Rising Mist(#1 Haze Series)Completed

8. The Overwhelming Changes Around Him

The clicking and crackling sound near her ears had disturbed her sleep. It hadn't been easy to get into it and finally when she was able to catch up to the rest needed, the butterflies did not leave her alone. Should she be happy for their loving attention? She wanted to feel so too, but irritation was currently dominating in her. A slight push and she would no doubt sweep out everyone around with the back of her hand. It was the last sense of rationality that stopped her from embarrassing herself.

Stretching herself, she left the comfortable embrace of security. Separating herself from him, she stared at the man who was still enjoying his deep sleep. Rishi could really sleep anywhere at such ease that she wondered how in the hell the man went from sleepless nights of early days in Raksharan to the current uncaring him with no worry plaguing him. Atleast that was the vibe she currently felt radiating from him.

Riri and other butterflies rejoiced at her attention on them, rubbing their body to her neck and arms enjoying the smell she exuded. She felt slight tickle and controlled her urge to separate herself from butterflies, atleast for sometime. Soon their eyes would drift to flowers. She looked up to see that sky was still suffused with darkness and dawn had yet to arrive.

Rishi's back still leaned the tree and he had a peaceful expression on his face as if nothing fazes him. The place she spent night in was truly beautiful. The cave at one edge of her eye surrounded by thick trees in a circle like wall, leaving a opening at other edge of her eye. While she stood in the middle of the space created with flowers which were fiercely protected by the wall of trees.

A sudden loud thumping sound shook her nearly and she turned in the direction of the cave to find the bear couple, the culprit of disturbance jumping infront of their house talking something she couldn't hear from the distance. She approached Ra who smiled at her and so did Pa as he rubbed back of his head with his human hand while his bear hand rubbed his bulged belly.

The female bear made her sit on the boulder near the entrance of the cave and enquired if she had a restful sleep. She nodded, not wanting to get into the uncomfortableness of the night that shouldn't be given priority at the moment. She was not in Astra where everything that could be called luxury was given to her with just a swipe of her hand.

Pa went in and brought Samras to fill their belly as she and Ra were busy asking about each others wellbeing. She drank a little of the golden liquid and resumed giving inquisitive stare to Ra who had stopped talking to fill her huge belly. From head to neck they were no different from any other human, even their right shoulder and hand didn't had any bear fur. Not so much could be said about other parts covered in the dark brown fur with bulky hands and legs and a belly with such expansion that could fit ten of Astrarian warriors' food.

With hunger satiated, Ra continued about her initial days in Raksharan. How she and her husband had once left  their home in Vidyut for the herb, the energy grounding their existence. The reserve had been at all time low and they could no longer wait for its usual miraculous appearance. Being the newly appointed lord and lady, they had to do their duty to ensure Vidyuts survival, even if they had to leave behind their five year old son behind as heir for the worst case.

It had been twenty years since the great Maharas empire had been split. The exact reason for the split had still remained a mystery. The inter relation between Vidyut and Astra was based on the interest since ages. Astrarian protected Vidyuts who in turn calm their boiling blood with their power. With the herb, Ashwagandha depleting at a fast rate, the protection and their power were at high risk that could no longer be ignored.

Raksharan had seized interacting with both of the surrounding regions since separation of the empire. Their calming power which depended on the herb grew only in Raksharan's sacred place which was once the abode of Mahan Mahant, the founder of the great empire that had once shook the entire ocean surrounding their kingdom.