199: Crimson Wind (Maiya)

IMPORTANT NOTE:

There's been a rampant spree of stories being stolen off RoyalRoad,  processed by AI, and then uploaded to amazon under a different name.  This is EXTREMELY concerning for writers. It's unethical and honestly  downright F'd up.

For those of you who read on amazon, I'd truly appreciate it if you  could keep your eyes out for stories with similar synopses and ch 1's,  and report it to the affected authors ASAP.

About 15 or 20 rr authors have been affected so far, and it doesn't seem like it'll stop anytime soon.

In the worst case, I may be forced to abandon posting my story on RR -  many other authors are considering this as well. I'd ofc hate to do  that, but I may have no choice if this kind of piracy goes unchecked.

Second, the recent patreon updates have been as awful for writers as it has for readers. It seems they have broken italics, so I recommend reading chapters in your email where (I believe) it still works. I feel your anger and frustration. Know that many of us have complained to patreon, but they've refused to even respond. They simply do not care. When RR offers their competitor, I will 100% offer that option as well. It should be a far better experience for readers.

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Two weeks.

Of the thirty days Maiya had to herself, just shy of fourteen remained. Two weeks to grow her skills before she infiltrated the Children of Ash. While she fully intended to continue her training even afterward, who knew how much time she’d have between all her obligations?

For the first time since coming into Ira’s employ, Maiya had managed a reprieve of her duties. She’d painstakingly convinced the princess that growing her strength was of utmost importance, and thus, she’d earned this precious time.

It is important, Maiya thought as she meditated just fifteen paces away from an Ash Tear. I can’t fall behind.

It wasn’t just keeping up with Vir that bothered her. She was about to infiltrate an organization on her own—at least initially. She was delving into the den of an insane cult. Honing her skills would help keep her safe for the hard times ahead.

Maiya grimaced as pain ravaged her body. Many had called her a fool for sitting so close to an Ash Tear, well past the Ash Wall, near the Boundary. It was true; monsters tended to pop through with alarming frequency, though many were maimed in the process, due to the Tears’ instability. And it wasn’t as though Maiya sat right next to the Boundary where she might be snatched up into the Ash. She was still a good quarter mile away. Safe enough to maintain a margin of safety.

Of course, Ira wasn’t about to let her precious agent put herself in such danger alone; a company of thirty Balarian Elites stood only a handful of paces away, ready to jump in if Maiya got in over her head.

There was another reason Maiya desired to linger this close, however—the prana density was far higher immediately next to a Tear. By subjecting herself to this torture, she actively increased her own blood’s carrying capacity. Mejai across the world claimed that the path to Mejai of Realms was by ‘purifying one’s body and soul’. Terribly vague, and nearly useless.

There was a nugget of wisdom buried in there, though.

Maiya was almost fully convinced now that this purification process referred to spending time near the Ash, to boost blood carrying capacity. The pain was certainly commensurate with purification; her body felt like it was being ripped apart. Like it was being purged of impurities.

Perhaps something like that was happening—perhaps her Ice and Water affinity capacity grew at a greater rate than her other affinities, thus ‘purifying’ her blood. She couldn’t know. Not without Vir around to peer into her body.

What she did know was that greater capacity meant she could run longer before saturating, and that she could create a stronger suction force inside her body. That let her charge orbs more quickly, and more importantly, charge higher grade orbs.

If I can learn to charge A Grades… Maiya’s Balar Rank would soar into the hundreds.

She felt bad for Vir, having to discover his own path, struggling alone, while Maiya benefitted from the magic passed down by the gods. Mejai orbs were almost like cheating. They concentrated power and made her many times more deadly than she could ever be without them.

Nevertheless, Maiya knew that Vir would surpass her. He always found a way. It was why she refused to slack off, even for a moment.

A black form popped into existence forty paces away, breaking Maiya’s meditation.

She stood and regarded the beast. It’s come through mostly intact. A perfect opponent for her.

“Spidorilla, huh? A rare one.”

Spidorillas were about as fearsome as they sounded. Sporting enormous gorilla torsos that stood atop an arachnid body, they were among the more bizarre monsters that spawned from the Ash. How such a being had ever come into existence, Maiya couldn’t know. She didn’t want to know. She just needed to kill it.

A task easier said than done.

Maiya ran toward the enemy and launched two precharged C Grade Wind Blades,  though she didn’t expect them to do much of anything against the beast. She’d learned that Ash Beasts fresh out of the Ashen Realm were far more durable than their counterparts who’d been in the Human Realm for a while. It was as though they had a layer of invisible armor that protected them.

