HTG - Chapter 169 ( Luna POV )

Lunara

Chapter One-Sixty-Nine: Musings of Fate - Part Three

Galactic Quadrant: Darna Quadrant

Ruling Government: Republic of Hekate

Solar System: D-2,946

Planet: Ravena Minor

Location: Ara Continent, Outside Ravena’s Temple, Temporary Refugee Sector

The refugee area on Ravena Minor is well organized, thankfully, many millions of souls come here each year to pray at Ravena’s temple, so there were already housing accommodations for the hundreds of thousands to use. New ships fly in each day carrying more that were liberated from traders who took payment to transport them for us, then tried to sell them. Some people are wretched creatures. Each is allowed to stay for a year if they wish it, longer if they kneel before Ravena’s altar and join our house.

Most take the offer to join our house, the alternative is unfortunately bleak for them. Ravena’s systems are some of the few that do not keep Kuwathi indentured. The Republic of Hekate outlawed slavery by decree from Hekate herself hundreds of years ago, but some people always find a way to exploit people. I have heard of some houses finding loopholes in her decree. With the Imperium’s ban on using intelligent machines there are some colony mining planets that still resort to indenturing. A crude practice that is slavery in all but the word. 

Most of our Republic is not like that though. Hekate’s decree to abolish castes went against the ruling pantheon of the galaxy. The Theocratic Imperium did not respond to her sedition with violence, they added extra tariffs to our trade in response. A subtle message that told the rest of the governments of the galaxy they could do it, for a price. Hekate is not one to lie down without a fight though, for the next four hundred years she had all the houses and merchant companies send all the taxes in physical currency, in the lowest denomination of Deca. The Republic even requisitioned destroyers and dreadnaughts to carry some of it. Kotina says they’re still trying to count it all, though that is probably untrue, I imagine they simply weighed it. Still, I find the cheekiness of our Republic’s Patron Goddess inspiring.

Were she more diplomatic, I imagine she would have been invited to join Thane’s counsel and then become part of his pantheon. She is said to be a very powerful Goddess, she is the only Goddess which Ravena speaks about with deference. I don’t think Hekate would have accepted though, so many of her decrees enacted by our Senate seem to subvert the Imperium’s laws. I think at heart, she may be a rebel. Having never spoken to her or even seen her though, these are idle fantasies. Still, I wonder what she is actually like. There were times when I was a girl that I wished she would chastise Ravena for not answering my prayers. I even prayed as much a few times. Though I doubt she heard them with the countless lives in her Republic.

In the history of my house there is no record of her speaking with anyone. From what I have read, she normally makes her will known to the lower gods of her pantheon, ones like Ravena. Perhaps she is not a fan of micromanaging her subjects. 

“We are here,” Kotina says, moving into a housing area on the eastern quarter of the temple grounds.

There are guards stationed in most of the housing areas, but more so here, so I ask, “Why so many soldiers?”

“She um, well, you’ll understand when you see who she is.”

I grab her arm lightly, “Kotina, what am I missing?”

She sighs, running her hand through her hair that matches her eyes, “She’s not liked by the others, and they’ve tried to kill her many times now apparently.”

“Kill her? Why would they do that?”

“Whoever this Riza is, if people want to kill her, she probably lived in the upper city, or was part of the city chief’s clan,” Arrum says, eying the people that walk past us with lowered heads, “Just because you have taken people from the cold does not mean that people left their grievances.”

“Indeed,” Korra says, tilting her head at Arrum, “You would know more than most about holding grievances.”

Arrum levels his steel grey eyes in her green ones, “I do not have a grievance with you.”

“Really?”

“I just don’t trust you.”

Korra smiles and takes Solara’s arm in hers, moving away from Arrum. I find myself in agreement with Arrum on this. Something about Korra seems strange. Perhaps it is just me still being sore that she was able to steal the Cursed Edict from me. Kalon and Arrum were part of it as well, but it was Korra that planned it. I still remember that stupid rock she put in the bag. A deep breath restores my calm. I should not dwell on trivial things.

Kotina sighs and she looks toward the second floor landing, “As I said, it will make more sense when you see who she is.”

“Who is she?”

“We’re almost there, have some patience, pup.”

As we approach closer to our destination I see words painted in the old Kuwathi language. I ask Arrum what it means and he says I do not want to know. Why would they treat Riza like this? She was such a sweet girl thrust into tragedy after tragedy. 

We knock, but no one answers, the door looks damaged as though people have scratched with knives to try and pry it open. My holopad opens the door with an override. It squeals as it opens, the gears must be damaged from all the prying. The smell of squalor fills my nose as I enter. There is refuse strewn about the floor and insects crawling through it. Everything looks old and withered, like it has been here for some time.

“Hello?” I call out.

Kotina’s brow furrows again, “Sorry, pup, I didn’t think to check first.”

“Hello?” I call out again and find no answer.

