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Enemy fire raked my cockpit, and I had to swerve out of the path of incoming projectiles. This was an advanced foe, I knew. One that sought my total destruction. That much had been clear from the briefing. I gritted my sharp teeth, the enamel clicking impatiently in my mouth.

In moments of tension, a Laeonid did not sweat like a human did. There were no beads of perspiration rolling down her forehead like a human might have in a time of crisis. Our bodies were efficient at cooling themselves, and so had no evolutionary need to release water into their fur in such a way. Instead, Laeonids showed their tension through their sounds and body language, and right about now, I was so tense that I feared that I might strain and break the controls I was gripping.



“Kritza!” I swore, uttering the uncouth Laeonic curse that was one of the first words of their language I had memorized. The erratic flying was playing hell with my on-board targeting systems. I launched into a spin, feeling the pressure effects of G-forces kick in momentarily, before being stunted by the gravitic dampeners on board. I had to get behind her target, make it angry, get it distracted, and all my efforts were doing was making me angry instead.

A voice came through my cockpit speakers. “Cadet, you’re losing them.”

The voice sounded remarkably unconcerned for somebody who was on a life or death situation. I bit back my tongue, holding back a scathing remark.

“Expanding targeting sphere.” I said as she diverted her on-board computer’s limited processing power. It was never going to work. I’d already lost the ship’s signal lock. My ship continued along its last known course. I checked and re-checked my instruments, trying to look for a particle wake or a fading heat exhaust signature or any kind of electromagnetism in the black void. It came to nothing.

My alert systems suddenly began lighting up my entire cockpit as alarms began to blare, and the console immediately shifted to a rear camera view of the incoming enemy ship. The profile of the human attack vessel coming into full view as it dove behind me, It’s heat signature masked in the wake on my engines as it unloaded its full torpedo armament and…

The cockpit windows went dark, fizzling out in a brief flicker of static. I let loose a frustrated sigh. Then the lights came back on, the simulation ending. There was a soft pneumatic hiss as the simulation cockpit pod’s doors opened. A long line of Laeonids waited outside for their opportunity to use the simulator. The stern-eyed instructor manning the monitor bank beside the simulator gave me an impassive look.



“Your results will be posted in the hall.” She said neutrally, already resetting the simulation for the next cadet. I sighed again, weaving out of the way of the next Laeonid Cadet eager for his chance at the controls of a Laeonid SkyClaw, even a simulated one.



The day was getting late, at least as far as ‘day’ went on board a starship. Day and night on board starships were arbitrary things. With the flick of a switch, night became day. Reset the switch and behold! It is night. Such power was once the providence of gods. I left the training hall. The simulator testing was our last assignment for the day, so she decided to make use of what little time off she or any other of the cadets had off to go about walking through the corridors of the ship.



The Honored Annator’s Ship Jinorian was a massive vessel. A true leviathan of the void. While most Laeonid craft tended to be smaller and more agile, the Jinorian gave any Nova Terra domain capital ship a run for its money. Including habitation quarters and social areas for the ship’s thousands-strong crew. Entering one of its main longitudinal corridors presented her with a long armorglass window that stretched on for hundreds of feet along the main body of the vessel. Providing a perfect view for watching planets and ships go by. There were no planets nearby. Only the twinkling light of stars and the slightly brighter burning lights of ship exhaust wake as they burned in formation with the Jinorian.



It had been some time since I had accepted the Admiral Helix’s offer to remain on board the Jinorian. It had been unclear exactly what I had been supposed to do at first. I felt my tail curling behind me as I remembered those early few days. They had been some of the loneliest of my life. Even more so than the captivity on Mhaedros. At least then, I had the possibility of going home one day to look forward to. Even if it hadn’t turned out to be true. Now, I could never go home. I was too tired to weep over that fact. I felt like she had simply cried every tear I had to shed those first few nights in my cabin, knees clutched up to my chest as I came to grips with my situation. Now I just felt empty whenever I thought of it.



