Infinity Blade: The Rise of Raidriar

Chapter One

Jori chuckled at Ashimar's remark, his mop of brown hair shaking lightly.

"Yes my name is a little lacking isn't it?" Jori asked after swallowing a large mouthful of everberry pie. He and Ashimar had been friends for a long time now. Ashimar had defended Jori when he first became deathless and the others had relentlessly picked on and bullied him. The others had made fun of him and his father, calling him "Raidrark" a word from a forgotten language that meant "dead walking."

"Maybe I should use Raidrark. It has a nice ring and I doubt anyone will know what it means or remember it."

"Yes I think it's a good choice, a way to remember I guess." Ashimar added. "So have you heard the rumors?"

"I have heard lots of rumors in my lifetime, you have to be more specific," Jori replied grinning.

"I mean the rumors of the warlord. The corpses he's left behind, the villages and towns he's razed to ground. He really is quite the menace."

"Quite an elusive one, from what I've heard. A phantom menace if you will. I also hear that Lenlindre has her hands full with him."

"He is starting to encroach into my lands," Ashimar said, his dark brows drawing together.

"Some of the rumors say he is deathless," Jori added.

"Deathless?" Ashimar said, snorting with disgust, "He is merely a fiend looking for attention."

The pair looked up as they heard a servant enter the large dining hall, her footsteps echoed on the marble floor.

"Sire there is a...persistent man outside. He wants to challenge you," she trembled as she spoke the word and her face shined with perspiration.

"Perfect! We have entertainment for the night," Jori said in an overly enthusiastic tone. He loved to show off his skill in the up and coming Aegis form. It was a traditional style contest in a one-on-one fair fight. The style emphasized speed and coordination over cheap shots and surprises.

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Half an hour later, Jori met the challenger in his open court yard. There was a large paved circle in the middle of the courtyard, surrounded by hedges and trees. By that time, many of his servants had gathered around the makeshift arena to watch the spectacle.

In the center of the courtyard stood a tall figure in a large and tattered brown cloak. Enveloped in the cloak, the man's features and armor were hidden in shadow.

In the outer edge of the circle, people hastily moved aside, jostling the people next to them. At first met with looks of anger, the servants quickly parted as they saw their master passing through the rows of the crowd.

Stepping out of the crowd was a fully armored warrior, covered from head to toe with overlapping plates. His shoulders, forearms, and shins were covered with solid pieces of armor, made of Helio, a rare mineral mined in the far off caverns of Drems Maw, with delicate carvings on each piece. He carried his helmet under his arm and ceremoniously secured it on his head. The face plate of the mask consisted of a centered rhombus shape, and mirrored crescent shape on either side, made of the same Helio metal.

"Who are you and what is your purpose?" Jori asked. He already knew the answer but asked anyway.

"I am Ausar of Courtdale. I come to challenge you in the Aegis form," he said bluntly. An armored hand emerged and gripped the cloak. Tearing the brown, ratty, cloak off, he revealed the highly maintained gleaming black armor, trimmed with gold paint. His triangular helmet's visor slats hid his face. On the top edges of the helmet, horns peered above the cloud.

"Quite the showman I see," Jori remarked. Assuming the Aegis stance, Jori signified the start of the duel. His opponent did the same. Jori stabbed at the man who easily countered his blow with one of his two swords and in turn, struck at Jori who effortlessly deflected the half-hearted attempt. Both knew the other was a good swordsmen and knew that one mistake would lead to defeat. Suddenly Ausar threw an onslaught of swings with the dual swords. Jori blocked and parried desperately backing away to try to stop the onslaught. After eight swings, Jori noticed a pattern. Up, left, down, up, left, down he timed his dodge perfectly and Ausar was momentarily off balance and lurched forward. Jori stepped behind him and knocked him in the back with his shield. He respected his opponent and didn't want the fight to end too quickly.

Ausar spun around to counter the on-coming blows, only to find Jori standing ready to defend or attack. In his turn, Jori started attacking, swinging viciously and ramming with his shield. Ausar parried the blows but with enormous effort. The dual swords were ideal for quick fights with speed and agility but not for quickly parrying blows. He barely dodged the bashing shield and saw an opportunity to strike. He slashed Jori on the arm. He then started another vicious onslaught, foolishly with the same pattern. Jori quickly read the pattern and again dodged the blows, but this time instead of hitting Ausar with the shield he grabbed the man from behind and put his sword to the man's neck.

Ausar dropped his swords, clattering on the stones of the courtyard. Jori drew back. His servants began to clap, although many had seen this before. Glancing over at Ashimar, Jori inwardly beamed as Ashimar nodded. He had put on and adequate show for the night.