Halua

Overview

Halua is a Leviathan inhabiting the Cloud Realm, classified as a major threat to the Expeditionary Corps fleet. The name derives from Polynesian, roughly translating to “ambush.”

Origin

Halua was born from a Nilam seedling carried by refugees fleeing the City of Scholars after its fall to The Hunger. The refugees cultivated the world-tree seed during their journey through the quadrants, and Halua emerged from the seedling’s bark. In his early existence, Halua lived alongside the refugees who venerated the growing tree. His purpose from birth was to protect the tree.

The refugees eventually began harvesting Sap from the tree they had once nurtured. Halua attempted to stop them, viewing this as a betrayal of their shared bond. The humans captured and imprisoned him, forcing him to feel the tree’s suffering. After repeatedly attempting escape, Halua was exiled beyond the cloudline.

Halua retains a connection to the tree and continues to feel its pain. His attacks on the Expeditionary Corps fleet are driven by this bond rather than predatory instinct.

Bronté’s Betrayal

Halua’s earliest memories include two human children—Bronté and her sister—who would climb on his back for rides. Halua was treated with affection and reverence during the Fallow Period. After the introduction of biostimulants changed the community’s needs, Bronté approached Halua as a young woman with guards surrounding her. She placed a hand between his eyes and told him to stop interfering. Without warning, serrated harpoons attached to heavy chains pierced his wings. This betrayal cemented Halua’s hatred of humans.

Physical Description

Halua displays the physical traits of a manta ray. It possesses triangular pectoral fins and cephalic fins flanking its mouth, with eyes set on the sides of its head. Two dorsal fins at the base of its tail grant remarkable aerial maneuverability, and five pairs of gill slits line its ventral side. Its tail lacks an internal skeleton but possesses sufficient musculature to serve as a powerful striking weapon.

The creature’s wingspan stretches nearly one kilometer. Its forward-facing rectangular mouth is lined with small, sharp teeth capable of severing destroyer-class structures.

Coloration

Halua’s hide differs markedly from oceanic manta rays. Its coloration and markings shift in response to stimuli. The ventral surface is lightly pigmented with faint reddish streaks, while the dorsal side displays deep orange coloration with carmine whorls.

Flight

Halua moves by undulating its vast pectoral fins, propelling air backward for thrust, while its caudal fins provide steering. The Scientific Committee is investigating how it sustains flight. Despite its size, Halua achieves considerable speed. Simulations are ongoing to calculate maximum velocity and model the turbulence left in its wake.

Behavior

Unlike territorial Leviathans such as Kacchena or Garuda, Halua is not bound to any single region or fixed habitat. It has been sighted across the Illyrian Quadrant, Pelagonian Quadrant, and Rhodopian Quadrant. Lookout reports indicate it actively follows the Expeditionary fleet.

Halua’s tactics are consistent: rapid attacks from concealment within cloud cover. The creature targets both civilian and military vessels, which sets it apart from other Leviathans. Unlike Lucan, which preys on Aerolith cargo, Halua’s attacks show no link to feeding behavior.

The Scientific Committee has classified the initial attacks as potential reconnaissance strikes against the fleet’s defenses.

Timeline

393 AC, October 12 - First Sighting

Halua was first identified in the Illyrian Quadrant, initially codenamed “Hahalua.”

393 AC, October - Beowulf Encounter

During combat with Sol, Beowulf struck Halua, slicing through his skin and leaving a bloody trail. Before the Eidolon could deliver a fatal blow, a Woollyback collided with Beowulf, and Halua’s tail struck the Eidolon, allowing escape.

393 AC, October 17 - 3rd Squadron Attack

Halua attacked the 3rd Squadron in the Illyrian Quadrant, causing light human casualties, material damage, and forcing evacuation of a kelon carrier.

393 AC, October 20 - 8th Squadron Encounter

Halua attacked the 8th Squadron in the Rhodopian Quadrant; the attack was avoided.

393 AC, October 21 - Forest Colony Attack

Halua attacked a forest colony in the Rhodopian Quadrant, causing light human casualties and destroying an Axiom lumber mill and Muna ethological camp.

393 AC, October 23 - Destruction of AES Sune

Halua surged from the Cloudsea untouched by The Tumult and deliberately struck AES Sune with its wing, tearing through the cruiser’s hull and shattering its central tower. The vessel caught fire and sank into the clouds before exploding upon contact with the Tumult, killing more than three hundred people including officers, soldiers, civilians, and families. The attack prompted Sol to rally Bravos hunters for a retaliatory hunt.

