Vanishing Tides 10 (Vanishing Tides - The Portal)
Finally things seem better for Red and Almond. When Sherry and Red combine to search for the portal....
THE PORTAL - VANISHING TIDES:
Red knew that when she had gone to see Almond after coming back from the beach it was 6 o' clock. It was almost 9 when Takshak thought of retrieving Red from the east wing and make some arrangements for a glucose drip for Almond who appeared to be in a comatose state. He knew Red wouldn't leave Almond's side. So he decided to check Almond's first. The door was shut but unlocked. Takshak pushed it open. It was neatly arranged. He turned to see Red resting her head on the edge of the bed tightly holding Almond's hand. Almond was looking more... normal. He stepped around the carpet and reached Red. He whispered in her ear softly, "Honey, time for dinner." She did not listen and so he thought she might have slept off. He patted her back and asked her to wake up. She slumped further down. Takshak horrified that he had lost yet another warrior exclaimed, "Red! What have you done?" He studied both of them and concentrated on Red. She was there, with Almond, in the dimension of souls. He said stroking her head, "You should have had more patience, my dear. It's you, reckless as usual. I'll leave your dinner by the table. Wake up at least by tomorrow morning. I've had enough of warding off death warriors. We need to cross the portal as fast as possible." He felt as if he was talking to walls. He brought her blanket from her room and cloaked her with it. Bundled in that comfortable quilt, with Almond in her lap, in the dimension of souls, Red fell asleep. Almond too in his paradise chatted with Red for sometime after which he too, holding Red's hand decided to take a somewhat lengthy snooze.
Sherry and Cleo came to check on them. Tess and Zhi also went early next morning. Zhi was amazed that a guy could literally have such long hair. It was late morning when Almond stirred to see Red nearby. He sat up holding his head, trying to remember what had happened. The west wing -carpets -paintings -Red's eyes -blood-tears. He regretted it all, hitting Red, taking part of her soul. He did not know the consequences; they would have to find out. He looked at Red sleeping contently. Pulling off the bedcovers, Almond stood up first slowly and then tried walking around rapidly. He felt he had regenerated almost completely owing to a substitute soul. He went up to Red and said, "Red! Would you like to have breakfast?" Red moved her head to look at him, her neck hurt. She'd slept in the wrong position. She woke up feeling a bit weak but nevertheless happy. She stood up and sat on Almond's bed. He looked at her suspiciously wondering what she would do next. She stood up and said that she was going to her room to get changed. She said as she opened the door, "See you at breakfast. What are you looking at now?" Almond shook his head and turned to go.
After half an hour both of them reached down when almost everyone had finished their breakfast. Takshak smiled broadly at them, glad to know they were fine. Red smiled back at him. They sat on their respective seats and started off with bread and butter. Takshak, Sherry and Cleo were glaring at them with questioning looks. Cleo said in general, "I think, someone has to give us an explanation." Red looked up pleadingly. No one relented and so she said, "Well... I thought that I could lose an important member of our team because he would have lost his soul. So I decided to give him a part of my soul. Nothing wrong with that, I guess!" Takshak frowned and said, "You are a reckless girl, Red", and he thought to himself, "Just like your mother, your highness, wherever you are you might be laughing if you knew what your daughter has done." Sherry rolled her bread and topped it with butter as Red followed. Almond did not know what to say to anyone. The guilt of having made Red suffer so much was eating him up. He just looked down not talking, not eating much. After breakfast Red went and made a foaming glass of coffee and took it to the post breakfast meeting. Almond was as usual sitting at the back. Red sat close to him. He looked at her wanting to get lost in her eyes and not have the burden of facing the others. Red passed him the glass and said in a low voice, "I did it because of personal reasons. Don't act as if you've just murdered someone. Have it, you must be hungry." Almond wanted to tell her that he had indeed murdered something - Takshak's desire of him protecting Red. He was entrusted with her care after Takshak would leave. And now he had done this. Red was taking care of him; how could he face the others? Red had a small discussion about what Almond was going through. He agreed to make Almond feel better. In Takshak's study, the atmosphere seemed charged, excited. All of them were there. Takshak went through some old parchments and began, "As you all know, we all have come to the Flame mansion to find out who we are and fulfill the purpose of our powers. There should have been twenty four of you people but only six of you were kind enough to cooperate. Your rewards shall also be great. A new world awaits you there, beyond the portal. It depends upon you all to continue living