Freedom's Flight

The Freedom's Flight is a Vagabond faction, created to oppose the Talori government and its history of violence against pegasi. Their home base is the Aerie in the Barrier Mountains.

## Cultural Notes

The Flight are characterized primarily by their rejection of the Talori idea that pegasi are inferior beings. They were created with the single goal of liberating the winged citizens of Aquore, and destroying the institutions in Talori that victimize pegasi. They strongly reject all forms of government and religion that oppress pegasi, and are willing to use violence to meet the goal of eradicating Hippocampus supremacy. They do not accept hippocampus members into Flight proper, and tend to offer more respect and authority to pegasi. Their elite fighting force, the Strikers, consists solely of pegasi.

Life among the Flight is strictly regimented; they are a group who, through radical ideals and extreme discipline, created a rebellion powerful enough to overthrow the Talori government, and they achieved this through a culture that values organization and united ideals. Everyone in the Flight always has a task, a defined role and a specific place in the group's chain of command. Everyone in the Flight answers to someone, except for the Primary.

After Pel, the top of the hierarchy are the Commanders; the Flight's emphasis on military might makes their soldiers highly respected. The two Squadrons that make up the Flight's armed forces (the Strikers and the Sentinels) are each headed by a Commander. The Commanders oversee the deployment and training of every soldier in the flight, as well as help the leaders among the non-combat Flock organize the Flight's resources according to the Primary’s wishes. The third Commander oversees trade and international relationships. Under each Commander are three Sergeants, completing the chain of command.

Resources are limited in the Aerie. Nothing is wasted among the Flight, including time. A strong desire to continue fighting for Pegasus rights keeps this determined force going. Laziness, decadence or complaining are all looked on with extraordinary disdain in the Flight, which has created a subtle contempt for frivolous goods and activities. However, with their new trade alliances, a new kind of plenty in some previously limited goods, such as higher quality foods and medicine, has led to slightly easier life. What free time they have is considered best used on less strenuous tasks, or bonding with their fellow revolutionaries. High stakes and limited provisions have created a hard way of life. The Flight are still frugal and stockpile as much as they can.  The Flight remain loyal to each other and dedicated to their cause, at the cost of other facets of living.

The one thing among the Flight that might be considered luxurious or wasteful is their penchant for fine weapons and armor. While the Flight produces many of these goods on their own, they also steal and modify arms and armor of the Talori. Well-maintained weapons and armor are considered a point of pride.

Because the majority (nearing the entirety) of the Flight's members are Talori-born, the majority of Aquore's cultural morals and values remain intact in some form. Contact with the Isles of the Dead and members originating from the Rogue Alliance have watered down some of the more extreme Aquorian prejudices and sensibilities, but many Talori customs still have a place in the Flight. This results in some lingering discomfort with LGBTQ+ individuals or non-monogamous practices among Talori expatriates, but prejudices are in no way enforced by Flight laws. Adultery is not considered a crime and in fact, marriages among the Flight are more ceremonial than legal, with no existing marriage restrictions or established tradition.

### Attitudes towards breeds

The Flight, formed to fight for justice for the pegasi, hold the winged equines in higher regard than any other breed. This has led to pegasi being heavily favored for leadership positions, as well as pegasi generally having an easier time advancing through the ranks and gaining privileges among their organization. Pegasi form the vast majority of Flight, so this favoritism isn’t usually terribly obvious.

Common horses and unicorns are regarded with neutrality, and have no inherent bias targeted towards them. Common horses and unicorns who choose to join the Flight to aid their winged kin are regarded quite favorably.

As most of the Flight joined the cause due to the oppression they felt in Talori, they have an understandably negative view of the hippocampi, whom the Talori so revere. This varies from suspicion to outright hatred depending on the individual. Even transformed hippocampi and hippocampus hybrids are distrusted. While the new Primary, Pel, holds no inherent bias against the hippocampus, he is very aware of the general dislike towards them. Hippocampi are not accepted into the main Flight, although they may act as Agitators.

Kirins are regarded with fear and distrust among the Flight, similar to Talori and the Rogues. Kirins would generally not be allowed to join the Flight, but those that appear within the Aerie would be accepted to keep the location secret. Transformed kirins and kirin hybrids are considered suspect, but not inherently hated.

## Ranks

* Primary
* Commander
* Sergeant
* Galewind
* The Flock
* Sentinel Squadron
* Striker Squadron
* Agitator

## Locations

Flight is based in the Aerie in Barrier Mountains.

There are three trading Outposts established in 1701, one located in the tunnels of Sirith, one in the Isles of the Dead and one in the port of Cajon in Sedo.

