Ten years ago
The Spector Moons hung well above the sky, though the morning had brought forth a strong gloom. The overcast had only begun to disperse by the time the redheaded fawn stepped out from her shelter. Her bright green eyes illuminated as they were touched by the rays that shined through the clouds above. There were more tasks to be done, and she did not want to see them go unfulfilled.
"Narratha…" Her sister, younger by only a year, called out to her as she too exited their home. "Can you do me a favor while you are on your way?"
She turned around, breathing a slow, exasperated sigh, but still retaining a small smile. "Yes, Nackia…what can I do?"
The skinnier fawn whose hair glowed a lighter shade of auburn gleefully clapped as she trotted up to her older sibling. She took Narratha by both her hands as she explained her request. "While you're in the forest, can you please procure more sticks? At least a few dozen? Falia and her family are picking fruits and it looks like their hut needs more reinforcement. I would do it myself but I was tasked with teaching the children more lessons today."
Narratha sighed as she tacked on the additional errand. "Of course, sister. What will you be teaching the little ones today?"
"We're going over the basics, for the most part. Lia is learning so quickly. Therefore, I was instructed to help out so she doesn't miss out on what else she can learn." Nackia smiled as she glanced at the group of young fawns who had gathered in the middle of the field for the day's lessons. "I feel she will do great today."
"Lia certainly has potential," Narratha commented as she looked on at the children. "To be a surge is such a responsibility. I'm glad she has you to teach her."
"If you were a surge, you would have been the best. You already do so much for our community. These girls can't thank you enough."
She felt a warmth flow through her chest. It alleviated the feelings of the past where she believed she was not good enough due to her lack of exceptional powers. There was always a natural urge to see her duties accomplished, and Narratha wished that she could have been given the tools to excel even further. It was a glaring sense of envy that she had sought to do away with throughout the years. She knew life did not choose favorites. The cards that were dealt were what they were.
She had not been born a surge, but that did not mean she couldn't be a productive fawn.
"It's what I'm here for, Nackia." She dusted off the bottom of her gown, checking her sandals to ensure the straps were well-adjusted. "So, I'll be back with those sticks when I've finished everything else. I have a bit of a walk ahead of me. Good luck with your teachings today."
"Thank you, sister." She enveloped her sibling in a hug, planting a kiss on Narratha's freckled cheek. "You be well now." With that, Nackia shifted into a cloud of blue particles and appeared before the young fawns as they all formed a school circle to begin their lessons.
The redhead looked on as she watched her sister begin, wondering what it would have been like to teach the other girls. She desired to hold such leadership but settled on meeting the expectations set forth by the elders themselves. Such was life, she figured.
At the edge of the forest, Narratha had set aside her collected plants and foliage as she knelt beside a small stream of water. With her hand extended in front of her, she concentrated her focus on a small pebble that resided near the side of the water. She could feel the energy trickling around inside her fingers. It was in there, she thought. It needed to come out.
"Come on…" Her eyes squinted as the rock vibrated slightly, only for her powers to fall flat. "Damn!" She groaned as she took a fistful of rocks and threw them at the pebble, knocking it into the stream. It was another failure. At this point, she debated why she even tried. She was not a surge, nor did her powers hold any significance at all.
She could not move the smallest of stones. Why bother imagining anything greater?
The afternoon was still young. By now the clouds had dissipated, though the trees above shielded her from most of the lighting. She enjoyed the comfort of the shadows, as the forest was often a place where she could unwind her thoughts after a long day of work. Narratha huffed a breath before she dipped her hands into the water to cool them down. Her bushy hair dangled down her shoulders and breasts as she knelt beside the stream, listening to its melody as it played along the rocks.
She gazed down at the vast array of freckles that littered her arms, as well as the rest of her body. She occasionally felt insecure about them, as most fawns either had them along their noses or none at all. Her glaringly dark eyebrows contrasted with her vibrant hair, coupled with the light pink lips she had been adorned with made her stand out from the rest. Even her sister seemed more in tune with how most of the other fawns appeared.
Blondes were less common, but auburn hair was even rarer. Hers – in particular – was a stronger variation than usual.
