Unsung Heroes ― The First Paragon

Deep within the farm lands of Central New York is a beacon of pure unaligned power called a Nexus. A benevolent collective of gods have corrupted it to the point of bleeding out into the rest of the world by somehow abusing its power within an academy for adverse youth. A mysterious man, Tribe, must discover their grand design within the academy and forge more like himself, an immortal with unreal powers, to battle all forms of evil gods, and their kind, directly. If he fails his quest, then all of existence may fall with him. During Tribe’s first and initial investigation, he unexpectedly meets Teagan Carter, a woman who works for the system he is there to infiltrate. After she befriends him by accident, Tribe realizes she is one of the chosen he planned on eventually making like him. Though earlier than expected, Tribe feels as though fate has shown him the greater path. From the start of a simple handshake, Tribe begins her dark journey into becoming a force of nature to rival gods. Though Tribe seems truly benevolent, he himself is missing valuable portions of his immortal life. He struggles with this knowledge knowing fully that his wife, the first goddess, knows more than she is willing to tell. Teagan lives a life of tragedy under the guise of innocence and beauty. Her son Bentley is the only light of her life. She would do anything to shield him from her darkness. She exists within her façade to the point of victimized ignorance. Her life is a series of tragedies hidden by the veneer of truth fabricated by the darkest parts of her soul. Tribe knows that before she can truly become the warrior she is meant to be, then she must first burn both herself and her false self all the way through her blackened roots. As he infiltrates the academy, Tribe finds the key to igniting that fire in her and captures a very ancient evil that has been dominating the campus with his presence. There has never been another like himself, so Tribe, in his infinite curiosity, can't help but run a series of medical examinations to gather more intelligence on what they both are. What they find is that their power is nearly identical, but also distinctly different. Together they train for days and weeks straight in order to ready themselves for the forsaken world that exists and the war that is surely coming for every mortal soul in the world. At first she is petrified of the idea that she, the small, fearful one, would be the one fighting instead of the one to run away. It is only then, as she is baptized in the crucible of battle, does she discover her ferocious battle lust, her near invincibility, and perspective of omnipotence. Tribe is careful to temper Teagan's newfound power. He teaches her that one of the most powerful tools against gods and there kind is the fact that omnipotence is an illusion, their illusion. If she is to truly overcome the darkness within, she must be as humble as she is powerful and she will maintain the foundation of the good person she already is. Upon the final test, the ancient evil Tribe had saved for Teagan, escapes after Tribe is mysteriously incapacitated. Whether she is ready or not, the fate of the world rests on her strength to overcome the darkness that has withered her soul and take down the beast that has been set loose upon Ithaca, New York. Mistakes are made, but Teagan continually adapts to each plight set before her. A battle rages across the city. Teagan manages to lure the beast away to the outskirts of the city so that she may stage the final stand. Her enemy eventually dominates her will and body. It is only after the beast mistakenly threatens the life of her son that Teagan releases a fury and rage that defeats him and the darkness within. Unexpectedly, as Tribe awakens and arrives, Teagan's triumph burns them both to ash and are later reborn as beings the universe has never witnessed. Before, they both feared their singular destinies. Now, they would forever face them together.

Ian William Verano Rupe is a New York State author. His passions include character design, reading, athletics, and gaming. He graduated from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh with a Bachelor’s Degree in Multi-Media. His favorite art form in writing is creating science fiction characters filled with dark and dramatic storytelling. In most cases, they are paired with powers that directly relates to their individual developing personalities, and or, apart of how they manipulate or perceive their story. Many of his story elements are translated, real world tragedies of his own that he solves, or resolves with his imagination. He is the proud single father of two, who inspire him each and every day with their imagination. His dream is do be the best father that he can be first and bestselling author second. This is his first novel of this series, and the beginning of many more to come.