Book excerpt: Queen Valerias has worshipped the all-powerful Jenyss her entire life, even sacrificing her firstborn child to the goddess. But when Jenyss refuses to intervene and save her people from the demonic army quickly surrounding her castle, Queen Valerias turns to a trusted paladin, gives him a magical jewel, and asks him to save her young son, Rojan. Moments later, the queen is dead. After Rojan and the paladin find refuge on a mountain above the kingdom, the paladin tells a curious Rojan the story of a novice paladin who made many sacrifices and angered the demons. Five moons earlier, an insidious plot to plunge creation into darkness is unfolding. The only hope of stopping the plot rests in the hands of Jartan, an inexperienced paladin who wields a powerful weapon. Jartan, who is hopelessly outmatched with Kordon, a dark wizard, and his demonic son, Karza, must rely on the knowledge of a wizard with a twisted past to help him as his dangerous journey begins. As Jartan battles with Karza and confronts the sinister leader of an army of undead warriors, the fate of the world rests on his shoulders. Yet no one, not even him, suspects that another paladin far into the future will attempt to finish what he started. In this thrilling fantasy, a battle between good and evil continues as a young paladin-to-be embarks on a journey with his mentor toward a new beginning'and his destiny.