Greatshadow

The church sends twelve of the world's greatest adventurers on a quest to slay the dragon Greatshadow. But when pious knights are teamed with cut-throat mercenaries who care only for treasure, can they survive each other long enough to even reach the fearsome beast?

Greatshadow is a classic tale of heroism and betrayal, bright promises and dark secrets, and a big weepy romance with a lot of stabbing.

Excerpt:

When Infidel grabbed me by the seat of my pants and charged toward the window, I didn't protest. Partly this was due to the speed of her action, but mostly due to my inebriation from the sacramental wine we'd stolen. Plus, it wasn't the first time I'd been defenestrated by her. Of course, this window was five hundred feet up, in a lava-pygmy temple carved into the sheer cliff face of a volcano.

In my semi-drunken haze, I admired the view as I departed the temple, surveying the landscape around me. The night sky was bright orange as the bubbling caldera above reflected against belching steam. Far below, the dark, vine-covered canopy of trees draped like a casually tossed blanket down slopes stretching to the moonlit ocean. A lovely tropical night, one might even call it serene, save for the steady pulse of war drums and the nerve-jangling pygmy battle cry. It's difficult to relax with angry hordes of waist-high men barking in unison, "Yik-yik-yik-yik-yik "

Greatshadow can be read as a standalone novel, but also as an introduction to the four book series Dragon Apocalypse.