Sun and Scar

Fire

The sun burns brighter than any other star in the sky, especially on a night like tonight where
those deep and raging blood orange flames dance wildly with their golden tendrils, preforming
the most intoxicating and alluring performance, a catastrophic and beautiful act of defiance, of
overwhelming beauty, of pain, of fear, of hatred. On a night like tonight, those raging,
uncontrollable flames dance harshly against the quiet emptiness of the night sky, a sky so black
you could barely make out the silhouettes of the people shackled there, to the fire. The sun burns
brighter than any other star in the sky, the sun also screams the loudest.
Begging, Pleading, Sobbing, Screaming, the flames grew louder as the women, men, and
children burn upon those stakes. Their last words echoing in my head, getting louder and louder
as the flames grow higher and higher, neighbours I have known and friends I have lost. A man
beside me drags his child away from the ferocity of the spectacle, attempting an escape into the
darkness like most of those unfortunate enough to be a witness of such brutality. Guards bearing
the sun symbol of the royal empire strike those who attempt to flee, forcing the rest to watch
helplessly as their friends and loved ones are eaten by the flames.
I watch the fire reach its hungry arms towards Rochelle, a huntress and Shepard; she once
helped me care for a dying sparrow, nothing more than roadkill on the verge of passing, a bird so
far gone that David laughed at me when I cried for its health, yet Rochelle helped me clean it,
helped me dress the wound on the white belly of the brown feathered avian. She was kind, she
was smart, she was brave, and now she screams in fear above the stage, tied to that stake, as
flames claim her lower half. She shrieks, she shrieks like that helpless sparrow flown too close
too close to the treeline too fast to escape that hawk, a natural cycle I so desperately wanted to
interrupt, that sparrow that Rochelle once saved on my behalf. Rochelle screams now for help as
I once did for that sparrow, except no one answers her call now, and her death is not a natural
cycle of life.
David laughed at me for my compassion for a dying bird, now all he can do is scream
like Rochelle, like Tan, like Soi, like Marianne, like every poor soul tied to the stake tonight.
Tied to the stake because they are unnatural, demonic, dangerous, caught in an endless storm of
suffering as the royal guards stand indifferent to the pain, watching the chaos unravel in front of
them as if they were nothing but props, disposable objects, entities devoid of humanity, humanity
that those leeches lacked themselves, those royal dogs, those monsters.
Amidst the almost incomprehensible yelling a voice calls out to me, it’s familiar, they
know me, they know me the most. I can’t understand her. I feel a deep and irreversible
hollowness fill my chest, my heart aches, who is she? I feel a hand grip onto my upper arm, my
father pulls me away from the flames, I look at his face and am that hollowness in my chest is
filled with grief; he’s looking at the woman in the centre of the stakes, an expression I have
never seen him make plastered across his face like a portrait painted by the most cruel and
sadistic artist. I have never seen him in so much pain before, I have never seen him look so

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desperate, like some villain took a hold of his heart and held it dangling off the edge of white
cliffs above the deep, dark belly of the sea.
ARUNA! She calls to me from the centre stake and in the darkness the flames give off just
enough light to illuminate her figure, just barely I can make out her features, despite that I can
tell she is beautiful. With long, wavy brown hair and striking green eyes she resembles me, in my
memories she is ferocious, she is caring, and she is selfless. Dad always said I took after my
mother, “Stubborn, both of you.”
SEB! SEBASTIAN! TAKE ARUNA AND LEAVE ME! RUN! The flames creep up to her
legs, I suddenly become aware that many of the other stakes have stopped screaming.
My father moves as if to refuse, ATHENA-!
SEBASTIAN PLEASE! The desperation in her voice tears a hole into my chest, my
mother is never desperate, my mother never cries, she’s the strongest person I know.
MOM! The voice comes from me this time. I’m scared, tears roll down my face and I
make no effort to wipe them away. This isn’t real. This can’t be real.
I LOVE YOU! I LOVE YOU ALWAYS, DONT FORGET THAT! Her voice is coarse and
she is yelling, but her words are sweet and soft like morning fog glistening on a leaf, “She’s like
a cold breeze on a sweltering hot summer day,” the memory of my father’s face washes in,
bright and beaming with light watching my mother plant dragon-snaps in our quant little garden
as the sun beats down onto her, a dramatic and horrific opposition to the face he is making now.
I LOVE YOU! My father looks at a royal guard to the left of us, I’M SORRY. Tears free
themselves from his eyes and pour down his face, he doesn’t bother to wipe them away.
Kneeling down, he grabs me and holds me against his chest, looking at my mother one last time
amongst the flames before pushing his way through the crowd, carrying the face of a man who
had lost it all, somebody had held his heart over the looming white cliffs to the east and let it
drop into the deepest, darkest sea of misery. I take one last look at my forsaken mother, a look I
yearn to make last for an eternity, but the moment passes, and we vanish into the depth of the
crowd. Her words echo in my mind.
I LOVE YOU ALWAYS.
RUN.

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 Sun and Scar

Alémere

“Aruna,” Aruna’s father was a hard worker, he got up every day at the brink of dawn and
goes to work. Being the only trusted Blacksmith in all of town has its benefits, you are bestowed
with the honour of customizing and creating “art in the form of weaponry,” as Aruna’s father put
it so lovingly. It is true that he has always loved his craft despite working so close to the flames,
but lately that spark in his eyes has been smothered. He wakes up at the same time every day but
struggles to pull himself together, sometimes Aruna swears he resembles a husk the way his
lifeless corpse drags itself out of bed. His craft had become a chore. He franticly searches for his
tongs, “Aruna, dear, please,” he looks defeated. Even so, he gets up and pushes himself to
complete his work every day. Aruna reaches the tongs out to his gloved hands and he’s right
back to work.
“I’m going into town,” Aruna shoulders a beige cotton bag and places her coin purse
inside, “do you need anything?”
“Uh,” he distractedly fiddles with stray a pommel and grip that lay decapitated from its
blade, “if you are going to the market could you stop for some flour?”
Aruna started towards the door, “Sure, love you,” she closed the black-iron door behind
her and stepped into the crowded cobblestone street. Alémere is the largest city in all Nalaraine,
a bustling capitol of many cultures and people from all walks of life. People fill the busy streets,
merchants, thugs, and tourists alike, but as of late all these people have been trapped here by the
monarchy that rules over Nalaraine. The tyrant king has been said to have cut the head off the
shoulders of the late queen years ago, leaving the kingdom to fend for itself under his reign.
Since then, the cities, towns, and villages of Nalaraine have all been walled away, not a single
person may come or go, and that applies to these confused, wandering tourists unfortunate
enough to have visited this city of lights and street fights those many years ago. In truth, the only
ones allowed to come and go are the guards, the royal dogs of the tyrant king, and prisoners.
Aruna makes a right turn, moving her west down Lumiere street. This street is the
busiest, the bright red and orange lights capturing the glassy eyes of tourists, and the many
thieves that hope for the distraction of such a spectacle. In downtown Alémere it is best to keep
your belongings as close to you as possible, and if you are caught letting your belongings slip, it
is best to let them go before you lose more than the change in your pockets. Today, Aruna sports
a blue, nearly black, velvet coat, the hood stays up for anonymity, the length of the fabric
surrounds her belongings, her best friend, Cyrene, would say that the colour accents her
complexion. Cyrene and Aruna had been inseparable ever since Cyrene avenged Aruna for a
prank pulled by some of the local boys that had gone to her school. Reaching for her lunch one
day she expected to be eating her favourite snack, apples, but instead she received a large
slippery toad and the jump scare of her life. Standing up for herself, Aruna carried the toad over
to the boys, asking them to take accountability. Aruna had seen them watching her as she opened
her bag, they were expecting a show, and Aruna was not some stupid child, but when she
brought the subject up to them, she was met with hurtful words, what, are you going to cry to
mama? The strength of her composure that day goes unmatched by anyone since, if she had it

