[Abe Sargent]

Who’s ready for Book 18?

You are Grand Master Lone Wolf of Sommerlund, sole survivor of a massacre that wiped out the First Order of the Kai—an élite warrior caste.

It is the year MS 5077, twenty-seven years since your brave kinsmen perished at the hands of the Darklords of Helgedad. These champions of evil, who were sent forth by Naar, the King of the Darkness, to destroy the fertile world of Magnamund, have themselves since been destroyed. You vowed to avenge the murder of the Kai and you kept your pledge, for it was you who brought about their downfall when alone you infiltrated their foul domain—the Darklands—and caused the destruction of their leader and the base of his power that was the infernal city of Helgedad.

In the wake of their destruction, chaos befell the Darkland armies who, until then, had been poised to conquer all of Magnamund. Some factions which were part of this huge army, most notably the barbaric Drakkarim, began to fight with the others for control. This disorder quickly escalated into an all-out civil war which allowed the Freeland armies of Magnamund time in which to recover and launch a counter-offensive. Skilfully their commanders exploited the chaos and secured a swift and total victory over an enemy far superior in numbers.


For seven years now peace has reigned in Sommerlund. Under your direction the once-ruined Monastery of the Kai has been thoroughly rebuilt and restored to its former glory, and the task of teaching a New Order of Kai warriors the skills and proud traditions of your ancestors is also well established. The new generation of Kai recruits, all of whom were born during the era of war against the Darklords, possess latent Kai skills and show exceptional promise. These skills will be nurtured and honed to perfection during their time here at the monastery so that they may teach and inspire future generations, thereby ensuring the continued security of your homeland in future years.


Your attainment of the rank of Kai Grand Master brought with it great rewards. Some, such as the restoration of the Kai and the undying gratitude of your fellow Sommlending, could have been anticipated. Yet there have been rewards which you could not possibly have foreseen. The discovery that within you lay the potential to develop Kai Disciplines beyond those of the Magnakai, which, until now, were thought to be the ultimate that a Kai Master could aspire to, was truly a revelation. Your discovery has inspired you to set out upon a new and previously unknown path in search of the wisdom and power that no Kai Lord before you has ever possessed. In the name of your creator, the God Kai, and for the greater glory of Sommerlund and the Goddess Ishir, you have vowed to reach the very pinnacle of Kai perfection—to attain all of the Grand Master Disciplines and become the first Kai Supreme Master.


With diligence and determination you set about the restoration of the Kai Monastery and the training of the New Order recruits. Your efforts were soon rewarded for, within the space of two short years, the first raw recruits had graduated to become a cadre of gifted Kai Masters who, in turn, were able to commence the teaching of their skills to subsequent intakes of Kai novices. Readily the Kai Masters rose to their newfound responsibilities, leaving you free to devote more of your time to the pursuit and perfection of the Grand Master Disciplines. During this period you also received expert tutelage in the ways of magic from two of your most trusted friends and advisors: Guildmaster Banedon, leader of the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star, and Lord Rimoah, speaker for the High Council of the Elder Magi.


In the deepest subterranean level of the monastery, one hundred feet below the Tower of the Sun, you ordered the excavation and construction of a special vault. In this magnificent chamber wrought of granite and gold, you placed the seven Lorestones of Nyxator, the gems of Kai power which you had recovered during an earlier quest for Kai knowledge. In this vault, bathed in the golden light of those radiant gems, you spent countless hours in pursuit of perfection. Sometimes alone, sometimes in the company of your two able advisors—Banedon and Rimoah—you worked hard to develop your innate Grand Master Disciplines, and grasp the fundamental secrets of Brotherhood and Old Kingdom magic. During this time you noticed many remarkable changes taking place within your body: you became physically and mentally stronger, your five primary senses sharpened beyond all that you had experienced before, and, perhaps most remarkably, your body began to age at a much slower rate. Now, for every five years that elapse you age but one year.


In the years following your victory over the Darklords, peace has reigned victorious and the peoples of the Free Kingdoms rejoice in the knowledge that the evil which once threatened to destroy them has been banished from the face of Magnamund. Readily men have exchanged their swords for hoes and their shields for ploughs, and now the only marching they do is along the ruts of their freshly furrowed fields. Few are the watchful eyes that scan the distant horizon in fear of what may appear, although there are still those who maintain their vigilance, for the agents of the Dark God Naar come in many guises and there are those upon Magnamund who wait quietly in the shadows for the chance to do his evil bidding.


Already your newfound skills have been tested against Naar’s agents and you have, on each occasion, acquitted yourself admirably. But your continuing victories against his minions have enraged the Dark God and inflamed his lust for vengeance. One such minion, the powerful Deathlord of Ixia, threatened to enslave the free nations of Magnamund with a weapon forged by Naar himself. Bravely you ventured alone into the Deathlord’s icy domain and confronted him in a life-or-death battle in which you were triumphant. However, as you were returning from the Deathlord’s frigid realm you learned that Sommerlund had been attacked. In your absence, Naar had sent forth a host of dragon-creatures to destroy the New Order of the Kai and lay waste to your homeland.


The news came as a terrible shock. In Ixia you had won a great victory over Evil, yet at what cost? You had no doubts that the New Order were worthy Kai warriors, but they were all so young, their mettle as yet untested in the furnace-heat of battle. Secretly you feared that they would be unable to resist Naar’s newest champions, and so you resolved to return as quickly as possible to Sommerlund to take command of the Kai Monastery and orchestrate your country’s defences.


In the court of King Sarnac of Lencia, in the city of Vadera, you received a pledge from the King himself that he would do all in his power to help speed your long journey home to Sommerlund. Accompanied by Lord Ardan, a friend and magician from the land of Dessi, you were put aboard a Lencian clipper, one of the fastest of all sea-going vessels. This ship was bound for Garthen—the principal city of Talestria—which lies more than a thousand miles to the east of Vadera. This was to be the first stage of your journey back to Sommerlund, a destination more than two thousand miles from Lencia. As you set sail from Vadera harbour you knew that you were embarking upon a race against time, a desperate race in which the future of your country and the New Order of the Kai were at stake.