Bearers of the Black Staff: Legends of Shannara (Pre-Shannara: Legends of Shannara)NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Five hundred years have passed since the devastating demon led war tore apart the United States and nearly exterminated humankind. Those who escaped the carnage were led to sanctuary in an idyllic valley, its borders warded by powerful magic against the horrors beyond. But the cocoon of protective magic surrounding the valley has now vanished. When Sider Ament, the only surviving descendant of the Knights of the Word, detects