Chapter XXVII: No Good Deed

Only Jinxie’s stoneskin spell, a cue she had taken from Xaerus, saved her from being bitten in half by the monster as it clamped its jaws around her. Angered by its inability to bite down, the Hydra tossed her aside, seeking to snap her body against the trees, but she used the force she had been thrown with to her advantage, catching on to an outhanging branch and twirling around, coming down on her feet with knees bent, facing the beast. It regarded her without concern, stepping forward at a measured pace as it knew that nothing she did now would harm it. It was toying with a meal, to be eaten at its leisure. Jinxie ignored the pain in her side and summoned her magic up to a boiling point within herself; she would not be made into a snack for this atrocity.

Meanwhile, Isset frantically pounded on Speed’s chest, the latter splayed out on the ground gagging as foam began to form at his mouth, the poison from the Hydra’s breath tearing his body apart. He convulsed, throwing Isset off of his body, and then fell limp, the only sound he made the choking rattle of failed breathing as his throat closed in on itself.

“Speed!” she cried out, tears of frustration beading in her eyes, “Speed, you’ve got to hang on!” As he slipped away, her mind raced to try and find a solution.

Jinxie raced along the ground as the Hydra swerved its heads after her, the right and left heads opening to belch fire and ice at her respectively, forcing her to run as it trailed after her. She was hurled off of her feet by the impact of the Hydra’s elemental breath upon the ground, and stumbled head over heels, skidding to a halt against a shrub sticking out of the high walls of earth surrounding them. Dazed, she struggled to focus her vision, and when she did it found the Hydra perched over her, ready to finish off the snack it had been building up its appetite for. She lunged to get away, but found the Hydra’s heads now surrounding her. Her hands felt only rock at her back, and in front of her, naught but death.

“Speed!” Isset shouted as he began to go limp. “Please, Speed, there must be something that – “she stopped her own sentence short, eyes going wide as she shot her head up. “Shoki!” she called out. “Do you still have those vials I gave you?”

The puppet gave a nod of its mechanical head in response, and a compartment within its chest suddenly opened up to reveal a neatly-arranged row of concoctions, all of different color and transparency, lined up within.

“This one!” she shouted, pointing towards a red-shaded liquid which the puppet drew forth at her command. “Quick, Shoki, he can’t swallow! You have to put it in his blood!”

The puppet’s claw-like hand opened up, and a needle sprung forth. Dipping it into the fluid, it drew it up into itself, and then discarded the empty vial as Isset tore the chest plate on Speed’s armor open. With a powerful thrust, Shoki stabbed the antitode directly into the warrior’s heart, shooting it full of the venom antidote it had pumped in. With a gasp, Speed’s eyes flew open.

Jinxie’s foot bounded off of the Hydra’s left neck as she took to the air, riding a wave of air pockets she created as the creature snapped at her. The beast’s right head came forward to snatch her out of the air, but she planted her hand directly on its snout and flung herself backwards, landing on its neck and sliding down the scaly surface to safety. It kicked out at her with one of its giant clawed forelegs, but she tucked and rolled aside, her torn and tattered clothes coming up covered in dirt as she gasped for air. The thing spun around once again, the three heads zeroing in on her. She prepared to run again, but once again the Hydra’s power caught her off-guard.

With a ferocious release of energy, a blast of air overtook Jinxie directly from the Hydra’s body. She buckled under the impact, going down to one knee, and then faltered as she tried to rise. Her whole body felt weighed down, and she struggled to even draw breath as suddenly the pain in her side was magnified, the stress in her joints suddenly screaming at her. The Hydra had pressed down on the very air around them, making it seem as if her body was double, even triple its own weight. In the fight to even lift her head, she managed to roll her eyes up enough to see that the Hydra had finally caught up to her, and this time, there was nowhere left to go.

“Sweet Walahra,” Speed said as his breath returned to him, sweat drenching his brow as the antidote leeched the poison from his bloodstream, “what did you – oh, no. Isset, tell me that wasn’t an alchemical antidote.”

“Of course it was, you idiot,” Isset snapped at him, “I saved your life! Can’t you show a little . . . wait, “alchemical?” You never use words with that many syllables.”

Speed stood up, shaking his head as he brushed himself off, a look of disdain crossing his face as he sniffed at the air, rolling his tongue in his mouth as if unfamiliar with the flavor. “Those things the guild makes attack any foreign chemical agent in the body, it . . . well, not just the poison gets drained out.”

