Showing results by author "Christopher Nuttall" in All Categories

When they found themselves trapped on Earth, Richard, Brains, and Helen befriended Janet and Steve, a brother and sister growing up in a poverty-stricken estate, and taught them the basics of magic before discovering that sinister forces were slowly moving against them. Now, Richard and Brains have taken Janet back to Mystic Albion to study magic, while Helen and Steve remain behind to track down the rogue magicians and stop them before it is too late.

After being trapped in a very strange world, Elliot Richardson found his footing and led the forces of Damansara to victory, only to find himself under threat from jealous and resentful city fathers who thought he was on the verge of overthrowing their rule and taking their power for himself.

Adam of Beneficence wanted to be a magician, and even undertook a magical apprenticeship, but there isn’t a single spark of magic in his entire body. In desperation, his master arranged for him to study at Heart’s Eye University, a former school of magic that has become a university, a place where magicians and mundanes can work to combine their talents and forge the future together. But all is not well at Heart’s Eye. The magical and mundane apprentices resent and fear each other, and outside, powerful forces are gathering to snuff out the future before it can take shape.

For generations, the human race has feared an encounter with an alien race so advanced their technology might as well be magic. And yet, no such alien race has been encountered. Until now. During the Virus War, human explorers discovered proof of alien technology that was beyond human understanding, technology so strange it was impossible even to guess at its function. Now, in the aftermath of the war, HMS Endeavour embarks on a mission to the core of the alien civilization. And discovers a mystery older than the human race itself.

Join the adventure through dystopian worlds, to outer planets and into a speculative future. Welcome to the Future Days Anthology. Seventeen authors imagine a future with thrilling tales, starships, unlikely heroes, and exotic aliens, all of which combine to make Future Days a must-listen sci-fi fantasy short story collection.

Living in a harsh village in a harsh land, Gennady had no reason to expect anything other than a life that was nasty, brutish, and short. When a fellow villager tried to kill him, Gennady discovered he had magic and rapidly found himself dispatched to Whitehall School to learn how to use his gift. Whitehall is far from perfect, and as Gennady struggles to keep up with the rest of his class, he finds himself being drawn to some very dark paths indeed,

In the early 22nd century, humanity has spread through the solar system - and their electromagnetic signals have traveled hundreds of light years. An alien race called the Oghaldzon has decided that mankind is dangerously insane...and must be forcibly taken under control. The invasion fleet's technology is decades ahead of Earth's best. They have more ships than the human fleets combined, and a seemingly-inexhaustible number of ground troops. And they're not afraid to kill billions of people.

It’s not just a box: it’s an ancient weapon capable of destroying entire cities. Deep within the badlands, warped and twisted by tainted magic and weirdlings, the box holds secret wisdom lost in the Cataclysm. The archaeologists who discovered it are selling it to the highest bidder. If it falls into the wrong hands, their fragile civilization’s uneasy peace will be shattered once and for all. John and his fellow adventurers are hired to steal this ancient artifact so it can be safely destroyed. Stealing it is one thing; surviving it is another.

Once, there was a shining civilization grounded on magic, with sorcerers, flying cities, iron ships, castles in the clouds, and wonders beyond the dreams of mortal men. Then, in a single cataclysmic moment fifty years ago, magic flared and the wondrous world came to an end. The few who survived are struggling to reclaim what they lost. Meanwhile, darker forces plot to shape the future to something more to their liking.

Elliot, Her Majesty's Warlord, has been riding high. The coup against Queen Helen has been foiled, the New Model Army is readying itself for the coming war, and his lover is pregnant. But the warlords have been preparing too and now, they're on the march, ready to crush the kingdom and put the uppity commoners to the sword. Facing a war on three fronts, Elliot embarks on a desperate gamble to win the war in a single campaign… unaware the warlords have plans of their own.

After the campaign in the Summer Isle, Isabella rides out the winter storms by studying the godly magic under Mother Lembu, in the process learning about the origins of the old gods. Crown Prince Reginald receives word that his father the King is ill and his sister Princess Sofia, acting as regent, is imposing a regime that is strangely similar to what had been happening on the Summer Isle - nobles killed, temples smashed, enforced public worship of old gods.

It's 1831, and Lady Gwendolyn Crichton has been appointed royal sorceress following the tragic events known as the Swing. Now alone at the head of the Royal College of Sorcerers, Gwen must overcome prejudice against her gender and age if she is to exercise her authority and fulfill her responsibilities. Soon, an unexpected responsibility is made manifest when Sir Travis Mortimer, a senior magician recently returned from India, is found murdered in a locked room.

The long-dreaded war between Britain and France has finally begun. French soldiers have landed on English soil, and the British Army - and the Royal Sorcerers Corps, led by Lady Gwen - is moving to meet them. But when an inexperienced major disobeys her orders and sends two hundred hussars to their deaths, Gwen accidentally uses her magic to permanently damage his mind and sparks a political crisis at the worst possible time. In the aftermath of the battle, Lord Mycroft suggests she leave Britain and head to the North American colonies.

The Royal Sorceress, Lady Gwendolyn Crichton, will be responsible for the Empire's magical resources when the time comes. Still struggling to overcome prejudice within the Royal College of Sorcerers, she has at least earned the gratitude of much of the aristocracy, if not their respect. Just when Gwen needs to be firmly focussed on training new sorcerers, her adopted daughter Olivia, the only known living necromancer, is kidnapped.

Executive Solutions is one of the world’s most capable mercenary units: a force designed to do everything from providing local security and training to hostage rescue, terrorist suppression, and many other operations in places regular military forces can’t–or won’t–go.

The Imperium; a million worlds, trillions upon trillions of humans and aliens, an empire that dominates half the galaxy... an empire that is falling into chaos, revolution and civil war. Only a handful of people are struggling to keep the Imperium together, knowing that the brutality of its rule is infinitively preferable to the chaos of its fall. This is their story. Mariko and her sister were independent shippers and ace pilots, until they ran afoul of the law on a minor planet and ended up jailed and enslaved.

John, Scout, and the rest of Joyce's crew flee across the deserts and magical wastelands, holding the plans to make motivators: devices that provide unlimited magical power to any mage. Devices owned only by Greyshade, the man who saved the world after the apocalypse. Devices he blames for bringing the apocalypse in the first place. Devices he'll do anything to keep secret. Now, instead of bounty hunters, Greyshade is sending armies and magical assassins after them. And if that's not enough, he's leading this vast force himself.

Reginald, now king, is struggling against the rising tide of the Old God entities. He knows that his army alone cannot defeat them, even with cold iron that can contain them and free enslaved humans. But as cities burn and farmland is devastated, the people have been easily convinced by cultists to turn to the Old Gods.

After years of inconclusive war, the Franco-Spanish Empire is on the verge of collapse. The military is coming apart, the people are starving, the economy is on the brink . . . and yet, as long as the crown keeps tight control of its magicians, all hope of revolution and victory remains faint. The secret police are in control, rebel magicians are hunted down and eliminated before they can pose a threat and, worst of all, the government has found a new way to enhance magical power. The situation seems dire. But with a little help, there may be a chance.

The end is nigh. The Federation has stood for over 1,000 years, but its time may be at an end. Its emperor has gone mad; the economy lies in ruins; entire sectors are slipping out of its grasp; warlords, secessionists, and pirates are making their own bids for power; and a powerful rebel fleet stands ready to storm the gates of Earth. The end cannot be long delayed.