Hawnka

I haven't written a lot about Old Hawnka. She's a character from Swords of Fire: Traitor. A significant character, even if she is a minor character.

Hawnka is Unaligned. This was the unfortunate fate of everyone known - or suspected to be - conceived out of wedlock. Bastards.

The first Unaligned was Tarska, born to Ashamada and Truschk in the 68th year of the Compound. Ashamada's mother was Alahnta, who was currently the Crops Soveriegn, and who would eventually become Head-of-Family. Alahnta was a hard woman and shamed by her daughter's behavior. She used her influence to prevent Tarska from being assigned membership in the Crops Line. Little did she understand that in punishing her daughter, she was not only also punishing her grandson, but all such children thereafter. In fact, many children born within the rules of family law would also be punished, for no child of an Unaligned could be anything but Unaligned. This made the Unaligned the fastest growing of all "lines", and by the time of Khirsha, the fifth most populous.

I like Hawnka. There isn't much I can say about her here because most of it is going to be revealed in the Saga. Suffice to say that she is very wise, and that she has access to things most of the family can't even dream about.