CHAPTER ASHBORN 419: ROYAL GAMES (MAIYA)

Princess Ira Kin’jal sipped her tea, looking as disinterested as she could. Her eyes wandered around the royal garden’s immaculately manicured shrubs and its exquisite arbors before landing on a pretty pink flower at the edge of the stonework area where she sat.

As always, a small army of maids and attendants surrounded her—both her personal handmaidens and the castle’s regular staff. They were joined by Kyren and Nayra’s bodyguards, who followed them around like hawks. They’d done the same to Ira, too, until she annoyed her family enough that they agreed to have them removed. After all, what was she but a frail, sickly princess in a country full of big, strong warriors? A failure.

“Are you even listening, Ira?” Kyren asked irritably.

“Oh, sorry? I grew bored,” Ira said, suppressing a yawn. “What were you two on about again?”

Ira’s elder brother’s eyebrow twitched, which gave Ira no small amount of joy. If only he allowed that irritation to bloom into full-blown anger, if only his blood ran hot like their little sisters’, he might actually have amounted to something. As it was, he still hadn’t recovered from the trauma of his injury those years ago.

Kyren shifted uncomfortably under Ira’s gaze, his metal peg leg clinking against the stone floor. Ira gave him a sweet, innocent smile, and the look was gone, replaced by irritation.

“We were just discussing the Saian rebellion. You really ought to pay more attention to such matters, Ira.”

“Why?” Ira said, sounding positively disgusted. “Sai is so cold. I’d never wish to visit!”

Nayra sighed. “Why are you like this? You might be frail, but just look at Kyren? Has he not soldiered on, despite his injury? This is what it means to be Kin’jal.”

Kyren averted his eyes—he was never comfortable talking about the accident—but his shoulders straightened, nonetheless.

“Yes, well, I suppose I’m not a very good Kin’jal, am I?” Ira said, rolling her eyes. “Maybe I ought to have been born to Rani. Their sensibilities align much more closely with my own.”

Nayra let out a scoff of disgust while Kyren cleared his throat. “Whether or not you mean to visit Sai, you ought to be apprised of events occurring near our country’s borders. Rebels have successfully overthrown their government. You can see how this would be a problem, yes?”

“Hmm,” Ira said, placing a finger against her cheek. “Hmmmm…” After agonizing in thought, her eyes finally lit up. “Aha! Sai was a friend of Kin’jal’s, right? Is this not a bad turn of events, then?”

“I swear to all the gods,” Nayra said. “How did we end up with such a dunce of a sibling? Ira, Sai isn’t our friend. They were our allies! A crucial buffer between the Altani and their ally in Hiranya.”

“A buffer?” Ira asked, frowning in confusion. “Don’t you mean buffet? I do love my buffets. No! You can’t mean the buffets are all gone!?”

Nayra groaned. “A buffer, you grakking chal! I swear…”

“Come now, Nayra,” Kyren said with an awkward smile, clearly trying to hold in his laughter. “Let us not be rude. We both know Ira has always had her quirks.”

“You are both aware I can hear you, yes?” Ira said, pouting. “So? What is this buffer, and why is it so bad?”

“You do know that Hiranya is our enemy, yes?” Kyren said.

This was how the royal children saw the world. If one was not an ally, they were an enemy to be conquered. And allies were just enemies who’d bought themselves some time.

Ira was disgusted, but instead of showing it, she nodded, throwing a childish pout Nayra’s way.

“Right, so the only reason we haven’t invaded them is because the country was under the protection of the Altani. Likewise, Sai was allied with us. Now that its government has been overthrown, chances are high that the new regime will seek to ally itself with the Altani.”

“We cannot allow them to grow stronger than they already are,” Nayra fumed. “Those Ash-damned mejai…”

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“I agree,” Kyren said hesitantly. “We cannot allow Sai to become yet another threat to our northern borders. Even so… We should act with caution here.”

“Caution? Caution?” Nayra exploded. “What will caution buy us, other than defeat? With the northern front unified, the Altani will have nothing stopping them from invading Kin’jal.”

“The Altani are not interested in expanding their borders,” Kyren said. “You know this.”

“Do I?” Nayra said hotly. “We both know just how much land they’ve lost to the Ash. Unlike us, however, they lack land to retreat into. What do you think will happen when the Ash inevitably takes Alt Siya and Alt Ashani, hmm?”

Here it comes, thought Ira wryly. Her sister was the epitomal Kin’jal. While only in her early teens, she was already Balar Rank 40, and would undoubtedly surge higher. Her only goal was to expand Kin’jal’s borders, and as such, her love and support of Andros were unconditional. It was little wonder why she was his favorite child, at least after Kyren’s mishap at the Ash Boundary.

