The one holding the weapon is the emperor! This was the story of a young man wielding a divine sword and a bronze mirror, saving the lives of countless mountains and rivers. Close]

“Any attempt at peace must be attended by a knowledge of self,” discovers writer and photographer Mikkel Aaland, who grew up with a bomb shelter for a bedroom, in terror of nuclear war. At the height of the Cold War, Aaland finds himself drawn into a mysterious Shinto priest’s plan to save the world. Traveling from Norway to the Philippines, Iceland to South Africa, he places pieces of a sacred Shinto sword in key power spots around the world. Along the way, he comes face to face with his deepest childhood fears of war and destruction, encounters the compelling and mysterious Shinto religion, struggles with the uncertainties of love, and learns to face life with an open heart. The Sword of Heaven tells the extraordinary true story of a journey in which all boundaries are pushed—geographical, cultural, and personal—and in which the healing of the world and the healing of one man appear to be inextricably linked.

Essays, analysis and exploration of hit TV show Heroes, from experts in the field of TV analysis.

The one holding the weapon is the emperor! This was the story of a young man wielding a divine sword and a bronze mirror, saving the lives of countless mountains and rivers. Close]

The one holding the weapon is the emperor! This was the story of a young man wielding a divine sword and a bronze mirror, saving the lives of countless mountains and rivers. Close]

The one holding the weapon is the emperor! This was the story of a young man wielding a divine sword and a bronze mirror, saving the lives of countless mountains and rivers. Close]

Synopsis: Several decades since the last Human War, and the World is almost back at its former glory. The scars of the last War can now only be found in the history books. After two millennia of self destruction, humanity finally managed to unify as a group under the rule of the Six Council. Under its regime, the remaining 156 countries around the world swore an oath to work toward peace and harmony. War becomes a taboo, and any country who breaks this rule will be punished severely. Technology progresses relatively fast in this so-called Utopia. Full dive technology that allows the user to experience a dream like reality known as VR (Virtual Reality) became really popular especially to the gaming industry. A world to escape humanity’s Utopia. Unlike reality who is heavily regulated by the rules and regulations of the Six Council. Virtual Reality becomes a symbol of freedom, far from the shackles that binds the current society. 2064 Human Era, a VRMMO (Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online) game, was launched on its Closed BETA test, Hollow Earth Online. With the game under the most popular genres: Action, Fantasy, RPG (Role Playing Game), many people were keen to try and play the game. After all, HEO's predecessor Arcadia Online, a game released by Atlas Inc. several years ago that garnered a few million players around the globe. Unlike Arcadia, HEO’s world is scaled like the world, a virtual reality under a single instance. Just like a typical fantasy rpg, HEO has one thing that reality lacks, “Magic” a phenomena that can’t be explained nor recreated by science. A world where magic exists and you can be whatever you want, or so everyone thought. Several thousand players worldwide received invitations to participate in the three-day Closed Beta Test event. Asriel, a college student, was among those who received an invitation email from Atlas Inc. to partake in the event as a Beta Tester. HEO seemed like just another fantasy VRMMO from a well-known developer, living up to everyone's expectations. However, little did they know, it was actually the prelude to an apocalypse unlike anything humanity had faced in the last two millennia.

Joan Messi has spent thirteen lonely years hiding her supernatural abilities from her parents, her classmates, and everyone in her white bread suburban community. However, her little world of secrets is shattered when a pair of strangers arrive from a parallel dimension on the hunt for a nameless criminal. Now, after a lifetime of wondering how she got her powers, Joan might have found the beginnings of an answer. For Daniel Thundyil and his father, elemental powers and ego-maniacal supervillains are nothing new-although this is the first time a mission has brought them to a parallel dimension. Daniel's main concern in this new world isn't the looming threat of a godlike killer; it's fitting in at a school where the food is flavorless, everyone writes backwards in an ancient alphabet, and all the racial hierarchies seem to be reversed.

"Write, draw, and puzzle your way through [an] adventure story that is unique to every reader"--Publisher marketing.