Tiger’s Destiny (44 page)
“And what will become of us when the fight is over?” Ren asked.
Phet set the
kamandal
down and said quietly, “It is perhaps better to think of the future after we have taken care of the present, hmm?”
Phet wrapped the Rope of Fire around his waist, where it locked together like a belt. When he touched any weapon to it, the weapon lit on fire. He touched an arrow to the Necklace and sunk the projectile into a tree trunk. The entire tree turned into water, held the shape of what it once was for a few seconds, and then fell, flooding the undergrowth.
It seemed that the possibilities were endless, and the only limit was our own creativity. All of us were eager to try out the weapons, and Kishan was the first on his feet. But Phet caught his arm as he reached for the
chakram
and shook his head. Kishan backed up a step.
“I must caution you regarding two things. The first is that when you use the Rope of Fire, you must be very specific with your instructions. If you ask it to take you to a safe haven you may end up in another time and place. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of each of you in this battle. You must stay here. You can, however, use it to move quickly around the battlefield, but you must tell it exactly where you wish to go.”
Kishan nodded and asked, “What is the other warning you must give?”
Phet said nothing for a moment but looked at Anamika. “Is there a reason you didn’t fight as the goddess today or lead out in battle as you wished to, young one?”
Her head dropped, and Kishan and I turned to look at her. Ren put his hand on her arm to offer her support.
“I am ashamed to confess it but—” she glanced at Phet, who was patiently waiting for her to finish.
She pulled a knife from her boot and stabbed the ground a few times. “I was under the thrall of the demon.”
Phet pressed, “You felt this overtake you the nearer you were to the mountain. Am I correct?”
“Yes,” she admitted.
Ren added, “I had to pull her away when she got too close. I took the weapons from her because she turned them on her own troops. The further she was from the battle, the more control she had over herself.”
“I suspected as much,” Phet said. He knelt in front of Anamika and lifted her chin so he could see her face. “This is not your fault. This has happened to Ren and Kishan as well.”
“What?” Kishan took a step forward.
“I was not under the thrall of Lokesh even when he tortured me,” Ren declared.
Phet took hold of Kishan’s arm and explained, “You were under this same power before the tiger saved you.”
Ren stood up. “You’re speaking of the talisman. Yes . . . it affected both Kishan and me because we have the same blood.”
“He uses it now combined with the amulet to create his demon army, and Anamika’s twin brother is the head of it. Because he is under its influence, the sway Lokesh has over Sunil overpowers her control when she gets too close.”
Durga gasped, and tears formed in her eyes. I reached out to hold her hands. “We’ll just have to destroy the talisman then.”
“You must make this your priority.” Phet gave me a telling look, and I dipped my head slightly to acknowledge that I understood. “The four of you will ride into battle in the morning. Now you must use these few remaining hours to rest. I will return to camp and prepare your troops to accompany you. Stay here until my return.”
Clutching his newly made cloak, Phet wandered off into the darkness, leaving us and our weapons behind. Anamika still seemed to be overwhelmed by everything. I used the Scarf to make her a comfortable tent and guided her inside. When I was satisfied that the tent was warm enough and saw that she’d rolled onto her side, obviously not wanting to talk, I left her alone.
I found Kishan waiting for me outside.
Wrapping his arms around me, he asked, “Are you still angry with me?”
“I was never angry with you. I was angry with Ren and Anamika, and I was confused.”
Kishan sighed deeply. “I understand. It must have been hard for you to see them together. You still have feelings for him.”
I couldn’t respond. I couldn’t share the knowledge that the Phoenix had burned into my soul. There was a part of me that loved Kishan and desperately wanted to return the love he deserved. But I was still in love with Ren, and that feeling couldn’t be pushed aside or denied.
Kishan gently cupped my chin, and I looked into his warm golden eyes. Eyes full of patience, love, and acceptance.
I wrapped my arms around his waist, buried my head against his shoulder, and wept. He stroked my back and said, “Don’t cry,
bilauta
. You can always tell me how you feel. You can talk to me about anything, even if you think it will hurt me. I love you, Kelsey Hayes. I want to marry you, have a dozen kids, and grow old with you. You’ve made me a whole man again, and you’ve given me more than I could wish for, more than I deserve by agreeing to be my wife. I know that Ren is a part of your life. He’s a part of my life too. We’ll worry about the future after we take care of the past. Agreed?”
