Zaun Ajma Webzine

Webzine Archive 

Note from the Author

This one’s late. 

When I decided to start this webzine, I challenged myself to post a new issue every first Monday of the month, no matter what, to test my discipline and consistency. This is the third webzine, and I’m already late.

I guess this time, I get to test my perseverance. I’m not gonna be too hard on myself. Probably five people read this at most (hi!), so it’s not a big deal, but I’m allowed to feel a little disappointed!

Anyway, the day this webzine was due coincidentally happened on the same day as the Artemis II flyby of the Moon. When I was a kid, I used to dream of being an astronaut. I decorated my bedroom with posters of the Solar System and lost my sense of time in books about the stars and wrote stories about boys like me boarding a rocketship and traveling the Universe. As much as I love the world I’ve created with Zaun Ajma, it doesn’t hold a candle to the marvel of the real world. So yeah, rather than finish writing and editing my webzine, I watched the NASA livestream for nine hours non-stop. I don’t regret it.

Ggudi, the main character of my upcoming novel, who you’ll also get to see here, is obsessed with stars similar to how I was when I was his age. It wasn’t intentional, and I wasn’t thinking about my characters at all in the moment, but in hindsight, I feel like that captivating experience of listening to astronauts describe the Moon’s craters gave me good insight to how Ggudi feels when he talks about the constellations. 

All of this to say, I wasn’t procrastinating. I was doing research! Honest!

Forgive me for my tardiness. It will likely happen again.

