Alaija

Alaija [əˈlai̯ʒə] is a recurring supporting character in the [Zaun Ajma] series. He appears in Lingon and the First Survivor.

Physical Description
Alaija is an eleven-year-old boy with a round chin, a short nose, and medium-length messy brown hair. He is redsight, but wears a green blindfold in order to suppress it.

Biography
Alaija was raised by Airama who is described as his mother even though she is likely too old to be his biological mother. They lived together in a small cottage on the outskirts of Rauzal in Nati territory. During The Flare, Alaija became a redsight, but was somehow rescued and given a blindfold to wear in order to suppress it. He hid in his cottage with Airama until Airama died and Lingon helped lead him east to Dazal. Once they arrived, Dazal had already been destroyed by Minsans and were led to a refugee camp where Alaija was given basic treatment, but all hopes for finding a cure to his redsight were lost. Lingon attempted to cure it anyway by showing Alaija the light from an incandescent lightbulb, but their plan failed and Alaija lost his blindfold, causing him to become violent. He was finally subdued by Maaya and taken onto a Minsan cargo ship to try to find a cure again.

Personality and Traits
Despite his handicap, Alaija is very active, expressive, and musical. He has a panflute that he plays throughout the events of First Survivor and becomes quick friends with Lingon through vocabulary lessons of his native language Wistanian. He is very intelligent and resourceful, able to identify medicinal leaves that will help relieve an infected wound as well as knowing how to gain the trust of a garamaug. He also has some knowledge of the ajmastones; at least enough to recognize that Lingon had been using one.

He is outgoing and easily trusting, able to make friends exceptionally quickly. When he has his only full conversation with Lingon using Zariya as a translator, he tells him that he did a "good job" and suggests that he stays in Wistania rather than going back to Minsa. When Lingon turns the idea down, he then asks Lingon if he has "help" for when he returns home.

Powers and Abilities
Although Alaija does not have superhuman abilities like the zaun ajma do, his redsight gives him superior strength and stamina, enough to toss a grown adult into the air and rip off limbs. His power comes from his sight, so he is only able to do these things if his eyes are open. However, he is unable to control his impulses or his self-will when he sees, so he must a wear a blindfold or else he'll hurt everyone around him.