The Raiders of the Day

Written for a dA contest where I was supposed to take the last line of a known author's poem and make it the first line of mine. I took the one and a half line from Byron's "Darkness".

Darkness had no need of aid from them. She was the universe.
They stumble across lands, blind and hopeful and cursed,
Once, powerful Raiders of the Night, they hid deep in pitch black,
Now beg for food and mercy, wishing to go back.

Darkness gave them new lives, provided for them, they were reborn.
They gave Her their eyes and loved Her as they had sworn.
But Darkness proved to be a lady of whims and moods and pride,
She let go of them and they had nowhere to hide.

Darkness was their Mother. Thanks be to Her, sins were forgiven.
She had them do bad things and their hearts were riven,
Yet She was their Goddess and their faith could tear down all the walls,
But She threw them away like some unwanted dolls.

Darkness treated them wrong, they were left with no eyes,
But she had created the Phoenix and it always survives;
So they will rise again, fall in love with Sun rays
And soon enough they'll roam the lands as the Raiders of the Day.

Author's Note

- The rhythm change from 15-to-12-syllables to 12-to-15-syllables rhythm in the last stanza was deliberate, to show the rise of hope as opposed to the falling of desperation.
- Tried to do my best with exact rhymes, but I have no idea how to work accents, so please be merciful?