On the first day of their journey, they came across a mutilated corpse and realised that a vengeful spirit had come back, seeking new victims of her cruelty.
A promising start for a group which set out to save the world.
Around the corner of the street, Raghav and Aurelia bumped into one another. "Aurelia, you're back?" "Yes, we visited the temple and saw that it was closed, so we came back right away."
"Might I ask why Eldrain came running and hugged An? We were only gone for a little while."
Matching her eyes, Raghav exhaled through his nose. "Something is lurking in this village, preying on women. We should leave as soon as possible."
"Why? We should help the people."
Without looking away from Aurelia, Raghav responded to the questioning voice drawing closer.
"With that I agree, but An, I am not talking about leaving these villagers behind, I just want you and Aurelia to leave the village and keep you away from harm."
His gaze shifted directly to Eldrain, who slightly narrowed his eyes and nodded. "After you are out of harm's way, we will return and deal with this spirit."
An looked between her husband and Raghav. "Alright, we will leave with the food wagon in two hours after the horses have fed and rested and wait fifty kilometres west of the village."
"I agree, so for the next two hours, let us go around and learn about the village and this spirit. Eldrain and An, you go together; Aurelia, you and I go together. Beware, there might be a chance that someone is pretending to be the spirit to cover his violent urges."
The other three nodded, and the group parted at the intersection, with the older couple going south and Aurelia and Raghav heading west.
In the southern half of the village, Eldrain and An were in the market.
There was a clear difference between the city and the village market.
Unlike the well built shops, the village market consisted of shops made of foldable wooden tables with cloth tarps covering groups of shops.
Similarly, unlike the structured placement of shops in the city, which grouped common shops together, the shops here were scattered. One would have to move to another part of the market to come across another shop of the same kind.
Eldrain was observing his surroundings, and An was observing him. "This spirit is unique. She targets women to lure in her real victims, the men. Why would she go through this process?"
"I do not know, it is hard to understand how these spirits work, each has a unique reason for why they exist. Maybe Raghav knows why this woman became a spirit."
In the western end of the village, Raghav and Aurelia stood before the village school.
It was at the absolute end of the village, a few hundred metres away from the rest of the village chunk.
Surrounded by a wooden fence without a gate, the garden was a beautiful expanse of flowers that stretched for acres, with tall green trees and a wooden hut at the far end. In the western end of the garden, under the biggest banyan tree, were straw mats numbering in the hundreds, with one mat at the head of the group on a platform made of clay and mud.
Raghav took off his shoes and socks, placing them outside the fence. "We cannot wear shoes inside; we will have to leave them here if we wish to enter."
Before he finished, he turned around, and as Aurelia was already taking her shoes off, Raghav got a glimpse of her outfit through her cloak. It was different from her usual royal outfit, but it was more akin to An's adventurer outfit.
The village did not have a concrete or brick road; they were soft soil.
Treading through the fragrant and beautiful garden, Aurelia and Raghav came in front of the hut.
From within, emerged a young man clad in a white cloth tied around his waist, covering his legs and a part covering his chest, his braided hair tied in a bun. He stumbled on his feet as he stared at Raghav in disbelief.
"It is… You!"
He could not say anything else as Raghav joined his hands and bowed slightly. "Greetings, Sage. I come seeking knowledge."
The Sage's mouth was left wide open as thousands of thoughts ran through his head. 'You…knowledge…from me?"
"Yes, Sage. I want to learn something from you."
A smile grew on his face as the Sage joined his hands and bowed his head, walking forward until he was in front of Raghav and laid down in his feet.
"It is a blessing to meet you, Raghav."
Bending down, Raghav lifted the Sage and held him by the shoulders. "This insignificant being is called Ert. I am blessed by the presence of both of you."
"It is a blessing for us, Sage Ert. That our auspicious fate led us to you."
Raghav smiled at him, and Ert just stood there, lost in Raghav's eyes.
"Sage Ert?" "Yes, my lord? Forgive me, I was lost in your brilliance."
