"Thanks, Mrs. Zutshi. You're the best!" I said, stuffing a sandwich into my mouth and taking a couple of them in my hands for my friends, only if my appetite allowed me to not eat them in my way down to the basement.

Ashwant, in his drunken state, struggled to keep up with his condition and dozed off right in the chair. My friends were waiting for me and it was time I met them and to see things through with the beast. Apart from the night's meal, I borrowed a couple of gadgets from Ira in the kitchen. They were necessary to experiment.

I descended down the stairs, heading into the dimness of the basement. Ashwant had been using it as a storeroom- a fine spacious one with thick walls and shelves that served as a pantry. The smell of the fish was in abundance. There was a single tiny lantern hung on the wall at the entrance. Walking further down, I heard Pruthvi yelling at the beast and saw him hitting hard on its head as if a punching bag. "Hey, ugly. Wake up!"

Leena was standing at the corner, with a bored and disinterested look on her face. Earlier, Pruthvi had asked her not to be around the beast, to which she had taken it as an offense. "You don't have to worry about me, I am not your girlfriend anymore," she had said to shut Pruthvi up. When she saw me coming in, she jumped with delighted. All that excitement wasn't for me but for the sandwiches. Didn't even bother to spare one for Pruthvi.

The beast seemed to be returning from its temporary state of unconsciousness, and whenever its eyes opened they leered right at Leena, with a vile intention. It's muddy hair fairly covered its face. Head falling back and forth. Hands and legs were tightly fastened with a rope. Its drape was slightly torn from the sides. Seemed like Pruthvi had gone a bit too far with the beast.

"What did you do to him?" I asked quite nonchalantly.

"Tried some fisticuffs. Managed to knock its brain. Oh, it does have a brain by the way. It can understand us speak and even reply."

"Good. But I thought you were going to wait for me. Didn't Ashawant give it a sedative?"

"Well Mackay, that didn't work for a long time as you were anticipating. It woke up and started speaking gibberish. Also, things got a little nasty when it tried to hurt Leena."

"Right," I said, as Leena rolled her eyes, her cheeks swollen with the amount of food in her mouth.

I crouched down and stared into his eyes that were now sternly directed at Leena. In turn, she smirked and challenged it back with a come-and-get-me look. I snapped my fingers hard in front of its face.

Roaaar! A tiny flame in the shape of Singh's face appeared, giving a mild but a threatening roar. The beast responded and shifted its eyes to fix with mine.

"Keep looking at me!" I warned, "and I want you to answer my questions. Straight to the point."

It clicked its tongue in an annoying way.

"Why the heck don't you die?"

It burst down laughing. The great loud harsh crackle of laughter, that could wake up the whole clan. It seemed as if it was trying to get relief from its state of half unconsciousness. Mouth wide opened. Yellowish teeth out. A foul unpleasant smell of dung and decomposed dead animal filtered through the air. My stomach churned. Maddened, I raised my hand, flamed it up and slapped it hard beneath its ears.

Smack!

Leena jerked at my sudden reaction. Pruthvi whistled softly. The temperature inside the basement seemed to drop.

It was like hitting hard rock. The impact was two way. As a consequence, my wrist hurt and the beast collapsed down onto the floor. His hair was caught on fire. It didn't stay put for a long time though. The flames gradually decreased and then disappeared. There were prints of my fingers visible on his cheeks but no burn marks. The beast's eyes shifted back to Leena, leered and sneered at her. It was high time I went for a trial and error method.

Feeling deluded and hesitant, I looked back up at my friends. Pruthvi folded his hands and raised his eyebrows. Leena stepped upfront as if she knew what I was about to do.

"Go ahead." Pruthvi encouraged, and he sounded sincere.

Swallowing, I took a matchbox out of my pocket. If my magical fire wouldn't work, perhaps the natural fire would do the deal. The room filled with the gentle radiance of the dancing flame flickering over the wick. The idea was to give it a scare of its life. My intention, for the moment, was just that. But it kept staring at Leena, courageously unconcerned about the fire. Hacked off by its proud attitude and overcoming my hesitation, I tossed the wick at him and immediately slide slightly back watching the flames engulfing its entire body.

There was a slight sizzling sound like that of frying bacon. Leena gasped but walked a little further ahead in curiosity. We were all curious. Lighting a bonfire in the basement was an act of abomination but we were hoping for it to be fruitful. However, there was no scream of fear, no struggle from its side to escape. Flames lit only for a minute or two and then dissipated leaving a foul odor and smoke.

I decided to try in a more brutal way, and it as the last attempt from my side. I pulled out a pocket knife tucked at the back of my jeans. Took a moment to believe that I was going to go for it. Moisture welled in my eyes, recalling Nazira's sordid childhood involving my grandmother. The deceptive side of my subconscious mind made me see Bhupathi Garg sitting in front of me instead of the beast, his venomous and traitorous deeds that have remained undiscovered.

I threatened the beast with the knife by drawing it closer. It didn't budge. Unable to watch its cruel smile, I mercilessly slashed the knife across its throat.

