Page 16 of The Burning Mountain
Veer nodded.
“All right, let’s do this…” Veer felt Ilavu flexing “his” muscles as if girding himself and then froze abruptly. “Your friend approaches…” he said and disappeared deep into Veer’s psyche.
Shota crashed through the underbrush not a minute later. He shifted guiltily when Veer narrowed his eyes at him.
“What do you think you’re doing?” asked Veer, his voice rough with annoyance.
“You were gone for a long time, and I was starting to get worried,” said Shota defensively.
Veer sighed and got up, dusting hisdhoti. His friend was never going to trust him to control Ilavasura. Especially after the incident in Dandakaranya. Veer had almost kept that part of the story to himself when he reunited with his friends, but in the end, told Shota anyway, in case something similar happened again. He didn’t want to put anyone in danger like he had the princess.
Besides, Shota was the one who had first found Veer half dead, all those years ago, after he encountered Ilavu in the mythical springs of the Mathrika Mountains. Shota knew firsthand how hard the struggle was to control the demon. Both the actual one and the metaphorical demons of the past. Veer could forgive Shota for a lot of things, for his invaluable help during those dark days.
The pair made their way toward the city, heading to a busy eatery. It was a single-storied building, but the front entrance was wide and always kept open, allowing the people inside a good view of the street.
They found places on rough-hewn benches around a serviceable wooden table. Billadev and Maruthi hailed them from across the crowd.
Veer had been caught off guard when he ran into the siblings, Maruthi and Matangi, who sometimes moonlighted as bandits in the Borderlands. They had parted ways after the incident in the Temple City of Brihadeeshwar. Last he heard, they were going to their ancestral village in Thianvelli.
Veer soon learned that they had decided to join the Resistance instead, seeing the conditions there. Matangi was already working at the royal palace, acting as a spy while Maruthi worked for Samyukta.
“Finally,” said a clean-shaven Billadev as he collapsed onto the bench in front of them. “I’m starved for someidiyappam. Wouldn’t turn away from somerasavangito dip into either,”he said, rubbing his hands in anticipation. “All I had to eat was Shota’s cooking for the past month and let me tell you, I’ve a new appreciation for my stomach’s ability to digest inedible stuff.”
“As if your cooking’s anything to write home about,” grumbled Shota, cleaning the banana leaf in front of him with a sprinkle of water.
“At least stray animals don’t turn their noses away from my food,” retorted Billadev with a pointed look.
The friends bickered, until the food came and then a brief silence descended as they got busy eating. The flavors were exceptional, and Veer understood why the eatery was busy. He saw Billadev licking his fingers and staring morosely at other’s plates once they had finished. “Do you suppose they will pack us some food for the evening, if we ask?” he addressed nobody.
Right then, the noon bell rang, and the small platform erected on the opposite side of the street had a mass of people assembled in front of it. A gong sounded and several musicians on the stage started playing. But the real ruckus began when a dancing girl in several veils emerged on the stage to entertain the crowd. Their hunger temporarily sated, they turned to watch the entertainment.
Veer knew that Shota had chosen this eatery for a specific purpose, apart from the excellent meal they served. In the din of the chorus, the chances of someone overhearing their conversation were minimal.
“So, what news do you have for us, Shota?” asked Veer, after he had washed his hands and sat at the table to watch the play.
“I’ve attempted to talk to Namata Devi, but she continues to be under strict house arrest, so I had little success there,” said Shota, pitching his voice just low enough that he didn’t stand out in the din of conversation. “She had long since refused to see anyone for official matters. Her title of regent will cease once she marries her groom.”
“I even went to the harem in disguise as a eunuch,” said Billadev, who was watching the show raptly but apparently was attending their conversation as well. “I was still unable to get an opportunity, because the major problem is Namata Devi herself, who refuses to meet anyone.”
“Why is that?” asked Veer. Ever since Gauri Devi told them that Namata Devi was in charge of the key piece half, they tried to secure an audience.
“I don’t know,” said Billadev. “But I’ve spoken to Samyukta about this, and he’s frustrated, too, because the Resistance has been trying to get her to be on their side for several months. Yet Namata Devi continues to maintain an obstinate silence.”
“He’s told me he’s suspecting her new improvement in status has gone to her head, and now she wishes to be the queen of Thianvelli instead of just the regent she has been all these years,” said Shota.
Veer watched the dancer spin in a circle, his thoughts whirling. The crowd of now drunk men went wild. Coins were thrown at her feet.
“We can’t get the key piece without asking her about the location she has hidden it in,” stated Veer.
The half-finished Lotus Key, perhaps because of the way the key piece was sheared, was showing only blurred images that seemed to shift between two locations. They got a shadowy outline of an ornate throne but couldn’t grasp more details about the location.
“And what about the location of Aditya’s prison? Any luck there?” asked Billadev, raising his eyebrows at Veer.
“I would have better luck if someone were to leave me alone to work in peace,” retorted Veer with a glance at Shota, who suddenly was engrossed in the dance.
Several seconds passed as they each digested the news that things had become stagnant. The dance was coming to a conclusion on the stage.
“I’ve got a suggestion.” Billadev snapped his fingers. “Why don’t we ask the princess to meet Namata Devi? She had much better success at persuading Queen Gauri Devi than any of us. Maybe it’ll work in Namata Devi’s case too.”