## Religion

The Flight has no organized religion. The subject of Cascade can be polarizing; some members of the Flight could not shake their Cascade-worshiping upbringing, and worship a version of the goddess whose kindness extends to pegasi. These horses believe that they are upholding Cascade's will by ending the sacrifices, and believe that the ocean goddess would want the winged horses she welcomed into her herd after the God's War to be free. This view is in direct opposition to the many Flight members who believe Cascade to be a bloodthirsty goddess, a symbol of the dark and stormy sea that has taken so many lives. Many of the latter group have refused to align with another god, but some have turned to Alya, the pegasus patron goddess, for comfort and protection. In general, Alya is considered by the Flock to be a symbol of freedom, misrepresented by the Talori.

With their recent alliance to the Rogues, Rogue views of these two goddesses have become more prevalent, with Alya as their favored goddess.

Unlike the Talori, many of the Flight do not believe in reincarnation, and as such, they view the death of the sacrificed pegasi as simple murder.

Argus and Kaia are typically looked on favorably, in Talori tradition. The Flight as a whole shares Talori's dislike and fear towards Ignacio. As a result, the Flight is highly suspicious of Kirins, and is extremely unlikely to allow Kirins into the secret safety of the Aerie.

## Legal System

Though the Flight is too small for an official legal system, order is typically kept by the Sentinels at Flight bases. If Sentinels discover the excess use of resources, disobeying orders, or the disclosure of Flight secrets, perpetrators are brought swiftly to testify before the Primary, who alone decides the perpetrator's fate. If the Primary is not available, a Commander will stand in to pass judgement.

If someone in the Flight feels they have been wronged by another member, or there is a grievance between Flight equines, then a public hearing before the Primary can be called. In this instance, every involved party is allowed to testify before the Primary, and then public comment is opened up. After the Primary has heard perspectives from all involved parties and the Flight at large, he makes a judgment about how to resolve the issue.

While the power of the Primary is theoretically limitless, the Flight is often unified enough that violent crimes, theft, and treason are extremely uncommon, and extreme punishment is almost unheard of. The most common punishments doled out are sentences of hard labor or the revoking of privileges.

### The Code

* **I. The Talori are our enemy.** We punish them as they have long punished us.
* **II. Protect the Flock.** Your fellows are your kin, guard them well.
* **III. Waste nothing.** The mountains and the wilds take far more than they give, we can let nothing go unused.
* **IV. Keep our secrets close to your heart.** We have enemies aplenty, our secrecy keeps us safe. Traitors will be harshly punished.

## Notable Figures

* Pel, the current Primary. A talented trademaster, who stood up and took the lead after Antiope's retirement.
* Antiope, the second Primary. Once the Striker commander, she lead the Flight after Perseus's retirement and retired in 1701 after Flight took a more political direction.
* Perseus (NPC), the first Primary. Once the Sacrifices in Talori were ended, he retired with his family in the wilds of Aquore.
* Cualli (NPC), the founder of the Freedom's Flight, and wife of Perseus. She rescued a severely injured Perseus when he survived his own Sacrifice, and recruited him to the Flight.
* Reese (NPC), a recruiter for the Flight. Joined shortly after Perseus took charge. Spent years scouring the continent for Flight recruits.

## Herd Relations

Due to the secretive nature of the Talori and their pegasus sacrifices, the majority of Hireath is unaware of the Freedom's Flight, or the reasons for its existence. For fear of discovery, they have long forwent contacting the outside world. When Talori involved Serora in their conflict, however, the Flight too opened their eyes to the opportunities provided by the world beyond Barrier Mountains.

### Talori: Direct Opposition

The Flight was created to oppose Talori's long legacy of violence and prejudice against the pegasi. In the beginning of the conflict, rebelling pegasi were regarded as merely troublesome or ungrateful, "ruining" things for the rest of Aquore's winged citizens. However, years of attacks against the Talori have labeled the Freedom's Flight as terrorists in Aquore, and the recent occupation of Inaria has established the flight as an extremely serious threat to the Talori way of life.

Currently, Flight is helping the Rogues in isolating Talori, disrupting their trade.

### The Rogue Alliance: Alliance of Circumstance

The Rogues' ambivalence towards Talori gave the Flight an early foothold as it began to grow stronger. After years of not being officially involved, followed by alliances to individual captains, the Flight and Rogues have now entered into a full-fledged alliance against their shared oppressor. The two factions have arranged for mutual alliances, and act in an understanding of their shared goals.

