The Runelords Series by David Farland, Jennifer Brozek, Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Gary Rinehart, Seanan McGuire, Larry Correia, Elizabeth Moon, Sarah A. Hoyt, Glen Cook, Robin Wayne Bailey, John R. Fultz, Dave Gross, Wendy N. Wagner, James L. Sutter, Annie Bellet, Joe Zieja, Cat Rambo, Gray Rinehart, John Helfers, Nancy Fulda, Dave Wolverton

A short story prequel to David Farland's The Runelords.

Swords and Shields. Faith and Magic.Grab yours and get ready, for the enemy is on the move.High fantasy and mighty conflicts go hand-in-hand. In great wars, armies rise to fight evil hordes and heroes struggle to push beyond their imperfections and save the day. These stories include more than just epic landscapes and characters…but also epic battles... moreSwords and Shields. Faith and Magic.Grab yours and get ready, for the enemy is on the move.High fantasy and mighty conflicts go hand-in-hand. In great wars, armies rise to fight evil hordes and heroes struggle to push beyond their imperfections and save the day. These stories include more than just epic landscapes and characters…but also epic battles.Imagine a doctor struggling to identify the spy who has infiltrated his company’s ranks and poisoned his colleagues or a boy suspected of murder by a king yet protected by a princess as he helps her father against his own people. Imagine a butcher discovering that he’s called to lead an uprising, or a First Born knowing that she must betray her own in order to save humanity.The possibilities are endless, but at the heart they have this in common: soldiers—ordinary and otherwise–struggling against extraordinary odds to survive the day. They must withstand dark magic, dodge enemy blades, and defy the odds to survive SHATTERED SHIELDS."SHATTERED SHIELDS pays homage to one of the major sub-genres of science fiction and fantasy with a truly fine batch of stories by old pros and newcomers alike." - Mike Resnick, Hugo/Nebula Winning author of The Doc and The Dinosaurs"In Shattered Shields, editors Brozek and Schmidt bring together both fresh and seasoned voices in settings both familiar and new to fill up this powerhouse anthology with the noise of battle, the mumbling of spells and the heartache of war. I hope to see more from this editorial team in the near future." - Ken Scholes, Award-winning author of the Psalms of Isaak"An inventive and thought-provoking set of tales that capture the bravery and terrors of battle. Carries the banner of military fantasy proudly." – John Marco, author of The Bronze Knight SeriesTable of Contents:Ashes and Starlight (Runelords) by David Farland The Fixed Stars (October Daye) by Seanan McGuire The Keeper of Names by Larry Correia The Smaller We Are by John Helfers Invictus by Annie BelletRising Above by Sarah A. Hoyt A Cup of Wisdom by Joseph Zieja Words of Power by Wendy N. Wagner Lightweaver in Shadow by Gray Rinehart Hoofsore and Weary by Cat Rambo Vengeance (Frost) by Robin Wayne Bailey Deadfall by Nancy Fulda Yael of the Strings by John R. Fultz The Gleaners by Dave Gross Bonded Men by James L. Sutter Bone Candy (Black Company) by Glen Cook First Blood (Paksenarrion) by Elizabeth Moon less

Excerpt from an upcoming book in the Runelords universe, 800 years before the original series, and sequel to Barbarians.Originally published in Shattered Shields / edited by Jennifer Brozek, Bryan Thomas Schmidt

Young Prince Gaborn Val Orden of Mystarria is traveling in disguise on a journey to ask for the hand of the lovely Princess Iome of Sylvarresta when he and his warrior bodyguard spot a pair of assassins who have set their sights on the princess's father. The pair races to warn the king of the impending danger and realizes that more than the royal family is at risk--the very fate of the Earth is in jeopardy.

Volume Two of The RunelordsRaj Ahtan, ruler of Indhopal, has used enough forcibles to transform himself into the ultimate warrior: The Sum of All Men. Ahtan seeks to bring all of humanity under his rule-destroying anything and anyone that stood in his path, including many friends and allies of young Prince Gaborn Val Orden. But Gaborn has fulfilled a two-thousand-year-old prophecy, becoming the Earth King-a mythic figure who can unleash the forces of the Earth itself... moreVolume Two of The RunelordsRaj Ahtan, ruler of Indhopal, has used enough forcibles to transform himself into the ultimate warrior: The Sum of All Men. Ahtan seeks to bring all of humanity under his rule-destroying anything and anyone that stood in his path, including many friends and allies of young Prince Gaborn Val Orden. But Gaborn has fulfilled a two-thousand-year-old prophecy, becoming the Earth King-a mythic figure who can unleash the forces of the Earth itself.And now the struggle continues. Gaborn has managed to drive off Raj Ahtan, but Ahtan is far from defeated. Striking at far-flung cities and fortresses and killing dedicates, Ahtan seeks to draw out the Earth King from his seat of power, to crush him. But as they weaken each other's forces in battle, the armies of an ancient and implacable inhuman enemy issue forth from the very bowels of the Earth. less

