keeper, Word of Justice and Death, a noble and honorable ruler hamstrung by the Keeper’s Council (Chapter 4)
Killian/Elmessam: blacksmith, leader of the Mumblers, Issa’s trainer, surprisingly well-connected, cunning, more than he appears, former warrior of the Keeper’s Blades (Chapter 11)
Imbuka: Ghandian shaman, Umoyahlebe, Spirit Whisperer, provides Aisha information about her gifts, secretly working with the Iron Warlord, slain by Aisha in Secrets of Blood (Chapter 12)
Lunus and Ryneos: Secret Keepers guarding the entrance to the Temple of Whispers, help Kodyn figure out how to get off the roof of the Temple (Chapter 14)
Ormroth: high-ranked Ypertatos of the Keeper’s Blades of Shalandra, experienced warrior, saved Kodyn, Aisha, and Briana from bandits, escorted them to Shalandra in Trial of Stone, led assault on Hallar’s Warriors in Secrets of Blood (Chapter 18)
Nysin, Enyera, Rilith, and Viddan: Indomitable trainees assigned to patrol the Slave’s Tier with Issa, all from low castes, valiant despite impossible odds (Chapter 18)
Chirak: veteran Archateros of the Keeper’s Blades of Shalandra, Etai’s trainer, woman of few words, inhumanly strong (Chapter 21)
Dyrkton: Invictus, Elder of the Blade (Chapter 25)
Burim: Cambionari hunting demons in Shalandra, fights to help protect the city (Chapter 25)
Lorran: Ypertatos of the Keeper’s Blades, leading the defense of the Keeper’s Crypts (Chapter 27)
Etai: Issa’s fellow Blade-in-training, born of the lowest-ranked Mahjuri caste, a proud warrior (Chapter 27)
Shishak: Queenslayer, Keeper’s Blade fallen in battle, helps Aisha fight Hallar’s Warriors (Chapter 32)
Hallar: founder of Shalandra, dead for thousands of years (Chapter 42)
Military Ranks
Indomitables:
The ranks in the Indomitables are similar to the martial ranks of Praamis and Voramis:
Executors: Commanders
Sentinels: Captains
Protectors: Lieutenants
Dictators: Sergeants
Neophytes: Privates
Keeper’s Blades:
Prototopoi: trainees new to the Keeper’s Blades
Defteteros: Blades serving for fewer than six months after the Anointing of the Blades
Katoteros: two-year veterans of the Keeper’s Blades.
Archateros: four-year veterans of the Keeper’s Blades.
Ypertatos: ten-year veterans of the Keeper’s Blades.
Invictus: twenty-year veterans of the Keeper’s Blades. All of the Elders of the Blades are Invictus.
Proxenos: a rank reserved only for the Lord or Lady of Blades, equivalent to High Commander