The days that followed the meeting were awkward.
Liiza had a hard time accepting that her mother wasn't completely to blame for what had happened to her family. Liiza had hated her for too long, but she couldn't ignore what she had overheard. Yeza was a hard woman to love, but she had been fair with Deni. It actually seemed that he had taken advantage of a moment of weakness only to betray her trust later on.
Khan wasn't completely fine either. Captain Erbair, Liiza, and Yeza's words never stopped resounding inside his mind. He worried about the political environment, his power, and his relationship, but no real solutions appeared in sight.
Captain Erbair was right. Feelings weren't always enough in relationships, and Khan and Liiza might have to face that truth. Yeza's story had even proved how the problems didn't have to be strictly political. Some features in the partners' characters could lead to a division, and Khan feared that his desperate goal to find the Nak might fall in that category..
The revelations about the chaos element also filled his mind with doubts. Liiza believed that the human approach to the Wave spell was dumb, but she couldn't help him develop a new method either. She even felt that Khan shouldn't test his luck right away due to how he had treated his mana until then. After all, a single failed attempt might really make him explode.
Khan found himself stuck among issues that he couldn't solve. He couldn't do anything to fix the toxicity of his relationship, the political environment was basically on hold during the crisis, and his power couldn't gain any immediate benefit. Moreover, he had to deal with Liiza's poor mental state without forgetting his friends, superiors, and the higher-ups of the other species.
Needless to say, Khan felt overwhelmed during those days, but he was far from alone. He was doing his best to help Liiza, but everyone could see that she did the same.
The palace wasn't too different from the academy. The students soon understood that they could use some of its areas to have parties, and the few recruits left on Nitis didn't hesitate to join them. Khan and Liiza weren't an exception, but they limited themselves to a few hours of celebrations before going to his room or the first isolated place that they found.
Those celebrations mostly started in the late afternoon and continued until deep into the night. Instead, meetings with the higher-ups occupied the hours before lunchtime. Yeza never failed to summon everyone to inspect their target inside the muddy valley at the base of the two mountains.
It turned out that the palace inside the valley was only one of the important locations that the rebels had captured with the help of the sunlight. Multiple structures that had served the Niqols for centuries had fallen into their hands, but Yeza's group only had to take care of what was near them.
The absence of Aduns was an issue that the Niqols didn't expect and couldn't fix. The Lysixi had also become unreliable due to the sunlight, so crossing long distances and gathering information had become impossible for now.
Yeza could only make her group focus on one target due to those issues, and she even had to approach the fight carefully. The siege was only the last of her problems. Her team would have to cross multiple regions potentially occupied by monsters that had gone through the second round of mutations before reaching the muddy valley.
Tension built up as the days passed. Both humans and Niqols knew that each meeting drew their departure closer. Yeza even planned to deploy most of the troops inside the palace for the mission, so it was clear that she had no intention to retreat or fail to capture the muddy valley.
The group was looking at a one-way journey, and the humans among them couldn't say anything. The soldiers didn't establish any friendly relationship with the Niqols, so they didn't feel the need to help them. Yet, their mission forced them to deploy as much manpower as possible in the battles, and Yeza knew that. She never held back from counting them as part of her force.
The growing tension only added worries to Khan, but he barely had the time to think about that with everything going on inside his mind. It seemed that his life had gone back to the peaceful times in the academy, with the only difference that he didn't have to keep his relationship hidden.
The students and recruits enjoyed six entire days of break inside the palace, but Yeza wanted to put an end to that peaceful period, and Khan and Liiza were the first to learn about that.
A surprising message appeared in Khan's room on the night of his sixth day inside the palace. The azure symbols on the walls brightened and woke him up as they transformed into orders that carried Yeza's name at their end.
"[Is it mine or yours]?" Liiza complained in a sleepy voice as she used the bed's blanket to cover her face.
Liiza and Khan had never held back from sleeping together after the silent acceptance of their respective superiors. She was currently on Khan's chest, but the light of the orders was annoying her.
"[It's from your mother for both of us]," Khan revealed, and Liiza immediately uncovered her head to inspect the walls with her sleepy eyes.
'[Khan, Liiza, use your young and cute aura to convince the old hag],' Khan and Liiza read on the walls.
The message didn't say anything else. It didn't add any detail, and it didn't even mention Zalpa, but the couple knew that Yeza was talking about her.
"[Is she spying on us]? Liiza scoffed.
"[We didn't exactly play it low recently]," Khan joked while reaching the back of Liiza's head to caress her.
Liiza voiced an annoyed curse before lying on Khan and hide her head in his neck. She left a few kisses there, but Khan straightened his back and made her sit on his lap.
"[I think she means now]," Khan chuckled when Liiza's annoyed face appeared in his vision.
"[Of course she means now]," Liiza whined, "[Which means that we have to depart soon. Don't you want to make the best out of our safe time left]?"
Khan's eyes widened before lowering at his side. Liiza was right. Yeza must have asked them to gain Zalpa's favor since the battle was close. The time to assault the castle inside the muddy valley had finally arrived.
"[Zalpa will have to wait a bit]," Khan commented when his eyes returned on Liiza.
Liiza caressed his cheek before wrapping her arms around his neck and whispering in her cute voice. "[More than a bit]."
