Hayden
Ashwant had been searching for Breaking Samagraha the world over and they were here, right in front of my eyes, held captive in Shashi's lair.
My mind screamed with questions and uncertainties. To say I was confounded was an understatement. But I needed to gain a greater perspective, to take a step back and see the wide-angle version. Ruchin's hand gently shook, his fragility in the gloomy room was much like that of a fluttering leaf in the dead forest. His skin was paler than I last remembered, cheekbones sucked in, eye sockets sunken, liveliness snuffed out. Seeing his condition made me forget all the pain my bruised arm caused. His body was strapped tightly to the bed, forcing him to keep his back straight and immobile. He was in no condition to talk whatsoever. Yet, his lips moved. "Please...please..."
"Shh.." I insisted and removed all the straps around his bed. Also, everyone else's.
Beside Ruchin, sleeping as dead, was Maahir. Once a fellow Samagraha-plump and over-enthusiastic- was now reduced to skin and bones. He looked old beyond the natural lifespan. Painful moans were coming from another side of the room. Naomika, Donavan, Ezhil, Blythe, and Anila-they were all here, their bodies on the verge of self-destructing. Surely, they were separated from their stones. That much was clear and they needed urgent medical attention. They needed Ashwant, or at least their stones. Where were their stones?
I shot an incredulous look at the two people standing in the corner. "Answer me. What's going on here? Who are you?"
The couple split apart, wary yet looking suitably nervous. "Shashi hired us to keep an eye on the Samagraha," the man said, his voice low-pitched.
"Are you mages?" I asked.
"Y..yes."
"Where are the Samaratna?"
He shook his head, and a trace of panic rounded his eyes. "Don't know."
I swallowed, mind racing like a calculating machine. Ruchin and others were not dead, they were being tortured to death. Shashi was after Samagraha's power, wasn't he? Is this the part of the ritual he had been meaning to perform? "What else can you tell me?" I asked. "Why has been Shashi planning to do with Breaking Samagraha?"
The man took a pause and dropped his nervous gaze down to the floor. The woman sniffed and began to wipe the tears from the corner of her eye. Patience began to wear right through me. I snapped my fingers together. Singh roared, sounding like an original lion in the distance ready to swallow them both.
That startled the man. "Shashi's been performing magic to control the creatures," he stuttered. "And for it, he needs Breaking Samagraha's stone as one of the ingredients."
A sudden coldness hit me at the core. For once I thought his words might take forever to sink into my mind. I turned around to Shourya. His face was bleak and hopeless, eyes squinting from one Samagraha to another. "Did you know about this?" I asked, seeking his attention.
"No," he said sincerely.
I needed a moment to think. To make sense of everything I'd been learning today. God knows what else I might know about Shashi and his warped plans for the country. This piece of information was like a heads-up for what the future might hold. My friends were out there and I'd specifically told them not to return without making any progress. Then I remembered the rumor Yuvan must have started circulating. An unnecessary turmoil would elicit if I went back now. Simplistic though it may seem, in the current situation giving even an elementary explanation in the Panchayat for perpetuating the hoax seemed like another full-blown job.
"Change of plans," I said to Shourya at once. "You will have to take these seven Samagraha out of here. They need medical help, so take them directly to Ashwant."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Drop a message discreetly as you did for me the other day and let Ashwant know that they were found in Shashi's lair. But you cannot give him our names. Neither yours nor mine. No names at all. It will ruin everything if you do. Understand?"
He took a moment to reply. "What do I do then? Do you want me to come back?"
"That won't be necessary. I will figure out a way to return to Sharad. And you...Shourya, please do not run away. Wait for my return. There are a lot of matters that we need to discuss and bring to settlement once and for all. So, please, wait. You will, right?" All it would need was a bit of courage, Shourya. Please, stick with me. I'll make it up for my grandfather's unwise decisions.
Shourya hesitated to give a nod. He turned his head aside and pretended to look at one of the nearly dead Samagraha. He was actually looking into the abyss. Thinking. What are you thinking? Such a mysterious man! He had been independent for years, working for himself, and had done whatever he'd decided was the best for whomever it might be concerned. Was I wrong to expect too much obedience from him?