Days had turned to weeks, and weeks to months. While at first I had been treated more or less like a guest, I soon grew stir-crazy with cabin fever by waking every morning, doing nothing every day, before sleeping every night. So much so that I began hanging around the launch areas just to get a glimpse of the fighters taking off. I missed flying. There were jobs available on the flagship, of course. Such a massive vessel had no end to its constant demand for staff, especially in maintenance. I had taken one of those early maintenance jobs, just for the credits. Mostly acting as a washer and cleaner for machine parts below the main decks, but I felt no satisfaction in the work, and only took my credits at the end of the day and went back to her cabin to curl up with her tail and sleep.



Eventually, I was bored or anxious or frustrated enough to ask the question. Could I join the Laeonid Navy? The question had to be popped to the official chain of command, which meant it went up under the review of Laeonids like Zaed and Liantes. Her former military experience in Nova Terra Domain made her a viable candidate; but it came down to the question of did they trust me?

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Months later, I was pushing my Skyclaw as hard as I dared, sending it hurtling through the asteroid belt the dominated the system of Udora. Particulates of ice and stellar dust hung in the wake of her fighter craft behind me, giving away my position as clearly as a banner, but the time for discretion had come and gone. I gunned the Skyclaw’s engine, sending the fighter up the side of an incoming asteroid. 

I glanced at the Skyclaw’s control panel display in case the engines were in danger of clogging. Thankfully, they were running smoothly today. I thrusted over the ridge at the top of the hurtling asteroid. A true monolith in the void, large enough to be thought of as its own small planetoid. My craft’s wings tucked in as I spun, and drifted clear of the hurtling face of cosmic stone. I accelerated as we came free, drifting tiny particulates of rock spinning through space behind me. 

I approaching the hard-to-spot hangar bay built into the side of a moderately sized space station festooned with force fields and meteor-reflect shields. Other stellar craft burned blue fires out of the exhausts of their engines in the void, but without the specific instructions on how to find this place, the rest of the cadets and I were in no danger of ever being discovered by human detection. Unfortunately, there were more things prowling the stars than just humans. 

I began to prepare for landing proceedings. Once out of the asteroid debris field, my ship’s engines burned cleaner and smoother and I rocketed along the final few hundreds of thousands of miles towards the landing bay, bringing the Skyclaw to a halt, and shut off the engine.



“You’re late.” Said a familiar voice. It was Armaed, one of her fellow flight Cadets. His fierce voice defying the friendly mockery in his voice as he spoke to me over helmet-to-ship comms. 

I dusted the hull of my ship free of the debris of hundreds of stellar micro-impacts against the hull’s paint job. I seemed to spend all of my time on Artigo Station when not training, repairing my ship and fixing its paint job. Its blue livery was covered in a thin layer of dust and scratches.



“I had company.” I said, dismounting her machine and giving a grateful pay to the assault craft’s right wing tip. “Karnagai Hunters.” I gave the old name to the flocks of space-faring alien reptiles that hunted through the airless vacuum. Scientists had been studying the pests for years, and made several discoveries based upon the creatures well-evolved oxygen retention systems, but they had largely been relegated to pests with some crude understandings of organic technology. Ever since the age of space travel had come, the Termagai had taken to swarming over ships both Human and Laeonid, eager to devour the cargo inside. Food, meat, air, and water. All were fair game to the hungering pack hunters.



“Were you followed?” Asked Armaed, his own Skyclaw’s engine ticked and pinged with the sounds of cooling metal. Plates of sheet metal banged with great echoes through the cavernous station’s hangar bay.


"Yes." I said. 
“They’ll be here soon enough.” I said. I grabbed my flight helmet off of my head, disconnecting the last link I had to my Skyclaw’s on-board systems. “We don’t have much time.”

