Thaze (Fan-Fiction)
There's been a lot of concerns about the want for SE lore on the forums lately. Recently Unruler did his thing on Darkclaw, and it sort of made me want to play around with my own. I haven't done a whole lot of work with fiction in ages, so forgive me if the quality of the work isn't what you'd expect. I make no claim as to the quality of my writing.
Also, I'll be using one of my own personal stock characters as the focus, in order to conflict as little as possible with the actual canon. I have no idea what direction Nachyo is taking so this may be (and is probably) a pointless endeavor, but whatever.
I must state yet again that absolutely NONE of this is canon. Just because I was once DT, please don't take any of this as fact. I only got to do very minimal lore work while there and most of this is entirely drawn from personal inspiration.
Prologue: Thaze
"We are one. We are Legion."
The words ingrained into every recruit, they echoed like the wavering hum of an elemental. Thaze couldn't shake a feeling of unease.
The Legion hadn't used to be like this.
Before the Event, they were valiant knights, guardians of a peaceful realm. They were small in number yet high in strength, the paramount to which all other men were judged.
"Who are you, worm?", Aldon
"T... Thaze, sir. Thaze, son of Thomil Thunderstaff." He looked up, then immediately regretted it. The general's scowl seemed even more displeased than before.
"The boy is Thaze, eh?", Aldon
The general turned back to Thaze. "Wrong."
The single word was like a knife to his gut, a sudden realization in the form of a burst of pain.
"I'll ask one more time, boy." Aldon
"I am we, sir. We are one. We are Legion." The general stepped back, satisfied, and Thaze let out a brief sigh. No more pain.
"I was Legion before the war, and now I still am. Many that were once Legion are here no longer. Whether they fought or fled, both kinds have been slain. Yet here I stand. I am Legion." Aldon
The resounding chorus of 'yes, sir's seemed to satisfy Aldon
"What's your name, worm?
"T-T-They call me P-P-Puwen, sir." Two steps and the general was circling the boy, examining the armor.
"This stain on your helmet boy, what is it?"
"B-B-Blood, sir."
"Is it really?" He seemed to enjoy hearing the boy squirm.
"Y-Y-Yes, sir."
"Is it your blood, boy?"
"N-N-No, sir."
"Do you know whose blood it is?"
"N-N-No, sir."
Aldon turned back to the rest of the group, now visibly afraid of their new master-at-arms. "Does anyone know why? Hmm?" He began walking the line, slowly. There was no answer. "Do any of you worms have ears, hmm?" Still no answer.
Thaze looked up again and locked eyes with the general, then yet again wished he hadn't. Mental note: stop doing that.
"How about you, boy? The one they call Thaze. You have any theories, boy?"
He answered immediately. "Perhaps the helm wasn't his initially?"
Aldon smiled, and Thaze discovered a face he liked worse than Aldon's frown. "This Thaze boy is a smart one, worms. Look out for this one."
As Aldon turned back to the front of the line, the feeling of 19 pairs of eyes on Thaze made him shudder. One day, and already he regretted coming here.
"So, Puwen
"N-N-No, sir."
"Did you steal it?"
"Y-Y-Yes, sir."
"From a corpse?"
There was another pause. A long silence. Thaze was just glad the gaze of the others had momentarily shifted.
"Y-Y-Yes, sir.", Puwen
Aldon made a snort of derision. "What we have here is a camp follower. What the Legion like to call dirt." The general shook his head in disgust. "Well Bloodhelm, you want to join us?"
"Y-Y-Yes, sir."
The general picked up a pair of identical training swords and handed one to the recruit with a flourish.
"Prove it, Bloodhelm."
The boy took the blunt longsword with both hands and stepped forward, taking up a weak defensive stance. Aldon held his own false blade lazily in one hand and swung only a couple times before Puwen
As Bloodhelm shuffled back to his place in line, Aldon turned to the next recruit.
"Your name, worm?"
"Blake
Thaze made note of the fighting styles of each. Blake
Finally, it was Thaze's turn in line.
"Well boy, do you think you're worth your name?"
"That's not for me to decide, sir."
Aldon smiled. "Well answered, boy. I think I like you."
Thaze shuddered as he took up his blade. The leather-wrapped handle was worn from years of use. Thaze barely wondered if his father had once held the same sword, then shook his head. Now was not the time for that.
Aldon stood across from him, still smiling, holding his blade in one hand like before. Thaze mirrored the stance.
"Awfully cocky, boy."
Thaze launched himself at his superior, swinging the blade over his head. Aldon immediately shifted his weight and raised his sword to parry, but the recruit's sword was no longer there.
Aldon grunted as the blunt iron connected with his open side. Thaze stepped back, in part expecting a counter and in part surprised that his feint actually worked.
The general just laughed.
"I see your father didn't leave you COMPLETELY untrained. Useless sot at least did ONE thing right."
Thaze lashed out again, but this time his feint was countered. The recruit made note; Aldon had both hands on his sword. Leaping back, the boy dodged the master-at-arms's sweeping arc, then ducked in close and pressed his advantage only to be parried yet again.
"Touchy." Aldon laughed. "Yes, I knew Thomil. he was Legion once. I am here, he is not. That's all you need to know."
Thaze rushed to the attack again and Aldon met him head-on. The pair went back and forth in the courtyard for what seemed like hours but in fact was mere minutes. Finally, his superior pressed the attack, surprised Thaze with a feint, and sent the boy to the ground.
It was in that moment that Thaze saw them. The recruits. Aldon had put on a show for them. He made an example of the boy with a bloodline in Legion and made sure he wouldn't have many friends here. The general had still been toying with him, just more dramatically than with the others. The name Thunderstaff would be no good here.
Thomil was the old Master-at-Arms, during peace time. His position then was no more than a formality, and as such Thomil had little chance to contribute to the Legion knighthood. He expected the Legion to give him fame, honor and glory, but ended up with a passion for alcohol and a son who used his sword more than he did.
Thaze entered his 12th year on the day the shadows came. Thomil, in turn, entered his last. And it was Thomil, suffering from a wulven's claw to his gut, that convinced the knight's son to join Legion.
The boy had but two reminders of the man's promise left. The first, his longsword, remained on Thaze's hip even during sleep.
The second remained on a chain around the boy's neck.
A shard of black crystal found on the Wulven that killed Thomil Thunderstaff.
It always felt so warm...
Originally Posted by Scion
Bookmarks