The Kshatriya Twins: The Elixir Thief
Chapter 1- Why does my history teacher have horns?
You don't want to read this book.
It isn't an epic fairy-tale, where the heroes save the day at the last minute, where villains realize the error of their ways and go to work in a bakery.
This book is going to torture you. It is going to tempt you with little nuggets of joy before plunging you into ice-cold seas of despair. It will hurt you so bad you will never read again. You will cry, curse whatever fool took it into their head to write this book.
They never existed, for every word of this tale is truth.
With that said, a warning.
Hopefully, you picked up this book with the intention of whiling away the long hours when your parents expect you to be studying. That is an acceptable reason.
However, if you picked up this book because you felt a strange attraction to the symbol we've (helpfully) printed on the cover, shut this book immediately.
It is not for you. (No offense.)
I need you to do me a favor. Read out the next sentence. It doesn't matter where you are, what you're doing, whether or not your baby brother's diapers need changing, just do as I say.
Aham Devena Dhanyaha Ekaha Asmi.
Hopefully nothing happened. If nothing happened, continue reading this book. They won't attack innocents.
Probably.
However, if this line gives you the tingles, If you suddenly feel a strange sense of… of power, of the ability to destroy cities with a snap of your finger…
Then I've unlocked your ability to see into a whole other realm, and a thousand monsters are coming to get you. You can thank me later.
On that cheerfully dismal note, let's start the story.
Everywhere I looked, I saw carnage. And I felt proud to know that it was my doing. I was the eye of the storm. I was the center of the chaos. I rained torture on my foes, destroying all of them, even though they outnumbered me ten to one . Even now, more enemies piled in . I sighed. It was time to use my ultimate weapon.
I drew it from its sheath, targeted the nearest enemy, and in perfect form, sighted, aimed and threw.
And in perfect form, missed.
"Owwww!" someone yelled. "Saanvi, what's wrong with you?" I grinned broadly at my brother, who was standing behind who I was aiming at. My ultimate weapon was, of course, my old eraser with holes made by pencils at every nook and corner. "NO ONE SHALL ESCAPE MY CRUEL WRATH!"
"Well, will your 'cruel wrath' grant you a safe and lovely passage to 9th grade when your final exam results come in, cause we're about to find out in 5 minutes. So please, stop making my heart rate increase more than it already is!"
I rolled my eyes. " Noted, big bro. Anyway, It's the last day of 8th grade, and our birthday. Can you stop being a wet blanket for once in your life? It ain't gonna kill ya to forget about all that for 1 second!"
He looked at me with a look of appalled disgust. "How could you forget education?and anyway next year is 9th grade, and ya can't just "forget" about results then, like you're doing now."
Seeing that his words were having no effect, he strode away, muttering under his breath. I caught the words 'irresponsible' and 'disgraceful'. I grinned as I shook my head. The skies were clear, the day was warm and the storm had to come and ruin everything.
Thump. WHACK!
Thump. WHACK!
Thump. WHACK!
I stand corrected, Saakaar was the calm before the storm.
One of the only good things about Mahesh Sir is that he gives us plenty of warning before he enters the class and he slams his hickory cane on the floor. He's not allowed to use it anymore, so it's mostly for show. Mostly.
"ALL RIGHT, TWERPS! FUN TIME IS OVER, SO SIT DOWN!
Mahesh sir did not seem to understand the concept of 'last day'. Other concepts he didn't understand included 'speaking quietly' and 'basic human courtesy'.
Everyone quietly obeyed his instructions after he revealed the HUGE bundle of exam papers. Mahesh sir's shoes echoed through the room. He crossed his hands, cleared his throat.
Here we go again.
"I will call out your names one by one, and you will drag your sorry butts here and collect your exam papers." he called out their names, and each of my classmates tottered forward, often pale-faced and shaking.
Saakaar of course came back looking horror-struck (the idiot probably lost 1 mark. He would be agonized for weeks) .
"SAANVI!" Mahesh sir boomed. He seemed to take a vindictive pleasure in rupturing my eardrums every time he spoke.
I walked down from my seat and took my papers as he muttered "horrible marks".
Or tried to mutter. The whole class probably heard it.
I was pretty sure it was my imagination because as I glimpsed at Mahesh sir for a moment I thought he had horns- bull horns. I shook my head and looked again.
Nah, just balding hair.
I walked back.
I glanced down at my marks on the way to my seat, not really nervous. I was confident in my own abilities.
A* in history.
A in math
A in science
A* in english
B in hindi
A in sanskrit
B in tamil
Ha! Take that Mahesh sir. Some "horrible marks" I got.
I didn't know what came over me but, in a stunning display of bravery, I turned around and stuck my tongue out at him.
Thankfully, he was so engrossed in ruining the next students' last day by scolding her about what exactly she did wrong even after he taught it a hundred times, that he didn't notice.
Horrified at my own daring, I tottered to my seat collapsing into it. Apart from a cursory glance, I put my report card in my bag. I didn't believe in agonizing over mistakes post the fact. I glanced at my brother. Apparently, he didn't share in my ideals.
