Why Windemere needs Champions, on #LisaBurtonRadio

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We’ve had our share of evil warlords, fallen angels, and general baddies on the show before, but never one the gods took a direct involvement in. My special guest today is none other than Baron Arthuru Kernaghan. “Welcome to the show, Baron.”

“My pleasure to be here. It’s nice to interact with non-demons for even a little while.”

“My research provided me with a little bio, and it says here that you have an on-again slash off-again relationship with a woman named Zaria. What’s that all about?”

“To say my marriage to the Goddess of Purity is complicated would be an understatement, so I will try my best to explain the situation. We were both mortals and worked in a traveling circus. I was a beast tamer and she was the resident swordswoman, which was fairly unique during that time. She was chosen to save the gods and I, being her friend and eventual husband, fought alongside her. At the end of our travels, she joined their ranks and I was left behind with a broken heart.”

“So how does one go from human to becoming a god?”

“When the gods have openings in their ranks, they may choose a mortal with the properties to replace them. Other times, they will find a mortal who becomes so powerful that it is better to have them ascend. In most cases, it involves being chosen, which is a system that I have never truly understood. I prefer the exceptions where a mortal gains godhood by their own hand.”

“That probably put a damper in your relationship with Zaria.”

“I supported her rise until she helped create what is known as the Law of Influence. This states that the gods cannot get physically involved in the lives of mortals. I was now a mortal and my wife was a goddess, which meant we could no longer be together. My petitions fell on deaf ears and I was basically cast aside after sacrificing so much. Zaria did try to find a place for me among the gods, but nothing happened.”

“Okay, so off again. But you had a plan to undo the Law of Influence.”

“More or less. At first, I sought to create such an imbalance in Windemere that the gods would have to get involved. I became the greatest warlord in history with the hopes of proving that the Law of Influence was a mistake. As the years progressed and my plan did not, I turned towards conquering everything. If the gods have no followers then they have no true power and I would make worshipping them punishable by death. Unless I found a way to ascend myself and then I could make the gods pay in person. It helps to be flexible and change your goals as situations evolve.”

“I dunno, Brain. What do you want to do tonight?”

“Pardon me?”

“So did that plan work out?”

“Not the way I intended, but isn’t that always the case? I had discovered a way to become the new God of Destiny, but the object I needed was lost. My forces were searching for it, including a young man named Gabriel. He came to me in the hopes of earning greatness and warned me of these champions destined to destroy me. Perhaps I was still a little naïve back then because I never realized that his true goal was to kill me himself and prove that destiny could be undermined. As much as I hate that man for targeting me and eliminating many of my children, I will admit that I like his ambition and goals.

“To continue the story, Gabriel did find me the Ring of Destiny and I took it before he could don it himself. That made me a god and I attempted to make the others suffer. At least, I went to Ambervale intending to do that, but my reunion with Zaria took precedence. She had a point that I could finally be with her and I enjoyed my brief time, but I was still far too angry that I had been left to suffer for so many years. After all, I’d promised my soul revenge.

“That was my mistake. I wasted too much time trying to live a life with Zaria that I had given up on and I was cast out of history before I could reach my goals. Some may say the conceiving of our daughter makes the experience worthwhile, but we’ve never had a close relationship. I do fear that the Law of Influence has hurt Dariana just as much, if not more, than me.”

“Seems like a strange path, but happy ever after, right?”

“Not in the least. As some may realize, Gabriel is the current God of Destiny, which means he stole my title and power. He was angry about me trapping him in the Chaos Void and his mood soured even more when he realized the Law of Influence prevented him from killing me. I was only an immortal and not a god. His decision was to trap me in the Chaos Void and erase my existence from history. Imagine living forever and being locked in a cage where nobody can find you. It was worse than that.”

“Come on, Baron. They wouldn’t just arbitrarily decide to do that. What did you do?”

“Gabriel can be such an angry and immature child when he is wronged. He lashed out at me because I tried to kill him. I feel he also wished to show his power in front of the other gods in order to prove he was stronger than them. Do not think I am trying to say I am a good man or even a victim. I did horrible things that earned the proper amount of wrath. Torture became a hobby of mine and I sought to improve upon the trade as often as I could. Quite frankly, I have to be honest and say that I’d have been destroyed if that insufferable Law of Influence didn’t exist, but then I wouldn’t have turned to evil in the first place either.”

“So you’re making another play at getting on-again with Zaria. You do realize she’s the goddess of purity, right?”

“Sadly, I think I’ve run out of chances and we’ve both gone too far down our different paths. I do take some joy from knowing we had a daughter. Dariana may have been made into a champion and sent against me, but she is still a symbol of the life I could have had.”

“So how’s that going to work into your plan? Do you have to turn Dariana to the dark side or something?”

“Dariana is free to do as she wishes. I would like for her to join my side, but destiny is difficult to destroy. Free will does play a role, which means I must leave the final decision to her. That is not to say I will go out of my way to kill her like the other champions or even fight her at full strength if I must. Perhaps I can defeat my enemies and destroy Gabriel’s plans before Dariana and I are forced to fight to the death. Sadly, we’ve been put at opposite sides of the chess board.”

“Baron, I usually wish people the best of luck at the end of these interviews, but this time not so much. I hope you can reunite with Zaria and reconcile your differences with Dariana. She’s nice, I’ve met her before. I can’t wish you luck in battle against the Champions. That’s the best I can do. Any closing comments for our listeners today?”

“Thank you for your kind words and I understand why you would wish for me to fail. I seek the conquering of an entire world, but I assure everyone that I will only be cruel to those who stand against me. Ruling entirely by fear will lead to revolts and failure. I’d much rather lead through a strong grip alongside an air of kindness.”

“You can read all about The Baron in the Legends of Windemere series, by Charles Yallowitz. The final book is out now, and it’s called Warlord of the Forgotten Age. I’ll post all the deets on the website after I go off the air.

“Help your favorite robot girl out, and use those sharing buttons too. I think the Baron would do it for you, and Charles has shared and reblogged many of these episodes for his fellow authors.

“I’m always looking for guests, so if you have a new release, or a promo push, contact me and get your character on the show. For Lisa Burton Radio, I’m Lisa Burton.”

***

Whether in darkness or light, every path inevitably comes to an end.

As Gabriel, the Destiny God, determined centuries ago, his chosen will face Baron Kernaghan for the fate of Windemere. Through many victories and losses, the champions have stood together and prepared for this great battle. Now that the Baron’s influence stirs those with evil hearts, they have run out of time and must travel to Shayd. Yet, there are more secrets for them to uncover before entering a battle where the only way to survive is surpassing limits and putting everything they have on the line. Through it all, Gabriel’s statement that he made them destined to fight, but winning was not set in stone rings in their minds.

Will the champions usher in an Age of Heroes or become the sacrifices for an Age of Darkness?

Book link-  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078KHZFSS/

 

Charles Yallowitz was born and raised on Long Island, NY, but he has spent most of his life wandering his own imagination in a blissful haze. Occasionally, he would return from this world for the necessities such as food, showers, and Saturday morning cartoons. One day he returned from his imagination and decided he would share his stories with the world. After his wife decided that she was tired of hearing the same stories repeatedly, she convinced him that it would make more sense to follow his dream of being a fantasy author. So, locked within the house under orders to shut up and get to work, Charles brings you Legends of Windemere. He looks forward to sharing all of his stories with you, and his wife is happy he finally has someone else to play with.

Blog: www.legendsofwindemere.com
Twitter: @cyallowitz
Facebook: Charles Yallowitz

Website: www.charleseyallowitz.com