Chereads / Rakshak of Kalpa / Chapter 41 - 1.40 Duo From The Underworld. (5.4k)

Chapter 41 - 1.40 Duo From The Underworld. (5.4k)

The Ashrama was bustling with a suffocating energy. People in droves were gathering at the base of the central Banyan tree. All of them were displaying tense expressions on their faces, which started giving me my usual inner butterflies of premonition. Something was very, very wrong.

That feeling of foreboding that I had gotten when we were just going to be teleported to Sutala came back and assaulted my senses.

Those memories, I realized, had left a profound impact on me. Why won't it? It was from then on that everything started to go wrong with me.

Building up negative Karma started from that incident. Now, apparently, both Shani Dev as well as Kalpa are keeping a watch over me, judging and calculating my future punishments for my actions continuously.

Lord Ashwatthama's curse didn't trigger while I was awake during the crawl, so I didn't manage to raise my curse resistance by much.

"After all this, what new trouble seems to be cooking?" Trisha walked in the front and kept looking around. Who is she even looking for? Oh, there might be some of her batchmates around who are also responsible for guiding fifth graders into the dungeons just like her.

"Guys. Thank Gods..." We saw Anik making his way through the crowd, his eyes bloodshot and his expression disheveled. He got a few blue-brown spots on his cheeks.

Saiyan and Shreya were walking behind him.

"Shit. They've been fighting." Dweep muttered and ran towards Anik.

As the party assembled once again, I realized that cracks had already formed in multiple places within the group.

"What have you two been doing??" Dweep rebuked both Saiyan and Anik, his voice burning with frustration.

Saiyan, too, had a black eye and some scratches on his arms and neck. Whoa, did the crowd gather to watch them fight?

By the corner of my eyes, I saw Jhanvi and Shreya reuniting. They stared at each other but didn't exchange any pleasantries. Shreya looked down with shame and embarrassment.

Trisha now felt awkward among us, being the only senior around and having no idea what to do with the tensions rising between the group members.

"They're back." I suddenly heard Vihaan's worried voice from our right and felt a sudden jerk of panic in my heart. I instantly glanced at Jhanvi only to find her giving me a judging look already.

She sighed, shook her head to express her disappointment, and put up an indifferent look on her face.

I'll have to talk with her later. I can't keep things hanging like this. I need to make sure whatever she saw in there stays a secret. Forever.

I'll be losing my sleep like this. At the end of the day, I realized people need to be genuinely free of sins from their perspective to have a good night's sleep.

The catch was the phrase 'from their perspective'. If there were no one to judge them or put them on a proper path, people wouldn't even know that they've done something wrong.

Again, who decides what the correct path is? Me doing nothing and watching Dweep, Trisha, and Jhanvi die? Or me actually doing something, whatever it was, to make sure they were saved.

I could have lived with that satisfaction without a care, but with people calling me out left and right, shit was getting harder mentally.

"How the hell did you all take it down with four people???" Laksh was unusually excited.

Yashvi was only standing there quietly, smiling back at us. I remembered how she had died and could only shiver.

"Aren't you supposed to be half dead while inside the Ashrama?" Dweep called him out.

"I'm supposed to. But this was legendary. What the hell did you all cook up after we left to pick cucumbers??" His choice of words for expressing death was unique. Whatever floats his boat, I guess.

"Jhanvi took care of it. Her arrow went right into its brain through its left eye that you guys had damaged." I explained.

"It was just a team effort. Without the initial damage... We couldn't have done it. Good job, everyone." Jhanvi got flustered and somehow uttered the words when everybody's attention fell on her. She needs some public speaking tutorials. I can't blame her, though, considering her current mental condition.

Okay, nice. The story has been established.

"But what's up with all this crowd? Shouldn't they already be crawling the dungeons by now?" The seniors were puzzled by the crowd gathering at the central Banyan.

"Did you forget? You guys sent messages not to enter the dungeons. That we were being attacked by the princes of Satya." Dweep reminded them.

Getting killed might have put them through some kind of trauma, it seems. They really need to rest. Was this the first time it happened to them? I can't remember having talks about lives left with them.

"Guys. I think we are in trouble." Saiyan, who had been staying quiet all this time, finally spoke.

"That comes later. We need to talk about you two first." Anik was almost shouting out of the blue.

Looking at us, he started to explain. "You know? These guys..."

"We know."

