Blade(Part 1): Dawn

Chapter 13: Zabaia

"People of Weshiola, subjects of the King!" Lord Riahi announced, standing behind a podium in front of the keep of Thebas. Lady Riahi was standing beside him, dutifully silent, while Kobra was standing at his other side. Her father was probably about to announce something ridiculous, or take away even more of the people's rights. Zabaia wasn't at all surprised as he watched Lord Riahi's ranting along with the thousands of other residents of Thebas. Another child stood beside him, but he wasn't his child. The boy wore a heavy suit of plate armor with a black color, but carried no weapon, and gave off a powerful aura of darkness. He was no demon, though. He was much more powerful. Zabaia noticed a strange sigil on his metal bracer. It was that of a black sword pointing downward between two raven wings. Zabaia had never seen the sigil before. He didn't know what to make of it. It seemed the child, no older than Zabaia, was acting as Lord Riahi's guard, along with the Generals that Kobra had told him about. The boy suddenly turned his head towards Zabaia, giving him an angry stare. Did he sense him? It was impossible.

"Our noble King, Aziz, has decreed that all of his subjects are to be in their homes by nightfall and not leave them until the following morning," Riahi continued. "The war with the draconians to the north has left room only for military business to be conducted after the sun goes down. Anyone who violates this decree will be arrested for conspiracy to commit treason, and sentenced to death! That is all." The crowd in front of the keep began to disperse. Zabaia could sense a feeling of anger from many of the colonists. They were in no way happy about this Curfew Decree, but it was the law, now. Zabaia had no intention of following it, though. As far as he was concerned, it was a law passed by the invaders of his country, nevermind unjust and unfair.

As Lord Riahi went back inside his keep, with Kobra, his wife, and the mysterious dark warrior, his Generals began to follow him. Now was his chance to kill them before Riahi started his invasion of Acran. Zabaia crept past the Skaolan soldiers, sneaking beside the pyramid keep. There was only one other way into the large structure, and it was through the battlement at the top. That was Zabaia's entry point. When he was sure that no one was looking, he waved his fingers upward and raised a pillar of ice below his feet, stretching all the way to the top of the pyramid. There was no guard in the battlement, so he warped into it and climbed down the ladder that led into the passages of the keep. Zabaia then formed his aura blade as he crept down the halls. There were hardly any guards in the first passage, but when he looked around the corner, there were a few soldiers coming towards him. Zabaia quickly pulled his head back behind the corner of the wall with his scimitar in his hand. As much as he wanted to kill Skaolan soldiers, he would only kill these ones if they saw him. Instead of turning down the same corridor as him, though, they both continued down the one they were already in. Zabaia gave out a sigh of relief. Maybe no blood needed to be shed after all, other than Riahi's Generals, of course. As he explored the corridors even further, he began to hear the sounds of both Riahi and the Generals talking with each other.

"Our armies will be prepared to march by sunset, my lord," one of the Generals assured. Zabaia looked around the corner, into a large war chamber. Lord Riahi, the dark warrior, and his five Generals were all sitting at a table that projected a holographic map of the colonies and Acran. Riahi and the Generals all sat with mugs filled with hot coffee in front of them, while the boy with the dark aura was standing behind Riahi's seat. Zabaia knew exactly how he would kill the Generals, now. He ignited a small fire in his hand, and looked straight at the mugs of coffee. When all of the Generals raised their mugs and took a sip, smoke began to come from their mouths, and they began to scream. They were burning alive from the inside.

"What is going on!?" Lord Riahi shouted.

"I think I know, my lord," said the dark warrior, and he suddenly disappeared. Zabaia's heart began to race. The boy sensed him again, and was now coming after him. The Guardian began to creep back through the corridors of the keep of Thebas, and as he approached the hall before the battlement, he was suddenly grabbed by his blue Sorcerer robes and thrown into the wall. The dark warrior then revealed himself, pressing Zabaia against the wall by his shoulder. He didn't seem like he was of Skaolan descent. In fact, his skin was much darker than the Skaolans, almost as dark as Zabaia's. He was born in Weshiola, and was of Alessian descent.

"Who are you?" Zabaia demanded.

"Your worst nightmare, Guardian," the boy growled. A red light surrounded his hand, and a mace with a black head formed in it. If it was anything like a demon's blade, then if Zabaia was hit by it, he wouldn't be able to heal the wound. Before the dark warrior could raise the mace, Zabaia sent him flying into the wall with an aura blast from his free hand. Zabaia then made a swing with his aura blade at the dark warrior. His scimitar was parried by the boy's black mace before a strong swing came from him. Zabaia ducked under the swing before blasting flames from his hands. The child then put his hand out in front of him, projecting a ward that protected him from Zabaia's fire. Zabaia warped behind him and swung his scimitar, then the dark warrior warped behind him and brought down his mace. Zabaia quickly turned around and parried the dark mace with his aura blade. Before either of them could swing at each other, they both hear a shout from Kobra Riahi from down the hallway.

"Xerxei!" she shouted, storming down the corridor, and the boy turned her way, dropping his mace. The dark weapon faded as it hit the ground. Kobra then pulled out a pistol, pointing it at Zabaia.

"Drop the blade, Guardian," she hissed, winking at Zabaia. Zabaia knew what she was trying to do. He dropped his scimitar, letting it fade against the ground.

"Fetch the guards, Xerxei," Kobra ordered.

"And leave you alone with him?" Xerxes objected.

"I said 'go'," Kobra hissed. Xerxei gave Zabaia an angry stare from his red eyes before walking back down the hallway. Kobra lowered her pistol.

"Who is that?" Zabaia demanded.

"His name is Xerxei," said Kobra.

"I figured that," Zabaia sighed. "But what is he?"

"He's not a 'what', Zabaia," Kobra corrected. "He's human. He's just been, um, changed. He's a Shadow of the Abyss." Zabaia had heard of the Shadows of the Abyss from ancient texts in the archives of the Celestial Sword. They were human servants of the Dark One that fought against Zenartha in the first War of Light and Dark, and also both Great Wars. They were deadly warriors of the Abyss, whose power was only matched by the Guardians. The Shadows were thought to have been extinct for hundreds of thousands of years. Xerxei couldn't have been more than fourteen years old, though, and was born in the colonies. No sane person of that origin would have given themselves to darkness willingly. Something must have been done to him, because he had many powers similar to that of a Guardian. The warping, the wards, the aura shield. Xerxei must have been forced down the path of darkness. If the Shadows were fighting alongside King Aziz, then that was more than enough of a reason for the Guardians to fight against him, along with everything else that he has done.

Suddenly, a shout from the guards echoed from the hallway.

"You have to get out of here," Kobra warned. She leaned against the wall and sat down with her legs stretched out in front of her, and also threw her pistol down.

"Go," she said, grabbing her chest as if she was struck there. Zabaia warped himself to the battlement above him, then to the base of the pyramid. He went as far away from the keep as possible, but still remained in Thebas. He couldn't leave the city yet. King Aziz wouldn't be attacking Acran with Lord Riahi's armies any time soon, but Xerxei had to die.