At the gates of Doina City, many carriages were lined up in a neat column ready to move.
The carriages were owned by merchants and traders, packed with trading goods ready for trade in other Cities. The guards and adventurers were also geared up to protect that caravan from monsters and bandits. The guards were instructed to protect the goods first and then the caravan last.
Amongst the caravan, there was a small group of people milling around together near a carriage. This was Satvik's family and acquaintances who came to bid their farewell to him.
"Here, I've something for you" said Haldi while gesturing Meera to move forward towards Satvik.
Meera started to walk towards him and with a gentle smile on her face bent on one knee. She was carrying a wooden rectangular box which was around 50 centimetres in length.
Satvik looked surprised at this sudden burst of kindness that has been missing from Haldi's character traits. He didn't say anything and opened the lid of the box. His expression changed to astonishment when he saw the content of the box. He could not believe his eyes!
Inside the box, there was a neatly placed dull colored prosthetic arm. Satvik then looked at Haldi who had a satisfied grin.
Then Haldi moved forward and picked up the prosthetic arm while saying, "It took me long to find perfect material and master craftsman, but it was worth it."
He then adjusted and put the prosthetic on Satvik's left stump and with a click sound the prosthetic adjusted.
Then instantly it glowed for a second and then returned to its dull wood finish looks.
"Try closing your fist" said Haldi.
Satvik looked at him with a questioning gaze. He was very thankful to Haldi to give him a prosthetic arm, now no one would be staring at his left stump with pity. However, prosthetics aren't supposed to perform any complex movements.
While he was going through these thoughts, he unconsciously closed both of his fists. Then he felt a negligible mana drain and his left fist was also bawled up.
He looked at his left arm with shock and with surprise tried other movements and the prosthetic arm obliged as per his will.
"Well doofus, did you think I just gave you a useless piece of wood, just for show" said Haldi with a smug.
"It's mythril, the metal that conducts magic. Furthermore mana stones are embedded in it with rune inscribed on it by the legendary rune-smith herself" he said continued further.
"It will perform similarly to your other limb if not better. Here's the manual, you like to read don't you" said Haldi while throwing a roll of scribbled handwritten notes towards him.
Satvik caught the notepad with his left arm and looked at his arm clutching the roll with a satisfied look on his face.
"I know it looks ugly but there's a reason for it, to avoid unwanted attention" said Haldi with a wink.
Satvik turned a few pages and then he kept the notes in his luggage. He dug out another note bundle from his bag and threw it at Haldi.
"Take this" Satvik said with a smile.
"What's this? A note expressing your gratitude?" Haldi said with a smirk dripping with sarcasm.
"Nope, not at all! That note contains details of White Gold." said Satvik with a mischievous grin.
Haldi opened the notebook and inside the notebook its title was written in bold.
"Now what's 'Sugar Crystals'? Is it some sort of a gem" asked Haldi with curiosity.
"Kind of. Follow the instructions and you'll know. It will help you to accumulate enough funds for our future plans." said Satvik while going towards his family.
When his family members saw his new prosthetic arm they were deeply delighted.
Vani started poking with her finger while asking, "Can you feel it, bhaiya?"
"A little bit. Although it's not comparable to the real stuff but there's a minute sensation" he said while ruffling her hair with his left arm for the first time.
"So I'll be leaving mum" said Satvik while standing before Aisha.
Aisha embraced him for what felt like an eternity to others. Tears were pouring from her cheeks while she squeezed Satvik.
"Mum, I can't breathe" he said while tapping her back lightly.
Aisha let go of her embrace, Satvik saw his mother's tear-soaked face and swollen eyes.
With a sigh he wiped her tears and said, "Don't worry mum. I'll be back before you know it."
Aisha nodded and said, "Promise me you'll come back, unharmed. Don't do anything unnecessary that will put you in harms way"
Satvik remained silent for a few seconds and then with a gentle expression said, "Of course!"
Although the guilt of lying to her ate him from inside, he knew very well that for now, lying was the best way to handle this situation. She leaned down and gave him a good luck kiss on his forehead.
Then Dhruv hugged Satvik and muttered in his ears, "Don't push yourself too hard, kid."
"Of course. But you must ensure their safety old man" replied Satvik.
"I never wanted to hear that from my 12 year old kid" he said while giving him a side stare.
Then Satvik felt a light tug on his legs. He then found Vani holding his pants with a sad expression and it looked like she was about to cry.
Satvik sat on his knees and gave her a tight hug and kiss on her forehead.
"I will miss you bhaiya. Please come back soon" she said while sniffing and wiping her tears.
"Of course kiddo! Take care of them for me, will ya?" he said while pointing at their parents.
Vani nodded and gave him a salute like a soldier who just got their orders.
Then Haldi came right next to the family and said, "I hate to do this, but you should get on that carriage soon boy or they will leave without you."
Satvik nodded and got in the carriage. Satvik waved and soon the carriages were gone.
"He has grown so much, but is still a terrible liar" muttered Aisha still looking at the carriage that was long gone from the sight.
"What are you talking about?" questioned Dhruv.
"When I told him to make sure he never puts himself in harm's way, he lied" said Aisha.
Dhruv didn't say anything and looked in the direction where the caravan went. Then he simply kept his arm arm around Aisha's shoulder and pulled her in for a hug.
