A J Dalton – författare

In the Empire of the Saviours, the People are forced to live in fortified towns. Their walls are guarded by an army of Heroes, whose task is to keep marauding pagans out as much as it is to keep the People inside. Several times a year, living Saints visit the towns to exact the Saviours' tithe from all those coming of age - a tithe often paid in blood.When a young boy, Jillan, unleashes pagan magicks in an accident, his whole town turns against him. He goes on the run, but what hope can there be when the Saviours and the entire Empire decide he must be caught?Jillan is initially hunted by just the soldiers of the Saint of his region, but others soon begin to hear of his increasing power and seek to use him for their own ends. Some want Jillan to join the fight against the Empire, others wish to steal his power for themselves and others still want Jillan to lead them to the Geas, the source of all life and power in the world. There are very few Jillan can trust, except for a ragtag group of outcasts.His parents threatened, his life in tatters, his beliefs shaken to the core, Jillan must decide which side he is on, and whether to fight or run ...

Ancient Gods begin to stir and demand resurrection...A naked and crazy holy man leads a young warrior into the realm of the dead...In fear for his life, a young member of an evil race flees his home...An uneasy peace has settled upon Jillan's remote corner of the Empire, but he cannot return to his previous simple life. Tricked into a bargain with the manipulative God of Mayhem, he is forced to embark upon a journey that will leave his hometown undefended. Unsure of his fellow travellers, pursued by assassins and spies, he must discover the means by which to raise up the old gods and defeat the cruel Empire of the Saviours.Meanwhile, the Empire's vast army of Saints and Heroes descends upon Godsend. Jillan's beloved Hella and a few loyal companions resist the dark magicks used against them for a while, but the Saviours cannot allow such resistance to go unpunished...And from another realm, the Declension watches. Their servants, the Saviours, have suffered setbacks. The God of Mayhem is loose. A young boy with wayward powers is on his way to Haven, where he may find a way to destroy them. A renegade member of their race is rampaging through their realms.Everything is going to plan.

The gods will see you brought down...The spirits of your ancestors will have their revenge upon you...The Saviours will drain you of your very soul. In claiming a place in the world, mortals have won many enemies for themselves. The ancient gods are jealous and conspire against them. The King of the Dead looks to lead his armies into the land of the living. In their own realm, the mighty Declension watches and waits, as events begin to unfold precisely as they had always planned. Jillan and his companions are beset on all sides, yet are plagued by self-doubt and internal division. When the final battle for survival begins, both they and their gods face extinction. They are easy prey for the warriors of the Declension, who are intent upon stripping Jillan of his magic and raising up their empire once more.His friends and beloved Hella taken from him, Jillan is captured and tortured. He is ultimately broken and condemned to work in a mine, to see out his days labouring in misery for the enemy he has fought against his entire life.He is a man without hope.