Chapter Two

SULAR

The Tarazayi intern snapped the warcollar tight and handed Sular his pouch. He dipped his head to allow the tough material to slide down his neck, snug against the feathers of his breast.

"All done, sir," the Tarazayan informed Sular. "You have a safe journey, now."

Slicking his crest to a neutral level, the Eagle-Headed reconn nodded and strolled out into the hall. Short-term scouts toddled past him, moving with that odd, distinctive Vahazayi gate -- a sort of rolling walk to which the body dipped to either side slightly as they moved. It was a comfort walk, really, unlike the straight militaristic style most were forced to use when on duty. Sular moved through the corridors, musing to himself as he made his way. Few soldiers volunteered for reconn in the interim, preferring to remain at home and spend time with friends and family; scouts, on the other hand, were given short, easy missions. Vahazayi scouts were normally only used during combat times, anyway, thus appealing to those with action in their blood. Reconn was time-consuming and far-ranging, one had to be dependant solely on their own self.

Sular need only to make one last check-in with Scout Master Vraeluth and then he was free to leave. Vraeluth was in his office in the administration building that was this plateau, one of the few structures on Phoenixia that wasn't lair-shaped. The small Falcon-Head nodded and indicated that Sular enter.

"Greeting to thee, Scout Master."

"And to thee, Sular. Please, sit. Are you ready?"

"I am always ready, Scout Master."

Sharp basalt eyes gleamed and Vraeluth nodded once more. "Good. I know I need not go over your instructions, Sular." A bright green wing pushed at a pile of documents on his wide desk. "But I have to warn you, tensions have begun to rise in the Calgaranga system; it is not known if we may be needed."

There was no emotion in the eyes of Sular Ventrishika. "I understand, Scout Master."

"I will try, if it comes down to vahakayah, to make sure you stay out of it."

"Thank you, Scout Master."

Vraeluth stood; Sular shot to his feet an instant later. They saluted and he left, exiting the great plateau. Out onto the ledge the Phoenix walked, letting the sweet breezes of the world blow past him one last time.

Eyes glittering, Sular's neck bulged and he called to the winds: "Whavehole! I call thee!" And there it was: spinning out of nowhere, spheroid and deepest blue. It was the only thing that Sular never got tired of seeing -- this most wondrous creation of legendary Solarius Aran'fay. It gave the Vahazayi access to anywhere in the Universe -- only if someone had keyed the location in beforehand. The Whavehole worked on images provided by the traveler -- that was at its most basic level. If there was no image, you could not get there quickly.

"Destination?" the hollow, mechanical voice asked without infliction. Sular rattled off his starting point and the spheroid opened, all blue and marble corridors.

With a beat of his great pinions, Sular Ventrishika bade farewell to his home ...

... forever.

ZIARA

Scout reports confirmed the initial fears -- colddrakes were on the move. Tyan called a clan meeting the next night; all of the group's Warriors were present, as well as anyone with an inclination to participate. Ziara sat with Kernow at the edge of the gathering, staring at the head spot her father had once claimed. Her mind went back to the years of her gryphlethood, of the proud and muscular frame witnessed from between her mother's forepaws. She heard his kind words as he addressed their small clan.

Kernow's wing draped over her back. Ziara started and looked up into his soft red eyes. "Ah, daughter, there's no point living in the past."

Ducking her head sheepishly, Ziara turned her attentions back to Tyan.

"And so, my friends, we must begin the move anew. The colddrakes may be slow, but they have the greatest of stamina. I dismiss you now -- go back to your families. Our Warriors shall stand watch throughout the night. Be fast, be thorough. Obliterate any trace of your stay; we cannot afford them to become exited."

Silently, they filtered away from the fire as Tyan conferred with their small group of warriors. More like wannabe-warriors, Ziara thought surly as she turned with Kernow. Males barely out of puberty, they were, with an odd old campaigner in their midst. Besides, what need of Warriors had they, being as small and inconspicuous as they were? Hardly any altercations broke out amongst Glacials as a race, for they were an autonomous lot, with deep-rooted prejudices of outsiders -- and each other. No one knew where this collective "consciousness" came from, but it was one of the Glacials' defining characteristics.

"Ah ... Kernow?"

Ziara and her sire halted, the elder half-turning on his good leg. Tyan stood behind them, his wolflike brush of a tail curled about his raptorine hindlegs. "A word with you, Kernow, if you would?"

Kernow swivelled around fully and faced his defeater. His tone was on civility and respect; Kernow Flurrith still retained his dignity. "What can I do for you, Clanleader?"

Tyan paused to paw at a mound of snow. He looked up and his aquamarine eyes betrayed his inexperience. "I need advice, Kernow."

What her father said next shocked Ziara. "I have no advice to give you, Clanleader. You have strength and brains -- use those and you'll find the answers soon enough." With a bow of his greying head, Kernow motioned for his daughter to follow him. Tyan's reply cut at their tufted ears.

"Are you still so bitter, old one?" The clan leader's voice bore no hostility, only confusion. "I don't understand it -- I won your position, not your mind. Did you lose that as well as your foot?"

Ziara stopped mid-step; Kernow kept walking, oblivious save for the drooping of his tail. She whirled to face Tyan, only to have Kernow call to her. "Remember who you are, Ziara. Come." She looked at her father's retreating figure and back to Tyan. Back and forth her amber eyes shifted until she gave a huff and bounded through the snowy layers.

Together, father and daughter paced, side by side. Ziara could feel the humiliation dripping from Kernow's heart; his whole posture betrayed what he felt, now far from Tyan and other eyes.

"Father --"

"Zhi, you will not speak of this, understand?"

" -- yes, Father."

"That's my girl."