“Speed,” the Puppetmaster’s confused tone clearly displaying her reaction, “what the hell is wrong with you? Why are you talking like that?”

“That damn alchemy shit completely killed my high,” Speed spat out, swinging his axe over his shoulder. “I’m not even a little stoned anymore; I’m just really fuckin’ pissed off.”

“So what are you –“ Isset didn’t get to finish her sentence as a breeze suddenly flashed by her face, and dried leaves stirred at her feet. She blinked once before she realized Speed was gone.

His axe, called an amood by the people of Aht Urhgan, struck the Hydra with such intensity that the beast staggered back not due to pain, but simple physics and the laws of transfer of motion. It recoiled, swinging its heads back down to see its attacker, but found no one. Not even Jinxie, who had vanished from the spot she had been in. It roared, now angry again, as it searched for the source of its frustration. Then it spotted Jinxie, now a distance away beside the body of Xaerus, who still lay where she fell. It charged forward, but was knocked off balance again almost as soon as it began to move. Angrily twisting, the Hydra heard a rush of wind, and then once again its head buffeted back and forth, knocking into each other as one great impact after another struck the monster. It gave a piercing cry of fury, and, dropping out of nowhere, Speed appeared in front of it, his great axe a blur at the rate he twirled it in his two hands, raised over his head. The Hydra’s growl made the earth tremble as it charged forward, recognizing Speed right away. The warrior was suddenly gone from the spot he was standing, and his great axe connected against the Hydra’s massive center skull with so much force that rocks on the ground shattered in response to the reverberations.

Jinxie, in shock at the display, managed to crawl up to a sitting position as she struggled yet under the weight the Hydra had pressed down upon her. She went numb at an attempt to gather in magic to ward off the effects, struggling to maintain consciousness, and then her head went light as a wave of dispelling magic swept over her, and all at once, she felt the Hydra’s energy dissipate around her. She looked up and, at her side, Xaerus stood once more.

“Jinxie,” Xaerus said, coughing as a trickle of blood ran down her temple, “I have to recast my spell, but it will be ready for me this time.”

“Look, Xaerus,” Jinxie murmered, having trouble finding her voice, “Speed’s doing it, he can keep it busy while you – “

“No!” she said with surprising force for someone so obviously wounded, “Speed is distracting it physically, but you have to disrupt the magic in the area. What you did last time, that worked long enough, but it will be expected it again. Try something else, anything, but you have to do it or the second Speed falters, it’s going to come for us again, and we’ll have nothing left to throw at it. Jinxie, remember who this is for.”

The pain in Jinxie’s bruised ribs flared, and the countless scrapes and abrasions criss-crossing her body all seemed to crying out at once. With no soothing balm to bear and no energy to spare for healing, the most she could muster was speaking a single name. “Drake.” She uttered, and then, she pulled herself to her feet, as in her own mind, she silently added “Hubby.”

“Alright Xaerus,” Jinxie said, stepping forward towards the titanic clash going on between the Hydra and Speed, “do what you have to do.” The air began crackling and sizzling around her as overhead, the morning sky began growing dark. Clouds began forming in the air as Jinxie’s magical aura swelled like a dam fit to burst around her. She could hear the Mithra murmering her incantation as arcane energy poured from her own eyes, the blonde Hume’s stare fixed now on the Hydra. “Earth and wind didn’t do the trick,” she said aloud as electricity pulsed between her palms, “so let’s try adding water and lightning to the mix.”

Speed paused in his barrage against the Hydra and cast a look at the sky. The Hydra took the chance to try biting him in half, but its jaws found only air as Speed was suddenly several yards away, looking up at the monster as the clouds above it suddenly burst open. Where the air had been dry and hot, a torrential downpour suddenly overtook the area, centralized on the spot where the Hydra made its nest. The long-thirsty ground drunk in the swell of rain water, but was then blasted as a streak of lightning touched down from the localized clouds, lancing into the Hydra, which cried out in surprise. It roared an unspeakable fury, sensing the magic in the air as the wind began picking up again. Remembering the last time, its eyes searched for Jinxie, but almost immediately Speed was there again, hammering away at the monster with a flurry of blows that it was unable to retaliate against. It cried out in frustration, even as its invincible hide protected it from any real damage.