She knew that picking apart her appearance wouldn't do anything to help with the way she felt about her lack of powers. She had been told she was beautiful countless times, and she believed them. Life just had a way of getting to her. Things had been difficult ever since their mother was killed by a dhin three years prior. In her eyes, she had done her grieving, and it was time to move on.
It just seemed that every time she found herself alone, that feeling of loss still made its way back – no matter how finished with it she thought she was.
Nackia was just as distraught as she was that day, but Narratha had told the other fawns to help her sister out more. In her eyes, her younger sibling needed the time to heal. She could figure it out on her own eventually.
With a splash of water across her face, the fawn wiped her skin and stood up. The calls of the birds in the distance could still be heard. They had not stopped their singing all day. It would have made for a lovely afternoon of enjoying a meal in this preferred spot of hers. But, as she turned her eyes back to the plants and sticks, she remembered the greater good.
With a sigh, she picked up the items from the ground and began her walk back.
"Narratha!" A child's voice called out to her. It was that familiar, high-pitched tone that she had grown so accustomed to over the years. She spared no thought about dropping the items in her possession as she turned around.
"Balia!" The redhead smiled with open arms as the eight-year-old fawn came darting through the bushes, playfully jumping at her as if she was an apex predator. Narratha caught her the moment she landed. "Ah! You got me!"
"Rah!" Balia pretended to claw at her, only for Narratha to spin her around and wrap her arms around the child's stomach.
"What are you doing out here, little one?" Narratha rested her chin on top of the girl's head. "My sister and the other surges are giving lessons at this hour."
"I wanted to play in the forest instead! Those lessons are always so boring!" The girl tossed around, trying to overtake Narratha, as futile as such an endeavor was.
The redhead tightened her grasp just a little and locked her strong legs around Balia's. The two fell to the ground in laughter. "Little child, if the elders were to find out you were here all by yourself, you would be in trouble, understand?"
Balia had grown exhausted during her struggle and resigned herself to a relaxed posture as Narratha lovingly held her close. The girl was the only child who sought out Narratha for teachings, even though the woman's magic was minimal. She was more drawn to the color of her hair, and her entertainingly sarcastic personality.
"I know…" Her young voice groaned. "I knew you were going to be around the forest today. My mother said that you always do your work here."
Narratha smiled as she turned her eyes up to the trees. "Ah, she would be right. Your mother does know me quite well if she said that." She glanced back down at Balia, taking her by both wrists and softly crossing her arms. "But, that doesn't excuse you from putting yourself in danger by coming here alone. What if a dhin found you?"
"Then I would have the mighty Narratha to protect me!" Balia exclaimed. It prompted a spontaneous giggle to come out from the redhead.
"Oh, the 'mighty Narratha,' am I?"
"You may not have surge powers, but you…" Balia tried to wrestle her way out of Narratha's hold but to no avail. "You are strong."
"Hmm…a balanced diet and laborious work do wonders, young Balia."
"I know my dark hair is never going to be like yours, but, I hope you can one day teach me to look like you."
Narratha's white teeth shined as she smiled and kissed the top of the kid's head. "Thank you, Balia. However, that is not something that I can teach. The only thing that I can teach you to do is to love yourself just how you are."
The girl reached up to play with the bundles of wavy, red locks that her friend had. Her fingers landed on top of Narratha's arms, playfully poking at every freckle she could find. "But, I want to look like you!"
Narratha pulled her in closer. "If you sit out under the Spector Moons more often as I do, perhaps you will! But, until then, you will be sitting with the other fawns and learning what you must learn."
"All they do is talk about the other realms and fire and blah, blah, blah…" Balia rested her small head against the redhead's chest, who leaned in closer to her ear for a whisper.
"If I ever got to teach you guys, would you be more excited to attend?"
"Of course!" Balia exclaimed.
"Great!" Narratha jostled her back and forth as the two swayed around. "Inform the elders that I am the mighty Narratha and that they should fear my wrath! Tell them how I…" She glanced at the sticks to her left. "How I can carry all those sticks across a field without sweating…too much! Then…" Her voice grew more boisterous. "Only then…will they know!" She ended with a triumphant laugh that amused both herself and the child in her arms.
