Legends of Vecira

Risi loudly opened Veli’s door before throwing work clothes xer way.

“You’ll need to wake up earlier if you want to keep this job,” xe informed xer.

Veli groaned, then stood at attention.

“I see you already woke our newest employee,” Rah commented as he leaned in the doorway. He turned to Veli. “Come to my office once you’re dressed.”

Veli’s expression looked lost, or at least confused.

“I can take you there,” Risi promised.

Veli shook off some tiredness.

“I couldn’t take you from your work.”

“What work? I have the day off since I went out yesterday.”

Normally Risi spent the day reading or training, but xe needed to know Veli well if xe wanted to convince Rah xe was worth training.

“I wondered why you’d return somewhere the guard seems to hate you,” Veli noted, then gestured for Risi to turn around as xe changed.

“Vecira offers something different than the ranch’s day to day at least, and it’s nice to rest afterward.”

“Next time I might be able to show you something you’ve never seen before,” Veli offered.

“I doubt Rah would send a new employee to handle the ranch’s needs. You need to understand the whole place to manage it in one trip.”

“Do you understand it?” Veli asked, finishing with the shirt as xe swerved in front of Risi again.

Now that Veli wore something closer to what Risi was used to, xe could appreciate xer appearance more.

Veli had a good amount of fat and muscles. Risi found xerself envious as xer own lack of fat left xer more easily injured. Veli’s face was similarly soft, with a warm palette for skin, hair, and eyes. The eyes especially were a warmer brown than Risi was sure xe’d ever seen before.

“Do I wear it that well?” Veli asked, laughing a little.

“Yes,” Risi admitted.

Veli seemed surprised.

“Thanks, you wear it well too.”

Risi laughed. Veli hadn’t seen xer in workwear yet, though xe supposed that xer casual clothes weren’t that different from work clothes.

“I’ll take you to Rah.”

Now that Veli had a chance to see Rah again, xe was sure it wasn’t just the confusion of the morning.

“This will be a short orientation,” Rah said, “Since Risi already gave you the tour.”

“I can give it again,” Risi offered.

Rah shook his head.

“No, go and rest up. I can see you favoring your left side.”

Risi rubbed xer left arm for a moment before bowing and leaving. Rah stood up to close the door behind xer.

“General Vara Maela,” Veli identified quietly.

Vara clapped.

“A new record. Usually it takes at least a week before anyone is brave enough to broach the subject.”

“Are you—”

“Yes, I am Vara Maela, former general of Vecira, but very few people want to reveal their last major action was losing a fight.”

“Your loss shouldn’t have counted.”

Vara nodded like he’d heard all this before.

“I resigned,” Vara said, “You lose interest in a place after they sell you to demons to save their own skin, especially if they were right to do so.”

“I didn’t sell you off,” Veli said.

“Were you even alive? You aren’t much older than Risi.”

“I was old enough to throw a rock.”

A look of recognition passed through Vara’s eyes.

“Niale and Purevi were good souls,” he said.

“Are,” Veli corrected.

“No, their souls were damaged by a tyrant, to say they are good now, when their child has little enough of a home to work at a ranch outside city limits, would be a lie.”

Veli felt something warm trail down xer cheeks. It had been a long time since someone acknowledged her parentage, let alone understood the pain of it all.

Vara put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“You start with cleaning the stalls.”

He handed her a plug for her nose.

“The job is standard for those just starting,” Risi explained as Veli shoveled another pile of manure into a barrel, “It has nothing to do with you asking for lessons.”

“What is your job?” Veli asked, “When you don’t have time off?”

“Whatever needs doing. I’ve been working here since I was a child.”

Xe’d been working there since it was built, or at least since xe was strong enough to work.

“Why did he take you in?”

Risi had enough years to deal with xer parentage, not that it was pleasant to think about.

“I reminded him of someone he once knew. He was vulnerable after the demons released him, and we became attached.”

“You don’t seem pleased about it.”

“I’m not fully convinced they’re wrong to call him demon-addled.”

“You and I both know that’s a load of—” Veli gestured at the manure, “How do they have so much droppings?”

“They eat a lot,” Risi explained, “And it’s not complete Irfin-shit, he’s explained it himself.”

“How so?”

“He lived with one demon for six years, was tortured by several for another six, and took four years to return once they set him free. It would be more concerning if his mind wasn’t affected by them.”