"Yeah."

Me and Dweep acknowledged his concerns.

"It's fine. If a higher being wills it, we have no choice but to comply. It's good in a sense, too. If they had also died, we would have lost two more lives today. You could have become a Forgotten." I tried to speak sense into him.

"You always keep taking his side. It's been very apparent." Anik started blaming me with a voice laced with disappointment, "Did you not once think of a scenario where they had stayed and fought together with us, reducing our chances of dying? They are the only ones who had high-grade weapons. If they leave us at the first sign of danger every time, how are we supposed to be a team?"

That is a proper point from Anik for once. I had nothing to say against that.

"Where are our other two teammates?" Jhanvi suddenly asked Shreya.

"I haven't seen them. They might be at the dorms." Shreya said with an almost inaudible voice. The shame she was feeling was probably unbearable.

"Tsk." We all heard the frustrated tongue clicking of Jhanvi and looked at her.

"Everyone is just pissing me off lately." She complained and sighed.

'Sorry, ma'am.' I mentally apologized.

"There's no use blaming Saiyan and Shreya. If Kalpa suddenly decides to teleport them back to the Ashrama, neither they nor do we have any choice. So chill out. Let's talk about what Saiyan was warning us about." Vihaan tried to diffuse the situation by clapping his hands.

Looking specifically at me, Saiyan said this time, "King Mahabali is here. He's looking for the team that was there when his kingdom got destroyed."

Full-scale panic settled in my stomach. It felt like I was getting a heart attack. Calm down. Please.

"Can the four of us have a talk? Privately?" Dweep asked the other members of our party.

They nodded and decided to give us space.

"Before we say anything, should we even talk about this openly? You never know who can be hearing." I asked, trying to be extra careful.

The others nodded.

Saiyan cleared his throat. He gave a look that prompted us to start hearing attentively.

"There's nothing to worry. He's probably here to ask what had happened. Because we are the only ones who have returned safely. He would have met us even if we had died and had resurrected here." He stopped looking at our faces. Then, finally, at me.

Calm down.

"We fought the Kaalbheriyas in the mountain Woods. Came down to the plains following the stream, which had turned into a river. Met the guards of the capital who took us to his daughter. Did I miss anything?" I finished and nodded to the others.

"Nope."

"Naah."

"All good." They all agreed.

Dweep took a deep breath, "She asked us to wait until the dimensional teleporter was ready and sent us to a guest room in the palace. Some people attacked. A snake came down from the skies. And suddenly, we were traveling at the speed of sound to who knew where."

Dweep turned out to be the master of abbreviation.

"Then we fought across the jungles and picked up a baby Asura. Oh shit, where even is she? We need to meet her once. Okay, sorry for the tangent, that's for later. Next, we came across the Vimana, which was looking for us. We fought with the serpent Vritra and somehow managed to escape with the help of our alumni."

Suddenly, Ashwatthama's voice boomed inside our minds.

"Saiyan, Dweep, Anik, and Dhruva. I see that you all have returned finally. Come meet me inside the Banyan. We have an esteemed pair of guests waiting for you."

Pair?

It was the only word in the announcement that registered heavily in my brain. Things were not feeling right. Something was going to go terribly wrong.

Kalpa... Take me back to the Gurukul. I found myself sending a silent prayer. I could only imagine the fun she was having, watching me shit my pants.

"Remember the events properly." Saiyan muttered.

"I feel like we won't need that." I struggled to put out those words from my lips.

"We need to go, Lord Ashwatthama is calling for us." Dweep notified the others as we left for the massive tree in the center; their gazes, laced with curiosity, were fixed on our backs.

As we made our way through the mass of people, I realized they had simply come to watch another of the Chiranjeevis from the myths. Especially someone who's been living since the age of Treta, the second Yuga.

They've heard about King Mahabali being a benevolent king, the only Asuran King who walked the path of righteousness, devotion, and generosity. Such a character was hard to find even if you look through the histories of multiple cycles of yugas.

But he was too generous, leading him to lose everything. He lost his kingdom of Svarga and got extradited to Sutala, where again he managed to build an empire from scratch. Lord Vishnu, perturbed by his decision to bring down King Mahabali, promised him the throne of the heavens in the next cycle. In return, he was to become a Chiranjeevi to learn the ways of the upper Lokas, only able to return to his kingdom for one day in terms of Marta's timeline.