393 AC, October - Trap Survival

Halua was lured by the battleship AES Tempest into a trap at a floating archipelago. After an Aerolith mine field detonated above, driving Halua downward, a kiloton of stockpiled Aerolith exploded in the depression. The blast vitrified surrounding islands, but Halua burst through the curtain of fire wounded and slashed from end to end yet still capable of flight. Kauri mounted on Puff intervened to block Sol’s subsequent attack.

393 AC, October - Mental Connection with Sol

Sol opened her mind to Halua while he flew over the Thessalian Quadrant. Through this connection, Sol experienced Halua’s memories and began to understand his perspective.

393 AC, October - Kauri’s Intervention

Kauri stood on Puff between Halua and the hunters, using Alteration to transform projectiles into flowered branches and boxwood thickets. Halua questioned why a human would defend him. The intervention triggered Halua’s memories of Bronté’s betrayal.

393 AC, October - Skein Contact with Kauri

During the hunt aftermath, Kauri extended his Skein to make mental contact with Halua. Through this connection, Kauri experienced Halua’s memories of his origin, his bond with the Nilam seedling, his imprisonment by the humans who betrayed the tree, and his exile. Sol, linked to Kauri through the Skein at that moment, witnessed these memories alongside her own childhood recollections.

393 AC - Leading the Whiplash Crossing

Halua led a procession of Leviathans including Sagitta, Alelo, Lucan, Koi, and Zaratan through The Whiplash to open a path for the Expeditionary Corps armada. The Leviathans consumed Mana along their route, creating a low-Tumult slipstream that allowed the fleet to follow. Upon emerging into the cyclone’s eye, the Leviathans dispersed. Reka vessels from Asty moved to intercept Halua specifically.

Relationships

• Cloud Realm: Region where Halua operates
• Illyrian Quadrant: Location of first sighting and 3rd Squadron attack
• Rhodopian Quadrant: Location of 8th Squadron encounter and forest colony attack
• Pelagonian Quadrant: Location of quarry attack
• Expeditionary Corps: Force targeted by Halua’s attacks
• AES Sune: Cruiser destroyed by Halua (October 23, 393 AC)
• Axiom: Faction whose lumber mill and mining facilities were destroyed
• Muna: Faction whose ethological camp was destroyed
• Kacchena: Territorial Leviathan; contrasted with Halua’s hunting behavior
• Garuda: Leviathan that pursues airships; contrasted with Halua’s deliberate targeting
• Lucan: Beetle Leviathan that preys on Aerolith cargo; contrasted with Halua’s non-feeding attacks
• The Bravos Fyrds: Hunter assemblies mobilized against Halua following the Althing
• Sol: Alter Ego; Bravos Exalt who initially hunted Halua before Kauri facilitated their Skein-bond (393 AC)
• Kauri: Muna Exalt who intervened to protect Halua during trap operation (393 AC)
• Puff: Kauri’s Alter Ego; blocked Sol’s attack on Halua in armored bird form (393 AC)
• AES Tempest: Battleship used as bait in trap operation (393 AC)
• The Ascalon: Bravos Company that led the hunt (393 AC)
• The Nilam: World-tree from whose seedling Halua was born
• City of Scholars: City whose refugees cultivated Halua’s origin tree
• The Hunger: Entity that destroyed the City of Scholars, causing refugee exodus
• Sap: Substance the refugees harvested from Halua’s tree, prompting his exile
• The Skein: Network through which Kauri contacted Halua’s consciousness (393 AC)
• Bronté: Human who befriended Halua as a child and later betrayed him
• Beowulf: Eidolon that wounded Halua before being disrupted (393 AC)
• Woollyback: Creature that interfered with Beowulf’s attack (393 AC)
• Thessalian Quadrant: Region where Sol mentally connected with Halua
• The Whiplash: Cyclone through which Halua led the Leviathan procession (393 AC)
• Asty: Reka city; Reka vessels intercepted Halua upon emergence (393 AC)
• The Reka: Civilization whose vessels intercepted Halua during first contact (393 AC)
• Sagitta: Leviathan in the Whiplash crossing procession (393 AC)
• Alelo: Leviathan in the Whiplash crossing procession (393 AC)
• Lucan: Leviathan in the Whiplash crossing procession (393 AC)
• Koi: Leviathan in the Whiplash crossing procession (393 AC)
• Zaratan: Leviathan in the Whiplash crossing procession (393 AC)