Tantrics Of Old (45 page)

Rudra moved towards Fayne with surprising agility. Fayne reached into his back and withdrew two greater blades, the size of short swords. He said nothing. Rudra rushed at Fayne and swung the giant morning star. Fayne hopped back as the great spiked ball crashed into the ground, and lunged forward with his blades. He leapt into the air and came thundering down with his blood red swords; the Demon was quick and stopped Fayne’s attack with its shield. It was quick to counter with its weapon.

Kali looked at Adri as he tried to somehow get to his feet using the stone pillar he had crashed into. ‘Both of them don’t have much use for words!’ he shouted across to Adri. ‘Even Rudra does not prefer to talk much. This is going to be interesting.’

Adri was still trying to stand. His energy was slipping away before he could collect it. Perhaps, he thought, Kali was responsible. Kali did not seem to be interested in Adri for the moment. He was busy watching the fight.

Rudra and Fayne fought fiercely and silently. Except for grunts and gasps as they struck and dodged and blocked, nothing else escaped their lips. Rudra’s weapon looked old and menacing while Fayne’s newly revealed blades were shiny and translucent, like larger versions of his daggers. Both had reliable weapons, and neither gave way as they met again and again. Sparks flew all over as the two fought. Rudra’s shield became increasingly scratched and dented as the battle progressed, while Fayne narrowly dodged the morning star every time the Demon swung—he suspected one blow from the chained weapon would end him.

Adri leaned heavily on the pillar, one hand wrapped around it clumsily. With the other, he drew his other revolver, which he knew to be loaded. All he needed was one bullet to hit the Tantric’s head. He aimed the weapon at Kali who was watching the battle. Adri closed one eye and aimed carefully, but his hand was shaking because of his injuries and the pain. Before he could take the shot, Kali gestured lightly and the gun flew out of Adri’s hand to clatter to the ground several feet away.

‘Either take the shot or don’t!’ Kali shouted again. ‘Do not wait so long.’

Adri did not bother to retort. His weapon was gone. He felt a spirit repressing the revolver on the ground. He could not take it back, not right now. He leaned against the pillar, collecting his strength.

Fayne spun his swords like fabric. His rapid assault of moves was blocked by the Demon. Rudra moved towards Fayne, swinging the morning star in the air. Fayne backed away, swinging his own swords backwards, his eyes never leaving the Demon. It was impossible to say who would win the battle. This would end with a sudden blow, Adri thought.

Adri shouted in the Old Tongue all of a sudden, gesturing towards Rudra. Nothing happened. The battle remained uninterrupted.

‘Your spirits,’ Adri told Kali weakly. ‘They are protecting the Demon.’

‘He has his own immunity to spirits,’ Kali said. ‘Rudra does not need my help.’ Kali gestured towards Adri in turn, who was thrown across the courtyard once more. As he flew towards another pillar, Adri whispered in the Old Tongue and his progress was halted in mid-air. He crashed directly down to the ground, painfully yet again. He tried to lift himself and failed.

I wish I could help, Tantric
, the Wraith said.
But he will be immune to spirit fire, and you will be more easily killed if you take on my powers
. It sounded worried.

‘I can’t die here,’ Adri gasped, trying to get up, grunting as pain shot up his body. ‘Not-when-I’m-so-close!’

Supporting himself with one hand, Adri lashed out with the other, still lying fallen on the ground. Gesture was met with gesture. A spirit deadlock. Both forces collided in mid-air and fought a battle of spirits.

‘Now you have my attention, Adri Sen,’ Kali said, gritting his teeth. ‘You could never have made it out of here alive either way. I could smell the death of my Nishis on you.’

Adri gasped for air and fought to sit up. He managed, after an enormous amount of strain. ‘They deserve to die, Nishis,’ he said.

‘I will kill you and then make
you
a Nishi,’ Kali said, laughing suddenly. ‘I wonder what Victor would have to say about his son serving me?’ He unleashed more spirits on Adri. Adri gestured back, deadlocking them yet again, knowing that he was going to run out of spirits before the other Tantric did.

Fayne received a tremendous kick from a hoofed foot. He was thrown across the courtyard and into a wall. He took half a second to recover, and rolled away just as the morning star smashed down, destroying the wall he had landed on. He danced away, throwing daggers; Rudra caught them on its shield, one landing on its breastplate. Nothing had even scratched it yet, but Fayne was not worried. He played his battles well, and impatience was the last thing on the perfect warrior’s mind. Fayne knew he could not tire the Demon out; but he could, perhaps, force it to make a mistake by persisting. One mistake was all he needed.

Fayne sensed Adri was not doing well. Even if he wanted to help the Tantric, he would not be able to. The Demon gave no breathing room. And besides, he would always be more concerned about Maya’s inert body lying where it was. But Fayne did not dislike Adri. In fact, he was having fun after a long time; journeys with Adri Sen were eventful, if nothing else. Fayne held no desire to stop Death from breaking the seal. The Apocalypse was not something he dreaded; he would deal with it if it did happen. For now, he was happy that the young Tantric always faced danger. It let Fayne keep his skills sharp, and he was grateful. In fights, he felt alive.

