Chapter Text
Kinich woke up, he didn’t even know when he fell asleep. He pressed a hand against his forehead, a faint pounding against his skull.
“...bastard…”
“...okay now…”
“But what about…”
Kinich heard faint voices coming from outside the door, he was… back in his room again? Back near his tribe.
Kinich sat up in the bed, how long was he asleep?
Images flashed by his vision for a moment, making him wince. Was what happened just a nightmare? He knew it wasn’t, but he wished it was…
After taking a few deep breaths, Kinich got out of the bed and slowly made his way to the door, why did he feel so weak right now?
“Hello?” Kinich said as he opened the door, only to see his living room very crowded with Mualani, Kachina, Paimon and the Traveler, and Ajaw in his humanoid form. Ajaw turned to him and gave him an irritated look before moving up to him at a pace Kinich didn’t know the dragon was capable of.
“I leave you alone for five minutes and you’re moving?! You need to stay in bed!” Ajaw scolded before pushing Kinich back through the door.
Kinich didn’t really have the strength resist him as Ajaw pushed and dragged him back to the bed and practically tossed him onto it.
“You’re unusually pushy today.” Kinich said, only for the dragon to glare at him.
“Because I’m still mad you got wrapped up in abyssal crap and that your human body is much too fragile to handle it!” Ajaw said, “Do you even remember what happened?”
Kinich held his head for a moment, “nothing…. In particular… besides just Sanka doing his… examinations.”
“I swear I will kill him…” Ajaw hissed before brushing back one of Kinich’s bangs to look at his left eye. “It looks like it cleared up pretty well.”
“What cleared up? You’re unusually cryptic.” Kinich noted.
“ You’re usually impatient.” Ajaw shot back, “You seriously don’t know what he did to you?”
“No…”
“Ugh… you idiot…” Ajaw scowled, “Sanka the shithead decided to
really
test the markings I put on you and shot some abyssal energy into your fucking eye. The barrier managed to keep the worst of the effects at bay but it got through regardless. The Traveler managed to cleanse your energy but it looks like it’ll scar.”
“Scar…?”
“Here.” Ajaw grabbed a mirror and tossed it to Kinich.
Kinich took the mirror and looked, and saw his left eye had an unusual purple tinge to it among the green, yellow, and orange. The purple formed a crescent like shape around his pupil.
“This is from abyssal energy?”
“Yeah, like I said, the traveler managed to cleanse most of it, you won’t be stuck with it rotting away at your insides at least.” Ajaw said with a frown.
“You’re concerned because if the energy took me down, it might make my body inoperable after my death, right?” Kinich asked.
“Obviously,” Ajaw said with an eye roll, “I can’t use you body if you get it all banged up, you’re not dying on my watch.”
“That sounded hypocritical.”
“Please! Nothing I say can be labeled as ‘hypocritical’!”
“What happened when I passed out?” Kinich asked, “I don’t… remember anything after we left the cavern.”
“Your friends showed up, late as usual.” Ajaw huffed.
Ajaw sighed in annoyance as Kinich suddenly went limp in his hold, perhaps the mist was still potent enough to knock him out. He saw the markings start to glow again and he expended some more energy to make them fade away. Having those things visible will draw a lot of annoying questions he doesn’t care the answer right now.
“Kinich! Huh?! Ajaw?!”
“Wait! THAT’S Ajaw?!”
Oh great, more nuisances…
Ajaw saw Mualani, Kachina, alongside the outlanders appear in view. Paimon having that irritatingly shocked expression on her face.
“You’re late, I already took care of everything.” Ajaw said, “Although the bastard of a Lector managed to slip away again.”
“Is… is Kinich okay?” Kachina asked.
“No, he’s not.” Ajaw scowled, “He’s been infected with abyssal energy, Sanka the asshat decided it was a fun idea to try and inject energy into him and how he’s even more screwed up.”
“If that’s the case, here… I can try something.” The traveler said, walking up to him.
“Oh? Like what?” Ajaw asked.
“Just, hold him still for a moment.” The traveler said, they raised their hand and a faint orange glow flowed from their palm and touched Kinich’s forehead.
“...You can cleanse abyssal energy, you’re quite a surprise, aren’t you?” Ajaw asked, already feeling the cold and nauseating feeling slowly fade away from Kinich’s form.
“It’s something I knew, but I haven’t had to use it in awhile.” The traveler said with a small smile. “He should be alright now.”
“That’s good, now come on, we need to get back home. He needs rest.” Ajaw said, “Honestly, humans are way to fragile…”
“What happened to Enjou?”
“He ran away, not before being the biggest, creepy pervert I have ever seen.” Ajaw spat, “Enough questions for now, just help me get him back, he’s not light.”
“And that about sums it up, you didn’t miss much.” Ajaw said with a sigh.