Balia's laughter went on as she enjoyed their exchange. When she settled down, she looked up at Narratha, knowing what was expected of her. "Can we just stay for a couple more minutes? I'll join the other kids, but…please?"
"Sure," Narratha grinned. "A couple more minutes before we return. Is that fair?"
"It is fair." She smiled.
The rest of their time in the forest was spent gazing upon the vast array of trees, listening as the breeze and the birds performed a duet that brought life to the nature around them. It was one of Narratha's favorite things about the forest, and she was happy to have Balia to share it with. The child was one of the few fawns who did not have a sister of her own, and the redhead was eager to fill that role.
Being a big sister was something she was already accustomed to, but with Nackia being a surge, Narratha always felt that there was a sort of disconnect along the way. The things that her younger sibling needed to learn were not the things that she could have taught her. Instead, it was the other surges who took it upon themselves to fill that gap – which left Narratha alone.
She always carried the feeling that her job as an older sister was limited, and that had she been a surge as well, then the two would have had some more common ground. Balia allowed her the space to feel needed. While the redhead loved her sister, she held a place in her heart for the sister who was not of her own blood.
As their time in the forest came to an end, Narratha fantasized about the next chance they would have to enjoy the scenery together. The things she could teach her, she thought. There were so many opportunities to shape this child's life.
Narratha couldn't wait.
"Can we play together later on?" Balia asked as they got closer to the commune.
"I'm probably going to be busy with more things to do, but later tonight, when I am eating, you are welcome to join me," Narratha said as she re-adjusted the sticks she carried at her waist.
"Wonderful! I can't wait to tell you all about what we learned today!"
"See? Now, you're excited." Narratha turned her eyes back to the commune, which was now finally coming back into view as the two rounded the corner of the huts. "I'd love to hear all about – wait."
Balia stopped as soon as Narratha halted her. The redhead carried a look of suspicion as she realized there were men intermingled with the rest of the fawns. She sat the sticks down on the ground and took the little girl by her hand.
"What is wrong, Narratha? Are those poils?"
"Yes…it's just, where are the elders?" Narratha soon noticed how many of the older surges were nowhere to be seen. Nackia's auburn hair, which often was easy to spot, was also unaccounted for as her sister scanned the crowd for any signs of her. She gestured to the child's hut. "Balia, go inside and don't come out until these men leave."
"But, my mother said that poils are not bad."
"They're not…" Narratha huffed through her nostrils as she shook her head. "Just do as I say, alright? Until the elders come back, I don't want you to be outside. I'll come visit you after these men leave and then we can talk."
"Okay…" Balia remained obedient as she trotted over to her hut, entering from the back and slipping out of sight.
Narratha cautiously began to approach the rest of the fawns. By the time she was on her way there, it seemed as though the lead man in the crowd was already in the process of directing the group away. The young children and the adults without substantial powers stood together in silence as the men made their way back to the animals that had carried them here.
As she approached the edge of the crowd of fawns, she could already see the eyes of some of the older men following her. It was a glare that she did not enjoy. While her powers were next to nothing, her senses were still keen. She could feel the stillness in the air. Something wasn't right about these men. They may have come here for whatever reason, but the way they began to act made it seem like their work was far from finished.
Several of the young girls started to walk around, back to their tents. Narratha could see the eyes of some of the men move as they started to trail them. Her brows squinted as she glared back at them. One of the men turned his eyes toward her body, zeroing in on her breasts and hips. She crossed her arms in an attempt to cover herself up as much as possible.
By now, the man who seemed to have brought them here was at the opposite end of the group. She just wanted them all to leave.
Narratha had read up on her history, and she knew about the interactions between fawns and poils of the past. While such large-scale clashes had been put to an end centuries ago, she was well aware of how their communities still practiced forms of violence. She had heard stories of the lust of men, and how female poils and fawns were still the same in their minds. Nothing about it sat well with her – especially now.
"Where are the elders?" She muttered to one of the other adult fawns who stood close by.
"They left to bring the surges to another commune," the fawn replied.
"What? Why?" Narratha suddenly heard one of the younger fawns scream. She immediately spotted a poil taking her by the wrist, tugging as hard as he could to drag her closer. "Hey!" She shouted to get his attention, but by the time he looked at her, the rest of the men had already begun their assault.
