Win or Die by John Triptych

Dyron Dyrge has had enough. With the death of his only friend, he decides to give up on dueling and retires to a garden world, losing himself in a haze of psychedelic-fueled oblivion. But after narrowly avoiding assassination, he must once again channel his lethal skills and abilities to find out who is hunting him.

Meanwhile, Alix has returned to the place of her birth, a winter world full of intrigue and danger, in order to reclaim her lost birthright. The road to power will not be an easy one, yet she knows there is no turning back now.

Category: Science Fiction – Space Opera

Interstellar war has been outlawed, and all conflicts are now determined by single combat. The fate of entire planets rests upon the actions of a duelist—specialized gladiators trained and modified with the latest technology to win a death match against their equally formidable rivals.

Dyron Dyrge is an upstart who rises in power and prestige with each victory. Yet he shuns the limelight, for his secrets would tear the galaxy apart if they were ever revealed. Alix, an orphaned concubine with mysteries of her own, also begins her ascent within a corrupt, class-based society that rewards only the most cunning and ruthless of them all.

Together, these two individuals will eventually determine the fate of known space… unless their enemies kills them first.