Seika-Caxie
Winged Druid Drow.
The following is my own transcription, my own recollection. I have felt the need to write this down, to leave a little bit of history in my own way, in hopes that this can serve as both a warning and a hope. I shall write this in a mixture of First and Third Person. First person will be my commentary, my thoughts and my regrets. Third person will be me and all that I have met through my travels, my secret training as a Priestess, the betrayal of my family, and of course Zzruh, my once unrequited love and my formal mentor.
~Aaro, Zandri Priestess and Assassin.
Unlike what many would have you believe, my story did not start with Zzruh, Murderer of Zandri turned Hero of War with the O’Sekra. No…My story started the day the war began, the day Zzruh was supposed to be sentenced to death, his execution. It wasn’t to be…Not that day. That day, my birthday, June 30th 2170…The day the war with the O’Sekra began.
Jaaxor…Temple of Sseeara Laaveenae, Nymph Mother, June 30th 2170
“Meeah! Meeah hurry!” A Temple guard called, he was escorting his wife and their newborn baby, a daughter born on this horrible day. Beside him stood their two sons, Nuuto the eldest, and Prynn the younger. “Caarn, the Grand Singer, she’s in danger!” Meeah called, a priestess of the temple. “Our family comes first, Meeah. Aaro needs the both of us.” Aaro, the newborn baby in Meeah’s arms cried. But then she stopped crying and pointed to the sky. Meeah, Caarn and Aaro’s older brothers looked up to where newborn Aaro pointed. It was a ship, an O’Sekra ship. The enemy had come. The family didn’t have much time, they had just crossed the Ice bridge to the Temple when the O’Sekra came…and burned it down. The Grand Single of Jaaxor as well as the Temple of Sseeara Laaveenae was burnt that day, collapsed and all inside it perished from the heat of the blasts used.
My parents had told me that even then I seemed to be attracted to danger and violence, something that worried them as I was born as a girl. The ship that destroyed the temple, nearly instantly, was described as Triangular with sharp angles. It had been taken down though by one of our ships, which are smooth and curvy, but not before the damage had been done. My Parents took me and my two brothers to a village where refugees were gathering. It took all they had to protect it from the enemy, the O’sekra. I didn’t know it then but tensions had built up and it was a minsunderstanding on both Zandri and O’Sekra parts, all because the O’Sekra flashed them with light, something our culture reads as a threat and mark of charging with intent for violence. I didn’t know it then, but the O’Sekra wanted to invite my race into the Multi Species Alliance, just my race happens to be really deadly in their own right. I wouldn’t find out about it…until many years later when I met him…Not Zzruh.
A good 5 years had passed since the day the war between the O’Sekra and Zandri began. The temple to Sseeara Laaveenae had not been rebuilt, or rather sung up a new. The few surviving priestess’s, including Meeah, could not communicate with her to revive the Temple in her worship. The Grand Singer of Jaaxor had been killed when the Temple was destroyed, and all that was left was a sacred area of snow, surrounded on three sides of mountains where you could see Evergreen trees, marking the border to the hot side, the dangerous side, the side of the warriors hunt and honor proving. It was a place where Aaro dreamed of going to, to fight there and prove herself. It would be nice for a reprieve of the bullying she often got from her two older brothers, Nuuto and Prynn. Nuuto was the worst though, often starting the teasing and getting Prynn in to help. And ironically, despite being the youngest, Aaro often found herself in trouble fighting back. She was supposed to be nice and pretty, as Meeah trained her young daughter about the ways of being a priestess. This involved, but not limited to, boring choores and meditating. It also included a lot of singing and dance practice, as well as singing to the snow practice. Aaro became quite good at that, one of the few things she could best her brothers and most other kids with. She wasn’t the only priestess in training though. There was Taari, a girl a few years older than Aaro, as well as Issia, Miiz and finally Ronn, the only male singer to have top honours in the whole village.
