Darkhalla

by Scott D. Muller

And so the bloody battle continues...

The Havenhold Keep, the last sanctuary of magic-users, has been infiltrated by the demon lord, Warvyn, and his underworld horde. Caught by surprise, the wizards cobble together a defense and put up a valiant effort. But, the wizards grow weary and are losing ground; their casualties are high. Their magic, once all-powerful, was now practically ineffective against their enemies. They die in

droves. Ja'tar, an impetuous wizard and leader of the Keep has read the signs and suspects foul play. Against the will of the Guild, he sent a band of three upstart wizards out into the realms to investigate. Their reports confirmed his suspicions that the Ten, the self-absorbed founders of the Keep, had sabotaged their art. As magic weakens, darkness gains a foothold, and the balance of power shifts, causing a dark mage to rise from the chaos.

Consumed with thoughts of revenge for ills committed against her long ago, she has consummated deals with the Master of the Underworld, the nameless-one, for the magic she now controls. She has used her newly found powers to summon demons and beasts from the underworld realm of Darkhalla, and has unleashed them on the land of the Kings, known as the Seven Realms. Her mind is so twisted, that she is willing to pay any price to see her desires fulfilled. The nameless-one is more than willing to see that she gets what she deserves.

With the realms in disarray, most of the Keep destroyed, and but a handful of wizards surviving to fight on, the fate of the Seven Realms totters precariously on the brink of destruction.

484 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 14, 2013

About the author

Scott lives in Colorado with his lovely wife and two children. A true renaissance man, he is an accomplished artist, mountaineer, snowboarder, home brewer and persnickety wine snob. He moved to heaven (a.k.a. Colorado) in the early 1980s from Michigan and has never looked back, although he misses the colors in the fall and being on a sailboat on a 'real' lake in the summer. His free time is currently occupied teaching his kids how to ride two wheelers, and how to fish. This year, he will brave the world of tent camping and force his kids to rough it, bugs, dirt, and all. He is an overachiever, has three engineering degrees including a master's degree from Colorado School of Mines, and as a self-professed curmudgeon, criticizes code that software engineers design--in other words, he breaks things for a living. He has always enjoyed storytelling and writing. He hopes to escape cubeville before donuts become illegal, or he becomes an old fogey. Please help him.