'Bang'
A figure crashed into a wall; a small trail of blue blood splattered on it. The figure reoriented itself and glared at the monstrous reptile calmly floating within the waters, 4 metres away from it.
"..Kill….you…..I..soon…"
The Turtle zombie hissed at its foe and retreated towards a nearby flight of stairs. The crocodile proved to be beyond what it could handle. It got overwhelmed in a matter of seconds and was blasted away by a flick of its tail.
The crocodile hadn't bitten it due to the nauseating odour leaking out of its body that repulsed the reptilian creature. On seeing that the repulsive creature began to retreat, the crocodile submerged its head that had peaked out of the water and swam towards another direction. It didn't have any destination, so it randomly began to swim along the murky waters in search of prey and for a place to rest.
'Tap' 'Tap' 'Tap'
Loud echoing sounds were produced when the hardened heels of the Turtle zombie tapped against the tiled stairways. Thinking of seeking revenge against the crocodile when it had grown stronger, the Turtle zombie climbed higher up, following the trace of the aroma that could only be given off by humans.
"..You….next.." Through a window, the Turtle zombie gazed at a huge concrete structure that was just a hundred metres away from the apartment building it was currently situated in. A dense aroma wafted out of the building into the surroundings, almost congealing into a cloud that could be detected by its senses.
The turtle zombie continued to climb up until it came across twenty humans that were busying about with something. Its eyes glistened with desire as its two-forked tongue vibrated in response to its predatory senses flaring up.
The Turtle zombie crouched on all fours, almost until its chest region touched the floor surface. Then, like an arrow that was launched from a bow, the Turtle zombie dashed towards the group of humans, like a prehistoric bull charging into a herd of lambs.
-------------------------------------------
"We have arrived!" Prakash exclaimed in joy as his eyes which had transformed into that of a dog's spotted the defensive structures erected in their base. They had less than 50 metres to traverse until the base came into the sight of the teenagers.
Since none of them possessed any transformational abilities at present, they could only depend on their primary eyesight which only had a visual range of 6 feet on average.
A small commotion rang within the crowd as the teenagers felt apprehensive the moment they heard his statement. Some were even crying, thinking that their futures were bleak, with no hope for survival after getting captured by the two Rakshasas.
When the group had reached 10 metres to the entrance to the base, a figure rushed out from within and ran towards them. Juggling her way through the crowd of baffled teenagers, the figure jumped at Prakash.
"Thank goodness, you are safe. Where's Vikram?" Vidya wrapped her hands around his neck and gazed into his eyes with a sense of longing. It seemed she had regained her spirits after some rest as she was back to her chirpy self.
"He's bringing another batch of people with him. I arrived first." Prakash averted his eyes. She was way too close to him and as a married man; he didn't want to do anything with her.
"Wow, so many people." Vidya rejoiced as she pinched the cheeks of a girl at the front.
"Come, come. This is a joyous occasion." Vidya shouted in joy as she motioned for the teenagers to follow after her. Taking a single look at their faces, she instantly came to realise that they had witnessed something horrible on their journey till here, but couldn't understand why they occasionally darted looks of fear towards Prakash.
"Vidya, arrange for some able men to follow me back. There are no birds currently at the cinema hall and we have to capitalise this opportunity. Anyone who has recovered enough to fight or has a mini Victoris, tell them to come. There are plenty of bird carcasses left there." Prakash said and dashed towards a certain location within the base, leaving the teenagers under the care of Vidya.
"And, there he goes off again. Will it kill him to spend a second longer with me?" Vidya snorted with annoyance as she led the teenagers into the base. Her cheerful personality immediately brought a sense of reassurance into the jittery hearts of the teenagers.
When the working populace saw the influx of new faces, they rejoiced and hurriedly rushed towards the group to welcome them. The addition of every person was a reason to celebrate. After suffering from that major loss during their previous Raid, their base was in dire need of new fighting strength.
"Where's the leader?" Someone from the welcoming crowd failed to notice the presence of Vikram among the group and sought an answer from Vidya; if anything, she might be privy to further details.
"He's bringing another batch of survivors as we speak," Vidya said, followed by another raucous cheer from the surrounding people.
The teenagers looked at the warm reception as their worries abated. It seemed like they weren't thrust into a hell of some sort as they had feared before.
"Everyone," Vidya shouted. When all eyes were focused on her, she continued, "Prakash is leaving for the cinema hall now and is requesting for reinforcements. He specifically requested for the possessors of a mini Victoris. He and our leader are planning to rescue everyone trapped in the cinema halls before the next batch of birds arrive."
A commotion rang within the crowd as some people stepped forward, demonstrating their desire to participate. They had completely healed their injuries by now and were itching for a fight. Only in such a way could they accumulate Karma.
