Heart of Ikchani

Heart of Ikchani: Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Adneiva walked out of her tent with the sunrise casting its yellow rays through the trees and into the clearing of the camp. The fire pit smoldered, and sitting on logs around the fire were a few women looking for answers. Adneiva hadn't wanted to go deep into explaining their plans the night before, and told everybody they would talk in the morning. The duchess, Divinity, walked to her side and looked at the others with her. It seemed to Adneiva that Divinity would either be a great ally, or someone to challenge her leadership.

Sitting on the logs were Nyverra, a dark-skinned woman who knew Divinity, Naveen, a woman with black hair and magic enough to turn men into toads, Viero, a blonde woman with magical abilities, and Daekr, the toad that sat obediently next to Naveen. They were all the most strong willed women in the group, with the exception of Daekr who was neither a woman, nor human at the time. Adneiva knew they would each have a part to play in the new group of women.

"Many of you are here for answers," Adneiva said. "I don't know how many I can give. We are newly formed and don't know all the answers yet. Our goal is to overturn the corrupt male led government and rule in their place as it should be. We will all discuss together how we can accomplish this. We do not have a plan set in stone. Does anybody have any questions?"

"What does Ikchani mean?"

Adneiva smiled. "It is from an old poem my mother sang me. I had forgotten about it until Divinity reminded me."

"Song?" Nyverra asked.

Divinity inhaled and stepped forward.

"Behind every man sits a woman,

She is not seen, she is not known,

But without her, a man is not a man,

He is a fool, a coward, and a baby,

A woman defines a man,

She is his courage, his intelligence, and his bravery,

Without her, he is lost, he is no one,

She is his rock, his foundation, his Ikchani."

"So, we are the Ikchani?" Naveen asked.

"Brave, courageous, and intelligent women. I would like to think so." Divinity smiled. "More so than men, definitely."

"How are we going to be able to overcome their government? They've ruled the lands forever," Nyverra said.

Adneiva grinned. "That is where Divinity comes in. She has a plan."

Divinity nodded. "As I already explained to Adneiva, men only think they are wise. Men only think in black and white, but we must think in gray. Their leadership lies in force, but not cunning. They have armies that we cannot defeat. While we may not be able to train every woman to wield a sword or bow, or even how to use magic... there will be some we'll be able to teach. The others will be like the serfs in the villages and cities, fulfilling duties like cooking, cleaning, and making clothes and weapons. They will be as useful as any who become fighters, and the difference between the men and us, is we will tell them how useful they are. We cannot defeat their armies. They have too many and are too well trained for us to ever hope to defeat them. Perhaps one day, once we gather enough women to arms and train them well, but that will not be today. However, if we are to succeed, we will have to damage them today. Men are impatient, we all know this. That is one thing we have on our side. This victory will not be overnight, but we will have patience to wait it out, patience to succeed."

"How will we hurt them today?" Nyverra asked.

"All men have a weakness...a weakness we do not share," Divinity said.

"And what weakness is that?" Nyverra asked.

Naveen laughed and petted the toad next to her. "We all know what their weakness is. And we are the weapons to their weakness."

"What weakness?" Nyverra asked.

"Are you that naive?" Naveen asked.

"She was my maid at the castle. I'm afraid she is as inexperienced as she sounds," Divinity said.

Naveen giggled. "Their weakness is between their legs, and I guess that it will be our job to exploit that weakness."

"Yes," Divinity said. "The problem is, while I know their politics, who is important, and who we can stir up, I am known in the castle. I cannot be seen. That means I will have to train all of you what to do, and who to do it to."

"Spreading chaos, three legs at a time," Naveen said.

Divinity smirked. "That's the idea."

"What about me, milady? I am from the castle as well, they surely know me."

"Not as well as you think. They cannot tell the difference from one dark-skinned woman to the next. We'll simply need to cut your hair and highlight your features. Men are dull, they won't know the difference," Divinity said.

"What will we need to do?" Naveen asked.

"What women do best, seduce the men. It is important that we seduce the correct men. The king, Commander Eryen, Earl Viryra, and Baron Gorred. If we can get them all fighting over the same woman...the hierarchy will crumble around them."

"What woman?" Nyverra asked, shivering.

"We will need a volunteer," Divinity said.

"I may not be as naive as Nyverra, but I am as inexperienced," Adneiva admitted.

"I will." Naveen smiled. "It wouldn't be the first time I've been seductive, would it Daekr?" She petted the toad.

"Ribbit," Daekr said.

"Okay. Naveen will be the seductress. Make sure you make them all jealous of each other, and if you can, displace some of their trinkets in each others' rooms."

"Not a problem," Naveen said.

"Adneiva and Nyverra, both of you look for recruits in the city. And Viero, do your best to find the guard of the city. Be seductive to the leaders and a few recruits, and make sure they find out about each other. When the hierarchy and the warriors fall, the city will be in ruins."

"Where will you be?" Adneiva asked.

"I will be there with you, but I will have a brown robe covering my features. There is little I can do to hide my presence as the former duchess, therefore my features will need to remain hidden. I will need to look like a peasant."

"So where do we begin?" Adneiva asked.

"First, I will tell you about the city, who you need to know, who you need to seduce, and how to do so."

"May I help?" Naveen beamed.

"Of course." Divinity smiled. "And this is where our magic will come in handy."