I am quite proud of my Duir’Aion. It is a vibrant world filled with peoples of all kinds. From the noble Shirans of the kingdom of Cheshire, to the naval supremacy of the minotaurs of Maelthas, to the xenophobic undersea kingdoms of the sea elves, the entire world pulses with life. And violence. And death.
For each kingdom or country swells from its own success, or writhes from its failures ignorant of the fact that something sinister is coming. That incoming threat weaves itself throughout all the stories I tell of Duir’Aion. That threat cares not for the internal strife between kingdoms, and cultures. It merely wishes to break all beneath its heel. Those who resist will die. And it is perfectly content to sit on a throne of a dead world.
The story of the Rising Darkness will be told in both novels and short story formats. While the novels will focus more on the threat itself (eventually), the shorts also serve to show the individuals that will have parts to play in the coming days.
One of the big things I love about how I’m writing the stories is the mystery of the “Rising Darkness”. It could be the orcs, recovering from their catastrophic attempt to overthrow Hammon. It could be the rune elf and ash dwarf armies pouring out of the Pit, seeking vengeance for a long ago betrayal. It could be one of the gods, jealous or eager to improve a position, or to simply take over the pantheon entirely. Or it could be Draen Do’Gra, the most powerful necromancer in the world. He is the setting’s big bad, but is he the source of the “Rising Darkness”, and agent of it, or something else entirely.
The villains and the heroes of the setting are complex in their motivations. The half-dragon Xyn’Nedra Vaeros for example is torn between her spire elf and sun dragon heritage. The “boy lich” Balynn Stormhand sees the world as nothing but a game, that he intends to win. Draen Do’Gra has a seat on the Council Arcana, and teaches young mages at Sorciere, the academy of wizards and sorcerers. The king of Cheshire, Armer XI is in a loveless marriage that has given him three daughters he adores, and an ambitious son that causes him concern.
So come join me on this grand adventure. An epic dark adventure is about to begin. Nothing is quite what you expect. And it will pull you in.
A Darkness Rising 