Corpsia observed Xuhn. He felt like she was trying to look into his very soul.
“But only if you agree to…” Corpsia said. Xuhn felt irritated. Why was she hesitating so much?
“I will do anything for Mortugal,” Xuhn said impatiently.
“Exchange your forms with him then,” Corpsia said. “It will result in you becoming a dragon, while Mortugal will become a human.”
Xuhn gaped. She meant that he would grow wings?
“You two will look strikingly similar to each other,” Corpsia said. “You might not get Mortugal’s fur though. Instead you are likely to get the scales he previously had and be able to breathe fire. The black dragon might be deceived into thinking that you are Mortugal, but when he attacks you he will not be able to harm you much, since the black dragon exists only with the motive of killing Mortugal, not others.”
Vivek placed a hand on Xuhn’s shoulder. The friends exchanged looks.
“I will become a dragon,” Xuhn said. He was sure that it would be fun to grow wings and be able to breathe fire, but he was acutely aware of certain other things he might have to sacrifice. For all he knew, he might begin thinking of human girls as females of a different species altogether.
“I cannot make you a dragon though, nor can I make Mortugal a human,” Corpsia said.
“Then how will I become a dragon?” Xuhn asked. He had thought Corpsia would just do some sort of magic, and then Mortugal and he would exchange forms. Apparently it wasn’t that simple.
“There is a land far west,” Corpsia said, “a land as big as the Great Continent constituting all the known kingdoms and the far northlands.”
“You mean to say there is another continent in the west?” Xuhn asked. Corpsia nodded.
“That’s impossible!” Vivek said.
“Not impossible,” Corpsia said, “although nobody, not even the great dragons know about the continent. Only my father knew since he created that continent. He brought it to existence about a millennium ago, and the land is much younger than the Great Continent.”
What Xuhn was hearing was beyond imagination, but the past few days had shown him that anything was possible.
“So we’ll need to go there?” Xuhn asked. Of course Corpsia wouldn’t be telling about the new continent if they didn’t have to go there.
Corpsia inclined her head.
“Do humans dwell in that land?” Vivek asked. “What about werewolves and vampires, and the other creatures we know of?”
“The new continent is stranger,” Corpsia said. “It’s almost like a different world. Not all of my father’s experiments with world creation have gone the way he intended them to. I always told him that making the Great Dragon— the other creator of our world—to go away was never a wise decision on his part.”
Xuhn gulped down bile and sighed.
“We can’t take Mortugal in that,” he said, pointing at the carpet.
Corpsia looked around. Her eyes rested on the carpets floating on the water surface.
“The Bnomes will join these carpets together, that should do the job.”
“But what exactly is in the continent that can turn me into a dragon and Mortugal into a human?” Xuhn asked.
“There is an essence there. I might be able to change your forms using that essence.”
“Might?” Xuhn asked. Couldn’t it be ‘can’?
Corpsia looked into his eyes.
“Might.”
Chapter 28
They dragged Mortugal to the small island. Obeying Corpsia’s order, most of the Bnomes moved to the sea to make space for Mortugal’s giant body. Only a handful of Bnomes remained and tended to the dead Malthur, who looked even paler than when alive.
A few Bnomes stitched together the many carpets in the sea into one gigantic carpet that could carry the great Mortugal. The sun in the distance was setting and Xuhn reflected on all the dramatic events that had taken place in his life in the past few days. He could barely belief that he and Vivek were about to embark for a land where probably no human— or even any other creature from the Great Continent for that matter—might have set foot before.
If Xuhn had caught Corpsia’s words correctly, then she had sounded like she too knew little about the new land her father had created.
Malthur was buried at the foot of the lone tree— which seemed the perfect place for his burial, since Malthur had been a strange being at best, and so was the weird tree— and Corpsia said a prayer together with the Bnomes in Bnome language.
Then they moved the unconscious Mortugal to the giant carpet, which was ready and floating on the sea surface.