“Agreed,” I said and blew my nose.
I stood on my tiptoes to kiss him briefly, but he pressed me close and kissed me with a fervent passion that I couldn’t help responding to. My arms snuck around his neck and held onto him. He ran his hands down my back and gripped my waist, pulling me closer. When our lips parted, he smiled and dipped his head to kiss my cheek.
I whispered, “I love you too, Kishan,” and his happiness at hearing my words warmed my heart.
Phet returned a few hours later. It was dawn, and the clouds looked like pink cotton candy. It reminded me of the fateful day I first met Ren back at the circus in Oregon. The sight made me think of happier times, happier places. Somehow the clouds seemed out of place on the morn of a battle.
Phet had gathered our weapons, which lay in a gleaming pile at our feet. I rubbed my eyes to clear away the layers of sleepiness. Anamika stood beside me, nervously wringing her hands. Kishan and Ren seemed ill at ease as well.
Phet picked up the Divine Scarf and held it in his palms. “To truly become the goddess, you must touch all the gifts as you change.”
He handed Anamika the Golden Fruit, fixed the clasp of the Pearl Necklace around her neck, and wrapped the Rope of Fire around her waist.
“Now wind the Divine Scarf around your body and wish to appear as the goddess Durga.”
A brief moment passed and the cold breeze played with the edge of the Scarf. I’d just used the amulet’s power to warm the air around us when she lifted the Scarf away.
I’d seen her as Durga before with all eight arms, but she seemed different this time. Her skin was glowing as if it was lit from within. Her long, black hair seemed to have a life of its own as it moved softly in the breeze. She was beautiful and fierce. Power seemed to radiate from her in waves.
Gently, Phet took the Scarf, the Fruit, and the other items from her. Her arms flexed and twitched as if ready for battle. She turned toward me and moved as fluidly with eight arms as she did with two.
“And now, Kahl-see, it’s your turn.”
“What?” I gasped in shock.
Ren and Kishan both reacted instantly.
“What are you doing?” Kishan asked.
“Isn’t there a way to leave her behind?” Ren protested.
Phet replied to both of them. “It has always been Kahl-see’s destiny to fight in this battle. This is why she is, was, and always has been the chosen one. Without her,” he looked at Ren, “you will lose everything.”
The wiry monk handed me the Fruit, but Kishan took the Necklace and affixed it at my neck. Ren settled the Rope of Fire around my waist. After kissing my forehead, he stepped away.
“What do I wish to be?” I asked.
“You are to be Durga as well.”
Setting aside my confusion, I wrapped the Scarf around my body. I grimaced beneath it, thinking about all the arms soon to be waving at my side but obeyed the instructions and told the Divine Scarf I wanted to be Durga. What happened next was amazing.
At first, I didn’t feel any different, but as the Scarf did its work, I felt my clothes shift. Little electric fingers ran through my hair, giving me goose bumps, and then I realized I had goose bumps on more than one set of arms. The Scarf tickled, and I pulled it off with a hand I’d never used before. Blood surged through my body, and I clenched my fists, all of them, as I felt power move through me.
I looked at the new goddess Durga standing across from me with several sets of arms folded and she smiled. I grinned back and felt full of confidence and control. It wasn’t until I looked at Ren and Kishan that I felt self-conscious. They both stared.
“What?” I asked them. “What is it? Is one of my arms doing something wrong?”
“It’s you . . . you’re—” Kishan began and swallowed.
“Breathtaking,” Ren finished.
He offered his hand, and I placed one of mine in his. He brought it up to his lips and kissed it warmly then rubbed his fingers over the ring on my finger and smiled. I drew my hand up to look at the ring and saw it was Ren’s.
Automatically, I rubbed eight thumbs over thirty-two fingers and found another ring on my right hand. I looked at it and let out a pent-up breath seeing Kishan’s ruby ring safe on my finger. Kishan stepped forward and took my hand, boldly placing my palm against his cheek. He kissed it and stood to the side.
Phet announced, “Now use your power to draw your weapons to you.”
