Celina
Celina and Tyrell were trapped.
The snow hammered down onto the ground with great fury.
A horde of creatures came wing to wing close and encircled the two of them, trying to assert their dominance over the Samagraha. The creatures were seething, releasing puffs of smoke from their nostrils and gazing down as if Celina and Tyrell were pieces of meat brought in to get roasted, their stares flashing anger. They were ready to rain down flames of hellish fire.
Tyrell was quick to use his Formation. He grunted and snuffled with impatience. His eyebrows formed a crease in his forehead, wrinkling on and off in concentration. Violent, blue electricity snapped out of his hands and zigzagged upwards through the cold, dry air. The blazing ascend accompanied a terrible crash and the roars of the creatures echoed across the moor.
The overwhelmingly hostile situation turned Celina's mind into a dispiriting, chaotic mess. She hated the idea of limiting her capabilities. The fact that her Formation would only fan the flames beyond control bothered her inside out. "Aim. You have to learn how to aim," Hayden had said. Aim at what, she wouldn't know. In the given moment, she could only defend herself and Tyrell. And for it, she intended to create a robust windy block with the tendency to change the direction of the fire and dissipate smoke out of the way. She waved her hand and several tornadoes, the great columns of air swirled and twisted and picked up the creatures like they were nothing. They rammed and glid, turned and buffeting with an absolute sense of destruction and havoc.
Celina and Tyrell jolted midst through the tornadoes, as swiftly as possible, beating the windy atmosphere that threatened to slow their momentum down. The squelching sounds of their slapping footfalls drowned against the screech of creatures. Celian followed Tyrell, running as fast as her short legs would carry her. She couldn't afford a glance backward but her mind was fixated on the deadly twisters.
"Now! Jump!" Tyrell shouted. They burst inside the yawning opening of the cave. Tyrell jumped first, down a gaping black hole on the ground that blended well with the snowy-rocky surface of the forest. Celina neither falter nor hesitated, but bolted forward and dived down into the hole after him.
Despite not being a great deal of depth, Celina felt dizzy while descending. Tyrell leaned forward and caught her by the waist before she slipped. Her concentration on the stone got disrupted. There were fierce flapping sounds of the wings and much fiercer screeching from the world above. Slowly the sound turned into a tiny symphony of bird cries. It gradually faded and in about a minute or two they stood in absolute silence.
"That wasn't too bad," she said, catching her breath and actually feeling alive.
"I don't want to believe that we've breached all the obstacles already," Tyrell said and beckoned her to follow him as he jumped down the layers of rocks that worked like a staircase.
Their voices were breezy and echoey, giving Celina the impression that they were alone in the cool, damp, head-to-toe translucent blue ice cave. She looked around, unblinking. This seemed like one of those places she fondly remembered visiting in her childhood with her parents back in America. It had a similar representation of an age-old empty lava channel or more like a subway tunnel. Rocks, black, white, and icy, and of all shapes and sizes were scattered around as if liquid lava rocks had already been cooled and solidified.
She turned around and scrutinized the layers of rocks and the artificially built hole on the ground that had helped both of them enter the cave. The ice cave was lit by daylight filtering down through cracks or holes in the surface above. Also, the shadows of the creatures appearing and disappearing sporadically gave a dramatic touch from the outside world.
"This cave," she said. "is actually pretty."
Tyrell raised a brow. "I was held captive here for many months. Not to mention, this is the cave where thousands of women go through Almourah."
She felt a pang in her heart, and an image of herself facing the wrath of Almourah in that tiny cave in Uttarameer sprang into her mind. "Sorry."
They made their way through the long ice tunnel that started to become narrower. Tyrell moved with a confident stride. He seemed fairly familiar with the path along the tunnel, despite losing his memories. Hayden claimed that Nazira had built the route to save Tyrell from his captivity. Seeing this cave, and its tenacity...damn the heavens, the witch must be really powerful.