I'll get to see it today, how generous he is. But knowing what I have done, even the best of saints would find me hard to forgive.

The barks of the Banyan tree parted like flaps of curtains as we made our way inside, the whispers of other people humming like bees around us. I was so tense I couldn't even determine what they were hissing about.

"You guys have grown a lot in only two days. Oh, it must have been like six days inside the dungeon, I think. I have already talked with Anik after resurrecting him here and was happy to find that the others didn't require resurrections. Good job on creating a record, it was totally unprecedented. Guess two of the Seven in the same team tipped the balance." Lord Ashwatthama cheerfully greeted us.

I found the others trying not to gag at the smell that was being emanated from his body-melting curse.

"Ahh, sorry for this. I usually meet with people who have high curse resistance. Do you guys want a small curse like Dhruva? It can help you with training." He asked while apologizing.

"Maybe later." Anik smiled while trying not to grimace. He didn't expect to return this soon back to the tree.

"Ah, I understand." Lord Ashwatthama chuckled, "They are inside that room. They want to know what had happened... That destroyed their whole capital. The Shakti Peeth there has been occupied by the Asuras. They might be conspiring something. We might have to send Rakshaks to protect the Peeths, but we need to know what they are thinking of doing with those energy stations. Your info will be essential to uncover their plans."

I gulped as I looked at the doorway to a different room within the tree.

"Bro, why are you panicking like this? Shouldn't it be me? It was my arrows that killed her." Anik tried to calm me down.

"And who had made those arrows?" I whispered back.

Entering the room, we found the father and daughter pair sitting on expensive rugs silently. They looked up as we entered.

Anik got to reunite with his purple-haired crush after having a hand in killing her.

"So it's them." King Mahabali sat there, looking regal. He was massive and really well-built. Well-trimmed thick mustache and a body decorated with ornaments and jewelry.

His daughter also looked good, wearing an expensive dress loomed out of golden silk threads. Her diamond necklace was shining like dews, refracting sunlight at dawn.

His daughter nodded quietly, answering his question.

"Tell me... The final moments of my people and my Kingdom. Please. You can start with what had happened after you reached Sutala itself." King Mahabali spoke softly yet with an air of royalty. His 'please' seemed more like an order.

Saiyan started speaking, following the story we had discussed.

Isn't this going better than expected? Did she lose her memories? Or were her actions so embarrassing that she, too, didn't want her father to know of them?

"She's been quite hospitable. We were asked to wait in a huge room till she readied the dimensional gate, but before she could send us away, Vritra arrived, and all hell broke loose."

We all gave smiles to Mahabali's daughter, and she smiled back awkwardly.

"Yes, they were quite ragged by the time they arrived at the palace. I made sure they were 'taken care' of properly." She explained to her father cheerfully.

"Tell me more about the insurgents that attacked my capital." Mahabali now looked serious.

Saiyan made sure to list all the details, even the ones I had forgotten. He surprisingly has an impressive memory.

Dweep added things from time to time while, me and Anik kept exchanging weird glances with Mahabali's daughter.

I was this close to snorting, considering the irony of my situation.

One wrong step and both the parties would end up in trouble. However, we will be in a bigger one.

"I got who you all are talking about. Those traitors will surely be served with Retribution. I'll make sure of that." King Mahabali's eyes lit up with the flames of fury.

One wrong step and that anger can be directed towards us.

"Varsha, if you have something to ask them, go ahead. I'm done with my queries." Mahabali prompted his daughter.

"I have, but I wish to talk with them in private." She replied, "Can you excuse us for a moment?"

King Mahabali got up, revealing his towering form, and walked out of the room without hesitation, giving us space.

An awkward silence followed.

"So you guys managed to come back. How many lives in total did you all lose?" She finally broke the silence.

None of us answered.

She sighed. "I'm not a threat anymore. Even if I bring it up after today's conversation, it will be too late for it to have any impact. I want to know what happened to my close aides. It was too difficult to revive them. My father keeps some of my hair with him just in case, but they were not so lucky."

"Do they cut our fingers just for fun?" Anik was horrified. I realized that after being revived, dude got his finger cut and stored again.

"I'm sure you were being targeted. Vritra's breath disintegrated everything on that side of the castle. We somehow managed to flee that destruction." I answered, ignoring Anik. It was a mixture of some truth and lies.

"No wonder Father couldn't find a single trace of our bodies." She pondered over this new information.