'Cheee'
The cry of a bird resounded through the air before a Pigeon landed in their midst. The figure of Prakash was seen sitting at the back of the pigeon.
"How many are coming?" Prakash asked.
"32 warriors at present," Vidya replied after performing a quick headcount of the people who had stepped forward.
"Good, then shall we proceed?" Prakash looked at the faces of the people who had expressed the desire to follow him. They were all brimming with battle intent. Clearly, none of them were simple people. They knew the fact that by taking some risks, they could become stronger at a faster speed.
Prakash controlled the pigeon and took off to the skies. He maintained control over the pigeon so that it flew at a very slow speed, matching the running speed of the 32 warriors who followed after him on the ground.
The teenagers were looking like country bumpkins as they gaped at the surrounding structures that were artistically designed while also serving as efficient defensive establishments in order to face future raids. They also noticed the purple snakes that occasionally appeared in the air, looking similar to the ones they had witnessed before, just a level smaller.
They also gazed at a few birds that silently stood at one corner of the base and were being cared for by a few people. All in all, they felt like they had arrived at a whole different world.
"We'll conduct an orientation ceremony to quickly fill you guys with all the necessary knowledge for survival. Follow me." Vidya led the teenagers towards the Primary Lego structure and entered it.
She walked towards a certain cordoned place and led everyone inside. There was an elevated platform on one end of the room with a smartphone affixed into the wall. A simple seating arrangement was arranged before them, though it was a stretch to even call it as a seating arrangement. The teenagers were made to sit on the floor as Vidya walked to the elevated platform and switched on the smartphone.
She then began to play a couple of videos they had recorded with great pains. They were mostly related to their fights against other insects, their transformation powers, the measures they had to note while in transformation so that they wouldn't turn into zombies, the Skill manifestations, the healing properties of water, etc.
The teenagers listened with rapt attention as they related the behaviours of Vikram and Prakash to all the information Vidya passed on to them. As time passed on, their backs were drenched with cold sweat. Only then did they realise their prior foolishness. Had the two people they assumed as Rakshasas not stop them from escaping, they would have all died under the maws of some ransom insect, without even knowing what hit them.
"Vikram, how did it go?" Prakash inquired the moment he noticed the figure of Vikram.
"I managed to convince them somehow. At least, they are not stupid." Vikram said as he pointed towards the group assembled at his back.
"We could only spare 32 people at present," Prakash said.
"That is more than enough. Let us hurry and rescue the others too." Vikram said as he instructed the 32 warriors who were currently panting on the floor. They had run all the way till here in a hurry without stopping to rest on the way.
After a short rest, they hurriedly sprang to their feet and surrounded the rescued people, adopting a no-nonsense approach. They gazed at their surroundings with caution while at the same time ensured that none from within the crowd dared to do anything funny.
Until they came to know everyone personally, they could not trust them. After all, who knows which person had a few screws loose up there? They didn't want to take any chances.
They also unleashed their mini Victoris and sent them towards the bits and pieces of flesh scattered everywhere on the floor. They were all loaded with Bird Karma. Only then did they understand why Prakash had specifically requested for people who possessed a mini Victoris to accompany him.
Prakash and Vikram first inspected the insides of each theatre room with their Karmic Art manifestations before proceeding to open the doors. An hour passed in such a fashion as the duo managed to round up everyone without trouble. Most of them were happy to be freed from the theatre rooms that had trapped them for so long, so they readily jumped on the bandwagon.
"Damn." Prakash whistled as he did a quick headcount. They had rescued approximately about 2000 people, equivalent to the entire population of their base.
"Brother," Vikram said.
"Yes?"
"How did you bring the teenagers to the fourth floor? After all, they didn't have any transformations to descend down the steps."
"I used Ugly Shaggy as a ladder and made them slide down on its body."
The eyes of Vikram twitched as he tried to imagine the scene. He couldn't imagine how Prakash managed to coerce the frightened teenagers into sliding down on the body of Ugly shaggy. Though, on another note, such an action was efficient and time conserving. Moreover, even if anyone slipped, he still had his Minor Art manifestation to come to the rescue.
Vikram decided to adopt the same strategy and brought everyone to the edge of the floor, where a glass panel acted as the guard rail. He noticed a small section that had been broken among them, possibly during the earlier Raid when he decided to make use of now.
Vikram materialised Victoris and sent it towards the surface fourth floor. The head of Victoris touched the fourth floor while its tail went all the way till the fifth floor where Vikram currently stood, acting as a long slide.
"I'll go first and secure our perimeter," Prakash said as he jumped onto the back of Victoris without fear and slid towards the fourth floor.