"Oh, wait!" Pruthvi tried to interfere in a hurry, but it was still too late. A slimy liquid oozed out of its neck and drops sprinkled all over my shirt and on my exposed hand.

I grunted feeling a strong burning sensation on the backside of my palm. My shirt torn, creating thin holes.

Confused, I gazed down at the knife. A transparent liquid as thick as blood began to congeal into a sticky mass. I chucked the knife away feeling disgusted. It rolled and landed beside Leena's feet.

In retrospect, I didn't feel the guilt, as much as I had whilst consciously killing Shaytan Rup. My cornelian pricked my skin. Singh, I know what I'm doing. Please, stay out of it.

Leena blanched. "Horrible little creatures!" she murmured, gaping down at the knife.

"They bleed acid," said Pruthvi, pulling his sleeve up to show his scarred knuckles, wrist and arm "Sorry, I forgot to tell you."

"Never mind." I hissed with pain and shook my wrist to get relief of pain, "We heel fast anyway."

"It feels different this time" He mentioned, his voice low. "I should have already been healed by now, but the sensation is still there."

I stood jittery with adrenaline when the beasts laughed at my failed attempts. There was no sign of distress, except the colorless sticky blood leaked down its throat. Through the blunt teeth, spit spraying out, it made its point. "Not human. Almourah. Huge difference."

I zipped my jacket, concealing the torn shirt beneath it. Despite the defeat, I took a step forward refusing to resign. "What will you have in return to answer my questions?"

His eyes, at once, flicked back at Leena.

"Forget it!"

"Wait, don't be hasty," Leena said, "This is the best and only chance we've got."

She held the knife that had fallen beside her leg, slightly brushed away the blood, and brought it closer to her palm. Pruthvi huffed to protest. "Leena, don't..."

"Shut up!" She yelled, and Pruthvi looked away in annoyance.

She moaned when a driblet of blood trickled down her fingers and onto the floor. My insides then exploded with guilt and pain for making her do this, suddenly realized the advancement of the strong emotional bond I shared with my friends.

The beast, even though having its hands and legs tightly bound, went berserk. Made clicking sound with its tongue, eyes widened with hunger and lust for the blood, it made an attempt to move from its place. Before the beast went out of control, Pruthvi fell on his knees beside it and smashed it hard against the wall.

"Aatmayukta," I said, to get this over with, "Tell me, how do I break the magic?"

Aatmayukta, the dark magic that insentient the soul of a person, separating it from the mind and body. The magic Tyrell had fallen victim to and also the one invented by the big Almourah. Shashi Thribhuvan had learned from him and passed the knowledge down to Jyran Kerenza. The main reason to hold a beast captive was to figure this dark magic inside out. If Almourah was the one to invent it, then wouldn't he be the one to invent the cure too? I was desperate to find a solution. Doctor had given Pruthvi the job to bring Tyrell back to him, not necessarily wake his soul up. Somehow we had missed that logic. These clan resided in Uttarameer, Doctor had been visiting the province ever since Tyrell had left. Also, Nazira particularly mentioned that Almourah was the root source for this dark magic. Perhaps, it was just a faint hope that this beast would reveal something about it.

"Knife...knife," it stuttered, watching Leena and trying to get away from Pruthvi's grasp.

"You want this knife?" Leena said, "Then answer the damn question."

"Knife..heart...blood."

"Say it!" I shouted, curiosity getting the best of me.

The beast was growling and snorting like a pig. Amidst all the sudden fuss it started, I found myself getting distracted by the hard footsteps sprinting down the staircase and then the thud-thud-thud of walking feet. Pruthvi looked back up at me, having the same puzzled expression as I had, and that cleared my suspension. Someone was approaching, reprimanding and sulking. The voice didn't seem like Ashwant's at all, but then I did recognize who it belonged to. My heart sank. On no! Not him!

"Downright rebellious. Disobedient. Should punish the Constellia for choosing them!"

The tall and dark shadow emerged making the basement dimmer than it already was. King Aghasthya emerged interrupting our misdemeanor. He seemed more agile for his age. His face contorted with rage, numerous lines stamped on his forehead. He was holding a bucket full of water. Without a prior warning, he swung it at the beast, splashing the water all over it. At once, grabbing this opportunity to escape, the beast melted and disappeared.

Everything happened so quickly that none of us were able to stop him from doing so. In the few seconds of stunned silence, Pruthvi, Leena and I shared a few awkward glances, each of us waiting for the other to begin expressing our displeasure.

It was Leena who took the charge. "Why would you do that?" she snarled, her eyes shining with tears and anger. She was enduring the pain in her hand, but the disappointment for ruining our chance to find the cure seemed hard to put up with.

"This is against the law." He shouted back, looking down at her wound and back up. "Is that reason enough for your pea-sized brain?"

"Mr. King, what the hell?!" Pruthvi chimed in, stepping back from all the splashed water.

"This is the least expected from you, Pruthvi Krishna. I thought you were the smartest and the sanest one of your group."

"This was our attempt to make the most of the opportunity," he said, sounding offended, "That thing could have given us a strategy to bring Tyrell back. The job, Doctor gave me, is not yet complete. I was only trying to do that."