In the span of half a dozen seconds, all hell had broken loose. Fawns could be seen as they scattered around, running from the poils who chased them. The men fed off one another's calls for violence – each growing more enraged when the other shouted. In the chaos that ensued, she could only hear the screaming of her fellow women, blind to the rest of the world around her.
Eyeing the first child who had been grabbed by one of the men, Narratha went in to save her. She caught the man by surprise, swinging a right hook that managed to rock his head to the side. He tumbled backward, though the strength of her swing was not enough to knock him out. It was more than what the rest of the fawns could muster, but not sufficient. Before she could move in to follow up, another man's fist took her from behind.
Everything went black before she woke up dazed and on the ground. She wasn't sure how long she had been out for. Maybe a couple of seconds. Perhaps even a minute. As soon as her blurry vision cleared up, she could see more fawns running for their lives. They had to have been forced out of their huts.
A trio of men could be seen kicking and beating another one of the adults to death. Stomp after stomp against the woman's already bloody face. Narratha knew everyone in the commune, but the fawn was so disfigured that she could not discern which one of them it was.
More beatings were taking place around her, some involving the children. One of the poils could be seen with a knife in his possession as he chased random fawns around, slashing at them wildly whenever he got close. Some of the adolescents received lacerations to their arms as they fled. He was too lost in the frenzy to focus on any of them specifically. There were so many fawns around him that when the knife cleaved the skin of one, another would acquire his attention.
Narratha pushed herself off the ground, stumbling around as she looked around the field. One of the men was already on the ground, passed out, or possibly deceased. His face was bloody around the nose, but not as brutalized as the other fawn who was still being killed just a few yards away.
She could only hope he was dead.
More of the children's screams took over and re-directed her eyes to where they were coming from. The first thing she saw were two sisters who had broken away from another man's hold, running as fast as they could toward one of the huts. He chased after them, only for Narratha to intercept him. The fawn tackled him to the ground, fighting to pin him. The poil was larger and older. Her hands would only do so much before he managed to push her off and kick her back to the ground.
The force of the impact hardly registered in the form of pain. Her adrenaline was racing. The only thing about her body that she could notice was the difficulty she had standing. He had knocked her back far and her legs needed their strength back. She stumbled forward, landing on her hands before her knees rested on the grass to support her. As she glanced up, another fist struck her across the back of the head.
It was lights out again.
Her eyes flickered back open. The man who had struck her was still nearby. She could see him going to work on cutting the throat of another adult fawn – Macia. The twenty-year-old gurgled for air as blood showered down her gown. Her face had turned a deathly pale almost instantaneously. With his hands coated in crimson, the man threw her to the ground, allowing her to gasp during her final moments before the loss of blood would claim her.
Narratha's eyes were wide at the gory display. Macia's throat was as wide open as could be. Her exposed trachea bobbed up and down as her lungs attempted to expel all the pooling that had just occurred within them. About twenty feet away was another deceased fawn – a child. Her back was to the sky, but the child lacked movement. Face buried in the dirt, the signs of another beatdown were there.
More screams from the children echoed around her – more horrible than any she had ever heard before. That was when her heart reached a crescendo that mirrored the intensity of the cries for help. Some fawns were trying to fight back, but their feeble strikes did little to affect the pendulum of violence as it came back in their direction. Another stabbing took place across the field, resulting in another child clutching her bloodied chest with a face full of pain.
She only made it a few feet before she collapsed.
It was harder to get up this time. The second punch had done a great job of weakening her. Her vision drifted toward the grass, which was still against her face. The screams were growing louder, and she knew she had to do something. If she had the powers of a surge, this would have been the time to use them. Unfortunately, she did not, and the only thing she could rely on was herself. Fawns were being murdered before her very eyes. There was something that had to be done.
Another child's scream awoke her from the fog of her injuries, and Narratha turned her head and saw Balia fighting the hold of a poil who had his arms around her. The sight of his removed trousers kick-started a second round of adrenaline within the woman as she sprang up from the ground, stumbling in all directions but barreling toward him nonetheless.
