But now I saw the dead kangaroo just as I might have seen steak in the supermarket; something natural and expected, something I could eat. Red and tasty.
I moved on, returning to my run, running up the side of the mountains. I climbed and ran, feeling the air thin as I got higher and higher. Then down the other side, tearing down the tree covered slope as though it were as easy as a stroll down an empty street. Ahead was the wide open, bright green valley between two hills, a creek running on the far side of the clearing. I ran out into the grass, casting a glance at the larger mountain ahead of me.
I was half way across the gap when I felt eyes upon me and slowed, coming to a complete standstill in the open, grass up to my ankles. Instinctively, I kept my gaze forward, at the mountain ahead of me. The eyes came from there, then, stepping out from behind the tree line, attached to the tall, strong bodies of a half dozen Rakshasa with brown stripes and white in-between. The same as Ishan.
They walked towards me, faster than it seemed possible for mere humans to, and within moments they were within hailing distance.
“Am I trespassing?” I called, worried about what Asena had said.
The six Rewa exchanged curious glances, then turned back to me. “No,” said a shorter one with stocky shoulders, his voice growling as he spoke, “Not yet, anyway. The creek marks the territorial line. This clearing is neutral territory, where we come to discuss our quarrels. Have your Altaican fellows not yet taught you about the border of their lands, fledgling?”
I shook my head. “No. I only met them today. I think they didn’t think I’d go this far. Neither did I, to be honest.”
Low chuckles from the Rewa. “Typical,” one observed, her green eyes narrowing mirthfully.
They all had brown eyes, I had noticed, except for the female who had green like Asena. Ishan’s, though, where blue.
“Well, I didn’t mean to, anyway. And I’m not going to trespass if I can avoid it.” I offered a slight smile. “I’m Aurora. It’s nice to meet you.”
The stocky Rakshasa spoke again. “I am Hailstone, but forgive me if I do not return your enthusiasm. The Altaica are not welcome in our lands and, were you more mature, we would not have given you the courtesy of our greeting. Your intrusion would be met with force.”
The six of them looked strong and confident. I doubted I could take on even one of them. “I really don’t want to fight any of you,” I said, “I was just running.”
Hailstone inclined his head, folding his arms in front of him. “I know. We have all felt what you feel now, fledgling, so we are all tolerant of your mistakes… but it is important that you learn and learn quickly.”
I had planned on doing exactly that. “Where is Ishan?” I asked, curiously. I wanted to see him. I wanted him with me, sharing my run.
“He is resting,” said Hailstone, “although he is scheduled to visit the city later this evening.” The Rewa’s eyes narrowed slightly. “He has told us of the bond you two supposedly share and, while we do not understand it, we accept it… for now. I cannot say we are pleased by this development, although it does not appear that fault lies with either party.”
Ishan would be in the city later this evening. I knew where he would be going. “Very well,” I said, “I should get going then.”
The green-eyed female spoke up again. “Wait.” She turned to Hailstone. “Maybe we should take her back? See what she can tell us?”
Hailstone frowned. “No. She is a fledgling and will know nothing anyway.”
I looked between the two. There was some tension, there, I could feel it. Some unresolved dispute that I was not privy to. The female seemed like she was going to say something, to argue, but instead just threw her hands in the air and looked away.
Hailstone turned back to me. “I think it’s best you leave and do not return this way unless you have business with the Rewa.”
I nodded and took a few steps back, then walked back where I came, occasionally casting a glance over my shoulder. The Rewa stood where I’d left them until I reached the treeline, at which point they turned and darted back towards the mountains, vanishing the moment they moved away from the clearing.
Chapter IV
Waiting to Dream
I knew that I should head back to the coven at the cave, but the news that Ishan was visiting the city drew me back to Canberra. It was as though we had some kind of connection; he was there, so I needed to be there, as well. I needed to feel him again, to hold him in my arms, to kiss his lips.