We walked side by side towards the far end of the Hangar bay. Vertigo station was a rough place. It had been Admiral Hellyx’s own idea. Every Cadet who had gone through the program had gotten a prime posting upon completion. He had to have been doing something right, as after almost ten weeks on Artigo Station, I felt completely changed. The mundane routine combined with the poor living conditions and the terror of dealing with old, unreliable equipment had given me a strength and confidence that I’d never known before. In truth, it made us all a little cocky. Though Armaed, it had just made him more so.



There were eighteen of us. Sixteen Laeonid flight cadets, A Lieutenant named Baerad, and the Admiral himself. Hellyx looked much the same as he ever had. A warrior with half a century’s experience in naval operations. He was a grizzled old cat with a biting sense of humor. His leonine face scarred by decades of battle. Lieutenant Baerad was from the Jinorian, like the rest of us. I hadn’t known him well then, but over the past few weeks, I had learned of him as a younger officer than Hellyx, and quick to form bonds with his charges.



Hellyx seemed to hear me before he saw me. He was in his flight suit, explaining something to five of our comrades, but he turned as soon as I came into the room and beckoned to me.



I had enjoyed leaving the tight quarters of the Cadet’s barracks as we left the Jinorian to head to Vertigo station weeks before. I had come to miss the spartan comforts of the training decks, but after weeks in the close company of but a few individuals, but I was glad to no longer have to feel like such an outsider.

“Kantor.” Said Hellyx. “What news from Captain Liantes?” The Admiral led me into an adjoining room, far enough away from the other Cadets that their sensitive ears could not overhear. 



“There are Karganai spreading throughout the system, Sir.” I said quietly, aware of my comrades feline ears. “Captain Liantes asks that we lend our aid to the final push to clear them out of the system.” I handed him the dataset message on my personal screen. “It’s all in there.”



“She told you all this?” 



“Yes, Admiral.” I said.



“Hrmmn.” Said Hellyx with a rumble, checking the message on the screen with scarcely a glance before closing it. “Well, that’s it then. All as you said.”



“There’s more, Sir.” I said to him. “The area around Liantes’ forward post was swarming with Karganai drones. I was spotted.” 

Hellyx cocked an eyebrow. “Unavoidable, I suppose.” I nodded in reply. The Admiral’s gaze bored into me. “Be more careful in the future. Tell me at least you took a few of them with you.”



“Four destroyed at least, Admiral.” I said.



Hellyx guided us back into the main hall. All conversation ceased, all eyes going towards the Admiral and I. “Cadets of the Jinorian, prepare for battle.” He said. “Captain Liantes of the Seventh Fleet has reported the presence of Karnagai infestors in this system. They will be on their way to our position and we must fight free of them. We shall join Captain Liantes’ strike group and add our fighters’ strength to her own. Today, we shall liberate our Empire from this infestation.”



The Cadets smiled. We were all tired of endlessly recycled water, and were ready to head back to the Jinorian with all of their new skills. Each and every one of us had dreamed of Space’s glory. The training school had been a taste of its tedium. They began to talk amongst themselves.



“Silence now." Said the Admiral. You must first survive this test. More importantly, you have to impress -me-. That is the harder task. Kantor, give the order of battle.

”

I felt my ears perk up in surprise. “Admiral?” I asked him. 

“Yes, Cadet. I want you to present a plan of attack. You realize that part of my job is to assess what function you might fill within our fleet when your training is complete. I’m testing my opinion of you right now. I suggest you hurry.” He said with a mix of even temper and flat humor.



I cleared my throat. One of the cadets smirked teasingly at me. Armaed nodded encouragingly. I took a deep breath before speaking. “Karganai hive scouts are inbound. We’ve been asked to regroup with Captain Liantes, but we’re going to have to fight our way through.” I felt my mouth freeze for an awkward moment. “Prepare for launch?” I said, slightly nervously.



Hellyx looked at me incredulously. “Sir?” I asked him. 

“That’s quite a plan, Cadet.” The Admiral said sarcastically. “You’ll never be more than a line officer with leadership like that. I’m not often mistaken, but it looks like I’ve misjudged you.”



