| “ | I am the Seven Satrapies | ” |
–Dazen | ||
Prism Dazen (alias Gavin) Guile is the younger brother of (the real) Gavin Guile, the older brother of Sevastian Guile, and the son of Andross Guile. He is referred to as Gavin throughout most of the series because he has stolen the identity of (and imprisoned) his brother following the (False) Prism's War.
Dazen is, in many ways, a superior version of Gavin. Dazen fell in love with Karris White Oak, Gavin raped her. Gavin failed the Thresher, Dazen was the first one in living memory to pass it. Gavin wasn't a superchromat, Dazen was. Gavin lusted after Karris and wanted to marry her as a means of claiming her from his brother, whereas Dazen loved her from the moment they met, and made sure she knew it. Dazen always treated Karris with warmth and respect, even after breaking their (hers and Gavin's,) betrothal. Karris, not being aware of Dazen's impersonation, once remarked while thinking of Gavin "How can someone come back from war a better person?" Lastly, Gavin even said (only to himself) that Dazen had always been the smarter of the brothers, their whole lives.
Despite Gavin being older than Dazen by three years, the two of them were often mistaken for twins due to their incredible similarity in appearance and mannerisms. This made it all the easier for Dazen to convince the entirety of the Seven Satrapies that he was his brother. Any differences in his behaviour were written off as being from the trauma of the war and having to kill his brother.
Dazen abides by a strict sense of honour, which he shared with Gavin when they were young. An example of this was that when they fought with their fists - which they did, frequently, there were no hits to the face and no trying to break bones. Their blows were more painful than damaging. The fights were about submission and dominance. The last time they fought, Gavin panicked when Dazen started to win, and hit Dazen in the face. This violation of honour and rules threw Dazen into a berserk craze, not even feeling the blows Gavin landed on him, and almost killed Gavin before he relented. The brothers never fought again after that because they knew that if they ever fought again, it would be to the death. The next time they fought, it turned out, would be at Sundered Rock, at the climax of their war. Dazen won because, like their last fistfight, we fought with the mindset that Gavin could hurt him as much as he wanted, but Dazen would kill Gavin. Dazen was willing to win at any cost when he fought his brother; he was ready to pay it all, and that was why he didn't.
He is described as exceedingly handsome and muscular, slender with a narrow waist, but with muscular arms and broad shoulders, which have only become broader since he began experimenting with his skimmers, since the skimmers still require muscle power. He is light skinned; being described by Kip as looking like "a mix between a Ruthgari and a Blood Forester. He has red hair, described as the colour of burnished copper, which he often wears in a ponytail, and even when he is not drafting, his eyes shimmer as if they themselves are prisms. Before becoming Prism, he had blue eyes. His skin is described as light, somewhere between the "deathly pale" skin of a Blood Forester and the olive skin of a Ruthgari. Liv Danavis describes his skin as tanned rather than pale and freckled as would be common with his hair colour.
According to Aglaia Crassos, a noblewoman and Liv Danavis' handler: "every [...] red-blooded woman in the Chromeria has dream about Gavin Guile tearing off her clothes."
| Spoiler Warning! This section of the Article may contain spoilers. |
Drafting[]
Dazen is among the greatest drafters of all written history, if not the best outright. As a Prism he accomplished more in 16 years than others have accomplished in lifetimes, and regularly pushed the boundaries of what is believed possible with drafting.
Inventions[]
Rowing Apparatus[]
Dazen is seen drafting various complex designs to propel a boat or skimmer that are more mundane than the luxin tubes that give the skimmers their breakneck speed. He will often do this to avoid showing off just how fast his skimmer is or when traversing down rivers or streams. Dazen uses the wide variety of colors at his disposal to draft a variety of different 'rowing' designs, including oars with gears to multiply the user's force applied and treadmill-like device that pushes water like a paddle boat.
Skimmer[]
Dazen designed the Skimmer in an attempt to complete one of his Seven Great Purposes, to go faster than any man alive. The Skimmer is a small, flatbedded boat made entirely of luxin. It uses luxin tubes to propel itself forward, with a drafter shooting luxin into the tubes that are then shot out the back of the skimmer. This propulsion method, along with the skimmer's lightweight design, allows the vehicle to glide very quickly across the water.
Condor[]
The Condor was a logical evolution of the Skimmer, conceived by Dazen after he launched his skimmer off a large wave and briefly took flight. He first successfully flies the Condor with Karris on their way to Tyrea, launching their skimmer off a luxin ramp and drafting wings, flaps, and a canopy onto the skimmer to allow it to fly.