Bored, I glanced around the class. It was easy to see who got high marks and who got low ones. The kids with high marks strutted about the class like puffed up peacocks, asking for other students' marks and flexing their own.
The kids who didn't do so well were slumped over their paper, heads bent as they toiled in vain to find any small mistake in the correction that would get them at least half a mark more than their current score.
I glanced over at Sakaar's paper. He lost 2 whole marks in math - a new low, it seemed. No doubt he'd be crying in the bathroom before the day was out (and the rest of the summer vacay).
I felt a prickle at the back of my neck, like I was being watched. I turned around and saw Mahesh Sir glaring at me. Not like he was disappointed in my marks. More like I'd personally insulted his mother and he was seeking retribution. Preferably of the mortal variety.
He exhaled sharply through his nose and glared at me, tossing his head. He lowered his head like he wanted to charge at me or something and scraped the ground with his foot.
I was weirded out.
What the hell?
What is he trying to do? Play-act as a buffalo?
I mean, I'm not saying it would take any effort for him, but…
It was still kinda weird. Looking at him,I was viscerally reminded of the matador fights in the movie 'Ferdinand'. All I needed now was a foreign bald guy to come prancing around Mahesh sir, waving a red hanky, screaming 'Ole!'
I grinned at the vision, But that just seemed to set him off more. He started grunting, sounding eerily like Sakaar snoring. But it was so, so weird, so I broke eye contact.
"Are you seeing this?" I whispered to my brother, but Tears McCrybaby only had eyes for his paper. He ignored me, wiping his eyes with his kerchief.
As I turned back to Mahesh Sir, I noticed something was off about him. (I mean, apart from everything else) Looking closer, I recognised what it was. His eyes, normally black, were now blood-red.
I leaned back in my chair, chewing my naan contentedly, as I leaned against my chair. Since today was my last day, I was trying to fix this picture of lunch break, the most carefree time of the day.
Everyone was in their usual spots. The girly girls were gossiping about everyone and their mother in their usual corner, The jocks were trying to find out who could do the most push-ups, and the nerds were playing with their cubes and chess boards.
One notable exception from this group was my brother, who was the school chess champion. Of course, he was probably still wailing to himself in the toilet.
Wait.
One group was absent. The bullies. The bullies were out of the class… at the same time as Sakaar?
Not a coincidence.
I stood up, and left the class, striding down the corridor. I knew exactly where they would be.
I turned the corridor and sure enough, there they were.
The 20- odd group of bullies were clustered around a single figure, backing him against a wall.
For once, I didn't rush into the situation with fists flailing. Even with my black-belt skills, I couldn't possibly take on 20 people.
That gave me only one option, what my father called 'Plan B'. Insults and mockery.
I smiled. I was a Mali. Roasting the crap out of dumb fools like these is what I was born for.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"
The boys turned, exposing my brother. He had a swelled lip and the first stage of a black eye. He leaned against the wall, breathing deeply.
My temper flared and I clenched my hand to stop it quivering in rage, but I didn't let the bullies see it. I looked like I was honestly amused with the situation.
I turned to the leader of the gang.
"Quite impressive, Rohan. No seriously." I clapped my hands, slowly, lowering my tone in mock admiration. "You managed to corner and beat up one kid, that to my brother who is easy to pick on, with what? 20? 21 goons?"
Rohan glared at me. "Listen, bachhi, since you're a girl, I'm letting you off this time. Don't interfere in boy business from now, or you could get hurt."
I couldn't hold it in anymore.
"You-You think you can–" I burst out laughing.
"Hey. This is your last warning. Go away."
"Why?" I asked. "Ohhhhh, I get it. Is poor ickle Rohan scared of a weak, little girl?"
"Okay that's it!" He growled. "You'll learn not to mess with boys!"
20 seconds later, he lay on the ground, groaning from half a dozen bruises.
"Okay, that's it!" I said in a sing-song voice, imitating him. "You'll learn not to mess with boys!"
I looked at him in disgust, then turned around and into the crowd of bullies who gave me a wide berth. I grabbed Sakaar, letting him lean on me as we walked, slowly, away.
"What happened to plan B?" He rasped, grinning.
"Farts like him don't deserve to feel the sharpness of my tongue." I said.
5 hours later, my brother still looked like he could burst into tears and Ma was constantly at his side, comforting him that no, he wasn't a failure, and yes, Harvard accepted students who lost 2 marks in maths.
I was sprawled on the sofa, scrolling through Amma's phone. I had originally searched about whether people who behaved like bulls could be taken to the asylum, but, as was it's wont, the internet had taken me into a completely different direction.
Right now, I was reading through an article about various mythological half bull half men. Obviously, the first was the Minotaur of Greece, but strangely, the second article showed Mahesh sir, wait a minute not Mahesh sir, Mahisasura. Half buffalo, Half asura.
Dang, Mahesh sir resembles some Ancient Hindu mythology dude.
As I was lost in thoughts, The doorbell rang.
Nobody moved for a second. It was 10:30 and we weren't expecting anyone at this time.
