i am xanatos

Borders locations in San Diego and Orange County. See list below to find your nearest store. 

Isinda
Fallen Dagger
by Rhett C. Bruno

“The majestic land of Isinda is trapped in an era of war and chaos. After the collapse of the mighty Deimor on the bloody fields of the Badlands, a glimmer of peace and unity amongst the warring races has shattered. The people of all kingdoms have retreated into superstition and suffering. In the City of Bronze, a king plots to become a god, imposing his will on any who dare to face him; in the forests to the east, the enslaved Blood Scaldor are forced to watch as their children are sacrificed to satisfy the hunger of angry gods.

With the land returned to its bloody past, who will rise up as the Deimor did to bring Isinda under a single banner? Could a brutal king exploit the devastation left in the wake of the greatest leaders in the land, the Twin Blades? Or would a single hero rise from the chains of slavery and illuminate a path of peace that none had ever dreamed of before?

Discover the destiny of a hero in the first installment of the Isinda series, Isinda: Fallen Dagger.”

San Diego County

Tuesday 20 July @5:30 pm — Borders — Plaza Bonita

Wednesday 21 July @5:00 pm — Borders — El Cajon

Thursday 22 July @7:00 pm — Borders — Mission Valley

Friday 23 July @6:00 pm — Borders — Carlsbad

Orange County

Saturday 24 July @2:00 pm — Borders — South Coast Plaza

Saturday 24 July @5:00 pm — Borders — Mission Viejo

Sunday 25 July @2:00 pm — Borders — RSM

Yes, I finally finished the line edit. I’ve submitted the files, and am supposed to get a review authorization within 24-48 hours. Assuming I didn’t muff any of the requirements, I’ll order the proof, read through to make sure I didn’t screw up any thing for the print. And then viola, you will be able to order. (Yeah!)

Amazon wouldn’t let me make the price $14.99 for this one, greedy bastards :) So it will be listed at $16.99, but it’s about forty pages longer than Forgotten, so I suppose the extra paper cost could be to blame. I’ll be putting the eBook together shortly, and as a treat, I’m going to upload the first three chapters for you to savor. You’ll be able to download them from Scribd within the next 24 hours.

Thanks for sticking with me, we are almost there.

Destiny is a fun read, but the initial reaction is that it lacks some cohesion in the voice. Not a major setback, but it looks like Cid and I will be having some conversations about how to remove any confusions. Xanatos is undergoing a personality change, and the whole conflict of having two minds in one body is definitely an issue at this point in the story. I’m confident we’ll be able to solve this pretty quickly. It’s one of those ‘art’ vs. readability moments. Like “Beautiful Mind”, schizophrenia is not what the movie showed, but it made the idea of the struggle Nash faced accessible to some who doesn’t hear voices, and feel the ripping fear of paranoia.

It was a pure white room.

Two figures stood in heated argument, both in tight, short trunks; also white. Though this place had no temperature – there wasn’t any air – the argument was feverish, irrational, personal.

“It’s not that simple,” said the tall one, his normally measured voice cracking under the strain of this unending struggle.

“No, it’s very simple, Legion,” the young one, his body marked by sinister tattoos, rounded on the one called Legion. “That’s my body out there, so it’s my rules. End of discussion.”

“You’re body is dead, Braeden,” Legion shouted as loudly as he could. “Lucifer burned it to a crisp and tossed it aside to make a new body, our new body.”

“You’re not taking over!” Braeden ran at Legion and shoved him hard, knocking him backward. “As long as I can fight, I’m never giving up!”

“Fool!” Legion shoved him back.

Braeden was far more equipped at fighting, he had lived and operated a body far longer than Legion; the idea is antithetical to being an ancient non-corporeal demon. So Braeden ended up on top, beating Legion’s face and drawing neither blood nor pain.

“Fucker!” Braeden rolled off of Legion, panting. “Let go of my body! I’m dying out there.”

“We’re dying,” Legion sat up as well. “Unless we can figure this out, even our new, demonic body will burn up. So quit being a child and listen.”

“Fine.” Braeden resisted sticking his tongue out but rolled his eyes and pouted for good measure. “And I’m eighteen or nineteen, so I’m not a fucking child.”

“Look,” Legion moved closer to Braeden, an intent look in his eye. “I don’t want to take over, I want to share. Split it up. You take living, the moment to moment stuff – the sex.”

“I’m listening.” Braeden unfolded his arms.

“You’ll still be there the whole time, but I’ll fight. I’ll kill and eat souls and do things that you can’t even understand; I’ll be the demon, you the man.”

“I can kill.” Braeden regretted his bravado, the weight of his sin upon him still. “I’m the sword master, not you.”

“It’s hard to explain it,” Legion took a calming breath. “You just need to trust me, it’s going to work.”

“There’s a lot more living than there is fighting.” Legion smiled because he had won, but Braeden didn’t see it yet. “How can you be sure we don’t end up back here in a week?”

“I won’t be gone when you’re in control,” Legion chose his words carefully. “The same goes for you when I’m doing things. It’s like a dream, a very real dream. You’re doing things but your not thinking about doing them.”

“Dreams don’t last.”

“Yes, but while your in the moment, being the human, I’m looking at all the things you can’t. I’m swimming in the space between things, keeping us safe and prepared.”

“That mist stuff makes my head hurt.” Braeden was accepting it, slowly. “And it would be nice to know things before we’re being burned or shot at.”

“Exactly.” Legion backed off now, giving the boy space. “And when the time comes I will use all that is you and all that is me to become powerful.”

“Promise to keep them safe.” Braeden’s eyes were insistent now, hiding the pleading tone inside his demanding voice. “That you’ll do whatever it takes to keep them safe.”

“I can’t promise that,” Braeden started to respond, but Legion held up his hand. “And neither could you. But, the ones you love are also useful to me. I will protect them as much as I am able.”

“We’re not going to be like totally evil now are we?”

“No.” Legion was firm, even if the question was not so easily answered.

Chapter 13 is done, finally. Had a weird hiatus of sketching before I could move forward. And I’m halfway through 14. Going to need to really think hard about how much back story is needed. Cid was telling me the failing point of a lot of book twos is going way to in depth into the myth of the world instead of focusing on the current story. But Forgotten was purposefully silent on history, hence the title. Anyway, kind of wishing I could draw. Had some awesome images in my head that are hard to put into words.