Stephen Blumberg

Sometimes the only way to conquer darkness is to embrace it. From the moment Alyeth Zane was torn from his home, his dreams of becoming the next warlock of Dun’Nahar were dashed. Forbidden by his parents to pursue the arcane arts, Alyeth's destiny takes a darker turn when the legendary Black Hood escapes his bonds, threatening the realm itself.In a desperate bid to safeguard the kingdom, the House of Zane stages a grand tournament to marshal the land's fiercest warriors against the encroaching evil.

In lyric, accessible prose, Carlo Rovelli invites us to consider questions about the nature of time that continue to puzzle physicists and philosophers alike. For most listeners, this is unfamiliar terrain. We all experience time, but the more scientists learn about it, the more mysterious it appears. We think of it as uniform and universal, moving steadily from past to future, measured by clocks. Rovelli tears down these assumptions one by one, revealing a strange universe where, at the most fundamental level, time disappears.

The world of Pravahs suffered from a time of darkness and genocide at their hands. These demon-instructed magi turned the skies black, led an army of the living dead and demons in a global conquest, and left miles of burned earth in their hellfire assaults. Their defeat was nothing short of miraculous. While the land remembers, people forget. The people of the continent of Stratia have dismissed the ancient "Black Decade" as myth, even while their blood runs cold with fear at the mention of the dreaded "Void Hands".

After the events of the evil Black Hood, Alyeth finds himself struggling with internal conflict at every turn. Given the opportunity, he goes with his master Xylok, Ezra, Koren, and Cindrel to learn from a powerful warlock Pyrres Galhon in Stonehaven. During his training, he learns of new forces in the universe that have their own plans for him, as well as learning more about his new teacher.

Alyeth Zane never expected he’d be forced to leave his home at only six years old. He never dreamed he’d end up in the future living a life he didn’t know. If it hadn’t been for his wonderful mentor and protector Xylok saving him, life could have been very different.