Wings Of Fire (WOF) : A dark family affair

Chapter 31

The young hybrid swallowed her saliva. She had to show no sign of weakness, no sign of fear, no sign that would satisfy the sandwing. The art of combat worked like the art of conversation, the weapons were just different, and in front of Coyot, she had to be sure of herself, despite all her doubts. She had to keep her feelings to herself and not arouse her opponent's anger. From what she knew of him, he was an unstable being and this conversation was merely a game in which he was the master. If he wished, he could put an end to the game, without them even having a chance to play.

"Be quick Crystal," she prayed silently. She was really beginning to hate that suicidal strategy. Even though Crystal had awkwardly shown her that this was their last chance, Nightjar would have preferred this confrontation to be on an equal footing and not now, in a situation where mistakes were not allowed at any point.

"What are you waiting for ?" impatient Coyot, "Go ahead and talk !

- Why did you kill my parents ?" she asked spontaneously, following the rules of Coyot's sordid game. Obeying him seemed the only option at the moment.

"I thought you'd never ask me that question. Simply because they put themselves in front of me but also of my precious, this gift that allowed me to be here today. You know what motivated me to do this Nightjar ? It's not in the name of selfish, but of altruism.

- How can you say that when you're shaking kingdoms and entire populations with your presence ?

- It's precisely because I question the authority of the rulers of these lands that the world is afraid of me. Change can be frightening, but that's not what scares them. They don't want to see their little miserly comforts disturbed. Have you seen how the east coast of Possibility is contaminated by poverty ?

- Precisely because of you," she denounced. It was hard for her to stand still in the face of his words.

"That's where you're wrong. All that misery had already started to spread. Crystal may have made you think otherwise, but she was just a sprout who couldn't see the world around her. My organization may be perceived as criminal and withering, poisoning society's garden, I can understand that. But the people who have joined me have the same thoughts, the same ambitions as I do.

- Because manipulating people, with that cursed thing," she pointed at the artifact, "is what you call having the same plans ?

- Unfortunately, you have to force some people's hand. I'm convinced that this charmer's book,"he said, "didn't come into my hands by chance. I'm sure I'm destined for great things, and  many of my men are not under its spell, which I regret. If they were, I wouldn't have had to watch my back so much.

This interview allowed Nightjar to get to know the character little by little. Clearly, she was dealing with someone who was the very embodiment of a superiority complex. He liked to flaunt himself, to be at the centre of attention to talk, to converse, to reveal himself, surely to show just how fantastic he was, a divine character he had built himself. He didn't give a damn if she asked him such and such questions, he just wanted to demonstrate and assert his authority over her by forcing her to talk nonsense with him. He comforted himself in the idea that he was a supposedly unique and superior being.

"Your father, despite his abilities, failed to foresee the future that was in store for us. This dear old friend decided to ruin everything by ripping out almost all my pages, thus limiting the absolute influence of my tool, but in the end, it cost him his own life. It's quite funny and ironic for a clairvoyant not to have been able to anticipate his own death. It's almost pitiful...