Meeah would often find herself getting frustrated with her young daughter, but she was patient as it was very important to continue training a priestess, something which tended mostly to be heretical with very few cases of a priestess adopting a girl to train. It was always female, the highest honours a male could achieve other than temple guard would be an honorable brother and he would get to sing alongside a priestess or even a Divine Singer, head of the Planet’s Temple Chosen by the Ssiren herself from Heesora. Aaro however did her best, but she had been secretly training herself with ice swords that she learned to fashion from the ice. It was cute if you could see her then, but she was serious. She would watch her father train her older brothers and then she would train herself, using what her mother would teach her during training. Aaro never liked cleaning but it was something she had to do. However a specific incident with her brothers would begin to test and put a strain on Aaro’s relationship with them and her own father.
I had a doll…of Zzruh. Lots of Zandri kids had dolls of Zzruh and other war heroes lately, especially on Jaaxor one of the planets he defened from O’Sekra take over. My mother only allowed if I could recipt the song and speech of a priestess, it’s something I can’t write here. But I did, for the sole purpose of having that doll. In five years the seriel murderer on death row and about to meet his sentence had become a hero, overnight. He was getting paid doing what he loved and did best, killing O’Sekra and aiding in bringing down his ships. Zzruh…everyone learned was a rare Zandri of the Omega Gene. His favorite weapon is a massive Ice Scythe, but he could make the enemy attack themselves and he was very good at war tactics, so good it scared even our own military leaders. He worked best then…alone, never satisfied with Omega gene Zandri brought before him. Some would not be seen again and it ws assumed toe O’Sekra picked them off when they were trying to impress Zzruh on the battlefield. I remember the day I first laid my eyes on him officially, it was two months after my fifth birthday, he had come to visit Jaaxor with intentions to kill a Ssayanarot. I still don’t know why, either, he was already a master killing and seasoned warrior then at only twenty one. I remember my Brothers went into my room and took the Zzruh doll, claiming that as a priestess I shouldn’t have something like that, and they proceeded to run with it, hurt the doll.
“Give it back Nuuto!” Aaro cried out, chasing her eldest brother who currently had the doll.
“He Ha, you think you can have this back? This is for warriors only, here Prynn, catch!” Nuuto tossed it to his younger brother, who caught it.
“Yeah, you’ll just ruin it, because you’re a girl!” Prynn jeered, encouraged to bully his little sister by his elder brother Nuuto, who, before Aaro would bully him instead.
“I said…give…it…back!” Aaro called and used her ice daggers for the first time on her brothers, a fact that surpised the both of them. She injured Prynn before getting in a scuffle with Nuuto, which caused them to fall into…of all Zandri…Zzruh.
However the children didn’t know it was Zzruh, not at first. He had a hood over his head and black clothing as he travelled with an entourage, a small group. One of his guards spoke up “How dare you children, do you even know who…” However he was cut off as Zzruh, in his disguise, put up his hand to cut off the man. His silver eyes were focused on the children. He had watched them from the moment the three of them came running. Rather he was interested in a small girl fighting two boys over a doll of his likeness. He actually allowed them to run into them.
“Stupid sister Aaro, look at what you made me do!” Nuuto stated getting up and brushing himself off. “Now apologize! Your eldest brother commands it! And apologize to this stranger.” He had a smirk on his face as their father treated the boys better than the girls, thinking they would be stronger to fight in the war.
“No.” Aaro said getting up. Her eyes were focused on that doll on getting it back. “Give me back Zzruh.”
Zzruh watched this and raised an eyebrow, his entourage about to come in between them. Caarn, The children’s father, was also watching this and he began to come out where he was yelling at Aaro, especially when Nuuto began to lie. He also kicked the doll Zzruh to the ground and stomped on it, smirking at Aaro, that was met immedietly with a cut, to Nuuto’s fingers, which almost resulted in him losing three of five of them.
“AARO! HOW DARE YOU!” Yelled Caarn, and he ran up and was about to hit Aaro in the face before a much stronger hand stopped him.
That’s when Zzruh removed his hood…much to my father’s astonishment. He nearly broke my father’s wrist, and he looked at my father with those murderous eyes. Unlike my father, I didn’t fear those eyes. I could see something in them similar to me, lonleyness. I was only five…
“Pathetic.” Zzruh stated bluntly, he said it in such a tone that it made both Nuuto and Caarn shiver.
“I beg your pardon, honourable Zzruh, but my daughter…” Caarn began
“Is not pathetic…unlike your two sons…who choose to pick on the weak instead of fight the strong, like your daughter.” Zzruh stated, his cold silver eyes just barely detailed over his pale grey skin. His silver white hair framed his face despite it being wild.