Brightwater Wall[]
To defend Garriston from the incoming forces of Rask Garadhul, Dazen decides to draft an entire wall out of solid yellow Luxin in less than a week. The wall is several feet thick and over 12 feet tall, and contains tunnels and arrowslits for defense and mobility. The wall has will-crafted hexes on the outside, showing horrendous and fear-inducing illusions to those who step on a web of Superviolet triggers close to the wall. All along the tops of the walls are depictions of Prisms, including Lucidonious, glaring out at all that attempt to breach the walls.
Color Prisons[]
Dazen created a series of Luxin prisons underneath the Chromeria to contain his captured brother, Gavin. Dazen created the Blue prison first to house his brother, then created the Green and Yellow prisons next. It took some time to figure out, but Dazen found a way to craft the Orange prison without using any other colors, though this is not explained in detail. The Red prison has layers of burnt Red Luxin to create a crust. The Superviolet prison is a trap, designed to fall apart completely when any part of it is broken - the luxin dust would then fill the chamber and suffocate anyone inside. The Sub-red prison is also a trap, built using a layer of orange luxin to create a semi-permeable barrier Dazen could stick his hands through. Dazen then burnt up all the oxygen inside the barrier with Sub-Red, and drafted a perfect sphere of 10,000 large Sub-Red fire crystals. The Sub-Red chamber is designed with a trap door to let someone fall in, then close behind them to trap them inside.
In reality these prisons were created to house captured immortals of each color, who appear as the 'Dead Men' to anyone trapped inside the cells. Dazen has somehow created prisons of all seven of the primary colors, and a final cell of Black Luxin as well. Little is known about these cells by even Dazen himself, as his drafting of Black luxin caused madness within his own mind. In the Blood Mirror Dazen has a conversation with the Dead Man in the Black prison, who helps Dazen remember how he created the prisons.Whether or not he was conscious of his real intent, Dazen would often leave behind his guard and seek out these dangerous Immortals, subduing them and imprisoning them away from the rest of the world.
Colors[]
Superviolet[]
Dazen makes a regular habit of using Superviolet to help guide and form his drafting of other colors. He often will shoot a tendril of Superviolet towards an opponent or target, then draft another color along the tendril to ensure it hits its intended location.
Blue[]
Dazen uses Blue frequently, as its strong yet light form is ideal for weapons, shields, and platforms. Blue in particular is necessary in the design of the Condor, as it is the only luxin strong enough and light enough to allow the Condor to take flight and maintain its shape. Dazen uses a thin shell of Blue to create his luxin Grenados.
Green[]
Dazen's use of Green is mainly combat oriented, as it is too heavy to be used in most constructions. That being said, Green's flexibility make it ideal for certain parts of Skimmers and the Condor when suspension is needed. Green spears, spikes, and shields are frequent mainstays in Dazen's battle drafting, and he leans more heavily on Green when bulk and weight are needed.
Yellow[]
As a Superchromat, Dazen is able to get much more use out of Yellow by drafting a perfect, solid Yellow Luxin. Dazen frequently drafts imperfect Yellow into flash-bombs, grenados, and flares for use in combat and scouting. Solid Yellow Luxin's hardness makes it perfect for swords, more permanent skimmers and structures, all of which Dazen uses to great effect.
Orange[]
Dazen mainly uses Orange as lubricant in his various machinations, not using it in many other instances.
Red[]
Red's flammability makes it useful in combat offensively, and Dazen also uses it defensively to form cushions to lessen impacts. Dazen creates Grenados out of Luxin by combining Red and imperfect Yellow inside a thin Blue luxin shell.
Sub-Red[]
Dazen does not directly draft fire very often, instead preferring to draft fire crystals into his other drafting creations.
Paryl[]
During a conversation with Teia, Dazen mentions he has drafted Paryl a few times, but gave up on it because he thought it was useless. He also mentioned opening his pupils so far hurt his eyes, and since he could draft so many other colors he didn't feel a need to experiment further. As such Dazen really only uses Paryl to look for metal and other threats in the Paryl spectum.
Black[]
During the events of The Blood Mirror it is claimed by Koios and the djinn that Dazen is a monochromatic Black drafter, and he only is able to draft the other colors due to the many drafters and Wights he has killed. Orholam later reveals that the real reason Dazen hunted Wights was to trap djinn possessing those Wights in the cells underneath the Chromeria, and that Dazen used black luxin to destroy his memory of this. Felia Guile also called Dazen a true Prism, further disputing the claim that Dazen is a monochromatic Black drafter. Dazen drafted an enormous amount of Black luxin during his fight with Gavin at Sundered Rock, creating the Magical conflagration that wiped the memories of everyone nearby. The drafting of Black luxin can cause madness, and Dazen has intentionally and unintentionally erased many of his memories using Black Luxin. Dazen drafts a giant wave of Black Luxin towards the Jaspers during the Battle for the Chromeria, interrupting the battle and giving the Chromeria's forces a chance to gain the upper hand. Dazen then drafts a giant beast-like Black luxin construction, which also travels to the Jaspers to assist the Chromeria's forces.