“Ajaw… there’s something I wanted to ask you about.” Kinich said.
“What is it?” Ajaw asked with a bored look.
“When Sanka was looking at my eyes, he said they looked
familiar
.” Kinich said, “I don’t know what he meant by that…”
“Familiar, huh?” Ajaw muttered as he looked at Kinich’s eyes.
The Abyss Lector was right, Ajaw may not have been the sovereign of Natlan like he likes to claim, but he wasn't some measly dragon citizen either. It’s interesting how no one seemed to question his pixaled form, even if they questioned it at first but quickly forget about it. The technology he has extreme familiarity with was something he knew the Abyss recgonized. Back when the Heavenly Principles went on their rampage. There was no doubt about it…
That multi-pointed star shaped pattern was no doubt Khaenrian. The civilization that existed without a god.
Ajaw was deeply interested in the human’s technological advancements given his interests at the time. He never expected it to bleed into Kinich like this due to their contract. If that was even the cause…
There were many things that caught Ajaw off guard in regards to his bond to Kinich, what started as just a means to an end, it caused so many unusual developments he doesn’t even know what this bond was anymore. While he wished it was purely transactional, it just wasn’t. Not anymore…
That abyssal energy did something. That unknown tie to an ancient civilization becoming more apparent. The pattern in his eyes was very different from normal khaenrians, his eyes having many more points than a normal star, so bloodline relationship was off the table. Still… Kinich's eyes didn't look like that before, they were a deep green before they made that contract.
Kinich looked at him expectantly.
Ajaw huffed before folding his arms behind his head, “Who knows why, that abyssal insect doesn't make any sense most of the time. Perhaps he was desperate to find something on you and decided your eyes were the target.”
Ajaw knew Kinich didn't believe him, but he didn't press further.
“I'm surprised you're still in that form. I figured you'd be out of energy to keep it on for long.” Kinich said.
“Bah! The traveler did some magic stuff and helped refill my energy. No biggie.” Ajaw said with a shrug, “Someone has to make sure you don't die from falling off the bed. Shameful way to go.”
A few more days go by and Kinich is feeling a lot better. According to the traveler and Ajaw, all the abyssal energy in his system is basically gone. Though that energy draining mist Sanka used to sedate him was still having long term effects.
“Enjou is such a pervert! I know I mentioned he wasn't completely rotten to the core, but this takes the cake! Paimon’s really re-evaluating that label now.”
“For some reason, that… doesn't sound like Enjou. I wonder….”
“Wonder what?”
“I don't know, it's just a thought. Anyway, how are you feeling?”
“Better, for the most part.” Kinich said, the traveler and Paimon were checking on him since Mualani and Kachina had a few days ago. “Ajaw still deems me ‘weak like a maggot’ and has refused to let me leave the house for awhile.”
“Ugh, Paimon can never tell what that guy is thinking! He blatantly threatens to kill you all the time, yet he's taking care of you pretty intently right now.” Paimon shook her head with mild frustration.
“Ajaw is just like that. Despite all his claims, he's still my assistant under our contract. He's likely just fulfilling his role so things can go back to normal.” Kinich said, “Although he has been a lot more quiet and serious recently.”
“Maybe this event shook him a lot. Mualani told us how panicked he sounded when Enjou took you and how he literally took off the second they vanished.”
“Perhaps…” Kinich said, looking back inside for a moment. Ajaw knew something about this event and was refusing to tell him. Ajaw was never one for secret keeping like this and yet… Something was off about him. He knows basic questioning isn't going to get anywhere as far as he knows. On some level he understands if Ajaw doesn't have any concrete answers, and just worried speculation on his part.
Still, whatever Sanka was planning, he definitely wasn't finished. Whether or not the Lector comes after him again, he doesn't know. Maybe that's a reason Ajaw wants him to lay low for awhile.
“Anyway, where is Ajaw now that I think about it. If he doesn't want you to leave the house, is it fine for him to go off on his own?” Paimon asked.
“He just went to pick up some fruits from the market. No big deal, considering who that lector was, I doubt he'd show up within the tribe himself.” Kinich said.
“Yeah, Enjou is a bit of a coward anyway. There's a reason why he keeps running away…” Paimon sighed.
“He's only running away because he fears the Almighty Dragonlord K'uhul Ajaw.”
Paimon let out a yell as the three of them turned to see Ajaw in his humanoid form again, carrying a bag of fruit.
“Don't sneak up on Paimon like that!”
“You're the one not paying attention!”
Kinich let out a small sigh while the traveler chuckled as the two began to argue.
Kinich really does hope things can go back to normal. He has to be more vigilant for the coming weeks, but that wasn't too big of an issue. If anything, he had to figure out what that Abyss Lector was after… then, he'll get his answers.