The Chronicles of Heaven's War: Burning Phoenix

by Ava D. Dohn

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  (Author’s note: The following is an excerpt from Garlock and Copeland’s, The King’s War, pp 204-205. “There were eight commanding and staff officers, all hand-picked by Trisha and Lowenah, and all with Lowenah’s personal approval. Five were from the First Realm and three from the Realms Beneath. Four were her top generals and the rest were her top-ranking staff officers.

  HoiOnarasis, meaning ‘son of my dreams or visions’, was among the oldest of Trisha’s officers. He had been one of the leading generals from the first days of Rebel Wars. ‘HoiO’, as most people called him, was Trisha’s immediate lieutenant. His long history of leadership and prowess, along with the great respect he commanded, made him the outstanding candidate for such a position. One other personal ability made him valuable to this company. He was also a healer.

  NoazOhfehr, ‘the fearless young deer’, had grown up in the wild cold of what was called the ‘Outer Ranges’, a string of planets in the far western reaches of the Empire known for very short, warm seasons and long, harsh winters. He was much younger than many of Lowenah’s children, but his exploits had made him well known. That same reputation carried over into his leadership during the Rebel Wars. At times, he appeared to be almost reckless in his combat strategies, yet he had the skill to carry his tricks off. Noaz was one of Trisha’s four generals.

  DinChizki, ‘justice is my strength’, was one of Lowenah’s much younger children. He and Noaz had been selected for these positions because it was felt the younger ones were more willing to endure the wars to their success than many of the older children. Din’s corps had been trapped at Memphis. After his superior officer was killed, he took command. Ordering a daring, almost suicidal counter attack, he managed to temporarily breach the north passage wall, in what was later called the ‘Battle of the Tower Gate’. This daring move secured escape for over half his corps plus thousands of others also trapped there. As a note: this was the battle Darla referred to as the ‘Gap’ where a missile wounded her and killed a companion.

  The one woman among Trisha’s leading generals was a relative newcomer to the First Realm. TolmetesRhedEpi, ‘the daring chariot rider’, ‘Tolmetes’ for short, had lived during the dark years after the ancient empire of Trisha’s day crumbled from existence. She had resided in a place called the ‘Sudan’ and, when a young woman, raced horses and chariots on which her master wagered. Lowenah handpicked Tolmetes for this post, saying she had been delivered to the First Realm for that very purpose.

  Trisha’s top-ranking staff officer was known by the name ‘Tizrela’. She had been one of Lowenah’s personal honor guards at the Prisoner Exchange and was nearly as old as Gabrielle. Few possessed more wisdom, and none were more loyal than Tizrela. There were few of Lowenah’s children better equipped to represent her presence than this child. Trisha deeply respected this woman’s opinions, feeling at times as though they came directly from Lowenah.

  Tabitha Copeland had lived in the Second Realm around the same time Jebbson did, but in the island homeland from which his mother migrated. Her formal education and desire to learn domestic history and war’s personal experiences provided Tabitha precious insight into warmongers and other pompous egotists. This, combined with a highly analytical mind and phenomenal mathematical cognizance, made Tabitha valuable in deciphering an enemy’s strategies. Already, during the thirty odd years of her existence in the First Realm, she had served on many councils and held staff positions for high-ranking officers.

  Richard Finhardt was an interesting person, to say the least. Like Jebbson, he was no stranger to war while still living in the Second Realm, but the war machines of his day were much more refined than in Jebbson’s. Richard was educated to become a mechanic and he took those skills to the skies. By the age of seventeen, he had earned the status of fighter pilot. He remained in aviation after that war, flying gliders and such like aircraft. Later, in a nasty little civil war, he reached the rank of wing commander and distinguished himself with the title of ‘ace’. Crippling injuries, caused when an experimental ship he was testing exploded, forced him into a secluded retirement. During his few remaining years in that realm, Richard took up the study of sociology and philosophy, eventually becoming a deeply religious man.

  BarkaiNofech was Mihai’s next oldest sibling. In the peaceful days before the Rebellion, he was known as Mihai’s herald and would often be escort for her at special occasions and festivities, thus the name given him by Lowenah, which meant, ‘my jewel who announces the dawn star’. Barkai had served on Gabrielle’s, Mihai’s and even Lowenah’s councils from time to time since the Rebellion. He had a knack for seeing the whole picture quickly, assimilating seemingly unrelated information and making logical sense of it. During the Great War, Barkai not only was one of Mihai’s staff officers, he also flew in her fighter squadron.

  These eight people, HoiO, Noaz, Din, Tolmetes, Tizrela, Tabitha, Richard, and Barkai, would soon help change forever the lives of those in the First Realm. Cities would melt and armies would vanish before the gods of war would grow weary. The generations of the after-days would recognize the value of the slaughter and destruction. But that was in the future. It had been placed on the shoulders of Trisha and her lieutenants to make that future possible. And that was going to require convincing Lowenah’s children to not only support the coming wholesale fratricide, but also to willingly participate to bring its success. All eight people knew the importance of coming events and all accepted the price they would forever pay for their role in its accomplishment.”