3
her way, she would have fed them all a mouthful of fists, but she had promised her father not to
fight anyone anymore, she promised not to cause problems. Defeated, she returned the
amphibian to the garden, and returned herself to her desk. The next day the same boys who put
the slippery abductee in Aruna’s lunch received a handful of worms in in theirs, but this plan
wasn’t concocted by Aruna, the revenge had been the product of Cyrene’s vindictive mind. Not
only did Aruna make a best friend that day, but one of the boys that had served her that toad and
harsh words, Yunés, had apologized. Ever since then the three of them had been close. I need to
tell them about the guards.
Market shops and carts line the way along the road, only natural considering the foot
traffic. Aruna looks to her left towards the southern gate, one of only two gates in the whole
wall, the gate she would run through to the other side and disappear forever with her father if she
could. Her stomach twists at the sight of the mighty palace horses, pure and strong, accompanied
by an unusually large syndicate of imperial guards. And then she saw them, bile rose in her
throat as she witnessed guards unlike the others, decorated in silver and gold-plated armour all
bearing that absolutist insignia, the bright sun of our great empire, their armour impenetrable by
most magic. Aruna turned away quickly in fear of arousing suspicion; in these times being
suspicious was deemed an offense worthy of punishment, punishment in death. Aruna held her
breath. Those special guards had been here before, and it had cost the lives of many in this town,
including Aruna’s own mother. As anyone here in Alémere was concerned, those royal pigs were
little more than cowardly monsters hiding under silver and gold. Aruna peeks once more at the
parade, this could only mean one thing, death. The insignia of the golden sun stared back at her.
The King of Nalaraine started locking citizens in the nation 10 years ago, since then no
one has been able to come and go from their city or village. The walls that surrounded them were
thick with stone and metal. When they were being installed, the King had sent soldiers to inform
citizens that the walls were for their own protection, the beginning of many lies told in order to
control the people. Harvesters who previously hid in the shadows of society, feeding and
mutilating unsuspecting victims, were employed as soldiers, officers, and guards alongside
humans. The tyranny came when Aruna was 8 years old, and it never stopped. The King became
so unhinged that he took the life of his queen, beheading her in the throne room. Rumour has it,
he did so in front of his thirteen-year-old son, the Crown Prince of Nalaraine. Aruna would feel
sorry for the boy, but despite still existing in the castle he has never vouched for the people his
father has abused, the people that he has taken autonomy from. It has been six years since the
pristine ruler of Nalaraine murdered his wife, and Aruna’s opinion of the event has changed.
When it happened, civilians didn’t know what to think, whether to cheer that one seat in the
tyrannical throne had vacated, or to shun it; as horrible and tragic as it is, violence against
women has been normalized. Men walked through the streets comfortable enough to declare the
act as the husband’s right, his authority over her was amplified by his position as King because
Queen wasn’t as prolific. Others took the brutal display of violence as the turning point of
Nalaraine as they knew it, if the King was willing to destroy someone he held so dear, what
would he be willing to do to the citizens that walked below him?
Aruna moved quickly away from the gate. She stoped at a familiar cart containing
brightly coloured fruits and picked a handful of apples. She exchanged five silver coins for the
fruit and moved to the stand helpfully labeled FLOUR! As the Blacksmith’s daughter it is easy to
get around the city unscathed. There is a respect for the locals, especially those that work for
others such as Sebastian, her father. The respect has not always been there, it was once a fend for
yourself, pull others down to rise above, type of city, but that was before the walls, before the

4
tyranny, before each of us gained one common enemy. Aruna smiled at the person selling flour,
they smiled back.
“A bag of flour please,” Aruna dug through belongings in search of her coin purse, but
before she could pull it out the person behind the stand put their hand and dropped the bag of
flour on the table in front of Aruna.
“Free of charge,” the person, easily in their late thirties, early forties, smiles and goes to
turn, “Tell Sebastian I said hello, will you?”
Aruna places her coins back into her bag and grins softly, it’s rare for kindness to show
itself in these streets, “Thank you. I will tell him you said hello.” It pays to be respected, Aruna,
remember that your kindness towards others will come back to reward you some day, Aruna’s
father’s words echo in her head, just as the evil you put into the world will come back as well,
but you will not be so lucky to be rewarded. Aruna turned away from the stall with her apples
and flour, a genuine smile on her lips, and then it faded once more. Distracted, she took a step
forward into the crowded street, she noticed too late that people were moving out of the way of
something, until that something knocked into her, sending her bag of goods out into the road, the
apples rolling pitifully on the cobblestone ground. Aruna caught herself barely, a wave of anger
coursing through her. She glared up at the unknown assailant with rage in her eyes, her hood had
fallen off and the man could see the face of a very hungry, and frankly, pissed off woman. Those
apples looked delicious, what a waste. The man had stopped for only a second to look back at the
damage he had done, he was tall, wearing dark clothing and a black hoodie that covered his hair,
although some had peeked through either from the tussle, or from running like a mad man
through the busiest street of all Alémere. His eyes were a striking gray colour, and those eyes
were glowering at Aruna. The nerve! Despite his would-be beautiful features if he wasn’t a total
asshole, the most striking thing of his appearance was the numerous scars that littered his perfect
appearance like a neglected marble sculpture left to weather and crack. Aruna, struck and
fascinated, froze. She was going to tell him off, but before she could process the words he was
already gone. Just before his rude departure he had looked through the crowd like someone was
following him, like he had been in danger, and the stone-cold façade wavered for a millisecond,
an expression washed over his face and was gone in an instant, the façade recovering, he didn’t
even bother to look in Aruna’s direction let alone offer a hand before he was gone. No one
chased him. The encounter was strange, that’s for certain. But one thing stuck with her as she
was helped to her feet by the passing strangers was her curiosity of the story behind all those
scars, and that chilling expression on his face, it was all too familiar.
As Aruna collected her pathetic apples from the cobblestones she thought about her
father, at least he would have his flour now. She moved hastily back to her house, that sinking
feeling in her stomach still lingered from the sight of those guards and the weird encounter with
that man, something was not right. Tonight, the town would be herded into the town square, and
the situation was seeming more dire. Aruna passed the opening that gave her a clear line of sight
from the street to the gate, then it registered, the man had been running from this direction and
the man had been looking in this direction with that fearful look on his face. She needed to make
it home as soon as she could.

5
 Sun and Scar

Peril

Aruna slammed the front door open in a rush, closing it just as hard.
“Dad?” She locked the door behind her and paced deeper into the house, putting down
her bag with the dented apples and the sack of flour she had promised. “DAD?”
No noise came when she called him again and again, only the empty silence of the
blacksmith, she turned into his workshop and looked in. She sank to the ground, her heart
stopped. The forge was still hot, still burning, and Sebastian was nowhere to be found. I’ll be
damned if I ever leave the fire burning while I am away, he had been joking, but the words cut
into Aruna’s gut, she felt sick, If the fire is ever running and I am not there just assume the
worst, Aruna.
Once she checked throughout the house, she grabbed a key and took off through the door,
running down the street once more, past pedestrians, horses, and carriages. At one point Aruna
knocked wildly into a passer-by, barely stopping for an apologetic glance at the poor civilian.
Now I must look like the madman. She continued running through the streets until she got back to
the south gate, the sun was setting now on Alémere, beautiful and vibrant colours filled the sky,
but Aruna knew this night would end with darkness. A vision of flames crept in from the deepest
corners of her mind, a woman’s silhouette illuminated by the paralyzing fire. Out of breath and
exhausted, she franticly scanned the gates surroundings in search of her father, and she pushed
those thoughts back into the depths. Guards were preparing, only time will tell what they had
planned. First, she needed to find her dad. A large group of guards moved away, and she spotted
a carriage open and ready, waiting for occupation, two royal dogs stood at the stern. Aruna
ducked behind a nearby lamp post for cover. Four more guards came into view, they were
dragging a prisoner with them. The prisoner walked upright, but their panicked steps gave away
their internal fear. A bag covered his head and shackles covered his wrists and ankles, but Aruna
knew then that what she was seeing was the abduction of her father. Her heart dropped and she
gripped onto the lamp post she posted on. An immediate reaction, tears fell uncontrollably from
her face, and she sobbed. She neither cared that she was crying in public, nor did she heed
caution for the aggravating guards that had just taken her father. Aruna knew this meant the end,
no one who ever left these damn stone walls ever came back. He can’t be gone. They only had
each other left, Sebastian and Aruna were inseparable, she took after him with his craftsmanship
and his compassion. You take after your mother, her dad had loved every quality of her mother,
he has said that Aruna takes after her for one specific thing the most, you’re stubborn. He was
right. What are you doing here crying for? That won’t change a damn thing! Aruna grounded
herself and stared at her father being thrown into the back of the carriage, but this time a fire had
been lit under her, and she was not going to let it burn. She needed a plan. She needed to escape.

