THE FIRST CHAPTER OF A CRIMSON DREAM LONG IN THE MAKING
ABOUT
“To fight for them, and for their smiles, is our duty, and our reason.”
Vaifen is under attack. Forces, both internal and external, actively conspire to bring an end to the peace of one of the last remaining nation-states in the planet Orbis, and to bring the proud nation to its knees.
The Ashen Reckoning, a terrorist organization hellbent on unraveling Vaifen and it’s ways, has unleashed a series of heinous and atrocious attacks all across the nation and its capital, the crown city of Ternion. Led by a man only known to the world as ‘Dogma,’ the Ashen Reckoning seeks to ‘free’ Vaifen’s people from what they vehemently profess is, the tyrannical rule of the Crown, the corruption of the Senate, and the blind indifference of the Tribunal.
In addition to the threat of the Ashen Reckoning, the Nation of Vaifen finds itself at the cusp of a political crisis that could very well shake down the foundations of its longstanding ways.
Senator Thomas Easton, armed with his silver tongue and political shrewdness, has catapulted the New Vaifen Front political party to unprecedented heights. Easton’s denouncement of Vaifen’s perceived stagnation and message of revolution and change of Vaifen’s way of governance has begun to resonate within the populace like never before.
Vaifen’s security forces have so far been astoundingly unsuccessful in putting an end to the Ashen Reckoning’s bloodshed, and corruption among these institutions is an ever-growing concern for the Nation’s regent, King Sulwyn Starsong, who cannot sit idly and let the nation he swore to protect and guide further descend chaos.
King Starsong has authorized the creation of Gestalt, a small elite group that will turn the tide against the Ashen Reckoning and protect Vaifen and its people from any other present and future threats, wherever they may come from.
Composed by the finest sons and daughters of Vaifen, the Gestalt unit boasts bleeding edge technology unlike anything the nation has ever seen before—including battle suits based on the designs of the now near exting warrior-race, the Nasivern, also known as the Heirs of Sin. Gestalt is also provided with exceptional operational liberties unlike that of the rest of the nation’s security apparatus.
Bastiel Isthal, a Nasivern orphan and the King’s protégé, dreams of one day becoming worthy of the heroic mantle of those that preceded him. He heeds the call to arms and duty conveyed by his regent and joins Gestalt as the fifth member of its strike team—donning the crimson red GT-BS105MC Nightingale battle suit, and wielding the fighting doctrine and legacy of his ancestors.
Sword of the Nation follows the journey and exploits of Bastiel Isthal and the Gestalt team, as they work together to put an end to the Ashen Reckoning and Dogma—all whilst Bastiel carves his own heroic path in a world that he may never be fully part of.
This book will be the first entry in this universe—the first step towards the completion of this Crimson Dream of mine. Sword will be the first of a trilogy, which, along with Sins, and Soul, will comprise the first arc of this saga.
LORE PREVIEWS
There will be many characters, factions, and elements that’ll give form to this ever-evolving fiction universe.
The following are a preview of some (but not all) of the factions, characters, and concepts that will be featured on Sword of the Nation, all of which will grow and evolve throughout Sword, Sins, Soul, and beyond.
Stay tuned for more!
Gestalt
The Royal House of Starsong
The Ashen Reckoning & Dogma
Heirs of Sin: The Nasivern
PROGRESS
This fiction universe, and its journey towards completion, is one of my life’s most fervent dreams. It is also my first foray into writing something of this caliber and magnitude, so I’m very thrilled and excited to share this experience with you all—the good and the bad, the triumphs, and the obstacles.
I’m at a turning point in my life, as I find myself working towards starting a new life away from my home country, Venezuela. As it stands, I have finished work on Sword of the Nation’s fourth draft. This fourth iteration is the one that I aspire will go through all the steps towards publishing. There are several aspects and goals to be achieved before it gets published, as my resources are very limited at the moment.
PUBLIC PREVIEW II
While I continue my efforts to start a new life and to be finally be able to publish the first chapter of this dream of mine, I would like to cordially invite you to check out Sword’s second public preview.
You can grab a copy by clicking the image on the right.
This second public preview contains the Prologue and the first nine chapters (out of a planned twelve), going all the way up to the events of “Operation Midnight Rhapsody” in Chapter IX: Binaural Symphony.
I hope this preview gives you a good initial first look at the life of Bastiel Isthal, the Nation of Vaifen, the Crown of Starsong, and the Gestalt team, as they face the unrelenting wrath of the Ashen Reckoning and their leader, Dogma.
What you’ll be reading has not yet been professionally edited in any capacity whatsoever, and as such, mistakes and grammatical errors will be found. English isn’t my native language and this is my rodeo of this type—it is, however, polished to the best of my ability and neophyte expertise, so please excuse any glaring mistakes you may find. I promise that they won’t be present in the final product.
All I ask is to please direct all feedback and criticism (good or bad) through my email, Twitter, Discord, or Telegram (links at the bottom of this page).

UPDATES
The latest posts and information regarding Sword of the Nation and its planned sequels.
Sword of the Nation is a work in progress. Things are not set in stone and can be subject to change.
Every image, logo, and any other graphics that you see here are placeholders during this phase of the project.
2022, by Christian Kaleb Caruzo.