The second day of the weekend began jubilantly for me. I was still riding on the high the first day had ended with and pretty soon, we were all walking out of the academy gates in the afternoon. Having stayed up late last night chatting up, we had all missed the breakfast. As a result, we were all hungry by the time we stepped out of the academy gates.
Our first order of business was to fill our stomachs. This time, Elango took us to a moderate restaurant he knew well. After stuffing our stomachs with delicious meat, we all wandered a bit in the merchant district to relax. There was no sense of urgency today. Our only plan was to take a boat back to the academy at the dusk. With no plans to adhere to, we four just languished along the streets of the city.
The afternoon passed away with no excitement. As the evening approached, Sekar took us to a street play being performed in a street corner. The crowd was milling around the artists as they enacted various scenarios from history. We watched the play with interest as it was peppered with magic. The magic used to enhance the play was an illusion type of magic, which Sekar seemed to be very fond of.
The mage performing the illusions was not well-experienced as there were a few places his illusions fell apart. Nevertheless, the crowd cheered them on with gusto. They performed the legendary battles in the history like The Siege of Parwar, The Last Stand by the Knights of Saranam, Sir Truesword's fight against the legendary dragon, Red Terror, and much more. As the play neared the end, one of the performers spoke up.
"Gather round, gather round, for our last performance we are going to perform something never seen before. Birthed in this city, this fantastic tale of friendship is often spoken in whispers, but never truly spoken in the open. For the chains of oppression shackle us all into forgetting this beautiful tale,"
Excited murmurs started filling the crowd as they eagerly waited for the performer to continue. Even though I had an inkling as to what this tale was about, I couldn't help myself but draw near. As I drew near with interest, Sekar and Elango started pulling me and Prasad out of the crowd.
"What!!! Why are you pulling me out? I want to watch it," Prasad complained.
Sekar and Elango were silent as they dragged me and Prasad forcibly away from the crowd.
"That tale is forbidden here, see," Elango nodded his head towards a few city guards rushing towards street play.
We stopped at a distance and watched the guards forcibly evicting the performers and the crowd. As they started apprehending the performers, the mage who was performing the illusions let loose an illusionary dragon towards the guards. In the confusion, the performers slipped away and few of the onlookers were held back to question about the identity of the performers. As the crowd filtered out, I saw a familiar figure walk away from the crowd. It was Thilothama. I wondered what she was doing there.
"It is quite a regular occurrence in this city. The guards are content to let the performers perform until they start the forbidden tale. Out of ten plays, at least six will definitely try to perform the play. So, there are always guards waiting to catch hold of them. The weird thing is none of the performers have been caught until today. Unless they can catch them in the act, the guards can't convict them." Elango explained to me and Prasad.
"Is it the story of late King and…"
"Hush," Sekar hushed me urgently. "That topic is taboo in this city."
"Taboo! How come?" Prasad asked in confusion.
"No one knows why or when it was declared taboo, but everyone knows they should not talk about it. It all started when a group of performers performed the street play of their friendship. Everything was fine until they revealed who the villain of the story was. The next day, the entire group was beheaded and the topic became taboo."
"Who was the villain?" I asked curiously.
Elango and Sekar looked around to confirm that no one was there in the vicinity.
"The King," Elango whispered.
My mind reeled.
"You don't say," I began only to be viciously cut off.
"No one knows, ok. That's the thing, right? No one knows. And even if they know, who will dare to say it? After the beheading of the entire troop, no one even has the courage to speak about it." Sekar muttered.
"Personally, I believe it," Elango said.
"Don't say that out loud, you fool. Do you want your head to be next?" Sekar shushed him angrily.
Elango muttered something rebelliously. I patted him on the back to calm him down.
"Look, it has nothing to do with us. Let's go somewhere else," I said causing others to move along with me.
We found a nice garden soon enough and settled ourselves under the shade of a tree.
"Do you believe it?" Prasad asked me once we had settled down.
"It makes sense," I said after thinking about it for a while.
Elango and Sekar nodded along in agreement.