6
 Sun and Scar

Escape

Aruna was stubborn, that one thing is for certain, and faced with the possible death of the one
person she loved in this world, she was willing to risk it all. That night the civilians of Alémere
had been rounded into the town square like barn animals. The night sky had long since engulfed
the once pretty sunset into darkness. The people were anxious, murmurs of that night years ago
floated around the crowd, a mother beside Aruna pulled her child tight to her chest. Aruna held
back tears as she thought of her father, alone and afraid in that carriage. He was a tough man,
there is no doubt he worried more about Aruna than he did himself, but this thought only
furthered Aruna’s misery. She pushed it back.
The stage was almost completely empty, no sign on a stake to be lit, no one in impending
doom strapped to the stake. If they found magic users, surely there would be fire to be set, and
someone to burn. Even so, three young people knelt with their hands shackled behind their backs
and bags over their heads upon the stage, guards on either side. The figures of two of the three
people seemed familiar, they were locals I recognized, but couldn’t decipher their identities.
Guards surrounded the mass of civilians, Aruna remained promptly in the middle. Being in the
middle meant playing dead if they opened fire, not too close to the stage, not too close to the
edge, never beside a guard. The royal guards were not always leeches, not always those blood-
sucking, murderous excuses of a creation called Harvesters. You would know if a Harvester
stood beside you, their eyes gleam with a craving of your soul, their hair white like fresh snow.
Their fingernails long and sharp like claws, their K9 teeth sharp like fangs, and their skin paler
than the white cliffs to the east. They might blend in like humans in guard armour, or even in the
vast streets of Alémere, but they will never be human. There is no doubt that at least one of the
royal dogs was a leech. Aruna shuddered.
“Hello citizens of Alémere!” A demanding voice boomed from the stage, a guard stood
there, towering over the crowd, “The great nation of Nalaraine is honoured to have such loyal
members such as yourself here in the capitol, the Kingdom looks down on you with an immense
pride,” the man lowered his hands from raising them up toward the dark, looming towers making
up the castle of sun, positioned to the north, appropriately over-seeing the city from within its
own set of walls and a moat, almost completely decapitated from the poor, meaningless peasants
down below, “but…” the crowd grew more nervous, “there appears to have been some within
this city who believe that they are above the law, that they are the righteous ones under god.”
The man unveiled the three civilians chained to the stage. Faces of each of the three popped into
Aruna’s head, she recognized them whether from being acquaintances or in passing, but she
recognized them.
“Julius!” The partner of one of the people on the stage yelled out to them, people around
the partner shifted away, disassociating themselves from him to avoid persecution from the
guards, a few of whom had now raised their guns towards the man. Aruna held her hood tight
onto her head. The man looked around now at the divide created between him and the crowd,
acutely aware of the target on his head. His eyes landed back on Julius, who had acquired a few
new bruises around his eyes and mouth. Julius turned his head as if he did not see him, did not

7
recognize him. He’s trying to protect him. Aruna felt shame for cowering in this crowd with her
hood up while real people like Julius protect the ones they love, Aruna is too selfish to be
protected like that, to be loved like that. And yet I am being protected by someone that loves me,
and I don’t deserve it. If Sebastian had told the guards about his daughter, she would no doubt be
carried away with him, or maybe she would be slain.
The guard on the stage motioned for the man to be taken forward, two more guards
stepped in, grabbing the partner by the arms, and dragging him to the stage, a front row view,
“Any association with a terrorist rebel group by Alémere and Nalaraine citizens under the
Crown with not be tolerated, those offenders with be eliminated as per the supreme orders of His
Royal Highness, the King of Nalaraine and only true ruler of our great nation,” the guard
unholsters his pistol and raises it to Julius’ head. Two other guards approach the two other
offenders, following in suit as they raised their guns. Julius’ partner struggles, Aruna sees the
horror in her father’s face that fateful day those many years ago in her mind, a sinking feeling
pulls on her heart. “Long live the prosperous nation of Nalaraine and his Supreme Ruler, may the
gods take mercy on your souls,” Three rounds of shots crack through the sky, people shriek and
shift away, but no one is stupid enough to make a break for it. The three bodies on the stage fall
forward into a pile of their own flesh and blood. Aruna avoids watching their faces, you’d think
a person would get used to it after seeing this brutality many times, I’ll never get used to such a
horrific display of inhumanity.
Julius’ partner collapses to his knees, the guard beside him pulls his gun to his head and
now the crowd lurches away in terror, voices call out in protest. They are fighting back while I
am standing here, cowering. The guard ignores the pleas to stop the violence and his finger
moves to the trigger and a split second later a shot goes off but this time the guards were not the
responsible party, instead the guard drops backwards, his silver chain armour landing hard on the
cobblestone. Now people scattered, there was no reason to stick around when the guards and
civilians start getting into a gun fight in a heavily populated town square. Aruna searches for the
origin of the shot but the town had already began rushing away, there was almost no way Aruna
could pick one person out of the crowd, and yet she saw him. For only a moment Aruna saw
between the short gaps of the panicked crowd a tall man wearing all black clothing standing a
distance away, his hood covering his head and restricting his identity, but Aruna could recognize
that scar running from just above his lips to just above his collarbone anywhere. A flurry of
thoughts began running through Aruna’s mind; the same man that had knocked her to the ground
and disappeared with a glare had taken it upon himself to save one random civilian. Maybe it
was personal. There was no way a person who refused to help up the person they knocked down
all while scowling at her could ever be more than selfish, why would he go out of his way? Then
again, a man who runs from a horde of guards willingly knocking down anyone in his way to
avoid them must not be on great terms with them. The man with the scars disappears among the
sea of Alémerians and the guards charge the crowds searching for a person wielding a pistol,
occasionally pulling a random civilian to the ground.
Aruna booked it, a disastrous plan formed in her head as she out-ran her neighbours, a
plan so dangerous that if she did not commit to it and pull it off unscathed, she surely would end
up with her father, or worse, like those poor souls on the stage today. And yet, the image of her
father bagged and shoved into the back of an imperial carriage dissipated over logical thought.
She needs to get out. Turning onto her street she halts abruptly; the lights in her house are on, the
lamps glowing. Aruna never leaves the lights on. Someone is in my house. Moving across the
street and pulling her hood on tighter, she watches through the window as guards move furniture,

