The Weapon of the Devas

by Nanda Gopal Guruswamy

  I was still digesting this when he said with a slight smile. “I noticed you avoiding the attentions of those lovely ladies over there. You have a significant other?”

  “Not really. I’m too busy.”

  “You should have some love in your life Guardian. Life is too short to spend fighting monsters,” he said.

  I made a face as I said, “I thought we were like the Jedi. To suffering, attachment leads” I said, in a high voice.

  “Hmm, you see this rose?”

  “Yes” I said dully, I was in for a lecture.

  “Think of your life as this stem and each thorn as a failed relationship. You have to keep trying until one blossoms into a beautiful rose.”

  “That was beautiful, man” That was awesome, I stored it away for later use.

  He shrugged. “I maybe old. But I try” he said.

  I said goodbye and left the enclosure. I went to the main temple and offered my prayers. After which, I roamed about thinking about a way to stop Devakratha. I was still drawing a blank as I transported back to Bangalore. As things are now, I had gone up against a three-hundred year old wizard leader of one of the most terrifying cults the world has ever seen and gotten my ass kicked. To add more salt to my wounds, I am unable to tap into my powers. How was I going to confront Devakratha?

  Chapter 11: Dirty Tricks

  One thing was clear to me—I was never going to defeat him. I was to go and fight him using magic. He was simply too powerful and his threat was still ringing in my ears. The Elders had been of no use. Elder Madhava was more like a priest. I didn’t even sense his magical power. Maybe that was because my own was deteriorating. I was in a corner but the image of Prajwal’s and Palak’s frightened voice was still in my mind. Besides this was the only good game in town. I bought a new smartphone, not as good as my previous one, but acceptable.

  I couldn’t approach this like a wizard. It was time to bring on the dirty tricks. I went over to my laptop and pushed Kajur away. He was still hooked on it. He turned “Hey Chief. You look tired. Let me refresh you with an amazing fact,” he announced.

  I growled at him. He didn’t even hear it. “Did you know that killer whales kill sharks by torpedoing into them from below. It makes the sharks explode, literally.” The growl became deeper. He noticed and went away sulking. I was in no mood to indulge him. He had been of no use to me so far.

  I checked my inventory of magical items. There were very few I could use without magic. My staff being the first. But there were still a few interesting items in there I could use to formulate a plan. Next I checked where Devakratha was. Remember when I left my staff near his car before the meeting, I also left a little something, a GPS tracking device attached to his car. I could use the software in my laptop to find out exactly where it was. Always have a ‘Plan B’ folks. It helps. It looks like he was on the move. He was far away from the city and still travelling.

  I started pacing around my home trying to get a plan. But tiredness came seeping back along with a light headache. But this was no time to rest. I had no backup. I had to stop Devakratha at all costs. He had a powerful artefact and should be ready to perform the yagna soon.

  The best I could come up was a quick hit-and-run. So, I had to first meet the car. If Devakratha was in it, I could strike and escape as soon as possible. I was sure that Devakratha would carry the armour piece with him at all times. I could quickly take possession and once I was on my bike, there would be no way that he could catch me. If he wasn’t, I would follow the car and locate his hideout. But I was hoping that he would be in the car. If he was in his hideout, then the risk of getting caught would be higher.

  I took a few items quickly and left on the bike. I felt unprotected without my jacket. And I felt nearly naked without magic. If Devakratha attacked I would be unable to defend myself. Armed with this terrifying piece of knowledge, I set off. I had synced my laptop to my phone so I could track the Jamedar’s car with my phone. Sometime later, I could see the black car zipping along the highway.

