Chapter 73: A Conversation with Mavuika, Reaching Kachina
Chasca stood rooted to the spot, her gaze locked onto her sister's retreating back. Her lips parted, trembling slightly as if a dozen unspoken words were fighting to escape, but she ultimately pressed them into a tight, thin line. At her sides, her fists were clenched so hard her knuckles had turned completely white.
Wayna walked over, his footsteps light against the dirt. He stopped beside Chasca, his voice gentle but carrying the weight of experience. "Chasca, when you have the time... you should spend more of it with Chuychu. Family is a treasure far more worth protecting than any victory won in battle. Do not wait until you lose them to finally understand the value of that care."
The words struck a taut, invisible chord deep within Chasca's chest. Her shoulders trembled. She lowered her head, offering no rebuttal, allowing the silence to stretch.
Only then did Wayna turn his attention to Lumine and Paimon. "How is Vichama?"
"Much better," Lumine replied cleanly. "He is resting at the camp."
Wayna exhaled a long, heavy breath. "That is good. Thank you both."
He then shifted his gaze toward Mualani. "Regarding the Soul-Sensing Stone..."
Instantly, expressions of deep guilt and embarrassment washed over Mualani and Chasca's faces. Mualani stepped forward, her head bowed, and carefully retrieved the completely shattered, dim remnants of the stone.
Wayna looked down at the marrow stone. Its inner light was entirely extinguished. A brief flicker of regret crossed his eyes, but it was quickly swallowed by a warm, tolerant understanding.
He waved a hand, his tone steady and reassuring. "It is alright. You used it to do the right thing. I will personally explain the situation to Citlali. Leave the fallout to me."
He reached out and gave Mualani's shoulder a comforting pat, then glanced back at the dispirited Chasca. "You still have a much more important mission ahead of you. Go. And be careful out there."
Wayna was, without a doubt, a deeply reassuring senior.
Bidding farewell to Wayna, the group of four—Lumine, Paimon, Mualani, and Chasca—turned their sights back toward the Stadium of the Sacred Flame. The journey was swift, driven by a heavy, shared anxiety for Kachina's safety.
However, the very first sentence they heard upon reuniting with Mavuika struck their hearts like a physical blow.
The Pyro Archon stood before them, her usual radiant aura noticeably dimmed. She delivered the news without sugarcoating it: during the climax of the great battle, both she and the Fatui Harbinger, Il Capitano, had completely expended their elemental energy. It was a staggering, daring gamble that left the Archon temporarily stripped of her divine flames.
The gravity of the situation hung in the air, but there was no time for idle sentimentality or drawn-out shock. The ritual to pierce the veil of the Night Kingdom had to begin.
As the preparations fell into place, Lumine found herself standing beside Mavuika. The conversation drifted, casual at first, until the concept of 'destiny' slipped into the dialogue.
Lumine turned her gaze toward the massive brazier of the Sacred Flame. The flickering orange light danced across her golden eyes, mirroring an unyielding, almost chaotic will burning just beneath the surface.
"I do not believe in a predetermined 'destiny,'" Lumine said, her voice slow, deliberate, and cutting through the ambient crackle of the fire.
She turned to look directly at the Archon. "If 'destiny' is nothing more than a pre-written script, then people are reduced to mere puppets. They are forced to play their assigned roles on a stage, marching blindly toward an ending decided by someone else."
Lumine took a step forward, the air around her seeming to sharpen. "Joy, anger, sorrow, separation, and death... if all of it exists merely to entertain some unseen 'audience,' then it has absolutely nothing to do with the puppet's own free will."
She paused. Her gaze turned as cold and sharp as a drawn blade. "If one day, I find myself standing on a stage like that... and I discover that I am merely an 'actor' who cannot even control her own strings..."
Her fists clenched at her sides. The leather of her gloves creaked. A fierce, multiversal defiance radiated from her very core.
"Then I will tear that script to shreds and jump straight off the stage!" Lumine declared, her voice ringing with absolute certainty. "I will drag those so-called 'audience' members down into the dirt of this world. I will make them bleed, and I will make them understand."
She locked eyes with Mavuika. "'Destiny' should be written, forged, and broken by the people living inside it. Not controlled by cowards sitting idly in the rafters!"
Silence followed her declaration. Lumine said nothing more, but the sheer, overwhelming weight of her personal will—her absolute, chaotic refusal to be caged—caused a strange, brilliant light to flash within Mavuika's eyes.
This Traveler from beyond the stars... her soul was exactly like her journey. Boundless. Unpredictable. Brimming with infinite possibilities and a spirit that simply refused to bend.
