“It is not your current skill set, but rather your mindset I’m interested in.”
My mindset? Not the way I’ve shot up in power?
“Your mindset has forged you into the handmaiden you are today,” Ira said with a smirk, predicting Maiya’s thoughts. “You work when others rest. You train when others think only of finishing their day’s duties. You go above and beyond at every opportunity, and you learn.”
Hah. You should see my friend…
“I shall groom you personally. Depending on your performance, you’ll be given more responsibility.”
That’s the last thing I need…
“Ah, I should clarify, with this responsibility comes great benefits. You will never want for coin ever again. Within Kin’jal, you’ll be respected by all. You’ll have no end of suitors, but unlike most women, you’ll get to decide who you end up with. Depending on your contributions, a landed Sawai title isn’t out of the question. So? Do you accept?”
Maiya daydreamed of the day she’d met Ira in her chambers. She’d gone in expecting to serve the princess tea, nothing more. She’d left as a confidante and secret operative. Never in her wildest dreams had she guessed she’d play an instrumental role in helping the princess overthrow her father.
And yet, despite all Ira had said, Maiya kept replaying one sentence in particular. ‘You’ll have no end of suitors.’ Every time she did, she blushed. There was only one person in all the realms for her. It didn’t matter who came after her—Sawai, military, or commoner. She promised she’d wait, and she intended to do exactly that.
Where are you now, Vir? Are you safe?
Maiya clutched the communications orb nestled within her robe. She knew it was foolish to bring such a priceless orb on a dangerous mission. Not only because of its coin value, but because losing it would mean losing her only means of communicating with Vir.
Plus, this particular orb was a bit special. An experimental unit that was said to transmit not just voice, but a projection of her face as well. Rani had apparently uncovered the original deep under some mine near Avi, and it had made its way into Kin’jal hands, where they sought to copy it. They’d managed the feat, albeit with some flaws. Maiya was fine with flaws if it meant getting to see him.
She’d been hopelessly incapable of leaving it alone. It followed her everywhere, and she even kept it next to her pillow, on the off-chance Vir contacted her in the middle of the night.
He’d only just entered the Ashen Realm. She knew that. She also knew the orb might not even work in the Demon Realm.
It’s so unfair. If only I were stronger, I could’ve followed him into the Ash…
“Ma’am? Something wrong?” Maiya’s Balarian warrior whispered, and only then did Maiya realize she was scowling.
Shaking her head, she forced her mind back on task. This mission came directly from Princess Ira herself; it wasn’t something she could afford to slack off on. Especially when the princess repeatedly stressed how important it was that none escape.
The mission? Capturing some smugglers. Upon hearing it, Maiya assumed it was one of the cabals that ran the organized crime rings around Kin’jal. She’d been shocked to discover just how successful and powerful these organizations were. It didn’t seem very Kin’jal to allow such miscreants to roam freely, but that was exactly the reality.
Smugglers operated with the tacit approval of the government. Approval and oversight. Only what Kin’jal allowed out went out, and that went for both information and goods. Of course, they’d never do such a thing out of the goodness of their hearts—smugglers operated both ways, bringing in as much as they exported. Intelligence, secret documents from other countries, and more. All of which eventually made its way back into the Kin’jal government’s hands, usually via agents and proxies.
So it was with great anticipation that Maiya set out on this mission. Yet, when she learned the details of the ring she’d be apprehending, she couldn’t help but wonder why ordinary Balarian warriors hadn’t been assigned instead. Or better yet, Brotherhood Mercenaries; they always seemed eager for these sorts of missions. They always appreciated a break from fighting Ash Beasts.
For these were no elite smugglers. They were run-of-the-mill, ordinary criminals, looking to make a quick silver. That Maiya and her squad had remained undetected for the better part of a twenty-minute confidential discussion amongst the smugglers in the middle of their den only proved the point.
The smugglers had chosen an ordinary stone house as their base of operations. Located in a common district of Adrisa, Kin’jal’s northernmost fortified city, it wasn’t a bad choice. Far better than a dark lair, or an isolated structure in the middle of nowhere. Someone knew what they were doing. The same could not be said for the rest of their cadre.
Thus far, nothing of interest had been said. There was talk of a ‘big haul’ of opiates from Sai, some worried discussions of the feral nature of the recent demon slaves they’d obtained in Matali, and a bit of finger-pointing about the state of their treasury.
So why…
“Ye, about that,” a smuggler said, responding to his partner in crime. “Got somethin’ especially juicy. Like, the kinda thing that can put us on the map, if ya catch my meanin’.”
“The grak’s that supposed to mean? You got a new customer? Some hotshot?”
“Nah. Even better. Info, straight from Sonam. From the castle.”
Maiya’s attention, which had threatened to wander off to thoughts of Vir, snapped back. Her squad of six—all handpicked by her and tempered by countless encounters at the Ash Wall—likewise stiffened, priming themselves for action. The smugglers’ next words would either spell their doom or… Well, either way, the only way they were leaving this hideout was in shackles.
“Got some news about Princess Ira.”
For a moment, there was silence. Then the room filled with sounds of their reactions. One smuggler scoffed, shaking his head. Another laughed, while yet another looked at his partner in crime with a look of pity.
“Princess Ira’s bedridden. Might just fall over and die any day now. Everyone knows that. What did you find out? That she likes stuffed toys or something?”
Maiya cocked a brow at the smuggler’s oddly apt remark. Princess Ira did love her stuffed toys, to a nearly unhealthy degree.
“That’s exactly it. The info comes from an informant in the castle. Someone close to the princess herself. Turns out that’s all a lie. Seems she’s planning on overthrowing the Imperator. This is big, guys. I’m talkin’ seric big.”
Okay, yep. Chalk up another point for the princess, Maiya thought. If the princess knew of this clan, it meant she knew the identity of this informant as well. Or at least, suspected.
The laughter abruptly ended as his coworkers mulled over the meaning of his words. “Who’s your informant?”
“You think I’d give up someone so important? Forget it.”
“How do we know they’re solid?”
“Seric solid. I vouch for them myself.”
Maiya was no longer listening. A quick series of hand signals to her squad primed them for action. Then, with a deep breath, Maiya stood from her hiding spot and approached the unsuspecting men.
“Guys, can you imagine how much the Altani will pay for this?”
“Yeah, they would, wouldn’t they? If they believed you. Which they won’t,” Maiya said, casually twirling a dagger in her hand.