Tantrics Of Old (44 page)

They walked under the arch and almost immediately, Adri felt the level of magical activity increase in the area, and immensely so.

‘We tripped some kind of magical alarm,’ Adri said, drawing a shooter with his free hand. ‘We have to be careful now. Gray, carry Maya.’

Fayne handed Maya over to Gray, who struggled with her weight yet again. Adri felt more relieved. He was hurting a lot, and because of his wounds, felt slower. His reaction time had evidently come down. Bad.

Stones soon appeared under their feet; they were walking down a stone road in silence. It was a long walk as the path twisted and turned. Gray was slow with Maya and needed to rest frequently, and though they expected hidden dangers at each turn, nothing disrupted their progress. After walking for a little more than two hours, they saw ruins in the distance. Huge pillars, made of the same stone, looking at them from beyond the trees and even higher. As they walked closer, they realised that the pillars had been part of some structure which had once existed here. Only ruins remained now, collapsed walls and exposed rooms, burned staircases and broken roofs, all in the centre of a very large clearing. The forest seemed to shy away from the ruins somehow; only grass and occasional creepers had laid claim on the ruins. It was evidently the remains of what had once been a fort, or a castle.

‘Does this look like a temple to you?’ Adri asked.

‘We should be near the centre of the forest right now,’ Fayne said. ‘If we don’t find Kali here I will be surprised.’

They entered the ruins. There was no other way, but to go through the remains of the structure, through passages and half-demolished hallways that seemed to go on and on. Everything was silent as they entered and continued through. The sun was high, and the ruins cast shadows everywhere. The stones were strangely dry though, as if it hadn’t rained here at all. Gray pointed this out as he struggled and panted under Maya’s weight; no one answered him. Fayne walked slowly, like a leopard on the prowl. Adri could sense just how tense the assassin’s muscles were. Perhaps Fayne, too, was sensing something here. The Wraith spoke suddenly and made Adri jump.

I don’t like it here, there is something quite powerful resting. Be quiet, it wouldn’t be wise to disturb its afternoon siesta
.

Adri was sure their arrival had already been announced by changes in the magic vibes in the air. With a place as thick with magic as this, even the slightest of changes resounded like echoes in every single corner. No, if Kali was here, he definitely knew of their presence.

Then they noticed the things on display.

‘What’s that?’ Gray gasped.

‘It’s a skeleton nailed into a wall,’ Fayne replied.

‘I know,’ Gray said, a touch of irritation among all the horror. ‘But I mean—why are the bones
red
in colour?’

‘A ritual,’ Adri said quietly.

‘What kind of—’

‘It would help our case if you did not talk right now.’

They ran into other skeletons soon, propped up against walls with chains and nails, bones bloody red. They observed these with distaste and moved on, though the Wraith was clearly pleased.

My respect for Kali goes up, Tantric. I must confess, this is what I had done to my resting place as well. It does an excellent job of scaring intruders, grave-robbers and the like
.

‘I
saw
your resting place. There’s nothing right with displaying your kills like this,’ Adri hissed.

You are not like me, Tantric. You have potential though
.

They broke into a huge courtyard in the middle of the ruins. The pillars stopped; all that lay ahead of them was a huge circular platform of stones, with the ruins continuing on the other side. They froze in their tracks and stared at what faced them—in the centre of the courtyard was an enormous statue, about twenty feet in height. It looked down upon them, glaring.

‘The Dark Goddess,’ Fayne said.

She was made completely of dark stone, but her tongue was painted crimson; it hung out as she glared at them, dressed in the skin of a leopard, her hair wild and untamed. Her gaze was terrifying to behold; it was cruel and devastating; her eyes, though made of stone, seemed to be alive. She had ten arms all about her and apart from an assortment of sabres and scimitars, she held carved corpses of dead men hanging from four arms. A necklace of skulls hung around her neck.

She was beautiful, she was petrifying. She was a horror. She was a slayer, wild and unstoppable, someone rising from the dark depths below, someone with unholy blood in her veins yet holy in herself, in her presence, and in her lineage. Terrible. She was fear itself and she made all three of them uneasy, even though she was a stone statue standing in the sunlight.

None of them could say anything else. They stood there, at the edge of the courtyard, gazing at the idol in wonder and in fear. They could not move, they felt transfixed in her stare.