  I managed to get aside it and took a look inside. I got a little jolt when I saw Devakratha sitting inside with the big guy from the fight. I didn’t recognize the driver. I was suddenly a little uneasy on the bike but then I remembered that I had a helmet on. So I overtook them and zoomed away. Now that I had confirmed that the Thugee was inside, my plan was simple. I had several homemade spike strips in my bag designed to puncture car tyres. Simple nails are no longer enough as tyres are now designed to travel for long distances with nails embedded in them, spike strips however are different. You can use hollow pipes and nails to build them, the nails are placed inside the hollow tube and it is usually around 3 inches long. Once it pierces a car tire, the hollow tube lets the air out of the tire quickly. It is quite dangerous as the driver soon loses control. Just a few of these babies could literally shred any tyre to pieces. The police call them stingers. I found a spot ahead where there were no other vehicles but Devakratha’s and I dropped the spiked barbs and went a little ahead and stopped my bike. A few seconds later, the car came and as expected hit the spikes and got punctured. The car went on for a little while bypassing me before the driver realized that something was wrong.

  The car stopped. My heart was in my mouth as I went over my plan in my head. I saw the driver get out and check the wheels. I started my bike and went casually by the car as I crossed, I reached into my bag and took out a sticky object and threw it on the back window and raced away. The object stuck, it was a small homemade bomb, nothing that could cause any serious damage. Besides I was sure that Devakratha and the big guy would be magically protected against such attacks. What I wanted to give them was the shock.

  The bomb went off and the explosion was a little bigger than I had expected. I quickly turned my bike around and came back towards the car. I left the bike in neutral and went near the car. All the windows were blown and the car itself was smoking. The driver was thrown a little distance away from the car, since he had been outside when the bomb went off. I still had my helmet on. I quickly reached into my bag and took out two things, one was a smoke bomb, another a gas mask. I tossed the smoke bomb inside the window and within a couple of seconds greyishsmoke billowed out of the car windows.

  I slipped the gas mask on and opened the door. Devakratha was in, he and the big guy looked dazed and were coughing uncontrollably. I gave Devakratha a punch straight across the jaw and heard a satisfying sound as he collapsed. I checked his jacket quickly and found nothing, and then I noticed a small ornate box at the floor of the car. I took it and ripped it open. Inside was the armour piece glittering innocently. I quickly bagged it and was on my way towards my bike when I felt a huge push on my back. It threw me to the ground.

  I looked behind to see Devakratha. He had somehow gotten out of the car but he was still coughing badly and was bent over. He saw me directly and his eyes were a deep red and tearing up. He looked pissed. I gave him a mocking smile and ran and reached my bike. He was still throwing fire around, but with his eyes like that. He wasn’t even coming close to hitting me.

  I was on my bike and rode away in a second. I was home-free, and I had gotten the armour piece back. I had the advantage. Without a car, there was no way Devakratha could chase me. Now I could take a little rest and plan my next move. I had the advantage. My heart was beating wildly and wind was blowing through my hair. The feeling of victory was wonderful.

  A sudden fireball hit the ground next to me and created a huge pothole. I turned back to see Devakratha. He was on top of a freaking bus. I had no idea how he had gotten there. The bus was speeding madly gaining on me. It was jam packed with people, who were screaming. I could see the driver, putting his foot down on the brake with a desperate expression. The wheels were smoking as they screeched against the road, but the bus was still moving ahead right at me.

  I couldn’t believe it, this wasn’t over. But Devakratha was in my territory now, maybe he was magically more powerful but no one can overtake me on
my bike. I gave my bike full throttle and raced away. Soon I reached a little traffic and I was able to dodge them and still keep my speed.

  It was a mad race. The bus didn’t dodge traffic. It went right through it. The bus hit cars and other vehicles and threw them out of the way, it slowed down but kept on coming. Soon it was near me. Devakratha was on top looking at me with a demonic glare with hair flying everywhere [S8] and throwing fireballs. I was able to dodge them all with ease. I was looking for a way out, a place where a bike could go but not a bus, like into some trees or a dirt track. There was none that I could see.

  I reached into my bag and pulled out more nails. I scattered them out on the road and the bus went over them. The tyres blew out. But the bus still kept coming. It was unstoppable. If this continued, he was gonna hit me. And at that speed, there would be nothing left of me but a big red wet patch on the road.

