Skein of Shadows: Fiend Fighter
Fiend Fighter
There is always excitement every week at The Broken Valor¸ where gladiators fight for wealth¸ fame¸ or simply survival. Gold passes hands with every fight¸ and the were-rats perform their grim duty on the corpses of the losers. But for Farulazar¸ a dwarf expelled from the dwarvish fortress known as Dwarfhome¸ pit fighting is just a job¸ a lousy¸ stinking job. Each week he fights and then spends his winnings on drink¸ biding his time until the next match. Once every year¸ in commemoration of the beginning of the Demon Scourge¸ he marches into the pits to slay yet another fiend. It is what he does¸ for he is Farulazar Fiend Fighter.
As the annual demon fights draw nigh¸ a storm has descended on Crown. For Farulazar¸ a storm of a different kind begins to form inside him. His manipulative partner¸ Alfem is a halfling with dark secrets. Strangely¸ an assassin has wounded him a week before he is to fight a demon. Convinced that Alfem arranged the attack¸ Farulazar sets out to discover his motives. What the Fiend Fighter discovers sends him in a pursuit which could cost him his life and bring destruction to Crown.
About the Author
Davis Riddle grew up in southern Alabama¸ the only boy among four sisters and the only grandson to carry the Riddle name. Possessed with the a love of the outdoors and an explorer's soul¸ Davis started backpacking before he was old enough to shave. Tied with his love of the mountains¸ where good hard stone could be found under foot¸ is a passion for experience.
Davis has hiked with nothing but a traveling kilt and a bed roll through the mountains¸ drank from running streams¸ bathed in roaring water falls¸ and slept in the wilderness in earshot of mountain lions. He has flown in a B-17 bomber¸ slept on a WWII battleship¸ swam salt-marshes¸ and had dinner on giant fortresses lost in the swamp. His explorer's heart has brought him miles down lonely bayous to explore forgotten ruins and kayaking across the mighty Mississippi¸ dodging alligators and ocean-going freighters to explore a disappearing 18th century Spanish fortress and a ghost town now lost to the world from Hurricane Katrina's wrath.
Davis is a Consulting Forester and president of his own firm¸ practicing in South Mississippi and the Florida Parishes of Louisiana. His daily experiences in swamp and hill continue to provide him with a wealth of experiences on which to draw for his writing. He is married with a wonderful son who already¸ at less than 3 years of age¸ tells stories of his Nanna's castle populated with dinosaurs and a daddy-knight.
About the Book
Fantasy novella set in Crown: City of the Fallen.
Fiend Fighter
There is always excitement every week at The Broken Valor ¸ where gladiators fight for wealth¸ fame¸ or simply survival. Gold passes hands with every fight¸ and the were-rats perform their grim duty on the corpses of the losers. But for Farulazar¸ a dwarf expelled from the dwarvish fortress known as Dwarfhome¸ pit fighting is just a job¸ a lousy¸ stinking job. Each week he fights and then spends his winnings on drink¸ biding his time until the next match. Once every year¸ in commemoration of the beginning of the Demon Scourge¸ he marches into the pits to slay yet another fiend. It is what he does¸ for he is Farulazar Fiend Fighter.
As the annual demon fights draw nigh¸ a storm has descended on Crown. For Farulazar¸ a storm of a different kind begins to form inside him. His manipulative partner¸ Alfem is a halfling with dark secrets. Strangely¸ an assassin has wounded him a week before he is to fight a demon. Convinced that Alfem arranged the attack¸ Farulazar sets out to discover his motives. What the Fiend Fighter discovers sends him in a pursuit which could cost him his life and bring destruction to Crown.
About the Author
Davis Riddle grew up in southern Alabama¸ the only boy among four sisters and the only grandson to carry the Riddle name. Possessed with the a love of the outdoors and an explorer's soul¸ Davis started backpacking before he was old enough to shave. Tied with his love of the mountains¸ where good hard stone could be found under foot¸ is a passion for experience.
Davis has hiked with nothing but a traveling kilt and a bed roll through the mountains¸ drank from running streams¸ bathed in roaring water falls¸ and slept in the wilderness in earshot of mountain lions. He has flown in a B-17 bomber¸ slept on a WWII battleship¸ swam salt-marshes¸ and had dinner on giant fortresses lost in the swamp. His explorer's heart has brought him miles down lonely bayous to explore forgotten ruins and kayaking across the mighty Mississippi¸ dodging alligators and ocean-going freighters to explore a disappearing 18th century Spanish fortress and a ghost town now lost to the world from Hurricane Katrina's wrath.
Davis is a Consulting Forester and president of his own firm¸ practicing in South Mississippi and the Florida Parishes of Louisiana. His daily experiences in swamp and hill continue to provide him with a wealth of experiences on which to draw for his writing. He is married with a wonderful son who already¸ at less than 3 years of age¸ tells stories of his Nanna's castle populated with dinosaurs and a daddy-knight.
About the Book
Fantasy novella set in Crown: City of the Fallen.