Kaji Warriors: Shifting Strength Read online

  Once in the pool, Atae snatches a pink leaf and sniffs it, recognizing the scent of the Kisl plant. During her eighth season, Atae learned from Feku about plants with unique characteristics, including healing herbs like Kisl. It is the main ingredient of many topical, pain-relieving medications. Atae rubs the plant between her thumb and forefinger, letting the numbing sensation that spreads over her fingertips confirm her suspicions. She releases the medicinal plant into the water and eyes several more churning about the pool. Realizing her legs have already loosened and no longer ache, Atae reclines into the small lake of relaxation and sinks deeper into the water. Her aches and pains fade across the rest of her body, and Atae sighs in relief.

  The stonework surrounding the pool and descending into the water reminds Atae of a spring that she and Jeqi enjoyed numerous times. Atae closes her eyes and leans against the stone, enjoying the sounds of the bathroom. She basks in her memories of Jeqi and their hidden spring. She envisions the field surrounding the spring and how they would train together, talk about battle strategies, and help each other with assignments. Then, an unwelcome memory invades her mind, and Atae remembers her last visit to that field. In a flash, she feels the emerald gaze upon her and the certainty that death will swoop down at any moment. A wave of helplessness and fear overwhelms Atae, and her eyes snap open. She jerks forward and splashes in the water as she searches the room for intruders.

  Panic-stricken eyes dart from one corner to another until the moving door attracts Atae’s attention. Solum slips in, scanning the room for threats. After a moment, he snorts and trots to the edge of the pool. Solum flops onto the ground with his back to Atae and guards the door. Atae blinks at her father before realizing that she is no longer anxious or afraid.

  I am not afraid. I am Kaji. I am strong, like Father.

  Relaxing under Solum’s protection, Atae smiles and dips under the water. When she resurfaces, her dark hair glistens with blue as it lays slick against her smoky skin, and her fuchsia eyes open to land on the illustration across the wall. Atae swims closer and glides her fingers along it, surprised that every riveting detail is hand etched. The colors glisten like liquid jewels to create a magnificent work of art. Atae marvels at the intricate work and gasps when she realizes the sparkling colors are, in fact, precious jewels. Solum lifts his head to glance at his daughter.

  She meets his eyes and asks, “Do you see this?”

  Solum glances at the wall and huffs, unimpressed. Rolling his eyes, he sets his head back down. Confused at his lack of interest, Atae runs her fingers across the wall again.

  “Where are we?”

  After marveling a little while longer, Solum interrupts Atae with a snort. He huffs at her again, and she almost smiles at the clear command to hurry up. If he could speak, her father would claim that he did not have all day for her to waste admiring a wall. Not long after, Atae, clean and relaxed, steps from the bathroom.

  Wrapped in a drying cloth, Atae searches through the many elegant and sophisticated outfits in the closet until she finds one of her uniforms. The black bodysuit with short sleeves and pants has the silver logo of Sula Academy across the chest. Atae considers her school uniform appropriate for any occasion. She notices her hair in the mirror and sighs before attempting to detangle the mess with her fingers. Uncertain as to what to do next, Atae shrugs at Solum, lounging on the bed.

  “Well, what now?”

  Solum hops down and hustles through the main bedroom door, pausing for it to slide open automatically. Atae follows him into a large hallway and is, once again, amazed by the decor. She places her fingers on the wall across from her room and enjoys the touch of precious jewels. Stepping back, she stares at the illustration of a bloody battle. A Kajian male stands in the epicenter of death and carnage as hundreds of fellow Kaji lie dying or dead alongside thousands of enemy corpses. The Kajian standing in the center of it all is injured, but still, he faces the onslaught. He commands his army and defends his people. Atae swells with pride at the depiction of Kaji honor.

  Solum interrupts her thoughts with a low growl. Accepting his command to follow, Atae nods to her father. He leads her down a maze of halls as Atae fawns over the majestic scenes playing out around her. Soon, they reach a heavy, metal door that slides open, and Atae follows Solum into the royal training area.