### Breim: Mutual Benefit

During summer of 1701 (Chapter 7) a Flight outreach renewed their trade deal with Breim, now to be actively utilized to bring in new supplies and wealth to the faction. The Flight trades Breim raw resources from the now accessible Wilds, as well as other Aquore products, and trade goods received through their trade with the pirate crews of Rogue Alliance. In return, they receive medical supplies, foodstuffs and other useful goods from Breim.

Trade is conducted via an underground water passage.

### Serora: Warming Relations

The Serorans first met the Flight on the battlefield, after the Sultan loaned Seroran fighters to help the Talori take back Aquore. Serorans then took the captured Strikes to Sedo, where they were imprisoned, while others chose to join Serora of their own free will, seeking refuge and a more peaceful existence. Although this still colors the Flight’s opinion of Serora somewhat negatively, their newfound trade alliance has somewhat warmed relations, and the Primary is hopeful that Serora might become an ally in the future.

### Aodh: Opportunity

The Flight has recently entered into a trade alliance with the distant Aodh, hoping to receive the funds and support in their campaign against the Talori. Although there are suspicions towards the decadent fire herd - the mostly Talori-raised Flight members have little fondness for the nation - none can deny the usefulness of their backing.

## History

The Flight is the face of a relatively young rebellion. Started only 20 years ago by a single equine, the resistance began with Cualli, a hippocampus who objected to the sacrifice of pegasi. Every Solstice, she swam in secret to where the sacrifices hit the water, hoping to find one alive, but every time she found them killed by the fall and the bloody loss of their wings.

In between Solstices, she listened to the muffled voices of the Talori pegasi, and found courageous horses she suspected would join her in rebellion. One by one, she collected a group of freedom fighters, living out in the untamed Wilds of Aquore. She returned to cities only to find more allies, and lurk under the water during the gory sacrifices.

A young stallion chosen for sacrifice panicked during the ceremony, and leaped from the cliff with his wings intact. Frantic, he managed to slow his fall and survived impact, but hit the water hard. As he rolled unconscious through choppy waters, Cualli found him and pulled him to safety. His broken body was slowly healed by a Flight medic; though he lost a leg and broke many bones in the fall, they found his spirit to be intact. His name was Perseus, and he would be the Flock's first Primary, and would lead the Flight into rebellion.

The Flight grew quickly, as word spread through small islands and remote villages that a group of Pegasi were fighting for change. They recruited aggressively on the outskirts of Talori, and soon became too large to hide. They moved to a secret location high in the Barrier Mountains; the base was hard to reach on foot, favoring the winged Flock, and well-hidden in the barren mountainous region. They named their new home the Aerie; it would be a fortress for their growing army, and the cradle of a new revolution.

As the Flock's numbers grew, natural leaders emerged to take command of the fighters. Two Squadrons were formed: the Sentinels who watched over the Aerie, and the Strikers who would lead attacks on the enemy. The majority of the Flock worked to support the two Squadrons as real change became more and more plausible; the first attacks on Talori military camps were promising. Stolen goods and freed prisoners strengthened their soldiers and their resolve. Rebellion was becoming a reality.

Years of skirmishes stretched on. The Flight led successful raids, and failed ones. They gained territory and lost it, each time learning something new about the Guardians they faced. Their largest enemy was the apathy of the masses; how could they mobilize the Pegasi in Aquore? How could they turn humble brewers, poor agriculturists and pious clerics into rebels?

The answer came in a most terrible form. A child was chosen as a Pegasus sacrifice, and when the Talori Divine publicly ended the life of the young filly, the city exploded. Riots tore the streets to pieces, threatened the safety that the Talori had long enjoyed. The pegasi were fighting back, and that was as frightening to the Talori as it was exciting to the Flight.

## In-Game Timeline

*Read more in-depth chapter timeline here*

After the child sacrifice, the Flight mobilized to recruit new members from the prison of Torrine. They use the months leading up to the Summer Solstice to prepare, and take over Inaria in a single, bloody attack that saw most of the non-winged residents of the city locked into the very prison they built.

The Flight remained in control of Inaria for six months. During this time they faced conflict within, and had to quell prisoner rebellions. Their occupation of Inaria came to an end when the Talori leadership returned with their Seroran allies, killing many and taking the rest captive - only a few managed to evade their enemies and retreat into the Aerie once more.

Facing diminished numbers, the Flight nearly disbanded, but was brought back to form by the new Primary, Antiope, who led the Flight into a more political direction. So far her leadership has seen a protest against the Talori leaders, and a budding alliance with the Rogues.

In the summer of 1701, Flight entered into a new trade alliance with Breim, and extended their reach with two new trading outposts, one in Breim’s Cresa, and the other in the Isles of the Dead. With the Flight’s evolution towards a new future, Antiope resigned, and was replaced by Primary Pel.