"How many of your citizens could be revived?" Saiyan asked this time.

"None. Father's kingdom has been wiped off the face of this Brahmand. The Asuras even looted the Shakti Peeth and took it to a new location." Varsha, Mahabali's daughter, answered.

"The Peeths can be looted?" Anik was surprised.

"Usually not. But they somehow managed to do it. I'm not sure how. They have changed the Rekha network by quite a bit. Marta and Svarga lost several Rekhas that used to run through their strategic areas." She explained.

Okay. This got too serious. If the Asuras keep stealing Peeths like this, both Manavas and Devatas will be in deep trouble. They won't have any Rekha to replenish Shakti from. I need to check if my personal Rekha inside the training cave was fine or not.

"There's also something you need to know. If you're cool with us." Dweep suddenly started speaking. "I hope after all this talk, you won't backstab us."

Varsha: "I actually wanted to see you guys suffer before coming here. But I realized that getting to know our actual enemies was more important. I was focusing on the smaller things instead of looking at the bigger picture. My father had been trying his best to keep a balance, but I was going to destroy it with my own hands. Growing up with the Asuras, I thought my father should take the Asuras' side. But after being annihilated by them, I think I need to change sides. You guys wouldn't have done anything if I had left you alone. It was also because of my own stupidity that I died. Who knew there were arrows like that." She chuckled, but then her expression got dark, "I only wish for the people of my Kingdom to find happiness in Naraka. I hope they get a proper reincarnation. And I also need to help my father rebuild a new city for them to return to. That's all. Sorry, you're Dweep, right? What were you saying?"

"We saved someone among your citizens. A little child. She's been living here at the Ashrama." Dweep gave her the information without hesitation.

Varsha's eyes suddenly lit up like diyas.

"Where is she? We need to meet her. Can you guys come along?"

What a weird turn of events. If she had behaved with us like this from the very beginning, we could have made friends instead of clawing at each other's throats.

It worked out well for me, though, getting access to delicious experience early into the leveling journey.

"Father!! They saved someone from our kingdom. Let's go meet her!!" She shouted out excitedly after leaving the room.

"Ohh, you guys finished talking?" It was Ashwatthama who answered. "Didn't he tell you about the baby these guys rescued? He was briefed on that a few days ago and appointed a caretaker for the child. He's already on his way to the dairy, where the child is being cared for. Can you four escort her there?"

"Okay!!" Anik said and started leading the way cheerfully. Is he happy to finally play a part in all this? I remembered that he adored the little child, being the one to carry her for the most amount of time during our escape in the swamps of Sutala. I guess he's happy to be able to meet her after five or so days.

The crowd parted as we made our way south, toward the dairy.

We totally ignored the reactions of our batchmates as if we were presidential bodyguards on a mission or something.

Did they not see King Mahabali strolling out?

He might have used some illusion to avoid getting surrounded by the students.

The kind of relief I felt after Varsha turned out to be pretty chill was enormous. I felt like I was floating over the clouds, with all the burdens over my shoulders vanishing in an instant. The first time we met in Sutala, she seemed a bit hinged. Reuniting with her father must have cleared her mind.

And I had murdered such a person, indirectly, in cold blood. I know it was an accident, but still. The fact that I also took out her two close priests doesn't reduce my guilt either.

They might have taken care of her and helped her grow up throughout the years in the absence of her father.

Thinking about that twisted my insides. She doesn't know what had happened after she went to pick cucumbers in the language of Laksh. So those incidents should remain a mystery to her.

What if someone did the same to me? Take out the people who have been taking care of me since my childhood?

Fuck. I felt anger flashing and burning my insides. I wouldn't be able to forgive them truly. Why haven't I thought about it like this before?

Before I take the extreme step, I should at least once consider what I would do if I were in their shoes. Should I try talking? Try understanding their perspective? Do we even have time for those during a fight? Do we even get the convenience of having those thoughts where a single millisecond can change the course of a battle?

I stopped overthinking as our detached party members met up with us, looking astonished.

"This is King Mahabali's daughter, Varsha." Dweep introduced her to our party mates. They also introduced themselves one after another.

"This is such a treat. She's gorgeous." Laksh suddenly whispered from my side.

"How are you thinking like that with your Svadhisthana awakened? Aren't you supposed to have a calm and clear mind after it awakens?" I asked, filled with curiosity to the brim.