8
uplift carpet, and hardwood. They pour the apples in her bag she had just bought onto the
ground. There was no choice now, she must leave, and she must leave now. Aruna moved
against the wave of horrified neighbours, acquittances, and strangers; the only way out was
through that damned south gate, surely moving up north toward the castle would only cause
more problems for her.
“Aruna!” Cyrene searched the hoard of people, panic-stricken. Aruna moves over to
them, avoiding looking suspicious to the guards who were most definitely looking for the
daughter of the Blacksmith. What did father do to get in trouble with the guards? Yunés ran up
to Cyrene as Aruna approached, their eyes landing on her.
“We’ve got to get out of here, the guards were searching for you. They are in the
Blacksmith,” Cyrene glanced back at the Blacksmith and pulled Aruna and Yunés into a
backstreet, “Where’s your dad?”
Aruna felt her eyes begin to sting and her throat become scratchy, where is my dad?
Aruna struggled to keep down the rush of bottled emotion, Cyrene had always had a way of
pulling out all the thing she could normally keep to herself.
“They took him,” Aruna choked out the words, forcing in a tiddle wave of feelings.
“What?” Cyrene’s dark eyes focused on Aruna’s. Cyrene had always been beautiful even
when she made worried expressions like the one she was making right now.
Aruna tried to make a noise, but nothing came out except a soft sob-like sound. Cyrene
leaned in to hug her, Yunés followed suit.
“We’ll find him.” Cyrene moved back, keeping Aruna at arm’s length with her hands
holding onto her shoulders. Determination struck Cyrene’s face, but Aruna could tell she was
uncertain.
“Um, so what’s the plan? Unless you know someone with a large supply of explosives
and a willingness to harm civilians then all I’ve got is a rope and ladder,” Yunés looked from
Aruna to Cyrene, looking for guidance. Aruna’s face twisted up from a frown to an insatiably
wicked smile, Yunés sighed and shook his head, Cyrene grinned, “I should have known you
would have something up your sleeve, you two plotting together is a dangerous mixture.”

9
 Sun and Scar

The Plan

“Are we sure this is going to work?” Yunés had been questioning the plan ever since they had
moved a block away from the south gate, now they were watching the planned movement of the
guards stationed there. There was less now than earlier that day, but this was still too many
guards to have complete confidence in the plan.
“Have some faith, Yunés.” Cyrene smiled at Yunés and rushed to a closer alley. Yunés
groaned and curled further into a ball. Despite the flimsiness of the plan and almost certain death,
Aruna was feeling good about it, adrenaline coursed through her body, she was alive, and she
was not letting her father be taken away from her.
“Both of you are crazy.” Yunés stared defeatedly at Aruna.
“You’d do crazy things too if the person you loved was on the other side of that wall
too,” Aruna stared back, unwavering in her confidence, even if she felt sick to her stomach right
now, “Let it be fate, let it be madness, but I feel that this will work. Do you trust me Yunés?”
Yunés blew out a breath, “Of course I trust you, Aruna,” Yunés shot her a trusting smile,
his eyes gleamed, “what are you waiting for? Let’s get to work.”
Aruna darted to the outing opposite to Cyrene, Yunés moved past Aruna in the alleyway
she was situated in, making a turn at the end of the alley, and moving closer to the guards. There
was 10 guards posted at the gate, three of them watched their surroundings, the other seven were
not as smart, or maybe they were just lazy, after all, who was expecting a trio of 18-year-old to
come by and light fire to one of their carriages?
Right on cue, a carriage far off to the right of the opening of the gate burst into flames,
horses posted around the troughs to the left of the opening took notice. Guards, oblivious to the
cause of such a fire, ran to the fire, taking buckets from the troughs to expel the flames. Pulling
the knife from her coat, Aruna sprang into action, Cyrene followed. Yunés sprinted away from
the fire he just created. The three ran straight for the horses posted to the left, knives in hand,
ready to chop off their leads and take off through the gate. The gate had been left opened all day,
possibly for guards to make a quick exit if a revolution broke out, and possibly to catch rebels in
action, trying to escape the city. Either way, Aruna, Cyrene, and Yunés had sealed their fate,
there was no going back now. Aruna eyed a muscular and stoic black stallion, that one is mine.
The guards were almost completely distracted by the fire, two guards stayed behind, glancing
back and forth from the fire, questioning if they should help or stay posted. 20 yards out, a figure
from their left darts out, passing them. The mystery person effortlessly cuts through the lead of
the large black stallion Aruna had wanted to run away on and swept themself onto the back of
the horse, and in that moment the figure reminded her of someone familiar.
“Just my luck.” Aruna almost laughed, Cyrene and Yunés glanced at her confused as they
ran. The man with the scars took off, his horse carrying him through the gate.
“If the guards weren’t aware of the plan, they sure are now.” Yunés cut the lead to a
healthy looking white and chestnut spotted horse. Cyrene claimed a sturdy black horse with
white spots on its feet and a diamond of white on its snout. Aruna chose the closest horse to her,
an elegant chestnut horse with the same white spots as Cyrene’s horse. These horses are less like

10
war horses and more like show ponies. Shots broke out and a bullet whizzed by Aruna close
enough to hear as it tore through the air. Unbothered by the bullets from years of desensitization,
the horses obeyed orders to move to the gate. Aruna’s hood flew back at the speed of the beasts,
Cyrene and Yunés were moving swiftly in front of her.
“Close the gate! Close the gate!” guards shouted as the gate clanked. Cyrene and Yunés
made it through unscathed, taking off into the unknown. None of them had never seen the
outside, they had all been too young to remember it, to even remember a time before the wall.
The thought of the outside world excited her and scared her all the same, but no matter what laid
outside these towering walls it would be safer than staying here, here without her father. The
sharp metal claws of the gate gleamed with torchlight and the makeshift distraction of a fire they
had just concocted, its jaw closing in on Aruna as she passed through it, its teeth brushing against
her back as she ducked against her mighty horse, but she was through, and she was free. She’d
never felt more alive in her life.

11
 Sun and Scar

Someone Familiar

How coincidental, was Eelios’ first thought as he watched the south gate from a distance,
scouting for a way out just like he had done time and time before, how annoying, was his second
thought. Setting a fire as a distraction was a risky choice, it almost never works. Take it from
someone who has had made a career out of escaping these stupid walls, it is not as easy as
setting a suspiciously planted fire and making a break for it. And yet, that girl Eelios had the
displeasure of running into earlier had shown up here of all places, sprinting madly toward a
high-security gate and jeopardizing Eelios’ plan. Eelios grumbled at the sight of her, the girl who
scowled at him down the market street. There was no use focusing on her now, not when he
could be getting out of Alémere with his head intact and his feet unshackled. He charged at the
horses penned by the throughs, his blade in his gloved palm. Despite the three escapees 30 yards
ahead of him, he made it to the horses first, passing the girl with green eyes and foul gaze.
Climbing onto the largest stallion, he was out the gate before he was even situated on the steed.
Although out the gate, the worst of it was yet to come.
An arrow flew past Eelios’ head, nicking the tip of his ear. He urged the stallion to move
faster, ignoring the blood dripping off his ear and onto a perfectly fine black coat, at least I
won’t have to replace another white shirt. A gunshot sounded from the gate, but no bullet came
his way. He glanced back to search for the three people escaping, two had found their way out
while the gate was closing, the third and last person was the one from the market. She hadn’t
made it out yet and the gate was dangerously low for her steed to get under without stabbing its
rider. Despite knowing he shouldn’t meddle in other people’s affairs; he couldn’t help but watch.
Why do I care about some stranger? Eelios looked away, swerving his horse unpredictably to
avoid bullets and arrows as they rained down on them. Having someone to care about leads to
misery, and Eelios cannot afford to care about someone. I can’t afford to have any weaknesses,
he clutched hard onto the reigns, besides, once they find out who and what I am, they would skin
me themselves. And yet, he looked back once more, out of curiosity, of course.
The wild woman was riding a chestnut-coloured horse a distance behind their other
accomplices. One accomplice was riding a monstrous black and white steed, surely belonging to
one of the head guards, a horse similar to the one Eelios was riding right now. The thought of a
commanding officer peeved about their missing stallion amused him, a grin lightly pulled at his
mouth. The other accomplice was on a skinny white and chestnut spotted horse, its size wailed in
comparison to the first accomplice’s steed. The green-eyed girl was at the gate, the sharp iron
spears skimming her back as it dropped down. Eelios felt a relief as she continued away from the
wall. He may not care for anyone, but he would never wish harm upon anyone, with exceptions.
Those innocent Alémerian civilians didn’t deserve to get gunned down on the stage, that man’s
partner didn’t deserve to watch his boyfriend die, the partner didn’t deserve to stare down the
barrel of the gun of the guards who were supposed to protect him. That imperial officer on the
stage deserved persecution, but everyone knows that justice doesn’t exist anymore, so Eelios had
to take it into his own hands even if it cost him his cover. No matter how far and how long he
runs, his compassion for others costs him, whether it be his progress so far, the little sanity he

