<p>     The Universe is void.  Reality exists only in the perfect embrace of the light and the dark.<br /><br><br /><br>  Haya and Haeldrun had the perfect arrangement.  She was the goddess of light, and he, the god of darkness.  Both were joined in an eternity of peace and bliss.  How the chaos began is unknown to all that lives, but some wise men say that it was the egos of the first two gods, others blame blind chance.</p><p>     Unexpectedly, the first couple was blessed with their three children. Their two sons, they named, Runnir and Gunnir, the sons of war and thunder, and their daughter they called Aluia, the goddess of peace and the waters.  As their names portray them, the brothers warred with each other for the approval and attention of their parents.  They were inseparable twins, but always at odds with each other.  One of their many fights accidentally brought about the creation of the worlds of the Universe and the tears of their sister Aluia fertilized the first gardens when life began anew.</p><p>     Haya was intrigued by this development and saw endless possibilities; Haeldrun was annoyed with his wife’s distractions.  Soon a rift began between the two original lovers that saw a goddess choose her new reality and a god skulk off to the darkness to create one of his own.<br /><br><br /><br>     Now both sides strive to maintain the upper hand over the other.  The goddess continues to try to reconcile with her love and preserve the light and life, but Haeldrun refuses to back down on his demands.  He commands that his wife snuff out all of her <em>other interests</em> and return her attention to him alone to prove her love and fidelity.</p><p>     So, Haya schemes to win back her betrothed while striving to maintain the life she loves, and The Underlord schemes to create a darkness so black that it will shut out all of her light and destroy all that lives.</p><p>     Puryn, the newborn son of humble beginnings has no idea what his goddess has planned for him.  The world known as <em>the Ert</em> has endured many dark, murderous days before his birth.  Heroes of humankind and the elder races have defeated all challenges to the light before now, but never the Ert beheld a force of destruction such as the one that Haeldrun has conjured and planned over thousands of years.</p><p>     This tome is the lore of Puryn, son of Durn and of those unsung heroes who stood together against the darkest moment in the history of a world known to all who live upon it as <strong><em>The Ert</em></strong>.</p><p>     <em><strong>The Champion of the Golden Queen</strong></em> is the first book in a series entitled, <em><strong>Tales of the Ert</strong></em>.</p>