When we reach the living room, I see a frail woman leaning against the wall, she’s rocking herself with her head buried in her knees. She looks unwashed, like she hasn’t bathed in weeks or months even. My heart hurts as I look at her. There is an air of immense depression around her.

“Riza?” I ask.

The rocking stops and the woman’s face comes into view as she looks up at me. It is only then that I see why Kotina said I would be surprised… I know her face, she is the Warden from the games, the one that helped me gather the prisoners. But… she is a noble from house Helenius, how can she be Riza? How is Adona… Riza?

“I don’t understand,” I say, turning to Kotina, “There must be some mistake.”

“I assure you, her sample came back as a match for Riza’s. I had them run it three times.”

Adona looks down and begins to rock again.

“What happened to you?” Arrum asks, wading through the refuse to get to her, he looks at us scornfully, “She was to be protected, she helped save many people. Why have you failed her?”

Kotina is about to bark at him for the rudeness, but I shake my head at her.

“We offered her a place, Dargo even offered to train her with all of us, but she refused it,” I say, looking around at the state of her living conditions, “If I had known, I would have done something about it.”

“She’s in the fourth bound, I doubt anyone here could harm her,” Kotina says, then seeing Arrum’s glare she gives him a stern look, “You will not accuse this house of mistreating someone. Not while I’m standing here. We have bent over backwards finding everyone involved.”

Arrum moves to pick Adona up, he says bitterly, “Yet you cannot find my Isola.”

Adona stops rocking again, looking up at Arrum and tilting her head. A strange defeated smile crosses her lips as she stands, nearly falling until Arrum grips her arm.

“Arrum, is that you Arrum?” she asks, brushing the hair from her eyes, “Yes, Arrum… at last, you have come.”

Arrum backs away from her warily, “You searched for me?”

“I… I knew you would come,” she turns frantically, searching around the trash for something, “It is here… somewhere here.”

My stomach feels like it’s tying itself into knots as I look at her. She is so frail compared to how I last saw her. She looks nothing like the fit woman from only months ago. She must not be eating. With her bound and how gaunt she is, it’s been months since her last meal.

“Did she not get a meal card?” I ask Kotina as Adona searches still.

Kotina pulls up her holopad, swiping through it, “It says that it’s been used daily.”

“Then someone has stolen it from her,” Arrum frowns, shaking his head, “She has gone mad in her solitude.”

“I am not mad!” she yells suddenly, her face twitching, “I am… I am just ready for it to end.”

My heart sinks as I hear this. Adona may have been part of the Helenius house, but she helped so many reunite with their children. We should have made it known that she was the one that saved them, we should have done more for her. We… we have failed her.

“No one stole from me,” she says, sweeping trash in large motions, “I gave it away.”

“We will get you a new one,” I say, then looking around, “And fresh quarters, perhaps after you recover your strength you can join us and train with Dargo, I know he wants to train you.”

“No,” she says softly, “I am ready.”

“Ready for what?” I manage.

“Vadula… a worthy death.” 

Kotina puts a hand on my shoulder as I feel my heart hit the floor. She can’t be Riza… Riza can’t be alive and still suffering. I feel sad, I feel ashamed that we have failed her… that I failed her.

“Here… here it is,” she says, a tear running down her cheek. There is a blade with dark and dried blood upon it, “Arrum, here, this is the one.”

He looks at her puzzled.

“Take it… please, take it. You can end the cycle, end my suffering.”

“I will not kill you,” Arrum says, taking a step back.

“It’s the blade he had me use, the one that claimed her life.”

He blinks at her, his hand clenching, “Who?”

Adona leans back her head to look him in the eyes, “Isola, your lover, I cut her throat with it.”

Silence falls over the room, Kotina is the first to shift, making herself ready.

“Isola is not dead, you lie,” Arrum says with anger in his grey eyes, “Your mind is broken.”

“Brown hair and amber eyes.”

Arrum’s face flinches, “That could be many…”

“If your first child was a boy you wanted to name them Artemius, after the Sage, if it was a girl it was to be Aralasa, after your grandmother…”

His mouth hangs open for a moment before he breathes, “You killed her?”

“Yes… and many more are dead because of me.”

Arrum’s eyes begin to glow and the mana in the air quakes as I feel a boundary shattering as his emotions pour from him.

“I will carve your fucking heart out...”

“I don’t have one anymore,” she smiles weakly, holding the blade’s hilt toward him.

I can feel his soul immediately slam against the third boundary, I can feel it wants to break but he doesn’t have enough mana to do it… that shouldn’t be possible after passing the second so quickly… Dargo was right, he is a prodigy.

Haki and Daki are not here to try and calm him, they left to train with Dargo again. I do not know him well enough to know what to say… what can be said here? Did she kill Isola? Why though? Why would she? She said something about he made her, who is this he?

“Arrum,” Kotina says with a warning tone, “Whatever you’re thinking, don’t. I really, really don’t want to hurt you.”

He grabs the blade from her hand and the air cracks as Kotina moves.