"And you two," I said to the couple, "you will help my friend take Samagraha out of here. You will go wherever he wants you to go, and please wait with him. If you don't do as I say...trust me, I'm bound to my own rules and charges against you will be serious. I'll hunt you down anyhow. You don't want to bring more trouble than it's worth. Okay?"
They looked at each other and solemnly nodded.
We commenced fulfilling the task. Shourya and I checked if any of the Breaking Samagraha were in a condition to stand on their feet or function on their own accord. Ruchin and Anila were barely able to walk. They teetered with support. Whereas the others were in a condition of the utmost hazard, almost sent off into merciless unconsciousness. Shourya pulled a few bedsheets and bundle-wrapped them. The man and woman calmly followed his lead. They wrapped everyone, one after the other. Shourya lifted the weightless body in a fireman's carry and pulled the Samagraha into the Gates and out in no time.
When Shourya lifted the only remaining Breaking Samagraha, sudden footsteps droned outside the room. We stood alert at the spot. The couple, on the other side of the Gates, were gaping at Shourya clouded with apprehension. The footstep padded towards the door of the ward. I readied myself, ready to call Singh if necessary. The door burst open and a few men wearing familiar black clothes and holding muskets burst inside. They held the weapon up, pointing at Shourya.
Through command and control, I generated a shield of fire that acted like a wall between Shourya and the men. "Quick! Leave!" I yelled at Shourya.
The firing began. A live round was being thrown into the fire. The room sprung up with tremendous blasting sounds. The explosion of the gunpowder sounded a little less though. Bullets were leaving by the sides of my ear. The feeling of propelling back with the force had me break into a cold sweat. This was my first ever encounter with firearms and it was sweeping me away with a spine-chilling effect.
The Gates closed behind Shourya.
I crouched down and yelled out a command on a whim. An effortless pressure it required and fire spilled out of my hands in several thin strings. The laces of fire traveled just over the floor, waves over waves, and with twice the speed. Relentlessly targeting the exposed skin of their legs, the strings rammed into them as per my will. The contact made them scream, writhe, twist, and bounce up and down. The ward filled up with hues of red and orange. My bruised arm sent a shooting pain. I let out a gasp before applying pressure. My fire scorched their skin but with the intention of not setting their bodies on fire. The men fell on the floor, screaming with agony, and tapping hard on the fire to keep their clothes from burning.
The smell of the burning flesh filling in the air watered my eyes.
One of them escaped. I was a little too late for it but I managed to trap the remaining men from escaping from under my watchful eyes. I hurled a few bed sheets on the floor, quickly spreading them around them. I fired it up, and my fire curled and contorted, shaping itself like a snarling out-of-control monster. They shall survive in a ward caught in fire, and I ensured that there shall be no further funny business.
"I'm coming back for y'all," I said before I made my way out of the ward and locked the door.
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The place was grey and chill, with ghostly whirls of smoke drifting in the air. Was it all because of my Formation?
I trudged along the way Shourya and I were supposed to take before we'd been interrupted. A long way into the path and the cries of the men burning inside the ward muffled out. The deeper I went, cutting through the smoke, the murkier the cave grew. I kept my eyes peeled and watched out for more similar wards. There were staircases only, leading up to more corridors. I made my way swiftly down the steep and narrow steps. More and further down I went. The feeling was as though the stairs were leading me to the center of the earth.
The smoke was now foul-smelling and thick enough to obscure my vision. I fired up my arm for brightness, before plunging into the way surrounded by grim stony walls reflecting greyness. My stomach tightened in knots - there was no sign of Nazira. There was no sign of people at all. Not even Shashi's men seemed to be close by. I was alone and wandering restlessly in the swirling mist.
The worsened condition of Breaking Samagraha kept running in my mind. The most jarring aspect was that my friends and I could have been in the same situation had Singh not saved us from Shashi's captivity. What if Nazira was in the same condition? My stomach recoiled thinking about it. I'd rather go with those dead men near the cell whose condition was giving away an alternate story.
My vision had gotten used to the darkness and I figured that I'd entered a vast open area. My momentum slowed down and I stood by the rails. Desperate panting of my lungs thudded in my ears. A few deep breaths helped create quietness from within me, and the whirlwind of my mind's fury came to a rest. Gripping the rails of the corridor tighter than necessary, I looked over to survey the surroundings.
