Freyn

“My brothers and sisters, please. Do we really need to continue upholding such outdated values?” Cerl Freyn calls, arms sweeping out to the side as he addresses the crowd.

Lucieve Estorn laughs. “Outdated values? You mock the ideals of your ancestors and your ayjiir-fairn.” She pauses, allows the crowd to roar, their anger felt in multitudes. “You, Cerl Freyn, are a disgrace. As is your fairn.”

“Times have changed, Lucieve. Perhaps our ancestors had a right to be wary all those years ago, but now the people are more understanding.”

“The people will never be understanding! I have upheld the values of the Estorn Fairn since the moment I was born. I will not let you make a mockery of our people, Cerl. I cast your fairn out. No longer shall they besmirch the Estorn name and no longer shall you corrupt our young with misguided fantasies of peace.”

A llo-fairn of the fenarl-kryn, answering to their ayjiir-fairn - the Estorn. For generations, the Freyn have blindly followed the Estorn. They have wreaked havoc on human settlements, they have assassinated political figures, they have unquestioningly slain any stranger who dares to set foot within the boundaries of the fairne homeland. Alongside the other llo-fairn, they have created a world of unimaginable chaos.

But recently, the leaders of the Freyn have asked themselves a single question: why?

Why do they follow so blindly? Why has no one questioned the Estorn, when the world is changing and the views of humans are more accepting?

We Change With the Times

Three generations ago, Lasliin Freyn began to educate himself on the current climate of the world, outside of the bubble of their fairn homelands. He found that, whilst wars were still waging, the other beastfolk kryn were more present in the world. His brothers and sisters from the other kryn were being accepted by both humans and daelin alike.

They travelled the world without fear of harm or further curses from mutation arcanists. So Lasliin wondered - if the other kryn were accepted and accepting of humans and daelin in return, then what was stopping the Freyn fairn, or the other fairn of the fenarl-kryn, from doing the same?

Lasliin started to teach his fairn about the world and the changes it had undergone whilst they were hiding in the shadows. For the most part, his fairn agreed with him, though it would take another two generations before a leader of the Freyn fairn would stand up to the Estorn’s way of life.

For many of Athel’s villagers, it was the first time they had ever come across a fenarl-kryn. The village Elders were wary of their initial encounter. These beings, rumoured to be cruel and unforgiving, were right on their doorstep, but the elders of Athel took a chance and decided to help the Freyn.

Their children were fascinated by the Freyn fairn. They admired their wings and the silver feathers that adorned them, as well as their taloned feet. The Freyn were unlike anything these human children had ever seen, which made them interesting and unique in the children’s eyes. In the end, it was their naive acceptance that made the Freyn fairn stay close.

This brave leader was Cerl Freyn and his task was not an easy one. The Estorn remained unconvinced that the humans had changed and after a further row, Cerl Freyn and the Freyn fairn were cast out by the Estorn. The Freyn fairn were beaten until they were bloodied and bruised, barely able to stand in some cases, unconscious in others. Even their young were not spared from such brutality.

No longer allowed to remain within the boundaries of their homeland, the Freyn fairn travelled for days with little food and water to be shared between them. By the time they reached a human settlement to the north of their previous homelands, four of their people had already succumbed to starvation, dehydration, or their wounds.

Here, their wounds were treated. They were fed and given water to drink by the villagers of Athel. They experienced a kindness with the humans in Athel that they had never had the privilege of knowing when they were following the Estorn fairn.

Due to their kindness, the Freyn fairn decided to remain close to Athel. Not wanting to intrude upon its people, Cerl Freyn ordered that they create a temporary camp just east of Athel. Over the years, the Freyn became closer and closer with the Athel’s villagers and they began to work together to better their own living arrangements, as well as that of the villagers.