  Chapter 13

  Atae follows behind Solum and peers around the room. She expects another eloquent and elaborate space that’s bathed in jewels. Instead, she finds an outside training arena that’s twice as large as her favorite clearing near Mount Tuki. The building behind her extends all around the training area with several access points. Stone hills erupt from the ground and extend above the roof of the buildings. Several warriors climb up and around the mountains and try to drag each other down. In various sections, three-inch steel columns impale the ground and stand almost as tall as the mountains. Some parts encompass only a few beams, while others have hundreds within a small area. She watches a battle beast hone his agility by darting between them at high speeds, cringing when he slips and slams into the solid steel. Atae also eyes several Kaji training on equipment that’s grouped in different sections around the arena.

  As they walk deeper into the training area, Atae twists around in awe of the enormity of the grounds. She doesn’t notice a familiar youngling walking toward her or the two battle beasts at his side. Her tired muscles spasm, and she stumbles forward to land on her knees. With her hands in the dirt, Atae cringes at her weakness and ignores the taunting whispers that crowd her mind. She raises her head only to come face to face with two battle beasts.

  She gasps and crawls backward away from the two deadly creatures baring their teeth. Accustomed to the temperament of most battle beasts, Atae doesn’t feel threatened by the massive creatures’ aggressive displays. Instead, she’s entranced by the lighter beast’s familiar silver gaze.

  It’s him, the heir from the market. He was with that rude youngling.

  Atae stares until a familiar voice grates across her nerves, and she notices the rude youngling from the market standing between the two battle beasts.

  “On your knees, again? Ready to worship me now?” he says. His amber eyes glimmer with taunting amusement as he tilts his head to the side and runs his hands through his wet, red, and white hair. The young male glistens with sweat from his bare arms, and a drenched towel hangs over his shoulder to dampen his shirt. Atae stares up at him from her knees and recognizes the smug expression plastered across his dark face. She growls at the brute with an annoyed roll of her eyes.

  “You, I know you.”

  “Of course, you do,” he says, then glances at Solum. “I see you’ve finally decided to come out and play.”

  “You were in the market the other day. You were very rude,” Atae says. She climbs to her feet as the battle beasts, including Solum, bare their teeth at her. She frowns at their response, but the young male holds up a hand to stop them. The two beasts at his side sit at his command and glare at her. She glances at Solum, but he stares at her with unreadable eyes. The young male steps closer to Atae and peers at her with a hard expression.

  “You will address me by my title.” He speaks with power and intimidation, but Atae doesn’t like bullies.

  “Your title? Are you so important that everyone on this planet should know you by sight?”

  “Yes. Along with everyone else in the empire.”

  Atae falters at the youngling’s declaration, tilting her head to stare at him in disbelief. “Are you so arrogant that you honestly believe the empire revolves around you?”

  He chuckles at her remark. With an amused smile, he steps closer and searches her face for a sign of insincerity. She frowns at him and leans away from his violation of her space.

  “What are you doing?”

  “You really don’t know who I am.”

  “Why would I?” Atae pushes him away. Again, the two battle beasts jump to their feet and bare down on Atae with threatening snarls.
Solum, still scrutinizing her, remains at Atae’s side. She crosses her arms and shrugs at the threatening beasts.

  “You know you’re pretty arrogant for someone who needs his packmates to protect him,” she says.

  “They aren’t my pack. And I don’t need them to protect me. They just don’t tolerate disrespect.”

  “Then why are they hanging out with you?”

  The brute blinks at the question and frowns in confusion. Intrigued by the blue-haired hybrid, he steps to Atae’s right and circles her. The two beasts fall behind him, still watching her like trapped prey. Atae doesn’t move but to keep him in her line of sight.

  “What do you mean?” He asks.

