The Third Era has arrived and is surrounded by darkness within the new year 10,000. However, the Dark Lord DeVorn has returned to finish what he started once again. However, King Ralowrick of Yellowstone is weak and unfit to protect his people as the Emperor of Darkness arises from the pits of darkness. With everything covered in hate and anger, the tides must turn for everyone. Secrets will be out, and enemies will rise to take what's now open for anyone.
After the battle of Elvenworth, Khaladi escapes with the undead queen Aymar. Finally, together, the three companions are fighting the demon orc sisters while they pledge with Khaladi. Together, they will fight the corruption and reunite the mermaids to fight next to their prince who will be their new king. Tyren II will go through the halls of the once great king, Tyrion Tyren I. The Atlanteans don’t think he is ready, but the trials of the kings will make him ready to become the mermaid king and reunite his people, but the darkness has risen quickly, and the gods have many plans for the one true king.
The gods have been angered.Hell will rain down.After Wic and the Phantom's successful operation on Karkin Four, the team learns of the enemy's plans for a swift retaliation: an all-out assault on New York City.Together, Wic must rally the team's resources to plan an emergency counterassault that will push the Phantoms to their limits. With help from unexpected places, mission success seems all but assured.But when a new terrifying technology emerges, Wic must face the most challenging choice of all: sacrifice his teammates for the fate of Earth.Allegiances will be tested, friendships will fray, and the planet will march toward the greatest darkness it has ever encountered.Read Christopher Hopper and J.N. Chaney's next edition to the runaway hit Ruins of the Earth series as Wic and Phantom Team race against time in Phantom Deadfall. For fans of Galaxys Edge, Expeditionary Force, and District 9-the fate of the world waits for you.
An exploration of the many forms of the ancient myth of the Wild Hunt and its influence in pagan and early Christian Europe • Recounts the myriad variations of this legend, from the Cursed Huntsman and King Herla to phantom armies and vast processions of sinners and demons • Explains how this belief was an integral part of the pagan worldview and was thus employed by the church to spread Christian doctrine • Reveals how the secret societies of medieval Europe reenacted these ghostly processions for soul travel and prophecies of impending death Once upon a time a phenomenon existed in medieval Europe that continuously fueled local lore: during the long winter nights a strange and unknown troop could be heard passing outside over the land or through the air. Anyone caught by surprise in the open fields or depths of the woods would see a bizarre procession of demons, giants, hounds, ladies of the night, soldiers, and knights, some covered in blood and others carrying their heads beneath their arms. This was the Wild or Infernal Hunt, the host of the damned, the phantom army of the night--a theme that still inspires poets, writers, and painters to this day. Millennia older than Christianity, this pagan belief was employed by the church to spread their doctrine, with the shapeshifters' and giants of the pagan nightly processions becoming sinners led by demons seeking out unwary souls to add to their retinues. Myth or legend, it represents a belief that has deep roots in Europe, particularly Celtic and Scandinavian countries. The first scholar to fully examine this myth in each of its myriad forms, Claude Lecouteux strips away the Christian gloss and shows how the Wild Hunt was an integral part of the pagan worldview and the structure of their societies. Additionally, he looks at how secret societies of medieval Europe reenacted these ghostly processions through cult rituals culminating in masquerades and carnival-like cavalcades often associated with astral doubles, visions of the afterlife, belief in multiple souls, and prophecies of impending death. He reveals how the nearly infinite variations of this myth are a still living, evolving tradition that offers us a window into the world in which our ancestors lived.
The soul of the Hierarch had revived the theory of destiny; another battle had created a bloody storm!He had thought that it was only because the heavens had eyes, that he would be able to return to the Sky Realm and take revenge for his death. Who would have thought that it would be the Divine Lord's guidance that had chosen him as the child of the gods, giving humanity hope.He commanded the Sky Profound Realm, dominated the White Spirit Realm, and stepped into the nine heavens of the Gods and Demons.Absolute Monarch Sanctuary, Devil Slayer, Universal Palm!
A secret buried in the Antarctic. A puzzle unsolved for thousands of years. And a Brooklyn-born Master Gunnery Sergeant who's royally pissed that he has to babysit the researchers sent to figure it all out. Patrick "Wic" Finnegan's last op as a Marine Raider before retirement sends him to the frozen Ellsworth Subglacial Highlands. The only reason he's here? He owes a favor to an old friend-but that doesn't mean he has to like it. When Wic finally sees what the team has uncovered, he can't believe his eyes, nor is he prepared for the violence to come. Soon, the portal opens and unleashes a storm of unbridled fury upon humanity. From the Antarctic tundra to the streets of Manhattan, Wic and his team will be pushed to their limits as they fight to hold back Earth's ultimate threat. The odds are against them. Governments are toppling. And the Earth is falling into ruin. Join bestselling authors Christopher Hopper and J.N. Chaney on what readers call a "non-stop, break-neck thrill ride into metaspace." For fans of District 9, Expeditionary Force, and Galaxy's Edge, this is one military sci-fi thriller you won't be able to put down, and the official prequel to the hit series Ruins of the Galaxy.
