CHAPTER ASHBORN 414: ROYAL RELIEF (MAIYA)

Ashborn Primordial

Maiya still couldn’t believe her team had emerged relatively unscathed. Aside from some minor burns, they’d made it out unscathed—mostly thanks to Maiya’s order telling everyone to retreat to a safe distance. Never was Maiya more appreciative of past Maiya than in that moment. That, and the gods. She wondered which deities she had to thank for this miracle. She couldn’t decide, so she thanked them all.

They made good time after the fight with the mejai, meeting only small pockets of resistance. Maiya guessed that any Saian forces in the area promptly turned tail and ran as fast as they could upon seeing the show. A Grade spells tended not to be the most subtle thing—Maiya wouldn’t be surprised if a quarter of the city had seen evidence of the battle. She could only wonder what sort of havoc S Grade spells could wreak upon the world.

She didn’t have to wonder. She’d witnessed the Prime Mejai—the leader of the Order of Mejai Sorcar, the agency that registered and oversaw mejai throughout the known realm—give a demonstration for the Kin’jal royalty. It was the first time Maiya had seen Ira’s family, though Andros hadn’t been there himself. To this day, she’d never seen the infamous man.

Regardless, if A Grade spells could ravage city blocks, S Grade spells could level good portions of a whole city. Never in her life did Maiya think she’d see a massive meteor descend upon a field. The heat alone had scorched the vegetation, and the impact… Well, Maiya knew why the Prime Mejai had them stand a good mile away from the impact site.

Other than a village-sized crater so deep it would take a day’s hike just to reach the bottom, nothing had survived. No trace of the original landscape remained. Not dissimilar to Maiya’s own A Grade spells… Just on a different scale.

Thankfully, monsters like the Prime Mejai were beyond rare. Besides, few would be willing to wreck a city… Thankfully, most people with grand ambition and the means to accomplish it sought to rule, using destruction only as a means to that end.

Maiya’s squad proceeded deeper into the city, leading the decoy forces along. Soon, they began encountering signs of battle. Bodies lay strewn about the streets, and the sounds of fighting could be heard in the distance.

“Pick up the pace!” Maiya shouted at the poorly trained troops tailing her. They’d been content to hide behind her back thus far, but that would change now. It was finally time they earned their keep.

Floating up to a rooftop with the help of Lighten Load, Maiya spotted Riyan’s army embroiled in a fierce fight for a town square against a hundred-odd Saian defenders in the distance.

Falling back down, Maiya ordered Riyan’s troops to circle around and attack the Saians from behind. Her own forces moved in to engage from both sides, essentially surrounding the opposing forces in all directions.

To say it was one-sided wouldn’t do the ensuing victory justice. The enemy forces took one look at Maiya’s forces, at Riyan’s rebels pincering them from all directions… And then they routed.

Just that, to their misfortune, they routed in the direction of Maiya’s handmaidens, no doubt seeing an easy escape route in their smaller numbers.

Despite having no ill will against these defenders, Maiya couldn’t let them pass. Letting them go here might have seemed like an act of mercy—the fight had left them, and Maiya doubted they’d even attempt to harm her handmaidens as they passed.

And yet, she couldn’t. The risk of the routed defenders linking back up with another squad and regroup. If letting them live meant more death for Riyan’s troops, if it jeopardized the rebellion, then far more people would die in the long run. So long as Kin’jal existed in its current form, the deaths would only multiply.

Operating on long time horizons made objective, logical sense… Somehow, that made it no easier on Maiya’s heart.

With a heavy sigh, Maiya swept her arm, giving the kill order.

Like wraiths, her handmaidens cut, gutted, and skewered the fleeing defenders as they passed. To the observers, their actions would have looked like nothing at all. A flick of a wrist here, a handmaiden briefly moving closer to a Saian before moving away, with no sign of a weapon being drawn.

And yet, the Saian defenders dropped like flies not two steps after coming into contact with her forces. Not a single soldier survived.

After glancing over the carnage, Maiya walked over to the man barking orders to the group of one hundred.

“Where’s Riyan?” Maiya asked. “We need to regroup.”

“And you are?” the man asked, clearly a low-level commander to not recognize Maiya’s outfit.

“Your salvation. Now get me Riyan. I have urgent news.”

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Maiya followed the commander back a few blocks to a five-story spire, where Riyan’s forces had secured a forward base of sorts, tending to their wounded and using the location as a command hub for ascertaining the progress of the battle.

The first surprise came right as Maiya entered, where she found the bloodstained corpses of two very familiar-looking mejai piled unceremoniously in a corner of the main room on the first floor.

“Altani mejai,” Riyan said, emerging from a back room. “The display from earlier… You fought them, I take it?”

Maiya soured a bit. The man’s smug smirk meant Maiya had failed to hide the surprise from her face. “Just barely managed to drive them away, actually,” she admitted, figuring this was neither the time nor the place for grandstanding. “Had to deprive the local region of prana to do it. How’d you kill them?”

Riyan shrugged. “Easy to kill fleeing mejai when they can’t use magic. As much as I would like to boast of my skills as a Talent wielder… I’m afraid the Ash’va’s share of the credit goes to you and your handmaidens.”

