Zam'r

## Dark Lord Zam'r

Valdis Valaeis (Sister-in-Law)

Vesperu Valaeis (nephew)

**Zam'r** (birthname **Rimaz Valaeis**), was in life the mischief-making brother of Noir and in death the General of the Dreaded Army alongside Dark Queen Valdis.

His presence is considered to be a sign of great misfortune to come. Many consider a sighting of Zam'r to be a omen of death.

In death, he was removed from the House of Valaeis by Noir.

## Biography

### Early Years

From an early age Rimaz was always different than his older brother Noir, who preferred the structured way of life given by the Specters and society. Rimaz, had always felt as the outcast among his peers; too young to communicate with his brother's companions or take interest in their professions but always looked down upon for not matching up to his brother's shadow.

The one place that Rimaz was able to call home was Tor'bel past sundown. As the Specters began their slumber, the colors they radiated faded away allowing only the darkness of night. This shadow of the night became home to many individuals similar to Rimaz and those who had become social outcasts. Covered by the darkness, laws became a myth and thievery, lies, and murder became common place.

As the years passed, Rimaz retreated deeper into the shadows of sundown. Spending the days hidden away and the nights active, his complexity paled and his eyes adapted to the darkness. Rimaz found himself thrown into the life of organized crime, but for the first time he could remember in his life, he was happy.

Rimaz and Noir had seen increasingly less of each other with each passing year, but neither seemed to notice; each becoming progressively more preoccupied with their own lives. Occasionally letters were sent between the brothers which was the only confirmation that the other was not dead. This trend followed until Vesperu was murdered, causing Rimaz to leave the shadows for the first time in years to attend his nephew's funeral. Throughout the entire funeral, Rimaz did not approach Noir nor Valdis for he knew the individual that had murdered his nephew and had considered him his new brother.

### Rebellion Against Transformation

With the death of Vesperu, Noir and Valdis shifted their priorities to the extermination of the night and declared it would be their sole purpose until their son is given peace. Together they created the Twilight Transformation Movement which would pressure the Specters to provide longer days and help eradicate the nighttime lifestyle.

This threat scared Rimaz, he knew he could not return to the day and neither could his new family. The Twilight Transformation Movement had to be stopped at all costs. Together, the night-time Eteras fought back using guerrilla warfare tactics. This appeared to work initially but as time went on, Rimaz knew that Noir and Valdis were gaining support as the nights began to shorten. Even the Specters had chosen to limit the darkness of the night, they created a moon and stars and placed them in the night sky.

#### Death

Once the Specters chose a side, the individuals who chose to make the nighttime their home became outraged and had decided to hurt Noir and Valdis as much as they had been hurt. With the death of the their beloved blackness of night, they determined that they would capture what Noir cherished most, his wife Valdis. Rimaz heard word of this mission and realized that things were going too far. Using all that he had learned from his new family, he manipulated his way onto the team that would capture Valdis so that he could ensure she would not be harmed.

On the night of the kidnapping, the group waited for Valdis to leave a meeting with the Specters. As she left the room, they grabbed her and escaped down the dark back allies, leaving only a note for Noir. Rimaz was too preoccupied ensuring the group was not followed to realize they were not bringing Valdis to their hideout. As they stopped to catch their breath, one of the men pulled out a knife and cut a chunk of Valdis' long black hair off. He walked the knife over her porcelain skin, creating small cuts along the way. Rimaz had thought it was only a simple kidnapping, but they had intended to harm Valdis and ruin her legendary beauty. He approached the man with a knife but others simply pulled their own weapons on Rimaz and threatened him should he try to stop the man.

Rimaz was not sure what he could do. He looked down at the blindfolded Valdis and saw the tears run down her face. For a moment he thought he saw Vesperu's face in his mother's; he knew that this could not go on any longer, even if it meant sacrificing himself to save Valdis. As Rimaz thought of a way to trick or distract the kidnappers, a smoke bomb flew down, covering the group in a thick cloud. Several figures fell from above onto the armed men below and an brawl broke out. As the smoke cleared, Rimaz knew that something was wrong. He felt a cold sharp object pressed to his back. Next to him was Valdis, kneeling with a knife held against her own throat and across the alleyway stood his brother Noir. Rimaz knew that there was no way out of the situation, he had been taken hostage by his own adopted family.

As the standoff progressed, Noir had to choose between his wife or his brother, a decision that Rimaz was shocked to see his brother could not make. He had been so eager to abandon his brother years ago and now felt guilty that he had worked to undo his brother's years of progress. Rimaz knew what must be done and made the decision for his brother. He turned to attack his captor, expecting to create a diversion, allowing Noir to save his wife. As Rimaz fell to the ground, the world appeared to slow down. Noir began to run at his wife's captor who had been briefly distracted. Rimaz felt himself grow cold as his vision began to blur, he could barely make out Noir leaping onto the other kidnapper as Valdis fell to the ground. The two lay face to face as the darkness crept into his vision.

There Rimaz lay, dead with a smile on his face. He was finally with the darkness that he sought to fully embrace.