Chapter Five
"So Kycina, who's this new friend of yours?" Mathayus asked. "She is the Enchantress of the Valley of the Ancestors but not to worry, I'm not traveling with her alone. I came to ask if you would be willing to accompany me and my new friend to the Domain of Exiles," Kycina answered. "Same old Kycina: always right to the point of every little detail life has to offer," he stated optimistically.
"Are you in or not?" she asked him. "Oh I'm in all right, I still gotta figure out whether or not you'll say yes to this bundle of sexiness between your legs," he answered. "Maybe another time but yes I am considering it if you've been faithful like I told you to be," she told him. "Are you kidding me; there is no one else worth all the trouble for me," he replied like she had insulted him.
"All right, you'll find out the answer after I've considered it for a bit," she assured him, placing a finger under his chin and pretending to shoot him with a blaster. "Oh de la, I look forward to you saying yes," he told her. "Hold it in tiger, you've already done good for a whole year," she said as she lightly tapped his cheek before turning to the rest of the Nightbrothers who hadn't been paying attention until she faced them. "You can count on that," he said.
"All right you he-bitches, listen up! One of your kin has already volunteered to follow me on a journey to a place filled with so much evil, returning home may be out of the question. Who would like to join Mathayus in helping me reach the Domain of Exiles with the Enchantress of the Valley of the Ancestors?" she asked the rest of the Nightbrothers. "My name is Mercury and I am a friend of Mathayus; my brother Deimos can keep Brother Viscus' power under raps while I'm away besides, I think I'm going to like this adventure a lot more than fighting weak men who try to challenge me," said a Nightbrother with a bow and quiver of arrows strapped on his back with two short swords at his belt.
"Excellent, that's all I needed from the Nightbrothers clan. Thank you for your cooperation and someone please remind Brother Viscus that I will be back if he has lied to me about anything in my interrogation with him. He'll understand what I mean when you say that," Kycina demanded. The Nightbrother called Deimos promised to deliver the message to Brother Viscus and would await her return to tell her the reaction.
"That's Deimos, a little on the slow side sometimes but pretty cool," Mathayus said. "Hey, watch what you say about my brother," Mercury demanded. "At least I complimented him, come on!" Mathayus retorted while throwing his arms into the air. "Come along you two before things really get bad between you," Kycina ordered, tired of their pathetic arguments.
"Okay but Mercury, one question: want to settle this over a rap battle sometime?" Mathayus asked. "Knock it off now," Kycina interjected. And immediately they were off on their way and, following the Enchantress' instructions, walking to the Domain of Exiles. "Out of curiosity Enchantress, why the hell are we walking to the domain instead of using Kycina's speeder?" Mathayus asked the witch of the Valley.
"The speeder would have been destroyed long before we even reached the Domain of Exiles anyhow. I figured that if we were going to be walking from here to there anyway, why not start here and now?" she told him. "Besides, we are on a mission that requires us to get used to collaboration before we reach the Domain of Exiles if we are to survive," Kycina agreed. "Ah, the loner Kycina, finally submitting to a partnership with long-time friend Mathayus," he joked.
"Enough with the jokes, Mathayus! We have got to get going," Mercury demanded. "I agree with him, time to get going for now," Kycina said. "All right, let's get going then," Mathayus saying, getting serious for once.
Old Daka sensed the phantom in her chambers long before she saw it. "I know you're here Karis, do not try to hide from me," she said. "How did I know you were going to pick up on me, Daka? Perhaps because I was counting on it," Karis replied.
After a moment of pausing, Karis asked her if her ploy had worked on Kycina. "She is on her way to the Domain of Exiles now if that's what you mean but I doubt it will mean the end of her," Old Daka answered. "I am truly not that concerned about whether or not she lives, I only want her gone long enough for Naa'leth and me to gain some power and respect in her absence," Karis said. "Mother Talzin would never let you exceed her right-hand executioner, there is a reason Kycina is up there after all," Old Daka warned her.
She added that she wouldn't be surprised if Talzin had been counting on Karis trying something like this. "You speak as though Mother Talzin knows everything when even she does not have the power to see and know all. Only the All-Seer does and it doesn't take that thing to see that I am not the one who spawned the resistance," Karis said. "If that's so then why did you have me send Kycina after the All-Seer?" Old Daka asked.
"Because when opportunity presents itself, it must be exploited immediately!" Karis said. "Not every opportunity is meant to be exploited for personal gain. Even with my power, I know this to be very true and even Talzin stays away from things that may hinder our ultimate goal," Old Daka warned. "And if this 'opportunity' backfires on me?" Karis asked her.
"Neither I nor Talzin would have any reservation letting Kycina destroy you and Naa'leth. Such a shame she could probably do it with one hand tied to her back though," Daka answered. Karis gulped, knowing full well that Old Daka was sincere on that remark though she did wish she didn't have to mention Kycina's power. Karis already knew it from firsthand experience, provoking her to act on her jealousy of a younger and more impulsive sister.
"But Kycina is such a reckless animal, why would you and Talzin let her do that?" she asked aloud. "Because reckless or no, Kycina has served us better than you and Naa'leth combined. Where were you two except cowering and bitching behind a rock while Kycina nearly single-handedly led us to victory against an invading tribe of Mandalorian scum?" Old Daka asked. Karis remembered that attack very well and bit her lower lip as Old Daka continued to ramble about Kycina's heroic exploits.