It was a great expanse of the very bleak and desolate cave. The ceiling was shrouded in the creeping smoke as opaque as hill fog. Some distinct footfalls emerged heightening the sense of ominousness. Something shrieked in the distance, reminding me of a howling wolf in the forest. I jerked and turned aside. My hair ruffled. There were gentle whooshes, not the mundane wind though, just the presence of something invisible whispering in my ears. Once again the surreal feeling made me recall the moments when I'd been in the vicinity of Shaytan Rup.
The cave was a confusing maze filled with myriads of corridors, which seemed to hang in the air, suspended by the walls. Numerous staircases, that linked one corridor to another, were hidden behind the walls. The hollow middle portion confirmed the eccentric layout of the cave. The space was monstrous and covered with the immensity of smoke. This was just another secret placed concealed from the world, the place hidden underneath the land of Paramarashtra. Brilliantly constructed, unfortunately being used for malicious purposes. This was Shashi's home. And now I know which part of the land Bhupathi Garg had tried to steal from Rawat and also why.
A movement...
Far away from where I was standing, about twenty corridors down, a pinkish speck appeared drifting from corridor to corridor, quickly vanishing and then appearing from behind the walls. I frowned but waited.
My heart thumped and a cold clamminess filtered into every pore of my skin. Found you!
At once the silent cave bristled with shrill cries and raucous shouting. A dozen of men appeared from other corridors, rippling speedily in the thin mist. Some of them jumped off the corridors to reach another, like dangling monkeys, bridging the gap between them and her.
I resumed running now at my full strength, hard and swift, my boots thudding against the ground, my breath getting distracted from its natural rhythm. Anticipation overwhelmed me and I mentally created a track that lead me to her. I stepped down the stairs and then jostled through the corridors. Stairs and then through corridors. The process continued. The smoke dissipated with my speed. Once in a while, I stopped to locate the moments of pinkness amidst the dreary grey walls. There she was- still running- holding a certain thing in her hand and checking on it from time to time.
Shashi's cult-like men seemed unstoppable. They were relentlessly trying to get a hold of her. A few of them did come too close and she did not seem to have a clue about it. Run, Nazira, run.
A high-pitched wailing sound pierced through the atmosphere. Corridors turned narrower and longer. At every turn, the greyness seemed to be getting stronger, and smoke filling up in my lungs made me disoriented. I was closer to her now. Very close. So much so that I could now see her thin and tall frame. Nazira was meandering through this seemingly endless corridor. She staggered on and off though. There was an aura of tiredness around her. I was almost there. Look at me! Look at me now! My heart double-flipped when a man almost caught her, but she ingeniously dodged and ran as I have never seen her run before.
I commanded my stone and my fire raged out, spreading brightness that stood out to mark my presence.
Nazira's speed once again increased. She must have seen the light and now attempting to follow it. Good, keep running. A few wrong turns and a few backtracks, but we finally landed on the same V-shaped corridor, both of us running at a breakneck speed to meet at the apex.
Our swiftness was too incredible that neither of us was able to put a halt to our momentum. We crossed each other, as though getting past a finishing line. The men stumbled upon one another finding me joining the race of cat and mouse. I blasted another round of fire, the brightness of which enveloped the greyness of the entire cave.
The chasing game seemed to have paused with the frenzied pack of men staying back, staring raptly at me, my fire daring them to cross through.
The fire crackled and sent sparks high in the air, smoke swaying above and around me. Smell worsened.
The high-pitched sound in reality was the cry of a child, that turned faint and used up. I slowly turned, still keeping a watchful eye on the men. My breath came in shallow puffs, knees slightly buckling. Keeping my heart in my mouth I looked back at her.
Nazira was on her knees, heavily panting for breath, thin smoke wafting about her. She was completely drenched. Fresh and dried blood stuck to her like plaster. She was badly maimed and tortured. Her dress was shredded to mandy condition and also matted with blood. The dark purple welts hinting the internal damage. Skinnier than the last I'd seen her. A shivering, wheezing, bloody mess she was, unhealthy to a dangerous level. I gritted my teeth. An image of Shashi's soulless, lifeless body, marred with a thousand slashes and lacerations was what I conjured in my mind's eyes.
Slowly, she lowered the crying baby down and loosened the towel. A tiny face came into view. I loosened up a bit knowing that it was Viraj. Nazira checked on him once by placing her hand on his chest and then a finger under his nose. She relaxed her shoulders and covered him thoroughly, specifically dabbing the towels against the baby's ears.