  “You’ve been nothing but disrespectful. You’ve failed to introduce yourself and failed to address my father by his title,” she says. “You’ve insulted me during our only two interactions. Then, you throw a childish fit when I don’t use a title you failed to declare. I get the feeling you throw a lot of fits. What I can’t figure out is why no one has beaten this nasty habit out of you.”

  “Are you offering to do it?”

  The young brute stops at Atae’s back, and she whips around to answer his challenge. Solum lunges at her and pins her to the ground with two massive paws. She cries out from the weight of him on her chest, and she struggles to push him away. But he is too big, and she is too weak.

  “Father, what are you doing? I can take this arrogant brute.”

  She yelps from under Solum’s shaggy coat when he sits on her. With her arms pinned, it doesn’t take long for her to fall still from exhaustion. Atae stares at the cloudless sky as she catches her breath from the exertion, and she snarls when the male hybrid leans over her with a wicked smile.

  “You may not know my title, but I know yours.”

  “I don’t have a title.” She grits her teeth as the presumptuous youngling kneels close and whispers in a taunting tone.

  “Atae, the daughter of Royal Advisor Solum Learska. You were ranked second in your class at Sula Academy. But due to a recent injury by rogue trespassers, you’ve dropped to eighth. How far will you let your ranking slip before you return to class?”

  “You disrespectful brat. I don’t know who you think you are, but one day, very soon, I’m going to stomp you into the ground.”

  The young brute throws his head back and laughs. “Once you’re fully recovered, feel free to challenge me anytime. I don’t want my victory over you marred by your injuries. I’m going to truly enjoy stomping you back into your rightful place under my boot.”

  Enjoying Atae’s angry growls, the young male glances at Solum with a nod.

  “I’m assuming you’re here for Dr. Pwen.” When Solum nods, the amber-eyed youngling continues. “I’m not finished with today’s session, so you’ll have to meet with him in the med tent instead of the med wing.”

  “See you soon, Blue,” the brute says to Atae before walking away.

  Solum waits for the youngling and his companions to leave before releasing Atae. She rolls to her knees and watches the male hybrid walk away, noticing several Kaji that scramble to clear his path. Atae wonders at the youngling’s strength and how much she’ll enjoy fighting him.

  Solum snorts to draw Atae’s attention to a rotund hybrid walking toward them from around a partition along the arena wall. Atae raises her eyebrows at Dr. Pwen’s extra set of arms and eyes. His primary pair of arms seem more robust than the second, which extend from his elbow joints with limited mobility. The doctor’s central pair of eyes, located in the eye sockets at the front of his face, lock onto Atae. The second pair, positioned on the outer sides of his skull, survey the area around him. Dr. Pwen’s bald head and bushy white mustache accentuate the roundness and his plump face. Despite his strange physique, Dr. Pwen’s wide grin draws a smile from Atae.

  “I see you are doing much better than when I last visited you, Atae,” Dr. Pwen says.

  “Um, you visited me?” She would definitely remember meeting him before today.

  “I guess you wouldn’t remember me. You were unconscious at the time,” he says. When Dr. Pwen laughs, his plump belly jiggles, his arms wave in the air, and all four brown eyes glitter with amusement. Knowing such personalities in Kaji culture are rare, Atae is taken aback by the doctor’s bubbly charm.

  “I cared for you after your incident,” Dr. Pwen says with a wink.

  “Uh, thanks,” Atae says. She frowns when the doctor motions toward the pest that challenged her.

  “I must say, you certainly know how to make an impression. Warn me before your next visit, and I will transfer to the Southern palace,” Dr. Pwen says.

  “Do you think it’ll be a great battle?”

  “Most definitely.”

  He coaxes Atae to follow him to his medical area, but she glances at Solum for instruction. The royal advisor glares at his daughter, unhappy with her recent behavior, but lifts his head as a gesture to follow the good doctor. When all three Kaji reach the partition, Atae glances at the male youngling sparring across the room.