12
has left, or space on his skin not stained with hideous marks. The scars haven’t made running
away any easier; it’s hard not to miss a monstrous freak amongst the masses. He might have
saved one person from the grips of death tonight, but Eelios can’t help but wonder, would any of
these people do the same for me? He shook the thought away and came back to his senses. He
was approaching the treeline, bullets sounding and arrows flying all around him as he ducked
closer to his horse.
Guards and officials wielding guns, swords, and bows were now on horseback, gaining
ground. When the last of the newly achieved criminals escaped the wall, they had halted the
closure of it, opening it wider to release a swarm of imperial ass-kissers. The two accomplices
were not far behind Eelios while the apple girl was trailing behind.
“Shit.” Eelios was going to pay for what he was about to do, what’s one more scar to the
collection anyway? He flung the cape of his coat off his left side, throwing it around his back to
open for a better shot. Pulling his gun from his hip with his right hand and removing his hood
from hid view, he lined up, allowing his horse full control. The two accomplices worriedly
glanced back and forth from their third, trying to keep an eye on the road while looking out for
her. Sensing Eelios’ focused eyes, the one on the skinny horse panicked, nearly running the other
person off the trail and into an unforgiving grandfather tree. Now, out of Eelios’ line of sight, he
could see the girl, she seemed to be doing fine, but her horse was slowing down. The guards
were merely 50 yards behind, the guard closest raised their pistol, locking onto her. Eelios blew
out a breath and pulled the trigger. A loud shot and the guard slumped, his horse peeling off the
path and the guard’s body toppling off.
The two accomplices exchanged bewildered glances, the one on the large black steed
making a catalogue of emotions, like they were attempting to display gratitude while also glaring
a warning at Eelios, it’s not me that you have to worry about blowing a hole into your friend, he
readjusted his steed’s path, so much for a thank you. His horse was moving too fast, he needed to
slow down. Tugging lightly on the reigns, he closed the distance between him and the three
others, two of which caught up to him. More guards gained on the last fugitive, and every one
that raised a weapon to her was picked off, one by one. Eelios’ revolver had despaired the last of
his ammo, giving one official enough time to get mere metres away from the girl, the sharp blade
of their sword reflecting the lantern light coming from behind as they drew back to swing. Eelios
yanked on the reigns and redirected the giant black war horse back the way he had come,
charging into the lasting officials who hadn’t turned back or died when he began returning their
affections. He ditched his cloak, floating down behind him and unveiling the sword strapped to
his back. He took hold of its golden hilt and swung it out in front. Alarm bells rung in his head to
turn around and escape, but it was too late now, they had seen him, and they had recognized him.
For whatever reason, Eelios had sealed his fate with a random girl he ran into once in a market,
but this time she did not glare at him with anger, instead she locked her eyes on his as he passed,
a determination like no other gleamed in her eyes. His sword steady and his horse charging, he
took inspiration from the girl whose compulsion had cost him months staying hidden and
glowered at his target with an inhuman determination. He swung.

13
 Sun and Scar

Fugitives

Aruna felt pain sear through her side, whether it was a bullet, or an arrow was unknown, for
she was too scared to look at it or touch it. Instead, she allowed her mind to be preoccupied by
more pressing matters. They were so close now that she risked getting shot somewhere more
severe. Panic started to set in, but she refused to give up now, this was just the beginning, and
she had a long way to go to find her father. She had some fighting experience, but that was
mostly with swords, the swords in the blacksmith that she could not get to due to the
unprecedented visit by royal officers. She fought her expression into a glare rather than show her
fear. The mystery man had shot some of the officers, but he had stopped his retaliation, maybe
he had given up on me, maybe I am as good as dead after all. A guard was now close enough to
Aruna that she could smell them. But suddenly she heard it, a stallion charging from in front of
her, and they were getting louder. She looked up, her gaze meeting his as he darted past, his
sword raised for confrontation.
She turned to see him in action, some guards halted, some shouted, others raised their
weapons. The closet guard was too slow to react to his sudden appearance and he pummeled past
him, his blade slicing through the official’s stomach. The next guard held a pistol, but even they
were too slow; he cut the hand of the officer that wielded the gun clean off and jabbed him off
his horse. The man was wildly outnumbered, and yet the hoard of guards retreated. Cyrene and
Yunés came storming back to Aruna making faces of worry and relief as the guards got further
and further away. The nameless man stood there, stoically turned away from Aruna and her
friends, the sunset was near gone by now to the just to the left of him. He was frightening, silent
and still just after taking the lives of many guards. Maybe they deserved it, upholding this
totalitarian rule, harming innocent people, but Aruna could never imagine herself taking the life
of anyone. They may not have been innocent, but did that warrant death? He may have appeared
frightening, but Aruna spotted something else in the way he held himself, fear, sorrow? It was
hard to imagine this man feeling anything at all, maybe a lack of emotion makes it easier to kill.
And then he turned around, holding his sword down by his side, he made his way back up
to them, his face almost indifferent but his eyes cold. He did not acknowledge them as he passed,
instead he slowly brough this horse back to where he had thrown his cloak and gracefully slipped
off his horse. He laid his sword on the grass beside him as he knelt to the dark fabric, picking it
up. The three of them urged their horses closer.
“Uh, hello?” Cyrene leaned to take a better look at him. Aruna felt the pain in her side
flare, she nearly doubled over. Cyrene wasn’t watching her to see it and Aruna up righted
herself. Yunés swatted at Cyrene and glared at her, a sign from him that approaching a man who
had single-handedly taken care of a large group of trained officers would not be wise to upset.
“Thank you for…” Yunés searched for a passive word, “…helping us out. And I am sorry
we caused you any trouble.”
The man moved over to the grass where his sword had been and started wiping the blood
away from the blade, ignoring Yunés. Red stained the greenery. They were closer now, Aruna
studied him as he worked, he carefully wiped the blood away, delicately and carefully unlike his

14
actions just moments before. He stood up and faced away from the group, placing his sword back
in its scabbard. He looked younger than he seemed to Aruna at first now that his cloak was off,
he couldn’t have been that much older than her. He was tall with a lean strong build. He wore a
long black sleeve shirt, black pants, and black shoes. At the end of his sleeves and his pant legs
he had wrapped thin black around until it met his shoes and his gloves. A tactical belt and holster
wrapped low on his waist carried everything from knives to a revolver, and was the only glimpse
of colour on himself, even though it was a dark brown that was nearly black. Even his hair was
black.
Cyrene hopped off her horse and Yunés followed. Aruna stayed on her horse, her wound
grew more bloody and painful by the minute; jumping off the horse would cause her too much
pain, and she didn’t want Cyrene to lose her mind over it. Yunés offered his hand, Aruna,
hesitant, but willingly took it. It would be suspicious if she hadn’t. With none of the grace that
the man had, she rolled off the horse and faltered when she hit the ground. Cyrene raised an
eyebrow. Aruna gave her a smile.
“So, what now?” Yunés whirred around, looking at all horizons. Aruna did the same.
They had never seen the world like this, able to see every beautiful corner of earth, every place
where the sky met the ground, for a moment she forgot about it all, the strange situation she was
in, her near death experience, her wounds, and her reason for escaping that place where she
could never see the details on the flowers sleeping on the forest bed, see the way the lamp lights
the guards left behind illuminated the faces of her friends, her friends that were free, a strange
feeling moved through her body, a mix of every single emotion danced through her stomach. She
knew for a fact how stupid she looked now, her mouth agape and her eyes wide. She felt like she
was seeing for the first time.
“Careful, you might swallow a bug,” Cyrene looked at Aruna sweetly, a grin like no other
spread on her face, is she tearing up? Cyrene cleared her throat, “Well, we are fugitives now, so,
we should start by getting away from the wall, and then…”
Aruna’s face twisted in confusion, he had thought of a plan to get out, but she hadn’t put
much thought into what to do after. She knew where the prison was when her dad lived without
the wall. It was common knowledge that it existed off the mainland, to the East. If the prison had
moved from then, she would have no idea, no one would. No one had ever come back from
being outside the wall.
“We should follow this trail and make our way East; we might be able to catch the
carriage if we hurry.” Aruna did not have much of a plan after that, she only knew that she
needed to act fast, otherwise she would have to break her father out of high-security prison.
The mystery man halted, he had been preparing to get back on his horse and without
turning to face them he took interest, “why did you leave the wall?”
Aruna almost flinched in surprise; despite his rough exterior his voice was rather lovely,
deep but melodic. She noticed the others act surprised too; they didn’t even know if he knew
how to speak.
“Someone I love was taken. I need him back.” Aruna’s voice was steady, she was
confident now.
He tightened his grip on his horse’s reins, thinking before loosening his hold. The sun
was down now, his figure appeared veiled in shadows. Crickets sounded in the forest.
After a moment of reflection he responded, “If you want to stop an imperial carriage
before its prisoners get to sea, you are going to have to collect some weapons, those of which I
assume you do not have.”