“Are they coming too?” Xuhn asked, gesturing at the countless Bnomes all around them.
“It’s best that they do,” Corpsia replied. Vivek though kept stealing suspicious glances at the Bnomes, for Xuhn knew he didn’t trust them at all. Even Xuhn didn’t trust them much. But with Malthur gone Xuhn reckoned the Bnomes were harmless now.
Everyone got on the carpet. The pilot Bnome said something in his strange language, and the carpet levitated a few feet above the water surface. The Bnome said a second word and the carpet rocketed at top speed towards the west, making Xuhn hold tight to the carpet in fear of falling.
It took them twenty days to see the first sights of land. Xuhn, who hadn’t shaved for so many days, now wore an unclean looking beard, and so did Vivek. The past few days they had only stopped at microscopic islands, the size of the one they had buried Malthur in. Seafood was what they ate, and Corpsia somehow turned salt water into fresh water with her magic.
The land was in the distance. But much before it was a great purple screen, made of a gas-like substance, which surrounded the entire new continent.
“What’s that purple gas-like substance?” Xuhn asked Corpsia.
“Like I said,” Corpsia replied, “the new continent is a world much different from the old one. That purple screen surrounding the continent is the essence I will require to convert you into dragon form.
“But before that we must go to the other side, and my father told me going to the other side isn’t easy. Even he went to the other side only once, and he returned with tales of strange beings he had never sought to create, which were intent on eating him.”
Xuhn had a queasy feeling in his gut that the creatures of the new continent won’t be giving them a warm welcome.
“So no being from our world has gone to that one?” Vivek asked, “Not even a bird?”
Xuhn saw some birds— on their side of the screen. But the birds weren’t flying over to the other continent. They were keeping their distance from the purple screen.
“Not a bird, not a fish. Nothing,” Corpsia said. And then she spoke something to the pilot in Bnome tongue, and the pilot uttered a word that made the carpet stop in mid air.
“What happened?” Xuhn asked.
“We need to prepare for the entry,” said Corpsia. She stood up and went to the front edge of the carpet. She extended her arms wide, her fingers sparking with magic.
“Grasp it tight,” Xuhn told an excited Vivek, pointing at the carpet. It was best to prepare for whatever might occur during the entry. The screen was at a distance of about a kilometre from them.
The pilot Bnome commanded the carpet to accelerate. And like an arrow the carpet went. How Corpsia managed to stay in her pose, Xuhn didn’t know, but the sudden acceleration almost threw him towards the back of the carpet.
Nearer and nearer came the purple screen surrounding the continent. Xuhn was scared, and he looked at Mortugal to remind himself why he was taking all the trouble.
And then they hit the purple screen.
A thunder-like sound followed immediately. Xuhn had only a vague idea of whatever happened next. There was a lot of wind hitting his face though, and also perhaps many gallons of water splashing his face. Moments after—or it was probably much longer—Xuhn found himself tasting sand on the sea shore of the new continent.
His neck achi
ng, he lifted his head to see Vivek lying just a few feet away. Countless Bnomes too lay on the sand, and Corpsia was in the act of climbing to her feet.
Mortugal.
Xuhn pushed himself up, though his body screamed in pain. Mortugal was lying just on the edge of the shore, his great body being gently pushed by the tide. Xuhn ran up to him and dragged him as much as he could towards land—this being only possible because Mortugal had lost a lot of weight in the past few days.
“Try not to move much,” Corpsia said. Xuhn turned to see that the immortal girl was going strange motions with her arms, her fingers sparking like before. Sand and mud partially covered her white dress, and her face too had specks of dirt on it.
The purple substance from the screen flowed down to her hands in a stream, until a time came when Corpsia’s entire body was covered with the translucent gas-like substance.
Corpsia pointed her right hand towards Xuhn and the left at Mortugal. She mumbled a spell.
Immediately all the purple substance that Corpsia had drawn came and hit Xuhn. He was thrown off his feet and landed roughly in the sea. Stars appeared in his vision, and he blacked out.