in this world or to shuttle between the two worlds or remain in this world alone. Before you can reach your kingdom however, you must release the spirits trapped by death warriors. Unless they are freed you cannot access your share of that world. Let me explain it in a better way, unless the previous king is not released the new prince will not become king. The spirits want their wishes granted. They need to be freed. The fire that caused the last battle was so destructive that only one person was left to guide this generation of warriors. That person was me. I was pushed out of that world as a last effort to save the warriors of life. That too needed no less a sacrifice. We enter the other world in a matter of three days. It may be today or tomorrow or the day after. You will as a fact encounter death warriors there but after crossing the portal all of you will become complete life warriors - immortals if said in terms of humanity...." The last sentence drew a gasp from Takshak's audience. He smiled, "Too amazing to be true or is it? The day you decide to give up existence in this world to enter the other world your time will stop and your death will be in your control. You can die when you are tired of living. No honestly, you can choose your heir and leave for the heavens or stay and guide the next generation till they don't grow up. A part of your spirit will remain behind as an extension of your personality to watch over the kingdom. As you can see, your fate is stated but destiny can dance on your tunes. I say so because it all depends on whether the portal is sealed during the invasion, whether the spirits are at rest or not and whether you can defeat the death warriors who'll block your passage everywhere." Red felt her heart race at what he told. Could there be causalties? Where was the portal? In that condition would she and Almond be able to manage? Looking at the faces of all of them Takshak could tell the room was brimming with emotions and questions. He asked, "Any questions my dear warriors? Any objections?" Sherry was the first one to say anything, "My lord, how do we find the portal? How do we encounter the death warriors without taking out our wrath at them?" She was right, where was the portal?" Takshak said in a calm voice, "Why? You can do it. If you combine yours and Red's telepathic powers, you will find it in an hour or two. She turned towards Cleo who held her hand and said, "I'm there. It'll be fine." Takshak saw worry on Red's face, she said, "Dad! I don't know how because I don't have much practice on telepathy." Takshak said in response, "You won't need that, if you have the power to cage a death warrior, this is going to be a piece of cake." Red nodded as she glanced at the empty coffee glass. Almond was looking curiously at Takshak. Red said, "How about if we find out the portal right now?" Takshak said with a raised eyebrow, "Are you sure about this? I'm asking both of you." Sherry shrugged and said, "Anytime", while Red nodded vigorously. Zhi and Tess sat with Cleo and Almond as Sherry and Red went into the main library to perform their feat.
Takshak stood outside the door waiting unwearyingly. Cleo told him about what had happened when he was gone and what explanation Red gave Sherry about that. Red sat back-to-back with Sherry. It was like meditation only here she felt Sherry with her all through. Sherry was talking to her and it was as if she could see the beach the position of the house.... She heard Sherry say, "You know what Red our thoughts are no more ours, it's all combined, that is I can read you even if I don't want. I can see and imagine the shore and the whole world from your eyes." She knew Red was smiling from the feel of the glow from Red's body. They started from the view in front, focussing on anything that could be called a portal, any slight opening. When they came to the west wing Sherry and Red both halted at the same time and Sherry said, "Lead me as close to the waves as you can and let's see if what we do consider to be a hollow in the ground is a portal or not." Red nodded as she said, "There are tides over the hollow but then again I feel a power surge even as we are edging towards it." Sherry and Red cautiously moved closer to the waves. The water touched their feet but not after they stood over the area they thought was hollow. There was no feel of water lapping or the breeze. It felt as if there was a plank beneath their bare feet that could slip away any moment. A sudden fog engulfed them and both could see beautiful hills far away and greenery around, it was the other world! It definitely was because both felt a power surge standing in that place. It was only a vision not the real thing. Red passes out from her efforts and fell to the ground and blindness once again became Sherry's. Sherry felt a tinge of pain that she was unable to see for long but Red had pushed her limits. Sherry called for Takshak and the others to come so that she could share what they had seen. The moment Almond saw Red on the ground he let her sleep in his lap as the others talked excitedly. She woke up in between and announced, "Dad! I'm hungry." Zhi went to get her something to chomp on as she sat with the others leaning on Almond's shoulder.
