“The settlement!” Kalani pointed at the village. The air around it shimmered, blue streaks dancing above the dome.
Another rumble rose, and the hair on my arms stood to attention. The whoosh of blood filled my ears, the feeling like being underwater. I gasped and clung to C’ael.
“What…what’s happening?”
The blue streaks multiplied, merging into an azure aura that spilled across the whole settlement.
Whoomph!
The weight lifted.
The air cleared.
Silence pressed in on us for a beat, then the soft whistle of wind rose once again. The crops swayed below, but they were no longer bordering a settlement, because the whole village was gone.
The campfire crackledand spat with the effort of roasting the small game that Ravi had brought us. Silence reigned, heavy and pregnant with tumultuous thoughts. A settlement had vanished, and there was no doubt it was the primordial evil’s doing. But how? And why?
“We have to warn the other settlements that have portways. We must get the people away before the same thing happens,” Kalani said softly.
“It may already have happened,” Yudh said. “It could have happened simultaneously, for all we know.”
“Which means the portways are gone and so are the troops.”
“We don't know that for sure,” Yudh said.
“So what do we do?” Kalani asked no one particular.
“We have to go check. We have to warn them,” Dhoona said.
“It's a risk,” Pashim said. “We could get to the next settlement and find nothing. Or we could reach our destination only to be swallowed by whatever the primordial evil is doing. We need allies. We need an army. But this risk is too high.” He chewed on his cheeks, deep in thought.
Ravi handed me some roasted meat. I reached for it, my gaze falling to his bracelet. The twin to mine. Tokens given to us by Vasuki.
My gaze whipped up to his to find him staring at me, my revelation echoed in his eyes.
“We can try,” he said. “It’s a trek, but it’s hope.”
I nodded. “You’re right. He might know of another way to get into Aakash Sansaar?”
“What are you two talking about?” Kalani asked.
“Vasuki. He might be able to help us. Give us information and maybe a path into Patala.”
“You want to recruit the naga?” she said, her tone rising slightly in pitch.
“And the rakshasa who live there,” Ravi said.
Her lip curled. “Why the fuck would they care about what happens to us above land?”
“We won’t know until we try,” Ravi said.
“They have very little love for the Asura, and why would they listen to you, a lowly rakshasa?”
But Ravi wasn’t lowly. “Ravi is a royal.”
She blinked sharply, and then her mouth twisted wryly. “And they gave you up? Typical.”
“You sound like you know a lot about the rakshasa,” Ravi said.
