Sky's End

Sky's End Plot Summary

Introduction

# Rising Through Fallen Skies: A Tale of Ambition and Redemption Snow falls like ash on the broken city below, each flake carrying the weight of six years of exile. Conrad stands at his attic window, watching the lights of Urwin Manor gleam from the mountain's crown like a taunt. His mother, Elise, sits by their dying fire, her once-powerful frame now skeletal, coughing black tar into bloodstained rags. The woman who once commanded respect as Lady of Holmstead now withers in the acid-soaked air of the Low districts, while above them, Conrad's uncle Ulrich rules as Archduke from the stolen throne. When massive steel-scaled serpents called gorgantauns descend from the sky to devour entire neighborhoods, Conrad sees his chance for redemption. The Hunter Trade seeks the strongest to pilot skyships against these metallic monsters in a brutal competition called the Gauntlet. But as Conrad rises through blood and sacrifice, he discovers the gorgantauns are not mere beasts but weapons in an ancient war. Far beneath the impenetrable clouds, an enemy civilization plots the destruction of the floating islands, and their next strike will make the sky itself burn.

Chapter 1: The Fallen Heir: From Noble Blood to Low Streets

The gorgantaun attack comes like a nightmare made real. Conrad watches from the manor's dock as the sky serpents descend, their steel scales gleaming in the moonlight, their golden eyes burning with endless hunger. The creatures stretch over four hundred feet, their bodies undulating through the air like ribbons of death. Anti-gorgantaun cannons blast from the High districts, painting the sky in blue flame, but the beasts keep coming. The largest opens its maw and grinds through entire neighborhoods in the Lows, consuming houses and screaming people like a shovel scraping through dirt. Conrad runs through collapsing streets, his bare feet bleeding on broken glass, racing toward the tavern where his mother waits. But when he arrives, only smoldering ruins remain. McGill finds him there in the ash, hands him his father's dueling cane, and speaks the words that shatter what's left of Conrad's world. She didn't make it out. In the aftermath, McGill gives Conrad a box his mother had hidden away. Inside, he finds her dueling cane topped with the black stag of House Hale, and twelve golden coins bearing the symbols of the Trades. Each coin represents a path to power, a chance to rise above the station that killed his mother. But only one Trade offers what Conrad truly needs: the chance to prove his strength and reclaim his birthright. When Selection Day arrives, he uses his uncle's money and his mother's teachings to enter the most dangerous competition in the Skylands. Hunter Trade doesn't just test the mind or body. It tests the soul against creatures that can level cities in a single night. The mortality rate speaks for itself: one in five Selections don't survive training. But Conrad no longer cares about survival. He cares about rising high enough to reach his sister Ella, to honor his mother's memory, and to make his uncle pay for every moment of suffering he's caused.

Chapter 2: Selection and Sacrifice: Choosing the Hunter's Path

The Academy on Venator Island rises from jungle-covered slopes like a fortress built to forge weapons from human flesh. Conrad finds himself in the dungeons with his roommate Roderick, a bearded boy whose inventive mind masks surprising loyalty. The stone corridors echo with the scratching of ratchlons, metal insects that burrow through walls and can tear through human flesh with their pincers. It's Hunter's way of ensuring their Selections never feel safe, never grow complacent. Master Trainer Madeline de Beaumont proves as unforgiving as the creatures they'll soon face. She drives them through lessons on gorgantaun anatomy, weapon systems, and aerial combat tactics. When Harold falls asleep during a lecture, she makes him scrub the floor like the lowest Swabbie while explaining how such inattention would get him dissolved alive in a gorgantaun's stomach. The training is relentless: running on metal tracks with magnetic boots that feel like lead weights, learning to fire harpoons from shoulder-mounted launchers, studying the behavioral patterns of creatures that exist only to consume and destroy. Conrad excels at everything except the one thing that matters most in Hunter culture: making allies. He sits alone during meals, trains in isolation, and keeps his fellow Selections at arm's length. When Bryce of Damon tries to befriend him, he rebuffs her attempts with suspicion. When Roderick offers genuine companionship, Conrad questions his motives. He's learned too well that trust is a luxury that leads to betrayal. But Master Koko sees through his defenses during a private conversation. She tells him bluntly that he's the weakest Selection of the year, not because he lacks skill, but because he refuses to understand that leadership requires followers. No one has ever commanded a skyship alone. The strongest Hunters are those whose crews choose to follow them, not those who rule through fear. Her words sting because they're true, but Conrad's scars run too deep to heal quickly. The Day of Duels approaches, and with it, his chance to prove that a fallen heir can rise again through strength alone.

