274: Kartara Nights (Part Two) (Maiya) (Patreon)

“This could be a problem,” Maiya muttered, monitoring the carnage that devoured the city from her perch atop a temple spire. The rioters, while clearly trying to minimize civilian casualties, had no qualms at all about butchering the guards. And if innocents got in the way, well, they didn’t seem to mind that, either.

Maiya had incapacitated more than one rioter to save people. They weren’t her people, but well, they were still human, and Maiya couldn’t just stand idly by and watch tragedy unfold. Undercover mission or not. She’d worked too hard to earn that privilege.

Which put Maiya in a dilemma. The original plan had called for her to make a scene, but to not actually kill anyone. Princess Ira didn’t want to risk the sort of escalation lethal assault would bring, fearful that such actions might accelerate events, thus giving Andros a reason to swoop into Sai and seize them as a vassal territory.

That would only give the Kin’jal Imperator more power, undoing all that Ira had worked for.

The smart thing to do would be to abort the mission, yet Maiya was keenly aware of how difficult it’d be get another shot at this. For one, sneaking out of the children’s Sanctum with no one noticing was a feat in and of itself. Ira’s logistical preparation was also quite the investment. It’d be many months before they could try again. If they could try again. Who knew how much the political situation would have changed by then? Especially in light of this ongoing rebellion.

It hadn’t taken much to deduce that the rioters were, in fact, rebels, what with their cheers of ‘down with the king’ whenever they wrangled a victory against the guards. Not exactly subtle, but then again, rebellions rarely ever were.

They can’t be allowed to succeed, Maiya thought with worry. Though their causes were seemingly aligned, that was only on the surface, and Ira was right to fear. Any destabilization of Sai’s government would create a perfect excuse for Andros to move his troops in, under the pretense of ‘reestablishing order’.

No, if the rebels won, the only way Maiya saw for the rebels to keep their sovereignty over Sai was to pledge fealty to Andros. Either outcome was detrimental to Ira’s plans for a peaceful Kin’jal.

Plans Maiya wholeheartedly supported. Her goals, then, were twofold. Cripple the rebellion and advertise to the world that princess Kira, while not aiding the rebellion, was seen sewing chaos within the city.

Maiya’s lips curled up into a smirk.

This might actually work…

— —

“Greetings, citizens of Sai!” Maiya shouted, speaking from one of the highest towers in the Sawai district. She spoke through a voice amplification orb, which carried her voice well across the district.

“I am Princess Kira of Kin’jal, and I am hurt. So much fighting, yet you saw fit not to invite me to the party? I will not tolerate this offense! Rebels, hear me! Town Guard, hear me! If there is any worthy among you, come and fight me in the central plaza. If you do not, I shall hunt down capable warriors and challenge you to duels. Especially the rebels! I care not to which faction you belong, but the rebels sound strong. Maybe you’ll give me a good fight? I can only pray that you don’t disappoint. The consequences would be… most dire.”

Maiya stepped away from the edge of the roof, very unsure whether her gambit would succeed, and made her way down to the street, where she adopted a suitably unhinged persona, brandishing her talwar at passersby, sneering at them.

Maiya truly wondered whether anyone really behaved this way, but according to all the reports she had read about the princess, it really did seem that she did. It seemed almost like a caricature of a real person. Then again, that could also be said about Kin’jal and their single-minded focus on combat.

Maiya had initially worried that her challenge would go unanswered. That she would, indeed, have to roam the city to hunt down targets. The danger there was that while she wasted time roaming, the rebellion would seize all the glory. They already held the initiative and the attention of the entire city. Maiya had to wrest some of that away.

It was why she directly challenged the rebels in her speech. While the town’s guard had their hands full with the rebels, the rebels may choose to eliminate her, seeing her as a potential threat.

Which would, of course, draw guards into the fray. So long as Maiya beat up a few guards along with the rebels, it’d become clear that she was just a crazy battle junkie, and not an operative for either side. She could almost hear the chaos in the Kin’jal courts.

Poor Kira. However this goes down, you’re in for a terrible time.

Maiya’s fears were unwarranted. Before long, Maiya found her first targets. A group of guards rushed through, heading toward a fire that blazed in the distance.

Maiya jumped into their path, forcing them to stumble to a halt.

“Evening, gentlemen! Care to fight?”

“What? Who are you? Move aside, we have—Gaah!”

Maiya swept his leg, sending him tumbling to the ground. She followed up with a quick flurry of punches, moving between the guards like water.

She did her best to mimic princess Kira’s fighting style, which, surprisingly, wasn’t the Kin’jal Balarian standard. Apparently a combat genius, Kira had developed her own style, taking inspiration from the Rani Queendom and their unique flowing arts.

It helped that the Kalari arts Riyan had taught Maiya so long ago was similar in that regard; it took only a bit of effort to alter her style.

