Acknowledgements and Thanks
First to my wife Kathleen, for giving me the time
To Toni Weisskopf, for giving me the chance
To Tony Daniel, for giving excellent editorial advice
And to my Beta-Readers, for giving me encouragement and feedback—especially my Loyal Lieutenant, Shana.
This novel is dedicated to three people without whom it would never have been written:
First to Jeffrey Getzin, author of the self-published novel Prince of Bryanae, in whose campaign Kyri Vantage (then Kyrie Ross) was first born. Thank you, Jeff, for one of the most intense campaigns I have been in…and thank you for visiting my own world, and taking Bryanae itself with you, to live a greater and brighter life of its own.
Second to Dana Renee LaJeunesse, for demanding and guiding the original creation of…a certain species (spoilers!). Thank you, Dana, for that and so much more. "Fear Me!"
And third to Robert Rudolph, who helped create Skysand, and who first created a character named Tobimar Silverun. That character's adventures were different…yet the spirit of the character is, I think, very much the same. Thank you for entering Zarathan and leaving it richer than before, Rob—and may I never have to deal with another player so incredibly lucky!
