Search Worlds Without End

As Elric and his student Galen watch with taut anticipation, dragons, angels, and shooting stars rain from the sky, heralding the arrival of the techno-mages on the planet Soom. It's the first time Elric -- a member of the ruling Circle -- has hosted such a gathering, and if all goes well, Galen and the other apprentices will emerge triumphant from the grueling initiation rites, ready to embrace their roles as full mages among the most powerful beings in the known universe.

But rumors fly of approaching danger, and Galen and his young lover, Isabelle, are chosen to investigate the dark tidings. An ancient race has awakened after a thousand years, thirsty for war, slaughter, and annihilation. Will the techno-mages be the deciding factor in the war ahead? Or the first casualties?

War against the Shadows is inevitable, and the ruling Circle has ordered the techno-mages into hiding. Many are unhappy with this decision -- none more so than Galen, the only mage who has faced the Shadows and lived.

But the Shadows aren't Galen's only enemy -- he is driven to hunt and kill Elizar, the traitor who murdered the beautiful mage Isabelle while Galen stood by helplessly, his hands tied by the Circle's sacred code he had sworn to follow.

Now a new mission awaits as the Circle contrives a plan that may enable the five hundred mages to escape without leaving a trace. Dispatched to the Shadow's ancient capitol to uncover the enemy's plans, Galen will find everything he so desperately seeks -- including a shocking legacy that threatens to consume his very soul.

As billions die and the flames of destruction rage unchecked, the Shadows seem poised for absolute victory. Soon the entire galaxy will fall to their evil. But the war isn't over... not yet. At long last, in a forgotten corner of the universe, Galen has finally won the Circle's permission to leave the techno-mage hiding place. He is the only mage who has faced the Shadows and lived, the only one who possesses the unstoppable Spell of Destruction.

Galen's orders are clear. Though the galaxy is being torn apart by bloody conflict - in which his powers might tip the balance - he is to locate only three key enemies and kill them. But Galen has unearthed the Shadows' darkest secret - and discovered a monstrous truth about himself.

In this desperate, apocalyptic battle, there's no telling who will be the victor. Or if there will be any survivors at all...