Fury's Goddess

by Alex Archer

  She didn’t necessarily think he was in any danger at the moment. As long as he stayed asleep, she doubted Dunraj would consider him a threat.

  But Annja would definitely qualify.

  And all the more as soon as she got her hands back to normal.

  She could feel the blood pulsing into her tendons now. She had some feeling back in her left hand. Her right hand still ached uncontrollably.

  But Annja tried, anyway. She started deep-breathing exercises designed to calm her down and let her body take care of what it needed to. It was tougher than she expected it would be.

  But then again, she’d just been through a traumatic event, and the requirements to heal her would be much greater than normal.

  Normal, Annja thought with a grin. What’s that like?

  She stayed upright, massaging her limbs until at last she started to feel healthy again. She wondered how much longer she would have had before the damage to her hands would have been untreatable. If she hadn’t restored blood flow, she would have been looking at possible amputation. Frank had indeed been correct

  Frank.

  She had to get his circulation flowing right now.

  Annja took another deep breath and exhaled it out smoothly.

  She was back.

  “You are quite a woman, aren’t you?” a man said. A man whose voice she hadn’t heard before.

  Chapter 19

  Annja tried to bring her hands together to summon the sword, but she was still too weak to grasp the hilt and wield the weapon.

  The man who had spoken held his hands up to indicate he wasn’t a threat. At least not yet. “Please do not do anything rash, Annja. If I meant you any harm, I would certainly not be sitting here relaxed, given that you have managed to free yourself.”

  “Who are you?”

  “I am called Kormi.”

  In the darkness it was difficult to get any real read on his features. He was swathed in the same material as the other Thuggee members. And he was most assuredly one of Dunraj’s men. Although Annja hadn’t seen him at the heart feast earlier, that didn’t mean he wasn’t a viable threat.

  She frowned at her hands. You guys need to get your act together; otherwise, I’m going to be dead.

  Kormi pointed at her hands. “It takes a long time after you’ve been tied up for such an extended period.”

  Annja nodded. “Yeah, well, I’d like it to be sooner than later.”

  “I do not doubt that,” he said. “Considering what you have seen, I do not blame you one bit.”

  Annja looked up at him. “So, why are you here, then? Did you swing by to torment me about my upcoming date with Dunraj’s dagger?”

  “I came to help you.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “Forgive me for seeming suspicious of such a gesture. I haven’t had a very good experience with others of your kind.”

  “I know. I was the one who carried you back from where you fell down the embankment.”

  “You were?”

  “You would probably have died had I not administered the aid I did when we got back. I take it your head is no longer hurting?”

  Annja ran a hand over her head. The truth was, she was feeling better, minus the pain in her arms and hands. “Actually, my head feels pretty good. Thank you.”

  Kormi bowed low and then came up smiling. “It was seen as a foolish gesture on my part, but not all of us agree with what Dunraj is doing here. We don’t want to be a part of the killing. We are here to worship Kali only. But he has somehow twisted a fervent inner cadre and bent them to his will. They are the ones who wish to continue this bloodshed agenda Dunraj has embarked on.”

  “I think I saw an example of those guys earlier. They ate a heart.”

  Kormi nodded gravely. “Dunraj calls that a way for growing closer to our goddess, but to me he is perverting the very nature of our worship. I have not yet been able to figure out why he is doing this. To what end does he wish to manipulate this group?”

  “I was hoping you were going to tell me that you’re an undercover cop or something and that the cavalry was on its way.”

  Kormi smiled. “Unfortunately, that is not the case. But we are not completely alone here. I have two friends who may help us if they feel they can succeed at overthrowing Dunraj.”

  “How did you guys get involved with this in the first place?”

  Kormi frowned. “You do not have time to understand all of the history of the Thuggee. What Dunraj told you is true. This region was known for its activity within the Thuggee community. And this is sacred land. But as to why things begin, who can say? As modern-day practitioners or adherents of Thuggee, we are not really interested in killing at all, but in protecting what is ours. This land is one of those things we feel a need to protect. But there are people only too willing to destroy them even after we explain their historic and spiritual significance. They have been in our families for many years.”

  “But the murder of the residents at the nearby development,” Annja said. “You can’t expect to walk away from such things.”

  Kormi shook his head. “Those killings were not committed by myself or the men I know and trust here. That was done by Dunraj’s inner core.”

  “You were out, though, when you took Frank and me.”

  Kormi nodded. “We were getting supplies back into the mountain when we came upon you. We were as surprised as you were. But we know the land well and were better able to adjust accordingly.”

  “You could have left us there.”

  Kormi nodded. “And we would have but for the injury you sustained. We were concerned also that Westerners were now investigating. Bringing you back was a way to try to convince Dunraj to stop the killings.”

  Annja looked past him to make sure they were still alone. “That didn’t work out too well.”

  “No. Bloodlust now flows in his veins. He is convinced that by killing he is able to draw us all closer to the goddess.”

  “How come you guys don’t simply turn him in to the police?”