As I approached the edge of the city I spent a moment straightening my appearance. I had no shoes, nothing I could do about that, but I tidied my hair and adjusted my clothes so that I didn’t seem so… wild. It didn’t take a moment and, when I was ready, I casually wandered along the road as though nothing were wrong.
I heard a car slow down beside me, pulling off the road in front of me. A new model Hyundai, sleek and black. Curious, I watched as the door swung open and the driver stepped out. It was Jacques, a guy my friend Katelyn had hooked up with at a club, the same night I’d met Ishan.
“Hey!” he called, grinning a stupid, human grin. “I saw you walking, I thought I’d give you a lift? You live northside, right?”
It was so strange how I regarded him, now. Before, back in that club, he was Jacques, a nice looking guy with a sweet car, someone who was way out of my league, the kind of guy who’d be nice to you just so he could sleep with your hot friends. Even if you knew he was doing it, you put up with it because, well, they were nice and there was no clear reason to tell them to piss off.
Now, though, he was just a transparent and pointless human whose every mannerism bored me. “Actually,” I said, “That’d be nice. Thanks so much.” I preferred to walk, but I had to keep up the appearance of normality.
“Great,” he said, running around the other side to open the door for me.
Transparent niceness. I slid into the seat, smiling and clipping on my seatbelt out of habit, even though I doubted I needed it anymore.
“So why were you out walking?” he asked as he pulled back onto the highway, accelerating to keep pace with the other cars. “Just out for the exercise?”
“I just wanted to run, that’s all.” I shuffled my feet further forward, hoping he wouldn’t notice I had no shoes.
He nodded, though, and I figured he wasn’t really listening to whatever I said and just wanted to talk about himself. “Yeah, that’s cool. I just came back from shooting.”
The car drove down the highway towards the city, keeping pace with the other cars on the road, but I felt like it was travelling extremely slowly. A quick glance at the speedometer revealed it was a little over the speed limit. To me it seemed to be crawling along, time barely passing.
I found his life, his existence, entirely meaningless, but I wanted conversation to drive away the boredom. “Shooting?”
“Yeah. Competition trap. Basically, they have this machine, right, it throws little clay disks into the air, and you shoot ‘em—”
“With a shotgun.” I yawned, stretching in the seat. “I know how it works.”
He laughed, nodding as he turned a corner towards the city. “You shoot?”
“No, I read,” I answered, a little more acidic than I meant.
“Sorry. I know chicks aren’t usually into guns.”
“It’s okay.”
We made polite conversation until the car pulled up outside my apartment. I stepped out, giving him a polite smile. “Thanks for the lift.”
“No worries.” He smiled, un-clipping his seatbelt. “Hey, you mind if I come in for a bit?”
Seriously? The guy slept with my best friend, now he was trying his moves on me, too? “Actually, my boyfriend is coming over.” Well it was the truth. “And I still have to clean. The cops made a huge mess of everything. Sorry.”
“No worries, no worries. Maybe next time.”
“Maybe.”
He gave a little mock salute, then I closed the door.
Jacques’s car turned and went back the way it came. As it did, I saw a fat stray cat on the other side of the street, its coat a mix of black and white, look at me and then dart into a nearby storm drain, disappearing in moments. I stared after it as it went, thinking of Clintonette’s newly born kittens—orange like her, but with patches of white and black.
“Yeah, you better run,” I said, groaning to myself. I wondered how he had gotten into my apartment. That sneaky bastard.
I shook my head and began the long climb up the stairs.
Chapter V
Drawn from a Single Pool
My apartment seemed so stale and lifeless now, even with the sound of Clintonette and her horde of mewing kittens filling up the small, cramped hallways. I remembered my excitement at finding this place, a place to call my very own, something that was mine. My place, where I could be myself.
Yet the person that I used to be wasn’t me anymore. The apartment was the home of someone else, now, and reflected that person’s life. The red dress I’d worn in that fateful night in the nightclub, the pictures of a person I barely recognised doing things I hardly cared about, talking to people I found empty and dull.
