Word Weld

I am pleased to announce that my latest book and the prequel to my previous works, Worthy, has been released on Kindle eBook. A paperback version will be dropping in the near future. In addition, The Legend of Eloeen is also in review to be republished. I had to pull this book from the market due to the other works in the series changing some of the lore, so I have been needing to bring Eloeen up to date desperately, and I am working on that. My books attempt to continue the tradition of my own favorite fantasy and high-fantasy books, while setting them in an original world with strong Christian themes. Fantasy is not merely escapism. It is a way of evoking in ourselves feelings and truths that often get lost in our modern, hectic lives. The heroes of old evoke thoughts of duty, devotion, conviction, personal sacrifice, all of which are aspects of love that go far beyond simple shows of affection. Enjoy this description of Worthy as well as a brief excerpt from the book below that.

Discover “Worthy,” an enthralling epic fantasy where adventure and ancient secrets intertwine. Follow Emeld, gifted with extraordinary powers, as he navigates a world far more vast and perilous than he ever anticipated. From daunting beasts to adversaries as old as time, Abynàea unveils horrors and wonders alike. Haunted by questions about his mother and the enigmatic stone she bequeathed, Emeld journeys through the breathtaking realms of Abynàea, including the fraught political labyrinths within the Kingdom of Vanlavel. Confronting an unstable royalty and ensnared with a cryptic “witch,” he finds camaraderie in loyal allies, even as formidable foes lurk in shadows. At the heart of Emeld’s quest lies a childhood grudge and a prophecy that binds him to a 6,000-year-old peril. “Worthy” weaves a captivating tale of bravery, intrigue, and familial ties, where unraveling one’s destiny might save—or doom—an entire world.

The air was calm in the early morning hours. It was light out, but clouds drifted by in sheets, concealing the sun and echoing the gray fog that was suspended amid the trees and stones of the wilderness. There was an occasional rumbling in the unnamed mountains above, drifting like a long moan across the foothills.

In the stillness of the wild, mountainous terrain laughter began to echo, growing stronger and louder than the intermittent rumbles of the world above the wind. Eventually, the source of the voices and laughter came into view. Two young girls were playing among the dusky pine trees, chasing one another as they explored unfamiliar places. They skipped effortlessly among the trees and underbrush, and what wild creatures they encountered had no fear of them, only regarding them with mild interest as the girls rushed by to explore strange new areas.

The Founding Age had ended, though Àea was still a young world in those days. The horrors of the Twelve Demon Sires were over, and there was peace enough for those girls to play as they would. While they romped carelessly, the mountains stared down warily upon them, cold and uninviting, as if remembering the terrors that had gone before, and fearing for the tiny mortals innocent to the evils of the past.

The strange, flowing language the girls spoke rolled off their lips, light and airy. It was one of the Old Tongues, which time would eventually render forgotten. One girl was brunette, and taller, with beautiful green eyes and a mischievous smile. Her playmate had deep black hair and a quieter disposition, and her gray eyes were bright and happy. They shared fair skin and pointed ears that would become well known as traits of the Elves in the centuries to come.

“Let’s race to that stone up there!” the taller, in the lead presently, called back. “Who knows what lies beyond it? Perhaps a lake or a meadow?”

“More likely some dangerous creature, Failith!” her friend laughed. “Not that you would mind, I think. But don’t you suppose we have made our parents worried enough?”

“They will never know, Eliria!” Failith suggested.

“They always know; they just do. Your Father can tell where we have been. It’s as if he can see us from a long way off, like a bird on the hunt sees a rabbit!”

“Well, he always forgives his naughty rabbit, doesn’t he?” the other grinned. “Come on!”

They raced on ahead and came to the top of the slope where rested the great stone. It protruded sharply from the hill, poking through the soft grass. It stood lonely, only a few short trees beside it, a relic of gone-by ages, deposited there by the great cataclysms it had witnessed. Failith reached the boulder first and climbed up onto it, standing some sixteen feet above the ground in a matter of moments.

“Ha, I win this time!” she gloated.

“What do you mean?” Eliria stood below, hands on her hips. “You always win, Failith!”

“Well, that’s just because I want to win more than you do.”

“I suppose that’s true,” she took a breath and looked out to the land past the stone. “It’s so still here now. All the animals have gone, and it feels as if we are the only living things in these woods, besides the trees themselves.”

“It’s too bad there’s no lake,” Failith mused, standing on one leg absently, “I should have liked a swim!”

“It seems too cold for swimming, don’t you think?”

“I do not,” she smirked.

Suddenly the thunder rolled once more, but much louder, and a bright flash echoed in the thick clouds above the tallest peaks. The girls’ smiles faded as they saw a terrible radiance in the sky grow and grow, until a great shining something arced through the sky, trailing smoke and seemingly burning with light. As it flew south towards them, it also gradually descended.

“Failith, get down from there!” her friend called, perceiving the stone was very nearly in the object’s path.

Panicking somewhat, Failith hesitated, observing the descent was much less inviting than the climb had been. At Eliria’s urging, however, she clamored down as best she could, but saw the object was traveling very fast and she too slow. Terrified and desperate, she looked down to her friend as she hung on with her hands.

“Just let go!” Eliria shouted.

Shutting her eyes, Failith did, falling the rest of the way. The other girl caught her and broke her fall somewhat, and they both fell back and rolled down the hill. As they recovered, lying in a heap against a tree on the slope, they looked up in awe as the object struck the stone near the top, cracking it. Deflected off its original course, the object continued downhill, to their shock felling and splintering trees as it went. The ground shook with the impact, and smoke filled the air.