  “Is he as strong as he thinks he is?”

  “All Kaji warriors think they are stronger than they actually are. That is why we are always breaking new ground, always getting stronger. Mentality plays a large part in any battle.” The doctor pats on an exam table with one of his smaller arms and waits for Atae to sit.

  “A warrior’s honor gives him strength,” Atae says and sits on the table. Solum slinks past the partition and lies in the corner of the medical area to watch Dr. Pwen. Feeling calmer with him watching over her, Atae smiles at her father before tugging at a nearby curtain.

  “So, you would not want to watch our battle?” Atae peeks from around the curtain to watch her new rival battle with his elder. He attacks the front defenses over and over again, never attempting to flank.

  He truly is a brute.

  “Oh, no. I am a specialist, not a warrior.”

  “I know many specialists, and none of them miss a good show of battle.”

  “Ah, but how many are doctors?” Dr. Pwen asks. Two hands flicker in the air as he scours his visor for Atae’s medical records. Atae watches him search through his files as she considers his question.

  “Uh, none, I guess. Doctors don't like violence?”

  “It’s hard to enjoy a battle when all you can think about is what damage each strike causes to the body,” he says. After finding the correct file, Dr. Pwen performs his exam on Atae, assessing her eyes, ears, throat, reflexes, and healed wounds

  Ignoring the examination process, Atae watches the youngling across the training grounds battle with the same opponent. Atae has yet to see the youngling dodge or glance an attack; instead, he insists on blocking or taking it full force.

  Only a brute would attack the same way every time and expect different results. Atae snorts with amusement.

  Then, he does something different, sidestepping a punch meant for his face. Expecting the hybrid to block as he had every time before, the older combatant hesitates in surprise before advancing with a spin kick to the abdomen. The youngling glances off the attack and uses his opponent’s hesitation to spin close, hitting home with a neck chop. The stunned warrior doesn’t feel the final blow to the back of his head that renders him unconscious.

  Interesting.

  Atae can’t hide the impressed amusement on her face as she watches the older Kajian crumble to the floor. Two other Kaji shuffle over to help their fallen comrade, while a third one steps into fighting stance and continues with the sparring session. Without pausing, the young hybrid continues the battle unfazed by the fresh opponent.

  After finishing his exam, Dr. Pwen clears his throat. “How long have you been up and about?”

  “Long enough to bathe, then walk here from my room,” Atae says. She watches the new opponent bounce from one foot to the other, dodge attacks, and counter with fast jabs.

  What’s your strategy against this new smaller, quicker opponent?

  “Any soren
ess or muscle spasms?” Dr. Pwen asks. When Atae hesitates to answer, he pulls the curtain closed with one of his larger arms and demands her full attention. She crosses her arms and pouts.

  “No, not since bathing.”

  “What about convulsions?”

  “No, not since…” Atae tries to answer but stops when she remembers her last convulsion. She touches her face and jaw. No damage of any kind. Confused, she stares at Solum. She can still remember the pain of her jaw breaking and the sound of her teeth cracking. It must have been a dream because her face is perfectly fine.

  “I don’t remember the last convulsion,” she says. “I had a lot of dreams and…I’m not sure what really happened.”

  “So, you don't remember much of the incident?”

  “It happened really fast. There are some things I remember perfectly and others…” Atae averts her gaze to hide her shame. “Deh said something other than the poison was making me sick.”

  “Aw, yes. That's correct.” Dr. Pwen searches through his notes. “Your temperature was several degrees higher than normal. You were delusional and suffering from convulsions.”

  “How much of that was due to the poison?” Atae cringes at the thought of being so weak and vulnerable.

  “With Setunn poisoning, you can expect muscle spasms that lead to convulsions and death within a few minutes. Nasty stuff.”

  “Then, how am I still alive?”

  “Honestly, I have no idea. With the time it took for Solum to find you then Deh to administer the salve, you should be dead.”