***
It was Vivek whom Xuhn saw when he next opened his eyes. There was a look of utter astonishment on Vivek’s face that didn’t please Xuhn at all. Not a few feet away, a young man lay on the ground.
Xuhn sat up, amazed that he felt so heavy.
He looked down at his body.
His new body.
He was covered in scales. Xuhn was a dragon.
***
Chapter 29
Ritika had seen the wolf on many occasions before and she knew the wolf was Breda. Presently, Breda was sitting behind a bush about a hundred feet away and Ritika pointed her to Ruponi.
“Let her be,” Ruponi said.
“Breda could have gone with Xuhn and Mortugal, but she didn’t,” Ritika said.
Breda hadn’t even attempted to make conversation with them, although it had been a few days since the incident when the two vampires had drunk the blood of the men. Maybe she wanted to give them a little time. Maybe Breda thought they would eventually stop feeling guilty for what they did. But that was never going to happen.
“I’ll ask her to leave,” Ritika said.
“Do what you want,” her mother answered, not interested.
Ritika stood up. For a moment the world swayed and she felt like she was about to puke. All she had been consuming for the past few days were fruits and berries. For a race made to consume blood, fruits and berries provided little energy. Ritika frowned hard in determination and put one step in front of the other. Breda stood up when Ritika neared her.
“Why are you here?” Ritika asked.
Breda transformed into her human form. Ritika hated every time she did that. Thankfully Xuhn wasn’t nearby. She had often wondered if Xuhn was more interested in Breda than her.
“To watch you as you kill yourself,” Breda said. “I don’t have an option, since I can’t return to my homeland.”
“Why is that so?” Ritika said.
“I helped vampires, should there be a bigger reason?” Breda said.
Breda hadn’t said that with sarcasm. Ritika could only be thankful for whatever Breda had done for her and Ruponi. But she felt sad all the same.
“Nobody in Northang knows of that,” Ritika said, “you will be welcome wherever you go in this country.”
She closed her eyes as a wave of nausea hit her. When she opened them, Breda was grimacing.
“Let me get you a rabbit or a wild pig,” Breda said. “You will die at this rate.”
“If I die so be it,” Ritika said. She tried to make her voice sound firm but failed.
“If you die the war is not going to end. If you die vampires and werewolves would still be killing each other. Your death won’t do anything good. Eat some meat and get better.”
“It’s easy for you to say that,” said Ritika, “because you don’t know of the guilt I feel.”
“Look I know you are sorry for killing those men,” Breda said, “but killing yourself is not the solution to this.” Breda’s brows were drawn together, her eyes almost begging Ritika.
Ritika gritted her teeth and looked away. Maybe Breda was correct, but Ritika couldn’t help it.
“Please go away,” she said to Breda, for there was nothing else she could think of.
“Wait, listen—” Breda said, but Ritika turned and headed towards her mother.
It was night. Ritika looked at her mother who was snoring. In the moonlight she looked quite weak with her hollowed cheeks. Breda had disappeared after Ritika had told her to go away. She was probably lying in wait somewhere nearby with the hope that Ritika and her mother would stop feeling guilty eventually. But Breda’s hope was in vain. Even if Ruponi started consuming meat, Ritika wouldn’t.
Ritika had made the decision that she would leave her mother and wander away. Her mother didn’t share her guilt. Ruponi had told Ritika many times that she wasn’t ashamed or guilty for killing the men and drinking their blood. Ruponi said that they had acted under instinct, and it was Malthur who was to be blamed for having made them what they had become.
Ritika stood up, careful not to make any noise that might wake up her mother. The night always made her feel stronger, and she walked away as fast as she could.
After going a considerable distance Ritika stopped to take a last look at her mother. Sleeping under a tree, Ruponi could barely be distinguished from her surroundings.
“Be well, mother,” Ritika whispered. She turned resolutely and her legs took a random direction.