"I planned accordingly." He answered, "I awakened that chakra when I had a clear mind and when I didn't even know about those things properly. But it seems that it's too late for you. The fact that you understood what I meant translates to an impure mind. You better try awakening a different one next. You'll either need to cut off your balls, or meditate for thousands of years while praying to Lord Kama, the God of Lust, not to entrance you with those thoughts. Then only you can awaken it."

"By now, you're surely having fun pranking me." I retorted with a defeated expression.

"Well, I'm something of a comedian myself." He laughed, quoting a modified dialogue of an infamous villain.

"I think Yashvi is much better. Her vibes are excellent." I said instead. Every dungeon crawl from now on will make me miss her wonderful dishes.

"This guy's onto something. You really understand what actual charm is." Vihaan suddenly wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

I was this close to flinching from the guilt but somehow composed myself.

"Someone's here fancying her." Laksh started whispering and teasing Vihaan.

I realized they too, have mentally lived for much longer than their physical years. No wonder they are talking like this.

I was only talking about her caring nature, though.

"Do the two of you have something going on, or are you still in the dreaming phase?" I asked Vihaan with a mischievous smile.

"Dreaming is done. I'll start acting on it soon." Vihaan answered seriously.

"Whoaahoaaaa." Me and Laksh shouted out loud, grabbing the others' attention. We three were whispering around in the middle of the convoy, with my teammates at the front and the girls trailing behind having their chat.

"What interesting things have you three been discussing about?" Yashvi asked from behind, her eyes sparkling with innocence and curiosity. It felt good to find her usual reactions finally coming back.

"Vihaan was just saying how he'll be giving us a celebratory party from his own stash of ingredients. We'll be needing a gathering anyway to distribute the loot. So can you and Vihaan take care of the party preparations? We'll require your junior-certified magnificent cooking!" Laksh notified her, setting up an event for Vihaan and her to work together.

Laksh turned out to be super smooth. All that time sleeping and dreaming must have somewhat increased his conversation skills with the help of his dream NPCs. Now I'm curious about the kind of dreams he experiences.

"That's a great idea. These two will also help me." She wrapped her arms around Jhanvi and Shreya with a beautiful smile.

I could feel Vihaan's arm around my neck getting loose for a second.

Shit, we need to give these two some time alone.

"No, the juniors will be working together to prepare a gift for the seniors. You all have been great guides and teachers. It will be a thank-you gift, so look forward to it." I inserted my smoothness into the pipeline, not thinking about what to gift yet.

Jhanvi's sidelook at my suggestion was cold and sharp. But Shreya, trying to get rid of her guilt, agreed to that idea. I need to make her and Saiyan work on that present together. They are technically guilty bound to provide their manual power for that.

I'll gift Yashvi with a compound blossoming arrow. Laksh with a blossoming spear. Vihaan with... Oh, I had made some auto-healing Aksharas for Laksh, right? I can make some for Vihaan this time. Maybe for the others, too.

These will be extra one-time use gifts over the one the others will be making.

"We can do the party after... Yeah, 13 days, I think, when we return to the Ashrama." Vihaan calculated. "I just remembered that you guys didn't even see your classrooms yet, lol."

The scale of time that had passed and the events that had happened was truly mind-boggling. If every day at Alik went on like this, we'd end up being Forgotten in two days.

We have to grow stronger before we can go for another dungeon crawl. Much much stronger. We have to, for the next few Alik days, concentrate on improving our skills and finding out our weaknesses.

But with problems growing within my own team, I don't know what the future has in store for us.

Also, there's the case of Asuras occupying Shakti Peeths. Then there are the four temple artifacts. Who knows what's happening on that side? The other five teams must already be fighting Asuras and gaining an enormous amount of experience.

We finally reached the dairy. King Mahabali was standing there with the baby in his arms.

Varsha crossed the fence and also went to see the last survivor of her people.

"She's an interesting child. Her chakra seems to be of an amalgamation type. Her red eyes are inherited from Pishachas, and her pale translucent form from Bhootas. No wonder her parent tried their best to keep her safe." King Mahabali explained.

"She's too dangerous to keep with young Rakshaks. She might unknowingly harm them." The tall and bald attendant that King Mahabali had appointed gave his opinions. His voice had a beautiful tone to it. Was he a singer some time ago?

