Lady Ji-su, the commander of the Lionesses, was a mountain of discipline and control. But even mountains have internal fissures.
In the hidden training room, long after Maya had left, Ji-su meticulously re-polished the weapons. The smooth, deadly surface of the Jalaba staff reflected the strain in her face. The arrival of the West-Seu delegation—her own people—had stirred painful memories of the coup and the comrades she had lost.
Scholar Aisha, who often remained to organize the coded documents, noticed her rigidity. He gently placed a cup of specially brewed herbal tea on her work bench.
"It is a blend for the weary, Matron," Aisha murmured. "From the same coastal village as the Princess. It is simple, but it is honest."
Ji-su paused, her hand hovering over the staff. "Honesty is a luxury we have not been afforded in two decades, Scholar. Our lives are built on calculated lies."
"Perhaps," Aisha countered quietly, sitting down nearby. "But the simple truth of a cup of tea, or the sight of the Princess speaking the Mother Tongue—those are moments that nourish the cause, Matron. You have carried the weight of the Lionesses for so long. Allow yourself a moment to see the fruit of your labor."
Ji-su picked up the tea cup. It smelled of mint and sea-salt—the very scent of the coastal village where Maya was raised. It was the scent of safety.
She spoke softly, a rare vulnerability in her voice. "I failed her mother. I was too slow. I swore I would not fail Anansi."
"You did not fail them," Aisha said firmly. "You survived. And because you survived, the lineage survived. Because you bore the lies, the truth is now speaking in the halls of Joseon."
Ji-su took a long, slow sip of the tea. It was warm, simple, and honest. She looked at the diagrams of the N'kafo form Maya had mastered. She looked at the cipher scroll, now safely stored.
"The Princess is the Onyx Phoenix," Ji-su said, a hint of fierce pride returning to her eyes. "And we are the fire she rises from."
The tea did not erase the burden, but it renewed her resolve. She finished the cup, stood, and turned back to the weapons, the quiet Lioness commander ready for the final, necessary battle.