He somersaulted to where he had dropped his swords upon receiving the kick and picked them up. Rudra charged again, and Fayne retaliated, dodging the huge morning star as he went. The assassin marvelled at the Demon’s ability to move so fast and use such a heavy weapon with such speed and accuracy. He also liked that the Demon did not speak. He knew though, that Rudra was not skilled enough to kill him, and that sooner or later, it would die by his blade. If the Demon warlord had sensed this, it did not show it. Rudra fought on with increasing speed.

Get up, Adri. Pull yourself together
.

Adri unleashed another spirit at Kali, and tried to stand up. He failed. His strength had deserted him. There was nothing he could possibly do.

‘I can’t!’ he cried.

You cannot give up now, you idiot!
the Wraith hissed.

‘He’s too powerful,’ Adri mumbled.

‘Yes, acknowledge my power,’ Kali shouted. ‘Admit it to yourself, you will die here. There is no other truth.’

‘Why did you answer my questions if you were going to kill me anyway?’ Adri groaned. He reached in his pocket and, fingers fumbling, put a cigarette to his mouth.

‘I may have let you go if you hadn’t killed my Nishis and had given me the girl.’

Adri’s fingers trembled as he smoked. He was holding something tightly inside his left fist, and Kali saw it.

‘Hiding something, Tantric?’ Kali laughed. ‘A secret weapon?’ With a wave of his hand, he sent more spirits at Adri.

Fayne realised that Rudra was using techniques. His swinging the morning star was not as random as it might appear; every time before he brought it down, the Demon would swing it in a set fashion. Every technique had its weakness, but identifying the technique inside a fast fight wasn’t easy. Fayne looked for clues, and found them. In a corner of the Demon’s shield, was etched a small horse, its hooves on fire. This was bounty armour, a gift for having completed training at the hands of a sensei.

‘Adri!’ Fayne shouted as he dodged a swing. ‘What is the sigil that has a horse with burning hooves?’

‘What?’ Adri asked, not able to catch it.

A horse with burning hooves
, the Wraith said.
The assassin wants to know what sigil it is
.

‘Narcasra!’ Adri shouted in seconds.

Spirits attacked him at that very moment. His own spirits were weakening and beginning to die; Adri knew he would have to resort to personal defence techniques now. His left hand still clenched, he put his right hand in his pocket and withdrew a piece of chalk. Then he drew a circle around where he sat, and started to scrawl runes around it.

‘A positive circle isn’t going to help you,’ Kali laughed loudly. ‘Not for long, anyway.’

Narcasra had three teachers, Fayne recollected as he danced about, striking Rudra’s shield relentlessly. Two taught the art of shield and weapon. That made it simpler—Rudra was either using the long forgotten dual-hold technique, or the more recent fang-repeat technique. Fayne, of course, knew both—both were very similar, and thus it took him another minute to be sure of which one it was. If he were to be wrong, the result would be a very messy death. But then again, Fayne knew he could not be wrong.

Fayne followed a textbook breakdown of the
fang
-
repeat
-
flail
. He attacked Rudra, forcing the Demon to bring up the shield and throw its other arm back to begin swinging the morning star. Fayne backed away slightly, and Rudra swung; but Fayne ran in low and with the hilts of both swords, hit under the shield with just the right amount of force and the perfect angle. It flew upwards and in the way of the spiked ball, deflecting it directly back into Rudra’s own helmet. The Demon was knocked over, the weapon having crushed its helmet and face. Fayne silently walked up to the fallen Demon and slit its throat. Then he looked at Kali and Adri.

‘Take Maya and Gray and run,’ Adri shouted with a sense of urgency. ‘Into the ruins, now!’

Fayne was beginning to approach Kali, but he read the note of urgency in Adri’s voice. Something was about to happen. He silently turned towards where Gray and Maya lay, and sheathing the swords into his back, he started to run.

Kali looked at Adri, a bit confused. He gestured with both hands, and two flames appeared on the ground, drawing two pentacles of their own.

‘You have many Demons, Kali,’ Adri said. ‘But like you said’ —he opened his left palm and let hang by the string the pendant of the crescent moon, and wore it—‘there are some foes beyond Demons.’

Kali could not believe his eyes. He started nodding slowly. ‘How long had you taken it off?’

‘Long enough,’ Adri said, looking up at the skyline.

‘But what makes you think I will let you run?’ Kali asked, incredulously.

‘That,’ Adri said.

Kali turned and stopped the dagger aimed for him in mid-air. Fayne picked up Maya and Gray and disappeared into the ruins at almost the same time as Adri got up and made a run for it, out of the courtyard. Kali roared and lashed out with his spirits, but Adri had saved some of his own, and they deadlocked. Adri, Fayne and the other two were gone, gone among the ruins.

Kali did not get much time to react. Before he knew it, he heard them. Hooves. Coming closer and closer, getting thunderously loud. He waved his hands and two more pentacles formed themselves on the ground around him.

Kali looked at the skyline and saw birds dropping dead towards the east. It was coming, it was almost here.

‘Arrive, Gosheel, Ashmm, Chhal, Sheyak,’ he said in the Old Tongue.

Four Demons rose in their pentacles and awaited orders. Kali was silent. He looked at the forest towards the east. The hooves grew louder and louder. Ideally he should send the Demons after Adri, to drag him back. That would be his best way out here; but then again, the Tantric preferred to feel better protected. Perhaps the Horseman could be reasoned with to give chase. Perhaps at the end of whatever was to come, he could still heal and then offer the girl to the Mother. He would see.