Book Three of The Runelords Wizardborn continues the story of the struggle of Gaborn, now the Earth King, who has lost his powers but continues to lead his people. He must contend with the threat of the huge, inhuman Reavers, whose myriads Gaborn and his forces must now pursue across the nation. It has become Gaborn's fate to follow, even into the depths... moreBook Three of The Runelords Wizardborn continues the story of the struggle of Gaborn, now the Earth King, who has lost his powers but continues to lead his people. He must contend with the threat of the huge, inhuman Reavers, whose myriads Gaborn and his forces must now pursue across the nation. It has become Gaborn's fate to follow, even into the depths.Raj Ahten, the great warlord endowed with the strength and qualities of thousands of men, once the primary threat to Gaborn, now struggles to retain his own empire. His war of conquest thwarted, his very life is now threatened by the Reaver thousands.And a young girl, Averan, who has eaten a Reaver and absorbed some of its memories, becomes a keystone in the search for the dark Reaver lair. less

In THE LAIR OF BONES the stars fall from heaven and the very earth trembles in pain. With Gaborn's kingdom of Mystarria in ruins, four powerful kings march to claim its spoils, even as a vast army of reavers from the underworld sallies forth, intending to put an end to mankind. In one last-ditch effort to heal the earth, Averan leads the Earth King, Gaborn Val Orden, far below the surface to the Lair of Bones, to confront the leader of the reaver hordes... moreIn THE LAIR OF BONES the stars fall from heaven and the very earth trembles in pain. With Gaborn's kingdom of Mystarria in ruins, four powerful kings march to claim its spoils, even as a vast army of reavers from the underworld sallies forth, intending to put an end to mankind. In one last-ditch effort to heal the earth, Averan leads the Earth King, Gaborn Val Orden, far below the surface to the Lair of Bones, to confront the leader of the reaver hordes. There Gaborn must confront an ancient evil - before the world is torn apart. In this fourth volume of THE RUNELORDS series, David Farland continues to rewrite the boundaries of epic fantasy. There are only impossible decisions for his protagonists, and the evil of the reavers may simply be a mask for the true horrors to come... less

Certain works of fantasy are immediately recognizable as monuments, towering above the rest of the category. Authors of those works, such as Stephen R. Donaldson, Robert Jordan and Terry Goodkind, come immediately to mind. Add to that list David Farland, whose epic fantasy series continues now. The story picks up eight years after the events of "Lair of Bones "and begins a new chapter in the Runelords saga focusing on Gaborn's son, Fallion... moreCertain works of fantasy are immediately recognizable as monuments, towering above the rest of the category. Authors of those works, such as Stephen R. Donaldson, Robert Jordan and Terry Goodkind, come immediately to mind. Add to that list David Farland, whose epic fantasy series continues now. The story picks up eight years after the events of "Lair of Bones "and begins a new chapter in the Runelords saga focusing on Gaborn's son, Fallion. Gaborn, the Earth King, has been traveling far from his home, to strange and unknown places. While beyond the edge of the earth, he finally succumbs to the accelerated aging that comes from all of the endowments he has taken. His death is the signal for a revolution, an attack from the supernatural realms by immensely powerful immortal beings. These forces have discovered that Gaborn's son is the resurrection of an immortal, one whose potential power is so great that he might be able to reorder the entire universe. Fallion's enemies have decided that they must control him, and failing that, destroy him. He is only a child, but he is the heir to Gaborn's kingdom, and so must flee to the ends of the earth to avoid the destruction of all that Gaborn accomplished. One of the mightiest of contemporary fantasy epics continues. less

Certain works of fantasy are immediately recognizable as monuments, towering above the rest of the category. Authors of those works, such as George R.R. Martin, Robert Jordan, and Terry Goodkind, come immediately to mind. Add to that list David Farland, whose epic Runelords series continues now in Worldbinder. After the events of Sons of the Oak, Fallion and Jaz, the sons of the great Earth King Gaborn, are now living as fugitives in their own kingdom... moreCertain works of fantasy are immediately recognizable as monuments, towering above the rest of the category. Authors of those works, such as George R.R. Martin, Robert Jordan, and Terry Goodkind, come immediately to mind. Add to that list David Farland, whose epic Runelords series continues now in Worldbinder. After the events of Sons of the Oak, Fallion and Jaz, the sons of the great Earth King Gaborn, are now living as fugitives in their own kingdom. Their former home has been invaded and secretly controlled by supernatural being of ultimate evil. The sons are biding their time until they can regain their rightful places in the land. Fallion seems destined to heal the world, and feels the calling to act. When he attempts to do so though, two entire worlds collapse into one, and nothing will ever be the same again. less

The Wyrmling Horde: The Seventh Book of the Runelords

The world of the Runelords has been combined by magic with another parallel world to form a new one, the beginning of a process that may unify all worlds into the one true world. This story picks up after the events of "The Wyrmling Horde" and follows two of Farland's well-known heroes, Borenson and Myrrima, on a quest to save their devastated land and the people of the new world from certain destruction... moreThe world of the Runelords has been combined by magic with another parallel world to form a new one, the beginning of a process that may unify all worlds into the one true world. This story picks up after the events of "The Wyrmling Horde" and follows two of Farland's well-known heroes, Borenson and Myrrima, on a quest to save their devastated land and the people of the new world from certain destruction. But the land is not the only thing that has been altered forever: in the change, Borenson has merged with a mighty and monstrous creature from the other world, Aaath Ulber. He begins to be a different person, a berserker warrior, as well as having a huge new body because of the transformation of worlds. Thousands have died, lands have sunk below the sea and, elsewhere, risen from it. The supernatural rulers of the world are part of a universal evil, yet play a Byzantine game of dark power politics among themselves. And Aaath Ulber is now the most significant pawn in that game. less