"Get off of her! Get off!" She shouted as she raised her fist. Narratha closed in on him, but before she could attack him, two more poils grabbed her and threw her back onto the dirt. She kicked around, fighting to release herself from their hands. "She's just a child!"
More punches were delivered onto her, striking her cheeks and the sides of her head. "Look at the body on this one!" Shouted one of the men.
"Take me, not them," Narratha pleaded through bloody teeth. She was willing to endure it all if it meant that the others would be spared. "Please…"
There was no formal agreement, but many from the crowd became drawn to her as the others advertised her figure and form. She found herself dragged away to one of the huts that were close by. The final sight of the outside world that she would see during the rampage would be that of her friend, Balia, who was still being held by a man who was hellbent on his intentions. The shrill scream of the fawn filled Narratha's ears and brought forth a stillness as the opening of the hut closed behind her.
Time was non-existent as soon as the outside world was shut out. It was only the agony of the things she was forced to partake in and the beatings that followed that reminded her she was still alive. She would black out again from the pain, overwhelmed by those around her.
Throughout the assault, blood trailed down her inner thighs. Her gown was reduced to a torn mess. Her fur cape ripped from its clasps. She could taste the iron that leaked from the inside of her cut lip, which dulled the taste of their skin. Her joints ached from the prolonged positions she was put in. She covered her ears to block out the sounds so they would not repeat themselves in her head, but they would not allow her any form of mental shelter.
The only thing Narratha could hold onto during it all was the hope that her suffering had spared the others the same torment.
Hope was the only thing that managed to stay alive.
Her innocence – on the other hand – had died.
Narratha crawled out from the hut as soon as her mind recollected itself. She had been left in the back corner, lying as still as could be. It was a miracle that she was not slaughtered in there. Maybe they thought she was dead. Maybe they did not care anymore. So few words were spoken that those intentions were left up to debate.
The fresh burst of air filled her lungs as she drew in as much as she could. Her eyes set upon the rest of the fawns – those who were still alive. The dead were on the ground close by. She could already pick out a few of the children who were slain. Her eyes turned to the burned hut that was not far away. Her feet shuffled as she moved toward it, lost amidst the sound of the crying around her. The charred remains of several fawns could be seen among the destruction. Their skin burned to a dull, flaky black, while the rest of the meat was pure white. They had died holding one another.
Her eyes grazed the field, seeing that Balia was nowhere to be found. Not even the corpses on the grass resembled her. That was when Narratha backed away from the still-smoking debris at her feet.
She already knew.
Reduced to a sobbing mess, she collapsed on the ground, crying as hard as she could into the sky.
She would stay there until she realized that the man who had been unconscious on the ground during the early stages of the massacre was walking around the field. She watched as the other fawns led him to the elders; who had returned and were devastated at what had laid ahead of them. Her breathing was so loud that for a while, it was the only thing she could hear.
When the exchange between him and the elders was finished, she watched as he carted off with two young fawns in his possession. She recognized the scared face of Lia as the girl cradled her infant sibling in her arms. The man who had started this entire tragedy spared her a somber look; his wounds healed by the hands of those who led the commune.
She could not believe it – he was going to get away.
She wanted to lash out at him, but her frantic state of mind rendered her body immobile. All she could do was sit there as he got on his animal and departed the area. The hands of her fellow fawns cradled her, but the only thing she could think about was how that man was allowed to leave at all. The embers of the burning hut floated past her nostrils. She could still smell the death. They all could.
Why was he allowed to leave?
The following morning
The fawns were gathered around in the middle of the field amidst a clouded sky. It was only fitting that in the wake of such a tragedy the Spector Moons would have forgone their presence during the day, hidden behind the darkest clouds in recent memory. The four elders stood at the front of the crowd as they led the discussion. The surges who had previously been removed from the commune had been brought back as soon as possible, which only added more fawns who were impacted by the event.
They returned to find their sisters and mothers ravaged by the poils. Some were robbed of their dignity – others, their lives. Whether they were there when it occurred or not did not matter. The community was called together as one.
Narratha watched and listened as she stood near the edge of the crowd. The elders were in the process of saying what they needed to say, but all she could think about was the total madness that had happened afterward.
