Kingdoms in Chaos

Kingdoms in Chaos

The Kingdoms in Chaos is the second book in the Wizards of the Golden Star Series. The Book I opens as the kingdom of Napoli falls. The creature Gwaum kills and eats the king while Queen Betsa and young Prince Ruther flee from the capital. Gwaum goes on to devastate the countryside The queen and her subjects that manage to escape the bedlam take refuge in a cave. Her trusted advisor Niram suggests that the refugees flee to the tropical kingdom of Astralphalia, his home country. His native village has been hidden by a secret charm that only natives to the village, or those invited by them, can see and visit. Seeing it as the only viable alternative to being hunted down and eaten by Gwaum, the Queen agrees. Their journey takes them through forbidding desert and the need to cross a river filled with ravenous bloodfish. On their journey they are accosted by bandits and face other dangers. Schemes arise in Naul to capture the Queen and her daughter Rynn and force a marriage with the princess to unite Naul with Torne. The schemes could only end in war.

In Book II the former Raiders of Gwuaum, wander Island World, unwanted, despised and shunned by all that discover who they are. The two leaders, brothers Nath and Curn, are accosted by a hostile crowd as they drank in a tavern. A mysterious wizard rescues them from the unpleasant scene and later offers to take them to a refuge where they can live hidden and free. The brothers, unsure of the price they would pay for his generosity, follow him to the place and find it completely acceptable. The price the wizard demands is the treasure the brothers gained while raiding and have hidden away. After Curn tries to kill the wizard with an arrow, Temuel infuses Nath’s daughter with a pocket of wind. If he dies, or releases the wind, the girl will explode. He would only release the spell when the brothers gave him the treasure. The girl, Jara, eventually falls into the hands of a slave trader who puts her on the auction block in the city of Cleery.

Book 3 opens with the healer Feraun waking from a dream in which she saw 200 gold coins suspended in a circle, surrounding the vision of the face of a young girl. Waking, Feraun wonders at the vision, but feels compelled to gather that much from her hidden horde and feels compelled to take them to Cleery. She wanders the city, ending up at the slave auction and sees a young girl of her vision take her place on the auction block. Feraun knows the purpose of her vision, the coins and the journey. She purchases the girl, Jara, and takes her back to her home where she trains her to be a healer. Jara would play a significant role in the tale as she becomes the lover and companion of a powerful Wizard of the Golden Star and his struggle against the Order of the Mind Readers.

In Book 4 the plans of the Order of the Mind Readers come to a head, leading to a terrible Battle of the Wizards in which the Order pits its powers against the wizards of the Grand Council of Wizards.
Only one group can survive.