15
 “Correction, I have a knife.” Aruna felt like messing with him, you deserve at least that
after you ruined my apples.
He began walking his horse back to them, his face still shrouded in shadows. Cyrene and
Yunés shifted uncomfortably, Cyrene reaching her arm slowly to her sheath on her left hip. The
cadence of his walk was enough even to make Aruna nervous; he held himself confidently, at
times he looked even menacing.
“How well can you wield that knife?” He was now almost close enough to make out his
scars, scars that Aruna was now just realizing may come as a surprise to her friends; they had
never met him yet nor seen his face, “Because, I am sorry to say it, but a knife is not enough to
free someone from a small army of trained royal guards,” Yunés raised the lamp light he had
scavenged from the guard’s leftovers, “Trust me, I should know.” Orange light engulfed his face,
every feature now just a step away from them, his scars on full display. Yunés recoiled and
Cyrene pulled out her knife. Aruna had no such reaction, instead she took the moment to study
his face. His eyes were gray, a scar cut through his right eyebrow and down his eye, stopping
shortly after. No damage seemed to be done to the eye itself. A small scar ran just over the
bridge of his nose, the scar she recognized earlier started at the top of his lips and came all the
way down to just above his collarbone. One she hadn’t noticed before sat horizontal in the
middle of his neck, thoughts of a gruesome violence acted on him came to Aruna’s mind, it only
went halfway over his neck, but the placement of it seemed brutal, like he had nearly lost his
head. Pity washed over her face, and he noticed. His demeanor was commanding and sly, but
then, observing Aruna’s shift in manner towards him, his eyes narrowed, and his once
glowering-self showed back through. Aruna felt guilty.
“We appreciate your help today, but please step away from my best friend.” Cyrene
stepped in between them, glaring a hole through him. He backed away and turned to walk away.
“Wait! Please…” at this moment Aruna almost flushed with embarrassment, he saves
your life, and you don’t even know his name? He continued walking, taking the reins of his
horse. “I’m sorry, you saved my life, what’s your name? I need to thank you!” Aruna ran
forward.
“Aruna, stop!” Cyrene chased after her.
“Hey!” she to him when pain scorched through her, paralyzing her as she wavered.
“Aruna!” Cyrene called to her. Aruna gasped in pain, blood hid itself in the black fabric
of her dress, appearing on the palms of her hands when she touched its cheap, thin material.
Darkness crept into the corners of her vision, she looked up to the nameless man, he was facing
her. Darkness crowded her vision completely, and then she fell.

16
 Sun and Scar

Monster

When she awoke, she saw nothing but green and gold, beautiful patterns formed in what
appeared to be tree leaves above her, golden light shot through, highlighting every vein and
shape among them. Blue sky peaked through; a slight breeze moved every appendage into a
dance. The breeze smelt clean and sweet. It was heaven, and then the pain from her right side
brought her back to earth.
Groaning, she rolled slightly to see to the right of her. She had been laid at the base of a
large green tree; grass tickled the back of her neck. Cyrene and Yunés ran to her side
immediately, she blinked to get them into focus.
“You were INJURED that WHOLE TIME and you didn’t think to say anything, Aruna?!”
Cyrene was putting up a furious and disappointed front, but she was happy to see her alive and
awake deep down, Aruna could feel it. Yunés sighed and shook his head, translating to: what the
hell have we gotten ourselves into? Aruna remembered running to the man, his back turned to
her, when she felt the effects of the wound catch up. She remembered falling and then waking up
here. She looked at it, her injuries had been dressed, some blood had soaked through what
appeared to be gauze under the wrap.
“He dressed you. He caught you when you passed out too.” Yunés nodded his head
toward the man. He was standing by the riverbank reorganizing his belongings, wiping each
blade, and placing it back into position on his belt. He didn’t seem as daunting in the sunlight,
and he was quite pale now that she could see him without his cloak on. Sunlight that had cut
through the treeline made patterns on his face. He looked her way, sensing her gaze, sunlight
struck one of his irises, light gray, how peculiar. Truthfully, he would be rather handsome if he
didn’t look like a complete asshole. She shook the thought away.
“Wait where are we,” if they had halted their journey to catch up to the carriage because
if a flimsy gunshot wound, she was going to kill them, “Please tell me we didn’t lose time
because of me.”
“No, we continued after he wrapped your injuries,” Cyrene reassured her, “don’t worry,
we will catch up.”
Aruna finally noticed the large assortment of newly acquired weapons her friends now
had, each of them had a pistol, Cyrene carried a bow and arrow as well and Yunés had found a
scimitar.
“He advised that we should probably stock up on our… weapons shortage.” Yunés
obviously meant the mystery man who saved her life, an act of selflessness and vigilantism that
Aruna questioned heavily, what does he want? Aruna memorized many moments she had with
her mother, one that had always stuck out was something she had said just weeks before her
murder, trust no one, Aruna, no one does anything in our world out of the kindness of their
heart. There is a price to pay for every good deed. Aruna always knew her mother was
pessimistic, but this was a brutally honest observation to tell a 13-year-old girl, inspiring as
always, mother. Aruna’s pride was stronger than any feelings of gratefulness towards the man,