White[]
Dazen first drafts White Luxin during the Second Battle of Garriston, after he unleashes a huge wave of luxin at a group of mirror men. This act knocks him unconscious due to being lightsick after drafting Brightwater Wall, but he produces a small nugget of White Luxin. Gavin also drafts White luxin at White Mist Reef, producing a giant wave of White luxin that travels quickly to the Jaspers, interrupting the flow of the battle and slowing down the momentum of the Color Prince's forces.
Prehistory[]
| Spoiler Warning! This section of the Article may contain spoilers. |
Dazen fell in love with Karris White Oak when he was seventeen, a girl betrothed to his older brother Gavin. In order to secure the most advantageous position for his family, Andross intended for Dazen to seduce Karris, and then 'accidentally' discover them together. This would allow him to demand Dazen marry Karris so Andross could keep his eldest son for other political marriage options. However, Karris and Dazen fell in love for real, and triggered the False Prism’s War when Dazen burned down her family compound, killing everyone within.
The Black Prism[]
Dazen is a well-loved Prism. He and the White, Orea Pullawr, are on good terms but constantly jockeying for position. One of his ways of escaping is to go off on his own and draft a skimmer, which allows him to travel faster than anyone who has ever lived. Upon hearing that he (in actuality his brother Gavin) had a bastard son, Dazen takes Karris to Tyrea to investigate the rumor. They fly for part of the trip and successfully interrupt King Garadul before he kills Kip, who is supposedly Gavin's son.
Dazen brings Kip back to the Chromeria to have him tested as a possible drafter and keep him safe from Rask Garadul. While at the Chromeria Dazen is forced to partake in his many duties as Prism, including Spectum meetings, balancing the colors, teaching students, and manipulating politicians. In addition to this he checks in on his brother, Gavin, whom he defeated during The War of the Prisms and has kept captive for 16 years under the Chromeria.
Eventually Dazen returns to Tyrea to defend the city of Garriston from the oncoming forces of Rask Garadul and his ally, Lord Omnichrome - a polychromatic wight leading an army of maniacal drafters and wights to overthrow the Chromeria and its system. To assist in the defenses Dazen drafts an enormous wall around the entirety of Garriston, constructed entirely of sealed yellow luxin. During this project Dazen goes to participate in The Freeing, the ritual killing of drafters at rick of breaking The Halo. Those drafters volunteer to fight against the forces of Garadul instead, willing to be killed in battle to save innocents rather than give their lives up now.
Just as Dazen is finishing the gate of Brightwater Wall, a cannonball blasts through his unsealed luxin, blowing apart the gate and leaving a gap in the enormous wall. Seeing his creation destroyed and their plans laid aside, Dazen drafts an enormous rainbow of luxin, eliminating a group of enemies and accidentally drafting a small chunk of White Luxin, before he collapses.
Waking up during the battle, Dazen realizes the battle is lost and drafts several large barges of Blue Luxin to help transport the citizens of Garriston, escaping with many of them before the city is lost. Just as they think they are safe, Dazen is cut by Zymun using the Blinding Knife, though he is seemingly unharmed. After waking the next morning, Dazen finds he is no longer able to draft Blue Luxin.
The Blinding Knife[]
After escaping to the Cerulean Sea with the survivors of Garriston, Dazen uses his new skimmer to scout ahead of the fleet, only to realize a Sea Demon is heading straight for them. In a spectacular display Dazen distracts and evades the Sea Demon, saving the fleet and the people of Garriston once again.
Leading the refugees to Seers Island for safekeeping, Dazen built the Seers Island satrapy by making the remote island easily reachable by ship. This was done by removing huge sections of reef with yellow Luxin, as well as creating a three-part breakwater. This allowed Dazen to move the refugees from Garriston to a new home, and officially designate them as a Satrapy under the Chromeria's jurisdiction. This action fulfilled the second of Dazen's Seven Great Purposes - to save and care for the people of Garriston, who had suffered greatly during The War of the Prisms.
During this time Dazen and Kariss hunt down a Blue Bane drifting on the waters of the Cerulean Sea, slaying the still-forming Maat and destroying the Bane. The Blue bane formed as a result of Dazen losing his ability to draft blue, and thus he is unable to balance the colors properly as a Prism.
