Gena Showalter - Everlife

—CHARLES DICKENS, A TALE OF TWO CITIES

The End of a Nation

All hope has been lost. Our armies have been defeated, our spirits crushed. We are helpless as night smothers day, choking out Light. We have nothing. We are nothing.

Or so our enemy would have us think.

If seeing is believing, they would be right. But we must trust the promise in our hearts. We are like a tree firmly planted by a riverbank, our roots so deep no storm can blow us down. We might bend, but we will never break.

Through trial and tribulation, victory will be ours.

After all, diamonds are made with pressure.

Soon a time will come, a time for every man, woman and child to make a choice. When you’ve been beaten down—physically, mentally and emotionally—when you’ve been betrayed, all hope gone, where will you find the strength to stand, and march on?

How far will we go for the sake of our realm?

Darkness may descend, but our Light can forever shine. Though we fall one by one, we can rise together. One body. One heart. One purpose.

One eternity.

Glossary of Terms excerpted from Myriad’s Book of Evernight

Abrogate—

In the darkness, greatness is born.

★The highest rank of General in Myriad.

★Once rare, their numbers are now growing exponentially.

★Those who extinguish the Light in Troikans as well as in humans.

Conduit—

In the Light, destruction awaits.

★The second-highest rank in Troika, accountable only to the Secondking.

★Currently on the verge of extinction.

★Someone with the ability to harness sunlight and share its power through the Troikan Grid.

Covenant—

The solid foundation on which we stand.

★Any blood oath agreed upon between two separate parties (i.e., a human and an Everlife realm), legally voided through court or loopholes.

★If terms are broken illegally, a human can be put to death and a spirit enslaved.

Everlife—

The end will always justify the means.

★The afterlife, where Myriad and Troika are at war.

★Also known as the Unending.

Firstking—

He that shall not be named.

★Creator of the realms, spirits, humans and the Land of the Harvest.

★Father of the Secondkings: Ambrosine, the Prince of Ravens, and Eron, the Prince of Doves.

★Let the name Eron forever be a curse.

Firstlife—

Let the countdown begin.

★A human life (i.e., a spirit encased inside a body).

★Dress rehearsal for the Everlife, when a human soul should be won by any means necessary.

Firstdeath—

What was shall no longer be.

★The demise of a human body.

★Occurs the moment a spirit cuts ties with its body.

Fused—

And two shall become one.

★When a spirit experiences Second-death, it joins to another—brand-new—spirit (or even multiple spirits) to be reborn in the Land of the Harvest.

★A fact disputed by Troikans.

General—

A dragon with ten heads cannot be defeated.

★Accountable only to the Secondking.

★One of ten individuals who oversee teams of Leaders, Headhunters, Laborers and Messengers.

★Responsible for planning battle strategies and leading armies into war.

Grid, the—

One for all, and all for one.

★A spiritual bond between every citizen of a realm and the realm’s Secondking.

Kennels, the—

Betray your realm at your own peril.

★Prison for Myriadians convicted of crimes.

Laborer—

Work hard, play harder. Always win.

★One of six main positions within a realm, overseen by a Leader.

★Responsible for returning to the Land of the Harvest to convince humans to make covenant with their realm of choice.

★ML: Myriadian Laborer.

★TL: Troikan Laborer.

Land of the Harvest, the—

They cannot run. They cannot hide.

★Earth, home to humans.

Leader—

Only the strong survive.

★An assistant to a General.

★Females are known as “Madame,” males as “Sir.”

★Responsible for delegating assignments to all other sub-positions within the realm, while also meeting specific quotas (i.e., recruiting a certain number of souls).

Many Ends—

Where happiness goes to die and nightmares come to life.

★The realm where the Unsigned are imprisoned after Firstdeath.

Messenger—

Let the worlds know the horror that is Troika.

★One of six main positions within the realms, directly under Laborer.

★Responsible for teaching humans about the realms, protecting others from the enemy and chronicling exploits inside and outside the realm.

Myriad—

Autonomy, bliss, indulgence.

★The dark realm, ruled by the Prince of Ravens.

★Magical forests whisper enchanted tales, and secrets await you in every corner; self-indulgence is revered, and the party never stops; victors are adored and failures are abhorred; emotion always trumps logic.

★Motto: Might Equals Right.

Penumbra—

In the dark, the Light is easier to extinguish.

★A sentient darkness capable of draining Troikans of Light.

★Must be a Myriadian General to access more information.

Realms—

The only home that matters.

★Kingdoms in the Everlife: Myriad and Troika.

★Sub-realms: Many Ends and Troika’s widely disputed “Rest.”

Rest, the—

Deception cloaked in hope.

★Troikans believe a spirit enters into a state of absolute tranquility after Second-death, forever separated from the realms...with one exception.

Resurrection, the—

A promise without merit.

★Once every year, the people of Troika hold a vote, allowing one spirit to leave the Rest.

★A trick—there is no Rest.

Second-death—

Another end, another new beginning.

★When a spirit is drained of Lifeblood.

★The moment a spirit is Fused to another spirit(s) in order to return to the Land of the Harvest.

★Troikans foolishly believe a spirit enters into “the Rest.”

Secondking—

Bow or break.

★One of two sons of He Who Shall Not Be Named.

★Ambrosine, Prince of Ravens, rules Myriad.

★The Other Who Shall Not Be Named rules Troika.

★Ruler of a realm.

Troika—

Self-proclaimed leaders of justice, equality and freedom

of choice.

★The realm of Light, ruled by the Other Who Shall Not Be Named.

★Supposedly untouched by gloom, where hard work isn’t an expectation but a way of life, equality isn’t an ideal but a standard and fear isn’t a treasured friend but a hated foe; “logic” always trumps emotion; people are governed by a strict set of rules, never allowed to play, and violators are punished.

★Motto: Light Brings Sight.

Unsigned—

Punishment rides the wings of the damned.

★A human who fails to make covenant with a realm before Firstdeath.

★Cursed to spend the Everlife inside Many Ends.

Veil, the—

Choose us and enter in.

★A doorway leading into one of the realms.

★The Veil of Midnight protects Myriad.

★The Veil of Wings protects Troika.

Message Directory

MYRIAD:

Laborer Sloan Aubuchon: S_A_5/46.15.33

Sir Zhi Chen: Z_C_4/23.43.2

Abrogate Javier Diez: J_D_2/43.3.19

Laborer Killian Flynn: K_F_5/23.53.6

General Hans Schmidt: H_S_3/51.3.6

Laborer Leonard Lockwood: L_L_5/19.36.2

Laborer Dior Nichols: D_N_5/62.4.1

Laborer Victor Prince: V_P_5/20.16.18

* * *

TROIKA:

Laborer Raanan Aarons: R_A_5/40.5.16

General Jane Adamson: J_A_3/19.37.30

Messenger Clayton Anders: C_A_6/53.1.4

General John Blake: J_B_3/19.23.4