Jinxie redoubled her efforts, and the wind howled louder than ever, tearing trees free from the ground and smashing them into the Hydra’s hide as thin streaks of lightning danced all around its body. The rain soaked the ground, coming down with such force that the dry earth began bubbling and swelling with water, becoming a mire of mud before their very eyes. Before long, Speed had to abandon his assault, seeking protection from the elements being brought to bear by the incredible might at Jinxie’s command. Rykoshet had once told her that the monsters they fought on a daily basis in Those Guys just weren’t as exciting since she joined the ranks of the linkshell. She wondered how much excitement Rykoshet would find in this, seeing the full extent of her powers unleashed.

The Hydra’s right head, free of Speed’s attack, saw Jinxie through the haze, and the beast flung itself around to face her. Fighting the wind and driving rain being brought to bear against it, the monster stomped forward, the soaking ground now caving under its tremendous weight, and began a slow crawl towards Jinxie. Her eyes glowing like beacons in the night even as she felt her power begin to wane, she forced herself to continue drawing on the elemental force in the Wajaom Woodlands to fight this monstrosity. It edged closer, battling forward one step at a time, intent on ending this battle once and for all.

Jinxie could feel the hot stink of the Hydra’s venomous breath when she felt the magic in the area shift once again.

“HIT IT NOW!” she shouted as loudly as she could, her magic amplifying her voice over the roar of the storm rather than hiding it. With a lurch of her arms as if trying to lift some great weight, Jinxie urged all the magic in her being upwards, and the ground suddenly erupted with the gathered water it had been soaking in. At that same moment, Isset sprung forward, her legs surging with the chi she had been gathering, and she smashed her foot into the ground, sending a wall of muddy earth surging towards the Hydra even as she swung the animator around. Shoki leaped off of her back into the air, gleaming with a golden glow as he burned out the last of his power cells to fully concentrate on earth magic. The ground trembled and quaked beneath the Hydra, and it struggled desperately to escape as it found itself trapped in mire Jinxie had created.

In a flash that could have easily been mistaken for the lightning in the air, Speed’s amood connected with the ground, a shockwave from the impact colliding with the effect from Isset’s Dragon Kick, and with that final push, the ground burst open. The Hydra’s center head lashed out, darting for Jinxie in a vindictive attempt to take her life with it, but the woman pushed forward with all the magic she had left at that same instant. A groaning, heaving earth gave way as wind, earth, lightning, and water all converged on one spot, and the Hydra let loose a final roar as the combined forces against it crushed its bones beneath tons of earth which sank in around it, the cave connecting the area to Aydeewa Subterrane collapsing beneath the stress and burying the Hydra once and for all.

Isset ran forward and caught Jinxie as she collapsed to her knees, utterly drained. Above them, the clouds dispersed, and sunlight almost immediately began pouring in on the blasted area as the magic keeping it away fell apart. Xaerus hobbled forward, blood soaking the blindfold around her eyes as she clutched at one of her shoulders. Shoki lay collapsed on the ground, drained of power for the time being, and Speed simply stood off to the side, arms folded, appearing to be in pain just by standing. Jinxie used what strength she had left to give a weak smile. This was what she had to do; and she had done it.

“How long. . .” she tried to say, “How long . . . before they know . . . “

That’s when it was Isset’s turn to grin. “Oh they already know, Jinxie.” She said with a somewhat self-approving tone. “Shoki can broadcast images back to any other puppet within range of his signal. Every Puppetmaster in Al Zahbi could see the fight going on, and that includes that girl in the Imperial Palace.” Her grin turned into a broad smile as she helped Jinxie lay back, the world already starting to black out around the edges. “Congratulations, Bastoker,” the Al Zahbi woman told her, “you’re officially a hero of the Empire now.”


Even Isset’s words, half-forgotten by the time Jinxie had woken up, could not have prepared her for the reception she received in Al Zahbi. Even in a country so accustomed to battle and bloodshed, her fight against the Hydra had been one of the most spectacular things anyone in the Imperial City could ever remember seeing. She had woken in the care of Abquhbah, the secretary from Salaheem’s Sentinels, who was positively beside himself in joy at her accomplishment. When she found the strength to stand after a few meals in bed and some precious time spent with Drake, she had even found Naja Salaheem herself warmly receptive.

“Ya done the name of the Sentinel’s prrrroud out there, Jinxie,” the mace-wiedling woman had told her, even as she bobbed the instrument up and down on her shoulder. “Everyone saw ya take out that monster with just the four of ya, on a job commissioned by the agency! The coffer’s are gonna be full offa this one for awhile.”