A considerable time passed thus. Whenever a cloud passed under the moon, it became pitch black. Fear of the unknown crept up her limbs and Ritika wondered if she had take the a right decision in leaving her mother.
There were times when she stumbled on tree roots or stones. And eventually the night too gave up on her and the initial rush of energy she had experienced died away. Her stomach grumbled, and all she could think of was blood. Ritika shook her head. No, she had to be stronger.
And then the muffled noises reached her ears. It was that of many people talking. Ritika felt drawn to the voices, and decided to find out who they were. She resolved not to kill anyone despite her thirst for blood.
She moved warily, not knowing if the people would be hostile or welcoming. The latter was an impossible scenario, since Northang was a supporter of the werewolves.
She thought it was odd that so many people should be having a meeting in a remote place so far from villages and towns. Ritika recalled hearing of north Northang facing problems from separatists, and she wondered if such people were the ones making the sounds.
She finally reached the source of the sounds, careful to keep herself in the shadows of the trees. A central fire blazed and many armed men sat in a circle around it. Just beside the fire was a large, flat boulder and atop it a man stood and spoke to the others. When Ritika’s eyes fell on the face of the man, her jaws dropped and she suppressed a gasp.
Xuhn.
She had a wild urge to run to him and fling her arms around him, but a second thought prevented her from doing so. She decided to listen to what he was speaking. He seemed to have a sore throat and his voice sounded different.
“… Brothers, you give me your service, and I will topple the king of Northang for you,” Xuhn was saying, much to Ritika’s confusion, “you will become the masters of this country. The old dynasty has suppressed you for far too long, not giving you the same rights as the other citizens. You toil hard in the fields of others and yet are paid like beggars. You pay higher taxes for no reason. Let us together end this unfairness. Let us rise, brothers!”
Xuhn raised a burning branch from the fire, “Are you ready to follow me to victory, brothers?” he said with so much charisma that all the men cheered.
“To Northang’s downfall!”
“I want it louder!”
“TO NORTHANG’
S DOWNFALL!”
Ritika almost fell off her feet such was the intensity of the voices together. The men continued cheering for some more time, and then Xuhn requested them to quieten down.
“I think there is someone in our midst who wants to introduce themself,” Xuhn told them.
“But we know each other very well,” one man said in a confused tone, “who needs an introduction here?”
Xuhn hurled the burning branch towards Ritika, and only then did she realise he was referring to her. The glowing branch landed harmlessly just a metre away from her, revealing her in full yellow light. Many of the men gasped and some even drew out their swords.
“A spy!” one yelled.
“Wait, brothers,” Xuhn said. “Maybe she just wants to join us.”
“Join us, eh?” one man chuckled.
“I didn’t mean that,” Xuhn said. “Woman, tell us who you are.”
“I- I need to introduce myself to you, Xuhn?” Ritika asked. Had Xuhn forgotten her or was he behaving like he didn’t know her because he was in front of the men?
“Xuhn?” Xuhn said. He jumped down from the boulder and approached her. And then she noticed Xuhn’s eyes. They weren’t… normal. Why, Ritika thought they looked like Mortugal’s reptilian eyes. What had happened to Xuhn?
But as he came nearer, Ritika abandoned all doubts.
“How do you know me?” Xuhn asked in a voice that to Ritika sounded like music. She found very draw to his voice. She could hear her heart beating loud.
“Look into my eyes,” Xuhn said. And Ritika did as told.
***
Xuhn flapped his new wings. He rose just a few feet before losing balance and landed on the sand.
“See?” said Mortugal—who was now a human, and a near perfect replica of Xuhn’s previous body. The only big difference lay in the eyes. Mortugal retained his dragon eyes, while Xuhn kept his own human eyes. “It isn’t easy.”
Xuhn grimaced.
“Walk like a human,” he told Mortugal. The former dragon struggled to walk properly after his body had transformed. Every time he tried to walk, he looked like he was balancing himself on a rope.
The Banishment of the King Page 19