Aaro looked up at Zzruh, she had a mixture of anger, resentment, but then mostly awe at Zzruh, the negative was for her family. Aaro watched as Zzruh picked up the Zzruh doll, “They didn’t get the eyes right…” He said, ignoring Caarn now, who along with Nuuto went silent.
“I think they did.” Aaro said, causing Zzruh to look at her. At this point in time Meeah came out and started to head over but stopped.
“Do you…?” Zzruh asked the young five year old Zandri girl before him, his silver eyes focused on her, while she looked up at him almost with a defiant stare.
“Yes. They show he’s lonely, terribly lonely. I can sympathize.” Aaro took the Zzruh doll from Zzruh and cleaned him up before hugging him, this interested Zzruh very much but he didn’t really express it like someone interested would. Aaro continued “He needs a friend.”
“What if he doesn’t need a friend?” Zzruh asked, showing interest only by his words.
“Everybody needs a friend, even Zzruh. Here take this.” Aaro said, giving Zzruh a dagger made of ice.
“I don’t need this.” Zzruh said, wondering why a little girl would give him this.
“Yes you do…you go to fight Ssayanarot, a dagger is better for skinning them.” Aaro said.
He smiled and took the dagger and patted her on the head.
To be honest, I didn’t realize it then…but I had just set in motion of becoming his future pupil just in that one simple gester. I also didn’t realize that I was talking to THEE Zzruh…I thought I was talking to some look alike because all I knew was that Zzruh worked best alone, not with an entourage. He came back later that night though, from the hunt. He was one man short of his original entourage. First thing he noticed was…my new Black Eye.
Aaro had been sitting outside, being somehow punished by getting a stranger’s affections. Her mother was inside yelling with her father, while her brothers were at friends’ houses. It was their reward…for giving Aaro a black eye, which was why her mother was yelling at her father. Aaro’s Zzruh doll, was also gone, destroyed by Caarn. Aaro just sat there, about to cry realizing everything that happened when she felt a flop on her lap and looked down, only to see part of the Ice-Bears pelt, clean. She looked up and saw him again, the man that looked like Zzruh.
Zzruh stood before her and noticed the black eye, he traced his hand on the young girl’s face studying it, before he got visibly angry, at least in his eyes. “What happened?” He asked
“My father allowed my brothers to punish me…because I was bad girl that I did not act lady like, and that I nearly cut my eldest brother’s fingers off. They took Zzruh from me…destroyed him…burned him in ice fire.” Aaro looked down and a tear came from her face. “All because he was my friend.”
Zzruh said nothing but instead walked inside Aaro’s house. The next thing she heard was that the yelling between her mother and father stopped and her father instead started screaming in pain. There was screaming from her mother to stop, and then a silence. Then a short time later, enough time for Zzruh’s entourage to gather, he left Aaro’s house.
When he came over to Aaro, he noticed she was handing him back the pelt “You have earned the honors for this, I couldn’t take it from you.” She said, and offered it back. He took it only to drop it on her head, which he petted affectionately. That’s when Aaro looked up to see him smiling.
That was one of very few times I had seen Zzruh ever smile, and it wasn’t one filled with malice. That’s also when I realized I was talking to Thee Zzruh…it was one of those moments I felt so dumb. He left though, and that pelt became my most precious thing ever. Also after that night, an extension was added to our house, I had my own private wing and my brothers never again entered my room and for a time the harassment was kept to a minimum. My father, Caarn, also got further away from me.
Over the years, the fighting got worse and more people died. I did my best training myself with both fighting and my priestess training. However as the war progressed, we learned that the Surviving Priestesses were being picked off one by one by traitor Zandri, mostly from Teesara, though I would be told later that it was abandoned of Zandri. As the Priestesses were picked off one by one, the surivors including my Mother and I began keeping it a secret. The Ssiren of Heesora, was guarded like no other and hidden away, only appearing when she generally had to. It made my training for fighting easier, but I still had to meditate and learn the songs. As the years past I became stronger…and faster. By the time I turned 13 I had decided to join a hunting party. My brothers, unfortunately didn’t like that idea. And the group they were part of, was the only one taking on new members…
As for the pelt...It stayed with me, my source of comfort even until…until the day we raided that O’Sekra compound on Hyatti, yet failed because of a bomb.