  “He is protected by his inner cadre. Plus, Dunraj has an inner knowledge of this mountain that most of us do not. He is able to be anywhere he wants within moments. We believe there is another network of caves and tunnels that only he knows about.”

  “But he can’t be here all the time.”

  “Hyderabad does call him away from time to time. But he is never gone for long.”

  Annja frowned. How could that be? If Dunraj was on the forefront of most of the major developments in the city, how could he possibly explain his long absences in the mountains? That didn’t make any sense.

  “Look, we’ve got to get out of this place. Frank and I are scheduled to be served up for Kali’s breakfast tomorrow. Can you help us escape?”

  Kormi shrugged helplessly. “What good will that do? You would never find your way back, and Dunraj would still be at large.”

  Annja did a double take. “So what are you suggesting?”

  “You want these killings to stop, don’t you?”

  “Of course,” she said. “They absolutely have to stop.”

  Kormi studied the ground, not meeting her eyes. “Then there is only one alternative. We must kill Dunraj to stop the violence.”

  Annja didn’t even blink. I’ll find a way to deliver the guy to the cops, she thought.

  Kormi stared into her face. “So, he was right about you.”

  “What did he say?”

  “He warned us when we brought you here that there was much more to you than we would be able to see. He felt certain that you had a lot of violence in your past.”

  Annja nodded. “I do.”

  “And I see that the prospect of killing a man does not affect you as it would someone who has never been forced to take a life.”

  “I’ve been forced to go to extreme ends to save myself on a number of occasions,” said Annja. “But I don’t relish the idea of killing. If there’s another way to survive this, I’ll find it.”

 
“Dunraj will prove to be a formidable enemy,” Kormi said. “I have seen him in action a number of times. When we first discussed the notion of driving the residents away, one of us stood up to him. They engaged in single combat, and Dunraj played with the man as if he were a cat batting around a mouse.”

  “I’ve fought a number of people who were excellent fighters,” she replied. “And I was the one who went home.”

  “Do not think you are invulnerable. After all, you do not have experience fighting us, do you?”

  “I try to protect good people and ancient relics. That runs me afoul of some who would profit from their desecration and destruction.”

  Kormi eyed her. “You sound as though you have great reverence for the past.”

  “I do.”

  “In another time and place, you might have been welcomed into our ranks.”

  “Perhaps. But I’m better on my own. When I have to look after other people, it gets challenging.”

  Kormi smiled as he bent to cut Frank’s bonds. “Your cameraman means well, but he is woefully unprepared for the prospect of fighting.”

  “That’s what I’m worried about, too,” she said. “How long will that drug keep him unconscious for?”

  “Until tomorrow morning. It was designed to reduce the ability of captives to mount any type of defense.”

  “That’s going to make moving him around a real chore. Is there any way we can safely stow him someplace else in this network of caves?”

  “Someplace where he won’t be found?”

  “Once we deal with Dunraj, then we can come back for him.”

  “Unless he wakes up early and starts making noise,” Kormi said. “That would draw our enemies to him.”

  “Do we have another alternative?”

  “No.”

  Annja nodded. “How long will it take to hide him?”

  Kormi, a big man, hefted Frank onto his shoulders. He seemed very much at ease carrying Frank’s weight. “I will return as soon as I’m able.”

  Annja watched him duck out of the cavern and then disappear into the darkness. She couldn’t hear any footfalls and marveled at how silent he was even while holding two hundred pounds worth of Frank.

  She sat and worked on her hands again. The pain was less now that she hadn’t been thinking about it, but it was difficult to form a fist.

  I need to bring my sword out, Annja thought. I need to know I can get it out if I have to.

  She visualized the sword hanging in the otherworld. Its glow wrapped around her now as she reached for it. Power flowed from the blade down into the hilt and then into Annja’s hands and up her arms.

  Instantly, the aches vanished and Annja closed her hands about it, gripping the sword tightly.

  Ready.

  The sword gleamed in front of her face and lit up the cavern. Annja swung it experimentally a few times, testing the weight on her muscles. Her body responded with a renewed vigor.

  It occurred to Annja that she was incredibly hungry. She should have asked Kormi for some sort of ration to see her through. Undoubtedly there was going to be a lot of fighting. And if Annja didn’t have some sort of sustenance, she’d get tired.

  She put the sword away again.

  The exhaustion of her ordeal came thundering back down on her. She curled up near a corner in the cavern and rested her head against the wall. It wasn’t comfortable by any means, but she felt better knowing that she had the sword again.

  Thank God.

  She wondered if Kormi would run into anyone else and, if he did, how he would explain Frank.

  Annja shook her head. He would have to deal with that.

  She closed her eyes.

  Waited.

  And fell asleep.

  Chapter 20

  How long she slept, Annja didn’t know, but she suspected that it was at least an hour before she felt the rough hands of Kormi shaking her awake. Annja rose groggily. Her need for food was almost overpowering.

  Fortunately, Kormi was pushing some bread into her hands. “Take it. It’s not much but it should give you strength. There’s water, as well. But this hasn’t been drugged.”