I felt myself flush red. “I…I’m sorry, it’s my first time. I-.”



The Cadets laughed. Hellyx was shaking his head in dismay and pity. I was deeply embarrassed now. “Well, I don’t know what I’m supposed to say!” I snapped. I could deliver plans and give orders, I had done so before. But the Admiral made me so bashful, so anxious of making a mistake, I could do nothing but. 



“Karganai Swarmers usually attack en mass.” I said. “Screens of chitin shell in front of light escort drones. Their weaponry is weaker than ours, but they had a lot more of it. Attacking them head-on would be counterproductive. We should divide ourselves into a number of groups, say three or four. Try to split them up. If we station part of our group on Artigo Station’s gun nests and have them track the Infestors from afar, and drop a field of mines behind our Skyclaws, we could cut them apart before they can reorganize themselves. We could avoid fighting them all at once, hold where we’re strongest and…”



I slowed down, the flood of words spilling out of my muzzle slowing to a trickle. I saw the Admiral was watching me carefully. “And?” Said the Admiral.



“And we can… scatter them and fly through. We can't take them all on headfirst.” The Admiral nodded and pointed at me. 

“Now THAT, Cadets, is a proper plan. Get to it. Lieutenant Baerad, assign groups please.

”

Baerad nodded, and waved his cadets to him. “Be confident, young cub.” Said Hellyx. “You are a Laeonid, a Warrior of Aerros. Feel it in your bones when you speak.” Hellyx’s words made me feel strange. Encouraged, certainly. He slapped me hard on my back. “Now, get yourself ready for takeoff.”

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Later, Armaed scanned the horizon from Artigo Station’s monitor nest. The asteroid belt in the system was a shifting ocean of rock debris and dust. There were four groups. One group of four on the station, three groups of four arranged in a formation of twelve in our Skyclaws outside the station.



“They’re coming.” Armaed sent over the comm to us who were in our Skyclaws. “Attack drones, ready to fight.”



“Numbers, boy.” Growled Hellyx. “Always give as much information as possible.”



“More than a few.” Said Armaed calmly. “Around ninety or so.”



“I nodded inside my cockpit, activating my own comm system. “Diversion groups one and two. Are you ready?” I asked.



“Affirmative, Maetra.” Said the leader of one group, using the Laeonic version of my name. I let it pass without comment.



“Lieutenant Baerad?” I inquired.



“We can see them, Kantor.” Said the Lieutenant. “What are your orders?” 



I felt myself hesitate. We had all run command exercises, but I had never been given command in a combat situation. “Maintain silence until they close. Open fire at medium range to ensure a high target ratio. As soon as they see you, they’ll come for you. We need to split them up, get them angry.” I paused for a second. “Is that right, Admiral?” I asked him.



The Admiral’s reply was not forthcoming, though I could practically hear the shrug in his answer as he sat in his command module. “That is not my problem to solve, Cadet. But rest assured, if you were giving bad orders, I would let you know.”



That was grimly reassuring. “Let’s fly, people. Close formation. Remain inside the Station’s deflector shield envelope. Artigo station, fire your heavy weapons on my order."



“Aye, Kantor.” Came the reply.



“Let us keep it slow, lure them it. We should split them closer to the station than further out.” I said.



“Why?” Challenged the Admiral.

“Greater concentration will provide a more target-rich environment, Sir.” I said in reply. “And they’re more likely to fly straight into the mines.

” 

Hellyx nodded approvingly. “Seems like you’ve learned something after all. Well then, what are you all waiting for? You heard him, Cadets. Move out.”



The feeling of a dozen Laeonid Skyclaws rumbling to life took off throughout the blackness of space. I led the formation towards the approaching debris cloud, feeling proud, but nervous. Our ships fanned out, spreading out around the shield envelope. Admiral Hellyx flew beside me, scrutinizing my every move.