Riyan practically spit that last word out as he eyed the cadre of elite warriors arrayed behind Maiya. In this case, she had to agree. While Ira insisted on calling them handmaidens, the word was utterly ludicrous for the forces of nature that they truly were.

“Still,” Maiya said. “Awfully lucky to take them out. They could have posed a huge problem for the rebellion.”

“Indeed,” Riyan said. “I’ve ordered my scouts to keep an eye out for any others. The Altani are many things, but masters of stealth, they are not. They’d rather tout their colors from the tops of the walls than sneak up on us from behind. If we’re not seeing them, it is likely there are no more to be seen. Even so… I must say, I did not expect to fight them tonight. Not when they’ve sent armor and weaponry to aid our rebellion.”

“From what they said, I get the distinct impression that the Altani High Council is less cohesive than they’d like the world to believe.”

“Dissidents?” Riyan said, scowling. “Fascinating. And disconcerting.”

“Agreed. But a problem for another day, wouldn’t you say? Are your troops ready to storm the keep?”

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Riyan’s base was in the innermost district of the city, where the rich and famous lived. Its streets had been evacuated long ago, leaving little in the way to slow Riyan’s progress. And now that the two prongs of their invading force had united, now that Maiya and Riyan could join forces, there would be nothing to save the keep.

“We are now,” Riyan said, eyeing Maiya’s handmaidens. “If you Kin’jals fight anywhere near as effectively as you have been, I daresay we’ll stroll into the imperial palace before long.”

“Good,” Maiya said. “As planned, we’ll be the tip of your spear. Give us, say, an hour to infiltrate the castle and eliminate any high-value targets. I’ll signal you when I’m ready.”

“And if one hour passes and you’ve yet to signal, we will march in, regardless.”

Maiya smirked. “Won’t happen. Expect the keep’s gates to swing wide open for you.”

“This,” Riyan said, cracking a vicious smile, “I would love to see.”

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Resistance at the keep’s walls was as fierce as expected, with Kartara’s most elite defenders alert against all threats.

Which was precisely why Maiya avoided them all, sneaking into the castle via a tiny secret passage she’d worked her handmaidens to the bone trying to discover.

Being a castle, secret passages were a matter of course. They just tended to be well-hidden. For obvious reasons.

Maiya knew there were likely a half-dozen more, but the one her squad had found was more than enough.

Part of the reason these passages were so difficult to find was because they ended in unobtrusive locations. The side of a hill outside of town. The basement of an old, abandoned mill… Their obscurity was only helped by the passage of time, with previously well-defined doors having collapsed to heaps of rubble.

As it was, this particular passage ended at a shack in the slums of town, and the only reason Maiya had heard of it was due to a tip from a local. Of a shack that went unused due to a draft that no one could seem to isolate.

As it so happened, the draft was caused by a tunnel system on the other end of a trapdoor covered by so much grime and dirt that Maiya had to bring a shovel to dig it open.

The tunnel led to a vast network that had taken Maiya’s handmaidens days to scout. They’d finally found the one that led to the royal family’s personal quarters.

As for why Maiya had hidden this discovery from her ally… Well, there were some things the jaded old man didn’t need to know.

Maiya slipped into the trapdoor after the rest of her squad, and delved the damp, dark tunnels using only a single Magic Lamp orb for illumination. The cramped confines might’ve discomforted her as a child, but now, Maiya could only taste victory, so close at hand.

As expected, she found Queen Ekta Sai in her bedchambers, seated at a table with her two daughters, Chara and Sonia—no doubt defended by a plethora of guards just outside.

“Call your guards, and everyone dies. Make any sound, and everyone dies,” Maiya heard one of her handmaidens say. In each of her handmaidens hands were precharged B Grade orbs of all sorts.

It was an overwhelming show of force, designed to convey a single message—no matter how strong you might be, we’re stronger.

The daughters looked like they would be only too happy to die trying, but a stern glance at her daughters made them back down. It was only after they’d sheathed their talwars and the queen nodded in understanding, did Maiya breathe more easily. If they decided to resist… Things would have gotten ugly. None of the Saian royalty were exactly weak, with the red-haired, green-eyed second princess, Sonia Sai, ranked at Balar 115. Her sister, Chara, was taller, though her glowing red hair and slender figure was a deception that hid her Balar 140 rank.

Queen Ekta Sai was by far the deadliest of them all, however. Renowned as the Warrior Queen of the north, she boasted a Balar rank of 170, and even Maiya had heard tales of her many exploits. She was one of the figures Maiya had adored growing up.

To think Maiya would now be the one to depose her, and possibly kill her.

Even under duress, the queen showed no trace of fear. Maiya noticed the subtle shift in her posture, ready to leap into action. Instincts honed through endless combat.

It was rare for a royal family to be so adept at combat—to say nothing of King Dilber himself.

Maiya knew the Saian royalty’s history inside and out, having collected the best intelligence Kin’jal had to offer. And Maiya’s inevitable conclusion was that, despite being a necessary sacrifice in this war, the rulers of Sai were not bad people. In fact, Maiya would call them rather decent, all things considered. Honorable, strong, fair, and just. When compared with some of their neighbors, anyway.