.
.
.
Zalpa had never come out of the second basement during those days. No one had ever mentioned her either. Yet, everyone could guess that some Niqols had interacted with her to question her about the crisis.
The palace's corridors were almost empty at night. The only areas that still had someone were the large halls with the parties, but Khan and Liiza didn't have to cross them to reach the first floor. They could arrive in front of the drape that hid the basement's entrance without meeting anyone.
Liiza didn't take much to make the walls move and uncover the narrow staircase that led to the lower levels of the palace. A prison almost identical to that seen during the meeting with Yeza unfolded in the couple's eyes after they descended from the steps.
Liiza quickly found the entrance to the second underground floor and unlocked it. The couple soon arrived in a familiar environment illuminated by dark-red light. They saw a couple of cauldrons, red symbols, and Tainted animals hanging from the ceiling.
'How did she even bring Tainted animals here?' Khan wondered as his eyes focused on a dirty figure sleeping on a simple bed on the other side of the basement.
"[Are you Yeza's last resort]?" Zalpa shouted while straightening her position to sit on the bed.
"[Zaza, you know that helping us is the right thing]," Liiza promptly responded.
"[Is it though]?" Zalpa asked before jumping to her feet and approaching one of the cauldrons to check its insides. "[Niqols who believe in the old ways are finally showing themselves. Why should I help stop them]?"
"[Because I am on the other side]," Liiza replied as she and Khan approached the old Niqols.
"[You can still change your mind]," Zalpa sighed when the couple arrived in front of her. "[I wish you would, Lii]."
Zalpa glanced at Khan after her comment, but her eyes quickly went back to Liiza. She had basically asked Liiza to go back to the old ways while her boyfriend was holding her hand, and she didn't appear too proud about it.
Khan had reached the basement with the intention of remaining silent. He didn't delude himself. Zalpa's past comment about him wasn't a complete acknowledgment since she still hated the humans. She only liked that he was treating Liiza properly.
Khan wanted to let Liiza handle the talk, but his annoyance reached its limits after the last comment. He was giving his everything to Liiza, the Niqols, and Nitis as a whole. Khan had done his best since his first day on that alien planet. He had approached every teaching in the academy with utmost seriousness, and he had even learnt techniques from the old ways.
The last days in the castle had been tense, but the situation for Khan had been even worse. His head was full of problems that he couldn't solve, but he still did his best. He took care of Liiza and his friends, trained like a madman, and helped in every meeting. He couldn't remain silent when Zalpa spat on his effort.
"[What else do I need to do]?" Khan voiced an angry complaint that surprised both Liiza and Zalpa. "[Do you want me to paint my skin and stare at the sun until my eyes turn white? I understand that you have a problem with humans, but why can't you put them aside for me? I'm more Niqols than most of the students in the academy! I abide by the old ways more than most of Liiza's superiors]!"
Liiza tightened her grasp on Khan's hand, but she held back from hugging him. She was the only one on the entire planet who knew how much Khan did every day. She actually felt surprised that his patience had lasted for so long.
Zalpa had also remained speechless in front of that angry outburst, but she couldn't remain silent. Everything Khan had said was true. He had earned enough respect to deserve an answer.
"[Your kind is cruel, cynical, and weak]," Zalpa explained. "[You throw away lives only to gain mere political benefits, and you show no respect toward your power. You take everything you can without paying any price. You feed on a few exceptional individuals and claim their merits as your own. You are no better than worms]."
Zalpa revealed how her hatred toward the human wasn't mere xenophobia. Her disgust had a solid foundation that Khan couldn't contradict. Everything she had said was true, at least when it came to a general view of humankind.
"[Don't treat me as a human then]," Khan declared. "[I don't care how you see me. I'll even let you take me as a Nak if that makes it better for you]."
Khan partially hated himself for saying those words, but the cold sensation spreading from his hand appeased that feeling. Everything was worth it as long as it was for Liiza.
"[That's not better at all]," Zalpa's snorted, but her expression seemed to relax. She had seen what Khan went through every time he slept. She knew that his statement must have taken everything he had.
"[Then find another method to trust me]," Khan continued while pointing at the cauldron next to him. "[You are a shaman, right? Do some shaman stuff to test me or something. I'll let you do whatever you want as long as you start trusting me]."
"[Are you willing to go this far just to get my help against the rebels]?" Zalpa chuckled in disappointment while shaking her head.
"[I don't care about that at all]," Khan announced. "[I'm doing this to make Liiza happy. She cares a lot about you]."
Zalpa felt a tinge of shame spreading inside her mind. Her expression froze as she raised her eyes toward Khan to inspect him. His resolve was honest and intense. Even the Niqols would struggle to match his determination.
"[I can arrange that]," Zalpa didn't give up. "[I can test you, but the process can hurt you badly. It will even leave a lasting mark on you. Do you really want to gain my approval]?"
"[Khan]," Liiza called, and her action made the cold smirk on Zalpa's face widen. She believed that Liiza would make Khan give up on that matter, but the rest of the phrase left her speechless once again. "[Don't overdo it. She is still an old woman]."
"[Don't worry]," Khan smiled while pulling Liiza closer. "[She has finally given me a chance. Nothing else matters]."