“Make some debris of our own.” He said to me. “Get their attention and bring them in.”



I checked my scanners on the far side of Artigo Station. Four hundred thousand feet away, the rest of the squad was splitting up, flying away. Engaging my weapons systems and sending the message across our fleet of fighters to do so, we activated the Skyclaw’s forward laser batteries.



A cloud of cosmic dust spread out across the asteroid field as a dozen sky claw laser cannons pulverized the drifting stone into powder. The voracious vermin-like aliens began changing course, heading straight for our formation.



“I think that got their attention.” Said Baerad. 



“Everyone, begin falling back. Drop speed to One-half impulse.” We made a turn, turning one hundred and eighty degrees around before heading back to the station. I was so close now, that I caught a glimpse of the aliens and their organic vessels in the dust cloud. They were pink and purple, like a bruised human limb. They were a composite species of dozens of differing genomes. They wore no space suits. The Infestor Ship’s pilot was not so much flying the winged propulsion engine that thrusted on immense pressure waves through the stars, as he was melded into it. The seams between where rider and vessel began and ended were almost impossible to detect. Both pilot and vessel consumed the same food, thought the same thoughts. They were an invasive pest species with no society of their own. Only nests and hives and the desire to spread, and spread, and spread.



“Fire!” I ordered.



The same laser arrays that had turned asteroids to floating powder now unleashed their wrath upon the enemy. The energized ion gas of plasma rounds flared in the black darkness of space, creating miniature moments of daylight in the asteroid field. The Karnagai weaponry, though powerful, mostly consisted of spitting acids and was shorter ranged than the Laeonid skyclaws, though the sheer number of shots that they put out meant that some were bound to hit. Heavy wads of chitinous gorge smacked off of my shields, though one Cadet swore colorfully as an acid gobbet sludged off of his left wing, discoloring the dissolving metal before sliding off at accelerated speed.



None of the Skyclaws had fallen yet, and I ordered us to spread to get us away from the concentration of attacking Karnagai. A shot from the Space Station’s heavy laser array suddenly fired from the station, reducing the Infestor ship to ash and paste. 



We accelerated, gunning past Karnagai that had crept up from behind, and rushed towards the Space Station. We sped towards Artigo station, now a dark shape slightly brighter than the void it turned within. Karganai spat chitin slugs indiscriminately at us. I felt myself check my rear cameras to see Karganai rumbling from their organic craft, neat and clean kill shots having cleaved them from the resinous muck binding them to their crafts at last.



Artigo station came close. “Single file.” I ordered. The Skyclaw formation closed up, slowing down as we redefined ourselves along a narrow, arrow-straight corridor towards the ship’s massive floating deflector units that kept asteroids away, but allowed smaller objects through. The Karnagai maintained a wide formation, gaining speed as the Laeonids decelerated to fall into single file.



Our vessels rocked as the Swarm flew headfirst into the small, floating mines that infested the area around our space station. My squad hitched and rode through the minefield, having the superlative guidance systems of our spacecraft to guide us through the minefield safely. The Karnagai had no such chance. A few managed to follow the path described by the Skyclaws, but most ended in a fiery ruin. The few survivors were picked off by the station’s heavy weapons, unable to miss at so close of a range.



I felt myself smile. The plan, my plan, had worked.



We emerged around the front of Artigo Station to find the surviving Karganai retreating at speed back into the asteroid belt. The remaining Drones were being calmly picked off by long-distance fire from the space station. I finally cut off my main drive, and brought my ship to a slow drift, scanning the area for threats. There was nothing.



The Admiral pulled up beside me. “Armaed! Get your squad down to the hangar and suit up for takeoff! We’re moving for Captain Liantes’ forward command.”



Moments later, the first of them came roaring out of the hangar in their Skyclaws, joining the Laeonid formation. Admiral Hellyx waited for all units to assemble, then sent me a single private message over the comm. 



“Not bad, Nadia. Not bad at all.”




