The Dark of the Void

The Dark of the Void

Book 1 of the Stargazers Trilogy

Synopsis

Six best friends. One catastrophic secret.

On the brink of adulthood, the friends set out on a vacation meant to be the adventure of a lifetime. But beneath it all, each hides something: anger that won’t stay contained, guilt that won’t fade, a trauma too heavy to bear, a secret rooted in devastating loss.

When a deadly disaster strikes, their world is thrown into chaos. What seems like a freak accident may not have been natural at all. Now hunted by a shadowy organization, the friends discover strange artifacts tied to an ancient mystery – and to each of them in ways they never expected.

As betrayals fracture their bond and their enemies close in, the group must untangle the dangerous truth: saving the world might mean destroying the only thing holding them together.

This thrilling and emotionally charged adventure blends mystery, friendship, and fantasy, exploring themes of identity, legacy, and the bonds that hold us together in the face of overwhelming odds.

In the Dark of the Void, nothing is ever certain…

Prologue

If things had played out perfectly, he would’ve been dead by now. Actually scratch that. If things had played out perfectly, much of the world should’ve been dead by now.

Nonetheless he feverishly gathered up the rest of his supplies, stuffing away pages filled with paraphernalia and scribbles, notes about events that would never be able to come to pass. He’d bade Lucy and the kids goodbye, sent them on to her mother’s house and removed all identifiable signs from the front of their house. It would have to be enough. 

Everything from the get-go had been frustratingly simple. The damn fools had spent years doubting each other, so much so that the seeds of discord had already been implemented by the time he’d come in. But Xavier was nothing if not thorough, so he had kept at it, slowly fermenting the seeds of their own ruin.

It was the perfect cover, being the caring neighbor, the understanding teacher, the person that seemed to be watching out for all of the others. And from his vantage point, he’d been able to pass information between each of the groups, the ultimate spy, serving no one but himself and his own goals.

Xavier pulled back the curtains from the front of his house, watching carefully. There was no sign of other people.

If he wasn’t already dead yet, he doubted anything more would happen to him.

He’d made one fatal mistake, played his hand a bit too far. He’d gotten too close, enough that the adults had come sniffing.

They knew all about it, all about the other world, all about the events that had already come to pass. They knew too much and they suspected him, he was sure about that.

So it was time to fall back, retreat back into the shadows as he had for years, until there was an appropriate time to strike back again.

Xavier heard a noise outside and quickly peered out of his window.

But no, it was just a news van passing by, playing an annoying tune. There was an idea, what if he tried to go for that industry next. It would give him the unique position to investigate further.

Regardless, it was a start.

He was the puppet master, the behind-the-scenes force that could make his props dance and jump about. And there was no defeating him. The militants, and the shadows, and the heretics, all of them would eventually fall. Then finally, his revenge could be complete.

A smile on his face, Xavier retreated up the stairs. He had one last thing to pack, the manifest of technology that the militants had scrounged up.

As soon as he walked up the stairs and into his bedroom, he sensed that something was wrong. The door to his bedroom was slightly ajar, something that he never would’ve done.

He tensed up and jumped backwards, only to crash into a stiff body right behind him.

Somehow, they’d gotten the jump on him.

The barbarian wrapped an arm around him, and hauled him up the stairs, directly into his room.

He deposited him on the floor and retreated to the corner.

And waiting in front of him, seated in Xavier’s beautiful mahogany chair, was Him.

“You,” Xavier spit out.

“Me,” confirmed The Leader, flashing a wide smile.

“You’ll never be able to stop me,” Xavier said confidently, “All of the pieces are in place. It’s far too late.”

The Leader’s smile grew wider. “We’ll manage. I’m sure the marked ones will reveal themselves soon enough.”

“Wait,” Xavier said frantically, “Without me, you’ll never be able to get the rest of the information you seek.”

“Already have it,” said The Leader holding up a packet that Xavier had hidden in the third from the bottom brick in his chimney.

“How…how?” said Xavier, utterly flummoxed.

“I best be going,” said The Leader, standing up, “Thanks for all your help. Big things are on the horizon.”

“Wait. Wait!” screamed Xavier as The Leader headed for the door, and the big man advanced menacingly, “I am the puppet master! The keeper of secrets. You need me!”

There was a bang, and Xavier looked down to see a smoking hole in his chest.

He fell to the ground, staring at the door where The Leader was still holding the gun.

The cursed man tilted his head as he stared down at Xavier. For a moment, he uttered no words and Xavier clutched at his white shirt as it turned scarlet beneath his fingertips. Then he smiled, and to Xavier he looked like the angel of death himself.

“I’m the Head of The Dark Void,” The Leader said, as if relishing the words.

The world grew dark, and Xavier crumpled to the floor. He heard The Leader say one more thing before he closed his eyes for the final time.

“Did you really think we wouldn’t be able to find you?”

Timeline

08-21-2023

Reached 100K words in the book!

10-25-2023

Finished the first draft of the book!

12-27-2023

Started the editing process. Exhaustive!

01-21-2024

Tried my hand at drafting a map. It's really difficult.

05/15/2024

Completed my first round of editing and opened up to beta readers

07-17-2024

Completed my second round of editing and began to apply to agents

11-16-2024

Hired an editor to look over the book

11-28-2024

Hired an artist to design the cover for my book

01-21-2025

Completed formatting and putting all of the artworks, cover art, and writing all together.

01-24-2025

Publish the book!!!