Nasteya Page 11

  ‘I will help uncle Nasteya in every ways I can,’ said Ayaan firmly. Now, he too was all set to depart. Soon, dinner was served. As usual, the food was delicious and satisfying—roasted mountain goat, milk and fresh fruits and berries, with roasted snakes on the special request of the eagles. Except for the snakes, I tasted everything. I wondered when we would eat such splendid food again.

  ‘Is it your final decision to leave at dawn?’ Baka asked.

  ‘Yes, at dawn, we leave,’ said Nasteya. ‘Garud, can you tell me how far we have to travel until we reach the western shore?’

  ‘As I recall, you have to walk along the banks of the Vitasta until it widens and meets the Sindhu River. Then, follow that river and you will see the boundaries of Mehrgarh beyond the western bank of the river,’ said Garud.

  ‘Mehrgarh, the city of bricks,’ I said.

  ‘Precisely,’ Garud said. ‘The rest depends on what aid you receive from the city.’

  ‘Then we march to Mehrgarh, tomorrow,’ declared Nasteya. Turning to Queen Bhamini he said, ‘I will remain indebted to the generosity of the yetis.’

  The queen inclined her head and then said: ‘Nasteya, we owe you for what you have done for us, and for bringing about peace with the eagles as well. If not for you, this rancour between us over a misunderstanding would have lasted forever.’

  ‘I feel content to see yetis and eagles together,’ said Nasteya.

  ‘And I feel content to have freed myself from the responsibility of looking after Kushya’s sword,’ said Garud.

  ‘And I feel content to have made friends with all of you!’ said Ayaan gleefully.

  ‘I reckon I should accompany you on your further journey. Until your purpose is fulfilled, I will stay with you. After its completion we will return to Kanchana,’ Baka said.

  ‘I do not want trouble to come to you because of me, though I know that your help will mean a lot. Your body cannot bear the heat of plains. Trust me, I already owe you more than I can afford,’ said Nasteya with a hand on Baka’s broad shoulder.

  ‘Friends never owe each other for favours that they do for one another. I might not be able to accompany you, but it will please me if I would be the first one to strike your mind if ever you need help,’ Baka replied modestly.

  Soon after dinner, the eagles took off. We all watched their wings against the light of the crescent moon glimmering on snowy mountains.

  ‘Things have changed all of a sudden and that too for the good. Now, I feel at ease,’ said Baka as he walked us to our room.

  I hopped into my bed and within no time, I was diving deep into the sea of my dreams. A sudden thud woke me up in the early hours of the morning. Ayaan was struggling with a heavy bag. I got up to help him.

  ‘What is so heavy in this bag?’ I asked.

  ‘I have collected essential items that we might require on our journey. What if someone falls sick? I have got medicine for the cure. What if we need fire? I have collected the finest-quality matchsticks for the purpose. Other than that, this bag has ropes, shovels, small hammers and all the other tools required to setting up camp,’ Ayaan replied proudly.

  ‘Too smart to be a child isn’t he?’ said Savaan. Like always, Savaan tried to begin a conversation with me but I hesitated to be too friendly. He wasn’t the same Savaan he once was in Saarah, and yet… It might be because of the difficult past I shared with him. But I decided for once to set my reservations aside.

  ‘Yes, he is. Are you better now? Are you geared up for the journey?’ I asked him.

  ‘Umm… I guess I am,’ he replied and it triggered off a conversation that went on for a few minutes, probably the longest we two had ever had.

  The sky was mostly clear with milky white scraps of cloud. The wind was very calm as we walked out of the palace with our packs all trussed up. Baka, Queen Bhamini and the others stood there to bid us farewell. After the prayer was over, Queen Bhamini said, ‘May God grants these travellers a safe road to their destination. May Lord Eesh help these men. May triumph be the conclusion of their purposes.’ We bowed to the queen.

  ‘Take special care of little Ayaan,’ Baka said, ‘and Ayaan, take care of the others.’ Ayaan nodded. Baka then pulled a ring off his finger and slipped it onto Ayaan’s wrist. ‘It is my lucky charm. Now, it shall bring good luck to you,’ Baka said and hugged Ayaan. A carriage took us to the gates. Outside, the eagles stood. As we passed the gates, those yetis who had greeted us with disgusted looks on the first day now bowed in respect.