I didn’t have my keys with me but Ishan had thought to leave my front door open. This was good; I didn’t want to break another window, even though one of the other Rakshasa had apparently fixed it. Fortunately it hadn’t been burglarised… not that anyone could tell from the absolute pig sty inside.
Katelyn had reported me missing and the cops searched my apartment. I sighed, regarding the mess. It was time to clean up. I picked up my phone, then remembered it had been soaked through. I guess calling Katelyn would have to wait, and I’d have to do it myself. I set to work, pulling my heavy bookcase back into place with surprising ease, scooping up the contents and shoving them haphazardly back into drawers. My stuff, once my neatly organised pride and joy, seemed worthless to me now.
The fridge was dented, but the seal seemed intact. The rest was just stuff, papers and knick-knacks, that needed to be put back where they had come from.
I’d just finished getting things clean when the doorbell rang. Taken by a surge of eager anticipation, I darted over to the door and pulled it open.
A young Indian man in his mid twenties, hands in the pocket of his jeans, gave me a curt nod. My face fell; I was expecting Ishan, but this one’s face seemed familiar.
“Sorry, can I help you?”
“Stay away from Ishan.”
The moment he spoke I recognised him. His human form was very different from his Rakshasa one, but his voice had barely changed at all.
“Hailstone?”
He leaned forward, slightly, narrowing his eyes at me. “Yeah. Stay away from Ishan. Move out of the city and never see him again.”
I stared, curiously, at him, trying to process what he was telling me. “But I thought…”
“Forget what you thought, okay? Look. He’s Rewa. You’re Altaican. You are from different worlds. You don’t understand—you can’t understand—because you’re just a fledgling. But I’m telling you now… whatever bond, whatever link you think you two have with each other, it’s not going to amount to anything, it’s impossible.”
I had no idea what to say, so instead just stared at the guy. Finally I found my voice. “I… I can’t do that.”
“You can,” Hailstone said, “and you will. This happens sometimes, a bond formed in error. It will go away in time, sooner or later, but listen very carefully. You can’t see Ishan again.”
My stomach hurt, suddenly, a pain that mimicked the emotional impact of what he was telling me. I shook my head emphatically. “No. No, I will. I’m have to—”
Suddenly, faster than I could see, Hailstone’s hand flew up to my throat. He gripped me tightly, hoisting me off the ground as he stepped forward into my apartment. He pulled his face down to mine. “Perhaps I haven’t made myself clear, Altaican, you will never see Ishan again. Do you understand?”
I choked, gasping, kicking at his thighs. He relaxed his grip on my windpipe enough for me to gasp in a half-lungful of air. “N-No! You told me you accepted our bond!”
Hailstone growled and shoved me back. I stumbled but kept my footing, my agility surprising myself.
“Don’t mistake what I say before my coven for what I truly feel, fledgling. This comes from me. Ishan is a good man with a strong heart, he cannot be corrupted by you and your kind. You Altaicans are all the same; you cannot be trusted.”
I rubbed my bruised throat, coughing. “What have we ever done to you?”
Hailstone fixed his gaze upon me, staring unblinkingly into my eyes. I matched his stare with one of my own. “The Champawat Tiger is one of yours,” he growled, “and he killed my brother. He’s killed fledglings, Rewa more than Altaica, and he’s an aberration. A monster. His actions threaten to expose us. If our kind are discovered and word gets back to India, they will come for us, and their vengeance will be swift and terrible. None of us will be spared.”
“The media don’t know what he is yet. The humans think he is one of them.”
He scowled, giving a dismissive snort. “For now.”
I coughed again, but already the bruises on my throat were feeling better. Already my body was healing itself. “Why does he kill fledglings?”
“The Champawat Tiger believes that the power of the Rakshasa are all drawn from a single pool. The more of us there are, the weaker we all become. The converse is also true. He wants power, plain and simple, nothing more.”