‘Move,’ a man’s voice rang across the courtyard. ‘Approach me.’

The voice was old and harsh, like one that had been through a lot. They were jerked out of the trance by this voice, and they realised only then that beneath the idol sat a man. He was old. Dressed in a black dhoti and nothing else, he sat beneath the goddess on a stone pedestal, his eyes shut. His body had been left untended for years—his beard went down to his waist and his hair was tied in a million braids that spread behind him in an immense matted, dirty-looking clump. His face was aged and wrinkled, and black ceremonial marks covered most of his face and body. Apart from the Tantric tattoos on his arms, he had intricate black tattoos around his eyes. Like the goddess behind him, he too wore a necklace of skulls around his neck. Kali.

Slowly, Adri began to walk towards him. Gray kept Maya down on the stone floor and withdrew his shotgun as silently as he could. Fayne walked towards the Tantric with Adri, but stopped midway. Adri kept walking slowly until finally he stood before Kali. No one spoke, and Kali breathed heavily.

‘You have your father’s aura,’ Kali said finally.

Adri was taken aback. He could sense small surges of power, but the Tantric was hiding the extent of his power from Adri. He did not reply.

‘You have a good hold on your abilities,’ Kali continued, still breathing heavily. ‘But you still have a lot to learn. You must not be overconfident. No. Careful is what you must be. If you are careful, you can defeat any foe who needs to be defeated.’

Adri did not react once more. Then slowly, he nodded.

‘You will be tested, and it will be much harder than what you expect or what you can deal with,’ Kali said in his old, cracked voice. ‘Your weakness is your parentage. Any foe who has knowledge of the secrets your mother or your father had, can defeat you, because you will let them. Your confusion leads you astray, Adri Sen, and until you resolve them you cannot be a focused Necromancer. Greatness will always shy from your grasp until then.’

‘I need your help in dealing with my confusions,’ Adri said.

‘Ask, and I will answer,’ Kali replied.

‘I need to know how to kill a Horseman, one in particular. Death.’

Kali breathed for a while before he answered. ‘The eldest brother,’ he said. ‘Understand, Tantric, that the Horsemen are not regular magical creatures. They are not entities summoned by our kind or ones that are seen, even rarely. No, they are among the oldest creatures that ever existed—created by the Serpent, fed raw power, power the likes of which has never been seen anywhere in the Old City or outside. The Horsemen are not immortal, but they are a foe beyond you or me, they are greater than any Demon or mortal. They are not entities you can vanquish in this mortal skin of yours.’

‘You just said they are not immortal, and if not so, they can be killed,’ Adri said.

Kali laughed loudly, an aged, hoarse laugh, nonetheless powerful. ‘Yes, I’m certain they can, but I do not know of their weaknesses.’

‘Then who does?’

Kali paused. ‘The best person to know the secrets of a Horseman,’ he said finally, ‘would be another Horseman.’

Adri’s eyes went wide. ‘Why would another Horseman help me? They are brothers.’

‘You disappoint me, young Tantric,’ Kali said. ‘I thought you would know more than this.’

‘Know what?’

‘That everything is not black and white. There are greys, and a lot of them.’

‘Which Horseman can I approach?’

‘The cave of Pestilence is beneath the Howrah Bridge,’ Kali said. ‘The Horseman should still be in there, waiting for its brother to break the last seal.’

‘That is very close from here,’ Adri said. ‘Thank you.’

‘There is something else you want to ask, I can sense it.’

‘Yes, there is. I want to know how one can extract a living host from a Devil Mask,’ Adri said.

Kali laughed again. ‘Tricky,’ he said. ‘But it can be done. The Mask must be distracted.’

‘The Devil Mask is a Necrotic,’ Adri responded. ‘It’s
never
distracted.’

‘Then you will have to find a way, isn’t it? The devourer of life will have to be distracted when you strike. A perfect cut across the centre of the carrying cage, and you can safely cut away the host.’

‘Distracting it is impossible,’ Adri said, shaking his head.

‘This is the only way.’

They stood in silence for a while, Adri’s mind in turmoil.

‘Thank you,’ he said finally. ‘I’m very grateful to you for your help.’

He started backing away gently. He reached as far as where Fayne stood when Kali opened his eyes. They were bloodshot, and he gazed at Adri with intention.

‘You have your answers,’ the Tantric said. ‘Now, I must have my remuneration.’