It was evening when Takshak said to everyone, "Prepare some supplies and keep additional supplies ready, we pierce the vanishing tides tomorrow!"
Red knew that when she had gone to see Almond after coming back from the beach it was 6 o' clock. It was almost 9 when Takshak thought of retrieving Red from the east wing and make some arrangements for a glucose drip for Almond who appeared to be in a comatose state. He knew Red wouldn't leave Almond's side. So he decided to check Almond's first. The door was shut but unlocked. Takshak pushed it open. It was neatly arranged. He turned to see Red resting her head on the edge of the bed tightly holding Almond's hand. Almond was looking more... normal. He stepped around the carpet and reached Red. He whispered in her ear softly, "Honey, time for dinner." She did not listen and so he thought she might have slept off. He patted her back and asked her to wake up. She slumped further down. Takshak horrified that he had lost yet another warrior exclaimed, "Red! What have you done?" He studied both of them and concentrated on Red. She was there, with Almond, in the dimension of souls. He said stroking her head, "You should have had more patience, my dear. It's you, reckless as usual. I'll leave your dinner by the table. Wake up at least by tomorrow morning. I've had enough of warding off death warriors. We need to cross the portal as fast as possible." He felt as if he was talking to walls. He brought her blanket from her room and cloaked her with it. Bundled in that comfortable quilt, with Almond in her lap, in the dimension of souls, Red fell asleep. Almond too in his paradise chatted with Red for sometime after which he too, holding Red's hand decided to take a somewhat lengthy snooze.
Sherry and Cleo came to check on them. Tess and Zhi also went early next morning. Zhi was amazed that a guy could literally have such long hair. It was late morning when Almond stirred to see Red nearby. He sat up holding his head, trying to remember what had happened. The west wing -carpets -paintings -Red's eyes -blood-tears. He regretted it all, hitting Red, taking part of her soul. He did not know the consequences; they would have to find out. He looked at Red sleeping contently. Pulling off the bedcovers, Almond stood up first slowly and then tried walking around rapidly. He felt he had regenerated almost completely owing to a substitute soul. He went up to Red and said, "Red! Would you like to have breakfast?" Red moved her head to look at him, her neck hurt. She'd slept in the wrong position. She woke up feeling a bit weak but nevertheless happy. She stood up and sat on Almond's bed. He looked at her suspiciously wondering what she would do next. She stood up and said that she was going to her room to get changed. She said as she opened the door, "See you at breakfast. What are you looking at now?" Almond shook his head and turned to go.
After half an hour both of them reached down when almost everyone had finished their breakfast. Takshak smiled broadly at them, glad to know they were fine. Red smiled back at him. They sat on their respective seats and started off with bread and butter. Takshak, Sherry and Cleo were glaring at them with questioning looks. Cleo said in general, "I think, someone has to give us an explanation." Red looked up pleadingly. No one relented and so she said, "Well... I thought that I could lose an important member of our team because he would have lost his soul. So I decided to give him a part of my soul. Nothing wrong with that, I guess!" Takshak frowned and said, "You are a reckless girl, Red", and he thought to himself, "Just like your mother, your highness, wherever you are you might be laughing if you knew what your daughter has done." Sherry rolled her bread and topped it with butter as Red followed. Almond did not know what to say to anyone. The guilt of having made Red suffer so much was eating him up. He just looked down not talking, not eating much. After breakfast Red went and made a foaming glass of coffee and took it to the post breakfast meeting. Almond was as usual sitting at the back. Red sat close to him. He looked at her wanting to get lost in her eyes and not have the burden of facing the others. Red passed him the glass and said in a low voice, "I did it because of personal reasons. Don't act as if you've just murdered someone. Have it, you must be hungry." Almond wanted to tell her that he had indeed murdered something - Takshak's desire of him protecting Red. He was entrusted with her care after Takshak would leave. And now he had done this. Red was taking care of him; how could he face the others? Red had a small discussion about what Almond was going through. He agreed to make Almond feel better. In Takshak's study, the atmosphere seemed charged, excited. All of them were there. Takshak went through some old parchments and began, "As you all know, we all have come to the Flame mansion to find out who we are and fulfill the purpose of our powers. There should have been twenty four of you people but only six of you were kind enough to cooperate. Your rewards shall also be great. A new world awaits you there, beyond the portal. It depends upon you all to continue living in this world or to shuttle between the two worlds or remain in this world alone. Before you can reach your kingdom