  Garud was not with the eagles.

  ‘Where is Garud? Has he not come?’ asked Nasteya.

  ‘He hates goodbyes so he stays away from such moments,’ Sankara answered, ‘but he has sent his greetings.’

  ‘Even I hate goodbyes,’ Nasteya said with a hint of gloom in his voice.

  We walked away from Kanchana into the white landscape of hills and valleys ahead of us. The yetis and eagles stood there until we went dark against the horizon and then disappeared. After a while, I turned to see nothing but a shadow of the high castle towers against the blue sky. We walked on and on without much conversation. We turned south and soon, the castle’s towers too fell from view.

  We walked until the sun was overhead but the great Himalayas still seemed as huge and threatening as before. We laid down our packs against a big boulder that screened us from the wind.

  ‘If I yawn anymore, I shall split at the ears. Is there time for nap?’ Savaan asked Nasteya.

  ‘We still have…’ but before Nasteya could complete his sentence, a sudden sound assailed our ears and stopped after some thuds. Then the leaves rustled suddenly. Alarmed by this sudden and strange activity, we drew our swords. As we gazed in different directions, he finally showed up.

  SIXTEEN

  TERRIFIC POWER REVEALED

  ‘You almost scared us!’ Nasteya said on seeing Garud landing smoothly in front of us.

  ‘I reckon I did,’ he said. ‘I just came here to meet you all, for nobody knows when we’ll meet again.’ ‘But you hate farewells,’ I remarked putting my sword back in its scabbard. ‘I do,’ Garud answered, ‘but I couldn’t stop myself from…’

  Nasteya interrupted him with a raised hand. There was no need for words. We all sat in a semi-circle in front of Garud.

  ‘You have to stay until dinner,’ Nasteya said. And so, a long conversation and chit-chat followed. We spent some quality time with Garud. We set up our camp as soon as the sun set behind the chain of White Mountains. Hira prepared dinner. After dinner, Garud said, ‘It is time. I must leave.’

  ‘You can leave in the morning,’ I said.

  ‘The longer I stay here, the harder it will become for me to say goodbye,’ Garud said. ‘All I can say is that you all must take care of yourselves and the sword as well. It is a big responsibility. May you all stay blessed and I shall see you soon.’

  Garud said these words and took off. We watched him as he rose into the dark sky and blended into its darkness. It saddened us for a while, but then we all went inside the camp to sleep.

  The warm and furry blankets Enakshi gave us proved useful that night. Swaddled in their warmth, I wandered freely into the land of my dreams until Ayaan pulled me back from there in the morning saying, ‘Wake up, let’s go fishing. I’m hungry!’ Whether he was actually hungry or not, he was excited to catch fish from the brook nearby.

  ‘No fishing. We’ll have fresh apples for breakfast,’ Hira said, lifting up a sack full of blood-coloured apples.

  ‘Apples? Where did you get them?’ Savaan asked.

  ‘I found a cluster of apple trees few yards behind our camp. Though the trees were covered with snow, these apples looked as fresh as if they had ripened overnight. I have never seen apples growing in so severe a climate. These are undoubtedly special,’ Hira said as he handed out the apples. The taste of the juicy red apples was unique. We saved a few for our journey. However, their colour disturbed me for a moment. It reminded me of blood, the same blood that was al
l over my face that fateful night, Seeya’s blood. I stopped eating and suddenly my heart started to beat faster and I started to scream in pain. But then Nasteya shook me and woke me up from this bad dream… My eyes were damp and my pulse was still racing. When I realised that it was just a hallucination, I hugged Nasteya. Ayaan was scared by my screams. Hira somehow diverted his attention from me.

  ‘In the long run, everything is going to be alright,’ Nasteya whispered in my ears while he gently patted my back.

  We kept trudging along the river that roared as it tumbled down the mountains. We walked under the clear sky till evening that day. But in the sky ahead of us, the clouds were a dark grey.

  ‘I’m pretty sure it will rain. Let’s make ourselves a shelter,’ I said looking skywards and the others concurred. We decided to set up camp and save ourselves from the rain. Soon after our evening meal, it started to drizzle and transformed into heavy rain after another few moments.