An obvious relief washed over me finding the baby alive and well. He squired in her arm and wiggled.
I took a step towards her.
Nazira jerked and waved her hand. A scream erupted, splitting the air and sending a dozen tingles of goosebumps up my spine. The smoke beside her twisted like a ghost and took the shape of a smaller creature - wings spread out, eagle eyes wide and ferocious, claws slashing. Instinctively, I rained down my fire and snap! the smoke disappeared. Just like that.
Nazira stood up, staring knowing at me, as though passing on information I was yet to discover. Stillness settled amidst us. The silent baby let out a soft cry, later turning into a high-pitched whistle.
I frowned, standing numb on the spot. The fire that I had created snuffed out.
The ground shook. The men burst onwards charging like mentally impacted bulls. Their insane yelling jarred my nerves and pulled me out of a trans-like state as if on cue. I put my concentration back on my stone and commanded in a way I knew I was going to regret later. A loud bang and fire bellowed like wildfire scorching the corridor and not to mention the men got succumbed to my brutish inflammatory move. The blood-curdling screams echoed giving me chills. I stumbled back watching them twist and writhe. Dreadful pangs rose within me. I had no intention of killing them but...the mourning had to wait.
I ran at full throttle towards Nazira who took a step back, her eyes wide and horrified. Blood on her skin shone like burning brass. I tossed my arm around her shoulder and pulled her away from the men full alight and yowling in pain.
We jogged past the corridor and went a couple of staircases down. Nazira's shoulder tensed, a wave of uneasiness flowing through. She looked up at me and shook her head, letting me that she was done for. When I made sure the screams of the men were far off I looked around and found the abandoned staircase which seemed the safest place in the basement at the moment. There should be no interference from Shashi's thugs here, and the smoke also seemed condensed.
I made her sit there and crouched on one knee in front of her. I waited, feeling my palms too clammy with her blood and breathing in a regretful sigh at the desperation that was building up inside me. I needed answers, and I needed them now. Why had the smoke reacted the way it did on coming in contact with my Formation? - that was what I wanted to know first. Then, my eyes caught sight of the wounds around and below her shoulder, too grotesque and unpractical that I'd ever encountered. Teeth bitten deep gashes, blood incessantly leaking out. A hard lump formed in my throat. My resolution wavered. It was getting difficult not to take her in my arms already.
She noticed me reading her wounds.
Placing a gentle hand on mine, she said, "You can put a stop to the number of creatures from growing." Her voice hummed in my mind - soft, shaky, and weak, the voice that I thought I'd never hear anymore. Surprise after surprise. Nazira was full of it. "They go through different stages. Someone must have figured out where they were being cultivated and they destroyed the seeds, which is the first stage. The smoke that's been spread is creatures being in the second stage, and now they are like air, invisible...like Shaytan Rup." A mask of grief spread across her features. She swallowed hard before her lips moved. "I used Breaking Samagrahas' stones as one of the ingredients to create Shaytan Rup...through Yajna. Shashi performed the same magic to rise these creatures from fire spirits."
I couldn't help but continue staring at her, listening, waiting for her to answer my uncertainties. Go on. Keep them coming.
"This is just plain dark magic which I cannot explain right now," she continued, gasping between her words, and her shoulders stooping with exhaustion. "It's best to clear this smoke off with your Formation before they escape from the cave and before they turn into full-fledged creatures. But their screams are not good for the baby's ear. And that's why we may have to run. Get out of here as quickly as possible. We have to partner up once again only for the sake of Leena's baby. Okay?"
I did not reply.
Her eyes flickered from embarrassment to direct culpability. "Say something, please!"
"Let's go home," I said the only words I could muster up to say right now and offered my hand to help her stand up with the baby.
Both of us were more than half-baked, bruised and bloodied, and beaten to near death. Confronting my hunger pangs became a challenge for me. We took a moment and readied ourselves for the next move. Our escape plan had to come together. I let my fire encircle the three of us. It was strong and encapsulating, its blazing sparks reflected against the stoned surface of the staircase. The thin smoke dissipated and plumed up around it all.
And we partnered up.