"This approach is heavy-handed. The more they try to oppress it, the more the performers will want to perform it. But, after the rebellion, fifteen years ago, it is no wonder the King doesn't want this to spread." Sekar said solemnly.
"If it is true then it means," Elango interrupted hotly.
"Yeah, I know. I know. But, what if it is not the truth? The guys who planned the rebellion would love the King's name to be tarnished. It will make it easier for them," Sekar interrupted Elango to reply.
"Hmmm, that too makes sense," Prasad said after thinking about it for a while.
I kept quiet. The implications of what we were discussing were monumental. And I didn't want some unsavory ears to hear us. I looked around to make sure that no one was in the vicinity.
"Let's forget about it. This is too dangerous," I reminded them causing the trio to sober up and look around furtively.
"Yeah…" Prasad said shakily after a while.
"So, what next? " I asked Sekar.
"Hmmmm, I think we will wait here for a bit and head towards the nearest boathouse. We can get a boat back to the academy from there." Sekar replied lying on his back.
"I agree," Elango said before he too lay on his back.
With our two local guides in agreement, I let out a sigh and relaxed. We lazed around in the park for about an hour or so before ultimately deciding that it was too boring. So we ambled out of the park and hit the street once more.
After a bit of streetwalking, window shopping, casual mayhem, and a hot evening snack, we decided the time was ripe to take the river ride and set off in the direction of the nearest boathouse.
We were a few streets away from the boathouse. And since this was located in the nobles section, we had to cross the river. We took a nearby bridge and walked leisurely towards the boathouse. The noble's section of the city was a lot different than the commoner's section. The houses were large and were spaced with a lot of distance between each other. The streets were mostly lined with trees on both sides, unlike the commoner's section.
"This area is very quiet," I noted.
"You mean, there is no rambunctious chatter to pollute the atmosphere," Elango said in his best noble imitation.
"Hmmmph," Sekar snorted. "What did you expect?"
"I don't know," I said looking around. "This place sure is very different than the other side of the river. No wonder all the nobles are so stuffy. I mean, look at it. There is no life in this place. If I had grown up here, I would have gone mad."
"No, you would be lording over us," Elango corrected me absent-mindedly causing me to playfully push him.
"Enough bashing nobles," Sekar warned seriously. "Don't forget where we are. The best thing is to keep your head low and reach the boathouse as soon as possible."
"How long?" Prasad queried.
"A couple of streets. Nothing to worry, a lot of commoners usually take this path to reach the boathouse," Elango reassured him.
"Oh! But, I can't see anyone," I said looking around.
"Not usually, the place doesn't have that much traffic. Only rich merchants could afford to go on a river ride. As this is a one-time thing, we can afford it. If we do this regularly, then, definitely not," Sekar explained.
Elango nodded his head in agreement.
"And most of the rich merchants will probably now be in one ball or the other. This is the ball season in Samara," Elango elaborated further.
"Oh! Like the one Santhanu mentioned?" I asked in clarification.
"Yeah," Sekar replied. "Speaking of Santhanu, the last time we were in an isolated path like this, it was pretty fun."
We all stopped in our tracks and looked at Sekar incredulously.
"Wh… what!?" he spluttered under our combined gazes. "It was fun, wasn't it?"
"YEAH." Elango stressed in annoyance, "and I am SURE you have heard of the term "WORLD IS LISTENING" ?"
"Yeah," Sekar replied in confusion still unable to realize what we were talking about.
And suddenly his eyes became wide and he looked around frantically before spluttering, "But, but, nothing like that will happen today, will it?"
"You better hope nothing like that happens today, or else," Prasad muttered evilly before walking ahead.
Me and Elango just shook our head and followed Prasad.
"Hey, hey, there is nothing to worry," Sekar spoke hurriedly as if trying to calm down a child. "I mean, we have Kathir with us, right? What can go wrong?"
We all stopped in our tracks and turned to look at him in disbelief.
"YOU MORON!!! Are you taunting the world?" Elango shouted in exasperation.
"No, no… I wasn't…"
BOOM! THUD!
"You know what, don't bother," Elango said in a dejected tone.
