I, over the last
few posts, discussed the protagonist, antagonist, love interest/mentor, and the
protagonist’s supportive cast in the first novel (Daughters of Darkwana) of
my series (Diaries of Darkwana).
I want, today, to
share a few members of the antagonist’s supportive cast.
I will introduce
you to Khadija (Ka-dee-jah) and Diana, both assassins hired to recapture my
protagonist, Wally Cook, and kill anyone in who steps in their paths.
Khadija exists as
a two-tailed kitsune and former member of the Zenko Clan (see former posts on
these subjects if necessary).
Khadija, years
ago, when she existed as a kitsune juvenile (called a “kit”), joined several of
her adopted sisters in their battle against Vasuki, a doomed attempt to avenge
their parents.
None of Khadija’s
teammates survive the battle. She plays possum while several of Vasuki’s
soldiers (the Merchants of Chaos) rape her.
She, in light of
her violation and survivor’s guilt, decides that fear serves as her enemy. A
fearless being would have forced the soldiers to kill her before she allowed
them to defile her.
She decides that
she cannot allow fear to rule her again.
She discards every
bond that someone might use to corrupt her. She dissolves her love of self so
that she will not fear death. She disowns her clan so she will not fear for
the safety of her (remaining) adopted sisters.
She, for years,
trains in physical and magical combat. She earns a reputation as an assassin,
and—in an effort to identify and dispatch those soldiers who spoiled her—joins
Vasuki’s payroll.
Baxter, our
antagonist, promises all of Vasuki’s assassins that they may each name their
own reward upon Wally Cook’s capture. Khadija plans to ask for the soldiers
whose throats she seeks.
Khadija, as a
two-tailed kitsune, possesses a respectable quantity of fox fire (kitsune magic).
She wields a pair of kamas, which each resemble miniature scythes.
She, in an effort
to face daily her worst fear (a repeat of the night that forever changed her
life), dresses in provocative fashion. She wears only an unbuttoned, oversized,
white shirt and panties, as if to dare anyone to touch her.
(I, in hindsight, deeply
regret this choice of wardrobe. I wanted to express the aforementioned chip on her
shoulder, but, in that effort, I reduced and objectified her.)
She also wears a
metal helmet with horns.
Khadija possesses
red fur with a river of white that flows from her throat to her inner thighs.
One of her eyes appears dull green, the other bright red.
Her specialties,
magic-wise, include Fox Fire Blasts (a destructive pillar of raw magic, usually
discharged from one or both palms) and a psychic shield she evokes in front of
herself at will.
She shall
discover, in the course of Daughters,
that she still cares for the members of her former clan (what few members linger)
even though her mission places her at direct odds with the Zenko Clan.
Diana, a
thirteen-year-old girl, exists as the last of a race called “clipps,” the
members of which appear human and can create powerful magnetism with their
minds.
Vasuki, threatened
by the clipps’ power, orders them exterminated. He spares Diana only because
she cannot psychically lift anything larger than a paperclip.
Vasuki fails to
question how many paperclips Diana
can lift at once.
Diana wears a
fanny pack stuffed with metal ball bearings, some barely macroscopic and some smaller than that. She can manipulate them all. At once. Into any shape
she chooses.
She can even
“fire” them as if she commands thousands of shotguns.
Diana’s unrest in
regards to the genocide of her people takes a twisted route. She experiences
anger not because of the murders, but because Vasuki underestimated her,
considered her unnecessary to kill.
She becomes the
youngest assassin on Vasuki’s payroll, all because she wants him to witness and
respect her power.
Diana proves remorseless
and joyfully psychotic.
She instantly
thinks of her fellow assassin, Spyder, when Baxter promises her (and the other
assassins) any reward they choose in exchange for Wally Cook’s capture.
Spyder led the
genocide against the clipps. He convinced Vasuki to spare Diana. He overlooked her. Diana plans to ask
for the right to fight Spyder, so that he regrets his low expectations of her.
Vasuki, Baxter,
the Merchants of Chaos, and the other assassins all treat Diana and Khadija
with measures of distrust, given the two female assassins’ histories. This
creates a weak bond between them.
I shall, next
post, discuss a few more members of Baxter’s supportive cast, to include the
aforementioned Spyder.
See you then!
Thanks for reading. You can catch my my novels, such as Daughters of Darkwana on Kindle,
and my other blogs at the following sites:
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