Chapter 2 - Toriban: The Fall of House Fangora

Toriban could finally see the manor as he entered the last ten miles of his trip. It felt strange to look at his home again after ten years. Noting the position of the sun in the sky, he decided to have his lunch. He set down under a tree and took some salted beef out of his pack. Home, he decided, was an unusual concept. A few yards away, a rabbit emerged from its den under a pile of rocks. "Ah, finally," Toriban said, "an intelligent soul to talk to." The rabbit's ears perked up in surprise, and the creature looked directly at him. Deciding that Toriban was no threat, the rabbit began to dine on the lush grass surrounding his home. Toriban laughed. "You know, ten years ago I would never have considered that place my home." He gestured towards the manor in the distance. "But now, it was the first thing that came to mind. I guess nostalgia must have overtaken the horror that place really was."

He sighed and remembered painful memories. Toriban's mother had died when he was seven. House Amalith had sent an assassin to the manor to kill Toriban's father, but the attack failed. As the assassin fired his crossbow, Toriban's mother had jumped to intercept the bolt that was fired. It struck her in the forehead. Toriban, still just a boy, had seen his mother's head split open and it's contents spill out onto the floor. The assasin was immediately executed, of course, and House Amalith was reprimanded by the emperor and eventually disbanded for the incident.

Toriban's father was never the same after that. He spent the next several years in an alcoholic haze. Toriban quickly learned the ways of lordship. Soon he was better at the job that his father had ever been. His father, in his moments of sobriety, resented this.

Finally, when Toriban was 16, his father began to accept the death of his wife. He resumed his station and ruled the area once more. Determined to never lose anyone close to him again, he became close to no one. He became detached emotionally. The resentment he had once had for his son became hatred.

When Toriban was 21, his father invoked the right of passage, a custom that had not been followed by House Fangora in almost 200 years. It stated that the Childe, or heir to the noble house, would have to set out on a ten year journey to prove his ability to rule. The Childe was expected to train in combat and political ability. Already a master in the latter, he focused on training his combat skills.

He boarded a trading ship bound for Tershan, the continent to the west. There, he studied martial arts and swordplay under his first master at the Sudin Temple. When his first master died, he inherited Crimson, the red-bladed katana that was now always at his side.

Having 6 years of his right of passage left, he sought out a new master. What he found was Niso Haruga. Master Niso took him in as his only student and trained him in the arts of You-Ki. He was taught to use the energy created by his emotions, particularly anger and hatred. Once able to channel this energy, Master Niso showed his many different ways to use it, ways for the power inside his heart to take on physical properties. Gusts of wind, flames, blades. All these could be created from the darkness in Toriban's soul.

Toriban knew that his instructor was very likely an evil man, but he didn't care, as it was his belief that power was neutrality. If the wielder of that power was evil, the power would be evil, and likewise for good. How ironic, Toriban thought, to use the powers of darkness to do good. Once, when Toriban asked about Master Niso's past, he simply said that it was dark and meaningless. That was when Niso had explained that Toriban would be his last student. After he said that, he walked away muttering something about "light after a life of darkness."

Toriban had left Niso at the end of his right of passage, and now here he was. After ten years, returning to a place where he was forgotten and a father who hated him. Returning to the present, he noticed that he had been there for about two hours, and hadn't eaten a thing. The rabbit was returning from a nearby stream and heading for its home. "I guess I wasn't very good company, was I?"

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Toriban knew there was something wrong as he entered the last mile. There were no guards stationed at the gate. He ran at full speed and burst through the doors. Corpses seemed to line the hallway. People he had known who had bled to death. Childhood friends, decapitated. He fought back his tears and headed for the main hall. Hearing voices within, he stopped and put his ear to the door.

He heard his father's voice. '...and I do not believe that the Prince-Heir is dead. There have been sightings of him all over the countryside."

A voice answered. "It doesn't matter what you believe Lord Fangora. What does matter is that Selphrin is now in the position of power and he has declared the twelve noble houses disbanded." Toriban wished he could see what was happening.

"Now you listen to me, Issin. If the Prince-Heir is still alive, then Selphrin has no authority. I refuse to listen to this nonsense any longer."

"Fine," Issin said calmly. "You are now a heretic and must be sentenced to death." Toriban rushed through the door the instant Issin said these words. Issin turned and the two of them looked at each other studiously. "Ah, the Childe has returned. Just in time to have his title stripped from him." A crackling noise sounded throughout the room as a blue-white dagger formed in Issin's hand. With a flick of his wrist, Issin sent the dagger flying. Toriban watched in alarm as the dagger pierced his father's throat, pinning him to his chair.

Issin ran his fingers through his hair. Turning to the soldiers he had with him, he began giving orders. "Half of you, begin burning the manor. The rest of you, ensure the end of House Fangora by killing the Childe." With that, he left the room through the side door.

Ten of the guards rushed at Toriban. Too many for him to fight off all at once, but the guards were staggering their attacks, which gave him a chance. He quickly overpowered the first two that reached him, slaying each of them with a slash to the throat from Crimson while he blocked with his dagger. Two more came in. Blocking a pathetically obvious feint from the one to his right, he double-thrusted at the one to his left, piercing his heart with the second strike. As the other's true attack came in, Toriban blocked it with a vicious slam from his weapon, using his weapon's impeccable edge to slice through his opponent's weapon. The sudden change in his weapon's weight forced Toriban's opponent off balance, and he became easy prey for Crimson.

The remaining six held back and attempted to organize to better fight their opponent. Toriban, knowing he would be no match for them all at once, figured he would have to defeat them quickly. He drew upon his ki, letting the powers of anger and pure hatred enter him. He quickly scanned his mind of the techniques that would help him and settled for one that he thought would work. He chose the attack that Master Niso had called Kuroki Kaze, translated as "black wind" Toriban focused his energy as the Guards began to run at him. Finally, as the first was about to strike, he unleashesd his assault.

Dark energy shot forth from his arm, then swirled and twisted into a whirlwind. As it struck each of Toriban's attackers, they fell limp to the ground, each one crying out in agony. Toriban winced a little at each scream of pain. Finally they stopped their writhing and screaming and lay dead, their nerves destroyed. Toriban, having used all his energy in his attack, collapsed to the ground and passed out.

He awoke with no sense of how much time had passed. Flames surrounded him and blocke his escape from the room. Acting quickly, he found and sheathed his sword. Pulling his waterskin from his pack, he poured the contents over his body and rushed through the door. The wave of heat combined with the lack of breathable air nearly caused him to pass out. He ran as fast as he could from that building ignoring his burns until he was a safe distance away. There, his exhaustion brought sleep to him once again.