Olishia – the oldest of the elders – held out her hands as the injured fawns lined up in front of her. They were to receive a healing touch that would spare them from their physical wounds. Narratha scoffed to herself as she knew it would do nothing to repair the mental damage that these young women had to endure.
More so – these were the same elders who had let that man go without an explanation.
"Sisters…" Olishia raised her arms once all the injuries had been tended to. "Yesterday was a day that we shall always remember. We stand here together to remember those who are not standing with us today. Some of those lives had only seen a limited number of years of existence, but they were more important to this world than those of us who have seen many years under these Moons. We are here to celebrate their memories and rebuild. We cannot allow this violence to set us back. As your elders, we are devastated."
Narratha turned her eyes to Nackia, who stood beside her. Her sister looked like she was trying to find the perfect words to whisper to her, but she was smart enough to know that they would be meaningless without action. As the redhead watched the elders speak about moving forward, she reminded herself of Balia's crying face, hysterical with the fear of what was about to happen to her.
She shuddered to think about what that little girl had to suffer through before she was set ablaze inside that hut. She wanted the poil who violated her to be found and punished for his crimes, but nothing about him was being said – and that angered her greatly.
Olishia shed a tear as she stared at the nine sticks that had been placed into the ground in a circle. They were there to symbolize the nine fawns who had lost their lives less than twenty-four hours ago. The same sticks that Narratha had collected during her trip to the forest when Balia was still by her side. She regretted taking that child back to the commune. She should have told her to stay put.
If she had, at least the girl would probably still be alive.
Olishia waved her hand with a blue glow that flowed through her fingers. "Locwitary is not the violent world that it used to be, but yesterday's events have shown us that we still must remain vigilant for one another. I want to recognize those of you who did your best to protect others. Without you, we would have had to plant more sticks into the ground. Your elders and I are here for you all. We will not fall victim to the same evil that the poils had embraced. The cycle of evil is not meant to keep spinning. It will be arduous, but we must divert from contempt."
"Is that it?" Narratha shouted. Everyone in the crowd fell silent, save for a few gasps and mummers amongst those farther away. No one had ever questioned the elders in such a manner.
Olisha closed her eyes and slowly breathed. "Yes, Narratha. It is what we must do."
"Elder Olishia," the redhead said as she advanced closer to the front of the crowd. "May I stand in front of you and the rest of the elders and make a request?"
Olishia turned her head to the other three; each of whom nodded in their approval. "Yes, Narratha. Come."
Nackia reached out for her sister as she made her way to the front. "Narratha…what are you doing?"
The redhead said nothing to her sibling as she broke away and approached Olishia. With the fawn who was three times her age in front of her, there was a slight degree of nervousness to be found inside her heart. Nonetheless, the fire that was lit inside her soul overcame any concerns of the past. She had things that needed to be said, and now was the time to say them.
"Elder Olishia…" Narratha took a breath as their eyes met. "It is my understanding that the surges in our commune were removed due to the request of the poils, who had concerns regarding their powers. I have been made aware of the incidents in other communes throughout the years. However, those were rare – far from commonplace. I wanted to ask if there had been a prior discussion with this group before they arrived here and brought death to us?"
Olishia gave Narratha an expression of dismay, which the fawn did not overlook. "Discussions had not been had prior, Narratha. The men arrived and spoke of an incident that we were well aware of before. It was my understanding that some of the other communes had not done as good of a job of supervising their surges as others were. Your elders agreed that it wasn't for just the sake of the lives of poils – but fawns as well. We decided to take all the surges there so they could learn under the care of the most experienced elders in the area. It was not to be a permanent plan, but the recent incidents had shown us that poils and fawns were beginning to integrate once again. It was an attempt at a better future between us."
Narratha clenched her teeth behind her closed mouth. All she could think about was what followed and how it spat in the face of all the 'safety' the poils had preached about. She glared at the elders, wondering how they could have easily been so swayed into foolishness. They were supposed to be the wisest and most knowledgeable of fawns, but she found their decision to be nothing short of careless.
Carelessness that cost these fawns their lives and their bodies.
"Where is that 'better future' now?" She asked with anger in her voice, demanding an acceptable answer from the ones she trusted to look after them.