“No, Aaro, you can’t come along.” Nuuto said, his bullying, for years, had been mild compared to what it used to, though now it was starting to become bad again.
“Don’t give me that Ssayanarot Crap, Nuuto, I know your group isn’t full.” Aaro said, crossing her arms.
“Sis, please,” Prynn spoke “We’ve got those new guys to train.” He pointed to the new guys in question, Aaro looked them up and down. She noticed Ronn was part of the group, he was Aaro’s first crush when they used to sing together. She had slowly beat Taari for that role, something which angered her significantly to the point her and her groupies would harass Aaro. It was getting rather annoying.
“So let me get this straight…” Aaro spoke, at only thirteen years old, “Those boys are the only thing keeping me from joining this hunting party, correct?” She eyed them with a resolve.
“They are the best this place has to offer, unlike you.” Beamed Nuuto.
Aaro glared at him, she then walked over to the boys in question, her ice swords out. “You’re all a bunch of weaklings and I want your spot.” She outright stated.
This was immeidetly followed by an uproarious laughter from the group, including Nuuto. Prynn however, just stayed and shivered, he was one of few people in the village to know how strong Aaro had become.
Then as quickly as the laughter began, there were screams. Aaro had ran, jumped up, stabbed one boy in the upper chest. She slashed another’s armor rendering him completely naked and showing how small he was down there. She broke another’s collar bone while simatanously impalling a nearby boy’s hand. And finally, there was Ronn. She kicked him hard in the groin then shaved his head. Taari and her groupies, Issia and Miiz, fell silent for the first time in a long time.
Aaro turned back to her brothers, Nuuto stood there his mouth nearly hitting the ground. “I’m coming Nuuto, and if I have to castrate you to prove that point then so be it.” She glared at him, as if challenging him.
Nuuto scoffed “Fine! But don’t get in our way, or mine.” His threat was empty, for Aaro judged she was about as strong as him now. He liked to slack and participate in Zandri Birthday Orgies and the like. Aaro however, trained, and trained hard. .
I didn’t realize it then, but my eldest brother, Nuuto was already making plans to abandon me at the hunting grounds. He was going to tell mother and father that I had died and he tried to protect me. I always distrusted Nuuto…which is probably what saved my life.
~Aaro, Zandri Priestess and Assassin.
Unlike what many would have you believe, my story did not start with Zzruh, Murderer of Zandri turned Hero of War with the O’Sekra. No…My story started the day the war began, the day Zzruh was supposed to be sentenced to death, his execution. It wasn’t to be…Not that day. That day, my birthday, June 30th 2170…The day the war with the O’Sekra began.
Jaaxor…Temple of Sseeara Laaveenae, Nymph Mother, June 30th 2170
“Meeah! Meeah hurry!” A Temple guard called, he was escorting his wife and their newborn baby, a daughter born on this horrible day. Beside him stood their two sons, Nuuto the eldest, and Prynn the younger. “Caarn, the Grand Singer, she’s in danger!” Meeah called, a priestess of the temple. “Our family comes first, Meeah. Aaro needs the both of us.” Aaro, the newborn baby in Meeah’s arms cried. But then she stopped crying and pointed to the sky. Meeah, Caarn and Aaro’s older brothers looked up to where newborn Aaro pointed. It was a ship, an O’Sekra ship. The enemy had come. The family didn’t have much time, they had just crossed the Ice bridge to the Temple when the O’Sekra came…and burned it down. The Grand Single of Jaaxor as well as the Temple of Sseeara Laaveenae was burnt that day, collapsed and all inside it perished from the heat of the blasts used.
My parents had told me that even then I seemed to be attracted to danger and violence, something that worried them as I was born as a girl. The ship that destroyed the temple, nearly instantly, was described as Triangular with sharp angles. It had been taken down though by one of our ships, which are smooth and curvy, but not before the damage had been done. My Parents took me and my two brothers to a village where refugees were gathering. It took all they had to protect it from the enemy, the O’sekra. I didn’t know it then but tensions had built up and it was a minsunderstanding on both Zandri and O’Sekra parts, all because the O’Sekra flashed them with light, something our culture reads as a threat and mark of charging with intent for violence. I didn’t know it then, but the O’Sekra wanted to invite my race into the Multi Species Alliance, just my race happens to be really deadly in their own right. I wouldn’t find out about it…until many years later when I met him…Not Zzruh.
