Exilium

The book

On two planets unknown to humanity, Edén and Caos, the only being capable of mastering the two energies that sustain creation was born. A scientist found him, a royal family adopted him, and an adventurous prince taught him to dream of being a hero. No one ever told him what he really was.

His name is Lídel. At fifty, barely a child among his kind, he enters the Arena of Borath determined to make a name for himself. He doesn't know that his family is hiding secrets, that someone wants him dead, or that the end of his world already has a date.

Exilium brings together in a single volume, revised by the author, the first two installments of the saga:

• Part I · Nativitas. 26 chapters. Where the story begins.
• Part II · Exilium. 46 chapters. Thirty-eight years later, Lídel enters the Arena.

Dark adult fantasy. Not a young adult saga: there are battles, politics between two crowns, sex and violence.

Where to buy it

• Ebook in English, on Amazon.com: $4.99.
• Paperback in English, on Amazon.com: $14.99.
• Ebook en español, en Amazon.es: €3.99.
• Spanish paperback and Portuguese edition: coming soon.

The two worlds

Twin planets, born of the Creators' wish to surpass humanity. They orbit in the Ciel solar system, so close that one day a year they can see each other with the naked eye.

Edén

White energy. Two continents, Lipra and Draco, and between them the black waters of the Lake of Ignorance. Home of the Alas Blancas, with blue oceans, ruled by King Amed and Queen Elena, in Draco.

Caos

Dark energy (never “black”). Four small continents, Brite, Borath, Aquila, and Silos, and the most dangerous oceans in the galaxy: gray, with mustard-colored continents. Home of the Alas Negras; the Faniras rule in Brite and the Barbarians in Borath. Its landmark is the Arena of Borath, in the capital, Brión.

How the world works

The two energies

White energy for the Alas Blancas of Edén, dark energy for the Alas Negras of Caos. You are born with one or the other, never both. A Cinan cannot use it until their energy maturity, a moment that usually arrives between adolescence and early adulthood. It is measured in kentros.

Warriors are celebrities

No matter the kingdom, the culture or the class: being a famous warrior is the summit of Cinan society. Not Imol players, not artists, not politicians. No one is more famous than a legendary warrior.

Weapons are not chosen

Lilit-h is a natural resource that, on contact with a Cinan, reads their soul and materializes into their deepest desire: a sword, a shield, a suit of armor, an accessory. No one chooses. Only the rock knows.

Technology and swords, side by side

Trains that draw energy from the global network, reflection portals, communication between worlds. And amid all of it, sword tournaments in cities full of skyscrapers.

Two currencies

Fares for everyday life. And aluminum coins, the only material invulnerable to both energies: real fortunes are counted in that metal.

The Terminus

An astronomical event that will wipe the Cinans from existence. Fifty thousand years ago, three billion Cinans vanished one day, and only their cities remained, empty and in perfect condition. They left a prophecy in writing: the Terminus, the end of the Cinans and of their two worlds. It is coming.

Part I · Nativitas: a child who should not exist

The birth of a hybrid. The birth of a dreamer. A scientist who hates lying but hides the truth to protect the only creature she has ever loved. A royal family raising a child who could save the world or destroy it. And a hunt held once every three hundred years in the most dangerous forest on either world.

Part II · Exilium: heroes of the night

In the coliseum of the Barbarians' capital, Lídel and David discover that victory doesn't always belong to the winners. A conspiracy under way, a princess determined to save her entire species on her own, and the awakening of the Elder Alas Sangros, warriors so powerful they could decimate armies. At fifty, Lídel steps into the arena.

The characters

Lídel, the dreamer

A scientist found him. A royal family raised him. No one ever told him what he was. All he dreams of is being a hero.

Mila Galecian, the biologist

Daughter of an Infallible, one of the four who answer only to the monarchs of Draco. But she cares far less about the palace and her suitors than about biology. Love doesn't interest her, until she meets another left-hander like her.

David, the one who doesn't believe in love

Lídel's only friend, disciplined to the bone. To him, love is a pretext to dress up carnal needs, and the civilized world is a jungle of hypocritical animals.

Jenna, the Golden Lady

Lídel's adoptive sister and one of the few people who know the truth about him. She spends more time helping the people than at the palace.

Uncle Enrico, the father he never had

The one with the stories that can't be told in front of the nobles. Lídel's best friend and the father he never had.

Alice Gurra, a mother by accident

An inveterate biologist and director of the Scientific Department of the Crown of Caos. She is obsessed with evolution, and Lídel is her most incredible discovery.

Cera Solar, the Invisible Princess

First in the line of succession, and she loathes politics. Obsessed with immortality out of sheer curiosity, she is the only Cinan among billions who knows that the extinction of her species is inevitable.

Solcis Dublín, master of the Exact method

A hundred and thirty-two years old and a war hammer called Volcán. At eighty he had already been called to the King's Ten, the most feared military force on either planet.

Jade, the best-kept secret

The finest of the Luma and probably the most famous warrior on either planet. He answers for Princess Jenna's safety, and carries a secret that only one other person in all of Ciel knows: Caín.

Caín of Borath, an incomprehensible creature

The Cinans know him as Canos Sorgan, a businessman whose fortune is greater than that of some countries, as vast as his longevity. Under that false name he has lived for millennia, leads the Alas Sangros, and spends his life trying to cheat the infertility of his species.

The author

J. R. Agramonte was born in Cuba and lives in Dubai, working as a bar manager. A finalist for the Premio Dinosaurio de Minicuentos, Agramonte has written for several video game magazines and grew up on anime, film and video games, above all the Final Fantasy and The Elder Scrolls sagas, and on the books of Laura Gallego and Gabriel García Márquez. Exilium is the fantasy the author always wanted to read.

Contact the author: rodriguez.javy@gmail.com