October 11, 4021 23:54 [Sunken Forest]
“We need to relocate now,” Tengri stated once they had reached the campsite. “If one Yaksha—or whatever that thing was, can do this much damage, then I’d rather not run into more of them.”
The others nodded in agreement, gathering their belongings and preparing for the journey away from the valley.
“Hey, what am I supposed to do? My division’s been wiped out.” Jin said.
Tengri furrowed his brow. “You did that. The Third is gone because you couldn’t control yourself.”
“I couldn’t help it! I had no choice but to defend against those rats. It’s not my problem if the worms I trained couldn’t hack it,” Jin shrugged.
“Your lack of subordinates is most definitely your problem. We’re not lending you any of our soldiers just so you can waste them in another angry tirade. If you want, take charge of the Eidolons. At least those things are already dead,” Tengri replied coldly.
Jin clicked his tongue indignantly, motioning for the Eidolons to follow. Indra observed as the Crow’s shoulders sank with relief. The presence of those things must have weighed heavily upon him.
“I’ll take charge of the Traitless vanguard,” the Crow volunteered.
“Perfect. Their numbers have thinned by a substantial amount, but these guys will get the job done.” Tengri stated. He pondered for a moment, appraising their current situation. “Jin, I want you and the Eidolons at the front. I’d rather have them soak up any damage coming our way. Ce—Crow, I need you to stay at the back and pick off enemies trying to circumnavigate our defenses,” he ordered.
The Crow nodded, herding the remaining Traitless. Tengri looked disturbed, prompting Indra to ask him what was bothering him.
“The Domain, Krodha. Normally we’d be able to detect the onset of a Domain formation and react accordingly. We’ve taken the appropriate measures and gone through enough training to know just by instinct when one is going to show up. We’re not greenhorns, but this one eluded us entirely. Were you able to see something that tipped you off about it?”
Indra shook his head. “The Siren clued me in.” He bit his tongue the moment he had spoken.
Tengri blinked at him. “You spoke to it?”
Indra was mercifully spared an interrogation when Grisha interrupted them. “Tengri, you’ve got to come see this,” she said, dragging him away.
Tengri looked back at Indra as they left. “We’ll talk later.”
Indra gulped, breathing a sigh of relief. He was not off the hook entirely, but he had time to come up with an explanation.
“Did Tengri chew you out?”
Indra jumped as Prasanna appeared behind him. “Can you not?” he huffed, clutching his chest.
Prasanna snickered, holding her stomach. “I wasn’t even trying to scare you!”
“Sorry, I'm a little on edge,” Indra groaned.
“Yeah, I can tell,” Prasanna said with a smirk. She tilted her head, trying to read him. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just—I’ve been feeling pretty uneasy since we got here.”
“Tell me about it; this place gives me the creeps.” Prasanna shuddered.
“No, I mean I’ve got this nagging feeling that I’m not supposed to be here. The energy of this forest—”
“I don’t know how to tell you this, but we’re in a strange underground cave that somehow lets us still see the sky. There are strange animals and strange plants here, many of which are irradiated to some degree, and oh—I almost forgot! The forest is actively trying to kill us. I’m pretty sure none of us are supposed to be here.”
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Indra’s mouth twitched, a smile forming in the crooks. She always knew what to say to put him at ease. He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I think I’m just psyching myself out.”
Prasanna caressed his face, pressing his cheeks together. “That’s right, you need to chill out. Focus on keeping yourself and your men safe, got it?”
Indra nodded.
“Good boy,” Prasanna said with an indulgent smile.
Indra’s face flushed. “You too. Stay safe,” he mumbled.
A buzz on his Nerve Cord caught their attention. The two stared at the flashing image on the small screen.
“It’s your birthday?! Why didn’t you tell me?” Prasanna huffed indignantly.