“Demon-addled or not, we were better under him than with all of Ulven’s policies, and that was with frequent demon attacks, though weirdly that might have been why it was better.”

“What does that mean?”

“Vecira had gratitude from all the other cites for taking the brunt of the demon attacks. With Vara’s skill to minimize the damage, Vecira thrived.”

Risi wondered if The Demon helped at all with that.

“Then Ulven decided we were better off isolated because now we can sustain ourselves without the demons antagonizing us, but we’re worse off, and the guard is obedient to him, completely disrupting the triumvirate’s balance.”

“You’re politically minded for someone who lives on the streets.”

“That’s exactly why I care about it. What they decide affects me more than anyone else.”

Risi almost felt guilty for pulling xer away from Vecira. He was a good leader of the others. He was a good leader without any specification.

Training Veli wouldn’t just put Ulven on edge, he could be an actual threat to Ulven.

“You should ask him again,” Risi insisted, “To train you.”

Veli could be their ticket out of Ulven’s clutches.

“And get kicked out?” Veli shook their head, “I need the money too much.”

Risi shook xer head.

“He’s ignored his duty long enough.”

If Vara wouldn’t show any bravery on his own. His hand would have to be forced.

“No,” Vara said, plainly, “I won’t entertain you asking again.”

Risi had insisted, so if Veli got fired, xe could at least insist Risi teach them something.

“Have you even been to Vecira since returning.”

“Once, and it is for the best I do not return.”

“Then you don’t realize what’s happened.”

“Risi has explained.”

“Then why don’t you care?”

Vara sighed.

“I was not born there. I have no family there. I suffered my greatest humiliation there, and I have seen nothing there worth what I have done for it. I loved Vecira once, but our ties have long since been severed.”

Veli couldn’t believe that.

“Then why get your supplies there when the guard treats your people like shit?”

“There is one tie I am unable to sever,” he admitted, “But that is none of your business.”

“Maybe you’ve given up on Vecira, but that doesn’t change that its people are suffering. With your help I could—”

“Do you plan to battle Ulven for the title, take the position of general for yourself?”

Veli wouldn’t back down, not when the truth had been handed to xer.

“For Vecira, I would.”

Vara scoffed.

“And how are you meant to do that? Defeat Ulven and you take all his burdens with none of his reputation.”

“With the way he treats other cities, lacking his reputation would be a boon.”

Vara chuckled.

“You think it will be easy then?”

“Of course not, but it must be done.”

Veli had thought too small, but Risi had reminded him that the best way to improve things for his fellows was not to fight the guards, but to fight their leader.

Vara looked him up and down, Veli prepared to be attacked.

“I saw you beaten and bruised,” Veli said, “With demons declaring someone had to fight you and become general if we wanted the demons to leave. I threw a rock at the leader—”

“And you suffered greatly for it.”

Veli felt the tears coming back.

“At least that demon knows he isn’t welcome here.”

Vara shook his head.

“You rush into confrontation against those more powerful, and have suffered the worst consequences possible.”

That wasn’t completely true.

“My parents live, and continue their work. It could have been much worse.”

There was silence, but Vara made no gesture for him leave. Veli’s tears continued but didn’t get any worse.

“I was younger than you when Laviri chose me,” Vara finally said, “I was not his only possible successor. In fact he thought it was dangerous to have the general’s knowledge of combat so strongly concentrated. Whichever of us did not succeed were not tasked with fighting each other, but preparing successors to defeat the others should the need arise. The problem with that plan was they took their knowledge to other cities and became generals in their own right. None of us forgot his teachings, but none of us pursued his intention.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Laviri believed the triumvirate each had to be selected differently: The king was chosen by the people he served, the scholar was always chosen by his predecessor, and the general had to choose himself. That can’t happen if the general has only one potential successor. I chose Vecira because I wanted to follow Laviri’s footsteps as well as I could, but I faltered.”

“How?”

“You, and I suspect Risi as well, are giving me a chance to correct that mistake.”

“How?”

“Like I said, the general must choose himself, and you have chosen. The best way to honor my mentor, and myself, is to prepare you for the task as best I can.”

One impulsive statement and he turned around like that?

“Tomorrow, we will begin your training, General Veli.”

Vara stepped out of the room, and Veli stared into blank space.

Now that there wasn’t someone to convince, Veli doubted everything that happened. Xe couldn’t be General, xe knew things were wrong but not how to fix them, and Ulven was stronger than xe could dream.