  The fireballs were getting closer and closer. One nearly hit the back wheel of my bike. I wobbled but managed to keep going. Up ahead I saw a little entrance to a field. But to get there, I had to jump a little fence. It was touch and go, I gave the bike full power and jumped it. I just about made it. The ground was muddy and dirt went flying all over the place. I slowed a little bit and balanced the bike. The field was huge and clear. I was well on my way when I turned back. I saw with utter shock as the bus hit the fence and crashed into the field. The bus gave a huge shake and the driver went right through the windshield and went under the bus.

  Devakratha was on top balancing as the bus shook violently. I hoped he would fall and break his neck. But he managed to stay on top and his eyes scanned the field and found me. The bus changed direction and rushed right at me. I could see the driver on the ground. He wasn’t moving. A sudden realization came to me. Devakratha did not value human life. He would put everyone in the bus at risk and kill them to succeed. This situation was totally out my control.

  I knew then that Devakratha would not stop. He was going to capture me at any cost. The only difference—here were people. Devakratha would capture me without harming anybody on the bus. Or he would capture me and hurt the people on the bus. I could see a lady clutching her child inside the bus and looking around in terror.

  There comes a moment in every Guardian’s life when sacrificing himself brings about the best outcome. This could happen anytime, any moment and just like that, it could all be over. This was my moment. If Devakratha gets what he wants, he would stop. And at least some of the people in the bus could be saved. It all came down to a simple math problem. There were many lives on the bus while there was only one, me.

  While I was contemplating this, I did not notice the big rock in front of me and collided right in to it. The bike fell and along with it me. The ground was wet and soft so I wasn’t really harmed. Meanwhile the bus was careening right at me, I quickly took out the armour piece in my bag and placed it inside a small magical pouch and sealed it. The pouch was magical. Once sealed, only the person who had sealed it could open to obtain the object stored in it. If anyone else opened the pouch it would be empty.

  Atleast now Devakratha’s mission would fail. Without the armour piece, his little enterprise was ruined. In a last ditch effort to save myself, I dug deeper than ever before to summon my power. I suddenly had a splitting headache, but I plunged on and deep, deep within. I felt a response. I dragged it out and spun a cocoon of compressed air around me. Compressed air is actually incredibly strong and can withstand immense pressure. But I didn’t stop with one layer. I left a small layer of normal air density and created another cocoon of compressed air around me. I was basically creating concentric circles of protection. I was sandwiched between two layers, making the whole shield even stronger.

  I just completed my fourth layer when I ran out. I could feel blood flowing down from my nose. My vision was a little blurry. I took out my phone and sent a SOS message. I could see the bus rushing down at me with the Jamedar of Thugee looking down at me with triumph. I wasn’t really that brave, I closed my eyes just before the bus hit. My vision went red and I remembered no more.

  Chapter 12: Prisoner

  I woke with a splitting headache. Everything was dark at first. Slowly the room came into focus. It was dimly lit with no windows. At first, I thought I was at home, it was only when I tried to move that I realized I was tied to a chair. My hands were tightly tied behind my back. The last few hours came flooding back to me.

  This was very bad, I was captured … by the Thugee, no less, all the nightmarish accounts of the Thugee rituals I had read came into my head with perfect clarity. The only thing I could hope for now was a quick and painless death. I was breathing too quickly, my brain was over stressed for the past few days and panic flooded me. I tried to get up violently, but the ropes wouldn’t let me. My helplessness only increased my panic. I had never been in a situation like this before.

  But I tried to calm down, I controlled my breathing and almost got a steady meditating stance going. I tried to take in the surroundings. I was in some room without windows. It had a large desk with a couple of chairs. There were a few items on the desk. I wanted to see who my captors were.

  “Hey. Hey waiter, can I get some service here, please?” I shouted.