Chapter 3: Trials of Sky and Steel: Academy Training and Early Bonds

The Day of Duels arrives like a reckoning written in blood and sand. Under the blazing sun of the High amphitheater, Conrad faces Frederick in the opening match. Six years of fighting in the Low pits have prepared him for this moment. When the bell rings, he unleashes every ounce of fury and frustration he's carried since his exile. Frederick falls unconscious within nine seconds, and the judges award Conrad a perfect score of fifty. But Pound of Atwood, the massive brute who once tormented Conrad in the Low districts, has his own plans for revenge. He corners Conrad beneath the arena stands with a gang of cronies, delivering a bone-crushing punch to Conrad's ribs that leaves him gasping and broken. When Conrad's name is called for his second match, he can barely breathe, let alone fight. His opponent is Bryce, the girl who saved his life during the gorgantaun attack on Holmstead, and now she stands between him and his dreams of captaincy. The duel becomes a brutal test of will against agony. Every movement sends fire through Conrad's broken rib, every breath a struggle against the pain Pound inflicted. Bryce fights with the desperation of someone whose entire island depends on her success, landing blow after blow while Conrad struggles to mount any offense. But in the final moments, rage overcomes pain. He drives her back with a series of strikes that showcase the skill his father beat into him, nearly securing victory before time expires. The judges' scores flash like a death sentence: thirty-six to Bryce's thirty-seven. One point. One single point separates Conrad from command of his own ship, from the chance to prove himself worthy of the Urwin name. Instead, he'll enter the Gauntlet as someone else's subordinate, forced to rise from the very bottom of Hunter's hierarchy. The irony isn't lost on him when Pound, who can barely duel properly but possesses the size of a small mountain, wins the entire tournament through brute force alone. Conrad boards the skyship Gladian wearing the green badge of a Swabbie, the lowest rank possible, while Captain Pound savors his victory with the cruel satisfaction of old grudges finally settled.

Chapter 4: The Gauntlet's Crucible: Leadership Through Fire and Loss

The Gladian cuts through southern skies like a silver arrow, carrying Conrad and seven other Selections toward their trial by fire in the Hornthrow Isles. These abandoned islands once housed thriving cities, but now serve as breeding grounds for the gorgantauns that threaten civilization itself. Conrad wears the green badge of a Swabbie, condemned to polish boots and scrub decks while others make the decisions that will determine their fate. Captain Pound's leadership proves as brutal as expected. He assigns Conrad humiliating tasks designed to break his spirit: waxing everyone's boots, cleaning latrines, working through the night while others sleep. When Conrad burns breakfast intentionally to prove a point, Pound retaliates with even more degrading duties. The crew watches this power play unfold, some with sympathy, others with the cold calculation of those who understand that today's victim might be tomorrow's ally. But Conrad has learned patience in the Low districts, where survival required enduring humiliation until the moment came to strike back. During his sleepless nights on deck duty, he works on a secret project, cutting fabric and shaping metal rods in the shadows. His plan is audacious beyond reason: if he can take down an adult gorgantaun single-handedly, Hunter tradition will elevate him to Captain regardless of his current rank. Only two people in history have accomplished this feat, and both became legends. The first test comes when Pound's arrogance leads them straight into a pod of sleeping gorgantauns. When the attack begins, chaos erupts across the deck. Patience, their Strategist, dies horribly as a gorgantaun's tail slices her in half, her blood painting the deck red. The crew's unity shatters as they realize their Captain's hunger for glory has led them into a death trap. Sebastian of Abel, the quiet Cook with calculating green eyes, begins maneuvering for power in the aftermath, his innocent facade hiding the mind of a born manipulator. Conrad sees through Sebastian's mask but lacks the support to challenge him directly when the inevitable mutiny comes.