To combat the Color Prince's invasion of the Seven Satrapies, Dazen returns to the Chromeria to convince the Spectrum of the seriousness of this threat and mobilize their forces against the insurgents. After much turmoil Dazen moves with his Blackguard and the forces of the Chromeria behind him against the Color Prince's forces at the Battle of Ru. During this fight Dazen fights alongside Karris, Kip, and the Blackguard to destroy the newly formed Green Bane and the new Green god - Atirat.
After the battle Dazen intervenes in a scuffle between Kip, Andross, and Grinwoody, a fight which concludes with Dazen being stabbed through the chest with the Blinding Knife. The knife grows in size, eventually growing into a large gunsword. Dazen tumbles off the ship into the ocean, and is later picked up by Gunner. After awaking, chained to an oar on Gunner's slave gang, Dazen looks out to see he is not only unable to draft, he is completely colorblind.
The Broken Eye[]
Dazen Guile, unable to draft and captured by Gunner has been made a galley oar slave. With the ominous prophet Orholam or "Number 7", citing Dazen's shortcomings, and a crazed pirate captain he struggles to survive and escape his captivity.
Later saved by Antonius Malargos (Tisis Malargos' cousin), Dazen is saved only to be delivered into Eirene's captivity, who seeks retribution for his past transgressions. Eventually forced by the Nuqaba, corrupted by the White King, Koios White Oak, to remove his eyes. With his memories refreshed anew, he resists the lure of drafting the black luxin again, losing one of his eyes before being rescued by Karris Guile and the Blackguard.
The Blood Mirror[]
| Spoiler Warning! This section of the Article may contain spoilers. |
In The Blood Mirror, it is revealed that Dazen is a black luxin monochromat. When he could see in color, he could draft other colours because he absorbs the power (color drafting ability) of people he kills, and the fact that he was also a lightsplitter allowed him to perfectly imitate the abilities of the Spectrum-appointed Prism. His annual participation in the Freeing and his own wight-hunting escapades enabled him to constantly recharge his color-drafting abilities.
It is also revealed that Dazen killed Gavin by drafting black luxin instead of imprisoning him at the conclusion of the Battle of Sundered Rock. Andross Guile also tells Dazen that Kip is actually the son of Andross, and that Andross seduced Kip's mother as a means to gain access to a private library.
The Blood Mirror concludes with Grinwoody (secretly the leader of the Order of the Broken Eye) breaking Dazen out of a black luxin prison (created by Dazen himself 17 years ago) and sending him on a journey to kill Orholam at White Mist Reef with the Blinding Knife.
The Burning White[]
Dazen makes his way to White Mist Reef on the Golden Mean with Gunner and his former oar-mate Orholam. After avoiding Sea Demons and getting 'successfully' shipwrecked on White Mist Reef, Dazen begins his pilgrimage to the top of White Mist Tower. This pilgrimage involves climbing the tower and passing through several gates, each representing the sins of the colors in the Luxin color spectrum, and picking up several stones that he can supposedly trade for boons once he reaches the top.
After a grueling trek up the tower, Dazen reaches the top of the tower with the Blinding Knife, leaving behind his boon stones in order to jump a gap to reach the top floor. At the top of White Mist Tower Dazen encounters a giant mirror, from which a godlike man seemingly made of mirror emerges.
Dazen wrestles with this mysterious man, eventually coming to an understanding with this person who eventually reveals himself to be Orholam, the deity of this world. Dazen talks with Orholam, learning much about himself, the world, and its hidden secrets.
After Kip activates the great mirror on top of White Mist Tower, Dazen responds by drafting massive amounts of White and Black Luxin, using the help of the Blinding Knife and Orholam to assist him in his feats. After this effort, Dazen boards what seems to be a more advanced version of his own Condor design, which flies him to the Jaspers to participate in the conclusion of the Battle for the Chromeria.
Dazen parachutes down to the Jaspers just in time to toss Karris the Blinding Knife, assisting her in her duel against the Color Prince. After Karris kills the Color Prince Dazen reunites with her as they watch the dissipation of the Color Prince's forces. After the battle Dazen and Karris are publicly wed and hold a ceremony to celebrate the occasion.
The Epilogue of the series shows Dazen, powers fully restored, meeting up with Ironfist to go on another adventure, seeking out more Immortals to slay with the Blinding Knife.
Trivia[]
- Dazen is tied with Kip for drafting the most amount of colors in the Series. Dazen drafts every color but Chi, and Kip drafts every color but Black.
- While it isn't named after him, Dazen is the perspective character in a True Nine Kings card - Black Luxin. The card shows his experience as a child meeting Janus Boreg and learning about his ability to draft Black luxin.