"You just landed a whole Matsyasvi clan in danger by capturing a beast. Was that your strategy?"

"It was my idea," I said, quickly backing Pruthvi up, "I wanted a beast captured. Blame me for anything and everything if you have to."

Pruthvi had complained about how King Aghasthya had been putting pressure by not allowing him to act as per his will to find Tyrell. All those weeks had gone wasted persuading him to let them do it in their way. Now Pruthvi wasn't alone anymore. He didn't have to deal with him all by himself. I was here.

As expected, King Agasthya turned around glaring murderously at me. He had lost his only remaining friend. He must be vulnerable, like Ashwant. So I decided to give him some slack and behave as gently as possible. But only if he hadn't said this- "Just like Harsh, going against the rules and landing everyone in trouble."

Anger skyrocketed. "Well, atleast I ain't a hypocrite. I don't break the rule and then go around banging on everyone's door begging to follow my rules."

His eyes enlarged with incredulity. "Why? Why are you so headstrong?"

"Because I don't like the way people are left to suffer in the name of some freakin' law he started."

He stepped a little closer as if daring me to say another word against his late friend. "So what now, do you plan to change the whole system? The three of you together with your rebellious streak..."

"Sedition Act of Paramarashtra, 1937," I said, having my jaw clenched. "Heard that's what he applied in Panchayat to set up his own rules for his dynasty. Just like the chief Ministers of Purvachand had."

Pruthvi and Leena snapped a look at me. If I were a different person beside me, I would have snapped a surprised look at me as well. Because that came out of nowhere. I had no idea why I remembered it when I'd never paid attention in the first place. Nazira, in the parallel universe, tried to educate me about the existence of such laws. They were boring to hear, seemed unnecessary. And now I know that they weren't. I bit my lip, realizing the mistake. I should have taken advantage of the opportunity afforded to me by Doctor, rather than making moves to impress her. Damn!

But then, an overwhelming instinct kicked in, forcing me to leave it be. I'll never win the battle with the drop in an ocean worth of knowledge. So Relax. Take a deep breath. He doesn't have to know what's running in your mind. Take the chance. Act innocent.

King Agasthya crossed his hand. "How do you plan to do that?"

I swallowed. "I don't know."

"When do you plan to do that?"

Shook my head again. "No idea."

"Do you atleast know that only an accepted, or rather a potential King of a dynasty is allowed to apply for it? And that the chances for the Panchayat to accept are less than one percent? And on top of it, if the rules are totally against the Book of law then the King is stated as unfit for the position and forced to give up the throne or rather thrown in jail for the betterment of the dynasty?"

I looked away and said the best thing I could at the moment. "Oh."

Pruthvi grimaced at me. Dude, we are so going to lose the battle of wits!

"Tell me," King Agasthya continued, dropping his hands, "Do you accept the Will? Because I'll train you well if you do."

I shrugged. "Depends. Am I allowed to apply for the Act before I decide whether or not to accept the Will?"

The King scoffed. "No!"

"Then it will be over my dead body."

He creased his brow. "Fine! If that's the case then you are just a Samagraha, a protector of the country. You are supposed to work under the orders of a King. Three of you belong to Dakshinpur and since I am the only King here, you will do exactly as I tell you to do."

I felt the tables turning forever. That was not how I wanted it to be. "I...I beg to differ."

"You made the choice, Hayden Mackay. Not me. You chose not to accept the Will, even after it clearly states that you cannot disregard it. I respect your decision thinking that you are just a boy who literally has no knowledge about how to rule a kingdom. So I expect the same in return. Because that is how it works in this country. Give-and -take."

Or rather I give and you take. "But..."

He was done with me and now turned around to say his final words to Pruthvi. "You murdered Zarina Khan, and I have done everything possible to suppress the matter. I really don't want you to do anything stupid that may land you and I both in trouble."

He caught my eye for help but none of us uttered a word.

The King of Sharad lurched towards Leena taking a handkerchief out of his pocket. He harshly pulled her hand and wrapped her wound with it. "Forgiving me or not for what I did to your father is your choice. But you have no right to spoil your family name. Understand?"

She dropped her eyes to the floor.

"Tomorrow we have a meeting," he said taking slow steps away, "Our country is in danger and we need to get organized to sustain in these dire situations. I will send out a formal word with Dhanunjay, and you must follow his instructions. The apartment you asked for is ready. Nazira Khan has already moved in. Feel free to join her. Looks like she is the only one who listens to me."

"She is deaf," Pruthvi muttered, rubbing the king in the wrong way.

The King ignored his remark and very next minute he left the three of us alone in the dim basement. We stood there, breathing in the smell of the fish and staring blankly at the floor. We were embarrassed and humiliated.

"We are his puppets and he is our master. Period," Pruthvi said, taking slow steps to get out of the basement.

"Hayden," Leena said, "I told you there's no way we can win over him. He keeps talking rules. He is just too... superior."

I threw a sharp look at her. Giving up can never be an option. "He is not superior to the Panchayat, is he?" I said, giving in to my instinct that framed a clear idea of what was required to be done to survive in this country. "What's the name of the High King again?"

-x-