Mavuika did not offer a single word of rebuttal. Instead, a warm, genuine smile broke across her face. The Archon gestured for Lumine and Paimon to sit, and in the quiet moments before the ritual, she began to speak of her own past, weaving the ancient, ash-stained history of Natlan into the night air.
Lumine and Paimon listened in rapt silence. As the stories unfolded, a deep realization settled over them. The most dazzling, impressive aspect of the woman sitting before them was not her overwhelming combat prowess or her divine authority over fire.
It was the light of a true leader. A light that originated from the dirt and sweat of the people, served those very same people, and ultimately returned to them.
Mavuika's humanity, her sharp wisdom, and her crushing sense of responsibility were infinitely more captivating than any display of Archon might.
She was, without question, the undisputed, beating Soul of Natlan.
By the time the ritual officially commenced, the moon hung high and pale in the midnight sky.
Arcane energy surged. As the chanting reached its peak, the blinding light in the center of the magic circle suddenly condensed. The chaotic energy stabilized, and a blurred, flickering, yet heartbreakingly familiar figure slowly materialized.
It was Kachina. She was still trapped deep within the suffocating dark of the Night Kingdom.
At first, the young girl's phantom radiated pure, terrified vigilance. Her large, animalistic ears twitched frantically, and her wide eyes darted around the projection, as if she believed this was just another cruel whisper from the Abyss trying to trick her mind.
But then, her frantic gaze swept over the faces standing around the circle. Lumine. Paimon. Mualani. Chasca. Iansan.
The defensive posture shattered. Her vigilance melted into a look of sheer, unbelievable shock, rapidly veiled by a thick layer of welling tears.
Yet, this small, battered warrior of Natlan did not immediately break down. She did not cry about her fear or scream about her grievances.
Instead, Kachina sucked in a sharp, ragged breath. Her voice trembled with an almost imperceptible sob, but she forced the words out with desperate urgency.
"Lumine! Mualani! You have to listen to me!" she pleaded, her phantom flickering wildly. "The anomaly inside the Night Kingdom... it originates from the Wayob! It... it looks like it has been corrupted by the Abyss too!"
She swallowed hard, her small hands gripping her weapon tightly. "I... I tried to get close. I wanted to help it, but the Abyss spat out this terrifying monster... I almost... I barely..."
Her words were fragmented, tumbling over each other in a rush of panic and adrenaline. But the underlying message was crystal clear. Even while trapped in an absolute nightmare—isolated, terrified, and utterly helpless—she had never once abandoned her duty as a warrior of Natlan. She was still fighting to uncover the truth. She was still trying to save the Wayob that protected her home.
Kachina forced her small chest to puff out, desperately trying to inject strength into her wavering voice. "I... I am fine! Really! Please do not worry about me!"
But the forced bravery was a thin, fragile veil. The sheer exhaustion, the bruises, and the suffocating despair radiating from her phantom struck everyone present like a physical blade to the chest.
Paimon's tiny fists clenched so hard they shook. Her big eyes brimmed with angry tears. In that fleeting moment, Paimon remembered the two arrogant fools who had dared to slander Kachina back in the city. The beating they had received suddenly felt far, far too light.
Before the silence could stretch, Mualani stepped right to the edge of the magic circle. Her voice rang out, firm as solid rock, violently piercing through Kachina's fragile emotional barrier.
"Kachina! Look at me!"
Mualani's gaze was fierce, burning with absolute conviction. "No one abandoned you! We heard your voice! We saw every single ounce of your effort! You are not alone! We are right here! So hold onto your courage! Just wait, do you hear me? We are coming to save you right now!"
The words hit Kachina like a shot of pure adrenaline. The thick fog of confusion and despair clouding the young girl's eyes largely burned away, replaced by the overwhelming relief of being understood. A tiny, fragile flame of hope rekindled in her chest.
"Mualani... everyone..." Kachina's voice finally cracked. "I am really scared. It is so dark here. It is so cold and eerie. I really, really want to go home..."
She wiped frantically at her eyes. "But I am also so afraid that you will run into danger trying to get me. I do not want to become the one holding everyone back again..."
Mualani leaned closer to the light, her voice softening but losing none of its strength. "Stay strong, Kachina. We will never leave you behind."
Suddenly, the edges of the phantom began to violently distort. The communication array sparked, destabilizing under an unseen pressure.
"Tha... Thank... you..." Kachina's voice warped into static. "Be... careful..."
With a sharp crack, the projection shattered. The communication was completely severed, plunging the center of the circle back into darkness.
Lumine did not hesitate for a single second. Her golden eyes hardened into chips of ice.
"Let's go," she commanded, her voice leaving absolutely no room for argument. "Time is up. We set off for the entrance to the Night Kingdom immediately!"
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