Sk’vra Kjurha was a purist, in a very unkind sense of the word.

For some, being a purist means one is a perfectionist, striving to get their work just right. For others, the word becomes more ominous, as the person so inclined becomes tethered to misjudgement of others, to solving their own insecurity by devaluing and diminishing the efforts of others. And in the most dangerous cases, a believer of this sort seeks to actively harm those they perceive a threat to whatever greater ideal they hold dear.

There was no doubt Sk’vra was truly gifted in music. Entering N’rellia, he harboured a goal bordering on feeling entitled: valedictorian, and acclaim as the best artist to ever grace the halls of the venerable and hallowed institution.

None of this was evident on his admissions papers. None of this was evident during years prior to N’rellia. Oh, many thought him a bit full of himself, but he stayed within proper bounds of conduct. Sk’vra was quite insecure entering secondary grades, and he adjusted not by chasing away the insecurity, but through learning to use the system for his own purposes.

The child of a strong proponent of gender inequality, his father would give long rants over dinner over why women were useless, a hindrance to men reaching for greater heights. And as the child of such a view, he came to hold a good deal of it as his own belief. Sk’vra’s mother learned and lamented that her own child had learned and chosen to treat her with contempt.

And so he was an incomer at N’rellia. On the first night of orientation, Sk’vra could not stand the fact that llhaesa t’yaeli – a name he already remembered, even though the new session at N’rellia had not yet begun – actually received more applause than his performance drew earlier in the evening.

Sk’vra vowed that would be the last time such a circumstance unfolded. From here on in, she was his enemy, and he would show that uppity woman she was no match for a driven man.

As llhaesa and M’traliel finished their set on orientation night, he made his way to where he watched the two settle, then closed in on her and the orientation guide. By the time he reached their blanket haven, he was fuming. Little did she suspect the true depth of how he felt; little did she suspect that by the time he was through with her, she would never enjoy a long career in the musical arts.

All of this unfolded in Sk’vra’s young mind, all of this without the knowledge of llhaesa’s political outlook and political activism. As he learned of these things over time, his level of hatred, and what he was prepared to do in consequence, ratcheted up in severity.

For now, Sk’vra sat in his room, fantasising over various methods he might use to send llhaesa towards her fitting end as someone of note on this planet.

This explosive situation was rendered more grave due to the simple fact llhaesa was in fact a superior musician, a superior intellect, a more compassionate individual, one who championed the rights of all. Just as Sk’vra’s hatred would be fuelled by llhaesa’s political outlook, as all of these elements came to be evident over time, Sk’vra would cross a line that would land him at the top of the list of most heinous persons in Arrhazon history.

Not what he wished to accomplish at all. Not where his fantasies took him on this day, or on any other day, but it would prove to be his fate.