  There was some movement and a door opened. A man peeked in. Some light poured in but before my eyes could adjust the door closed again. The door opened again after some time. Devakratha strode in, dressed to impress as usual. There was a bright yellow scarf that dominated his look. A few guys followed him. After they switched on the lights, I noticed that I was in a nicely furnished room and there were a few paintings on the wall. Among them was an image of Goddess Kali. This must be the Thugee’s lair, the mother lode.

  “About time. Service is pathetic here. Can I get some coffee, first?” I told him.

  He looked at me and pulled a chair, turned it around so he was sitting with the frame facing him. He rested his hands on the frame and said “So sorry for the delay. How do you like it? Strong? ” He snapped his fingers and said, “You heard him. A coffee please. ”

  The guy looked a bit unsure, but went out anyway.

  “Not bad. Not bad at all. You have managed to impress me. That’s why you are still alive.” He said.

  “Oh, I thought it was the fact that you lost Arjuna’s armour to me that’s keeping me alive.” I replied steadily.

  “Whoa, relax. Business is so boring. Let’s have a few pleasantries first.”

  A person walked in with the coffee and looked at Devakratha questioningly. “Well, what are you waiting for? Our guest asked for coffee. Give it to him or rather pour it down its throat.”

  The guy gave a nasty smile and said, “Yes, Jamedar”.

  Two people held my mouth open as the other thug poured the steaming hot coffee down my throat. I was coughing desperately as the coffee burned my throat. He stayed like that looking at me with obvious pleasure while I suffered.

  After some time he said, “Well, now that I have your attention. You can make your stay here as pleasant as possible. Give me the armour now and I might consider sparing you.”

  “Yeah, right. So you’ll just let me leave with that knowledge.”

  “Why not? You cannot stop me.”

  “I’ve already alerted the Elders. They are on the way, so why don’t you go crawl back into whatever hole you came from, before the Elders arrive.”

  He laughed heartily. “Those old doddering fools. Puppets of the Devas. They are occupied with the errands the Devas give them. And even if they do come, do you think they can stop me?”

  It looked like Devakratha knew a lot more about the Elders than he was supposed to. My panic threatened to come back, but I suppressed it and said, “They don’t have to stop you. Just have to delay you until the date of the yagna passes.”

  He looked at me thoughtfully. “There seems to be more to you than meets the eye.” He stood up and paced around the room and walked upto his desk. I happened to see what was on the desk. There were a
few maps and several old books. But there was a small red book that was on top of the pile. Devakratha took the book and fingered it as he walked thoughtfully. He came back to the chair. He turned it around and sat with his legs crossed.

  “You know, a lot of the Guardians are high speed, shoot to kill types. But you managed to gather a lot of information and even formulate a halfway decent plan, Shiva of the Guardians. Why?”

  I wanted to keep him talking, atleast I could glean some information and postpone whatever he was planning. “I was hired to investigate Prajwal’s attack. I followed the trail and it led to you. You got what you wanted, why didn’t you kill him like you killed Suryaprakash.”

  “Because he defied me. He will suffer for some time before death consumes him. Also because he had a few magical protections that inconvenienced me,” he said. As he said this, he fingered a ring on his hand. As I looked at it I saw that it was the exact red of Narimbu’s eyes. He saw me watching and said, “Yes, this is the talisman that controls Narimbu. The ruby is rare unlike any other, it is called a pigeon-blood in this age, I believe.”

  I wanted to get to the heart of what he wanted, so I poked him further.

  “You know, even if you managed to get the armour piece, you cannot possibly summon Arjuna. He is a near demi-god. He would destroy you.”

  He laughed again, “Why on earth would I want to summon the holier-than-thou Pandava? So you don’t know everything after all.”

  I shrugged “Doesn’t matter. The Elders will destroy all when they get here.” I said

  “But will you be alive? The Elders didn’t care enough to send you any backup. They will take their own time and come for me when their precious Devas and see that I would have become more powerful than them. But it will of course be too late by then.”