The benefit of Wind magic was it was fast—fast enough to hit Ash Beasts, unlike her Ice Affinity magic. Wind was second only to Lightning. The downside was its range—the second-worst, and Maiya only had a lesser affinity for it. She was now only twenty paces away from a monster that could lop her limbs off with ease.

Her Balarian Guard moved in, but Maiya waved them back.

“It might be Balar One Fifty, but that’s only in the Ash. I can handle this one.”

“Sixty counts,” the Balarian commander said, bowing his head. At Balar One Hundred himself, he was no pushover. “Any longer, and we’ll intervene.”

Maiya nodded. This was one condition Ira had imposed on her. The danger of any fight mounted the longer it dragged on. If Maiya wasn’t able to best her opponent within a minute, her warriors would rush in to help, regardless of her orders. They took orders from the princess, whose authority outweighed Maiya’s tenfold.

She didn’t mind—it just made for better training, forcing her to fight as efficiently as possible.

The Spidorilla Leaped at her.

Maiya dodged in the nick of time, barely avoiding a vicious slash. Ash Beasts always made for difficult fights against mejai like Maiya. Even with Enhance Speed orbs accelerating her movement, Talent wielders simply had a better mind for the flow of battle. They understood their own bodies better, and could predict enemy movements to a greater degree, perhaps because of how they fought. Up close and personal, rather than ranged like most mejai.

Maiya was good with strategy and tactics, not instinctual melee combat.

She slipped past the Spidorilla’s deadly limb, but didn’t retreat. Conveniently, the enemy had brought itself within range, so Maiya brought out her deadliest weapon.

For after months of training, capped by two weeks of torture, C Grade spells were hardly Maiya’s strongest anymore.

B Grade Hail Burst launched out. Like Icicle, it, too, shot shards of ice—coated with Ice prana—to shred enemies. It was just far deadlier. Instead of a single projectile, a hailstorm of a hundred ripped outward.

It wasn’t the fastest attack in the realm, but it didn’t have to be. At such close range, the Spidorilla had no hope of dodging.

The hail punctured the beast, smashing apart its invisible armor before sinking their teeth into its body.

The Ash Beast’s torso took several hits, but its armor-like hide protected it from any lethal injuries. Its limbs, however, were another story. One had been peppered through with holes, while two more hung on by a thread.

Maiya danced around the injured beast, launching Wind Blades one after another. She lopped off the two injured legs and hammered its torso with magic. With its invisible armor defeated, the Spidorilla took more and more damage.

But it wasn’t dead. Not nearly. This was an Ash Beast, after all, and though it had lost three legs, it still had five more.

“Fifteen seconds,” the commander called, right as the Spidorilla Leaped at Maiya, its eyes full of fury.

Maiya barely saw it coming. The next thing she knew, she was sailing through the air, and she couldn’t breathe.

Instinct honed from thousands of hours of practice kicked in, and Maiya flew into a roll that dissipated the impact of her fall.

She had no time to regain her breath; the enemy was already upon her.

It smashed her chest with its giant gorilla arm, and Maiya felt her Blunt Force Protection orb wink out.

Maiya rolled to the side, replenishing the orb with prana—without it, another hit like that and she’d be dead.

The Spidorilla jumped, pinning her under its legs. If it dropped its weight on her—as she was sure it would—she’d be dead.

In the distance, Maiya saw her Balarian guards closing in.

If only I had another Hail Burst, she thought. But Maiya wasn’t yet at a point where she could charge B Grade orbs in combat. It took her almost a solid minute to fill even one.

What she did have, however, was a slew of C Grade spells.

Icicles and Wind Blades fired out. Besides carrying multiple copies of each, Maiya could now charge them in mere seconds. They did little damage, but the two spells synergized surprisingly well, with Wind Blades cutting into the Spidorilla’s underside while the Icicles gouged into the wound, expanding it, allowing the next Wind Blade to cut even farther.

The Spidorilla roared in pain and jumped off, but it was too late.

It took three stumbling paces, then keeled over, smashing into the grass with a loud thud.

“Only two seconds left on the clock. Reckless, milady,” the Balarian Commander said, grinning as he offered Maiya a hand up. “Reckless, but impressive.”

She took the hand, grinning back. “That’s one down. Only four more to go for today’s quota.”

The adrenaline coursed through Maiya’s veins.

Don’t think you’ll beat me when we meet again, Vir.