Chapter 5: Solo Flight: The Rise of an Unlikely Captain

The mutiny against Pound happens in the ship's lowest level, where shadows hide the crew's desperate whispers. Sebastian reveals his true nature as he maneuvers for power, his harmless appearance masking a calculating intelligence that Conrad recognizes too late. When Sebastian becomes Captain, he immediately begins reshuffling positions to reward loyalty and punish potential threats, playing crew members against each other with whispered suggestions and planted doubts. Under Sebastian's command, the Gladian faces its greatest test yet. A massive class-five gorgantaun, enraged by the death of its mate, attacks with the fury of a living hurricane. The beast's scales deflect their weapons like rain, its roar shakes the ship's frame, and its sheer size makes their vessel seem like a toy boat in a storm. When Sebastian's desperate plan fails catastrophically, the ship suffers devastating damage, and Sebastian himself falls screaming into the monster's maw. With the Gladian crippled and the crew facing certain death, Conrad makes his choice. He leaps from the stern into open sky, activating the wings he's secretly constructed from sailcloth and metal rods. The improvised glider carries him onto the gorgantaun's back, where he begins the most harrowing journey of his life. Two hundred and fifty feet of armored death separate him from the creature's skull, every step a battle against waves of defensive scales that could crush him like an insect. The beast writhes and rolls, trying to dislodge its unwanted passenger, but Conrad presses forward with the determination of someone who has lost everything and refuses to lose anything more. He reaches the creature's eye, fires his hidden clawgun into the golden orb, and uses the last of his strength to plant an explosive charge deep in the monster's brain. The detonation ends the threat, but leaves Conrad bleeding and broken on the carcass of his kill. When the veteran Hunters arrive to witness what he's accomplished, they find a sixteen-year-old boy who has just redefined what's possible in their ancient war against the sky serpents. The crew's vote is unanimous when they make him Captain, but Conrad's first act surprises everyone: he nominates himself to remain as Swabbie as well, choosing to serve his crew rather than command from above.

Chapter 6: Shadows from Below: Uncovering Ancient Enemies

Conrad's transformation from outcast to Captain brings unexpected scrutiny. Master Koko herself visits their ship, her weathered face betraying concern as she questions Conrad about his impossible feat. The veteran Hunter speaks in riddles about ancient secrets and hidden truths, warning that the gorgantauns are more than mere beasts. They are weapons in a war most islanders never knew existed, crafted by enemies who dwell beneath the black clouds that shroud the world below. The revelation comes through Bryce, whose carefully constructed facade finally crumbles under pressure. Conrad discovers her communicating with mysterious contacts through illegal devices, speaking of failed missions and desperate plans. When confronted, she reveals the truth that Scholar Trade has hidden for centuries: beneath the black clouds lies another world, populated by humanity's forgotten enemies who create the gorgantauns as instruments of destruction against the floating islands above. Bryce herself is a spy from this Below realm, sent to infiltrate the Hunter Selection as part of a "peaceful proposition" to prevent all-out war. But her people have grown impatient with subtle infiltration, abandoning her mission in favor of something called "Downfall," a plan that will cost millions of lives. As Conrad grapples with this betrayal from someone he had begun to trust, Bryce drugs him and escapes in a stolen lifeboat, leaving behind only cryptic warnings about the storm to come. The crew reels from the discovery that they harbored an enemy agent, their unity shattered by paranoia and doubt. Conrad finds himself questioning every relationship, every moment of trust, wondering how many other infiltrators hide among the floating islands. Reports flood in of increased gorgantaun activity across the islands, while mysterious disappearances suggest the infiltration runs deeper than anyone suspected. As the Gauntlet nears its end, Conrad realizes they are not just competing for prizes and positions. They are training for a war that has already begun, fought in shadows and deception while the true enemy masses in the darkness below, preparing to unleash something that will make their previous attacks seem like gentle warnings.

Chapter 7: The Island Eater: War Erupts from the Depths

The war begins not with armies, but with betrayal at the highest levels. Conrad finds himself summoned to Ironside, the capital island, where his uncle Ulrich has seized the throne by killing the previous King in single combat. The reunion is poisonous with old hatred, but Uncle's offer cannot be ignored: accept the title of Prince and heir, and learn the location of Conrad's sister Ella, held captive for six years as leverage against his loyalty. The political maneuvering explodes into open conflict when Bryce, recaptured and imprisoned, reveals that Admiral Goerner, the Master of Order Trade, is himself an infiltrator from the Below. The revelation comes too late to prevent catastrophe as Goerner's forces seize control of Order's fleet, turning humanity's greatest military asset against itself. In the chaos that follows, Conrad barely escapes with his uncle and Bryce as Ironside comes under attack from an enemy beyond imagination. The gigataun rises from the black clouds like a mountain given life and malice. This ultimate weapon of the Below stretches over a mile in length, its red scales burning like fire as it shrugs off the combined firepower of entire fleets. Conrad watches in horror as the creature burrows into Ironside itself, devouring the island's crystal heart and sending the capital plummeting into the abyss. Hundreds of thousands of souls fall screaming into darkness while the survivors can only flee in whatever ships they can find. The battle that follows reveals the true scope of humanity's peril. Hunter and Order vessels throw everything they have at the gigataun, but their weapons barely scratch its armored hide. Conrad leads desperate rescue missions to save civilians from the collapsing city, his heart breaking as he watches children reach out from crowded docks while his ship lacks space to save them all. The creature's satisfied roar echoes across the sky as it retreats beneath the clouds, leaving behind only empty air where the greatest city in the world once floated. The message is clear: this was merely a demonstration of power, a warning of what awaits any who continue to resist the will of those who dwell in the depths below.