They stood still for a few moments before Ert gestured towards the straw mat under the tree. "Please, come and sit."
Raghav was sitting down in front of the teacher's mat, but Ert stopped him. "Not there, please sit here, both of you."
He gestured towards his own mat with his hands still joined.
Raghav looked at Aurelia and nodded, then they both sat down on the head mat, and Ert sat before them.
"What is it that you wish to learn, my lord?"
"I wish to learn about the spirit that has terrorised this village. Tell us about her."
Ert bowed slightly.
"Nearly five centuries ago. There was a woman named… Amesha."
"What?" Eldrain whispered as he looked down to his left. "Did you find something?"
"Yes, An. I think I do, look at those old men. They are talking about the spirit."
Eldrain pointed at the two old vegetable sellers, talking among themselves. An smiled and turned to her husband. "Let's go, Eld. Time to use my everlasting charm,"
Despite being only three years younger than Eldrain, who looked like a middle aged man, An looked as young as Aurelia due to her being a pure blooded elf.
The Exter couple made their way to the elderly men, who halted their conversation as the couple drew closer.
"What can we get you two?"
An smiled at the two of them. "Hello, you two. My husband and I overheard you talking about some kind of spirit. We both love to hear stories about the supernatural. Can you tell us anything?"
The elderly men looked Eldrain up and down and then at one another.
Lastly, they looked around to make sure no one was around before leaning forward, gesturing Eldrain to lean closer. "There lived a Rishi in this village nearly five hundred years ago. His name was Purrn."
The old man reached into his pocket, pulling out a cheap cigarette and brought out his matchstick.
Eldrain's eyes widened at that name as an old memory flashed before his eyes.
Four Hundred and Seventy eight Years Ago
He was here in this very village alone; he had yet to meet and marry An.
A young man travelling alone was in this market, standing at a vegetable and fruit store.
In his hands were an apple was a sweet potato. "Are you going to pick something, kid, or are you going to just stand there looking at them?"
He looked at the vendor with heavy eyes. "I only have money to buy an apple, but I haven't eaten for days. Can I have this sweet potato? I will pay you back soon. I am about to get my adventure license."
The man reached forward, taking the sweet potato back, and Eldrain reluctantly handed it back. "Sorry, kid, I need every coin I can get for my family."
Eldrain nodded and handed one copper coin to the man for the apple and walked away.
The village was considerably smaller back then, with only a few thousand people living in it.
In this small village, Eldrain walked towards the northern end of the village, and there on his left, he saw a wooden house on a raised plot, with steps leading to it.
In the window, he saw a shadow looking out; he could sense the gaze on him and walked faster, holding the apple close to his chest.
Fear filled his heart as he began assuming the worst of the situation.
That was when, before his eyes came a barefooted man, who wore a singular white cloth, his long hair tied in a bun on his head.
Vermillion red paste drawn in a vertical line, starting between his eyebrows and ending near his hairline.
No mistakes could be made when attempting to identify the man; from every angle, it was clear that the man was a Rishi.
'A Rishi!'
Eldrain joined his hands and bowed slightly. "Greetings, Rishi."
The man raised his right hand, showing his palm to him. "May you live a long life."
And the two walked past each other. "Eldrain?"
Blood ran dry. Within Eldrain, he gulped, turning around and saw the Rishi looking at him. "Yes, Rishi?"
"Come with me, my wife must have cooked lunch, eat with us."
An invitation was the last thing he was expecting, but it was an invitation from a Rishi himself; there was a higher force at work, and so he accepted.
He walked to the Rishi, standing beside him, and the two began walking together. "How are you, Eldrain?" "I am well, Rishi. How are you?"
"I am well, Eldrain. I am well. I also know that you are unwell. My name is Purrn."
"Rishi Purrn, please accept my greetings once more."
"Thank you, Eldrain. May you become a great warrior."
The two of them stopped, and Eldrain looked forward, and it was the same house he had crossed before.
This time the doors opened and came out a woman, who was dressed in a plain white dress that covered her from neck to ankles, a veil covering her hair.