A good 5 years had passed since the day the war between the O’Sekra and Zandri began. The temple to Sseeara Laaveenae had not been rebuilt, or rather sung up a new. The few surviving priestess’s, including Meeah, could not communicate with her to revive the Temple in her worship. The Grand Singer of Jaaxor had been killed when the Temple was destroyed, and all that was left was a sacred area of snow, surrounded on three sides of mountains where you could see Evergreen trees, marking the border to the hot side, the dangerous side, the side of the warriors hunt and honor proving. It was a place where Aaro dreamed of going to, to fight there and prove herself. It would be nice for a reprieve of the bullying she often got from her two older brothers, Nuuto and Prynn. Nuuto was the worst though, often starting the teasing and getting Prynn in to help. And ironically, despite being the youngest, Aaro often found herself in trouble fighting back. She was supposed to be nice and pretty, as Meeah trained her young daughter about the ways of being a priestess. This involved, but not limited to, boring choores and meditating. It also included a lot of singing and dance practice, as well as singing to the snow practice. Aaro became quite good at that, one of the few things she could best her brothers and most other kids with. She wasn’t the only priestess in training though. There was Taari, a girl a few years older than Aaro, as well as Issia, Miiz and finally Ronn, the only male singer to have top honours in the whole village.
Meeah would often find herself getting frustrated with her young daughter, but she was patient as it was very important to continue training a priestess, something which tended mostly to be heretical with very few cases of a priestess adopting a girl to train. It was always female, the highest honours a male could achieve other than temple guard would be an honorable brother and he would get to sing alongside a priestess or even a Divine Singer, head of the Planet’s Temple Chosen by the Ssiren herself from Heesora. Aaro however did her best, but she had been secretly training herself with ice swords that she learned to fashion from the ice. It was cute if you could see her then, but she was serious. She would watch her father train her older brothers and then she would train herself, using what her mother would teach her during training. Aaro never liked cleaning but it was something she had to do. However a specific incident with her brothers would begin to test and put a strain on Aaro’s relationship with them and her own father.
I had a doll…of Zzruh. Lots of Zandri kids had dolls of Zzruh and other war heroes lately, especially on Jaaxor one of the planets he defened from O’Sekra take over. My mother only allowed if I could recipt the song and speech of a priestess, it’s something I can’t write here. But I did, for the sole purpose of having that doll. In five years the seriel murderer on death row and about to meet his sentence had become a hero, overnight. He was getting paid doing what he loved and did best, killing O’Sekra and aiding in bringing down his ships. Zzruh…everyone learned was a rare Zandri of the Omega Gene. His favorite weapon is a massive Ice Scythe, but he could make the enemy attack themselves and he was very good at war tactics, so good it scared even our own military leaders. He worked best then…alone, never satisfied with Omega gene Zandri brought before him. Some would not be seen again and it ws assumed toe O’Sekra picked them off when they were trying to impress Zzruh on the battlefield. I remember the day I first laid my eyes on him officially, it was two months after my fifth birthday, he had come to visit Jaaxor with intentions to kill a Ssayanarot. I still don’t know why, either, he was already a master killing and seasoned warrior then at only twenty one. I remember my Brothers went into my room and took the Zzruh doll, claiming that as a priestess I shouldn’t have something like that, and they proceeded to run with it, hurt the doll.
“Give it back Nuuto!” Aaro cried out, chasing her eldest brother who currently had the doll.
“He Ha, you think you can have this back? This is for warriors only, here Prynn, catch!” Nuuto tossed it to his younger brother, who caught it.
“Yeah, you’ll just ruin it, because you’re a girl!” Prynn jeered, encouraged to bully his little sister by his elder brother Nuuto, who, before Aaro would bully him instead.
“I said…give…it…back!” Aaro called and used her ice daggers for the first time on her brothers, a fact that surpised the both of them. She injured Prynn before getting in a scuffle with Nuuto, which caused them to fall into…of all Zandri…Zzruh.