Chapter 8: Blood and Choice: Reclaiming Family and Purpose

In the aftermath of Ironside's destruction, Conrad faces the weight of his new title as Prince of the Skylands. Uncle offers him a massive Order carrier with hundreds of crew and unlimited resources, the kind of ship that could reshape the war effort. But when Conrad looks at the gleaming vessel, he sees only a gilded cage that would separate him from the family he has chosen over the one he was born into. The decision tears at his crew's unity as they prepare for the Hunter draft, where veterans can resign and seek new positions. Eldon chooses to leave, seeking his own command after proving his worth as Navigator. The loss cuts deep, but Conrad understands that in this world of Meritocracy, everyone must rise by their own strength. Yet when Pound announces his resignation to pursue his family's approval, Conrad realizes how much the brutal cook has come to mean to him. The revelation of Pound's change of heart comes as a surprise that warms Conrad's battle-hardened soul. The Atwood heir has discovered that his family rose back to High status without him, proving they never needed his sacrifice. Freed from their expectations, Pound chooses loyalty over blood, remaining with the crew that has become his true family. Together with Keeton, Roderick, and the reluctant Bryce, they form an unbreakable bond forged in combat and tempered by loss. Conrad's final choice comes when he retrieves Ella from the prowlon-infested island where Uncle left her to prove her strength. The reunion with his sister brings both joy and sorrow, as he sees how six years of Uncle's influence have shaped her into a weapon. Yet beneath the hardened exterior, traces of the little girl he once knew still shine through. As they return to Venator to prepare for the greater war ahead, Conrad understands that family is not just about blood. It is about the people willing to stand with you when the sky itself falls, and who choose to rise together rather than climb alone over the bodies of those they leave behind.

Summary

Conrad of Urwin stands on the deck of his ship as dawn breaks over Venator Island, the Hunter stronghold bustling with preparations for the war to come. He has reclaimed his noble name and royal title, but the cost of rising has left scars that will never fully heal. The boy who once dreamed of simple revenge against his uncle has become a man who understands that true strength lies not in domination, but in the bonds forged with those who choose to follow. His crew stands ready not because they must, but because they believe in something greater than their individual desires to rise. The gigataun's retreat offers only temporary respite, for the enemy below has shown their hand at last. The floating islands face extinction from creatures that dwarf their greatest weapons, while infiltrators work to destroy them from within. Yet Conrad has learned that even in this world of brutal Meritocracy, compassion and loyalty can triumph over cruelty and ambition. As new Hunter recruits arrive for accelerated training and the surviving Masters gather to plan their desperate defense, he faces the future with his sister at his side and his chosen family around him, ready to prove that some bonds are stronger than the forces that would tear them apart. In a world where everyone must eventually fall, they will rise together or not at all.

About Author

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Marc J. Gregson

Gregson charts a creative path that intertwines his passion for writing with his commitment to teaching, reflecting a belief in the transformative power of storytelling. He developed a fascination for writing in his teenage years, an interest that would later guide his literary pursuits despite facing significant obstacles, including 500 rejections over a decade. Gregson's perseverance paid off with the successful release of "Sky's End," the first book in his "Above the Black" trilogy, which became a New York Times bestseller and is now being adapted into a film. Meanwhile, his teaching career at Eastmont Middle School enables him to inspire students, drawing on his own journey to encourage resilience and creativity in their writing.\n\nThe core themes of Gregson's work focus on dark, dystopian narratives that examine the rebuilding of society post-disaster, often in isolated, confined worlds. His novels explore high-stakes competitions, survival, and rebellion against oppressive systems, using complex social structures to challenge characters' personal agency. This thematic exploration is evident in his young adult fantasy series and extends to his anticipated adult science fiction book, "Behind the Glass." Gregson’s method of crafting stories that examine human resilience amid adversity resonates with readers who appreciate intricate, thought-provoking narratives.\n\nFor those interested in literary works that emphasize the rebuilding of societies and personal growth under pressure, Gregson's books offer a compelling exploration of these themes. His influence from renowned authors such as Pierce Brown and Brandon Sanderson is apparent, yet his unique voice offers fresh perspectives on survival and unity. As a bestselling author, Gregson’s bio highlights not just his literary achievements but also his impact as an educator, fostering a new generation of writers who are encouraged to write without fear.

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