Reality Benders - 2: External Threat by Michael Atamanov

Reality Benders, book II

External Threat

by Michael Atamanov

Release - July 23, 2018

Pre-order: Amazon, iTunes, Kobo, Google

Quick nav:

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8

Introduction. Through Enemy Eyes

With my greatest thanks to Guillem León for all his support and inspiration!

Michael Atamanov

Pa-lin-thu, capital of the First Directory

Palace of the Ruling Council

Small Council Chamber

IN AN AUSTERE BLACK ceremonial toga, free of regalia or adornments, Thumor-Anhu La-Fin strode majestically up an illuminated path to a podium. From the corner of his eye, the old man could see rows of cold gazes radiating in the gloomy silent room. The Mage leader didn’t even need his psionic abilities to sense the tension. He already knew how eagerly these lower-rank rulers would devour him if he slipped up or demonstrated so much as a hint of weakness or timidity. All these mages feared and respected only one thing: strength. So, as Coruler Thumor-Anhu La-Fin walked through the room, he couldn’t allow a single muscle on his proud, majestic face to twitch.

And it was hard to maintain that composure because high Mage had to leave his usual staff at the entrance to the palace. Though flawlessly polite and decorous, the guards at the front door were unflappable, insisting that he surrender his magical implement. They allowed him to take a similar-looking if powerless replacement, though. And now, as he walked, Thumor-Anhu La-Fin was putting a bit of weight on that toothless pretense, that mere cane. Being separated from his trusty wizarding utensil got under the old mage’s skin and added fuel to the fire of anxiety inside him. It now seemed he was standing on the very edge of catastrophe. After all, never before in his forty years of power had he been asked to surrender his prized piece of knotted wood just to attend a meeting. Sometimes, when council sessions went on too long, it’s powerful magic provided much-needed support to his achy bones, so it wasn’t purely a question of defense, either.

Reality Benders GIF trailer

Reality Benders by Michael Atamanov
Book 1: Countdown is released!

At long last, an extraterrestrial civilization reached out and made the First Contact. However, no one on Earth took their communique for the genuine article. In a similar vein, very few people appreciated just how little time our new suzerains had promised to keep our planet safe. Regardless, the end of their message showed humankind how to access a mysterious game. The objective of this game is unclear. No one can say where its servers are located, and its inner workings are beyond comprehension. But the game slowly gained momentum, pulling in more and more players. Soon enough, it became impossible to ignore the fact that things that happened in the game had a direct impact on our reality. And not only ours...

But as people figure out this mysterious game, the countdown timer ticks away. And no one can say exactly what will happen when Earth’s safety is no longer guaranteed.

Amazon Kindle (KU+)

Amazon paperback

Audio book - June 19, 2018 (Tantor Media)

Level Up: Restart by Dan Sugralinov

Level Up
Restart
by Dan Sugralinov

Release - July 10, 2018 

Pre-order here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKRMLJB

Quick nav:

Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three

Chapter One

 The Morning It All Started

Please, there's gotta be something else I can do. Like mow your lawn every week for two weeks? I can't do it next week.

Homer Simpson, The Simpsons

AT FIRST, the game had become my life. And later, life itself had become a game.

I’d failed at life. By my thirty-plus I had a wife, a string of one-off freelance gigs, a state-of-the-art computer, a level 110 rogue character in a popular RPG game and a beer gut.

I also wrote books. A book, rather. I hadn’t finished it yet.

Before, I used to feel flattered whenever someone called me a writer. But over the years, I’d finally forced myself to face the uncomfortable truth: I wasn’t a writer at all. The only reason they called me so was because I had no other social tag to describe me by.

So who was I, then? A failed albeit once-promising sales rep who’d been fired from a dozen workplaces? Big deal. These days, everyone and their dog called themselves online marketing gurus.

Me, I couldn’t sell anything. In order to promote a product, I had to believe in it. I just couldn’t do it knowing the customer had no more need for it than for a garbage can.