However the children didn’t know it was Zzruh, not at first. He had a hood over his head and black clothing as he travelled with an entourage, a small group. One of his guards spoke up “How dare you children, do you even know who…” However he was cut off as Zzruh, in his disguise, put up his hand to cut off the man. His silver eyes were focused on the children. He had watched them from the moment the three of them came running. Rather he was interested in a small girl fighting two boys over a doll of his likeness. He actually allowed them to run into them.
“Stupid sister Aaro, look at what you made me do!” Nuuto stated getting up and brushing himself off. “Now apologize! Your eldest brother commands it! And apologize to this stranger.” He had a smirk on his face as their father treated the boys better than the girls, thinking they would be stronger to fight in the war.
“No.” Aaro said getting up. Her eyes were focused on that doll on getting it back. “Give me back Zzruh.”
Zzruh watched this and raised an eyebrow, his entourage about to come in between them. Caarn, The children’s father, was also watching this and he began to come out where he was yelling at Aaro, especially when Nuuto began to lie. He also kicked the doll Zzruh to the ground and stomped on it, smirking at Aaro, that was met immedietly with a cut, to Nuuto’s fingers, which almost resulted in him losing three of five of them.
“AARO! HOW DARE YOU!” Yelled Caarn, and he ran up and was about to hit Aaro in the face before a much stronger hand stopped him.
That’s when Zzruh removed his hood…much to my father’s astonishment. He nearly broke my father’s wrist, and he looked at my father with those murderous eyes. Unlike my father, I didn’t fear those eyes. I could see something in them similar to me, lonleyness. I was only five…
“Pathetic.” Zzruh stated bluntly, he said it in such a tone that it made both Nuuto and Caarn shiver.
“I beg your pardon, honourable Zzruh, but my daughter…” Caarn began
“Is not pathetic…unlike your two sons…who choose to pick on the weak instead of fight the strong, like your daughter.” Zzruh stated, his cold silver eyes just barely detailed over his pale grey skin. His silver white hair framed his face despite it being wild.
Aaro looked up at Zzruh, she had a mixture of anger, resentment, but then mostly awe at Zzruh, the negative was for her family. Aaro watched as Zzruh picked up the Zzruh doll, “They didn’t get the eyes right…” He said, ignoring Caarn now, who along with Nuuto went silent.
“I think they did.” Aaro said, causing Zzruh to look at her. At this point in time Meeah came out and started to head over but stopped.
“Do you…?” Zzruh asked the young five year old Zandri girl before him, his silver eyes focused on her, while she looked up at him almost with a defiant stare.
“Yes. They show he’s lonely, terribly lonely. I can sympathize.” Aaro took the Zzruh doll from Zzruh and cleaned him up before hugging him, this interested Zzruh very much but he didn’t really express it like someone interested would. Aaro continued “He needs a friend.”
“What if he doesn’t need a friend?” Zzruh asked, showing interest only by his words.
“Everybody needs a friend, even Zzruh. Here take this.” Aaro said, giving Zzruh a dagger made of ice.
“I don’t need this.” Zzruh said, wondering why a little girl would give him this.
“Yes you do…you go to fight Ssayanarot, a dagger is better for skinning them.” Aaro said.
He smiled and took the dagger and patted her on the head.
To be honest, I didn’t realize it then…but I had just set in motion of becoming his future pupil just in that one simple gester. I also didn’t realize that I was talking to THEE Zzruh…I thought I was talking to some look alike because all I knew was that Zzruh worked best alone, not with an entourage. He came back later that night though, from the hunt. He was one man short of his original entourage. First thing he noticed was…my new Black Eye.
Aaro had been sitting outside, being somehow punished by getting a stranger’s affections. Her mother was inside yelling with her father, while her brothers were at friends’ houses. It was their reward…for giving Aaro a black eye, which was why her mother was yelling at her father. Aaro’s Zzruh doll, was also gone, destroyed by Caarn. Aaro just sat there, about to cry realizing everything that happened when she felt a flop on her lap and looked down, only to see part of the Ice-Bears pelt, clean. She looked up and saw him again, the man that looked like Zzruh.
