Fortress

Deep in an abandoned, shattered castle, an old man of the Old Magic muttered almost forgotten words. His purpose -- to create out of the insubstance of the air, from a shimmering of light and a fluttering of shadows. That most wondrous of spells, a Shaping. A Shaping in the form of a, young man who will be sent east on the road the old was too old to travel. To right the wrongs of a long-forgotten wizard war, and call new wars into being. Here is the long-awaited major new novel from one of the brightest stars in the fantasy and science fiction firmament. C.J.Cherryh's haunting story of the wizard Mauryl, kingmaker for a thousand years of Men, and Tristen, fated to sow distrust between a prince and his father being. A tale as deep as legend and as intimate as love, it tells of a battle beyond Time, in which all Destiny turns on the wheel of an old man's ambition, a young man's innocence, and the unkept promised of a king to come.

Tristen is both more and less than a man. A summoning, a shaping, he was brought to life by a wizard, to serve a king yet to be crowned. Now the wizard is dead: a united Ylesuin, and a peace this land has never known. Cefwyn needs his only friend, this young man of mysterious origins who is more brother than vassal. He relies on Tristen, and trusts him though he knows not why, as he plans the war that will bring his dream to pass...or bring ruin upon them all. The eagerly awaited sequel to her acclaimed Fortress in the Eye of Time, C.J. Cherryh's newest high fantasy triumph is an epic saga of destiny and intrigue in a magical world as wondrous, and as real, as our own.

Two surprising allies have emerged to aid the embattled ruler in a struggle he must win: Cefwyn's two young sons. Aewyn Marhanen is the prince destined to rule. Aewyn's half-brother, Elfwyn Aswydd-the bastard son of the king and the sorceress Tarien Aswydd-has spent years unaware of his parentage, yet now it is his time to emerge and claim the gifted birthright he's been denied for so long. But a dark, sinister magic has crept close to the young man and seized hold of the kingdom. Nothing is as it seems, as the bonds of family strain against the powerful forces that would see them undone-and the battle is joined to unmask and destroy the malevolence that threatens to unhinge the king's peaceful and fragile reign.

"I Dreamed of Owl. That Means Wizardry is Near." Tristen is a weapon in an ancient war between wizardry and sorcery. He is a summoning and a shaping, brought to life by a wizard. And his sword is a weapon as well. Its keen blade, marked Illusion on one side and Truth on the other, once helped Tristen win the throne of Ylesuin for the young king Cefwyn, gaining Tristen the stewardship of the brave country of Amefel. Tristen's rule in Amefel is blessed with two extraordinary friends: one a stalwart and simple warrior, the other a young rebel with royal blood. But the scarlet banners of war are unfolding again, and far more than a kingdom is at stake. Now Tristen must take up the sword--as well as the Sihhë magic he has forsworn. He is destiny's own, created a combatant in a far older and more fearsome conflict than any ever imagined by mere mortal man. And he is about to do battle once more. . . . Rich with magic, intrigue, and adventure, this high fantasy series from the acclaimed C. J. Cherryh brings to life an enchanting world as real as, yet far more wondrous, than our own.

The walls between the worlds are down. A new unfolding has begun... It started long ago, as a war between the shadowy Immortals that persists today, as the wizard Mauryl's Shaping confronts the Shadows summoned from Chaos. Tristen is that Shaping. Both more and less than human, he successfully fought sorcery's evil tides, a victory that brought his friend Cefwyn both a kingdom and true love. But the Lines that hold the world in place are shifting again. A ruthless enemy is preparing for battle. Once again, Tristen will take up the sword inscribed with "Truth" and "Illusion" on its blade. But he faces more than war and a pretender to Cefwyn's throne. The Shadows he sees are straight from Ruin -- a flow of darkness covering the world like ink... Fortress of Dragons completes the high-fantasy epic begun in Fortress in the Eye of Time and continued in Fortress of Eagles and Fortress of Owls --a powerful tale set in a world of magic, violence, wonder and awe -- a world as vividly real as our own.