17
you knocked over my apples in the street and come back to save me? Yeah right. I’ll thank you,
but don’t think I have forgotten about the tragic fate of my apples.
Aruna cringed as she attempted to roll up to a sitting position, “it was a bullet wound,
right? Because it feels like I’ve been impaled by an ox.”
“Yeah, definitely pistol damage,” Yunés reached to help her up, “I’m sorry that we left
you behind, we should have-”
“No. You did the right thing. What would you have done? We only had knives to protect
us. I would have never forgiven you if you got hurt because of me; this whole mess was my
plan.” Aruna stood with help of Cyrene and Yunés.
“I’m glad you’re okay though,” Cyrene breathed in fresh creek air, “to be honest, I’m
glad we left, this is a whole new world, and things at home were getting more dangerous.”
Cyrene was a foster child, constantly moving from household to household whenever her foster
‘parents’ got tired of having to deal with her. It is true that Cyrene was a complicated girl, she
caused trouble often, but Aruna knew that there was reason behind her outbursts. At first, it was
to get back at others who wronged her, later it became a reason to not be taken in permanently,
Cyrene feared almost nothing, but she feared being loved most of all. The way her parents were
taken from her was a long cry from peaceful. It was one of the many reasons that Aruna and
Cyrene became close to begin with; parents taken brutally because of what they were, not for
that quality of their character or kindness of their soul. A shared hatred of imperial guards and
officers was universal in the trio, with Yunés willing to run away with Cyrene and Aruna
because there wasn’t much to stay home for. His father was an officer, his mother was not in the
picture anymore. She went missing years ago, and ever since Yunés’ father had been a nightmare
not only on the streets of Alémere, but in his own home. There wasn’t anything they had home
that was worth sticking around for, they were tethered by nothing. And now, with Sebastian
gone, Aruna’s reason for staying was gone as well.
“Hey,” she addressed the man, remembering how embarrassed she was that she didn’t
know his name, “I need to thank you, but I don’t even know your name.” She paced closer to
him slowly.
He faced her, his eyes focused on hers, Aruna felt uneasy under his full attention,
“Eelios.”
Aruna didn’t think the name suited him, it was too warm, too royal for a runaway
criminal, “just Eelios?”
“Just Eelios.”
“Alright, just Eelios, I’m Aruna, just Aruna,” a small smile graced her face, “This is
Cyrene and that’s Yunés. Thank you for saving me, but why did you?” Eelios was an enigma to
Aruna, she needed to piece together his confusing puzzle.
“I don’t know, myself.” His tone was indifferent, and his expression was cold.
Aruna said nothing, I don’t understand why someone so indifferent to me would risk their
life to save me. Sensing their conversation ending there, she walked over to the river, it was
small, maybe 30 feet in width. The water was clear, multicoloured rocks shined through the mild
stream, a red coloured fish swam by, its scales sparkling as light hit them. If Aruna had the
option, she would stay here with the fish. I’ve never been swimming before.
“Alright.” Aruna stomped past him, untying her horse and heading toward the path.
Cyrene marched by as well, Yunés scurried to pick up his scattered belongings. Whoever Eelios
is, I know that he’s a dangerous stranger. The only person I need to worry myself with right now
is dad.

18
 “Wrong way.” Eelios didn’t bother to turn around to look at her, instead he readjusted the
strap on his scabbard.
Aruna turned and walked with speed back the way she came, keeping her head held high
as she passed him. Ahead, the dirt road split in two, Aruna considered asking Eelios for direction
while her pride battled with her complete helplessness. The truth of the matter was that she had
no idea where to go, even where she was in this moment was a mystery to her. Aruna
begrudgingly turned to look at Eelios. He was untying his horse from the tree he had connected
his lead to, unbothered. Her friends had the same non-existent experience of being on the outside
of the wall, the only one that had was Eelios, considering how naturally his escape had come to
him.
“Eelios,” Aruna swallowed her pride. Saying his name felt like she was bowing to the
boy who had ran into her on the street and bruised her most precious apples, “we have never…
been outside of the walls,” he flashed her a no shit look and continued untying his horse, “if you
could just point us in the right direc-“
Eelios raised his hand to Aruna, effectively silencing her. He scanned the treeline.
Aruna’s temper ignited; did he just shush me?
“Excus-”
“Run.” He hastily jumped onto his horse, taking off as fast as he hopped on.
Aruna jumped into action, putting her annoyance away into the back of her mind, for now
at least. She struggled onto her horse, her stomach aching as she inevitably tore through her
stitches. Cyrene and Yunés climbed on their horses more graciously. Aruna hoped to part ways
with the murderous nomad she owed her life to, but without his guidance now they would most
likely end up dead by whatever Eelios had sensed, or worse, captured.
Eelios rode up to the fork in the road Aruna had been so utterly stumped by earlier and
lead his horse left, Aruna followed, Cyrene and Yunés behind her. A stray arrow flew by her
head, the sound of it cutting through the air and pinging to a tree to her left startled her; she
urged her horse to move faster. Soon, the sound of many arrows breaking through the trees and
the yelling of approaching enemies commanding their troops drowned out the tranquility of the
rushing creek water. Aruna turned her head to watch her friends, Cyrene ducked, and an arrow
shot just where her head just been and a rider on a gray horse jumped through the treeline beside
her. Now in close range, the attacker slung the bow across her back and pulled out a scimitar,
preparing to take Cyrene on close range. Cyrene was ready, her revolver in her left hand, she
aimed at their head, before redirecting aim towards their abdomen. The enemy fell over.
Appearing as if they emerged from thin air, at least twenty more attackers hollered and gave
orders from just behind the line of trees to the right of the crew. They all wore brown, black, and
green outerwear consisting of pants, jackets, and parkas. Their clothing made them difficult to
see through the trees, as they rode their horses the matching colours blurred with the leaves and
bark; the only outstanding thing to focus on was their horses, those of which were also difficult
to track. If they weren’t earthly tones of brown and gray already, their coats were painted in the
same green and brown colours that their masters bore in their gear and makeup. The people that
Aruna could see were wearing paint on their faces near their eyes and mouth. The woman that
Cyrene had shot had black, smudgy eyeliner on her eyes, making her look fierce, and green
painted the lids of her eyes. Gold accented the look, a line of which ran from the centre of her lid
down to just under her eye, gold lines ran sideways from the corners of her lips and vertically
from the middle of her lips and down to her chin. The looks varied on each person, but always
stuck with the main components of green, black, and gold.

19
 “Cyrene!” Yunés saw the danger before Cyrene could process what she had just done,
“look out!”
A horseman leapt out of the bush, slamming into the side of Cyrene’s horse. She tipped
over, holding onto the reins Yunés, in a surprising act of heroics, caught her before she fell under
the traffic. Being trampled to death would not be the prettiest way to go. Aruna searched for a
weapon, I should have taken something, anything, she looked back up at Cyrene, her attacker
pulling out a scimitar, its handle painted green and gold, because of my eagerness to leave I am
letting my friends die.
“Hey apples,” Eelios’ called to Aruna from ahead, is he talking to me? Realization
dawned on her; did he just call me APPLES? If he was trying to anger her, it was working. He
pulled something from his belt, “here.”
He slowed his horse down significantly until he was just in front of her, tossing her a
revolver, she caught it. The trees around them had closed in the further they got into the forest. It
was darker in there, the light frequently disturbed by the large, unkempt trees that blocked
sunlight. If Eelios had attempted to shoot from his position, he would risk hitting Aruna in the
process, and so, the revolver now laid in Aruna’s hands, and so did the fate of her two most
beloved friends.
“I hope you can shoot.” Eelios turned away, rushing his horse forward. Aruna became
aware of how high they had traveled; they had been going uphill this whole time. Eelios looked
around the bushes, expecting an impending attack.
Aruna swallowed hard. She had been trained in swordsmanship since she was young, her
mother made sure that she could handle a blade if ever she ended up in a situation in which
knowing how to wield a shiny, sharp death stick would come in handy. Like right now, maybe
she was onto something. But now, those skills are worthless without the sword. Dad taught me
how to shoot, a long, long time ago, Aruna let out a breath, raising the weapon to her target,
don’t fail me now, she pulled the trigger.

