GODSPEED | onc 2026 (YA Fantasy)

A world at war. Spies fighting in the shadows.

Niko Sapphire, a dedicated young agent of the Quorum, must unravel the sinister plots of a notorious alchemist and his alliance with the Siren kingdom of Lokesha before his homeland is ravaged by a new breed of creature, born of chaos and hellbent on tainting the ocean tides with blood for eternity.

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Doctor Kief Thondial is the deadliest man in the world, or so Niko Sapphire has been told. After surviving a mission that brought him into the heart of the demented alchemists' laboratory of twisted experimentations - a mission that left his best friend dead - Thondial is the last man Niko wants to see.

However, fate brings them back together on the tropical island kingdom of Lokesha, ruled by a power-hungry Siren Queen who wishes to use Thondial's expertise to extend her rule for eternity, even at the expense of her own people.

Forced to ally himself with the opposition, the enigmatic and beautiful mermaid spy, Skilla Striker of the Tidewielders, Niko must thwart Thondial's plan before the war for dominion over their world shifts in evil's favour.

Hunted by the sadistic assassin known as The Unhappy Man and pitted against nature on an island desperate to drown him, Niko will need the full alliance of his wit, charm, and rogueish instincts to defeat Thondial once and for all, but will his lust for revenge risk everything?

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Entered into the 2026 Open Novella Contest
Prompt #32 - Two assassins from rival organizations are sent on the same secret mission, only to realize the assignment hides a much bigger truth.