For just one moment, but Eldrain got a chance to see her face, before she covered it with the veil.
She was the most beautiful person he would see in his life, being in the same league as An, Aurelia and Raghav.
Rishi Purrn stepped forward, gesturing towards the woman. "Eldrain, meet my wife, Amesha."
Woosh
Eldrain was brought out of his memory as the man's matchstick was lit and he guided it to his cigarette.
Once it was lit, he threw it away and took a puff from his cigarette.
"As I was telling you, there lived a Rishi named Purrn, and Amesha was his wife. He was the face of this village; he was revered and worshipped like any Rishi. Everything was peaceful."
Another puff.
"Until one day, suddenly, he cursed her and took her life and left this village and was never seen ever again. Rumours are that she was being unfaithful. Thus, a vengeful spirit was born. She makes women sick and then asks their lovers to satisfy her desire. No one has been able to do it, or maybe they did, but no one survived to tell the tale, but the women were always spared."
He then looked at his friend, passing the cigarette to him after taking one last puff.
"Do not tell this to anyone, but I heard rumours that she has returned after nineteen years. A body was found today morning by none other than The Hero. He is in this village."
Eldrain and An held their breath to avoid the smoke. An just nodded and bowed slightly. "Thank you. It was an interesting tale."
Unlike her, Eldrain just stood there, his eyes were shaking, and a tear fell from his left eye.
"Let's go, Eld."
She guided him away, bowing her head once more to the men as they left.
Once they were out of the market, Eldrain wiped the tear off his face, and he sped up. "Come with me, I know where to go."
.
.
.
.
"Thank you for telling us about Amesha and Rishi Purrn. You have helped us understand the situation."
"It was my pleasure, my Lord. That you deemed me worthy of this."
Raghav gave him a gentle smile. "You are a teacher, who else would I go to learn something, besides a teacher. But we have taken too much of your time, and the students will be coming soon."
"I am glad to have met you, my lord. The purpose of my existence has been fulfilled."
There was one last bow between Ert and Raghav before Raghav and Aurelia left.
Ert stood at the edge of the garden and watched as they walked away.
'So the time has finally come. The One has come.'
Walking down the road, Raghav and Aurelia were walking hand in hand, smiling at one another. "It is sad what happened to them."
Raghav hummed in response as he looked ahead, the smile returned to his serious state. "We need to reach Eldrain and An."
He looked at Aurelia, and the two of them ran forward.
In the northern part of the city, Eldrain and An stood before an abandoned and broken house.
"The abandoned house of Purrn and Amesha."
An looked at her husband with shock and then back at the house. "How do you know?"
"I met them, I knew them, yet after living for so long, that day became small like a single minute, and it faded away. Now I am back here, and so are the memories. If it is true that she is the spirit, I need to see her; I have to return the kindness she showed me on that day."
Tears fell, and Eldrain reached by his side, holding An's hand. "I need you to be there for me. I need you, An."
"I am with you, in this life and the next." She hugged his arm, still holding his hand, and the two began to ascend the steps of the house.
His trembling steps were calmed by An's warmth.
A trembling hand raised, and An tightened her grip on Eldrain's hand as the trembling stopped and Eldrain knocked on the door.
"Miss Amesha. It is I, Eldrain Exter. Are you in there?"
This was the first time An had seen her husband cry, the first time she had seen him tremble, the first time his voice cracked.
She wanted to ease his pain; she wanted to stop it altogether if she could.
Yet right now, all that was in her capabilities was being there for him, and that was what she would do for him.
No response was heard from the other side of the doors.
So he knocked again.
Once more, no response.
He sighed and chuckled. "Maybe I am just getting lost in the emotions."
Looking at his wife, he laughed, and An understood the pain behind his voice. "Give it one last try."
"Hmmm."
He turned back to the door and took a deep breath before attempting to knock again.
The moment his hand connected with the doors, they opened up.
Eldrain's eyes widened, and he gulped, tightening his grip on An's hand.
As the two stepped through the doors, they closed behind them.