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Eleven months later, I stood in formation with my fellow graduates. We were on the main lawn of the Imperial Palace grounds on Aerros. It was my first time ever setting paw on the world that had given rise to the Laeonid race. I was the oldest one there by a few years, but after everything we had been through in our training, they had come to accept me, and I had come to accept a few things about myself as well. I was one of them now. If I was unsure wether I was still human or a Laeonid or not, I knew for sure that I was one of these people. The people who had had my back when I had most needed it, and who had taken me in. 



“Today, you are fully fledged Vash’els.” Announced an elder Laeonid in Laeonic. “Ensigns in the Imperial Navy. Two short years ago, you gathered here from all walks of life. From all corners of the galaxy. Each of you willing to give their service to their home and their people. Each of you knew that the Empire had to be cherished and protected, and that sometimes the freedom to live our way of life must require sacrifice. From here on, your growth shall occur in the more demanding school of actual service.” 

The Laeonid speaking was a Vaerontora. A Grand Admiral. One of the members of the Council that governed the Laeonid Empire alongside the honored Annator. He outranked even Admiral Hellyx, who was seated nearby. Usually, an address like this was not given by a Council member, so I was told. We all listened with rapt attention to the elderly warrior.



“Wearing the golden lion of the Empire, you shall go out into space to face the great challenges of our new frontier. The confidence of the entire Empire goes with you, and our citizens share my faith that you will serve Aerros and the Empire with great honor.”



As his speech ended, we all got up to our paws and burst into applause, throwing our hats off in cheer. We were all in our formal dress uniforms and there was much hugging and back-slapping. We were a joyous bunch. After many minutes, the tumult died down, and we began to break up into small groups. I had no family here, but I did not care. There were many that I had to seek out. I had to find Doctor Anjus, who had been so good as to attend. I wanted to find Captain Liantes, and even Lieutenant Zaed, whose attitude towards me had much cooled over the past few months. Of course, there was one person I had to find most of all.



It did not take long to find the Admiral. He was speaking to a handful of cadets and I easily joined their number, a wide smile upon my muzzle. A few strands of conversation went by and he shook their hands as much as I did, wishing them well. Most of them would be moving on from the Jinorian and flight school. there were many more fleets, many more ships in need of good officers. I had a feeling that I would be staying put, however. Staying in the first true home I had known since leaving Nyx so many years ago now. he turned to me, and I saluted respectfully, my fist held ridigly over my sternum. He returned the gesture.



“Admiral, Sir.” I said to him.



“Vash’el.” He said back. “Congratulations.” He said, the grizzled old lion sounding particularly proud.



“Thank you, Sir.” I said, unsure of what else I could say first. “Thank you for everything.”



He gave a wry wink of his blind eye, inclining his head. He was not so falsely modest to play it off as the whole thing being nothing. He had taken a risk for me, and I had paid it back to him. We were both very pleased with the outcome, if my swishing tail was any indicator to go by.



“I was surprised to hear your name when the Vaerontora was going over the honors list.” He said with an air of intrigue. I only smiled back at him, knowing that he did not mean he was surprised I had graduated with honors.



“Yes, it seemed like the right thing to do.” I said confidently, assured of my own decision. “I’ll always be a Kantor, but…” I drummed my fingers on the rolled-up scroll that contained my certificate.



“Let me see it.” Hellyx said with a hand extending for the parchment, which I gladly handed over to him. I did not need to look at it with him, for I knew what it said, to whom the honors were addressed. To whom had successfully completed the intense training to become an officer in the Laeonid Imperial Navy.



Maetra. Maetra Kantor, was the name on that scroll.

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Thank you for reading! This is undoubtedly my longest entry in the Maetra Origins story series yet. This artwork features Admiral Kypher Hellyx, the Admiral of the Laeonid Seventh Fleet. I thought it would be fun to show Maetra's progression through Laeonid training.

