The Champion's Shadow

Prologue

Everyone knows of the tale of Thalleous Sendaris, the champion of Ardonia, and how he fought bravely against the Voltaris clan. He at first had them defeated, but in time they came back and took his life in revenge at the hands of Tygren Voltaris. Many argued that he could've served a greater purpose and should've lasted longer, but it was his due time. He had been around Ardonia for nearly two and a half centuries. The legacy he left behind touches the hearts of many and he will be remembered for years beyond his time alive in Ardonia, but not nearly as memorable as the legacy that Daria Sendaris left behind.

In other terms, Thalleous was the legend of Ardonia, and even his title as champion echoes the greatness he left behind even though it was cut short. He is the grand river that cuts through the valley and rushes against the rock beds with a roar deafening to the ears and powerful in every way. He is the Niagara Falls that shows how powerful one can be if they show their true strength and confidence from within. He is a model for generations of Ardoni to come.

Unlike the grand river or Niagara Falls, is a quaint stream on the side of the road. One that came from a majestic waterfall, but nearly on as large of a scale as the others. The stream might be there by that road every day and people might splash through its waters but it does not hold the power or legend that Niagara does. Some might forget how the stream started, but in the end, the stream and the grand river both conjoin to and pour out into a large body of water that millions visit and admire. The only thing is that most people will comment on how the grand river pours into it and never mention the stream at all. Its waters are only recognized by the few that know its origins and how it came.

This story is the tale of that stream beside the river, that no one knows of. This story is the light that will shine on the ones that are important but never get noticed. This story is redemption for the ones who were ignored. This story is a memoir to the ones who never since had one. This story is the carved stone set for others to read when they too have forgotten its greatness. This story is the reminder of the heart in the tree that still resembles the heart but the initials have faded away. This story is the building block for generations to follow. This story is the reason why some must never be forgotten. This story is for a girl and her legend to be finally acknowledged after all of the years that she was in the background.

This story is for Daria Sendaris, the lost sister of Thalleous.

...

Daria Sendaris is of the Sendaris clan, as told by her name, and her journey starts as a child in Sendaria along with her twin brother, Thalleous. Her parents were called Soltarinn and Oxavia Sendaris. Daria and her brother also had many other siblings, as couples in Ardonia had many children, for there were few female Ardoni. Just to start, Daria was set out to be different, but that meant she was also raised differently too. Her brother, Thalleous, always played with their siblings and pretend-fought with each other. They simulated all sorts of battles, and from an early age, Thalleous was starting to become a promising warrior. His only weaknesses were that he was very short, not as strong, and he didn't have nearly as much experience as the others because he was so little at the time. This didn't stop him from pursuing to become better than his older siblings.

Daria, on the other hand, was tasked mainly with helping her mother, Oxavia, around their home in Sendaria. At first, she liked staying with her mother nearly all of the time and enjoyed helping with gathering food and tidying up. Though, it wasn't too long until she started being envious of her brother. Often, she was found sneaking off to find Thalleous and her other brothers to practice fighting with sticks they would find around their home. Her mother was not far off her trail when she would sneak off, and quickly put her back to work. Oxavia would constantly tell Daria that it was crucial to her future role in Sendaria that she would stay and practice cooking and cleaning up after her brothers. She also argued that it was Daria's duty to stay home and help in case the Voltaris were ever to return and seek the prime songs once again. Daria always would argue against her mother in her head, but she never dared to think it out loud. She knew, deep inside, that her mother was right. After all, the stories that the other Ardoni told of the Voltaris were frightening enough to scare her away from being on the front lines of any attack.

These stories that were terrifying to other full-grown Ardoni in Sendaria were easily dwarfed by the immense fear it put into the younger Ardoni's hearts. Most adult Ardoni just would try to avoid mentioning the Voltaris any way possible. This didn't stop Thalleous from asking about a million questions about the Voltaris' attack styles, what weapons they used, and how they used their songs. He was desperate to improve himself for the sake of Ardonia. Thalleous was driven to become greater than any other Sendaris ever was. To become a master of the use of songs and to eventually get revenge on the Voltaris clan for the rest of the clans. He was also the only connection Daria really had to the outside world of the rest of Sendaria. Since Thalleous would always run errands with his older brothers and mock-fight with them too, he knew all of the stories and legends that went about these parts. He knew about other species in Ardonia, what the other clans are like, about the other kingdoms, and about what happened long ago within the Ardoni clans.

Daria learned all that she could from Thalleous, but there were things that he held back from her to protect her as their mother asked him to. Oxavia had to put her foot down eventually because Daria kept sneaking away and would never learn her lesson. Oxavia and Soltarinn both decided that it was good to fully separate Daria from the rest of her siblings and to have her under her mother's watch at all times. It was very unfair to Daria. She fought against her mother for days on end to try to get more freedom and to be able to talk to Thalleous and learn the stories that she was never told as well as how to fight. Before she was cut off, she had learned some basic things, but never had the time to get the moves down perfectly like Thalleous and her other brothers. Another thing that she did before she was cut off from her twin was that she made a pact between them saying that if she ever was shut away, then he would visit her in the middle of the night to tell her stories and teach her fighting skills she missed out on.

Thalleous kept to his promise, as he was a very righteous kid, and sneaked out of his room to wake up Daria from her sleep. He vowed to himself to finally reveal why and who he had sworn to fight to avenge all of the fallen Ardoni from the past.