Fiction Swords

They are the fatemarked. Misunderstood. Worshipped. Hated. Murdered at birth. Their time to step into the light has come. An ancient prophecy foretold their coming, the chosen few who will bring peace to a land embroiled in a century of mistrust and war. When kings start dying, that hope and belief swiftly turns to fear. Roan Loren is one of the fatemarked, but has hidden his mark of power his entire life, fearing the damage it might cause to those around him. A great evil is coming. He can't hide anymore.

The final stress test bleeds into its second day. Driven to desperation by the Integrity Knights’ coordinated assault, the Dark Army reveals the ace up their sleeve! Critter, who has been observing the battle from the Ocean Turtle, has successfully created a gateway into the Underworld and masked it as an invitation to “an open beta test for a new, unannounced VRMMO." This digital invite bolsters the ranks of the Dark Army by the tens of thousands!

Although the legend of King Arthur has been told many times, rarely have the villains of the tale been given voices. Here, the treacherous half-sister of Arthur tells the fantastic story of her life, from her tragic childhood to the moment she realizes her fated role in the King's downfall. This is the perfect companion to Nancy Springer's I Am Mordred, an ALA Best Book for Young Adults.

When the star system of Legatus was preparing to secede from the Protectorate of the Mage-King of Mars, it was the secret agents of the Legatan Military Intelligence Directorate that laid the groundwork and fought the covert war to make it happen. Now, as the open conflict draws to a bloody stalemate, LMID has been broken. Their leader is dead, murdered by agents of the Republic they helped birth. Their surviving agents have scattered, following a final protocol that orders them to defect to the Protectorate. An old friend brings all of this to Damien Montgomery.

The long-awaited sequel to Jake’s Magical Market is finally here—and now with more market! Well, not quite yet. First, Jake has to survive a perilous trek through time if he ever hopes to return home to his friends, his market, and his former world. The last time we saw our intrepid hero, Jake had barely managed to escape being trapped on a dead version of his own world. Using a combination of his new powers, he threw himself backward through time, back to when the god that trapped him first rose to power.

He stands between two worlds, a savior and a destroyer to both. Dragons and aegres will fall. But one can turn the tide. One who stands in the shadow of kings. Such has been seen by the doomed. The weight of ten thousand lives and all the realm besides now sits on Joran's shoulders. So much has already been sacrificed to bring him to the ancient doors of Drakanan, where he might take on the mantle of Dragon Rider and usher in a new age of heroes. But a time of dragons is not all that has been seen…

Darkness comes as a new power rises in Angrääl. The Dark Knight has betrayed the Gods and stolen The Sword of Truth, trapping them in heaven. With the power of the sword, he can reshape the world and bring death to all who oppose him. Only one thing stands between the darkness and the light. Gewey Stedding. Only he has the power to stand against the oncoming storm. Only he can mend the world. But only if he can discover his power....

In the far future, unbeknownst to humankind, an apocalyptic war is brewing. Fearsome, vengeful Demons rage at the boundaries of the world, held at bay by a spell called the Forbidding. But now that barrier is dying. Evil is beginning to break through. And only the Chosen can banish the Demons back to their realm.

In the vast dominion of Seven Cities, in the Holy Desert Raraku, the seer Sha’ik and her followers prepare for the long-prophesied uprising known as the Whirlwind. Unprecedented in size and savagery, this maelstrom of fanaticism and bloodlust will embroil the Malazan Empire in one of the bloodiest conflicts it has ever known, shaping destinies and giving birth to legends.....

Even in death, Skilgannon the Damned's name lives on. Now, as an ancient evil threatens to flood the Drenai heartlands in a tide of blood, he returns.... A thousand years after they fell in battle, two heroes - Druss and Skilgannon - are revered throughout the war-torn lands of the Drenai, where men and women live in abject fear of the dark sorceress known as the Eternal.... But what if the soul of one such hero could be called back from the void, his bones housed again in flesh?

Linked up and logged into the deadly VMMORPG Sword Art Online in both the real and virtual worlds, Kirito is stuck in a hell of one man's making and, like everyone else, unable to escape until the game is beaten. But while some players are crippled by fear and others throw themselves into completing the game, still others relax into everyday life in the face of their cruel predicament and live to the best of their ability...laughing, crying, but always enjoying the game.

Elloren Gardner and her friends were only seeking to right a few wrongs when they rescued a Selkie and freed a military dragon. The last thing they expected was to be thrust into a realm-wide underground resistance against Gardnerian conquest. While the Resistance struggles to fight back against the harsh rulings of the Mage Council, more and more Gardnerian soldiers descend upon the University…led by none other than Lukas Grey, now commander of the nearby military base. Though Elloren tries to keep him at arm's length, Lukas is determined to tie himself to her.

Fifty-thousand troops led by Gabriel Miller, aka Emperor Vecta, the God of Darkness prepare to invade the human lands defended by Bercouli and his army of five thousand. Kirito, still out of commission, is left in the care of Ronie and Tiese.

Reincarnated as a sentient weapon with memories of his past life, but not his name, a magical sword saves a young beastgirl from a life of slavery. Fran, the cat-eared girl, becomes his wielder, and wants only to grow stronger, while the sword wants to know why he is here. Together, the strange duo's journey has only just begun!

In the eight kingdoms, none have greater strength or influence than the asha, who hold elemental magic. But only a bone witch has the power to raise the dead. Tea has used this dark magic to breathe life into those she has loved and lost...and those who would join her army against the deceitful royals. But Tea's quest to conjure a shadowglass, to achieve immortality for the one person she loves most in the world, threatens to consume her. Tea's heartsglass only grows darker with each new betrayal. They all feed the darkrot that is gradually consuming her heartsglass.

Infused with magic, shadows and starlight, the powerful godblades were believed to be lost nearly half a millennia ago, when the Godswar ended. Now, however, one has been found by the unlikeliest of wielders: Sampson Gaard, a blind but ambitious prince with something to prove. The only question is whether he controls the blade or the blade him. With an insidious evil lurking in the shadows, the answer may very well determine the fate of all Kingfall.

Rumors of unrest lead Fran and Teacher to the port of Seedrun, where the intrepid duo uncovers yet another large-scale slaving operation. In their quest to liberate the kidnapped children, they find themselves unexpectedly playing guardian to a pair of twins from a very special lineage--one that might just have yanked Fran and Teacher into the middle of a civil war!

One thousand years ago, a wish was made to the Harbinger of Change, and a sword of rage and lightning was forged. Kamigoroshi. The Godslayer. It had one task: to seal away the powerful demon Hakaimono. Now, he has broken free.

Two years after waking up in a mysterious fantasy world, Kirito and his oddly human NPC friend, Eugeo, continue their quest to become Integrity Knights—and find Alice, who disappeared so long ago and yet has somehow lingered in the back of Kirito's mind. Their journey takes them to the Imperial Swordcraft Academy, where they must train to become two of the top twelve seats in the class to have even a hope of seeing Alice again. Meanwhile, as Asuna desperately searches for Kazuto Kirigaya, she stumbles across the deeper secret of his new world.

The When Swords Fall Silent anthology showcases the imaginations and talents of more than a dozen of the best modern science-fiction and fantasy authors, with each tale centered around one or more characters burdened with a bloody task they will see to completion no matter the cost. Every story takes you for a vicious ride through a world of shadow and death, each as unique in perspective and execution as the contracts carried out within.