  It rained heavily for a few hours and then stopped. I couldn’t sleep. Whenever I tried to, a loud clap of thunder woke me up. I thought a walk outside in the open would help so I went out. The fragrant scent of rain-soaked earth rose from everywhere, except the parts that were still snow covered. At the edge of the woods, I stood struggling with my thoughts—to go inside or stay where I was. I decided to walk into the woods, alone. A cool waft of air caressed my face. The distant howling of wolves, the screech of owls, the mysterious and wondrous chirping of nocturnal insects, the whispers of wet leaves in the slow wind echoed throughout the woods. As I walked further, I saw a moth with wings the size of my palm. It changed colour and glowed in the dark. I went closer and it flew away. I started to chase it—a childhood habit that had often made me stray far in unknown directions. Then the moth stopped at a branch. I looked at it in silence. Suddenly, the distant beats of galloping hoofs reached my ears. I had heard those hoofs before, I knew who was approaching! White Demons! I stared in the direction of the sounds, now even louder. Had I gained the power of bringing my deepest fears to life? Had I conjured up those White Demons on their black horses out of fear? It was too late for me to plunge deeper into the thicket to hide myself from their view for they had already seen me! Frightened out of my wits, I turned and started to run. I wasn’t certain if I was running towards the camp or in some other direction, yet I ran crazily as those devils chased me. Whenever I glanced over my shoulder, I saw that those White Demons had come closer than before. The galloping sound drowned out all other sounds. Tripped by a fallen branch, I fell. I rose up in panic and ran again. But my fall had given those White Demons enough time to come even closer. I could now hear one of them growling. About fifty feet from me, I saw the dark figure of a man who stood with a sword in his hand. He lifted the sword into the air. At that moment, a lightning bolt tore the clouds, flashing through the air to the tip of that sword, leaving in its wake a deafening thunderclap. In the flash of white light that now filled the woods, I saw that the man was Nasteya with Kushya’s sword in his hand. The lightning bolt coiled around the blade.

  ‘Bend down, Vasu!’ he screamed and directed the thunderbolt towards those White Demons.

  A powerful thunderbolt shot towards them from over my head. The ones in the front fell. I turned towards the ones left standing who had now started to turn their horses back.

  ‘You may run but it’s futile,’ Nasteya yelled at them as he ran towards them. He was ferocious and incensed for he had laid eyes on his worst enemy. He wouldn’t let them escape! With another thunderbolt he killed more, tossing them aside along with their horses. Now, only a few were left. He stood and watched them fleeing in fear. After a pause, he directed another lightning bolt towards them. They did not stand a chance. Nasteya had killed them all. Wisps of mist curled about them and ebbed at once with their corpses.

  ‘It is just the beginning of your end,’ said Nasteya as he stood there panting. Anger shrouded his face. Then he turned to me and helped me stand up. After so much chaos, the sound of birds and insects filled the air once again. The sword had stunned me more than those White Demons had scared me.

  ‘Magnificent and powerful,’ I commented as I gazed at the sword.

  ‘I now understand why it was kept isolated,’ said Nasteya. ‘By the way, have you grown dim-witted? Or were you sleep walking? Or, did some tiny insect tease you to chase it? You should have at least informed me before you moved out. Those demons would have chewed you alive. It is your good luck that I woke upto find you absent from the camp and went in search of you. Do you realise what deathtrap you have escaped?’

  ‘Stop scolding me. I have nothing to worry about as long as I have you by my side,’ I said with a sigh of relief. But he was actually right. I would have died that night. He saved me. I already owed him my life and there was nothing more I was left with.

  ‘Shut up! I feel like hanging you upside down from that tree and then kicking you hundreds of times. You know very well that you’re all I have now. You scared me, Vasu... I beg you, please, don’t do this again,’ Nasteya said, and he was quite serious.

  Realising the degree of peril I had pushed myself into, I asked for forgiveness and promised never to do such a thing ever again. I made the same promise to myself also, for I knew that my luck wouldn’t be that dazzling forever.

  ‘How did you learn to use the sword?’ I asked.

  ‘I didn’t. I just took it out and in need, it made me use it,’ said Nasteya as he gazed at the sword.

