Vir faltered.
“It’s not easy for me, either, Maiya,” he said. “But I have reasons to believe I’ll survive.”
“Because Lord Janak said so?”
“Him and Shardul and Ekanai,” Vir said. “They wouldn’t all be urging me to step right into my death. Plus, I have Ash prana, so whatever benefits Ash Beasts get, I’ll get too. It’s not as hopeless as it looks.”
Vir bit his lip. Even to his ears, his words sounded forced. As if he was trying to convince himself. He was. Maiya already knew all of this. They’d discussed it.
Maiya clutched him even tighter.
“Don’t go?” she whispered. Her eyes went wide, and it was obvious she hadn’t intended Vir to hear. “Sorry, I didn’t mean… I want to support you, Vir. I truly do.”
“Tell me, Maiya.”
“It’s your wish,” she said, averting her eyes. “You need this.”
“Tell me,” Vir repeated.
She was clearly unsure whether to continue. Vir gave her time, allowing the silence to continue.
“You’ll be alone in there,” she said at last, pulling away to look into his eyes. “You’ll be alone, and I won’t even know if you’re alive.”
Her voice was laden with panic.
“I just… have this feeling, Vir,” she said.
Vir knew she was trying to keep her emotions in control. For him. She didn’t want him to worry.
“I feel like I’ll never see you again,” she said, sounding very small.
The tears now fell freely down her face, and when she looked Vir in the eyes, he saw terror. And anguish.
Her words made him freeze. Was he making the right decision? This was the Ash, after all. Who could say what would happen to him in there, even with Janak’s assurances?
“Dad, Mom… not you, too,” she said, her head drooping. Her tears dripped onto the ground. “Just… not you.”
The voice in the back of his head grew louder. The one that told him he wasn’t ready. That he was reckless. Just wait a little. Just a little longer, it said.
“Can you wait? Just a little longer?” Maiya asked, wiping away her tears. “Do you have to go now?”
“They’ll find us,” he murmured halfheartedly.
“We’ll deal with it,” she said, grabbing his hand. “Together.”
Vir stared into her eyes. There was an earnest hope there. He found his resolve crumbling. It was desperate of him.
“Would be good to train a bit more before heading in,” he said. They’d only just reunited. Maybe he didn’t have to leave so soon.
Maiya nodded vigorously. “If they do find you, you can always leave. Right? You’ll still be stronger.”
Vir let out a long breath, feeling the weight of a mountain come off his shoulders.
“I never did know how to say no to you, huh?” he said, chuckling.
Instead of the smug grin he’d expected, he saw something else. Something he’d never seen before. Longing.
Maiya looked up at him, placing her hands gently on his chest. “Don’t leave me?”
Vir found himself transfixed, unable to break away from her hazel eyes. His heart roared in his chest. Something about her captivated him. Mesmerized him, and slowly, their faces drew closer, compelled by an irresistible force.
He panicked. Every instinct told him to pull away… but he didn’t. There was something right about this. Something he couldn’t explain—but he felt it. Deep inside.
This was what he’d so desperately sought. A place to belong. To be loved. He’d been so blind. She’d been right here, all along. Right in front of him.
They drew close and Vir felt her warmth. His thoughts went blank.
Then their lips touched, and fire blazed through his body, blowing away the night’s chill.
It was that simple, after all…
His arms wrapped around Maiya, and he held the kiss.
The knots in his stomach untangled, replaced by a sense of calm and inner peace. It was a warm, fuzzy sensation that told him everything would be alright.
And, holding each other in their arms, they fell blissfully into the land of slumber, where calm seas and white shores awaited.
57HOT PURSUIT
“Which is why I want you to have this,” Maiya said, thrusting an oversized orb the size of a grapefruit into Vir’s hands.
“Is this what I think it is?” Vir replied.
“Kinda?”
“This thing is priceless, Maiya! How can I possibly accept this? I can’t even use it!”
“You only need magic to turn it on and off. Anyone can use it once it’s active.”
“I still can’t activate it! And what about when I do eventually journey to the Ash? Should I go up to the nearest Ash Wolf and politely ask it to turn it on? There’s no one in that realm, Maiya.”
“It’s for once you get to the other side! You want to end up in the Demon Realm, don’t you? I’m sure you’ll find nice people there who’d be willing.”
“How do you know it works across realms?”
“I… don’t. But it’s worth a shot, Vir. And it’s a bit different from the norm. This is an experimental unit. Please? Just take it. For me?”
Vir heaved a sigh. Maiya had sprung this gift on him soon after they’d awoken at dawn. Though he’d wanted to stay nestled in her arms all night, the chill forced them to migrate to the tent, where Maiya promptly snuggled up to him, wrapping her arms and legs around him like a stuffed toy before promptly falling asleep.
Despite the inconvenience of being locked into a single position for the whole night, he never found the courage to wiggle free of her grasp, leaving him bleary-eyed.
“You could be gone for years!” Maiya whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. “Don’t tell me the thought of spending so much time apart doesn’t terrify you. Because it terrifies me. At least this way, we’ll be able to communicate. This way… we won’t be apart.”
Vir closed his hands over Maiya’s, squeezing gently before taking the orb. “Trust me, I’m as scared as you are. This is… an incredible gift, Maiya. I don’t even know what it must have cost you.”
Communication orbs couldn’t be bought by anyone. One had to have connections, and a certain level of prestige to obtain them. Not to mention the price Maiya must’ve had to pay. Vir was sure the orb was many serics. He doubted even his illustrious friend had that kind of coin lying around.
“H-Haa!”
Vir stared Maiya in the eyes for a full ten seconds. “You stole this, didn’t you?”
“N-no?”
“Maiya… What did you have to do to get this?”
Maiya averted her eyes. “Don’t you worry about that. And it wasn’t anything big. Trust me.”
Her behavior was all sorts of suspicious, though it came from a good place.
“I suppose I’ll have to,” Vir said, gently pocketing it within his backpack.
Seeing how tenderly he handled the orb, Maiya spoke up. “They’re not nearly as fragile as they look. I mean, don’t hurl them at an Ash Beast, but a tumble or two isn’t going to break it.”
“That’s a relief.”
After packing up their tent and erasing all evidence of their presence, they took to the air once again, and this time, Maiya mounted first, giving Vir a hand up.
“With luck, we’ll be back to Sonam by sundown,” Maiya shouted over the wind. “I’ll go get Neel after I drop you off.”
Like the previous day, Vir used the time to transcribe Parai’s channeling technique onto his other arm, sinking deep into meditation to concentrate as they crossed the border from Rani to Kin’jal. It was why, hours later, Maiya detected the other Acira first.
“We’re being followed,” Maiya shouted over the wind, pointing at an Acira some distance away. “We’ve crossed into Kin’jal territory now, but that’s not a Kin’jal Acira. Whoever they are, they’re after us.”