The screams resurfaced and droned throughout the cave. Nazira held the baby tight in one arm, and with the other, she incessantly used to perfume magic. She waved and the creatures made of smoke appeared, unmistakably perceptible to human eyes, and in large numbers. I had my fire rage towards them and within a snap, the creature kept vanishing away. Finding a way out of the cave took about several minutes, passing through several staircases and corridors. The baby's unceasing cry was ironically motivating me to finish the job as quickly as possible, steering us to run without taking breaks. Our collaboration had gotten us through Shaytan Rup and Almourah. Why shouldn't I expect that together we might certainly defeat Shashi Thribhuvan?
Smoke slowly got cleared off with my continuous bellow of fire. We crossed the ward where Breaking Samagraha were held captive. Now we ran through the tunnels. More staircases and more tunnels. But there was no sign of a way to get out of the cave. Wish I'd learned how to open Gates too. On top of it, more of Shashi's men spotted us. They began chasing after us from all sides. They were relentless, in dire need of Nazira, not stopping even when coming in contact with my Formation. They were ready to die in their pursuit of her, their perseverance never ceased to stop. What was this? Were they...impelled?
I pulled Nazira to the other narrow and darker tunnel when I spotted two people rushing towards us with great speed. They did not seem like Shashi's goons. One was tall and the other small- running side by side, their profiles seemed rather familiar. Nazira slowed down, and I put myself on alert. The two people came out of the shadow and into the brightness of my fire. A huge relief washed over me finding who they were.
Together they joined in my plight to get rid of the smoke. Celina's air formation amalgamated with mine and screeches reverberated once again from the far corners of the basement. Tyrell, on the other hand, did not hesitate to electrocute the remaining of Shashi's lackeys. He watched here and there and assertively zapped his lightning. They both were soaked and breathing heavily, signs of tiredness wearing heavy on them. Yet they fought...until the very last person in the black outfit fell flat on the ground.
Then silence fell, it was only the cry of the baby that echoed louder than before. We slowly and cautiously dropped our Formation, and stood at our spots, panting and gasping for breath.
Nazira was checking on the baby when Celina screamed, "It's Viraj!" She took the baby from Nazira and they both shared an awkward glance before Celina distanced herself from her. "Don't just stand there," she then said to Tyrell. "Don't you see she's bleeding? Give her your damn jacket."
"Right," Tyrell said and cleared his throat. Out of the blue, a sense of nervousness and cheeky awkwardness became apparent in each of our gestures. Tyrell made sure all the pockets were zipped before he draped the jacket over her shoulder. He then shrugged and smiled. "You're Haimavati Ruksana. Oh, man!" He squeaked, like an enthusiastic fan fawning over a celebrity.
She dropped her eyes down and wrapped her arms around herself, positing in a way she felt comfortable. Dark blood was still leaking out of her unprotected shoulder. She winced, trying to battle the exhaustion and fatigue but in vain. She eventually gave in. She swayed at the spot, a part of her displaying relief and satisfaction. I know that she did everything she could. It was her way to put up a brave front to save the citizens of the country she loved beyond measure. Her job was done and now she needed a long limitless sleep.
She smiled forlornly, yet triumphantly at herself before dropping down. Impulsively, I took a long step and held her. She seemed significantly lighter, as delicate as the petals of a flower, and malnourished to the point that I thought I touched her bones. I wrapped my arms around her protectively and pulled her closer.
"I am opening the Gates," Tyrell said, stepping back. "Let's get out of here."
The lights shone, brightening the cave and making her wounds clearly visible. There were deep teeth marks, and gashes, hidden underneath that grisly leakage of blood. It just plain broke my heart to see her in that condition.
She gripped my shirt over my chest tight. I cringed with that feeling of bliss that I had been missing for the past few days. Then, I heard her voice. "My head is bursting. Can I have hot chocolate?" She asked, her voice slightly playful. She was still able to communicate. For the very first time, I was glad that she turned out to be a witch. I was glad that all the rumors about her were true. On top of it, she turned out to be Cornelian's Third-Eye.
I pressed my lips trying to stop my snigger. However, I couldn't stop my eyes from moistening. "Sure," I said, placing her firmly in my arms, lifting her, giving a damn to my own pain in the arm, and quickly walking toward the brilliant light. "But only after we talk about your punishment for leaving me alone."
-x-
End of Part 2