The Last Rudra

Udolf looked into the king's sharp eyes, and he knew that he couldn't leave without giving him an answer. 

But could the druid king swallow it? 

Udolf recalled the perilous trial of  Nimois ( mysterious people who are always on the move like gipsy of the earth), that he had taken to get here. 

The maze of underground passages guarded by Taksha, the serpents' king, and watched by the sons of Uddor,  was not a thing of tales. 

So Udolf took a deep breath and decided to use the path of the tales' weavers. 

He weaved a tale of his perilous journey through Mayavan woods,  unaware of the fact that it would go down the annals of Glassia.

He recited his spine chilling experiences in the land of tree-giants. He told him about his deadly confrontation with Vrikshas, and his narrow escape. 

"This wizard  would have reached here long ago, had a dryad (oak tree nymph) not bewitched me." Udolf said with expressions of fear and bliss, mixed together, "After  my narrow escape, I decided to take shelter on a shady oak tree, for all know the  night is not a good time to venture in any woods, not to mention I was in Mayavan." Udolf saw his entrapped listeners nod in agreement, so he went on.

"I concealed myself with the best spell I know of, making sure not even all-knowing wind could see me. As tired as I was,  I fell asleep as soon as I closed my eyes. And when I woke up the next day I was in the bosom of celestial beauty. Her cotton soft hand caressed my rough face. Her laughter was the song of the morning breeze, she bathed me in a waterfall, and donned me in silvery clothes, woven with moonlight. She fed me the sweetest and juiciest fruits of Mayavan. I could bet my magic staff they must have been freshly plucked from the legendary orchard of the Vriksha king. When I was full and couldn't eat more she lulled me again into a dreamless sleep. The routine continued for a fortnight. My heart was hers now. I was a slave of her soul-stealing smile, always longing to hear the jingle of her laughter.

It was then Purnima came. As soon as the full-moon shone over us. The tree nymph led me to Nysa, the city of no grief, to trade my soul."

The wizard paused for an effect. 

"What had occurred after that was a surprise to the nymph. The bullheaded man, Apis, the buyer of souls, looked into my eyes and shuddered. He threw away his soul-weighing scale, and fled off, even leaving behind his satchel-full of soul orbs."

Udolf noticed the confused look on the Glassian Kings and felt amused. He wondered at the nature of mankind. How they would try to rationalize every uncanny happening around them, but forget to do the same for a tale. 

That was why Sutas said, "To decipher a tale one needs the wisdom of generations."

"It was not a surprise, for the nymph had brought a death-worshiper before him.  '' The Wizard smiled and didn't speak further. 

The hall fell in silence, as they all looked at him in awe. 

The legends of death-worshipers were not secrets. The ancient order whose roots could be traced to the beginning of the world had been recorded in chronicles time after time. Sometimes as villains, and sometimes as saviours of mankind. 

"So you're a death-worshiper," Nirvano said after he overcame his surprise. No wonder the man stood safe and sound after visiting the fabled soul market of Nysa, the city of death-fairies. This explained a lot of things. Suddenly, his eyes widened, 

"Was the mysterious friend of yours, who conspired against our land, also a death-worshiper? " Nirvano asked in a grave tone. If it was true, Glassia was really in trouble. 

Udolf smiled ruefully. The fear that the name of his kind used to arise was like this. But now, they were on the brink of extinction. With only seven survivors, no way to accept an apprentice, the order of death-worshipers was on its hind legs. 

"His Highness doesn't have to worry about him anymore. Izidor will never come to this land again. This wizard can assure you that."Udolf said. 

"This king doesn't know how to thank you.You can ask me anything you want and if it is in my power I will give it to you," said Nirvano. 

Udolf laughed

"Then I will if I need anything. But for now, I want to be excused and have a chat with my apprentice."

And thus Udolf left the chamber, leaving the Glassian court in awe. 

What he didn't know was that his concocted tale had shocked his apprentice to the core.

***

Ishit trailed behind the wizard, lost in his thoughts.

  Did his father know Bhadra's real identity? 

A death-worshiper, wizard?

Didn't they all perish with the fall of Kemet? It was said that the Evil Lord himself was a death-worshiper and knew the uncanny powers of his kind too well. So the first thing he had done was to kill all of them, leaving none alive. 

Now it seemed there was something that the world didn't know. 

The wizard didn't speak to him as they walked out of the castle. Bhadra, who was behaving a little weird, led him into the garden just behind the Glass Castle, full of blooms and fragrance. 

They looked for a good spot for their private talk and soon found one. Beyond the dancing fountain, and the golden swing were seats made of aqua-stone ( a transparent stone with sponge-like properties). 

Bhadra cast a silencing spell and sat down.

"How do you know me? Udolf asked, his colour-changing eyes fixed on Ishit's face. 

The question dumfounded Ishit. He looked at the sunburned face, covered with runes, and scars, and slowly realized there was something wrong with Bhadra, who was sitting before him. His aura was more violent and oppressing. His black cloak was also different. Not to speak of his eyes.

Ishis took a deep breath.

"Look, Bhadra! I don't know why you are asking me such a foolish question. For it was you in the first place who sent me here to take the damn trail.

Without telling me what the hell I have to do in this strange land. Yesterday I would have died for no damn reason. So stop this act of being a mighty wizard or a death-worshiper, for I'm not going to buy it like the foolish king.

You have no idea what I have gone through this month. That damn Millian, Adard, Izidor or whatever his real name is, tried to kill me as soon as I got on the beach. 

By some miracle, I survived that night to run into him in  Vasta. There, he nearly killed me.

Tell me. Did you send me, a mere beginner, here to die?  As I haven't found a single reason why I should be here. 

"Ishit said, glaring at Udolf's calm face. 

He was really pissed off. Even after his brush with death, he couldn't make the head or tail of the trial. 

This morning when the druidess brought him to his senses, he decided to leave Glassia after meeting the king. And so he would do if the fowler didn't tell him what he had to do to end this trial. 

Yesterday's incident taught him many things. One of them was that before absolute power tricks were nothing. 

So all Ishit wanted to go back to Minaak and work hard for this single goal. 

Udolf's strange eyes were watching the boy intently. You couldn't guess anything from his chameleon eyes. From the anger and expression, the wizard could see the boy was not lying. But he too was sure that he had never seen the boy before, let alone sending him on some trial. 

There was something strange going on here.

"I'm afraid I have no recollection of what you're saying, Ishit of Varta. Can you tell me more about us, like where and how we met ?  "

The only thing Ishit felt after hearing the fowler's next question was anger. 

"It was samvat 3023, month libra, day Surya. When I woke up from a three-year-long slumber. And wracked my chamber. so my father punished me by appointing you as my trainer. Then you threshed me all morning, and I was too tired to ask any question. You led me in your dingy Black tower and conned me enter in a cursed chamber. Before I could sense anything wrong, I was standing on the seashore., alone in the dead of night. not knowing where I was, and what I had to do. 

It was how we met. Now would you tell me how to finish this damn trial, or I should leave. As I didn't want to waste any more time in this wild goose chase. In which I might lose my life ."  Ishit said, taking out the emblem. 

"Samvat 3023..." Udolf muttered.  his eyes widened with shock he had just received. His mind reeled. How was it possible? 

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