Kyren… Used to be like her. Militant, aggressive. His injury had hollowed out that ego. A bit too much, Ira felt. He was now a broken husk of the man he once was. Hesitant, shy. More aligned with Ira’s own goals, but too scared to take action. He would not resist her ascendence to the throne… But neither would he help her. Perhaps she’d find a use for him in a world without Andros.

“So, is Father going to stop this?” Ira asked. “It would be bad if Sai became an enemy, no?”

Her words cut through the siblings’ arguing. It amazed her how neither of them ever wondered how she knew exactly when to intercede and what to say to stop their bickering. Of course, that was only possible thanks to the facade she’d built. Of the stupid, introverted princess who kept to her room and played with her stuffed toys.

“He is,” Nayra said. “He’s going to march the troops to the border and monitor the situation.”

Kyren frowned. “How do you know of this? I’ve heard nothing of the sort.”

“Oh, you know,” Nayra said, staring at her nails. “Father’s taken a liking to me. Been that way ever since…” Nayra glanced at Kyren, clearly intending to say ‘ever since Kyren lost his legs,’but prudence prevailed. “Ever since mother died,” she said, coughing lightly. “You should try acting stronger. He’ll favor you too. Like he used to.”

Kyren scowled, but said nothing. For Ira, this was not good news. She’d been hoping to glean what her father was thinking from this meeting. It was why she’d arranged it, after all. Nayra’s loose lips were notorious. One needed only to tickle her ego, and she’d turn into a fountain.

Unfortunately, Ira had been hoping for more. She’d hoped the rebellion would’ve precipitated Andros to at least cross the border. He was being awfully cautious, however. No doubt testing the Altani response…

Ira sighed. If one rebellion wasn’t enough, then she would simply have to deliver more. Andros would cave. If there was one truth in this world, it was that Andros’ insatiable appetite for conquest.

No, he would invade. And then, Ira would take everything from him.

I held up a plate of confections and smiled sweetly. “Biscuits, anyone?”

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Maiya streaked across the dark night high above the Hiranyan countryside atop Frumpy. It had been some time since she’d ridden the beautiful beast, and both of them were delighted to be reunited. A brief respite before the next storm.

In many ways, the Hiranyan rebellion was simpler than the Sai. Not only was Hiranya her home country, its cultures and customs known familiar and known, but the Hiranyan military was, well, it was a reflection of King Rayid himself. Mediocre.

Where the Saians had fought bravely under a competent king, Maiya had already received reports of desertions.

It didn’t help that Prince Sanobar was popular among the military, having regularly participated in patrols and several small skirmishes. It was a small wonder, then, that nearly half of the Hiranyan military had defected to his side in the hours since the announcement of his rebellion, and more joined his cause with each passing hour.

As with Sai, Maiya had sent her handmaidens to Daha in advance, to lay the groundwork of the rebellion that was to come. This time, though, she’d sent others, as well.

Maiya felt Yamal and Bheem’s presence well before she landed. One of the few perks of being the Blessed Chosen of the Children of Ash was that she could sense the location of every member of the organization, no matter the distance. The feeling grew fainter and less accurate the farther they were, but at this range, Maiya may as well have been standing beside them. This also served as a compass of sorts. With so many anchors, Maiya would never be lost in any part of the world.

Frumpy landed in an open courtyard with a series of heavy flaps that kicked up a maelstrom of dust. The courtyard was unmarked, but given that Yamal and Bheem were expecting Maiya, and considering how they knew about her ability to sense them, Maiya had all the signaling she needed.

Tenders emerged from nearby buildings the moment Frumpy was down, feeding her and giving her water. As always, Maiya’s mounts were given the royal treatment, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Bheem, Yamal, it is good to see you both,” Maiya said, hugging her friends in turn. Though Bheem had just recently been in Sai, she’d sent him to Hiranya before the fighting broke out. For all his size, he wasn’t a warrior, and she was loath to put him in danger for no good reason.

“I assure you, the pleasure is ours,” Yamal said, relief obvious on his face.

Maiya rolled her eyes. “What, the Blessed Chosen dying in some Saian rebellion? Please, you worry too much.”

Yamal bit his lip. “It is a friend’s duty to worry, is it not?”

Maiya gave him a small smile, squeezing his shoulder. “Thanks. What does the situation look like?”

“Not good, I am afraid,” Yamal said, his expression darkening. “Though many have defected to our side, King Rayid seems quite competent at defending himself. His forces gave up the Commons and fell back to the District of Internal Affairs, almost without a fight.”

“Where they’ve built up fortifications, stalling our advance,” Maiya completed.

Yamal nodded.

“Well, that’s why I’m here,” Maiya said. Though she tried to keep the fatigue out of her voice, it had been almost two days since she’d last slept.

Wars, however, were not known for waiting.

“Take me to Prince Sanobar. It’s about time I break this stalemate.”