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Whadgaf didn’t need a weapon. When faced with the threat of death, her body reinforced, her muscles bulked in size and she grew a noticeable three inches. And her wings seemed to change color. They didn’t actually change from the deep brown hue that onlookers saw before her transformation, they only appeared to change to a deep, hunter green when they began to glow and radiate. Liuar saw the green flames that issued from her eyes when she cocked her head back and the sphere of green exploded from her body like a bubble that pushed everyone away from her. The executioner was propelled so far and fast that he fell from the grounds of the lair before collecting himself and flying back to the spot where Whadgaf staged her rampage.
Liuar recognized her then, seeing her rip through wave after wave of the order’s warriors, smashing faces and ripping limbs and wings from bodies, and then the brave members of the order who wanted revenge for their fallen family members. She was the embodiment of Hafjeris righteous anger and Liuar smiled at the sight of her fighting because she moved with a purpose that he had not seen in the warriors of the order in at least a generation. The Realfen had become a pale imitation of the family’s ancestors that dedicated all of themselves to the achievement of their goals. The order hasn’t made any significant advancements toward their goal in a very long time and watching Whadgaf made it clear that they no longer fought with the passion necessary to make change.
The conflict unfolded in veritable slow motion to Liuar and by the end of it, Whadgaf is surrounded by corpses and she is drenched in the blood of her captors. She stands underneath the Hafjeran sky, not seeing, barely feeling, but breathing deeply and seething with revenge against anyone who has wronged her and anyone she cares about. The whole of the order represented a threat to everything that she loved, and not just as member of the Ruling Class, but also as a proud member of the Hafjeris species. She would never forget the sight of the Bromeris and it fueled her as much as the rage she had harbored since her abduction.
A lot of time passes while Whadgaf stands in the wake of her destruction, and she very gradually returns to her normal size. Over that time, she slaughtered anyone who emerged from the lair and all the while Liuar watched with a maddened smirk. We wasted generations up here, he thought, and this is what we unknowingly begged for, extinction. We made righteous claims, but maybe we were just afraid that the decision of our ancestors to retreat rather than participate in the government that was being established, had proven to be a bad one. If the Realfen had maintained their status as Owners rather than float their castle into the atmosphere, maybe they could have influenced lasting change. Fate had never really tipped in their favor in their generations long struggle to oppose and expose the Owners; they have only been forced to cope with a relatively monastic lifestyle and the high probability of immature death. It seems that they had been doomed since their retreat.
Viewing this massacre as a lesson for poor family management made it easier for Liuar to process, but it is no less damaging to his psyche. When Whadgaf is normal size, he approaches her. Her wings are brown again but she still has a blank look on her face, as though she is numb.
Liuar drops to his knees in front of her and he practically bows.
“Please… I don’t deserve your mercy, but…”
She breaks his neck before he can finish.
Whadgaf exists under the lights of the Hafjeran skyline as she stands next to the edge of the grounds of the order. The reality is sinking in and she knows what she has done. And she can’t imagine going back down to her life below. How could she ever be an accountant again?
Whadgaf flies into the lair to wash off the thick coat of blood that cover hers. When she is toweling off and dressing, she hears a sound that puts her on alert. The man Frial is still alive and staring her in the eyes. She panics and she wonders if her mind is playing tricks on her. Liuar said that she had killed Frial.
“I will mourn my family,” Frial says. “I will retreat because I could not avenge them if I tried. But know, Whadgaf Jiris, that I will make you pay for what you have done here today. I will kill you and there is nowhere that you can go that I won’t find you.”
Frial flies fast from the lair, so fast that Whadgaf sees only a streak of red.
She does go home, and everyone is happy to see her. She can’t enjoy it, it is like moving through the world after it has been submerged under water. She recognizes everyone and everything, but the sights and sounds are distorted and she doesn’t know if she is responding correctly or if she seems strange to everyone else. It is a joy to see her mother and only in her presence do the waters subside and Whadgaf feels that she is finally safe. She tells her mother about the Auburn Order and their plot to overthrow the Ruling Class, and the woman, who is a member of the military, is both familiar with the order and incredulous about her claims to have slaughtered them all. Whadgaf tells her where she can find the bodies and when it is confirmed, her mother is extremely proud and worried for her daughter. She had become a warrior, she even had the hardened look that soldiers have after difficult experiences in war.
It is her mother’s idea that she take time away from Hafjeran, to clear her head and put the trauma of her experience behind her. Whadgaf joins a small envoy of the Hafjeris Flight Command to assist with a humanitarian mission in the safe zone of the banned regions.
As she watches Hafjeran from the window of the ship, she doesn’t feel that she is leaving home. She doesn’t know who she is anymore.
Frial Realfen is on a mission and every day of his life, he dedicates to living up to his desire to kill Whadgaf Jiris. He stalks her when he isn’t training, and picking fights with strangers just to see how strong he is becoming. And he knows that he will have to raise money to make it to the banned regions where she has fled to. So Frial dons a mask and sets to amassing riches by robbing the owners of Hafjeran. He is a very good thief, at least twice as fast in the air as any other Hafjeris, and he gains a reputation, a moniker in the news. The Red Scare. He’s not a fan of it and he hopes that it will change before he has enough money to buy a ship.
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