Zzruh stood before her and noticed the black eye, he traced his hand on the young girl’s face studying it, before he got visibly angry, at least in his eyes. “What happened?” He asked
“My father allowed my brothers to punish me…because I was bad girl that I did not act lady like, and that I nearly cut my eldest brother’s fingers off. They took Zzruh from me…destroyed him…burned him in ice fire.” Aaro looked down and a tear came from her face. “All because he was my friend.”
Zzruh said nothing but instead walked inside Aaro’s house. The next thing she heard was that the yelling between her mother and father stopped and her father instead started screaming in pain. There was screaming from her mother to stop, and then a silence. Then a short time later, enough time for Zzruh’s entourage to gather, he left Aaro’s house.
When he came over to Aaro, he noticed she was handing him back the pelt “You have earned the honors for this, I couldn’t take it from you.” She said, and offered it back. He took it only to drop it on her head, which he petted affectionately. That’s when Aaro looked up to see him smiling.
That was one of very few times I had seen Zzruh ever smile, and it wasn’t one filled with malice. That’s also when I realized I was talking to Thee Zzruh…it was one of those moments I felt so dumb. He left though, and that pelt became my most precious thing ever. Also after that night, an extension was added to our house, I had my own private wing and my brothers never again entered my room and for a time the harassment was kept to a minimum. My father, Caarn, also got further away from me.
Over the years, the fighting got worse and more people died. I did my best training myself with both fighting and my priestess training. However as the war progressed, we learned that the Surviving Priestesses were being picked off one by one by traitor Zandri, mostly from Teesara, though I would be told later that it was abandoned of Zandri. As the Priestesses were picked off one by one, the surivors including my Mother and I began keeping it a secret. The Ssiren of Heesora, was guarded like no other and hidden away, only appearing when she generally had to. It made my training for fighting easier, but I still had to meditate and learn the songs. As the years past I became stronger…and faster. By the time I turned 13 I had decided to join a hunting party. My brothers, unfortunately didn’t like that idea. And the group they were part of, was the only one taking on new members…
As for the pelt...It stayed with me, my source of comfort even until…until the day we raided that O’Sekra compound on Hyatti, yet failed because of a bomb.
“No, Aaro, you can’t come along.” Nuuto said, his bullying, for years, had been mild compared to what it used to, though now it was starting to become bad again.
“Don’t give me that Ssayanarot Crap, Nuuto, I know your group isn’t full.” Aaro said, crossing her arms.
“Sis, please,” Prynn spoke “We’ve got those new guys to train.” He pointed to the new guys in question, Aaro looked them up and down. She noticed Ronn was part of the group, he was Aaro’s first crush when they used to sing together. She had slowly beat Taari for that role, something which angered her significantly to the point her and her groupies would harass Aaro. It was getting rather annoying.
“So let me get this straight…” Aaro spoke, at only thirteen years old, “Those boys are the only thing keeping me from joining this hunting party, correct?” She eyed them with a resolve.
“They are the best this place has to offer, unlike you.” Beamed Nuuto.
Aaro glared at him, she then walked over to the boys in question, her ice swords out. “You’re all a bunch of weaklings and I want your spot.” She outright stated.
This was immeidetly followed by an uproarious laughter from the group, including Nuuto. Prynn however, just stayed and shivered, he was one of few people in the village to know how strong Aaro had become.
Then as quickly as the laughter began, there were screams. Aaro had ran, jumped up, stabbed one boy in the upper chest. She slashed another’s armor rendering him completely naked and showing how small he was down there. She broke another’s collar bone while simatanously impalling a nearby boy’s hand. And finally, there was Ronn. She kicked him hard in the groin then shaved his head. Taari and her groupies, Issia and Miiz, fell silent for the first time in a long time.
Aaro turned back to her brothers, Nuuto stood there his mouth nearly hitting the ground. “I’m coming Nuuto, and if I have to castrate you to prove that point then so be it.” She glared at him, as if challenging him.
Nuuto scoffed “Fine! But don’t get in our way, or mine.” His threat was empty, for Aaro judged she was about as strong as him now. He liked to slack and participate in Zandri Birthday Orgies and the like. Aaro however, trained, and trained hard. .
I didn’t realize it then, but my eldest brother, Nuuto was already making plans to abandon me at the hunting grounds. He was going to tell mother and father that I had died and he tried to protect me. I always distrusted Nuuto…which is probably what saved my life.
To be continued