~ Page

~~~

While other young women were getting married and having children, Bira swept the floor of her large family’s tiny house for the second time that day. She swore that she wasn’t jealous, and claimed that she didn’t have the desire or time to fall in love, but the truth was something more complicated. Her mind wanted to commit to her family, but her gut wanted to run away and make her own life. As she swept, the two armies fought in the battlefield of heart.

Three adults and six children crammed together in that two-room shack in the poorest neighborhood of Aazunal, and Bira was the glue that held it all together. If she left, her family would fall apart. She loved her mother, who was in the mountains of Taliv territory, keeping records for the mining company. She loved her father, who was on the other side of the island, selling furniture to flower farms in Uzin territory. She loved her step-father who was digging holes underground for the same mining company her mother worked for. She loved her older brother Luyi who was downtown haggling with a lumber merchant to procure materials to fix their fence. She loved her younger brother Uvi who was training for his next martial arts competition. She loved her younger sister Ila who was at trade school, studying geography. She loved her younger step-brother Ggudi who was reading The Constellations for the fifth time. She loved her younger step-sister Yaga who was running another fever and had just finally fallen asleep for a nap. She even loved their pet zaud named Nuts, who was laying on a branch of their climbing tree, watching passersby.

Yet, all of that love competed against her love for an imaginary man. 

After she pushed the last of the floor dust outside, she returned the broom to its spot by the door, and then approached her little step-brother Ggudi, curled in the corner with his favorite book. She gently set her finger on the book’s spine and pushed it down slightly to get her brother’s attention, but he just lowered his gaze and kept reading. “I’m going out to get some vegetables for dinner. If Yaga wakes up, make sure you give her some water.” Ggudi nodded silently. “Yida, look at me and say you will.”

“Oh… sorry,” Ggudi looked up at her and flashed a courteous smile. “I will.” He was a good kid, but he wasn’t good at social interactions. In a few weeks, he’d be joining a new school with his brother, and Bira hoped that would help him make friends.

Bira was particular about what time she’d go to the produce market. She didn’t go early in the morning despite the produce being the freshest. She didn’t go in the evening despite the produce being the cheapest. She went in the middle of the day, when the sun was the brightest and the air was at its hottest because the crowds were usually smaller and the tired vendors were beginning to discount what hadn’t sold. 

After walking the entire market to see what was available that day, she noticed that only one vendor was selling naulam melon, and that the stall was being manned by a stranger. After grabbing the first of her produce from friends that would reliably give her discounted prices, she tried her luck with the stranger, but he was obviously there with a quota to meet. Three ggi per melon. No exceptions. 

Just as Bira began to give up, a tall and handsome presence appeared from behind and offered to buy the melon for her at full price. His smile made her smile, and his dark eyes made her look away and blush. “Thank you, kindly,” she said. 

“I’m Giladu,” he introduced. “I just moved here.” He was looking for a wife.

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Bira.” She took her free naulam melon under her arm and walked toward a shaded area to learn more about this mystery man. “Where are you from, Giladu?”

Giladu told her not only the city he was from (Rauzal, the capital), but he also named his neighborhood, as if it had some reputation. Bira didn’t recognize the name, but she had also never been to Rauzal. Perhaps her older brother Liyu would know. Either way, she didn’t tell him her neighborhood. The North Garden also had a reputation. Giladu told her he was a blacksmith, and Bira told him that she took care of her house and younger siblings. How many younger siblings? Four, plus an older brother who could take care of himself. What about her parents? They work outside of Aazunal. She didn’t say why. 

“I do need to go and start dinner,” Bira admitted after a few minutes of a lovely introductory chat. Giladu offered to walk with her, but she politely declined. She explained that her little step-sister was sick, and her little step-brother would get upset if she brought over a stranger without warning. 

“Oh, is he blindminded?”

“Is he what?”

“You know? One of those weird nerdish kids who won’t talk to people? It must be really hard dealing with that.”

In an instant, the red on Bira’s face shifted from embarrassment to anger, but she chose to remain composed. Perhaps this young man was ignorant. Perhaps he was distracted. Perhaps he was nervous. Even more likely, he may have just been a bad person. Regardless, Bira had no intention to find out.

“Well, it’s easier to deal with my little brother than with a jackass. Enjoy the rest of your day.” Then she walked away.

The first of the finals.

Omens born of Life and Love.

From Light and Water,

Came Darkness and Drought to the ajma.

Her radiance was greater than 

The Lantern of Stars.

She spoke only the truth,

That not even Rage would utter.

His strength was vaster than

The Sea of Worlds.

He cursed all he touched

With spells that not even Magic could learn.

Knowledge could not know them.

War could not defeat them. 

Fullness could not satisfy them.

Rebellion could not tempt them.

Two children who played and wrestled

And argued and learned

And laughed and cried

And made mistakes.

They were alive by Life,

Loved by Love,

Adorned by Gold,

Seen by the zaun.

Seen by the zaun,

By those who cannot see ajma.

The zaun can see them

And feel them and hold them.

They wear her on their skin.

They consume him into their bodies.

Once quiet and motionless,

They now threaten the authority of the ajma.

Because of those children.

The first of the Finals,

Omens of Life and Love,

The era of the ajma shall fracture.

LOCATION SPOTLIGHT

Goldfoot Beach

Bbagguzuwi /PAH-koh-ZU-wih/ is a popular beachside destination on the east coast of Wistania, just outside Dazal. At least that’s what it used to be. 

The wavy bay would be crowded with people. The piers would be clogged with sailboats. Turtle Rock would be lined with curious children and old biologists taking notes of the wildlife from their vantage point. The sand was a unique, shiny yellowish-orange, earning the beach its name, which translates to "Goldfoot." The water was a murky blue since it was near the mouth of the Dazal River, but not so murky that it was dangerous for a healthy human to accidentally gulp once or twice. The Nati delegation declared the beachfront a national treasure, and mandated its upkeep and protection. 

But the Minsan invaders did not care for its significance, other than that it was their first glance at Wistanian land. In the middle of the night, lit by one full moon, they disturbed the sand with their rowboats, unaware of its color. They noticed the docking piers, and immediately knew there were humans that inhabited this island. They climbed Turtle Rock, and set up a small camp. They chose to wait until sunrise to proceed forward because they didn’t know what kind of creatures might be lurking in the dark jungle.

As the sun peaked over the ocean’s horizons, Wistanians saw Minsans for the first time, and Minsans saw Wistanians for the first time. Their conversations were unproductive. The native people were puzzled, worried. The invaders were impatient, prideful. Finally, after three days of standstill, The Nati delegation ordered the Yabba to point their staffs at the Minsans and force them home. Even after they left empty-handed, Goldfoot Beach remained closed. The leader of Dazal, a gentle yet stern man named High Wanara, knew in his heart that they would attempt to return, so he readied his people and warned the others: Wistania is no longer hidden from the rest of the world.