Blade(Part 3): Dusk

Prologue

Conquest Day.

It was a day that was celebrated in every one of the colonies by Skaolan citizens. In Weshiola, the third colony to fall to the march of King Aziz's armies, the citizens of Thebas would gather in front of the city's ancient pyramid keep as Lord Riahi, his wife, and his daughter walked through a path to the front of the keep under the guard of a dozen Skaolan Spearmen. Riflemen were on the roofs of the buildings that surrounded the courtyard in front of the keep, with a vigilant watch to protect their lord. Skaolan-born citizens were on one side of the path to the keep, all wearing long, crimson robes and bowing their heads as the Riahis passed them. They saw Conquest Day as a holiday for their country, a day when glory came to Skaola and its people by showing that they were unstoppable, and walked with the favor of the gods. The colonists were standing on the other side, and they weren't bowing to Lord Riahi. They remembered Conquest Day very differently. It was the day the Colonial War began. Many of the colonists of Weshiola, and especially the ones living in Thebas, remembered the day their city fell. Thousands of soldiers and innocents were killed, and countless monuments to their founder, King Cyras, were torn down and destroyed. There was one, however, who found Conquest Day especially destructive for himself, and the people around him.

Dameon.

He remembered this day as the exact day his parents were killed, and he was put in chains as a slave. At seventeen, now, twelve years have passed since the end of the Colonial War. Twelve years since his parents were killed, and twelve years since he was put in chains. Twelve years of hell. Dameon went forward, toward the Skaolan-born citizens to get to Lord Riahi. Two Swordsmen turned around and spotted him before he got far. They both rushed at him with their black khopeshes. They were both killed by arrows with lightning crackling around it, and they dropped to the ground. Dameon went through the crowd of Skaolan-born people, who stepped out of his way as if he was shoving them aside, even though he wasn't touching them. Two Spearmen were standing at the edge of the path between himself and Lord Riahi and his guard. As they turned around, he extended both of his bracer blades and thrust them through their necks. Two Spearmen of Lord Riahi's guard then turned towards him. Dameon hurled throwing knives at them, sticking them into their heads before they could raise their shields. Lord Riahi then stopped marching, and turned towards Dameon with an evil grin. He knew that look, though it had been twelve years since he last saw it. It was the look Lord Nouzari had on his face when he killed Dameon's parents where they stood, and laughed. Lord Riahi was as evil as he was. The Skaolan lord stepped towards Dameon, slowly clapping his hands, as if to mock him.

"Impressive display, Dameon of Aglain," he taunted, as the rest of the Spearmen around him stood at his side, pointing their spears forward from behind their shields.

"You stand alone, against me?" Riahi continued. "Foolishness." Dameon was hardly listening to his insults. He looked behind Lord Riahi and saw his wife and child with their arms around each other, shaking. Zabaia made Dameon promise to have no intention of harming them. Suddenly, the Spearmen were all cut down by short blades stabbed through their throats, and the other Blades of Midnight stood above where they fell. Lord Riahi stood with fear before he turned around and backed away from them. While his back was turned, Dameon ran his bracer blade into his side, and as he fell to his knees, drew a dagger and cut his throat. The younger Lady Riahi screamed as her father's body collapsed to bleed out into cracks between the bricks of the path. The army of the Colonial League soon rushed through the walls of Thebas, and the city was theirs by the end of the day.