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Back Forsworn
Chapters (53)
  1. Map of Kingdom of Finfalla and Surrounding Area- Western Half
  2. Map of Kingdom of Finfalla and Surrounding Area - Eastern Half
  3. Map of Kingdom of Finfalla and Surrounding Area - Full Map
  4. Important Trigger Warning
  5. Prologue
  6. PART I
  7. One
  8. Two
  9. Three
  10. Four
  11. Five
  12. Six
  13. Seven
  14. Eight
  15. Nine
  16. Ten
  17. Eleven
  18. Twelve
  19. Interlude: The River of Life
  20. PART II
  21. Thirteen
  22. Fourteen
  23. Fifteen
  24. Sixteen
  25. Seventeen
  26. Eighteen
  27. Nineteen
  28. Interlude: Fallow Fields
  29. PART III
  30. Twenty
  31. Twenty-One
  32. Twenty-Two
  33. Twenty-Three
  34. Twenty-Four
  35. Twenty-Five
  36. Interlude: Of Man and Monster
  37. PART IV
  38. Twenty-Six
  39. Twenty-Seven
  40. Twenty-Eight
  41. Twenty-Nine
  42. Thirty
  43. Thirty-One
  44. Thirty-Two
  45. Thirty-Three
  46. Thirty-Four
  47. POSTLUDES
  48. Postlude 1: Lana Vica
  49. Postlude 2: Ludo Vica
  50. Postlude 3: Cainan
  51. Acknowledgments
  52. An excerpt from Heartsworn, Volume II in The Forsworn Oath, available for preorder now!
  53. PART I

And stopped. Because there was no exit, though he swore the door he’d entered through had been right there in front of him. The interior shutters were still there, however, and now he strode to them and forced them open. Only to find a stone wall on the other side where glass had been before. “Welbernius! Show yourself or I’m going to start breaking things!” he demanded.

No answer, not even a creaking floorboard.

He considered the situation. He could tear the place apart looking for another door, perhaps through the kitchens. Then he remembered the other door, the small one on the wall. He rushed toward it, winding around the strangely glowing bar, thankful for his height as he reached up to it, hand closing on the knob, and then pulled.

Nothing. It was locked. Or at least sealed somehow, for there was no keyhole to be found. He tried again with the same result. Frustration burned through him, so he pulled harder, planting his heels against the base of the wall for leverage and straining the whole of his body weight to the task. A groan of effort escaped his lips and then—

The door flew open, sending him careening back into the bar, which was as sturdy as it looked, cracking into his back below his shoulder blades. He absorbed the pain the way he always did, eye wide open as he stared at what was revealed by the open door—a swirling, colorful miasma of distant stars. It was mesmerizing to the point where he refused to blink, his eyes dry and burning. The movement of the stars seemed to be changing, several of the sparkling gems coming together, coalescing. More and more joined the several, until no individual star remained separate from the rest, an unbroken expanse of glittering beauty that had formed an image.

An image of an old woman, though her features were blurred and lacking details. She spoke with a voice like distant thunder. I am Ereniel. And these…

Her visage split apart, each segment molding itself into another shining figure painted in the heavens.

…are my daughters.

Her voice echoed in Ludo’s head, and he felt himself reaching for that space behind the door, wanting nothing more than to touch it, commune with it. But then, with the same vigor in which it had burst open, the door slammed shut.