Fall into Darkness — Nicholas Yermakov

Before legally changing his name, Simon Hawke wrote as Nicholas Yermakov. This new edition of FALL INTO DARKNESS is back in print for the first time in over 30 years. Novi'kavkaz was an Earth colony that had lost its way. One day, the ships ceased to arrive from Earth. No one knew why or what had happened. The few ships sent out did not return. And finally, there were no more ships to send. The years passed, and the society on Novi'kavkaz began to stagnate and decay. All technological progress ended after several hundred years, and then came the regression.Two thousand years after the first humans came to Novi'kavkaz, even the planet's history was lost. The remnants of the marvelous technology were like grim reminders of another, spectral civilization. Some of the artifacts still worked, but for the most part, they were barely operative objects of mystery and speculation.The culture of Novi'kavkaz had begun to decay long before the machines wore out or the ships stopped coming. After two thousand years, the social structure had been distilled into an upper and a lower class. Those who ruled, and those who were ruled.But always, there were exceptions. The Z'kazan were a warrior class who served the pampered, decadent nobility, kept the working class in line, and lived by a rigid code of honor that defined them and their families. And one day, a glaring violation of that code set into motion events that completely changed the course of three young lives: A'drei, the tortured and confused young prince who did not want the throne he had no choice but to ascend; R'uslahn, the Z'kazan's son with a burning thirst for vengeance that no amount of violence could quench; and M'ikhail, his younger brother, who wanted nothing more than the peace that kept eluding him. And it all began with the casting of a gauntlet....