Vajra An Elven Tale

Chapter 21 part 1

Chapter 21 A

The clouds gather

The sting of a sharp blade, the force of a punch, his mind was reeling with pain and pent up frustration. He could kill that man then and there, watch him twist in agony; but that would reveal his reality, thwart his plans. Just a bit more, he has to take it all...

With a jerk, and a small gasp she woke up, a current of pain that did not belong to her, running down her spine. The wagon had bumped over something on the road, a sound of a dry branch snapping into two, under the wheel reached her ears. Megha sat across from her, his eyes focused on the piece of wood he was working on, masterfully crafting it into a face of a creature that suspiciously looked like a dragon. Straps of light from the lamp that hung on the wagon roof played across his face. She leaned back, watching his nimble fingers at work with that short knife and unknown to her a sigh escaped her lips. Megha looked up, corner of his mouth tugging upwards.

"Can't sleep?" He mused.

"The Herz would not let me," Swara replied, realizing how weary her own voice sounded. "Are we close?"

"Nearly there," he sounded dismissive. "We'll reach by first light."

"I can't believe Pratula agreed to a treaty with Nagas. It's not like he is interested in their war, especially since he has taken a peace oath with Vajras." She knew it was an old topic, but it was a safe one,  which did not include discussing her reasons behind her actions or the emotions she herself was not certain of.

"Mohan has his way with words," Megha sounded impressed with the man. "But I think he was right in saying Pratula is the real snake, although he is not a Naga." His tone carried a dark humor as he continued. "There is something he is eying, in this entire treaty business, that we do not know of or can't imagine. However," he shrugged. "That's not something we need to worry about."

"Yes, we wanted to entire the city without making trouble. We should be thankful."

Their conversation faded into silence, as it always did. There was not much left undiscussed on the matter. Swara looked out from the flapping opening of the wagon and her eyes got adjusted to the starlight slowly.

They were reaching the edge of the forest. The trees were thinning out, and ruins of some long gone establishment rose on the sides. There were parts of statues, that had long collapsed, buildings that were reduced to mounds of stones and dust, where weeds were creeping up. They pulled under a gate of sorts, still standing intact. On the top of it was a face of a dragon, it's mouth open and tongue lashed out. Ivy hid most of its body now, and one of its stone fangs were missing. Still the image send a shiver down her spine.

"Ancestors of Anjanis are known as sky folks." Magha told her. "Can you guess why?"

"The dragons?" She asked softly. "But there are no dragons now, right?"

He nodded slowly.

"The last was killed many thousand years ago. You should ask those old Nagas, they might have seen a couple." He sighed dreamily. "They say the real Akashanagara is above the clouds and only accessible to those who fly."

"They could be just stories."

Megha looked amused.

"Even after a decade in the elven lands, you don't really belong here, do you?" He said then. "You have a human way of thinking. Swara raised an eyebrow, not knowing whether it was a complement of an insult. Megha chuckled. "It's not entirely your fault, these lands don't accept someone easily." He put down his craft and rubbed his hand together. In the chill of the night his exhale rose like a swirl of mist. "The folklore says Aithne was forged in this ancient town, the steel heated in the fire of a dragon."