The tranquility inside was unbroken, except for the mild splash of water in certain areas. It was the plain ice cave without stalactites and stalagmites. The color palette of the ice, as Celina observed, changed frequently. It ran from pale bluish-white tones to bluer and bluest, sometimes with strong turquoise tones reflected into dark green. Little did she realize that this cave system, embedded with dark magic, was nothing short of an underground city with a distinctive character of its own. The glassy blue walls and roofs. The dramatic shards and dozens of interconnected frozen chambers co-existed in harmony. In addition to this, there are strange ice formations on all sides. The cave seemed to be formed by volcanic vents or hot springs beneath the ice. It was hard to stop fawning over the marvels of nature in this country.
There was something about this cave that Celina admired, despite being known as Shashi's home. It was another one of that wonderment of nature, she believed. Boy was she getting nature wonderment overload here today, so much that it had never seemed possible before. It was a like a painting in every sense of the word. Such a shame that it could not welcome visitors and promote local tourism!
Tyrell then took a sharp left. There was another set of rocks that formed a crude staircase, snaking downwards at an uneven pitch. It went steeper and deeper into the bowels of the cave. Soon they reached a passageway with walls lined with lanterns. The place reeked with the acridest, nauseating stench Celina had ever encountered. There was the babble of voices coming down from the corridor. Tyrell did not look surprised, nor he seemed a bit troubled by the smell. He had his face slightly grimaced and he kept walking.
A series of cells hove into view. The entrance gates were nothing but iron fences and walls. Inside was narrow and long, just a box fit for one human, cut and carved in the thick stone walls, worse enough even for the Neanderthal era.
"What's that noise?" Celina asked.
"What do you think?" Tyrell said, his tone casual. "Captured women are locked here."
Celina stopped dead at the spot, "They are in there now?"
"In some of them, yes." He must have noticed Celina's predicament when he said, "We will come back for them. By god, we will come back and same them all. But now we have other things to worry about."
They resumed walking. Silent for a couple of minutes and then Celina asked, "Tyrell, how was it to you?"
He shrugged, turning his head around as if searching for something. "Perhaps it was a good thing that my emotions were shut off. Jyran separated me from my stone and used certain spells on me that kept me motivated to listen to his lectures. He claimed to love me but he also beat me with a lot of grudges. He made each day stretched out for like a decade I tell you. No kidding there."
He beat you because you were calling out my name in your sleep. Celina wanted to say but she calmly walked alongside him watching the meltwater running down the huge ice rocks. She ignored the fog lazily trailing from its glowing ends.
"Here," Tyrell said, pointing at the gate of the cell at the end of the corridor. "I think Jyran used to do his research here."
Tyrell pushed open the gate of the cell. It gently creaked and more brightness spilled in. Celina stepped inside preparedly, concentrating on her stone, but quickly relaxed seeing the cell empty and spotless. In contrast to earlier ones, this very cell was spacious and much more generous with a bed, a couch, a private shower, and a kitchenette. There was a cart in the corner, filled with books. Tyrell immediately dragged the cart to the middle of the room and picked a spiral thick notebook of all.
Celina frowned. Whatever Tyrell's idea was she did not seem to like it. "I thought we were here to search for the Maidens Cup and the Emerald."
"Jyran did speak about Shashi's interest in drumming up his own clan," he explained. "Perhaps he knew more than just that information. Let's just spend a few minutes here, okay? And if we're lucky we might be able to figure out if Jyran did know anything about annihilating these creatures as well."
Celina nodded warily and leaned down to check on one of the books. It was full of unknown illustrations and writings and markups. There were also numbers, phrases, graphs, and jotted bits of notes and inscriptions. Celina could have easily dismissed these as random and lunatic. But she found Tyrell rather immersed, turning the pages around and backward. Jabbing his fingertips on the papers. He bent, having a deep frown on his forehead, and like a cryptographer, he inspected the words and numbers. He took his time studying them, leafing through every page, every detail. He traced for clues, going through line after line. His concentration was strong. She had hardly ever seen him so immersed before, not even in those training sessions while mastering his Formation.
