Revolutions

92 - Inuxeq

As numerous people in the neutral-toned garments of palace servants dart past us with faces etched in panic, I know we're racing toward the heart of the battle. Loud, piercing booms of collapsing structures resonate throughout the grounds. Flickers of flames extend high above the remains of the surrounding walls that once protected this palace, now beginning to crumble at the might of the enemy. There isn't much time before the Eye in the Flame enter the palace, mere steps away from the seat of power.

Leading the charge, we rush over toward the main gate of the palace. The guards are taken by surprise at our presence, preparing to attack us as if we were invaders. It takes them a moment to notice our different colored outfits—nothing like the robes of the cultists that have launched an assault on their palace. A few of the generals shout to their warriors to let us through, then make their way to meet us.

"Qantua warriors, a Tuatiu and... an Ulxa warrior?" They're perplexed by Mexqutli's presence. My assumption, recalling Sianchu's initial orders upon arriving in Iantana—and, admittedly, my first impression upon seeing Mexqutli—is that they've been told the Ulxa are attacking Tapeu. They haven't been informed that, although the Eye in the Flame may be Ulxa in origin, they aren't representative of the faction in its entirety. I'll have to somehow convince them of this—and quickly, before Mexqutli says something ill-advised that will only confirm their suspicions.

"You could say we're reinforcements," I state, "sent by the council at Hilaqta. The Ulxa warrior is an ally. An Iqsuwa, in fact. Sent by the leader of his people, Tlexnín, to pursue a diplomatic resolution between the Tapeu and Ulxa, so that the real enemy, this Eye in the Flame, can be defeated by a united front."

Unsurprisingly, the generals receive my news with bewildered expressions cloaking their faces. "I understand how confusing this may be," I say in response to their obvious reactions. "I have just released a flood of contradictory information upon you at once, but we are here to defend Qapauma—of that, you can be certain."

"She speaks true," one of the Qantua officers shouts, approaching those of us gathered. Frankly, I'm taken aback by the support I receive from people who I felt were ready to abandon me, leaving me to an ill fate before the zealots. "We have seen much destruction at the hands of these monsters at your gates, and the Ulxa warrior has been the guiding light in slaying them." Other Qantua warriors nod and vocalize their agreement.

One of the Tapeu generals grunts in dismay. "Their forces appear significantly smaller than ours, yet their might is great. They are cutting down our warriors with ease. What is the way you have been able to defeat them?"

I'm suddenly struck with panic. I realize, we haven't actually defeated the Eye in the Flame; we've only forced them back and lived to fight them another day. Like cockroaches, they are resilient, reappearing when we're most vulnerable. Can they formally be defeated?

Mexqutli responds, "They are sorcerers, using a bastardized version of the powers of the Tletlazotl of my people."

"Guardians of the Flame," I clarify. Maybe the Tapeu aren't as thrown off by Ulxa words as I am, but I feel compelled to explain the term nonetheless.

"They appear to be a sect of the monastery, consumed by evil," Mexqutli says. "They use fire, but like many aspects of life, it is what they worship that can defeat them."

The generals appear confused by this enigmatic answer. "What I believe he is saying," I step in to explain, "is that we've had success utilizing fire, particularly against the gray creatures they summon."

"Gray creatures?" they say, confounded. It appears we're unleashing an exorbitant amount of new information upon them, all at once.

"They use a drum, the..." I prepare myself for yet another confusing Ulxa word, "the Huetloia. It's a ceremonial drum that allows them to raise the dead, similar to those we fought in the War of Liberation. Destroying the drum, burning them with fire, and slaying them with precise strikes at the throat has been the only way to stop these monster."