Indra scratched his head, surprised. Had that much time already passed? It only felt like yesterday he had turned eighteen. He stared at the date on screen: [Oct. 12, 4021]. Sure enough, it was his birthday. A message had popped onto his device commemorating the occasion as if that was not proof enough. I blinked and a year flew by. He turned to Prasanna, an expectant look in her eyes.
“Well? How old is the birthday boy now?”
“Alright, calm down,” Indra said, rolling his eyes. “Nineteen.” Prasanna frowned suddenly, causing him to grow worried. “What's wrong?”
She shook her head. “I sort of assumed you were twenty, at least. That means I’ve got a whole year on you.”
It was Indra’s turn to laugh this time. “Does that bother you? Guess I have a thing for older women.”
“Don’t say that! I’m not old!” Prasanna exclaimed.
Indra tried stifling his laughter, bursting into tears at the sight of Prasanna’s puffed cheeks as she pouted. She crossed her arms, turning away from him.
Indra wiped his eyes. He sighed, pulling her in close. Prasanna didn’t resist, begrudgingly burying her face in his chest. “I was just joking,” he reassured her, slightly worried that he had offended her for real. “Seriously, I’m sorry.”
A snicker escaped Prasanna’s mouth before she could stop it. Indra raised an eyebrow. Prasanna raised her head, pursing her lips together in an effort not to smile, though she failed miserably, grinning from ear to ear.
“You are an asshole,” Indra chuckled.
“I know, but I get a kick out of messing with you,” she laughed. “Okay, maybe that’s not entirely true. That did hurt my feelings a little.”
“Fine, no more age-related jokes.”
“Swear?”
“Swear,” Indra said, kissing her forehead.
“I, f-forgot to get you a present,” Prasanna stuttered, her face reddening.
“I don’t need anything, because—”
“Yes, yes, you have me. I already know, lover boy,” Prasanna interrupted, brushing off the comment, though her complexion remained rosy.
She began to unzip her DIVE Suit.
“H-hey! Not here!” Indra exclaimed, looking around apprehensively.
“Get your mind out of the gutter,” Prasanna teased. She pulled her zipper just low enough to reveal a large pendant hanging from the necklace she always wore. Prasanna unfastened it from her neck, fastening it around Indra’s instead.
He stared at the geometric pattern on the pendant, furrowing his brow. Where had he seen it before?
“It’s called a Sri Yantra,” Prasanna explained. “This pendant has been in my family for generations. It’s supposed to offer protection and ward off evil spirits.”
If only it would ward off this freeloader.
“Silence, fool. Your life is all the richer with my presence.”
I’ll take plain and boring any day, thank you very much.
“Well? What do you think?” Prasanna asked him.
Indra was touched by the gift. “I love it.” He studied the pattern again, wracking his brain for an answer as to where he had seen the symbol before. His eyes lit up suddenly as he remembered. “This symbol, I’ve seen it in the Jade Temple—in front of a statue of Vishnu and Lakshmi!”
Prasanna nodded. “Yep, my mother used to say that Lakshmi was our family’s guardian deity.” She shrugged. “A whole lot of good that did.”
Indra wanted to comfort her—give her words of reassurance, but an ecstatic Kaluza stopped him from doing so, stumbling in-between them. The Commander of the Fifth Division panted heavily, hunched over with his hands on his knees. He raised his head, a glint in his eyes. “Am I interrupting something?”
Indra and Prasanna shook their heads quickly.
Kaluza ignored their red faces, a wild look in his eyes. “The Scouting Unit—oh man, you guys—they discovered something huge. You have to see it.”
This piqued Indra’s curiosity. “Huge? What did they find?”
“They found—oh, man, I thought it was just a myth!"
"Well, spit it out!" Prasanna exclaimed, tapping her toes impatiently.
Kaluza grinned, letting the air of suspense linger until the limit of Indra and Prasanna's patience started to wear thin. "Altan gadas vant uls—the lost Kingdom of the Polar Star. That's what we've discovered.”