Olishia could see her frustration. She extended her hand to touch Narratha's face, so that she may truly understand the pain that the fawn felt. The redhead took a step back, which shocked the elder. "Narratha?"
She turned to the rest of the fawns, knowing that they had to have felt the same way that she did. "What have we gained? How are we safe?" Members of the crowd kept their heads down. Some intentionally avoided looking at her. Narratha could see the fear on some of their faces. Why were none of them speaking up? "I know that I must not be the only one who wants to know why?"
One of the fawns from the crowd spoke, "The elders have already explained it, Narratha."
The redhead pinched her brow in confusion. "What?"
Another fawn from the other side of the group voiced her opinion as well. "They're right. We cannot allow ourselves to fall into their ways. They were angry men and if we become like them, we are nothing better."
Narratha took a step forward, arms extended outward as she shouted back at them. "Did you not see what they did to our sisters? Our mothers? Our daughters?!" She snapped her head back to Olishia. "Are we just going to forget?!"
"No, Narratha." Olishia tried to remain understanding, as she could see how furious the fawn in front of her was. "We will always remember this day. We will live on in their memory, but we must live on. There is nothing else we can do besides hold on to the strength that –"
"There is something we can do!" Narratha interrupted her. The other elders began to move closer, seeing the redhead's outburst as a form of disrespect. Olishia waved them down.
"What do you propose, Narratha?" The elder asked.
"We find those poils; the ones who violated and mutilated us." Narratha turned to face the crowd again, hoping that the others would see the light. "We bring them to justice! We let them know that their vile actions would not go unpunished! What right do they have to inflict such misery upon us? They have no right! They prey on us because we are so forgiving, but, if we showed them how strong we are, it would never happen again!"
A third fawn joined in. "Narratha, stop!"
Then a fourth. "Please, enough!"
Her anger rose when she realized that those who were speaking were surges. The redhead erupted into a fury as she flashed her teeth at those who she felt had turned their backs on her. "Stop what?! You weren't there! If you had been, you would be beside me!"
Another surge from the crowd spoke, "We will not use our powers to punish others, Narratha!"
"Then you do not deserve those powers!" She screamed. "None of you do! You all would just rather sit there, allowing your fellow fawns to be tarnished by anyone who wishes to cause us harm!" Her voice cracked as tears broke from her eyes. "When is this going to happen again? When will the next group of poils invade our community and ravage us? Will you surges just sit by…all in the sake of forgiveness?!"
She could see the way Nackia kept her head down. Even her own sister would not say anything.
Olishia placed her hand on Narratha's shoulder, but the fawn spun around and pushed it away. The elder had heard enough of her outburst. "We will not resort to violence, Narratha! That is not the way."
With trails of sadness down her cheeks, Narratha stared the elder down. "You didn't hear their screams, Olishia. You didn't see what those men did to our youngest! They should be afraid of us! If I was a surge, I would have protected everyone! I would have torn them apart, limb from –"
"But, you're not!" Olishia shut her down, bringing the area into silence in the process. The aged fawn took a breath to calm her nerves immediately after. "We will have no more death. I think it is best that you return to where you were, sister."
Narratha turned her head back to the crowd, seeing that none of the fawns behind her were going to say a single thing. She parted her lips and closed her eyes. After all she had been through, taking the brunt of the abuse so that the poils would spare the other fawns – none of the survivors would help her. She knew that if Balia was still alive, the child might have been on her side.
All of the dead fawns would have said something. They understood the true reality of what the poils had done. But, to her, it wasn't the poils who took their lives that hushed their voices – it was the silent living who chose to not speak for them.
The same fawns who chose to not support her after everything she had endured for them. A sacrifice that she now regrated immensely.
She slowly turned her head back to Olishia, glaring back at her with calm, yet sharp eyes. A long inhale followed by an even longer exhale was the last release she would display in front of their presence. It wasn't just the release of her fury, but the release of her beliefs of everything that they had taught her. Lessons that were worth nothing when the cost was too great. It was the moment she detached herself from the life she had known.
She could not forgive.
She would not forgive.
"Yes, elder."
NOTES:
What is a fawn truly capable of?
The next chapter will release May 28th.