Excerpt of The Dark Age by Jeff W. Horton

It has been five–hundred years since the Pulse caused the Great Collapse, ending the Golden Age, and civilization on planet Earth. Humanity has waited ever since for a long–anticipated sign from God, which has finally appeared in the night sky. The time has come for Ferrell Young, the Warrior Clan, and the Church to risk everything in an effort to restore civilization, and bring hope to a world full of despair.

Alex Montgomery is an archaeologist who has spent many years looking for a mysterious book on behalf of the Holy Christian Church. The book is said to contain the location of the Great Oracle which, according to legend, can endow the one who finds it with great power and wealth. Of much greater importance to the Clan and the Church however, is the fact that it may also enable the world to emerge from five centuries of darkness and suffering.

When a powerful, intelligent, but sadistic barbarian leader named Kraken learns of the Oracle, he plans to destroy the Warrior Clan and the Church, take the Oracle for himself, and enslave the rest of humanity.

Join Ferrell and his companions as they set out on a desperate journey to find the Great Oracle, and rescue humanity from The Dark Age.

""Prologue

It has been five–hundred years since the Pulse bathed the earth in a brilliant flash, instantly ending the Golden Age of humanity. At the speed of light, it destroyed modern technology all over the planet, ushering in the Great Collapse, and the conclusion of ten–thousand years of civilization. There had been no time to prepare, for the end came without warning. The cause of the cataclysm remained a mystery however, until one night people looked to the skies during the time of the Great Collapse, and found a new, beautiful, heavenly light there. Scientists soon uncovered the painful truth behind the fantastic lights; the Pulse was not alone when it struck the earth. The appearance of the powerful electromagnetic pulse had coincided with the arrival of a significant coronal mass ejection from the sun, trapping the power of the Pulse in the earth's magnetic field, creating a brilliant, nightly light show, similar to the aurora borealis in appearance, which came to be known as The Effect.

The terrible consequence of the Effect kept the people of the Golden Age from rebuilding the most advanced civilization in human history. Gradually, over the course of time, more and more of the accumulated knowledge that existed during the Golden Age began to fade from human memory. The abrupt loss of all modern technology had been a shock to the world's collective system, a catastrophe from which it was unable to recover. The subsequent descent into the darkness that began during the Great Collapse continued well into the period known as the Dark Age. After several hundred years, the rapid decline of civilization eventually leveled off, leaving humanity at a level of technology comparable to life during the Middle Ages, a time when illiteracy was the rule instead of the exception, and the world was ruled by the sword, and by the bow.

The Holy Christian Church, which has existed since the time of Christ, has now survived two dark ages. The unified Church has been the only light of hope for the people of the Dark Age, maintaining a continual presence in Rome, which serves as the nerve center of the Church, and a beacon of hope to Christian pilgrims from all over the world.

The Warrior Clan, founded during The Great Collapse by a group of ex–soldiers and civilians, maintains enclaves scattered throughout the Outlands. Shunning contact with the outside world since its inception, members of the Warrior Clan are disciplined fighters, constantly striving to perfect their martial skill. They are recognized and feared throughout the known lands as fierce and accomplished warriors.

Urbas inhabit the crumbling meros, all that remains of the great urban metropolises that once dotted the surface of the Earth. Living together in packs of twenty or more, they are the descendants of the few men and women that remained in the great cities during the Great Collapse. They survive by preying on outsiders and on each other, with allegiance to no one other than their pack, and themselves. The balance of humanity clusters in small, scattered villages, working mostly as farmers.

The Dark Age is a harsh and unforgiving time. The Golden Age and the Ancients are now largely remembered only in bedtime stories for small children. Just as the light always burns brightest in the darkness however, hope remains as some cling stubbornly The Dark Age Survivors of the Pulse to their faith, praying that one day the light of civilization will return. For among the many stories passed down from generation to generation over the centuries there exists an ancient prophecy, dating from the time of the Great Collapse. The prophecy holds that one day a sign would appear from God, announcing to believers that the time had come to find and activate the Great Oracle of Knowledge, giving the world the opportunity to emerge from the great darkness, into a glorious new Golden Age.