“I did what I was asked, Naja,” Jinxie had told her, “so when do I . . . ?”

“Go t’ the palace?” Salaheem said for her, and then gave a smile which revealed a single fang. “I’d getcher clothes fixed up if I were you, an Immortal delivered yer official summons before ya even got back to town.”

So it was that once again, Jinxie found herself in the resplendent halls of the Imperial Palace. This time though, she felt no awe or amazement sweep over her as she walked through the magnificent halls of the Urghuum Emperors and Empresses past, only a steadfast resolve to accomplish what she had set out to do. This time, they could not refuse her, and as she Immortals swung open the doors leading to the imperial chamber, she sensed that they knew the same thing by the atmosphere in the room. The Grand Vizier, Razfahd, stood with an angry scowl on his face before Nashmeira’s dais, and the court Puppetmaster, Aphmau, grinned like the cat who just ate the canary.

“Jinxie of Bastok,” Razfahd intoned, his perfunctory tone laced with acid, “you have permission to approach the Empress Nashmeira.”

“Thank you, Grand Vizier,” Jinxie responded. She had come on her own, neither of Naja’s mercenaries having permission to enter the palace, and Xaerus once again having vanished before she had recovered from the fight. Her wounds still bothered her, but she stood tall before the Immortals and the Empress, not a hint of her pain showing on her face as she voiced her demands. “Empress,” she said, giving a flourish of acknowledgement to the woman behind the curtain, “I have returned from slaying the Hydra in the name of the Empire, and as such, would hope that you could see fit to perform a favor for me.”

“Welcome back, Jinxie,” the Empress replied in her commanding, yet sincere voice, “and I congratulate you. In light of your triumph, which has greatly benefited the Empire, it has become possible to spare a contingent of Imperial soldiers for you to bring back to your homelands to combat the demon plague.”

Before Jinxie could respond, she was cut off by a cough from Razfahd. Aphmau and Jinxie both turned their heads as the man took a step in front of the Empress, hands clasped behind his back as he spoke.

“Possible, yes,” he admitted, “but still not advisable. If anything, we should use Jinxie’s . . . accomplishment . . . to strengthen our own position in the Mamool Ja’s territory. I see no reason to divert our attention away from that pursuit now while the opportunity presents itself.”

“Razfahd, I have spoken,” Nashmeira stated firmly, but the Grand Vizier moved on smoothly.

“And as your Vizier, your Imperial Majesty, I am letting you know that it is not a wise decision. Our five generals are taxed to the limit keeping up with the constant threats our empire faces, if one of them was suddenly put in a position where they needed extra soldiers and found themselves undermanned, well. . . I would hate for such a dilemma to be blamed on our newest hero, wouldn’t you?”

Jinxie bared her teeth at the man, but Nashmeira spoke over her. “She will receive Imperial assistance for her aid to the Empire, Razfahd, if you can think of any better way to provide it, speak up now.”

“Very well,” the Grand Vizier replied, leveling his gaze on Jinxie. “There is one task you may perform, not as some lowly mercenary, but as a direct assignment from the Imperial Court. Part of the reason our numbers suffer is due to a lack of volunteers; a deficiency which we can trace back solely to one man.”

“Razfahd, you can’t -” Aphmau suddenly spoke up from where she sat off to the side of the throne, but the armored man silenced her with a raised palm.

“You see, one of our most esteemed military leaders abandoned his post some years ago, and since then, things have just not been the same. Find him, convince him to return to service, and the news of his return shall ring far and wide, no doubt causing our military numbers to burgeon to the point of bursting. Then you can take all the soldiers you want, Jinxie.” He said her name with an oily smile that made her have to repress a sneer of distaste.

“Fine,” she replied through grinding teeth, “point me in his direction and I’ll retrieve him for you, whatever it takes.”

Razfahd clicked his tongue once. “If only it were that easy. You see, no one is quite sure where he went; it’s as if he vanished from the face of Vana’diel itself. Take all the time you need to find him, though, we are quite patient, and confident in your ability to succeed.”

“If you don’t know where he is, how am I supposed to – “

“That is your problem now, Jinxie,” Razfahd replied, cutting her off and directing a leveling stare at Aphmau, who drew her hands close to herself, remaining quiet. “You have been given your task, and if you want our help, you will carry it out. Go out into the world, and if you ever expect the Empire to aid you in your war, do not return without the Sixth Serpent General; the Sunserpent, Kkel Solaar.”

