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The original was posted on /r/hfy by /u/Lanzen_Jars on 2025-07-01 22:23:47+00:00.

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Chapter 226 – All under your watch

“Oh, sweet ziffliar!” the powerful voice of Councilwoman Majistheria Avalogahta Tua rang through the station as she called out to her daughter with an overly-relieved tone. The old zodiatos started to quickly hurry over to the approaching group, the ground shaking under her hasty steps as she barreled in their direction at a speed that almost seemed threatening, considering her size.

A few of the soldiers actually twitched to raise their weapons, but Admir managed to quickly and more importantly quietly get them to reconsider that with a few subtle gestures. Meanwhile, any passerby – even the most maddened of those rioting or the most rugged of the carnivores standing against them – who found themselves even remotely in her way quickly dashed aside to make room for the stomping titan.

All the while, Ajifianora still kept her earlier posture, seemingly trying to make herself appear as large as at all possible.

“I can’t begin to tell you how relieved I am that you are alright, my sweet!” the old Councilwoman continued, only gradually slowing down as she neared what the colossi considered conversational range, her trunk still swinging from side to side while her ears heavily fanned her neck. “I thought anything might have happened to-”

“Less talking, more walking,” Admir interrupted the raving mother. He had walked up to Ajifianora’s side by now, and he gave her a heavy – though in their dimensions likely still hardly noticeable – punch against her leg to try and gain her attention.

Lifting his gaze away from her and to the older Councilwoman, he very loudly and firmly added,

“We are on borrowed time already. You can talk while you walk.”

Majistheria shook her head as if in surprise for a moment, before then quickly glaring down at the human in obvious indignation.

Her daughter, however, seemed to have received the message loud and clear. Though a bit reluctant, she dropped her ‘display posture’ and allowed her trunk to sink down.

“This is no place to chat, mother,” she quickly agreed with her human guard and started to wave the older woman along as she began to walk again. “We only have minutes to get off the station.”

“Get off the station?” Majistheria replied, sounding a bit confused. As if rooted in place, she bent her long neck around her body to follow her daughter’s movement as she walked past her at first. “What are you saying?”

Only once Ajifianora had walked almost completely past her mother did the latter finally turn in a wide arch to try and walk after her offspring, which in turn caused some of the defensively positioned humans around the group to have to scatter so they wouldn't accidentally end up in her footpath.

“I’m saying we are leaving,” Ajifianora repeated herself in no uncertain terms. She turned to look back at her mother and, in the same movement, reached her trunk back to tangle it with that of her Nahfmir-Durrehefren.

The young bull was still getting weaker, and by now it seemed like he was starting to have honest trouble keeping up with the young Matriarch.

“The humans have worked hard to create an opening for me to do so after the exits were inexplicably blocked. I am not going to let all that go to waste,” Ajifianora explained further while she gently pulled Durrehefren along.

“Exit from the station is blocked because of all the chaos that is going on!” Majistheria tried to ‘explain’ as she quickened her steps to catch up to her daughter, soon walking almost side by side with her. “We should get to safety and wait until order has been reestablished.”

“Bit late for that…” Admir scoffed under his breath, knowing it was quiet enough to go unheard.

“That is not what those trying to leave were told,” Ajifianora meanwhile countered her mother’s words. “And after Dunnima, Nedstaniot, and Gewelitten, I am not about to gamble with the good will of an approaching invasion!”

She briefly glanced back at the struggling bull she was pulling with worry in her eyes.

“Invasion?” Majistheria scoffed with an almost dismissive tone of voice as she raised up her trunk. “My sweet, these are our troops approaching. They merely come-”

“I don’t care what you say!” Ajifianora suddenly exclaimed, loud enough to all at once silence the ongoing chaos and noise on the street they traversed as all surrounding eyes, both friend and foe, were pulled onto her from the sheer volume of her trumpeting shout. For a moment, her head fully whipped around, using the full length of her neck to stare directly in her mother’s face – so much so that she had to angle her head down a bit so that their tusks wouldn’t accidentally tangle. “People have died! People are still dying! What in the stars could possibly make you try to compel me to remain in a place that is actively descending into chaos? Even if what you say was true and those ships were coming here to create order, what makes you think that a better place for me would be right here in the midst of it instead of being far away while those “peace-keepers” sort things out here? Do you think I am daft? Do you think I do not see that the only reason you could possibly want me here is to apply more pressure?”

Majistheria recoiled slightly, lifting her head up in a manner that seemed quite honestly taken aback.

“Apply pressure?” she asked, and her tone almost made it believable that she hadn’t thought of things that way up until that point. Though then her voice packed a bit more force once again as she carefully reached her trunk out to her daughter. “My sweet, I am trying to protect you. That’s what I’ve always tried to do-”

Her trunk was smacked away as Ajifianora momentarily tore her own loose from that of her companion to deliver a forceful strike against it; the dull sound of the fleshy impact echoing out across the still silence-stricken street.

“You didn’t even protect me from my own father!” the young Matriarch screamed out. And it was a scream. It was primal, wet, and visceral, entirely different from her earlier shouting.

Majistheria’s eyes widened as she stared at her daughter as the young woman’s body shook, rocked by heavy breathing as she glared right back.

“I don’t know what in the world you think you have to protect me from,” Ajifianora continued, slowly lowering her voice as she spoke, though it was far more hoarse and gravelly now. “But it’s nothing that has ever concerned me. But, the things I’m really scared off? Father coming home. Hearing aunt Apo talk about what she’s really been doing behind the scenes. Witnessing our own people conduct a massacre...that is what truly terrifies me. And it all happened right under your watch.”

With wetting eyes, she turned her head once again, giving another long look to Durrehefren as he was shaking in exhaustion.

Majistheria, apparently speechless, looked at her daughter for a few long seconds. Then, she followed her gaze.

It was almost as if she only then noticed the state that the young bull was in, while Ajifianora already reached out to take his trunk into hers once more.

“Merrokhules…” she more exhaled than said as she leaned towards him. “What happened to you?”

Admir couldn’t help but lift an eyebrow slightly. From some cursory research, he was aware of the name the bull had before he began to vie for the title of Durrehefren. However, this was the first time he had ever actually heard someone actively use it to address him.

The bull huffed, his trunk briefly stiffening from the sharp exhale before Ajifianora could gently hold it.

“It’s nothing,” he said sternly, though his trunk shook as he held onto that of the young Matriarch.

Admir then decided to insert himself again, moving close enough to nudge Ajifianora one more time. A moment ago, there would’ve been no chance of getting through to her. But they still had to move.

“There was a scuffle between him and his rival earlier,” the Lieutenant then informed in a sober tone while Ajifianora took his hint and began to walk, pulling Durrehefren along. “During which, I suspect the Nahfmir-Durrehefren managed to inject him with some kind of venom. Which is another reason that we need to move quickly.”

Majistheria pulled her head back slightly.

“Venom?” she half-whispered, looking at the young bull with both doubt and renewed concern. “He wouldn’t…”

Her words were cut a bit short as Ajifianora gave her a sharp glare over her shoulder. It seemed like the young woman was completely done making any sort of concessions towards what her mother thought.

The glare was effective in keeping her mother at bay for about two seconds. Then, Majistheria suddenly dashed forward, shooting out her trunk to wrap it around the tangle formed between that of the two younger zodiatos.

“Wait!” she exclaimed as she wrapped the two halves of the appendage tightly, holding on even as Ajifianora immediately began to try and shake her loose again. “Wait, Ajifianora, listen to me!”

Despite his condition, Durrehefren now perked up. With firm steps he pushed himself forwards, quickly shoving himself in-between mother and daughter as he took...

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