Adri felt his heart sink. ‘Kali,’ he said, ‘you did not talk about any remuneration.’

‘You did not ask,’ Kali said. ‘Whatever made you think that what I know is for free?’

Fayne was completely taut, waiting for the right moment.

‘What is your payment?’ Adri asked.

‘Leave me the girl,’ Kali said. ‘She will be sacrificed to the Mother.’

‘No!’ Gray shouted. Kali ignored him. His blood-red eyes were fixed on Adri.

‘She has many cuts and bruises. The Dark Goddess will not accept your sacrifice,’ Adri said.

‘I will heal her for as long as necessary,’ Kali replied.

‘She is not conscious, and has been polluted by the Dreamer’s Brew. A corruption runs in her blood.’

‘If she is destined to die, then it should be easier for you. Do not question my methods or my sacrifices to the Mother. Leave me the girl and I shall let you walk out of here.’

Adri sighed. Here it was, the very thing he had been afraid of. ‘I can’t give you the girl, old man,’ he said. ‘You should look at yourself, asking for a girl the assassin here and me have sworn to protect. You let us walk out of here, or this doesn’t go well.’

‘You’re right about this not going well, young fool,’ Kali said. ‘All of you will now die.’

Fayne’s arms moved in a blur as he threw four daggers at the Tantric. They were thrown well, but Kali deflected them with a wave of his hand. The daggers flew off harmlessly and Kali waved his hand again.

‘Possess those two,’ he spoke in the Old Tongue.

Gray felt something hit him like a wall. He had been standing, and he toppled over, motionless. Fayne stood his ground, and nothing happened.

Adri waved his hand, whispering in the Old Tongue. Kali was thrown off the pedestal and onto the courtyard. In a flash, Adri withdrew a revolver and emptied a barrage of holy bullets at Kali. The fallen Tantric somehow raised a hand and the bullets vaporised as they reached him. He waved his hand again, casually, carelessly. Adri lost his footing as he flew across the courtyard, crashing painfully into a stone pillar. He crumbled at the foot of the pillar in extreme pain.

Fayne walked towards Kali. Spirits hindered him and formed walls, but the assassin broke through them, continuing his slow relentless walk towards the Tantric. Kali had sat up where he had fallen, and watched Fayne curiously.

‘Not human,’ he mumbled. ‘And trained to resist spirits. You are not completely human.’

Fayne said nothing and continued to approach Kali.

‘The assassins of Ahzad have always been most difficult to dispose of,’ Kali continued. ‘I am but an old man, incapable of physical combat. But there is someone who can test your abilities well,
alkhatamish
.’

He moved his hand in a series of arcane gestures. The Old Tongue poured out of his mouth unceasingly. Next to him, a small flame erupted in the stone and started tracing a path. Then a shape. Kali continued the chanting and the flame continued drawing.

Fayne came nearer and nearer. Kali was not far from him now. The Tantric’s spirits created stronger and stronger resistances for Fayne, which just served to slow him down. Fayne watched the flame draw on the ground as he walked. He knew what was coming.

A pentacle of flame burned next to Kali. He looked at it and smiled. ‘Arrive, Rudra,’ he commanded in the Old Tongue.

Fire rose from the pentacle as the creature erupted from the ground below, raining fireballs in a circle. It looked around, then stood facing Kali, head bowed. It was a Demon; not a very large one, just a little taller than Fayne, but it stood hunched in its solid muscular frame. Its skin was dark red, and it wore armour. It had a shiny helmet and breastplate, and held a huge shield in one hand and an equally large morning star in the other. It was a Minotaur Demon—the head beneath the helmet was that of a bull; wild red eyes flickered and saw everything through the eyepieces in the helmet, and huge horns protruded from its forehead and through the helmet. Its arms and body were humanoid, hulking and well-built; instead of feet it had huge hooves.

‘Kill this assassin,’ Kali said calmly. ‘He’s bothering me.’

Adri looked up amidst his pain and saw the Demon, recognising it immediately. Rudra, one of the warlords. Its height was misleading; it was much stronger than the typical warrior Demons, a true threat even to Fayne. Adri wanted to shout a warning, but he realised that he needed to save his strength. Kali was going to be gunning for him now that Fayne was occupied. He shot a quick glance at Gray, still lying motionless beside his sister, and tried to get to his feet, ignoring protests from his entire body.