Showing results by narrator "John Pirhalla" in All Categories

Without the threat of the Witch’s bloody harvest, the family elders have fallen into chaos. Internal squabbling has left them blind to this new enemy in their midst. Local legends have barely begun to fade when a group of tourists go missing. Some say the Witch has returned. But Basheba, Mina, and the others believe it could be something even worse. As the survivors dig deeper, they discover that one of their own may have been corrupted by an ancient evil - a power greater than anything they have faced before. But is the Bell Witch behind all this?

The darkest secrets of a Russian oligarch - a legacy from Stalin. A hidden batch of the CIA’s Stinger missiles. And the insatiable Afghan thirst for revenge. Ex-CIA war crimes investigator Joe Johnson is sucked into an inquiry which delves into the deadly world of Soviet and US undercover operations in Afghanistan during the 1980s - and mysterious connections to current US and Russian politics.

Betrayed by the Republic, Mathison and his Marines are separated. Hunted by the Republic, the SOG, and the vanhat, they have nowhere to turn but to each other.

Meet Calcannis Illudere, a certified dungeon accountant (TM), who takes on failing dungeon cores, turning their lairs into the hero-slaying death traps of their dreams. On Fidotopia, a world full of otherwise happy puppies, a sudden shift in the Tree of Souls has flooded a cynical stink slime’s disorganized dungeon with new energy. Now that rubbish dungeon is the number one destination for powerful raiders looking to level up quickly.

Mike and Beth didn't know each other existed before the night of the meteor shower. A melancholy film producer and a house sitter barely scraping by—chance made them neighbors, a bottle of champagne brought them together, and a shared need for human connection sparked something more. After a drunken and desperate one-night stand, the two strangers awake to discover a surprise astronomical event has left widespread destruction in its wake. But the cosmic lightshow was only part of something much bigger, and far more terrifying.

The Space Marines may have won the battle against the Kuiper Knights on LAM, but the war continues in the shadows. The Master is dead, but some of his top lieutenants evaded capture, and the UNT wants them to pay. To get revenge, UNT President Okoye signed the Swift Sword Protocol, which authorized the pursuit and assassination of certain fugitives.

Mathison and his Marines have been reunited, and they’ve found unlikely allies in their mission to save humanity, which is currently tearing itself apart. SOG systems are rebelling, the Republic wants to run away…and then there’s the whole invasion of the vanhat they have to contend with.

Awakening from cryo sleep after barely surviving the Tarrant System Battle, Captain Hazard King begins working on restoring the wrecked Imperial Fleet. The Swarm forces smell blood and press their victory, sending a strike fleet to attack the Fleet base at Icarus. In the past, the Empire had ten years between attacks. This time, they'll only have two. Even worse, the Empire doesn't have the forces or the technology needed to stop the massive Swarm fleet, and Hazard is stymied at every turn by an entrenched bureaucracy that is unable to give Hazard the resources required to win the war.

After the United Nations of Terra (UNT) Fleet Frigate Nelson reported an encounter with an alien spaceship, she disappeared without a trace. An alien race called the Maltaani have made their presence known by landing a mass of troops on Balfan-48, a desert planet located far too close to Terra Earth for comfort. Tensions are rising and tempers are growing short. The UNT responds by deploying ISMC’s Ninth Division aboard the flagship Atlas to the scene to investigate the Maltaani aggression.

Fresh from fighting bugs and clones on Pada-Pada, Second Lieutenant Abner Fortis and Third Platoon look forward to some well-deserved liberty on Eros-69, a plutoid colony built to provide all the earthly pleasures available in the far reaches of space. When Fortis’ nemesis reroutes Third Platoon to Eros-28 instead, though, the Space Marines discover they’ve been sent to an industrial colony with limited R&R opportunities and no way back to the flagship. Everything

There are none at the university who can teach Torian what it means for him to be a valsahir. When the headmaster suggests he convince the Viper to teach him, Torian must first prove he’s worthy. As secrets begin to unravel, the distinction between friend and foe blurs. The Viper, once thought an adversary, becomes an enigma, compelling Torian to grapple with a dangerous dilemma. Is the Viper genuinely the sinister force they have all feared?

After the President declared the Maduro Sector off-limits, a peace craze swept the United Nations of Terra, and the government enacted the Budget Realignment Act to reap the dividends of the peace by shifting funds from the defense budget to public services. Thousands of Space Marines and Fleet personnel were summarily dismissed from the service, and their ships and weapons were mothballed.

For nearly 2000 years, the Catholic Church has revered and protected its priceless, sprawling inventory of holy relics. From the bones of apostles to pieces of the cross Jesus died on, Catholics worldwide have long viewed their cherished relics as sacred - reminders of the possibility of miracles, of the power of the Almighty. But, some of the holiest relics in all of Christendom have been lost down through the centuries to war, thieves, or worse. And, the Catholic Church has spent untold blood and treasure to recover them - often to no avail.

Huon is weak. A surgecaller who escaped into the wilds, his only goal was to survive. Now he is Oathbound, forced to fight in an arena, forced to become stronger than he’d thought possible. As he realizes he can become strong, the need for revenge fills his heart, and a new goal forms in his mind. But his goal is impossible: Kill the dragon rider, the Immortal of Fire. To succeed, he’ll have to do more than just survive - he’ll have to advance beyond anything the realm has ever seen.

Could you sacrifice the lives of millions to save your daughter? When an archaeologist's daughter is abducted, he must find a powerful ancient relic to save her life but at the cost of millions of lives. Or is there another option?

Considering she had just attended her mother's funeral, Gloria Jaymes never expected to see the woman again, but then her dead mom shows up at her house. Gloria's mom is...different. She's younger than when she died, dressed in clothes from the 1980s. And nobody else in Gloria's family seems to recognize her. As Gloria tries to figure out the reason for her mother's reappearance and the odd behaviors the woman begins to exhibit, other bizarre events occur. The changes to Gloria's world are small and subtle, at first...then they become much more startling.

It begins in a small Southwestern town. Then, it spreads. Across the country, a series of strange deaths have overtaken the living. And a stranger compulsion has overtaken the dead. In a travesty of life, they drift with bizarre purpose toward an unknown destination. The walkers have become an obsession for investigator Miles Huerdeen. His father is one of them.

Amid the sweet sounds of a music box, their darkest fears will haunt them.... In Black River, Tennessee, everyone knows the legend of the Bell Witch...and the alleged curse that hangs like a dark shroud over the town. To some, it is just a local tall tale. But to others, it is terrifyingly real. For centuries, four families have been forced into the ritualistic tradition of sacrifice and terror. Every year, a member of each family stumbles upon an antique music box they need to lock before the time is up. And a horrible fate awaits them once the boxes open.

Searching the battlefield after a major battle, Sgt. Eli finds a dead Union Army messenger. In the messenger's bag is a message saying the South had surrendered, the war was over. Along with the Union Messenger was a dead Union Captain carrying his discharge papers, and 8,000 dollars. Sgt. Eli decides now is a good time to seek other opportunities, away from the stink of war. While buying supplies from his friend the quartermaster, he is advised to go to St. Louis. Those opportunities may lie there and a crowd to get lost in.

Hazard King was ready to get back to a normal life… Well, as normal a life as the next emperor of the Brittania Empire could expect, anyway. Hazard wanted to continue his naval career—to grow and take on positions of higher responsibility—because he knew the Swarm would be back, and he intended to be there to fight them when they returned. He had learned how to delegate, though, and while he was training, the rest of Team Hazard was tasked with eliminating the Marxist spy network, which they had discovered was mostly made up of rogue Imperial spies.