  ‘Everything apart, I’m glad that we have this stupendous sword with us. It’s lethal,’ I said as we made our way towards the camp.

  ‘Yes it is. But I’m thinking of something else right now,’ Nasteya said and continued, ‘How did those White Demons know we were here? Or was it just a strange quirk of fate?’

  Nasteya’s questions left me thinking about them for awhile.

  ‘They killed everyone in Saarah and we’re the only survivors. Maybe they want every Saarahian under the ground. Maybe that’s why they came for us,’ I said.

  ‘They never looted anything nor did they capture Saarah… Then why would they want all of us dead?’

  ‘Maybe they’re after something,’ I said.

  ‘Maybe they’re after someone. Maybe they’re after someone with the scar of an eagle’s claw on his chest. Maybe they came searching tonight because they must have found nobody with such a scar back in Saarah. And that is chiefly because I wasn’t in Saarah the night they attacked. Do you realise it was only after I was brought to Saarah as a child that these White Demons started attacking Saarah?’ Nasteya’s words made me think.

  ‘So that means these White Demons are after you. Or maybe this sword that they surely recognised; they saw it in your hands, otherwise, they wouldn’t have fled!’ I said.

  ‘We will have to ask them some questions next time before we kill them,’ Nasteya said. ‘We’ll beat out of them everything they know.’

  Somewhere inside my head I prayed never to have an encounter with those White Demons again. They terrified me. We had immense power on our side—power which, in the past, had led a man to conquer half of the world all by himself. With Nasteya, I always felt secure and now, that sword had raised my confidence to an even higher level. I said to myself, ‘No matter who comes now, we’ll deliver them a good taste of defeat.’

  At the camp, everyone was wide awake and waiting for us. Our story stunned them.

  ‘I guess I missed the chance to see the power of this sword,’ Savaan commented.

  ‘I’m afraid you did,’ Nasteya said. ‘Better luck next time.’

  Exhausted and relieved at having such a narrow escape, I now slept soundly. But this comfort was killed at dawn by Nasteya’s screams.

  SEVENTEEN

  TROUBLE COMES CHEAP

  ‘Wake up, Nasteya,’ I shook him until he woke, panting, his forehead beaded with sweat. While my hand reached for the water bottle, he rose and rushed out of the tent. A few feet away, he stopped with one hand resting on hi
s hip and with other, he mopping sweat off his forehead. He seemed terribly uneasy and I guessed the reason for it accurately when I asked, ‘Was it a nightmare again?’

  ‘I don’t know… I… uh… Vasu, I saw Godmother...’

  ‘Then why are you so disturbed?’ I asked.

  ‘She made me see things...’

  ‘What kind of things?’

  ‘She said that my absence from Saarah that night led to everyone’s merciless death. She blamed me for Saarah’s fall,’ he said.

  ‘It was just a dream. She didn’t blame you, your own uneasy thoughts and conscience did,’ I said.

  ‘But then she took me to Saarah and made me see everything that happened that night. I saw my very own people dying in front of me. I saw everything from inside a transparent cage that wouldn’t let me out even though I tried. I saw those White Demons chasing women and children to death. I saw houses burning with men still trapped inside. I heard dreadful screams. Then I saw those children, my bed-time story listeners, who were encircled by those White Demons who galloped around them on their black horses. They clung to each other, crying, terrified.... They looked at me but I was helpless. Then in the next moment, their heads were slashed off.’

  He was blaming himself—no one else was. His guilt was making him restless—the guilt and frustration and anger inside him. Anger, if not harnessed properly can be a curse and I didn’t want Nasteya to fall prey to his unrestrained rage.

  ‘You can’t go on flogging a dead horse. Moreover, it was just a dream Nasteya, a bad dream,’ I consoled him.

  ‘Vasu, I’ve committed some terrible mistakes in the past. I left Saarah on the night when my presence was needed the most. I did not heed Godmother’s words. And even after all this, on that day, I led us all into those humming woods. The harder I try not to commit mistakes, the more mistakes I see myself responsible for,’ Nasteya said, frustrated. I held him by his hand, made him sit on a rock and said, ‘No mortal man is perfect. Mistakes are a part of everyone’s lives. It is not about committing mistakes; it is about correcting them and learning from them. And I can see you’re improving.’