We all turned around to see the cause of the explosion. Little distance away, we saw smoke rising from burning trees. A figure in dark clothing emerged coughing and clutching its side.
"Do you think, we need to help him?" Elango asked anxiously.
As soon as I saw the dark clothing, I recognized the figure. It wasn't a him. It was a her. I was conflicted about whether or not to help her out. While she looked pretty banged up, she was still moving. Even if we tried to help, I was not sure that would be a wise decision. Anyone who dared to attack someone from the Royal Family like Thilothama isn't going to bat an eye in wiping the four of us out.
Before, I could make a decision. The decision was taken out of my hands.
"Hey, its Her Highness," Elango shouted and dashed towards Thilothama.
"What!!!?" Sekar and Prasad dashed after him without consulting me.
I swore under my breath. I knew she was trouble. It was the reason I had even refrained from applying for Ruby Division. And look where it has taken me.
"You know lad, you are a born troublemaker. Even if you want to sat away from trouble, the trouble will definitely find you, ha ha ha."
The old geezer voice echoed in my mind as I frantically looked around to find any trace of the assailant. Surely, someone who dared to attack a royal personage wouldn't be sloppy enough to not check the wreckage.
Now, where was he? Who would attack a royal personage in broad daylight? Did he even know her identity? In that dark clothes, there is a chance that he didn't know.
All my questions were answered as the sound of clashes from distance came into my hearing range. I watched as two men came into view clashing with each other on the air. It was magic I had only heard about in stories. They were effortlessly throwing around magic that was far beyond my level.
A Royal Knight rushed in from the other side towards where my friends were helping Thilothama to sit up. I walked cautiously eyeing my surrounding. The knight had come running from the other direction. It was as if Thilothama was running towards him. If the assailant was fighting someone, then, who attacked Thilothama? There were only two options. Either stray magic from the combatants would have attacked her or someone else had. I looked at the combatants once more and discarded the first option.
The magic they were throwing around was very powerful. If Thilothama had been attacked by any of that magic, she would have been blown to smithereens. No, there was someone else pursuing her. Someone less powerful, but also very dangerous. Thilothama hadn't appeared from our direction or the direction we were walking towards. She had appeared amidst the trees. So, the other assailant was also hiding in the dense foliage.
The Royal Knight reached Thilothama and frantically looked around. When she spotted me, her eyes narrowed and she tensed. My friends said something to her and she relaxed. She looked above the trees at the two combatants and relaxed a little.
When the Knight suspected me, I didn't bother wasting time thinking about explaining her. I was busy trying to identify the location of the other assailant. He or she must have reached a spot near the place where Thilothama was now. But, why wasn't he or she attacking?
Maybe, because of the Royal Knight. But, no. That didn't make sense. If they were willing to fight a high caliber mage in the sky, where everyone can easily see the explosions, they wouldn't retreat because of the presence of a single Royal Knight. Unless.
As I watched the Royal Knight relax her guard and fuss over Thilothama, it all became clear to me. The second assailant was waiting for the opportune time to attack. Seeing the Royal Knight relax, alarm bells went off in my head. This was the moment.
"Look out," I shouted as I ran towards my friends.
The Knight startled out of her relaxation, suddenly scanned the surrounding. She brandished her sword and shield and immediately adopted a guarded posture. An angry hiss was heard to the left, and then she turned around to see two magically-imbued arrows sailing towards Thilothama. Unable to bring the shield up to bear in time, she pushed the girl out of harm's way with her shield leaving her exposed.
Crunch! Crunch!
I watched the arrows pierce the armor and her body through completely and pin her to the adjoining tree by her shoulder. The others were horrified by the turn of events. I rushed towards my friends with haste.
Before I could reach, a fireball zoomed out of the foliage straight to the place my friends were located at. I saw Elango and Thilothama react belatedly and conjure up a hasty shield. The shield was haphazard and conjured hastily causing it to be useless in the face of the fireball. The fireball impacted the shield and the duo's shields were blasted to pieces. The impact knocked all of them down hard.
I could hear them gasping for breath as I neared them. When I reached them, I didn't bother with checking upon them. Instead, I slipped to my knees and took a blocking posture right against the direction the fireball and arrows had originated from and conjured up the first spell Granny had taught me.