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 Sun and Scar

A Cliff

Tree branches smacked at Eelios’ arms as he blocked his face from the narrowing path. His
horse jumped over fallen trees and roots protruding through the floor. It’s no coincidence that
the path we took is closing in on us, Eelios glanced around discretely, they wouldn’t chase us
this long without casualties unless they were confident that they would catch up to us; if the
Rivière people wanted those three dead, they would be.
A gunshot fired and Eelios turned in curiosity, she had been the one to shoot, but who she
hit was a gamble. I just want to know if she managed, Eelios knew he should be watching the
path, but his curiosity needed confirmation. The man beside the two friends had a scimitar in his
hand as he fell, it seemed to be a direct shot to the heart. Eelios was astonished with the precision
considering her immature attitude up until this point. He brushed it off and turned back to the
road he had neglected.
All at once, six warriors sprang from the trees, Eelios pulled his longsword from his back
instantly, saving his neck as a scimitar swung at his throat from his right. He hooked the sword
and threw it to his left, allowing it to land on a startled attacker. While the attacker was
preoccupied with the scimitar, Eelios landed a blow to his side; he fell from his horse. The sound
of an arrow whizzed by, Eelios narrowly dodged it, yanking a knife from his belt and tossing it
from where the arrow had come from with precision, the blade landing in their throat. The next
arrow came unexpectedly, hitting Eelios in the left shoulder. They are in the trees. Eelios
snapped the end of the arrow off and pushed the rest of the shaft through. Taking out the arrow
could result in bleeding to death but leaving it in would mean almost certain death. The side
effects already began, what felt like fire burned through his veins. The Revière use poison in
their arrows, poison that could kill someone if they allow it to run its course. There is only three
seconds before it completely overtakes the blood system, a three second time window before a
life is taken. Even if someone gets the arrow out in time, the pain of a cylin arrow is enough to
kill a man. Eelios forced himself to focus, run.
Eelios started his horse forward, avoiding one warrior and dodging the arrows of another.
There was no time to think, no time to consider the others. His vision blurred, trees twisted
around him, and voices called loudly in his head. The poison was setting in, he was tired, his
body felt cold. He pushed through it, raising his sword to an attacker. As he reached him, his
vision doubled and he retreated into a defensive position, blocking an incoming strike clumsily.
Hoofs sounded behind him and Eelios spun on his horse, preparing to minimize the damage
whoever was changing at him was about to inflict. Just as the person swiped their knife at him,
another gunshot cracked, the person slouched forward, falling off the front of their horse and
becoming trampled under another, taking down another attacker in the process. A clean shot,
Eelios could make out the way they fell, through the head. Fascinated, Eelios looked to the
direction of the shot. There was the girl, at least 30 feet away, wielding the revolver he had given
her, a shocked expression on her face, she wasn’t expecting to hit him. Eelios wobbled, removing
any expression from himself other than confidence, those two shots were pure luck, he made eye

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contact with her, saying nothing, and returning to look forward, maybe I should consider keeping
her around. Goddess knows I need the luck.
Eelios kept moving, the apple girl had nearly caught up to him, the other two were not far
behind. They had been moving for a while, the sounds of arrows and hoofs cracking on the
ground had almost ceased. Eelios felt the hair on his neck stand, this is a trap, it has to be a trap.
“Eelios.” A familiar voice whispered in his ear, Eelios shook violently, his heart plunging
through his chest. He looked around, no one was near him, the apple girl furrowed her brows in
confusion. Eelios turned back, it’s just the poison, he’s not here. If the hallucinations were
kicking in, then there was no time to waste, he needed to get out of this forest, he needed to get
away from all these people.
An opening in the treeline appeared not far ahead, Eelios looked around for an ambush
before they broke through the treeline.
Eelios pulled on the reins hard, his horse raising up onto its hind legs from the sudden
command, “Stop!” he shouted at the girl.
The girl came to a similar halt, her horse panicking furiously at the sight. The two coming
in from behind came in slower. Mere metres away from Eelios steed was the widow’s edge, a
cliff whose drop off is so steep it is said those who attempt the jump down into the ocean beneath
become paralyzed on impact. Eelios backed away, he tried not to look down, a chill ran down his
spine.
Someone in behind them whistled and a hoard of Revière people jumped down from the
trees and their horses, holding their weapons aimed at Eelios and his motley crew of scavenged,
newly declared nomads. The world rotated as Eelios’ vision became more compromised.
“Eelios.” The voice came from behind his shoulder, he flinched but didn’t dare to turn
around. The apple girl had been watching him.
The tribe’s leader stepped forward, past the archers pointed at them, pointed at me, Eelios
realized.
“Now, what business do insiders have with such a dangerous thing as you, démon?”
Eelios’ vision was failing him, but his hearing was not, for the most part.
“Leave them out of this Lairon,” Eelios frowned at the sight of the ancient annoyance, “I
don’t know them, I stumbled upon them, and they followed me when your people started firing.”
The apple girl furrowed her brows at him, confused.
“Right,” Lairon stepped forward, limping with every step. Lairon was not old, just acted
like it. He looked to be somewhere between thirty-five and forty, the limp was because on an
accident that happened about a year ago, “you are telling me that a small group of teenagers just
happened to escape, hmm… let’s say, Alémere, all on their lonesome in the most hostile era of
the King’s reign? I am not the idiot you take me for.”
“Don’t tell me you are still angry about that accident with your leg,” Eelios became
acutely aware of the rough feel of his shirt on his skin and the sweat beading on his collarbone.
The pain in his shoulder fired, “there’s no need to take three innocent lives over nothing,
Lairon.”
Lairon grew angry, stomping forward a step, “An accident does not cost a man his leg!”
Eelios stayed stoic, his eyes moving around, looking for an escape. The waves crashed far below
him, “You know why we are here, Eelios.” Lairon’s bronzed skin gleamed in the sunlight.
“EELIOS.” The sound boomed in his ear, he fought to keep composure, he’s not real,
Eelios shook it off, he’s not here. Curly, golden hair moved in the breeze, it’s not real.

22
 “Your time is running out, anyway, démon. It appears we got to you some time ago.”
Lairon tilted his head and stared at Eelios’ upper lip.
The apple girl and her friends did as well, the apple girl jerking back in shock, “Eelios,
are you okay?” why do you care? His head spun, “You’re bleeding.”
Eelios raised his hand to his face, wiping his nose. Red covered his hand where there
hadn’t been red before. He felt weak.
“Just hand yourself in,” Lairon approached, taking a dominating stance to Eelios as he
moved forward. He was so close now that Eelios could make out the hair follicles on his beard,
“we’ll let your friends off easy.” Eelios didn’t trust Lairon as far as he could throw him; he had
something up his sleeve, he always did. Eelios scanned the crowd once more, warriors waited for
Eelios to do something, anything, and they would be permitted to split him open with their
weapons. One wrong move and I risk death for these people, he looked at apple girl.
“What are you going to do with him?” the girl moved in front of Eelios, brave, Eelios
was taken aback by the sudden courage, brave, but stupid. He didn’t know what to make of it.
His heart hurt; must be the poison.
“What we do with all his kind, love,” Lairon smiled at apple girl in what attempted to be
jovial but turned out unintentionally creepy, “we burn them.”
Apple girl’s expression was unexpected, shock, or course, but what stood out more
prominently was the anger and fear in her eyes. Eelios felt as though he noticed something he
shouldn’t have, a crack in her façade.
“So, do we have a deal then, Eelios?” Eelios cringed at his name coming out of Lairon’s
putrid mouth, he hadn’t known his name up until apple girl went and said it out loud. The tribe
raised their weapons, every one of them anticipating the moment they got to kill the démon,
every one of them but her.
A girl stood among the tribe, dressed the same as them, wearing the same makeup, and
wielding a weapon just like the rest, and yet she hadn’t raised it. Her skin was brown like
Lairon’s, in fact they appeared rather similar. Peculiar.
Apple girl’s friends retreated, their hands in the air, but apple girl remained still, standing
in front of Eelios. The sound of waves in the depths below them grew louder in Eelios’ ear. He
almost wished they would just shoot him, and have it done with, so he’d never have to listen to
those waves again.
“Raise,” Lairon ordered his people to prepare to shoot, “Eelios, last chance, you’re either
coming with us peacefully and only you will face the punishment of death, or you can stand there
and be indebted to three more innocent souls. The choice is yours.”
“Go.” Eelios glared at apples, his voice stern and sure as his heart raced wildly. I don’t
need any more people to die protecting me.
Apples looked Eelios in the eye, returning his glare, he narrowed his eyes at her, just
what are you planning right now? A wicked grin grew on her lips, her eyes stared into him, like
she had just perfectly caught him in her trap, “Shut up.” She shoved him with great force,
sending him backward. His expression turned from commanding to complete and utter shock in
less than a millisecond as he was sent off the edge and down to the abyss below.

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