however, you must release the spirits trapped by death warriors. Unless they are freed you cannot access your share of that world. Let me explain it in a better way, unless the previous king is not released the new prince will not become king. The spirits want their wishes granted. They need to be freed. The fire that caused the last battle was so destructive that only one person was left to guide this generation of warriors. That person was me. I was pushed out of that world as a last effort to save the warriors of life. That too needed no less a sacrifice. We enter the other world in a matter of three days. It may be today or tomorrow or the day after. You will as a fact encounter death warriors there but after crossing the portal all of you will become complete life warriors - immortals if said in terms of humanity...." The last sentence drew a gasp from Takshak's audience. He smiled, "Too amazing to be true or is it? The day you decide to give up existence in this world to enter the other world your time will stop and your death will be in your control. You can die when you are tired of living. No honestly, you can choose your heir and leave for the heavens or stay and guide the next generation till they don't grow up. A part of your spirit will remain behind as an extension of your personality to watch over the kingdom. As you can see, your fate is stated but destiny can dance on your tunes. I say so because it all depends on whether the portal is sealed during the invasion, whether the spirits are at rest or not and whether you can defeat the death warriors who'll block your passage everywhere." Red felt her heart race at what he told. Could there be causalties? Where was the portal? In that condition would she and Almond be able to manage? Looking at the faces of all of them Takshak could tell the room was brimming with emotions and questions. He asked, "Any questions my dear warriors? Any objections?" Sherry was the first one to say anything, "My lord, how do we find the portal? How do we encounter the death warriors without taking out our wrath at them?" She was right, where was the portal?" Takshak said in a calm voice, "Why? You can do it. If you combine yours and Red's telepathic powers, you will find it in an hour or two. She turned towards Cleo who held her hand and said, "I'm there. It'll be fine." Takshak saw worry on Red's face, she said, "Dad! I don't know how because I don't have much practice on telepathy." Takshak said in response, "You won't need that, if you have the power to cage a death warrior, this is going to be a piece of cake." Red nodded as she glanced at the empty coffee glass. Almond was looking curiously at Takshak. Red said, "How about if we find out the portal right now?" Takshak said with a raised eyebrow, "Are you sure about this? I'm asking both of you." Sherry shrugged and said, "Anytime", while Red nodded vigorously. Zhi and Tess sat with Cleo and Almond as Sherry and Red went into the main library to perform their feat.
Takshak stood outside the door waiting unwearyingly. Cleo told him about what had happened when he was gone and what explanation Red gave Sherry about that. Red sat back-to-back with Sherry. It was like meditation only here she felt Sherry with her all through. Sherry was talking to her and it was as if she could see the beach the position of the house.... She heard Sherry say, "You know what Red our thoughts are no more ours, it's all combined, that is I can read you even if I don't want. I can see and imagine the shore and the whole world from your eyes." She knew Red was smiling from the feel of the glow from Red's body. They started from the view in front, focussing on anything that could be called a portal, any slight opening. When they came to the west wing Sherry and Red both halted at the same time and Sherry said, "Lead me as close to the waves as you can and let's see if what we do consider to be a hollow in the ground is a portal or not." Red nodded as she said, "There are tides over the hollow but then again I feel a power surge even as we are edging towards it." Sherry and Red cautiously moved closer to the waves. The water touched their feet but not after they stood over the area they thought was hollow. There was no feel of water lapping or the breeze. It felt as if there was a plank beneath their bare feet that could slip away any moment. A sudden fog engulfed them and both could see beautiful hills far away and greenery around, it was the other world! It definitely was because both felt a power surge standing in that place. It was only a vision not the real thing. Red passes out from her efforts and fell to the ground and blindness once again became Sherry's. Sherry felt a tinge of pain that she was unable to see for long but Red had pushed her limits. Sherry called for Takshak and the others to come so that she could share what they had seen. The moment Almond saw Red on the ground he let her sleep in his lap as the others talked excitedly. She woke up in between and announced, "Dad! I'm hungry." Zhi went to get her something to chomp on as she sat with the others leaning on Almond's shoulder.
It was evening when Takshak said to everyone, "Prepare some supplies and keep additional supplies ready, we pierce the vanishing tides tomorrow!"
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