“I’m not like him.” I tried to make my voice as confident as I could. I needed Hailstone to believe that I would never, ever, be like the Champawat Tiger. “That monster tried to kill me, too. I’m not like that.”
“I can’t take that risk,” said Hailstone, “not now, not ever.”
I held my arms out wide. “So just kill me then.”
He stared at me, flexing his muscled arms. “Fine,” he said, “if you want it that way.”
In a flash he was upon me, again, and I didn’t resist as he pressed my windpipe closed. I stared directly into his brown eyes as the seconds passed. I felt myself become lightheaded, and remembered what Ishan had told me. We needed less air, we were stronger…
But we had limits.
The world became darker and my hands shook beside my sides. I still didn’t fight back. My body struggled for air, my brain pleading with me to breathe, but I forced myself to be still, to let him choke me. Slowly the world began to go grey as though all the colour was drained out of it.
And then I was on the floor, panting and heaving, clutching at my bruised, injured throat.
Hailstone regarded me, scowling darkly. “Leave town tonight,” he said, then turned his back to me.
Fighting for air I stared up at Hailstone’s back as he closed the door of my apartment and left me alone on the cold tile floor.
Epilogue
How To Hurt A Rakshasa
It took me several minutes to get my breath back. My neck, sore and bruised, still felt tender after Hailstone had injured it again. Still, I could feel the power of the Rakshasa bloodline within me, healing me. A human would have died, their neck snapped in an instant.
But that wasn’t my fate, not now that I was what I was. I wet a cloth from the sink, pressing the cool wetness against my bruised skin, letting the sensation ease the pain. Clintonette and the kittens mewed incessantly, so I poured a nice big pile of food into my shoe closet then left the door open enough for them to get out if they wanted.
Then I figured I should feed myself. I walked back into the kitchen in time to hear a knock on the door. Warily, I crept up, peering through the peephole.
Ishan.
I threw open the door, falling straight into his arms, grabbing him and holding him close. I felt his strong arms around me, holding my middle, pressing me close to him. I rubbed my cheek against his upper chest, squeezing him tightly.
“I wasn’t sure you would come,” I said,
fighting to keep myself from bursting into tears.
Ishan stroked my back, gently guiding me inside. “I couldn’t think of anything else I wanted to do. You were in my thoughts all day.”
“And you in mine.” I laughed, letting the stress of Hailstone’s visit evaporate.
I told Ishan of what had transpired as we stood in my kitchen, and I could see the displeasure grow over his face as I recalled the visit from Hailstone. Especially when he had ordered me away.
“Hailstone is wrong,” Ishan said, holding me tightly. “He is wrong, and I will make the others see. He’s out of line, don’t worry. We’ll make this right.”
“I hope so.”
Our lips met, and he held me tightly, squeezing me against his body. I melted into his arms, casually slipping one of my hands up the back of his shirt, rubbing gently over his bare skin. “How long can you stay?” I asked.
“Mmm, a few hours,” Ishan said, “any more and your coven will start asking questions.”
“Let them ask,” I said, grinning coyly, brushing my nose to his. “I like holding you for real. It’s… nice.”
“Just holding?” He asked, his hands sliding down to my backside, squeezing. I kissed him again.
“Okay, I confess. I’m planning a little more.”
We enjoyed a quiet moment, kissing in my small kitchen, when the phone rang. The landline.
I’d honestly forgotten I had a landline. I used my mobile for everything. I disentangled myself from Ishan, giving him a curious shrug, then lifted the receiver and put it to my ear. “Hello?”
There was a brief silence broken only by a faint crackling on the line as though the signal were coming through uncleanly. Then, a familiar voice, low and gravely like a purr, came through the tiny earpiece.
“Do you know how to hurt a Rakshasa?”
The Champawat Tiger. I gripped the phone handle tightly, turning to Ishan. I could tell he knew exactly who it was. “How did you get this number?” I asked.
Rakshasa Book I, Part #2: Aurora Page 3