At the start of each week, Vara had Risi spar with Veli to assess xer progress.

Risi was faster, but not stronger. Xe couldn’t risk parrying an attack from Veli at the risk of him powering through to hit xer anyways. However, she could avoid most hits long enough get in a quick series of blows that knocked him to the ground.

Each week took a little longer to achieve this, which made the sight of him knocked to the ground all the more gratifying.

“You’re relentless,” he complained.

“Ulven will not be an easy opponent,” Vara said, “Your defense still needs work.”

“What about speed?” Veli asked, accepting Risi’s hand back up.

“Speed comes with practice of everything else, and the reflexes of youth. Risi’s been training since childhood, and she’s younger than you, so it’s only natural she’s swifter.”

“How much younger?” Veli asked.

Risi shrugged. She was over a century old at this point, but that was still considered young by Raosi standards.

“How old were you when you threw that rock?” Vara asked.

“10?”

“She’s about 10 or 11 years younger than you are.”

Veli was watching xer as if assessing the truth of the statement. Risi shrugged. Xe didn’t know xer exact age. Xe’d been found a few months old, and all xe had to estimate from was Vara’s time of absence, which he’d never been able to pinpoint.

“I was abandoned,” xe said, “My mother wasn’t kind enough to leave a note.”

Vara’s expression soured for a moment behind Veli.

“I was abandoned too,” Veli admitted, “But I had already lived with my parents for some time.”

“My father never acknowledged me, so I wouldn’t impede aer desire for power,” Vara said as if reciting a disinteresting fact, “Now that we have discussed our trauma, let’s focus on defense.”

The rest of Veli’s training session was practicing defensive forms on his own. Before Risi could join him, Vara pulled her aside.

“I’m sorry for—”

“Your comment was not appreciated, but there is no need to apologize,” he assured, pulling her toward a wall he usually kept her away from.

“It’s time you learned how to use a weapon.”

Risi couldn’t keep an excited expression off her face. Vara had kept her away from the weapons for fear of Ulven’s retaliation. This was not only an opportunity for her, but a sign that he believed in Veli’s potential.

“He’ll have to learn to fight an armed opponent, and you have been ready for a long time.”

Risi couldn’t respond, overjoyed.

“It will take some time to find the right one,” Vara warned her, “But I can train you in all of them.”

Risi had thought a long time about which one she most wanted to try. She reached for the set of daggers first. Vara smiled.

“You will remain in close combat with these, but they will certainly make you more lethal.” He sighed as he took them down.

“What’s wrong?” Risi asked.

“There’s just a different set I wish you could have tried.”

In the euphoria of learning weapons, she’d forgotten why daggers came to mind first. In the limited remaining depictions, the Demon of Vecira was always depicted with daggers as its weapon.

“There’s no guarantee I’ll want them after today.”

Vara nodded.

“I’ll make sure Veli hasn’t drifted off form, and then return to instruct you.”

Veli had tried to accept King Pavila’s aid, but xer parents—Xe needed to get used to calling them Niale and Purevi instead of parents—struggled to do their work properly if Veli made eye-contact, or spoke too much. As the best healers left in the city, they couldn’t be replaced just for one child’s sake, so Veli left before King Pavila had to make a decision.

Besides, xe was older than most of the other children, and resources weren’t infinite. If supporting xerself with odd jobs helped feed another mouth, xe had no reason to complain.

Xe’d just finished helping set up one of the market stalls when the crowd parted as someone walked through, sharing mutters of disbelief.

Veli managed to navigate xer way to the front to see General Vara in ragged clothes displaying scars that had clearly come from the cuts that demons had given him.

“Please,” his voice rang out, hoarse but recognizable, “Go about your business. I have something to discuss with Ulven.”

He didn’t refer to Ulven as General. He didn’t accept the results of the sham battle. He was returning. The other cities still respected Vara. The resource problem could be resolved!

Not all of the crowd liked the idea though. Veli heard them mutter about demons, Vara’s time with them, how he’d been gone longer than necessary, and the continued absence of the Demon of Vecira.

Rumors abounded that Vara had somehow invoked her, ordering her to escape, choosing her safety over Vecira’s, and that she hadn’t returned because she had truly sold them over to the demons, all previous signs of loyalty a sham.

Veli kept watching Vara as he walked with determination toward the general’s residence. The guards bowed in reverence to him.

Vara would solve everything.