Somewhere in the sky, a woman walked off a ship onto the solid ground of a floating island. She was dressed plainly, which contrasted against the golden light of the faraway city casting down upon it. She took a deep breath and look towards that same city with a frown. Clearly, Lasruay had not visually changed at all.

Months had passed since the heist that Hokhin and his crew had committed. In the beginning, Reija hadn’t understood why Hokhin would take such an extreme measure in disposing of Roayl. Surely, there had to be easier ways to bring the man to justice. Reija had thought of thousands that would have sufficed had he just opened up and asked them about their opinions.

But then she had begun to look at it from his point of view. If Reija had walked up to someone she barely knew and asked them to assist in a murder, they would have been right to call her insane.

Reija herself would probably have turned Hokhin in the first time that he posed such a question. He’d been clever to disguise it as a theft for money. Anyone could get behind a motive such as that. Hokhin had needed someone who was an expert in technology after all. It had seemed that Reija was just in the right place at the right moment.

Then she asked herself whether disposing of Roayl would have any benefit whatsoever. Perhaps someone just as evil as him would take the position. Maybe someone worse. Maybe someone better. The only thing Roayl’s death had bought them was another spin of the wheel of Fate.

No matter how many times she thought it over, Reija realized that she would never be able to receive a satisfying answer to her questions if she didn’t go take a look herself. If Hokhin’s method had been right, she would accept it wholeheartedly. But if it turned out to be wrong, then she would be relieved.

She knew that she could refuse to accept Hokhin’s methods even if they worked, but she couldn’t in good conscience do that.

So, she bought herself a return ticket back to Lasruay. It would be the first time in almost a year that she would be stepping foot back on the island. An interesting thing she’d learned on her stay at other islands was that the unique weather pattern that was observed on Lasruay was much the same on other islands.

Reija walked into the city with a confident strut. It was a clear night tonight, so she had picked wisely for her ticket. She had packed an umbrella in case she’d need it, but was glad not to.

The change was noticeable to Reija in the steps of the people, the sounds of the city and the demeanor with which everyone carried themselves. She hadn’t noticed it before, likely due to the amount of time she spent here, but people on Lasruay were much less talkative than on other islands. It had actually been quite sobering for Reija to realize that conditions in the rest of Jaryubal were not dystopic.

But even on the island she called home for the past few days, people wore more smiles. It was late at night and Reija decided to ask some people about where they were returning from.

“Just came back from the mines. Tough shift today!” One of the men replied.

“You came out right now?” Reija asked the man.

“Well, yes? I don’t think working in the mines all night would be pleasant. Maybe ask some of the older workers. I’m a bit new to the job,” he replied. He then laughed and bid Reija farewell.

Perhaps I will, Reija thought.

The Highbreeze district from what she’d seen was the same as always. Same loud music. Same gamblers. Though they did seem a bit less disheveled. Reija decided to give it a pass and moved on to other business.

In the Windfell district, Reija found the same gangs, bars and rundown buildings. Some of those she had previously seen as just thugs were now instead making their way home from jobs of their own. Instead of idling all day, they’d been given something to do and pay for it.

She was happy at their fortune. This was all confirming a very specific answer in Reija’s mind, but she first had to take care of one last piece of business.

****

Reija peered down the window that led into Alsitray’s apartment and found the woman playing with her child. Her son was a young boy, barely of 5 years old. He had the same nose as his mother and stuck to her like glue.

Reija wanted to come in and talk to the woman, but knew it best not to. It would put Alsitray in unnecessary danger, if anyone made the connection. Or was that the excuse Reija was using at the moment?

Reija shook away that panicking thought and walked away. She had no rebuttal, no answer to what she had seen. Every facet of a Lasruayan citizen’s life had been improved after Roayl’s death. The Fate that had come to the island was a positive one.

That meant that what Hokhin had done was right, even if he hadn’t gone about it the best way. Reija knew that she would need to adopt a similar mindset in order to make a noticeable change in the world.

The Craft that had been given to her was a responsibility. And she would take that responsibility seriously. Wherever she saw corruption or injustice, she would destroy it. It was the duty of someone like her. Reija activated the bracelet on her arm, and watched it rip the raw materials out of the ground itself. The dirt and rocks hardened into metal plates and slammed against Reija, forming into a suit of armour that fit her perfectly. The design was different from Roayl’s, but had those same pinkish red eyes.

This wasn’t a duty she had taken on by force. It was done by Reija herself. She didn’t want the world to create another Hokhin. Someone blinded entirely by their lust for revenge. And Reija would make sure the conditions of the world never came to such a point that someone like him would be needed.