Does neuroscience have anything to say about religious belief or the existence of God? Some have tried to answer this question, but, in doing so, most have strayed from the scientific method. In The Phantom God, computational biologist and neuroscientist John C. Wathey, Ph.D., tackles this problem head-on, exploring religious feelings not as the direct perception by the brain of some supernatural realm, nor as the pathological misfiring of neurons, but as a natural consequence of how our brains are wired. Unlike other neurobiological studies of religion and spirituality, The Phantom God treats mysticism not as something uniquely human and possibly supernatural in origin, but as a completely natural phenomenon that has behavioral and evolutionary roots that can be traced far back into our vertebrate ancestry. Grounded in evolutionary and behavioral biology, this highly original and compelling book takes the reader on a journey through the neural circuitry of crying, innate knowledge, reinforcement learning, emotional bonding, embodiment, interpersonal perception, and the ineffable feeling of certainty that characterizes faith. Wathey argues that the feeling of God’s presence is spawned by innate neural circuitry, similar to the mechanism that compels an infant to cry out for its mother. In an adult, this circuitry can be activated under conditions that mimic the extreme desperation and helplessness of infancy, generating the compelling illusion of the presence of a loving, powerful, and all-knowing savior. When seen from this perspective, the illusion also appears remarkably like one that has long been familiar to neurologists: the phantom limb of the amputee, spawned by the expectation of the patient’s brain that the missing limb should still be there. Including a primer on the basic concepts and terminology of neuroscience, The Phantom God details the neural mechanisms behind the illusions and emotions of spiritual experience. ,
The medieval legend of the Grail, a tale about the search for supreme mystical experience, has never ceased to intrigue writers and scholars by its wildly variegated forms: the settings have ranged from Britain to the Punjab to the Temple of Zeus at Dodona; the Grail itself has been described as the chalice used by Christ at the Last Supper, a stone with miraculous youth-preserving virtues, a vessel containing a man's head swimming in blood; the Grail has been kept in a castle by a beautiful damsel, seen floating through the air in Arthur's palace, and used as a talisman in the East to distinguish the chaste from the unchaste. In his classic exploration of the obscurities and contradictions in the major versions of this legend, Roger Sherman Loomis shows how the Grail, once a Celtic vessel of plenty, evolved into the Christian Grail with miraculous powers. Loomis bases his argument on historical examples involving the major motifs and characters in the legends, beginning with the Arthurian legend recounted in the 1180 French poem by Chrtien de Troyes. The principal texts fall into two classes: those that relate the adventures of the knights in King Arthur's time and those that account for the Grail's removal from the Holy Land to Britain. Written with verve and wit, Loomis's book builds suspense as he proceeds from one puzzle to the next in revealing the meaning behind the Grail and its legends.
An essential feature of religious experience across many cultures is the intuitive feeling of God's presence. More than any rituals or doctrines, it is this experience that anchors religious faith, yet it has been largely ignored in the scientific literature on religion.Starting with a vivid narrative account of the life-threatening hike that triggered his own mystical experience, biologist John Wathey takes the reader on a scientific journey to find the sources of religious feeling and the illusion of God's presence. His book delves into the biological origins of this compelling feeling, attributing it to innate neural circuitry that evolved to promote the mother-child bond. Dr. Wathey argues that evolution has programmed the infant brain to expect the presence of a loving being who responds to the child's needs. As the infant grows into adulthood, this innate feeling is eventually transferred to the realm of religion, where it is reactivated through the symbols, imagery, and rituals of worship. The author interprets our various conceptions of God in biological terms as illusory supernormal stimuli that fill an emotional and cognitive vacuum left over from infancy. These insights shed new light on some of the most vexing puzzles of religion, like the popular belief in a god who is judgmental and punishing, yet also unconditionally loving; the extraordinary tenacity of faith; the greater religiosity of women relative to men; religious obsessions with sex; the mysterious compulsion to pray; the seemingly irrepressible feminine attributes of God, even in traditionally patriarchal religions; and the strange allure of cults. Finally, Dr. Wathey considers the hypothesis that religion evolved to foster reproductive success, arguing that, in an age of potentially ruinous overpopulation, magical thinking has become a luxury we can no longer afford, one that distracts us from urgent threats to our planet.Deeply researched yet elegantly written in a jargon-free and accessible style, this book presents a compelling interpretation of the evolutionary origins of spirituality and religion.
