Hand of Fate: Book I of the Alterverse Chronicles

Very long ago in a world where fantasy is reality, a gem is gifted by the Great Oak, to fairy and humankind. A gift meant to bring two races together. Eventually lost to time the gem becomes the center of events that will unfold much later. Today Four friends find a book in an antique bookstore. What they do not know is this book is not what they think it is. On a storm filled night they accidentally trigger its magic, throwing them into another world, a world where magic is real, where Orcs hunt humans and evil indeed does have a face. Faced with the task of getting home, they encounter mysterious strangers, dark dungeons, and those who are willing to do anything to gain a gem of ancient origins. They are forced to play a game where losing means never seeing their home again. But in the process they find out that far more powerful and darker forces are using them like pawns in a invisible chess game. They find out that in the Alterverse, things are never what they seem. They become Pawns of Fate himself.