I rose and went to the door, peering through the eyehole first. Robbers were uncommon in our area, but it never hurt to be cautious.
Instead of guys in black clothing, I saw 2 men in blue suits. Each had a strange symbol knitted onto their chest and I felt an instant attraction towards it.
It was a strange kind of spiral, and seemed hypnotic to me.
Shaking my head, I thrust the door open.
"Hello, beti," said the older man of the 2. "Is this the Mali residence?"
"Depends on who is asking," I said.
"Yeah!" cut in a young voice. I saw my little sister's head peeping through the gap. She had been sleeping, but apparently the bell had woken her.
"If you're a werewolf, or a vampire, or an orc, or a demon-" The men flinched strangely at this one- " Then we're the justice league, so run away in fear!" She noticed my glare. "Run away in fear, please. Thank you." She amended.
"Priya kutty, you were supposed to be sleeping." my bro said as he picked her up in his arms, clearly recovered from his breakdown. "I'll tuck her in." amma said, taking priya from saakars' hand.
"Appa, some guys in blue suits are here," I announced.
Appa frowned and strode to the door. "How can I help you?" He asked coolly
"We've got a wonderful proposal, Mister Mali!" said the younger man.
"I'm not interested in loans or insurances, and I've got all the magazines I need." Appa said, sounding annoyed. "So if you don't mind-" He tried to shut the door but the man put his foot in the way.
"You mistake us, sir, We have a proposal for your kids." the younger one of the 2 said.
"My kids are not of the marrying age, sirs, so if you would please-" My Appa said, his sarcastic tongue coming to the surface. Sarcasm was the trademark of us Malis, and more than one would-be heckler had been reduced to tears by my fathers dry comments.
The young man turned as red as my ammas' tomato chutney. The older guy chuckled.
"This is not a marriage proposal, dear gods, no."
"We have 2 seats available in our elite boarding school, the kshatriya academy," the older man informed us. "We would like Saakaar, and Saanvi to join our school."
Before our appa could reply, the older man handed his 2 plane tickets along with a brochure with Kshatriya academy printed in bold letters.
"In case your decision is yes, meet us at the airport. Term starts in one week, so meet us then." He winked. "Choose wisely!" Both of them turned on their heels and walked away from our apartment.
I went to the window to catch another glimpse at the strange symbol on their vests, But strangely, I didn't see them leave the apartment.
That night, I had a weird dream. Like, a really weird dream.
Whiteness spread around me in every direction, like 20 suns decided to glare in my direction. The only thing apart from the whiteness was a table and 2 chairs. The table had a strange looking board game on it, one that I hadn't seen before. Strange cuboid dice were on the side.
I sat down, cause why not.
Weird dream. I thought. When is something going to happen?
I turned my chair around, facing away from the table, looking into the distance.
"Hello, little dancer. Fancy a game?" came a voice behind me.
I started, falling off the chair with a thud.
Soft chuckles reached my ears. I rubbed my butt. Apparently, nothingness was still painful.
"Apparently not. Ah, well, there's still your brother…" The soft voice dissapeared. The table, the chairs, the whiteness vanished suddenly and I shielded my eyes as I plummeted down, down, down…
I opened my eyes and saw that I was now standing on a mountain. I looked around, and saw a silhouette in this distance, dancing. Fire started sprawling all around me, the mountain rumbled fiercely and I was knocked off my foot.
I woke up with a start, and saw Saakaar sleeping on the bed opposite to me. Sunlight started filtering through the windows.
The dream I had last night kinda disturbed me. I remembered everything vividly, like it was a memory from just a few days ago.
Instead of putting too much thought into that, the next couple of days, my brother and I scoured the internet searching for 'The Kshatriya Academy'. Strangely, although the school had every form of credential and certificate from the government, no one seemed to know it existed. There were no reviews about it, no admission form. It didn't even seem to have a website!
Looking through the brochures, the school boasted about its payment-free method and its exclusive nature. Photos showed muscular kids studying, playing and learning.
Amma and Appa were wary at first, suspecting that it was some kind of scam, but eventually relented after Sakaar showed them 20 different documents about the schools authenticity.
Of course, he was ecstatic. Getting an invite from a secretive, elite boarding school had always been his dream.
"Finally, people are starting to appreciate my talents!" He beamed at me, least 10 times a day.
I nodded and smiled, because I wouldn't spoil this for him.
But the truth was, I wasn't as hyped to go as he was.
It was obvious the school had selected me only because they didn't want me to feel left out. I was average in studies, and didn't have any outstanding qualities- except maybe an affinity for sport and probably an ear for music.
If I went there, I would probably be the worst in class, the only normal kid in a room full of hyper geniuses. I would be excluded from all the activities because I 'wouldn't understand'. I wouldn't have any friends. I would be the outcast, the one people giggled at and whispered about. I would be entirely alone.
Can you tell I've had experience hanging around with Sakaar's friends?
But I'd do it, because the alternative was too horrible to contemplate.
I stood up.
Get yourself together. I told myself. Stop being so selfish and think about Sakaar.
So I pushed my feelings deep inside, and put on a happy face.