It was a quiet day in the

Light Walker Village

The sun was shining brightly, as always. The brisk wind was warm but also gave the skin a refreshing touch. The village kids were outside, causing a ruckus fighting with wooden training swords.

Lux Family Breakfast

Sensei Lux and his family were eating their morning breakfast together in their home. First, of course, his favorite, some white rice with a fried egg smothered in grilled onions. He reached out his right hand and gently slid the backside of his fingers down his wife's jawline. "Melea, what would I do without you?" Lux said in a gentle voice. The sun rays seeped through the bamboo structure, gently kissing her face. Her homemade plumeria perfume was entrancing. Her long, flowing black hair and eyes were as brilliant as the stars above. Her beauty was unmatched, but her wits… her wits and courage were her true strength.
Lux Family Breakfast

"Why is she not the leader of this clan?" he smirks and thinks, "She is a better leader than I."

He looks down to his firstborn child, Emerald, his daughter not more than 6 years old.

She was eating her morning breakfast with her legs crossed on the floor. "Thank God she looks like her mother," he smiles and thinks. In Melea's arms lay Tika, Sensei Lux's firstborn son. He was just a little bub. Lux whispered in his ear, "My son, you will be mighty. You will lead with strength, and I will teach you the ways of the Almighty. He will guide you — your path will be lit brightly by his lamp, and I shall always be by your side." Feeling his wife's gaze on him, he catches her eye. She smiles, "You may be the fiercest warrior in the land, but on the inside, you are as soft as the center of that egg." Sensei Lux smirks. "Well, I…"
Lux's words were interrupted by a violent tremor.
Prelude Chapter two | The Soulless Citadel

The grounds shook, the walls creaked, and dust began to fill the house.

"Outside! Everyone, quickly outside!" Lux yelled. He grabbed Emerald in his arms and quickly followed his wife towards the front door. He could hear the screams of those outside in the streets. The shaking grew more violent, and the cries grew unbearably loud. "Melea, RUN!" Lux followed on her heels. He could see the front door frame beginning to crack; it wouldn't hold much longer. When Melea breached the front door, the structure started to cave in. He leaped forward, and with all his strength threw his daughter from his arms and out through the door. The house caved in with a thundering boom. A cloud of dust filled the streets.
Prelude Chapter two | The Soulless Citadel

And...

All Went Black

Lux's ears rang. There were no more screams. No more tremors.

"What is this?" he thought. "Am I dead? My family, where is my family?" He heard a faint voice. "Sensei! Sensei, wake up!". The ringing in Lux's ears began to fade. He opened his eyes— they were blurry, and his head was pounding with aching pain. "Sensei, wake up!!! LUX! Wake up, you donkey!" the shadow in front of him yelled. Lux knew that voice; his eyes finally cleared. It was his brother, Vi. He was wearing his usual battle attire, the black Samurai armor, and his black, double dragon blades, but he looked different. His skin, it was a shade of red and his eyes seemed to glow.
Prelude Chapter two | The Soulless Citadel

"Brother, where are we? What of the earthquake and my family? Where is my family?" Lux said, uncharacteristically frantic.

"Earthquake? What earthquake?" Vi said, confused as he reached out his hand to help Lux to his feet.
Lux locked hands with Vi and slowly got to his feet. His back was aching as if he had just been in battle. "What of the earthquake?" he thought. His head still spinning with thoughts, he looked up. Before him stood something he had never seen before.
He stood in a dark fortress-like building— built as though it could be a castle, but there was something different, something hopeless that filled these walls. Now that he looked again, it was not so much a castle, but a rock containment. He spotted a window and ran to the opening on the hardened wall to see what might stand outside. There was nothing…
Prelude Chapter two | The Soulless Citadel

His surroundings seemed to spin.

There were some clouds with a hint of blue sky for a moment, but a moment later, it was dark with a light shimmer of stars in the distance. Thunder boomed in the sky, flashes of lightning filled his eyes. Everything seemed to move at a different pace here, as though there was no time. Everything seemed to warp the reality of what he saw. "What is this place!?" he shouted.
"Do you not remember, brother?" Vi asked. "The curse...Tenebris? The battle of light and darkness? Do you not remember!?" The roar of the battle, his fallen brothers’ faces, and the snarls and rotting smell of the forgotten ones flashed through Lux's head. It was all clear now.
Prelude Chapter two | The Soulless Citadel

He remembered Tenebris Uttering Those

Damning Words

The sun was shining brightly, as always. The brisk wind was warm but also gave the skin a refreshing touch. The village kids were outside, causing a ruckus fighting with wooden training swords.