With the guards groaning on the ground, Maiya moved to her next target—a group of rebels.

Unfortunately, the rebels proved even less of a match, succumbing to her surprise attack.

Injured guards and rebels began piling up in the plaza as Maiya picked off any and all combatants who entered the area.

Soon, a steady stream of fighters filtered in, all with orders to finish her off.

The plaza devolved into utter chaos as rebels and guards met, often forgetting about Maiya to fight each other instead.

Maiya wasn’t complaining; they made for easy targets, allowing her to efficiently dispatch the distracted fighters.

It went this way for several encounters before the rebels suddenly broke off, beating a hasty retreat.

They’re fleeing? Is this is enough, then? Maiya wondered. She’d certainly shown her face and caused enough havoc to be remembered. Whether her interference would be overshadowed by the rebels, she couldn’t say. Her actions, along with the guards, had appeared to stop the rebellion in its tracks. The many fires that blazed around the city when she’d arrived were already dying down, and fewer new ones sprung up to take their place.

Maiya was about to leave when a shiver ran down her spine. While she might’ve lacked Vir’s Prana Vision,  all veteran warriors developed something of a sixth sense after fighting countless battles.

And Maiya was nothing if not a veteran. She turned slowly, finding a tall, powerfully-built man standing before her. She understood then, that he wasn’t like the others thus far.

He was strong.

The man wore a flowing white robe, and his face was covered in linen wraps, leaving only two small slits for his eyes. He gripped a talwar in his right hand. His left was empty.

He said nothing, disappearing before immediately appearing next to Maiya.

Grakking Ash! He’s a Talent Wielder.

Powerful Talent welders were the bane of all mejai. Even those who’d trained extensively in combat like Maiya.

Maiya’s armor took the full brunt of the masked warrior’s assault. The air in her lungs was forcibly expelled as she went rolling on the stone.

Though her B Grade protection orbs absorbed most of the damage, they hadn’t nullified it all—such was the strength of her foe.

Rolling to her feet, Maiya retrieved a C Grade Icicle orb as she put some distance between her and her enemy.

“Are you their leader?” Maiya asked, trying to stall. She had no defense against her enemy’s movement arts. Quicker than Leap, it had to have been Blink that the man had used earlier.

She wasn’t like Vir—able to move rapidly, dodging spells, and closing the distance with impunity. Few mejai were, and no amount of Balarian Arts would protect her from an enemy who attacked faster than she could react.

I need to escape, she thought. But could she? Would her enemy let her?

“Emergency extraction,” Maiya said, holding her communications orb.

“Understood, Stand by,” came the reply.

Maiya would’ve loved nothing more than to stand by. The enemy disappeared, and on reflex, Maiya activated Icicle.

By sheer luck, her spell happened to cross paths with her enemy, skewering his forearm.

The man grunted and jumped back, but Maiya didn’t allow him. She surged forth, attacking the man with a relentless Princess Kira would’ve admired..

He blocked her every blow, though he was unable to go on the offensive with the injury to his arm.

Even so, Maiya knew her time was running out. Her opponent was far to skilled to let something like an injured arm stop him. She launched another Icicle, but the man dodged, sweeping with his leg.

Maiya saw the attack coming and lunged forward, crashing into the broad-shouldered man.

He fell heavily, but Blinked away before Maiya could take the fight to the ground, attacking her with a deadly sideswipe.

It missed, and yet Maiya was blown backward, her defensive orbs flaring.

Blade Projection? He’s good. Really good. Not only was his strength impressive, his combat instincts had been honed to perfection. Despite the gravity of her situation, Maiya couldn’t help but admire his style. It was similar to her own Kalari, yet slightly different. If she didn’t know better, she’d say he had extensive experience fighting Ash Beasts, or other enemies just as strong.

Maiya’s lucky break came from above, in the form of the only affinity that was impossible to avoid.

A lightning bolt struck her enemy right in the head, sending him crumpling to the ground.

“Get on!” the handmaiden shouted, throwing Maiya a rope ladder as the Acira hovered some twenty paces above.

In one smooth motion that resembled a dance more than it did a combat maneuver, Maiya leaped, spun, and grasped the ladder, taking one last look at her enemy as she began to rise.

The man’s facial bandages had come undone.

At least I nicked him, Maiya thought with some satisfaction. He hadn’t been an easy opponent.

The bandages fell away to reveal a hideous visage underneath.

Half of his face had been… burned? No, not burned, Maiya realized. Something much worse. It’d been eaten away.

The man stood slowly, staring up at her as she fled, hatred burning in his eyes.

How could any man hate someone he’s never met? It’s almost as if…

Maiya went rigid. The pieces of the puzzle suddenly snapped into place. His formidable experience. The familiarity of the style with which he fought.

She knew that man. She knew him very well.

Riyan!?