It is there on the Heavenly Isle, an ancient bastion of divine order, where the gods have forsaken the past. With the abyssal tide ever closer to pulling them under its bleak waters, their desperation may have set the stage for a new power to arise. A demonkin of the deep with mysterious intentions has offered the gods a deal they could not refuse, only it seems that mortal kind must pay the price in their stead. Now a mounting wave of unfettered chaos threatens to upset everything the mortal races once knew to be true. The new paths to power are as lofty as they are dangerous, but stepping onto them may come at a price. It was on that night James' life was irrevocably changed, and a mysterious artifact resembling a tarot card suddenly appeared before him. While he may have dreamt of escaping his past, what haunts him now might just be the stuff of nightmares. Will he grasp the the depths of his newfound powers before it's too late? Note: Beyond Bleak is currently only posted here on Royal Road, and if you see it published on similar sites I would appreciate if you could report it for plagiarism. It's not something I'm particularly worried about in the short term since it's an ongoing project with an incomplete story, but do not be duped by any false links or profiles that claim to be me elsewhere. This is my second dedicated fiction and I am not monetizing or sharing this process anywhere outside Royal Road.