Celina leaned placing her back against the wall while Tyrell did the studying. Soft chilly fumes seemed to be penetrating out of the walls, like mists, like...souls out of bodies. It smelled like water. Zen-like. Odd. The walls were ordinary, nothing out of shape, its antiquity sensuous but causing suspicion.
"I cannot believe...." Tyrell squeaked at once and dropped the book down. He stared blankly up ahead. His face screwed up in a slight scowl and brows wrinkled in irritated contemplation.
"What is it?" Celina asked, sitting up straight. "What does it say?"
He looked about her, eyes narrowed. "One of the ingredients to create and control these creatures are the stones of the Breaking Samagraha."
Her jaw dropped. "Are you sure?"
"Jyran has clearly mentioned in this book, but I know it's hard to believe."
"Shashi must have captured Breaking Samagraha then, right?" she said immediately. "Tyrell, if that's true then...they are here somewhere in this basement. God! Ashwant is searching for them everywhere else but this basement." She shook her head in dismay. "These stones created the creatures? Is that...even possible?"
Tyrell averted his gaze and stared distantly at the dissipating smoke. "Samagraha and Constellia are connected through magic invented using the Spiritual Medium. Our stones are made of this terrible yet ingenious dark magic that Lady Chandrika had used to bind us together."
Celina wished she fully understood the basis of magic as he did. "Didn't Lady Chandrika use Shaatrumani Stone as the main ingredient to perform this magic?"
"Correct," he said. "Shashi must have done the same. But since these creatures aren't nature-made like Constellia, he had to rely on an additional supernatural means which is extremely powerful than magic itself. Shashi is controlling all these creatures by breaking into their minds, which is what Breaking Samagraha do."
Just listening to it caused Celina to break out in a cold sweat. "Tyrell," she said, "does this mean Shashi is halfway through gaining Samagraha power?"
Tyrell ran his hand through his hair. "While you and Hayden were busy acquiring the Pride, Shashi was in preparation to gain Samagraha power. I hate to answer your question, but...yes. He is almost there."
Celina gave a single nod, fighting with the numbness of her mind spreading too quickly. "There should be a way to reverse this magic."
"Reverse Lady Chandrika's magic?" he said, flipping through the pages of the books, then shrugged. "Possibly. And I believe Haimavati was the only one to be able to do that. Now you know why I'm praying for Nazira to be on our side."
She ignored the last statement. "Shashi has Pruthvi's stone already. Tyrell, do you realize what the scary part is? If there is a way to reverse this magic, then perhaps we can lose our connection with our Constellia too."
Tyrell paused, staring down at the book. "There's an important lesson that Jyran taught me once -every act of creation comes with an act of destruction. That's how this universe works, that is how magic works. It's even foolish to think that everything's permanent and indestructible. The best example we have seen and dealt with is Almourah himself. The ritual Shashi has been talking about for ages is related to this act of destruction. And you're right, he is meaning to do that."
"If Shashi stood victorious in gaining Samagraha power, that implies he's breaking the link that ties a Samagraha, a Constellia, and the stone together. And if that happens...this country will be deprived of the concept of Samagraha on the whole."
"Shashi Thribhuvan - what a savage for being a mage of extreme intelligence," Tyrell said, proudly and sarcastically at the same time. "Shashi's meddling with this country's developed forces beyond comprehension. I'm still wondering why he needs the Pride and where it fits in all of this if not for his own safety. And what has he got anything to do with the Third-Eyes we just came to know about?"
"Hayden said he'll be contacting us..."
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In a cave where everything was silent a second ago, now filled with nerve-shattering sound as though boulders breaking off a mountain. Celina stepped aside, startled, and both of their heads snapped aside looking at the wall from where chilly fumes were penetrating.
"That came from the wall," she said, finding her senses in flux. "And this smoke...Tyrell, what's on the other side?"
"Nothing. This corridor ends here," he said, puzzled. He stepped up front, traced the wall with his fingers, then leaned and placed his ears against the wall. His features hardened. "I hear beating sounds."