Chapter XVII: Appeals and the Deaf Ears They Fall On

Jinxie struggled to contain the awe she felt upon entering the Imperial Ward of the Empire of Aht Urhgan. The flaxen-haired Red Mage looked about in wonder as she was led by a pair of the strange, masked men who had met her and Xaerus at the immense palace gates down the hall leading to the chamber of the Empress. Absolutely everything around them was draped in gold, silver, and fine jewels; the curtains hung over the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows, which they themselves had to reach some forty or more feet in the air, were made of something that appeared to be silk, yet reflected all the colors of the rainbow when sunlight struck them. The floors of the palace were coated in a layer of mother-of-pearl, and they had been prompted to don a pair of the lighter, softer shoes worn by the people of the Empire before entering. Intricate work had been done in the crafting of the enormous marble columns which acted as support beams for the vaulted roof above them; they were not just practical structures, they also had etched in them carvings and paintings telling the stories of the Empire’s history to any whose eyes could follow the spiraling pictographs all the way to the top. The artwork, the decoration, the trappings were opulence such as Jinxie had never seen before on Mindartia or Quon. It was clear that the Empress of Aht Urhgan enjoyed displaying the tremendous wealth at the command of her nation.

Xaerus walked slightly in front of her, the Mithra treading lightly on the delicate floors, her feet barely leaving an impression on the thick, intricately woven carpet at their feet. The Mithra walked unaided, not even a stick to guide her way, though her blindfold was still tightly in place. How the woman got around, Jinxie still had not figured out, but as she strode forward in measured paces behind the two guards, the Mithra seemed no more blind than Jinxie herself was. She turned as if to look at Jinxie out of the corner of her eye, then turned her head back towards the enormous gold-trimmed doors they were both walking towards. The guards, both wearing loose-fitting black masks and turbans in the style of the Near East, stopped at the doors and turned sharply, looking over the two women.

“Beyond these doors,” the first intoned, “is the chamber of the Empress of Aht Urhgan.”

The second cast a warning glare towards the two of them. “You will conduct yourselves in a manner befitting an audience with the Empress, Walahra bless her name.”

“Walahra bless her name.” Xaerus replied, clapping her hands together and executing a smooth flourish. Jinxie stood still for a moment before realizing the guards eyes were on her, and quickly mimicked the gesture. She inclined her head slightly to see them both suspiciously looking her over, and felt her breath catch in her throat. It seemed an eternity before one of them finally stepped to the side and put his hand upon the great golden door, which gave an echoing groan as it slid open. The two assumed positions at either side of the portal, and Jinxie stood straight again as Xaerus did the same. Beyond that threshold, the Empress lay waiting. Cautiously following her blind companion, Jinxie entered the seat of power for the entire Empire.

What struck Jinxie immediately was how different the Imperial chamber itself was from the rest of the palace. There were no windows, no extravagant decoration or outward show of power. The Empress was seated behind a thick, opaque white curtain, not even an outline visible from the dais it was hung in front of. The path leading from the doors to the Empress was broad and lit by bright torches in settings hung from columns lining the hall, but neither had any excessive detail or ornamentation like those in the outside. Guards, all dressed identically as the two whom had shown them in, stood unmoving in a row along either side of the royal blue carpet on the stone tile floor. They gave no indication of acknowledging Jinxie’s presence as she slowly walked by, taking in her surroundings. Few people, she realized, ever reached this room, thus the need to decorate it in the same overpowering fashion as the outside was unnecessary. This revelation only brought further questions to mind, such as; how had Xaerus managed to secure an audience in but a four-day span?

Jinxie was distracted by these thoughts as, from the corner of her eye, she suddenly caught sight of another woman in the room. Seated on an enormous pillow, with a strange, mechanical device that somewhat resembled some sort of small caricature of a child by her side, was a woman garbed in all white and gold, her sun-colored hair done up in intricate fashion, looking at the duo through large blue eyes. The woman, who actually looked to be scarcely more than a girl, placed on a hand on the machine, which startlingly turned with a mechanized clacking and whirring of machine parts, jerking to a halt and peering out at the two as well. She felt the impulse to say something, suddenly one of the blue-dressed guardsmen, standing just before the dais, spoke in a loud, grating voice which resonated through the immense chamber.

