Wrath (The Faithful and the Fallen Book 4)

by John Gwynne

  ‘I take it this is a yes, then,’ Corban said with a smile.

  ‘Aye,’ Veradis said with a grin. ‘I’ll leave Tenebral to Alben. He’ll make a much better king than I ever would.’

  ‘Alben would make an excellent king,’ Corban agreed. ‘He has the patience for it.’

  ‘All right then,’ Veradis said, and guided his mount to join their line, jostling in so that he was next to Cywen.

  ‘Hello,’ Veradis said to Cywen. She just nodded a response, but Corban noticed that she looked happier.

  ‘He and Cywen clearly like each other,’ Corban leaned closer to Coralen and whispered. ‘One of them should just come out and say it.’

  He saw Coralen staring at him with a look of incredulity.

  ‘What?’ Corban said.

  They all sat in a line then, looking at Drassil, at the field of cairns, at the great tree spreading its branches high and wide over the fortress. Corban thought of the victories and losses, the friendships and tragedies, all etched upon his heart in a tapestry of faces, and he knew the others were thinking the same. And as he looked and thought, he felt a weight leaving him, and an excitement building as he thought of the future.

  New life, moving on. He felt a twinge of guilt, but moving on did not mean forgetting.

  Never forgetting.

  ‘We will never forget you,’ he said quietly, though they all heard him say it, and they echoed him.

  ‘We will never forget.’

  Behind them Storm padded from the shadows and howled, her cubs lifting their heads and joining her, a mournful, wordless lament of love and loss ringing out across the field of cairns.

  ‘Well, let’s see what we can do with this freedom we’ve fought so long and hard for, then,’ Corban said, and together they turned their mounts and cantered away from Drassil.

  By John Gwynne

  MALICE

  VALOUR

  RUIN

  WRATH

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  So, this is the end.

  I can’t believe this is the fourth and final book of The Faithful and the Fallen. It has always seemed like a distant goal, hovering vaguely on the horizon. But now Wrath is finally here.

  I hope that you enjoy it, and that it provides a satisfying and emotional end for you. For me it has been a long road travelled to reach this point. I have a vivid memory from early in 2002 of returning home after watching The Two Towers at the cinema with my family. We were sitting around the table and having dinner, and my remarkable wife said, not for the first time, ‘You should try writing a book!’

  I proceeded to tell her that was a ridiculous idea, and went into great detail as to why, but by then my children were caught up in the excitement of it all and so my resistance began to crumble, until eventually I thought, Why not? It might be fun.

  And so, fourteen years later, here we are.

  It’s been a rollercoaster ride involving an ever-growing warband of heroes who have helped The Faithful and the Fallen to see the light of day. There are many people to thank:

  First of all, I must express my heartfelt gratitude to my wife, Caroline, and my children, Harriett, James, Ed and Will, for their unending support and enthusiasm for all things Banished Lands. I can say without any shadow of a doubt that these books would not have been written without their support and encouragement, as well as the frequent re-enactment of key battle scenes. They have also found the grace to forgive me for the many absent hours that I have spent hunched over my laptop, as well as the distant ‘off-in-the-Banished-Lands’ look that I wore around the dinner table.

  Thanks must also go to my agent, John Jarrold, for his belief in The Faithful and the Fallen, and for his unerring guidance through the mystifying world of publishing. Not only is he a consummate professional, but a very fine fellow as well! Lunches in Rye at The Mermaid Inn are becoming a thing of legend.

  My fabulous editor Julie Crisp, who has somehow manged to whip into shape the beast of a manuscript that was Wrath. Her passion for her work is unequalled, as evidenced by the fact that she was editing Wrath right up to the day she gave birth to her beautiful baby, and then continued with the edit a day or so later! She has also officially retained her title of ‘most bloodthirsty person I know’.

  All those at Tor UK who have worked feverishly behind the scenes to put this book into the wild – the wonderful Bella Pagan, James Long, Rob Cox and the rest of the fantastic team at Tor Towers. You have my deepest thanks and utmost respect for the work you put into making the magic of books happen.

  My copy-editor, Jessica Cuthbert-Smith, who has worked on the series from the beginning. Her eye for detail is staggering. She has saved me from humiliation more times than I can count, and I have learned so much by working with her.

  My editor across the pond, Will Hinton, and the whole team at Orbit US, for their labours undertaken on my behalf.

  My small band of readers, who have given their time to read the first draft of Wrath – not a small book by any stretch of the imagination – when they could have been doing far better things, I’m sure.

  My wife, Caroline, always honest, always seeing the heart of a character.

  My boys Ed and Will, the truest shieldmen any man could find. Their knowledge of the Banished Lands is scary (far better than mine) and their passion for the story and characters has been a source of joy to a father who began writing this tale to read to his children.

  Sadak Miah, my oldest and thoroughly cherished best friend. It has come as a great shock to me that you have actually read ALL of this one before it is published! I have to say, your thoughts were invaluable, and also made me smile, as I couldn’t help but think back to the two of us as teenagers (a VERY long time ago) discussing Middle Earth, Druss, Snaga, Waylander, and so many other fantastical realms with earnest enthusiasm.

  David Emrys, my ‘weapons and combat expert’! One of the unexpected pleasures of this writing malarkey is making unexpected friends. I met David at a Goldsboro Books ‘Fantasy in the Court’ event, and we have been firm friends ever since. Much of the battle detail in Wrath is a result of his knowledge and experience. Don’t ask!

  Mark Roberson, who has provided much helpful feedback of both a fantastical and historical nature. His enthusiasm for The Faithful and the Fallen has been an encouragement throughout the writing of the series.

  And last, though definitely not least, I would like to thank all of you who have read these books and taken Corban and his motley crew to your hearts. One of the greatest and most surprising rewards of this journey has been hearing from so many of you, taking the time to contact me and let me know you’ve enjoyed the journey so far. It’s been a real pleasure to hear from you all.

  Writing Wrath has been a bittersweet experience. It felt absolutely wonderful to be writing scenes that I’ve been imagining for such a very long time, but also tinged with sadness, to be saying goodbye to the characters that have become such a part of my life and almost real to me – even those of the four-legged and winged variety!

  I hope that you enjoy this final instalment of The Faithful and the Fallen. Thank you for joining the warband and seeing it this far.

  Truth and Courage.

  John

  JOHN GWYNNE studied and lectured at Brighton University. He’s been in a rock ’n’ roll band playing the double bass, has travelled the USA, and lived in Canada for a time. He is married with four children and lives in Eastbourne, running a small family business rejuvenating vintage furniture. His first novel, Malice, won the David Gemmell Morningstar award for best debut fantasy. Wrath is the fourth and final novel in John Gwynne’s epic fantasy series, following Malice, Valour and Ruin.

  First published 2016 by Tor

  This electronic edition published 2016 by Tor

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  ISBN 978-1-4472-5971-8
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  Copyright © John Gwynne 2016

  Map artwork by Fred van Deelen

  Jacket illustration by Paul Young

  The right of John Gwynne to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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