Synopsis
The Knights of the Dawn have been the sole military force in the nation of Olivantia since they wiped out the vampyr fifteen years ago. Since the purge, as the event became known, they have erected temples to Dalanthar in every city, and the people have converted to worshipping the Steward of Justice.
Unforunately the knights bit off more than they can chew. After their victory they outlawed magic in all forms to prevent the vampyric binders from ever rising to power again. In its absence they only have the strength of their swordarm to protect the people.
They are beset on all fronts by a variety of threats, and are gradually losing hold of their nation. The savage Orokh are openly attacking towns. Bandits are assaulting travelers. Famine has run rampant because of a two year drought that has wracked the land.
Briana is a newly annointed Knight of the Dawn, who gains her tabard in the first chapter. She is dispatched by the Hand of Dalanthar (the head of her order) to keep watch over Aranthar. Aranthar was once the greatest hero of the Dawn, because he killed the great Rakarian during the purge.
Not long after the war he quit the order, and joined the Knights of the Twilight. The Twilight are a smaller order dedicated to justice on a larger scale. They believe the end justifies the means, whereas the Dawn follow the letter of the law.
Aranthar has been sent by his order to try and locate the vampyr who survived the purge. He believes one of the surviving one is prowling the streets of the capital, Reverian. For the last several weeks Aranthar has been working the streets and blending in.
Knights have been disappearing in the poorer district of town, and its happened just a little too often to be bandits or ruffians. Aran believes a vampyr with a vendetta against the Dawn is behind the attacks, but hasn’t been able to prove it
Aran is playing dice in a seedy inn when Briana finds him. She completely blows his cover, ruining weeks worth of work. He isn’t thrilled to see her, but she invokes the Writ of Dalanthar and he has no choice but to accept her as a subordinate.
While the pair are in the inn they are approached by a thin girl of no more than fourteen. Since Briana is a Dawn the girl beseeches her for aid. Apparently her sister is being held captive and being forced to pleasure men against her will. Slavery is illegal, and obviously hearing about a girl being badly abused get’s Briana’s immediate sympathy.
Briana holds a hurried conference with Aran, but he refuses to help and tells her he has bigger problems to deal with. She calls him an asshole and says she’s going to help the girl anyway. Aran is more than happy to let her go, and the two part company.
Briana follows the girl, who leads her deeper into the bad section of town. They sneak in the back of a brothel and the girl leads her to a room in the basement where the enslaved girls are kept. When Briana gets down there she finds no sign of the kidnapped sister. Before she can ask what’s going on she’s attacked from behind.
She fights back and manages to kill two of her attackers, but a woman fitting the description of the missing sister reveals herself to be a vampyr. Briana is quickly overwhelmed as she’s never fought a vampyr and lacks the laurelwood stake needed to kill one.
Meanwhile Aranthar is feeling something very unfamiliar. Guilt. He decides to come after Briana to see if she needs help, and makes his way to the brothel. While investigating the outside he peers through a window to the basement and sees Briana jumped by the vampyr. Aran never goes anywhere without a stake, and crashes through the window to save briana.
After a titanic struggle the vampyr escapes. The pair are left to investigate her office, and find clues pointing to the town of Mountain Shadow. They believe the vampyr will go there, and decide to pursue.
The First Doorway
The moment of no return for Aran is when he encounters the vampyr. This validates his fear that they are operating within Olivantia, and the information he finds in her study gives him his first clues about their plot to take over the nation. He now has no choice and must stop them from destroying Olivantia.
Character Arcs
