Epilogue

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Revised version now available! Amazonpaperback,ebook,audiobook,Kobo,B&N,Google

In the war-torn land of Cyraveil, four heroes strove to overthrow an empire. By cold steel and elemental sorcery, they brought peace to a warring land on the brink of destruction. As the flames died, the realm needed strong leadership, and who better than the champions who had saved the kingdom? But when the people sought out their saviors... they vanished.

Matt, Blake, Jen, and Carl: the four mysterious companions, who together had deposed an insane ruler and saved countless lives, were gone—spirited back in a whirlwind of magic to a sleepy suburb in Mellbridge, Oregon, never to return. The friends found themselves home in the real world, exactly as they'd been the night they were taken, as if no time had passed... except only three came back.

Hi there! This was my entry for National Novel Writing Month, because why only write one series at a time? The more the merrier! (meanwhile, my keyboard bursts into flames...)

I'm also the writer ofThe Last Science, an ongoing low-fantasy/speculative sci-fi series. If you're familiar with that, you know what to expect here: lots of character-focused drama and dialogue, not a whole lot of traditional action. However, I'm writing a bit differently than usual here, and in averydifferent structure, so there should be some surprises for returning readers. I hope you enjoy it!

[Discord] — for those of you who want to hang out and chat.

Cover art (fullsize): Path of Revelation, bytaenaron(Tobias Roetsch), modified by Etzoli. Normally I like to do my own cover art from scratch, but I was in a rush for the contest. Might be replaced down the line if I get time.

[winner of the NaNoWriMo Royal Road 2018 challenge—Most Favorites]

Information

Status: Completed
Year: 2018
Author: Etzoli

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.6/ 5.0
Followers: 2,344
Views: 731,290

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(10)

ArararaRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Short and sweet. Well written, good quality. Intrigue, some drama, interesting worldbuilding but not too much of it, believable characters with believable flaws and thought processes. Definitely not a run of the mill, "typical" royalroad fiction. Satisfying ending! I recommend it.
The POV switching is a bit jarring at first, and I'm personally REALLY not a fan of it generally (it's become a bit of a trend, everyone seems to be cramming it into their fiction, and usually without a good reason). It works here though, the entire fiction was written around the concept, it wasn't just forced in as a gimmick. I got used to it pretty quick, it was neat
AretaeRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I have few extra words for this one.
Wow. Hard story to read. I had to stop several times along the way because it was too heavy. I did finish, but dang, this is a story.
Short, finished, deep, heavy, painful, beautiful.
Thanks for writing it.
askeron32Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
very compelling and engaging story. The Tragedy is strong with this one, i felt somewhat distressed while reading at some point.
I can really recommend this. Even though it is only those 19 chapters and i usually only dig long stories.
aspiringinspirationRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I haven't been so emotionally invested in a book for years. I completely forgot what that feels like and i want to thank the author from the bottom of my hart. while i like a lot of storys on royalroad most feel like they miss deapth. If i ever get to creating my own story i will definetely think back to when I stayed up all night to read epilogue.
jumpsplat120Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
pretty simply, epilogue is "what if some kids from suburban Oregon actually did Narnia?" what would they be like after they came back? all the war and trauma that they suffered, the lies that they led, right before being shoved back into their teenage bodies. what we have is basically only a vignette, but even in the 300 pages we get, a whole world is built. the tiny scraps we get from Jen and Carl and Matt are so evocative and I was instantly hooked.
do I want 10,000 pages? yeah, of course. but it's like cake; sometimes it's better to just have a little than a lot. the piece that we got was exactly what we needed. supposedly there's been a revised version as well that's been posted to Amazon that's a little bit longer, and that might help with the tiny bit of pacing hang ups I felt, but by and large the version on Royal road is good as is.
I'm probably going to be thinking about this book for a long time.
ViridiLupusRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Really enjoyed the whole idea and the execution was flawless, I feel that most authors have a hard time making the characters feel real, but with this story I felt invested all the way.
Although this could have both a sequel and a prequel, I feel it's just right as it is.
Yeah-uuhRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I would've given a 5 star advanced review, but I don't really want to write much.
All you have to know is that this is a great story. I'm extremely grateful to the author for bring this into our world.
RouniRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
I was a bit sceptical at first, but the concept was intriguing.
We follow a group of three, returning from their adventure, back to the real world. Having to readapt to normal society, trying to figur out who they were.
Solid characters, good progression, emotional development and interesting naration.
the author has masterfully created a small drama, turning around the usual fantasy story, there is love, betrayal, excitment.
I would love a continuation, or a story of what was before.
Overall a great sort story, that could be featured in any short-story magazine. Makes me feel that the Narnia kids had it easy.
spadesotospeakRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
very enjoyable, accomplished exactly what it set out to do. the characters are understandable and realistic, and damaged in about the way i expect a fantasy-isekai protagonist would be. the story itched my brain wonderfully, with a fitting end.
some of the introspective paragraphs seemed unnecessary and out of place, which is why i didn't give it 5 stars, but it's certainly not a deal breaker.
i never noticed anything wrong with the grammar, which i suppose means it's working as intended.
well done book, i will be checking out everything else by the author
fulgurTheQuietRoyal Road
★★★ 3.0
As a tear-jerker, this fiction does a decent job of moving people. The fact we only get hints of what happened in the parallel world rather than having things spelled out for us should make it harder for us as readers to emphasize with the characters, but we are given just enough detail that any sufficiently creative reader can fill the gaps for themselves. Unfortunately, despite being able to connect to some degree with the characters, we are not given enough time with them to build any truly meaningful bonds. This, along with the abruptness of the story's conclusion, left me feeling unsatisfied and disappointed. I do not believe there was enough time to properly develop the drama, especially that surrounding the characters of the "broken man" and the "girlfriend". I can somewhat excuse the cliche circumstances of the later character given that the drama happens near the end of the story, but the complete lack of any attempt to help the former left a sour taste in my mouth. Ultimately a slightly above average short story with a unique premise, but very unsatisfying conclusion.