"I'll take up on your offer then, Father. It's the least I can do for my people." Varsha suddenly suggested. "If I'm here, you won't be worried sick about me. I'll be safe here. I've already taken care of the things I've been concerned about, so there's nothing to worry about anymore. I'll also try to get back all the experiences I have lost so that I can take care of myself. I won't have a country to run and can finally focus on my awakening."

"Are you sure about your decision?" Mahabali asked for her confirmation one last time.

"Yes, I'm sure. Please leave it to me. I'll take care of this child, too. In the meantime, you better hunt down the traitors who brought despair to our people." Her voice and words were full of confidence.

"That I surely will. They'll regret putting their hands on my subjects for yugas to come." Mahabali declared, his King's oath resounding across the Lokas.

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It was almost the evening of the third day at Ashrama when King Mahabali and Varsha decided to leave the dairy finally. They might be making more preparations for Varsha to stay here and for Mahabali to prepare for his fight against the insurgents.

I still don't know about the politics of the Lokas below, and things don't seem that good. The insurgents are like terrorists, fighting against governments until their demands are fulfilled.

Ahara, the Asura who came during the Rakshak Vrata, was also a part of that group. He had said how the Asuras were living in poverty and starvation. But Mahabali's capital seemed to be full of luxuries.

Again, not every Asura was living inside the capital. What about the others living in Sutala but not in King Mahabali's kingdom? Is their condition really as bad as Ahara had mentioned?

I'll ask Varsha the next time we come back to Ashrama. Running a country must have given her enough insight into how the different groups were moving in the Lower Lokas. We never know where we might end up next. Being clueless about the situation in a Loka will be fatal.

I still can't trust her too much, though. What if she's like a spy infiltrating here? If not, great. If yes, we will be in deep trouble. Who knows when she might flip her switches? There's nothing wrong with being cautious.

I suddenly felt an immense pressure standing behind me.

"You're Dhruva, right? Can we have a little conversation?" King Mahabali stood behind me.

That bad feeling, which had vanished a few hours ago, came back like a speeding eighteen-wheeler. I kept myself from vomiting on the spot. His pressure seemed to be constricting both my brain and ribcage.

"Yes..." I somehow managed to get it out.

Everything was going well. Why did it have to go wrong now??

We came at the forest's edge, away from the others' gazes.

"I have a parental bond with my child." Mahabali suddenly said, "I can't remotely view her, but I can often feel what she's feeling. The Kundalini she's using, and the Kundalini around her."

He went quiet for a while.

I knew I was in trouble. Is he going to off me here? And bury me in the jungle?

Never say anything in any of these cases. People say these things to bring out a confession from you. I remembered one of my mental notes to myself from my time back in the previous school.

"Do you realize what I'm trying to say?" He growled, his voice growing deeper.

"I had made weapons using my Kundalini for my friends after arriving in Sutala. We left it at your daughter's audience room when we were sent to our 'specially prepared' accommodation. We never got those back, unfortunately." I said looking up at his eyes, which were located at the top of his towering stature.

We kept staring at each other for a few minutes, his pressure building up and squeezing around me constantly until he finally let go.

"I'll remember you. Karma will be judging you soon." He sighed, but his low and strong voice didn't waver.

"Then make sure to keep her safe. She's got a lot coming for her, too." I said back loud what I was supposed to think mentally.

He turned and grabbed my shirt, pulling me up into the air. Bringing my eyes to his level. All in a single swift motion.

"Don't make me reconsider my current decision. My daughter seems to have no issue with you. That's why I'm letting you go scot-free. Don't test my patience anymore." His threat almost relaxed my bladder.

With my air pipe blocked, I couldn't even answer him and fell like an idiot on the ground after he released me from his height.

His sudden choke had stopped the blood flow in my artery, leading me to lose my balance. That is what I told myself.

I kept sitting with my legs sprawled and saw him walking away towards the dairy. My legs were numb and unresponsive for a while.

What the hell is even happening with my body? I relaxed for a while, lying on the soft grass, and saw the dull orange clouds turning grey and dark as night arrived.

Lightning flashed all across my body, signaling my return to Alik. I couldn't even say goodbye to my seniors, was the final thought I had before departing from Satya.

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Only two and a half days from when the Rakshaks got teleported back to their respective Gurukuls, the skies of Satya changed forever, showing numbers on the sky signalling the starting of a countdown to the beginning of Pralaya, the end of Kali Yuga.