Sharv was flying towards the east. An earthen platform followed him, bound by the Prana threads, carrying Kant.
"So how did you know I was a Keeper?" Sharv asked Kant. They had been flying for a few minutes. The forest looked dense even from the air, and the lush greenery and the variety of plants created a heaven for every nature lover. If one flew a little low and slow, the smell of wildflowers and fruits, along with the singing of birds, might just infatuate him.
Kant, who was deprived of this view as he was lying face up on his flying platform, spoke with a tinge of envy, "Well, my grandpa used to tell us stories about Keepers as how bravely they fight Voidhearts, how they believe in duty from birth and stay true to it, how they live a modest life in the forests and come to aid the general populace if needed, how they are different from a general cultivator, and many more such stories. We never believed him but he always insisted that he was speaking the truth."
"Wait a minute, how did he know all that?"
"He said he knew a few Keepers who had saved him once."
"Oh, okay, continue."
"Yeah… so he also told us that every Keeper has Chakras of different colors… different than normal. Now I didn't believe it. And in fact, I have not seen any other person with different colored Chakra. But today…" Ant left the sentence for Sharv to fill out himself.
"I understand. But I thought you were unconscious." Sharv said, looking at a certain tree in the far.
"I was, I was. But the explosion woke me up and I saw you ascending up like some mythical…."
"Enough of my praise." Sharv stopped him, "Is this the place?"
He manipulated the earthen platform to stand up and let Kant see the ground. The forest below was filled with ebony trees. Kant looked around and asked, "Have we passed the mountain with a spring and lake?"
"Yeah," Sharv contemplated, "That is at least ten miles behind us now."
"Oh.. then just move a little ahead."
After a few seconds, Sharv reached the destination
.
"Yeah, this is it. Land near that small tree."
Kant said, pointing towards a small clearing, like many others that were everywhere in the forest. But what marked this one was a small Ebony tree almost at the center. After landing, Sharv looked around, even used his Prana to sense anything, but all for naught.
"I don't see or sense anything special. Maybe that's what makes it special," he stated, but his tone was still questioning.
"Yeah, you are right about that," Kant spoke dramatically. "Just remove these bindings, and I'll show you a new world."
"What?" responded Sharv with a bland face.
"I mean, I'll open the gate," Kant said, squirming.
"Okay."
Sharv removed the earthen bindings keeping Kant in one place. Kant, now free, got up, still wobbly on his feet, and then moved to the small Ebony tree.
"You see... this... is the gate," he said, cutting his finger with a special dagger that had a hilt designed like a peacock's feather. As his blood dropped on the tree stem, it vanished inside the tree as if the tree had absorbed it. Then, a black ebony wood door was revealed, with engravings of a peacock. It gave way for a single person at a time.
Kant entered it, followed by Sharv.
*************
"So you are saying that boy is a Keeper, Shyam's son, and not a Voidheart," spoke a familiar bald man in a familiar golden office.
"Yes, Magistrate. As it stands, they used cursed chains, but it did not have a proper effect, or any effect at all, on him," answered another man, cloaked in black clothing, his face hidden in black smoke.
"But his soul definitely is not normal because its sensations are different from an ordinary or stable human soul."
"Hmm, if he is not a Voidheart, then what is he?" mused the City Magistrate, but then waved his hand as if dismissing this thought. "Tell me about his powers."
"Yes." The shadowy man nodded. "The two Adept level Commanders from the Void Corps used a combined attack which was immensely powerful, but the lad not only survived but also killed the other twenty-five knights with a single move. In my opinion, it is impossible for any other Adept to survive that combined attack. He also managed to heal back even
after being infected by their cursed technique."
Now the man stopped to gather his thoughts and then spoke again, "And I think he was able to sense me from at least a distance of two miles after activating his breathing technique and all five Chakras."
"Hmmm, that's a really powerful warrior, I must say," the City Magistrate murmured to himself. "You said he had already awakened his first five Chakras, so he's at least a Master level threat. What do you think?"
"Sir is right in his evaluation. But you know the Keepers prevail in attunement to Primordial Paths. And if that is also true in this case then he will definitely be a True Chakra master. Not to mention if he possesses 'Epic Of Soul'....." Marut let the magistrate interpret the rest.
"Okay it's really troublesome that I have to go at such a time. Since the two Void Corps officers assigned to our city are dead, I have to go to the district headquarters to report this and get backup," Durjay, the City Magistrate, said, scratching his goatee. "Keep an eye on the city and the forest nearby. I'll go in a few days."
*********
Just a few seconds ago, they were in very normal natural scenery, yet now, there was nothing natural about where they were. It was a plain, unicolored room, with walls coated in some red metal alloy.
'What kind of rebellious organization is this? With a symbol the same as the Army's?' Sharv questioned himself after taking a look around and noticing the same peacock symbol, with a few color changes, on the wall behind.
The symbol was shaped just like the one on the entry gates.
After entering the gate, his feet hadn't touched the ground; he was simply teleported to this room. It was like he had dropped into a well but landed smoothly without any jolt or using his own power.
Soon, the sounds of boots were heard outside the front wall. The wall then lifted up, disappearing into the roof, revealing crossed bars still keeping them inside.
There were five men outside, all wearing different kinds of clothes, but a Golden Peacock insignia on their right chests revealed their unity and affiliation. A young man with a buzz cut and clean shave called out to them, "Kant, good to see you back. But who is he? You know outsiders are not allowed here."
"Well, he saved my life and fought the knights sent by the City Magistrate. So he is kind of like us, and he came to drop me off," Kant explained, while Sharv just gauged the men.
"You were attacked? You don't even have a scratch on you," the man outside countered.
"You see that, Ari," Kant turned to Sharv. "Sometimes being too good is also bad," he joked. But then he moved ahead towards the bars and showed his hand and leg. "Don't you see this baby skin I have got, Manoj? He is a very good healer and that is the only reason I am alive."
And that was absolutely true. No ordinary healer could heal him like Sharv. Manoj was bewildered after seeing the extent to which Kant's hand and leg were different from his whole body. Not only was their color lighter, but he could also see the tenderness no warrior would have.
"Okayyy, I believe you, but the in-charge commander wants to see you. So you have to come with me along with that friend of yours," Manoj demanded.
"That's good, show us the way."
The bars then disappeared, moving into the left wall. Manoj turned, and now Sharv noticed a capital M designed in his hair, above his ear. They moved from the room to a well-lit hallway which was covered with the same alloy as the room.
There were many other hallways connected to it, and a row of rooms also followed on the left side. All the hallways met each other at right angles but there was no other symbol or giveaway for any particular memorable thing.
After a five-minute walk, Sharv entered a large yet simple hall.
A pair of large brown sofas, with golden embroidery, were placed in the center of the hall. A glass table was between them, with a tea kettle, a plate of biscuits, and three teacups on it.
A short man with a long full beard and a paunch was
sitting on the opposite sofa. But his hands were thick and calloused, and his arms were full of body hair.
There was a mace beside his sofa, almost as tall and big as him. Wearing a T-shirt and a big smile, he welcomed them, "Good to see you safe and sound, Kant."
Then he paused to take a proper look at Sharv, who was observing the hall. On the right side, there was a big transparent glass display on the wall, and on the left, there were more such displays on a table.
Sharv had seen them before, but only once in a rural village. They had taken refuge there and a village chief had one such display thing.
People were working on the smaller ones, but the whole setup was clean, wireless and just consisted of chairs besides the table and displays, nothing else.
"And how about you introduce this friend of yours?" he added, still wary of Sharv.