About this ebook
Huddled under a narrow slash of light in a dank and debris-strewn alley of Regent Street, seventeen-year-old Donovan Washington Rush quickly scribbled the words across the cracked, yellowed pages of an old hand-bound journal. Barely bigger than his hand, the book overflowed with a lifetime of maps, all surrounded by musings on freedom, tyranny, and rights. It was all that was left of Donovan’s father, Dr. Princeton Rush, a man long since thought dead by the Empire’s hand.
Here in the relative anonymity of the underground maze he called home, Donovan knew he was being watched—not just by the hidden electronic eyes of the Empire, but by the people of the Sewers themselves, compelled to complicity by the Empire’s constant messages of fear and reprisal. The Empire had its eyes everywhere.
For Donovan, possessing such a book as Dr. Rush’s journal was a “Black Flag” offense—an act of subversion punishable by public execution. Yet the Empire was where Donovan and the book were both headed. This made for two forbidden crimes under one cover.
“They call us “Sewer Rats” but these Sewers once made up t’original city, t’very seat of t’Empire. T’is t’seat for sure, right un’er Boss Dog’s ass. T’nite it changes. T’nite I take the first step fo’ my brothers and sisters o’ the sword, fo’ t’Sewers whole…Freedom or death!”
About the author
Rob Travalino is a Telly, Effie, Gemini, and Emmy Awards winner. He has been a creator, screenwriter, author, and marketing expert for twenty-plus years and has overseen, or contributed to, the development and realization of some of the world’s most powerful and lasting franchises.
As an independent content developer, Rob co-created and story-edited the Gemini Award–winning Alliance Atlantis TV show Dragon Booster, which aired on Toon Disney, and developed the Emmy Award–winning teen property Growing up Creepie for Mike Young Productions and Discovery TV. As a marketing executive, Rob oversaw the development of fully integrated and multi-platform content and brand initiatives for Lucasfilm, Hasbro, Warner Brothers, and many others. He also helped relaunch both the Transformers and Batman franchises for kids TV.
A member of the Directors Guild of America, Rob continues to consult on narrative content across the media spectrum. He graduated magna cum laude from Iona College in New York, with a focus on broadcasting and journalism.