The sort of royalty ideal to rule in Ira’s new world. Just a bit too fearful and honorable to do anything to help with the status quo, and whose subservience to their enemy might very well thwart change that would transform the world for the better. Whether they’d ever gain the chance to return to their seat of power, Maiya couldn’t honestly say. But should Riyan prove to be ill-fit as the country’s new monarch, Ira figured it was good to have a backup.

“What is it you wish of us?” the Queen of Sai asked. Somehow, even in this situation, she managed to sound commanding. Maiya envied her. Her Handmaiden training had taught just that, and yet, Maiya's was mostly just an act. A deception. To truly embody such confidence… Would she ever learn to be so regal in her actions?

“As you no doubt know, your city is under attack from rebel forces. What you may not know is that they are led by a Hiranyan ex-general, a man you will know as the Butcher, and they are well supplied by the Kin’jal. I say this not to threaten you, but to convey just how hopeless your chances are.”

Maiya omitted that the Altani played a role as well. Such a revelation would only cause them to doubt her words.

All three royals’ expressions hardened at Maiya’s declaration. Be it the fact that she’d just stormed the most secure room in the entire city, the arsenal of orbs they boasted, or that Maiya’s words came across as genuine, they all seemed to believe her.

“I make no requests, but at least make their deaths painless,” Queen Ekta said, throwing her talwar to the ground and falling to her knees.

Maiya so desperately wanted to run over and tell them all would be okay. She wished she could spare their lives. Unfortunately, it would be the queen and her daughters to make that decision.

“I’m not here to kill you,” Maiya said. “The reason we infiltrated the castle was to give you a chance. An opportunity.”

Queen Sai frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Flee now. Flee your country, and I will spare you.”

The queen scoffed. “Are you not worried we will attempt to retake the throne?”

Maiya shrugged. “I’m only paid to take this city. What happens after is none of my concern,” she lied. “I’d rather not kill more than I have to tonight.”

“And my husband? What of King Dilber?”

Maiya did her best to mask her expression, though some of it must have come through, because Queen Ekta’s expression warped with anguish.

“Mother, we can fight these mejai!” Princess Sonia cried.

The queen shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. “We will leave peacefully.”

“Mother, we can’t!” the other sister pleaded.

“We are strong,” Queen Sai said with such confidence, it was as though she were addressing the citizens of Sai. “But look at these ‘rebels’. It is clear there are machinations beyond our knowledge here. These are not untrained troops. And look at their features. Do they look like northerners to you?”

The daughters faltered. Maiya had figured it was a pointless attempt to look like Saians. No matter the quality of their makeup, the queen would have seen through it. Not to mention the question it would have raised from Riyan.

“Kin’jals,” Princess Chara spat. “Though I can’t place their leader. Looks almost Hiranyan to me.”

Maiya fought the urge to roll her eyes.

“If Kin’jal is truly behind this rebellion,” Queen Sai said, “and I have no reason to doubt their words, then we are truly defeated .We cannot hope to match the might of Andros Kin’jal.”

“What of the Altani?” Princess Sonia asked. “If this is truly a Kin’jal ploy, then they will come to our aid! They always have.”

“They won’t come,” the elder princess muttered. “If they were going to, they would be here already. The Altani have abandoned us. They’re not coming.”

Maiya’s heart wanted to cry out. The life these princesses had known… The privilege, the luxury… It would all end tonight. They would never again taste those sweet fruits. Not unless they somehow managed to reclaim the throne. And unlike Ira, Maiya knew… Riyan would make for a good ruler. The man was not evil, despite all he’d done to them. He was cold, hard, and relentless. He also cared only for the prosperity of his country. All the qualities of a good ruler.

No, Maiya’s actions tonight would irrevocably alter the lives of this family, and not for the better.

Maiya’s heart wanted to break, but she was not the child she once was, driven by emotion and naivete. No, her face remained the cold, expressionless mask of a hardened killer.

Because that was who Maiya was these days. The Blessed Chosen. The right hand of a princess of the most powerful Empire. A pawn of Fate.

Someone who had gained it all and lost everything to attain it.

“Leave.” Maiya’s words were ice. “Leave, and never return.”

The royals must have sensed the deadly iciness in her words, because the Queen grasped her daughters’ shoulders, and despite their resistance, despite their concern for their father, their legs carried them away to the hidden tunnel Maiya had emerged from.

The queen met Maiya’s gaze before she disappeared, and Maiya nodded. She would uphold her promise. For as much as Maiya had lost, she was not the sort of person who broke her promises. Those people were utter scum.

“Suppose it’s time we let Riyan and his lackeys in,” Maiya muttered as she watched the ex-royals disappear.

The Hiranyan ex-general was not going to be happy that the royalty had escaped. Not at all.

Too bad for him, Maiya thought, smiling despite herself. That’s just the way wars go sometimes. Maiya had avoided killing good people, and no matter what Riyan said, she would remain proud of that fact.