Celina took a long breath, bracing herself. "Step aside."
"What, why?"
"I'm gonna blast this wall."
"Good idea! Let's attract Shashi's goons and party with them."
She ignored him. The only satire going on was Shashi's cheap ways of ruining this country's years of customs and tradition. Let's take a pledge to not come back home unless we make progress, Hayden had said. And if whatever going on the other side of the wall could add to their discoveries this morning, then why wait?
Celina decided on the type of Formation best suited for the situation. Pruthvi would have done it in a snap but Celina was known for her clever tricks and fancy moves. She concentrated on her stone, feeling the cool air circulating her wrists. slowly allowing the whiffs of air to turn into sharp thorny spikes. She took a step forward and punched in the air, not as strong as she could have, though. A sudden gust collided with the wall causing a blasting effect. The smashing sound reverberated inside the room, the cracks formed and stones shattered, pieces falling on the floor. A hole the size of a fist of a grown man came into the picture.
She repeated the process twice and thrice. A bigger hole was coming into the picture, the shapeless and unlikely void within the cave. It still wasn't easy access for them to pass through. The next time she tried the hole did not seem to get any bigger. But the cold fumes, Celina noticed, were turning chillier and inhuman. It was as though the smoke was coming out of a tilted chimney. She gaped through the fractured wall. There was a tube-like passage, a straight line into the darkness, and at the end, she picked up a twinkle, like the light at the other side of the tunnel.
"There's definitely a hidden room on the other side," Celina said.
"And we're probing, aren't we?" Tyrell asked.
Celina shrugged. "Obviously."
"The only problem is only one of us can pass through this passage," he said and smirked down at her.
Celina shrunk her eyes. "Are you calling me small again?"
"And amazingly so. Come on." He dropped down on his knee and conjoined his fingers, creating a foothold with his hands.
"Are you sure?" she asked, her quiet not being sure. If she went inside, then they were going to get separated for a while atleast. She was on the fence about the idea but she minded stating it out loud. There were the odds that they may not find their way back to each other. She did not know how long this trip to the other side of the wall was going to take. And what if she met Shashi there? Damn it, Hayden! What can't you tell me where you've hidden the Pride?
"I'll wait for you right here, alright?" he said looking up at her, concerned. "And stay mind-connected with me all the time. Now go."
His confidence gave her the boost. She put her leg on his hands and pulled herself up. With Tyrell giving her the lift, it became much easier to reach up the hole. The entrance was only big enough for Celina's small physique to squeeze through. Head first, shoulders next, she pushed through with her elbows against the base of the passage. Celina grunted and crawled further inside.
She crawled through the fumes, towards the twinkling gleam of light. Despite the temperature being too cold, the exercise made her feel the increase in blood circulation and the slither of the sweat on her temples. She wanted to check on Tyrell, but there was just no room to turn around. It was a one-way trip, like using air vents to pass from one room to another with no scope for looking back.
There was another round of beating sounds and fumes rushed toward her. She quickly covered herself placing her head between her hands.
"Celina?" Tyrell's voice rang in her head.
"Still alive," she huffed, feeling her throat dry.
This was her first real experience being in an enclosed space. She was torn between the feelings of thrill-seeking caver and for having the sensation of being buried alive. She crawled and advanced slowly, paused a second to breathe, then got back on her fours. There was a slight shift, the smell turning more odorless and stale. Her heart hammered. She must be reaching her destination. The walls seemed to be closing in. Her insides seemed locked in rebellion. She had to stoop more down and do the belly crawl.
She finally reached the other side. There was another hole and she did not know if her Formation had created it. She couldn't care less as much as the fact that the hole was big enough for her to get the hell out. She put her hands outside the hole, held the wall, and pulled herself out of the hole.
Celina strained, grunting slightly at the exertion, and landed on the floor lithely on her knees. She dusted herself finding her footing. She looked anticipatingly up and stopped dead as if she was hit by something solid. A gasp escaped her throat. This place, oh my, this place. It was yet another part of the basement she wished wasn't Shashi's home.