Plunging into the Ubiquitous Shadows… Islena’s Tale Continues
“Your mind is clouded by whim and fantasy…distractions from a world that was nothing more than a diverson while you waited for your true purpose to be disclosed.”
She held the sword aloft. Islena glanced at it, despising everything it represented. Lorio’s voice was now searing and ruthlessly harsh. “This is reality. The remainder of your life was an illusion. Perhaps that illusion is again obtainable, but first you must pay the debt owed to destiny. You have been bred to an obligation and while this might seem like a gross injustice, it is nonetheless inescapable.
Tarot woman, Dominique Normandy to Islena Doraux.
Lorio to Islena Doraux, from Abjection along the Road to Apotheosis.
The second segment of the epic fantasy saga, Journey through the Land of Shades is now available. The second volume expands upon the pivotal thematic elements that were first introduced in the opening story. After stumbling upon the first proclamation…the Iconic Sword of the Jerhia…Islena allows herself to be led to the western continent in search of sanctuary and the slender hope that the Three Cornerstone Nations might possess the means to return her to her world and the life that was stolen by the ambitious Emercian Queen, Myrhia. Here is a brief synopsis of Abjection along the Road to Apotheosis:
Pursued by an inexorable enemy and burdened by the crushing weight of inescapable destiny, Islena Doraux finds sanctuary on the Western Continent, carrying the antiquated world’s slim hopes on her shoulders. Myrhia’s relentless evil will not be denied and soon Islena’s false sanctuary crumbles. In a desperate and audacious gambit to halt the Emercian Queen’s juggernaut of inexorable conquest, The CornerStone Nations divert the Hiberas River…a barrier that separates the Land of Shades from the realms of men. Islena is soon forced to flee into the fabled Land of Shades in search of a legendary king who may possess knowledge of the remaining two Proclamations. There, faced with horrors that defy all reason, Islena gropes towards acceptance of her true nature and the role she is fated to play in a drama that has been enacted across a thousand worlds since the first moment of creation. Yet to travel the path to epiphany, she must suffer her moment of abjection along the road to apotheosis.
This second novel sees Islena traverse a tortured path from near despair to a grudging acceptance of both her destiny and the duality of her nature. As I’ve often mentioned, this fantasy series stands as a sort of homage to the Arthurian cycle of tales that has been an inspiration for my deep passion for the fantasy genre. This facet of the Journey saga gains a sharper focus as Islena makes her way across the mysterious Land of Shades in search of the legendary King Artumas…a man who it is believed can lead her to the location of the two missing proclamations. During the course of her grim trek through the perilous and twisted terrain of the shadow kingdom, Islena gains a deeper insight into the duality of her nature and the long-held sense that hers is a shared consciousness. The enduring themes of perseverance, self-discovery and acceptance of obligation resonate throughout fabric of the novel. As the story unfurls in complexity and scope, Islena correctly gleans that the loss of her humanity could well be the price of gaining the means to confront and vanquish her relentless and brutal adversary.
While writing this second volume, I set out to explore and develop the elements of deification and ascendancy and Islena Doraux’s inherent fear of and attraction to the notions of ultimate power…the mantle of godhood. As Islena comes to discover the astonishing truth of her identity and all that it implies, she gleans that only through abjection and sacrifice can she retain her tenuous grip on humanity. Only through suffering, can she prevent herself from becoming the very thing she is struggling to overcome.
As the cover graphic would suggest, Abjection along the Road to Apotheosis is nuanced in a great deal of darkness and I’ve labored hard to weave a tapestry that portrays a grim world caught amidst a terrible struggle for survival. This novel will be followed by the concluding volume of the Islena Doraux trilogy, entitled: A fallible Goddess and the enduring Sorrow, which should be available near the end of 2013 and while this will conclude Islena’s tale, the story of the antiquated world will continue far beyond.
There is a profound and tragic beauty to Islena Doraux’s passage through the antiquated world and I have to wonder if the insidious path I’ve laid for her is an insight into my own nature. If Elizabeth Simpson could be magically conjured from the pages of my Converging novels, she might tell you that I impose an immense and daunting burden on the heroines of my stories. When the final bell has been tolled and the last step taken in Islena’s epic journey, no creation of mine will ever have endured so much.
For now, come forward and stand witness to Islena Doraux’s moment of Abjection along the road to Apotheosis.