  Annja gulped down the bread, working off the rustiness of jaws that hadn’t been used in some time. It was a coarse, chewy bread, and Annja relished each bite of it. She washed it down with gulps of water and felt much better.

  “Thank you,” she said when she was finished.

  “I know you have been famished. Dunraj likes his sacrifices to be starving when they die. He feels it will make them more compliant when they reach the afterlife and enter the service of Kali.”

  “He really believes that?”

  “Yes.”

  Annja eyed him. “Do you?”

  Kormi smiled. “Once I did. But my reasoning has finally caught up with me, and I know that Dunraj has been blinded by his quest for power. I don’t say this to excuse my past actions, some of which have been less than honorable, but rather to explain my own evolution.”

  Annja didn’t think the time was right to debate. She stood. The nourishment caused her stomach to cramp appreciatively, but the energy she gained from the food was so worth it. “That bread helped a lot.”

  “It’s an old recipe,” Kormi said. “There are many nutrients to it that will keep you ready should the need to fight arise.”

  “As it most definitely will.”

  “Undoubtedly.”

  Kormi led her out of the cavern and once again down the tunnel away from her cell. The tunnels seemed less dark now, but Annja knew that danger could be lurking anywhere. As soon as it was discovered that Kormi was helping her, his life would be forfeit, and she suspected that Dunraj would stop at nothing to exact a particularly painful vengeance.

  But Kormi seemed undisturbed by that prospect. As they traveled, Annja noticed that he had his rumal out and ready to bring to bear. But the tunnel system seemed almost deserted.

  At one point, Kormi paused and knelt near an intersection, putting a finger to his lips. They waited until another man passed inches from their faces and then proceeded. Kormi seemed determined not to have to engage anyone unless they left him absolutely no alternative.

  Annja kept her hands together in front of her as if she was already holding her sword.

  The ground sloped upward, and Annja knew they were ascending into another part of the mountain she hadn’t yet seen. More ambient light and cooler breezes found their way into the tunnel system. Kormi pointed out a few key landmarks in case they got separated, but Annja was determined not to lose her guide.

  Kormi rested once and shared some of his water with Annja. “Drink as much as you need. I’m used to not having a lot.”

  “But you need some.”

  “I’ve been drinking water all afternoon in preparation,” he explained. “It is a wonder that I have not floated away.”

  “How did you get wrapped up in all of this crap, Kormi?”

  He smiled. “My circumstances in life dictated it. I am descended from a long line of Thuggee. My job paid little money, and to care for my family, I had to make a change.”

  “You have a family?”

  “I did. Once.”

  Annja eyed him. “What happened?”

  “Fire. It engulfed the small home I owned and took the lives of my wife and my two sons while I was at work. I left with their smiles and love and came home to their corpses.” He shook his head. “It made me a very angry, very bitter man. And I was impressionable.”

  “Dunraj got ahold of you.”

  “He did. He is also descended from the Thuggee and used that as a means of bringing us together. There are not that many, but there are enough.”

  Annja saw all the weariness and despair that he carried. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

  Kormi nodded. “It is time we were going again. The longer we rest, the more chance there is that someone will discover you are no longer in your cell.”

  They rose and continued climbing. Annja asked him, “W
here will this lead us?”

  “There is an opening farther up that then leads to a small game trail that we have sometimes used to access the mountain. If you follow it, it will bring you back down the mountain, close to where we brought you in from the development.”

  “But won’t Dunraj and his men be looking for me?”

  “That is why you will have to run. Fast.”

  “Ah, wonderful.”

  They came abreast of another intersection, with one path leading down and the other up. Kormi pointed. “If Dunraj finds you gone, he will most likely come from that path. Remember that.”

  “I will.”

  Kormi pointed ahead. “That is where we need to go. Travel quickly. Something—”

  His voice was cut off by the sound of an alarm echoing all over the mountain.

  She glanced at him. “You guys have electricity?”

  “Not everywhere, but Dunraj wanted us to lay lines so he could have power.”

  “Why would he need to have electricity in here?”

  “I don’t know,” Kormi said. “But we have a mile left before you reach the exit. I suggest we run.”

  Annja followed him at a sprint, and as they dashed up the path she found her vision improving.

  Light!

  There was an opening somewhere up ahead, and she knew that must be the exit out into daylight. Or was it evening now? She had no idea how much time had passed since she’d been taken.

  Kormi ran lightly and kept his hands up in front of him. As they rounded a corner, Annja saw him snap the rumal out in front of him with a whipping action that caught a single man running toward them unawares. The snap of the knotted end hit the man between his eyes, and he dropped.

  Annja ran past him, not pausing to even wonder if he was dead or not. Kormi glanced back. “He is unconscious but will recover soon enough. We need to hasten our escape.”

  They ran faster. Behind them, Annja could hear shouts of other pursuers chasing them. The silence that had held sway over the entire underground fortress of caves seemed to now be a thing of the past.