In the Absence of Light

Prologue

AN: The goddesses names are really long and hard to pronounce on purpose. Common people aren't supposed to be able to say them easily. If you come across one, think of that goddess as the first letter of the name. Each Lady represents a letter of the alphabet. The same thing applies for the gods. I hope you enjoy this story. I am not finished yet, but I am constantly typing on this story. Thank you for your support with this story. Also, I would like to mention a big thanks to sarah_b and SyannePotts of ☼ Sunset Design Studios ☼ for the awesme story cover. Also, I am open to casting suggestions on uncast characters or cast characters. None of the characters have a cast set in stone (please don't say Jennifer Lawrence for Dyrana, that's my only guideline).

Prologue: Joining with Darkness        

I jumped backward just missing the sharpened blade swinging past my midsection. My eyes were focused on the dark face and curly black hair of my opponent. I had seen that move coming years before she stuck. “You can’t just swing wildly when you get tired Carasa. Fighting is about hiding your moves and control. I could see your strike long before you struck, and it was a poorly carried out mix of a lunge a crazy wild swing of the sword. Haven’t you been training for years?” I kept my eyes on her as I parried a true lunge for my heart. I pushed her blade in a sweeping C shaped defensive move opening taking advantage of how much she had opened herself up with her lunge. Before she could blink my sword was sitting at her neck.

“We’ve been fighting for four hours Dy! Can’t we just take a break?” I stared at her, wondering why she was tired even though I was tired, but she was my third partner today. “Fencing isn’t my specialty Dy, and you know that. I am better with the bow and the broadsword.” And she was better with the broadsword. She was one of the strongest women I knew, but she was slow, and she wasn’t the greatest fencer. She could fight of a large group with her two-handed broadsword any day, so I knew she couldn’t be as tired as she claimed.

“I’m not tired yet and you are stronger than I am!”

“Dy, you are tired. You just aren’t noticing it because you are too worried. Look at your arm. It’s shaking! Take a break. You don’t want to faint during the ceremony tomorrow.” Dark Lady, why did she have to mention it? Here I was trying to think about something else and she had to go and mention the ceremony.

I didn’t want to be a host. I wanted nothing more than to be a regular fighter. Why had the Lady of Darkness chosen me? If I didn’t think about it I might forget that tomorrow I would cease to exist.

“Tomorrow you will only have a year left till the dark lady takes you, Carasa.” If she had the nerve to remind me, then I had the right to remind her. I was tired, but I wanted to be so tired that I would just sleep through the ceremony and it would never happen. Everyone else might consider it a privilege… but I knew better. They weren’t loosing themselves.

“I know Dy, I know. Let’s get our armor off and we can go eat.” It was sensible. I didn’t want to be senseible. I wanted to escape, to see the city one last time. I wanted to visit my family and see Darin one last time. But I was a prisoner. I simply nodded my head. My tongue was too heavy to create words.

I pulled off my black hair out of the bun it was in and wiped the sweat that was threatening my eyes off. I walked with Carasa toward the armory where practice weapons and armor was stored in silence. Both of us were lost in our own thoughts.

When we got there she turned toward me, “Dy, I’m scared. I don’t want to be the host.”

I looked down at her and nodded, “So am I. It’s tomorrow Carasa. I’m terrified. Nothing terrifies me, but this… this make me so scarred I feel like I can’t think.