written & illustrated by
ricci mann victorio
The Guardian of the Faewild Trilogy
About the Trilogy
An exciting fantasy trilogy for YA/Adult readers.
An ancient Prophecy foretold the Misted Veils, the barrier between the Faewild and the Material Plane would become porous enough for monsters and mortals to pass between the worlds, bringing chaos and destruction to all. The Prophecy said a Champion that was not a blood-born Fae, but an Outsider from Within, would protect the borders and be able to maintain the Misted Veils.
At the end of the Taulirian War, Naiad Guardians rescued an orphaned newborn ogreling from certain death. The Foundling was delivered to three forest dwarves, to be raised in secret and learn the ways of the Fae. For centuries, the Faewild Queen had searched for a halfling worthy or capable, without success. Could this ogreling possibly be the Outsider to fulfill the Prophecy and save the realms?
The Foundling
Book One of The Guardian of the Faewild
In Book One, Ymir, a young ogre raised by adoptive dwarven parents, faces a dangerous trial: the Faewild Rites of Passage known as the "Little Death." To prove his worth and earn his place among the Treebeard Clan, he must drink a deadly potion brewed from the Faerie's Breath Mushroom and faerie blood. This perilous concoction separates his spirit from his body, allowing him to journey to the otherworldly realm of the Ethereum. There, he will glimpse his true destiny and undergo a spiritual rebirth, shedding his monstrous nature and embracing his higher self. Only by achieving this "Whole Self" can he begin training with the Five Elemental Maesters, who will guide him in mastering the hidden powers within nature.
Ymir's path is fraught with challenges from a young age and endures countless setbacks in his training. Elder Balin Grumblechin, the Keeper of the Ancient Ways, vehemently opposes Ymir's presence among the dwarves, believing an ogre should never be entrusted with the secrets of the Faewild. Grumblechin makes it his personal mission to thwart Ymir's progress, convinced that he is protecting the Faewild from a monstrous threat. Were it not for the intervention of his Uncle Galen Wordbender, a respected elder and counselor to the Queen, Ymir would surely fail in his quest to prove his worth so he would be accepted to train with the Five Elemental Maesters, and ultimately become a Chosen Guardian.
Coming Soon!
Trials of the Maesters
Book Two of The Guardian of the Faewild
[in development]
In Book Two, with his blood now infused with the essence of the Fae blood after surviving the Little Death, Ymir faces the trials of the Five Elemental Maesters. Queen Tarellethiel commands the Maesters to test Ymir's limits, pushing him to the brink of his endurance and risking his very life. They are to push him beyond his understanding of reality to the edge of madness and challenge his every belief. Skepticism surrounds the ogre; many doubt his trustworthiness and secretly hope he perishes in these trials. But should he prove his worth, he will earn the title of Queen's Chosen Guardian, the first and only individual to have survived all five trials. This achievement, they hoped, would prepare him to be their Champion in facing an even greater threat: the looming destruction of the Misted Veils and potentially, the Five Realms.
Meanwhile, the Aerin, the sacred book of runes, becomes a pawn in a dangerous game. Anbella, now Taen-certh and Runemaster after her mother's death in the Thousand-Year War, guards the Aerin's secrets. Elder Balin Grumblechin, consumed by envy and ambition, plots to steal the book, believing it will grant him ultimate power and influence over the Treebeard Clan and the Queen's Court. He despises Galen Wordbender and his favored position with the Queen, and sees an opportunity in Anbella's journey through the treacherous Nogothrim Mountains. With the help of his hobgoblin gang, Grumblechin schemes to eliminate the dwarves, seize the Aerin, and ensure Ymir's demise.
