A Time to Die: The Wells of the Worlds

By Robert Mullin

In the Shoan Empire, the Navanan menace casts a dark shadow, their crimson and gold banners heralding destruction. For Ianoah Dulnun, a Warden of the Temple, the conflict is deeply personal—his son, Ravani, lost to the bloodthirsty zealots. Driven by grief and a thirst for justice, Ianoah embarks on a perilous mission to confront the very heart of evil in the Sacred City. As he battles inner demons and questions the dictates of the divine Source, Ianoah must navigate a treacherous path between duty and defiance. Amidst ancient stars and interstellar maelstroms, "A Time to Die" explores the limits of faith, the weight of loss, and the enduring quest for redemption in a universe on the brink of war.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Robert Mullin
• Release date: Jun 23, 2024
• ISBN: 9798227837745

Robert Mullin

Robert Mullin has gone to Africa in search of a possible living dinosaur, and is the creator of The Star Wars Chronological Companion, one of the premier online fan chronologies.

Book preview

I

The Navanan had to die. The truth of that was acknowledged throughout the Shoan Empire, and quietly whispered amongst the Wardens and novitiates in every Yasulite territory. The crimson and gold banner of the so-called Brotherhood of Light waved over the vestiges of Imperial and Temple cities alike. They sent out legions in droves, showing no mercy to anyone unwilling to bow to their creed. More obscene yet, the Navanan were self-proclaimed Yasulites claiming the Source as their guiding strength. Their zeal for true conversion had left rivers of blood in its wake.

Kneel or die.

And these were the animals that Ianoah Dulnun’s son had gone to fight.

Of course, he hadn’t come back.

This world’s ancient star rising behind him set the golden spires of the Sacred City ablaze, and he squinted against the glare. The indolent youth of the Dynastic worlds could wax poetic about the beauty of Navanan architecture and how the morning dew glistened on the verdant fields around the Sacred City, but every drop might as well have been poison to him.

How could the Source direct him to the heart of evil itself? To the very creatures who had murdered Ravani?

Ianoah swallowed against the white mantle of truce pressing into his throat and ran his thumb over the Temple medallion on his chest.

My boy...

This was why the Wardens were discouraged from having families. Ambassadors of the Temple were much more effective when they didn’t have to guard their hearts from the fear of personal loss. Amilai hadn’t dealt with it any better than he had. Right now, she was determined to live out the rest of her days in the sweltering peace of her family’s home by the Gonshi River on the Imperial world of Sheiyoun. She’d hardly spoken a dozen words to him when he went back the last time to see if she had changed her mind and wanted to travel together again.

Her answer had been short, to the point, and perhaps to the ears of anyone who had not lost an only son, blasphemous.

He'd kissed the top of her graying head... had the Well slipped him forward a few years, or had the time away from the Temple world of Ganadain simply allowed her to age normally? Was it the pain of losing Ravani?

Or had it simply been that long?

Ianoah had breathed deep of the fading scent of berries and mint