“You stand before her Imperial Grace, Nashmeira the second, Walahra bless her name.” He said in a formal, practiced rote. “I am Razfahd, Grand Vizier to her Majesty.” The man lowered his gaze upon them, and Jinxie felt uncomfortable under his eyes. Something about the man sent shivers through her spine just looking at him, but he continued on. “Should you misconduct yourselves in any way before the Empress, be assured that I shall personally see you removed from this audience chamber.”

“Be at peace, Razfahd,” Xaerus said smoothly, her head bowed before the Empress behind the curtain. “My friend shall be on her best behavior.”

“My warning was to both guests of the Empress,” Razfahd replied curtly, “now state your names and business before her Imperial Majesty, as your time is limited.”

“I am Xaerus,” the Mithra said, not skipping a beat, “as you well know. The request I put before the Empress does not come from me, so I shall let this woman speak for herself.” Without another word, Xaerus took a sweeping step to the side, towards the girl on the pillow, who blinked and sat up straight as the mechanical creation in front of her took what looked almost like a defensive step forward. Just like that, Jinxie found herself unprotected in front of the Empress of Aht Urhgan. Razfahd sneered at her with an unwelcoming visage, and as she could not see Nashmeira, she had no idea how receptive the woman was.

“Do not keep the Empress waiting!” Razfahd said in a hushed, scathing tone. Eyes narrowing at the Grand Vizier, Jinxie took a step forward, bending knee and bowing her head before the curtain.

“Your Imperial Majesty,” she began, “I am Jinxie, of the Republic of Bastok. I ask that you hear my request, please.”

A long moment passed, Razfahd’s eyes drilling a hole in Jinxie from the side which she tried to ignore. Xaerus said nothing, and had her head slightly downcast with her hands clasped behind her back, betraying no emotion. Finally, the Empress spoke. Her voice sounded younger than Jinxie would have expected, though it was slow, almost unsure of itself. Still, the air of royalty was evident.

“Speak, Jinxie of Bastok,” Nashmeira replied, “tell me why it is you have come to my Empire.”

“Your Majesty,” Jinxie said, taking a half step forward before being cut off by Razfahd’s harsh glare. “The lands of Mindartia have been overcome by a terrible plague of demons. The stories of Dynamis have come true, and even now my friends, and . . . and my family, they are suffering. I come with the fervent plea for your aid, Empress, please, help us deliver my land from this evil!”

Jinxie’s last words echoed in the chamber as she clasped her fists against her chest, trying to restrain her own emotion as she thought of that terrible flight from Mhaura. Hubby had sacrificed himself to ensure that she would reach this place, and she had resolved not to let that be in vain. With the power of the Empire, surely they could do something to restore the land, to help save the people still alive and waiting for rescue to come from somewhere . . .

“You have a child?” Nashmeira said abruptly, throwing Jinxie for a loop.

“Uh, yes, your Majesty.” Jinxie replied, casting a look at Xaerus, who remained unmoving. Drake had been taken by a nurse in the palace when they had been announced, to be cared for in the Imperial nursery until their audience was over. Only after she had seen the facility had Jinxie agreed to part with her newborn. “I have a son, recently born. I was . . . “ her voice lowered to scarcely more than a whisper as she hung her head, blonde hair falling down her face in slim wisps. “we were coming here to celebrate.”

For the first time, Razfahd removed her eyes from Jinxie, and only stared ahead, appearing uncomfortable. The Empress said nothing, but Jinxie heard at her side the breath of the girl on the pillow catch as she put a hand to her lips, catching Jinxie’s meaning. Slowly, the Red Mage raised her head, returning her eyes to the curtain, and awaiting the response of the Empress. It was a tense, sustained pause before she spoke again.

“Are you aware of the troubles which beset the Empire?” the Empress inquired, her voice still carrying the strength of a monarch, but with a tinge of sympathy interwoven in it now.

“I have . . . I have only heard rumors,” Jinxie began to say.

“We are aware of your Orcs, your Quadav,” Nashmeira continued, “the birds which walk like men, but have the people of Mindartia familiarized themselves with the Trolls? Or the Lamiae? Or the Mamool Ja?”

“We . . .we hear little of the Empire across the Gugru Blue, your Majesty.” Jinxie responded, not understanding where this was going.