A Legioner's Shield.
She had taught me this because I preferred fighting with swords more than magic. It was the perfect auxiliary magic that could support my style. And, incidentally, it was the magic I was proficient in. Having trained by the old geezer in how to fight with a shield, I felt I stood a small chance to get out of this fight unscathed.
I was sure that by this time people would have noticed the mages battling in the air and the city guard would probably be rushing in to see what was happening. I just had to hold on until they come.
A snort filled with contempt came from the direction I was facing. A tall mage walked out of the foliage. He had covered his face with a mask. All I could see where his eyes. It was mocking me.
"What do you think you are doing boy?" the mage mocked me. "Do you think that pitiful shield is going to stop me? Leave now, this doesn't concern you."
I didn't reply. I looked behind to see my friends getting back up with a dazed expression. The secondary blast had taken a lot out of Thilothama and she was struggling for air, like a fish out of water.
The Royal Knight was still pinned to the tree. She was struggling hard to remove the arrows. There was desperation in her movements. I maintained my outward calm and turned towards the mage.
He sneered at me seeing that I wasn't going to move.
"Then, so be it," he said creating another fireball and sending it in my direction.
The fireball impacted my shield and I struggled to hold on to my shield. The vibrations shook me.
"The trick with fighting with a shield is not in making an unmoving wall, brat. It's in the angle. Divert the attack. Don't receive it head-on. The first attack is the hardest. Once you bear it, you will know the angle of the attack."
The old geezer's voice echoed in my mind. I slightly adjusted the angle of my shield. The mage was not happy that my shield had withstood his attack. He scowled and created another fireball to launch.
"It's made of adamantine. I can't dislodge the arrows. They are strong." I heard Elango say to Sekar and Prasad.
The second fireball impacted my shield and was diverted into the nearby trees. The mages scowl worsened. He was truly angry now. He knew it wouldn't be easy to get at me. Until the shield was there, I would hide behind it. The mana consumption for the shield was also less. Being a Red, I didn't need to worry about my mana running out. I was content to defend and not attack.
"Then let's blast the tree off," Sekar said aloud.
I cursed my friends for their good-intentioned fumbling. The bastards couldn't just remain idle. The statement brought the notice of the mage who immediately realized the danger of a Royal Knight being freed. So, as expected, the bastard launched the next fireball at my friends. I frantically moved to intercept the fireball. And I made it in time. Barely.
"Will you guys shut up and hide behind the shield?" I yelled shaking off the vibrations.
They hastily grouped behind the shield causing the mage's face to distort in anger.
"You… you will pay for that," he yelled at me and made a cutting motion with his hand, "with blood."
A thin ray rushed towards us. I knew this magic was different. It had a foreboding feeling to it. I strengthened the shield with more mana and increased its size to cover my full body. A bone-chilling thud echoed in my ears as the ray impacted the shield at my shoulder level. The line of ray that didn't impact the shield brushed past me, tearing through the trees around us like a scythe. The area on which it had impacted on the shield had cracks forming up in it.
"Ah!" I heard Elango shout.
"Shit! Are you alright?" Prasad asked from behind me.
"It just grazed me, nothing to worry. Better hide behind the shield completely," Elango said hastily as they rearranged themselves.
My eyes widened involuntarily as I saw the cracks in the shield. If I had not strengthened the shield, the ray would have chopped my head off. Frantically I put in more mana into the shield to strengthen it and grew it a little wider to accommodate all of us.
The mage was now livid. He was advancing on us by madly creating and launching fireballs at us. Every moment the distance between us was reducing. With it, I had to cover more area and thus had to widen the shield further and further. The shield was no longer like a legioner's one. It was almost similar to a wall.
While I was not worried about mana, the shortening of the distance between us and the mage was beginning to induce fear in me. And then, the thing I have been fervently hoping to not happen occurred.
As the latest fireball from the mage impacted my shield, the shield fizzled out. It didn't break or shatter. It just fizzled out as if someone had cut off its power supply. I cursed my luck to seven hells.