ART, BOOKS & MERCH
By Sandy Butchers

BONDS OF BLOOD & SILVER
ROLE: Author
REPRESENTED BY: Charlie Serabian, Global Lion MGT.

When two Kings harvest their people in pursuit of immortality, thousands of innocents pray to their Gods for help. However, being the only god left, Skjall stands powerless with divinity balancing on the brink of extinction...

Synopsis

 

SKJALL is a centuries-old Cray; a shapeshifter with supernatural abilities. He is the last living descendant of the gods, therefore vulnerable to the Lord Regent’s dark magic that can enslave his soul. Because of this legacy, Skjall has been hiding for years, trying to stay off the grid and let time do its job to make his existence but a forgotten memory. However, when his arrow accidentally hits VESTA, daughter of the King of Yggra, his time of hiding from the dark magic is over, and he must put his secret existence at risk to save the Princess of the North.

When Skjall is forced to use his divine powers to save Vesta from an attack of nearby soldiers while he tries to patch her up, a local parliament of owl-shifting witches is not the only one who picks up on his presence. AVIX, Lord Regent of Soulhirst City, has been looking for Skjall since he escaped his magical fetters fifty years ago, and now he finally knows where to find him. He sends out his best man: HJALMAR, an alchemically mutated commander, to find Skjall and bring him in.

Skjall sets off to take Vesta home as he cannot bear the guilt of shooting down an innocent person. He finds both company and support in the presence of his brother OSZKAR and two witches, SABLE and STRIX. However, traveling up North isn’t without any danger, as there are now half-breed, mutated soldiers in service of the Lord Regent on the lookout for Skjall. Soon, he finds that Oszkar’s fighting skills and the witches’ magical powers are a true necessity for Vesta’s survival, as much as his own.

Having reached Yggra after several days and several attempts on their lives, Skjall reveals he is, in fact, the last surviving god. He can no longer hide this secret when the one thing that can undo his power appears in the hands of the King: amber. Strix surmises that one of the witches in the royal court must have committed treason, by selling the secrets of the amber to the Lord Regent himself. When she discovers that it was Vesta who betrayed Skjall, she urges him to take action. Oszkar suggests to confront the King and demand answers, but when even the King appears to be involved in the plan to take down the last of the gods, Skjall and his company have no other option than to flee farther North.

Hiding inside an ancient and deserted fortress, Skjall understands that he is caught between two courts that seek to kill him in order to claim his divine powers. He regrets to admit that the feelings he has developed for Strix are no longer a priority compared to the choices he has to make; kill the King, destroy the Lord Regent, or try to play them out against each other. He decides that the best thing to do is to confront the Lord Regent. This way, the King of Yggra is forced to take action, because Skjall’s enslavement would mean the death of his court. Thus, Skjall hopes the two will meet and eventually kill each other.

Skjall sets up a distraction to sneak out of the fortress and run for the city without anyone following him, as he doesn't want anyone else getting hurt. Once in Soulhirst City, he finds himself locked in a dungeon where Avix tortures him into insanity to pave the path to slavery—a choice the witches are far from happy to accept. Especially Strix, who now fights for more than just Skjall’s safety… she fights for his love and is willing to risk her own life in order to set him free. Together with Sable, she sneaks into Soulhirst City to destroy the castle Skjall is held prisoner in.

All tracks now lead to Avix, as the King of Yggra, the witches, as well as the mutated soldiers make their way to the city. With all parties present, war is bound to devour the land. The witches manage to set Skjall free and destroy the castle, thus shattering the city to pieces. Skjall sees a chance to set Avix up against the King of Yggra, and an army of mutants is now torn between following Skjall as their true god or their alchemist creator. Hjalmar, the mutant commander initially sent to bring in Skjall, decides to fight for what is right, rather than fight for what is madness. He rallies his army to stand up and rise against the Lord Regent, and Skjall finds himself supported by a new friend and ally.

Despite the torture and Skjall’s delirium, the Lord Regent is finished off by the King of Yggra, who is then destroyed by Skjall when he releases his divine powers. This allows him to step up as the rightful, High King of the Cray. But in the aftermath of the battle, Skjall finds his brother on the brink of death, and he begs the ancient forces to spare his life. Oszkar makes a recovery, and when Skjall summons his own court to initiate a new King’s Guard, he finds that brotherhood, love, and friendship are all that make a man a king. A kiss seals his fate with Strix as his Queen by his side.