Both of us lifted our arms, and the golden weapons rose into the air. We opened our hands, and weapons flew into them. The
chakram
, a brooch, the
kamandal
, and, to my dismay, Fanindra, few to Durga’s outstretched hands, as did the Golden Fruit and the Divine Scarf.
The Pearl Necklace and the Rope of Fire stayed with me, and I also got a brooch, the
gada
, the trident, and my bow and arrows. The golden sword rose into the air and split into two. One sword flew to Durga and the other to me. I caught it in my topmost right hand. As I caught the weapons in my grip they shifted color from gold to silver while Durga’s weapons still gleamed in the familiar gold.
“Now, you are ready for battle.” Phet clapped Ren on the shoulder and continued, “Dhiren and Kishan will enter battle with the goddesses and will fight alongside them in the way destiny has chosen for you. Ladies, if you would activate your brooches.”
I touched the trinket and said, “Armor and shield.”
Thin plates of silver encased my limbs and a shield grew in one of my left hands. The armor traveled down my torso, over my hips, and down my legs, and I was surprised how easily I could move in it.
I turned to look at Anamika and saw that golden armor had encased her upper body like a corset, leaving her neck bare, but then rounded out over her shoulders. Golden cuffs protected her forearms.
She wore a black cloth skirt lined with golden plates and black boots covered in strips of golden metal. A golden crown took shape over her head.
I snickered at the sight of Durga’s golden tiara, but then I reached
down
with one of my upper arms and patted the top of my head. Sure enough, I wore a silver crown too.
To my dismay, I looked down and found I also had a breastplate and that my outfit was identical to Anamika’s, except for the coloring. My skin almost sparkled with inner light. My brown hair was golden and was as thick and as long as Anamika’s. My dress was similar in shape to Anamika’s but was white. Ren stood there gaping, and my face turned red under his scrutiny.
When the process was completed, Ren and Kishan doubled over and groaned painfully. Alarmed, I took a step toward Ren just as he shifted into tiger form. He roared loudly and shook himself. Kishan changed into the black tiger.
“What’s happening?” I asked Phet.
“The time has come, Kahl-see. They are fulfilling their purpose,” he said.
I touched Ren, and silver plates covered his muzzle and made their way over his head. Soon his body was encased in silver armor. A double-rigged cinch circled his torso and formed a white saddle on his back, complete with two metal handgrips by his shoulder blades. Kishan was outfitted identically in golden armor and a black saddle.
Anamika-as-Durga stepped between Ren and Kishan. She patted Kishan’s head.
“Interesting,” she said.
Kishan growled lightly in response and walked over to me, putting his head under my hand. I folded two sets of arms, resting a hand on Kishan.
“You’re kidding, right, Phet? This isn’t what I think it is.”
“It’s exactly that, Kahl-see. The goddess Durga is supposed to ride her tiger into battle.”
I
f you are hesitant, then stay here, little sister,” Anamika teased.
“This is my war even more than it is yours,
big
sister.”
She frowned, which made me just the tiniest bit happy, and attempted to swing her leg over Ren’s back. Surprisingly, the new goddess fell over in an awkward flurry of arms. Irritated, she got up and gave it another go, but try as she might, she was not able to take her place atop Ren.
She took hold of the handgrip over his shoulder blades, but trying to mount him required a monumental effort on her part. When Ren leaned toward her to make it easier, he was violently shoved by an unseen force. He danced away from Durga, leaving only his paw prints behind in the soft ground.
“Why is this happening?” she demanded of her teacher.
Phet shrugged his shoulders. “Kismet, my dear.”
“Kismet?” I whispered. Curious, I took hold of Kishan’s saddle and felt an immediate force pressing against me. I let go and stepped away. “Um, I sort of have the same problem.”
Phet took his former pupil’s hand and placed it on Kishan’s back. “You must ride the tiger chosen for you.”
Kishan huffed, and as he and Durga stood evaluating each other, Ren moved around them and rubbed his head against my leg. I patted his armor-plated shoulder, took hold of the handgrip, and swung my leg easily across his back. I felt a pull and a snap as my silver armor touched his.
“It’s like we’re magnetized,” I exclaimed.