"Where were you two except gossiping and frolicking with other sisters when Kycina took only five other Nightsisters and conquered a neighboring tribe of Nightsisters that number nearly twenty thousand strong? Where were you two when three Gorogs came crashing down upon our home and she took them out using only chains, a double-sided battle ax, and a sword? But most importantly, where were you two except ducking under a trench when she single-handedly ended a resistance of Nightbrothers you were assigned to end?" Daka added. "She is always taking away our chance at glory, I need her out of the way so I can not worry about her keeping me in a subordinate position forever," Karis explained.
"For a Nightsister that is good in magic, you need to work on the art of deception a little better. You and Naa'leth are cowards that are jealous of Kycina's courage and willingness to sacrifice herself for the clan," Old Daka snapped. "Give us a chance and we can prove ourselves worthier of her title than she herself could ever be!" Karis shouted, buckling under the pressure Old Daka put on her. Old Daka fished under her table after that and pulled out a large brown sack and threw it at Karis.
"Keep those credits you tried bribing me with, I have no use for them even for simple alchemy spells. Besides, we do not use currencies of any kind on this world no matter what other worlds do," she added as Karis caught them. Karis felt them and realized something was wrong, causing her to wonder if Old Daka had taken some. "Only to test their alchemic worth which was none but you are holding an illusion of the real thing," Daka said.
"Where is the real bag?" Karis asked, fearing the worst. "I sent it to Mother Talzin with a note you had tried to bribe me into sending Kycina to her death," Old Daka answered, confirming Karis' greatest fears. "Why did you do that? I thought you were on my side, not Kycina's," Karis asked.
"I serve no one side except my own, when it benefits me I join one faction to aid another in its end," Daka answered. Karis realized it wouldn't be too long before Talzin obtained the real deal and Old Daka's note. But the time it would take her to do it was time enough for her to steal it away, however. Karis ran out of Old Daka's headquarters and raced into the chambers of Mother Talzin as fast as she could.
She knew that once Talzin received Old Daka's package, she was doomed to be punished. Worse, Talzin would not only uncover Karis' dirty secret but she would also uncover Naa'leth's involvement in this matter too. But when she arrived, it was too late: Talzin was holding the bag and reading Old Daka's note about Karis trying to bribe her into being Kycina's undoing. "Well, well, what do we have here but the treacherous snake trying to kill another sister without staining her hands with the blood?" Talzin asked.
Kycina watched as the sun set and found a perfect spot for a camp to be made for the night. It was a shaded grove of thorny patches but the ground was flat and filled with dirt and stone rather than the thorny plants that formed the walls and roof into a dome shape. However, she didn't want the grove to be kept unguarded and asked Mercury how he was on sleep. "I only need a few hours then I will be good to go for the rest of the day, sometimes several days at a time," he told her.
"Good, get your rest first than I will have you keep on watch detail all night," she said. The Enchantress agreed to meditate and hone in her powers until the time came when they would need her aid. In the meantime, Mathayus and Kycina both decided to take it easy for the rest of the night. With the Enchantress in too deep a meditation to be focused on anything else and Mercury out of hearing range, Kycina decided to voice a concern of hers.
"Mathayus, I remember what you asked me to consider and I've come to a decision," she began. "Uh oh, Breaking News: BA Nightsister Kycina has come to a decision!" he joked. She gave him a stern look to say she meant business and he told himself to shut up aloud before she continued with her case. "I am going to consider a possible relationship beyond friends as I said earlier, I'm even going to consider the possibility we could be 'sex-buddies' to put it bluntly but do not be disappointed if I say no," she added.
"Don't worry Kycina, I have waited more than a year for you to even start thinking about it. I can wait a little longer for you to decide I can get under your pants," he said. "I can't believe you can be so blunt on these things and yet you haven't even kissed a girl," she stated disgustedly. "And I can't believe you're still denying my undeniable charm," he replied.
"A charming contradiction to the last," she said with a smile on her face. "How did I know you were going to point that out to me?" he asked her. "You would have had to if you wanted one on the count," she answered. Before he could ask what she meant, she gave him a quick peck on the cheeks with her lips then told him to get some sleep. You sneaky little devil he thought as he watched her tuck herself into the sleeping bag she had provided for herself.
Smiling, he unrolled the one she had given him but not before calling Mercury to see if he needed any rest. "I rested before we left, I won't need sleep again for a long while," he said. Mathayus shrugged and tugged himself into his sleeping bag before going to sleep. However, even after he had successfully fallen asleep, there was almost no way the smile on his face could be wiped away after what Kycina did to him just a moment ago.
He only had to get up a couple times and that was so he could use the restroom. But all the times he did however, he couldn't help but admire Kycina's sleeping form just before dozing off once more. Mercury had teased him a couple times about Kycina being out of his league but that was before the Enchantress said she did see a future where Mathayus held Kycina in his arms. Seeing that the Enchantress was forbidden to lie about her visions, Mercury dropped the matter after she said that and Mathayus dreamed of all the things he wished to do with and to his love. Now that he knew she did care for him at least a little bit past friendship, he was going to make it go all the way. And why not when one considered Kycina was too scared to do it so it was up to him and he already knew how to do it?