“Then you would not know that these beastmen besiege our kingdom constantly, seeking to steal our most holy artifact, the Astral Candescence, and manipulate it for their own ends. Even as the people of the Far East plague us with continued warfare, we must also divide our forces just to keep our own people safe. The Empire has even resorted to hiring mercenaries in order to secure the walls of our city.”

Xaerus spoke up now, roused by the obvious destination Nashmeira was reaching with this speech. “But your Majesty, even a few of the Immortals, perhaps the loan of a Serpent General and a few men . . . “

“Silence!” Razfahd barked, prompting the Mithra to direct a cutting sneer in the direction of his voice.

“I’ve always detested dogs, Razfahd.” Xaerus said warningly, and the Grand Vizier scoffed and sputtered angrily, taking an advancing step towards the Mithra before the voice of the Empress halted him.

“Enough!” she declared, giving them both pause. “We are familiar with the legends of Dynamis, and understand the horror which has befallen Mindartia, but to deploy any international aid at this time would compromise our own people. We apologize, Jinxie of Bastok, but the Empire of Aht Urhgan can lend you no aid. Please, be on your way.”

“Nashmeira, no!” Jinxie implored, but even as she outstretched her hand, the mechanical being at the side of the girl leaped to the pointed constructs which made up its feet.

“You heard the Empress speak!” it said, shockingly, startling Jinxie to the point where her heart skipped a beat as she realized the thing could talk. “Off with you now, we will hear no more about the troubles of other nations while Al Zahbi itself is worn away by the beastmen hordes!”

“Ovjang!” the girl on the pillow said, scoldingly. The red-tinted puppet turned, shaken as if a child being scolded, and dejectedly slumped back down on the pillow. “I’m sorry,” she said her soft voice genuinely sincere as the honey-haired girl looked at Jinxie. “but there’s nothing we can do.”

“That’s enough, Aphmau.” Razfahd sneered. “Leave this place, immediately. Your audience has ended.”

“Razfahd!” Xaerus growled, bringing up a fist, but the Grand Vizier only smirked, folding his arms as behind them, a dozen of the Immortals reached for their swords. Xaerus lowered her arm and scowled at the man, but all she could do was turn on her heel and march back towards the door. Jinxie followed behind her after a moment, her eyes meeting those of Aphmau for a brief second, and seeing genuine compassion behind them. With a slight sigh, Jinxie took her leave, her audience with the Empress having come to naught.

No one noticed the extra pair of legs skittering out the door from the shadowed corners of the throne room just before the immense portal slammed shut behind them.

When they reached the outskirts of the Imperial Ward, Xaerus said nothing, only looked up skyward with her unseeing eyes. Jinxie, cradling a sleeping Drake in her arms, gazed blankly ahead. Whatever slim hope she had been holding on to had fallen away, and it was all she could do to hold her emotion inside. The pit of her stomach turned at the thought of her failure, but she managed to restrain herself, as best she could, from letting it show.

“Jinxie,” Xaerus finally said, “I had thought that . . . “

“It’s alright, Xaerus.” Jinxie said, her voice almost catching. “I’ll be fine. I just . . .I just don’t know what to do now.”

“Really? I thought that would be obvious, even to a blind woman.”

They both turned sharply at the voice which addressed them. Standing before the two Red Mages was a woman, her dark hair tied back in a long braid behind her head, her smooth, Aht Urhganese features accented by a deep shade upon her eyes and lips. She wore clothes in the fashion of the Empire, but in such colors of deep red, black, and purple as Jinxie had never seen before. Arms folded under her breasts, she surveyed the two with an almost amused expression, and it wasn’t until Jinxie heard the sound of gears turning that she looked down, and realized that standing in front of the woman was a machine, a puppet just like the one that had been with Aphmau. She took a step forward, the puppet close by her side, and closely appraised the two.

“Shoki here saw everything,” she said, as the puppet jumped in response to its name, “and I have to say, I don’t know what you expected, thinking that the Empress would give up some her might to help people as far away as Mindartia. There’s nothing in it for her.”

“Who are you?” Xaerus asked, her voice more puzzled than angered.

The woman took a deep flourish, her puppet mimicking the maneuver. “Allow me to introduce myself.” She said. “You can call me Isset; I’ve heard your plight and know exactly where you can get the help you need.”

“Where?” Jinxie asked, trepidation being overruled by the sudden glimmer of hope.

“Tell me,” Isset asked the two women, folding her arms again, “have you ever heard of a woman named Naja Salaheem?”