I also thought I would post some Laeonid Lexicon I've spent some time coming up with. This is FAR from complete, and will continue to be updated, but It might help translate some of the words that appear in the story.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Laeonid Lexicon.

Lae = Roughly, 'I,' 'The self.'

Laen = ‘Male.’
Alaen - ‘Female’
Laenor = 'The people,' 'The Folk.'

Te = ‘You.’ ‘Person being addressed.’
Annator = ‘Imperator,’ ‘Emperor.’
Thain = ‘Pride, Squad.’
Manos/Manosi = 'Planet/Planets,' 'World.'
Han = 'Home,' 'Place of dwelling.'
Vaeron = 'Ship,' 'Vessel.'
Nanu = ‘Any’
Nanuko = ‘Anyone’
Ko = ‘One’
Kena = 'Sky.'
Isol = 'Sun.'
Tais = 'Stars.' 

Ikar = ‘Air’
Sahr = ‘Day.’
Koda = ‘Night.’

Arith = ‘Breath’
Jaas = ‘Free’

Loth = ‘Soar’ 

Ynna = 'art'
Dhas = ‘Walk’
Sephin/Sephini = ‘Manage/Manages’

Vaetu = ‘Promise’
Qashor = ‘Translate’
Kallinod = ‘Commission
Avit = ‘Alright’
Ivanli = ‘Actually’
Kena = ‘Many.’
Ganigh = ‘Purchase’
Noran/Norani = 'Child/Children.’
Koen = ‘Glass’
Traekor/Traekori = ‘God/Gods’

Yonoae = Chief of the Laeonid Gods. God of the Forests, Justice, and law.
Naemori = Laeonid goddess of Oceans, travelers, and the homeless. Wife of Yonoae.
Mhaedros = Laeonid God of War, martial prowess, and vengeance.
Valhae = Laeonid god of fire, forging, and wealth. Sullen brother of Yonoae.
Taelios = Laeonid god of the sky, thunder, lightning, and freedom.
Enkha = ‘Brother.’
Sarkha = ‘Sister.’
Kash = ‘Swear’
Hashena = ‘Partner/Significant Other.’
Laenoja = ‘Character’
Kritza = Expletive meaning ‘fecal matter.’
Maesu = ‘Beauty.’
Maetra = ‘Hope.’
Moma = ‘Will/willpower.’
Leetae = ‘Patience’

Kaeanstin = ‘Persistence’
Annat = ‘Empire.’
Halahk = Fermented dairy alcoholic beverage
Onn = ‘Being of a specific something.’
‘Ai’ = 'Leader,' (Like local leader. Roughly analogous to Chief or Captain.)
‘In’ = 'Trust,' 'Trusted.'


Vaerontor/Vaerontori = ‘Admiral/Admirals’
Vaerontora = ‘Grand Admiral.’

Vashesa = 'Warrior.'
Vash’el = 'Low-ranking warrior.'
Vash’in = 'Mid-ranking warrior.'
Vash’ai = 'High-ranking warrior.'

Naresa = 'Eye,' 'Sight,' 'Scout.'
Nar’el = 'Low-ranking scout.'
Nar’in = 'Mid-ranking scout.'
Nar’ai = 'High-ranking scout.'


Kavandesa = 'Scientist' 

Kavand’el = ‘Low-ranking Scientist’
Kavand’in = ‘Mid-ranking Scientist.’
Kavand’ai = ‘High-Ranking Scientist’

'esa' is a suffix that roughly means 'practitioner of.'

Connecting words:

the = mak
this = mish
them = tesh
their = tisun
you = te
a = en

an = ena
and = ik

are = dar
as = sek
or = vas
of = Kil
to = ol
am = mos
my = su
need = nave
have = ava

again = malae

come = bron
just = kosh
from = aer
with = kon
what = kans
why = khae 

will = kaji
by = nel
so = nas
if = se

This artwork was done for me by the astonishingly talented VernandaMaulana00 on ArtistsnClients!