Quick, brutal, and efficient.
That, dear reader, was my immediate first impression upon reading The Undying Emperor, an ongoing web-series by sci-fi author James Krake.
Now for context, those of you who follow this Substack are likely well-aware of my abiding love for Swords-and-Sorcery. I have recently heard that this series achieves just that, along with adding playful elements of Dark Fantasy and Epic Fantasy to boot. Regardless, I have decided to check it out, as I’ve also been informed that James Krake is finishing off Act 3 here soon.
However, today I will be giving my thoughts here on Act 0, which, as the name implies, serves as a sort of prologue for the greater story overall. So what did I think after reading it?
First off, it should be noted that no time is wasted before introducing us to our main characters. In fact, we’re thrown right into the action as our hero, Sieg, is tasked with assaulting a camp of bandits. A regular job in its own right - only this time he has to go at it by himself. The reasoning is quite simple: he will first have to show off his skill to his mentor by taking the life of the enemy’s chief, all the while returning without serious injury. Needless to say he has a magical trick or two up his sleeve - namely an ability referred to as stigmata. Still, his objective isn’t an easy one, and he will have to use both his wits and cunning in order to survive.
That’s the premise of the story, anyway, and it’s about as much as I’m willing to divulge for this review. Now at first sight, this might seem like your average conflict between good and evil, yet there’s also the occasional narrative twist which, in my opinion, really helps to transform this hero’s journey into something special. Perspective is a notable factor here, as though the story is technically told in the first-person, it also takes place from the viewpoint of Sieg’s tutor figure.
Still, at its core this is Sieg’s story, and our protagonist’s struggle is quite the visceral one, indeed. There are certain places where the Dark Fantasy really takes over in lieu of what came before. And though these moments might feel a little off-putting to some, personally, I never found them to be inconsistent with the story at large. For anyone who is well-versed with the likes of Conan and his own disemboweling antics, you won’t find too much that’s different here. As for those who aren’t, however, a solid disclaimer is advised. It isn’t Berserk; however, the gore can be intense from time-to-time.
Otherwise, the narrative thrives on playing around with what we don’t know about Sieg, along with the world around him. Exposition is largely kept to a minimum, as some rather basic rules are established just to explain how stigmatas work. The action is also fast and frenetic, and future events are always teased with more nuance than any PS5 or e-girl could ever hope to achieve.
Yet if I were to be critical, I think the stigmatas could have used just a little more time to have their limitations explained - particularly with Sieg himself. Now without giving too much away, it’s pretty well implied that our young hero can brave through challenges that would end the lives of any normal man. However, there’s a moment or two in the story where I was simply left scratching my chin, asking myself just how far his stigmata could really go, though not in a good way. In the end it’s only a minor annoyance, but in places it can feel like deus ex machina, really when it should be nothing more than Sieg acting clever.
With that being said, however, I am a big fan of just how cunning Sieg is in some of the later chapters. In most ways it’s not through his words in which he’s intelligent, but rather through his actions. He’s tough, crafty, and brutal when he needs to be. Yet I can still tell that there’s a more humorous side to his character, which is really more indicative of the whole cast when I think of it. None of them are simply there to serve a purpose; rather they each have their own goals and interests which do influence how they behave.
It’s a subtle detail, but one which I think ends up adding a lot to the overall experience.
I was also a big fan of how the final chapter wrapped everything up. It should go without saying that this story is only a prologue to a much larger saga, yet the ending does an exceptional job at building anticipation for Act 1. Despite all my gripes with it, I would still find myself recommending The Undying Emperor to any fan of Swords-and-Sorcery. I certainly enjoyed it myself, and I hope to be diving into Act 1 when my spare time allows for it.
You can read The Undying Emperor here at Royal Road.