"You don't have to worry that much. You already know that he's more than capable of avoiding any situation and he's far more calculating and smart than all of us, combined," muttered Dhruv.
Aisha nodded and with aching heart the family returned to their home.
___________________
Satvik was sitting in a simple carriage and was looking back towards the city wall as he moved further and further away. This city held many memories, sweet and sour. The only memories he had of this world
What saddened him the most is the fact that he won't be able to enjoy Aisha's love and care, bantering with Dhruv and witness Vani grow into a lady.
When the city wall was no more visible, he muttered, "You know, although you're well hidden I can still smell you."
"Tch, I've become quite rustic"
A feminine voice was heard inside the carriage. Then behind the barrel and boxes came out a silver head of a woman.
"Hehehe, why do you think I gave you that perfume back then?" while giggling asked Satvik.
"Because of my bad body odour?" replied Meera with a sad expression.
Few weeks back Satvik had given her a present. At first she was quite happy to receive the present. But when she found a bottle of perfume inside her whole world had collapsed.
Dark elves never had any issues with body odor. It was their racial characteristic that they had a natural musky body fragrance but when she saw the perfume, she thought that Satvik didn't like her body odor and it saddened her.
After that day, she used to douse herself with the perfume Satvik gave him.
"Heck no! you smelled gre..." Satvik stopped mid-sentence and after clearing his throat continued.
"Ahem, you smelled fine. It was a perfume that cannot be removed easily. So you can use all your skills to hide but the perfume was a dead giveaway" he said.
Meera beamed with a smile. She didn't care what he said after accepting the fact that she smelled great. She pounced over him like a cat and held onto his right arm in her embrace while nuzzling next to him.
"Hmmm, what are you doing now?" asked Satvik.
"Please at least let me accompany you for a little more on your journey. I'll leave once we are about to leave Doina's peripheral area" said Meera with an innocent voice.
"Fine! Do as you please" said Satvik.
He didn't want to say out loud, but being next to a beauty has perks in itself.
Satvik and Meera enjoyed their ride for a while, then the carriage stopped. Meera handed over a stone to him, kissed him on the cheek and then embraced him while saying, "Take care and don't push yourself too much, Master."
Satvik nodded and muttered, "Please protect my family."
Meera nodded and then dashed back towards Doina City.
Then the carriages started to move again towards their destination that was eastern borders where the Kaziranga Empire and Baimum Theocracy shared the common boundary.
Within half a day the caravan had travelled from the City and arrived in the middle of the forest where lied the first destination of Satvik's, as well as the territory of the closest demigod to the city.
The territory of the arachnids and their demigoddess.
The carriages came to a halt and the appointed capitan of the merchant column came towards Satvik's carriage.
"Young master, I'm afraid this is as far as we can go into her territory. You will have to head on further on your own" he said and continued further.
"We'll be waiting for you for next two days. If you don't return until then, we'll assume you're dead and we'll leave this place asap" he said.
Satvik nodded and got down from the carriage. He grabbed some provisions and started walking in the East direction.
After a few while he felt dozens of gazes on him. He then fished out the gem Meera had given him from his pocket.
Then suddenly a huge spider almost similar to a minivan in size, jumped before him and after looking at the gem screeched. In response to his screech several screechs were heard throughout the forest.
Then he was surrounded by huge spiders. Satvik gulped with nervousness, but none of the spiders attacked him.
Then the huge spider in front of him turned around and started walking in opposite direction while other smaller spiders pushed Satvik in the same direction, as if telling him to follow the huge spider.
So Satvik followed suit and put his feet to the task of following a giant spider through an unknown forest.
hen_pai_san
Looking forward to your support
At the gates of Doina City, many carriages were lined up in a neat column ready to move.
The carriages were owned by merchants and traders, packed with trading goods ready for trade in other Cities. The guards and adventurers were also geared up to protect that caravan from monsters and bandits. The guards were instructed to protect the goods first and then the caravan last.
Amongst the caravan, there was a small group of people milling around together near a carriage. This was Satvik's family and acquaintances who came to bid their farewell to him.
"Here, I've something for you" said Haldi while gesturing Meera to move forward towards Satvik.
Meera started to walk towards him and with a gentle smile on her face bent on one knee. She was carrying a wooden rectangular box which was around 50 centimetres in length.
Satvik looked surprised at this sudden burst of kindness that has been missing from Haldi's character traits. He didn't say anything and opened the lid of the box. His expression changed to astonishment when he saw the content of the box. He could not believe his eyes!
Inside the box, there was a neatly placed dull colored prosthetic arm. Satvik then looked at Haldi who had a satisfied grin.
Then Haldi moved forward and picked up the prosthetic arm while saying, "It took me long to find perfect material and master craftsman, but it was worth it."
He then adjusted and put the prosthetic on Satvik's left stump and with a click sound the prosthetic adjusted.
Then instantly it glowed for a second and then returned to its dull wood finish looks.
"Try closing your fist" said Haldi.
Satvik looked at him with a questioning gaze. He was very thankful to Haldi to give him a prosthetic arm, now no one would be staring at his left stump with pity. However, prosthetics aren't supposed to perform any complex movements.
While he was going through these thoughts, he unconsciously closed both of his fists. Then he felt a negligible mana drain and his left fist was also bawled up.
He looked at his left arm with shock and with surprise tried other movements and the prosthetic arm obliged as per his will.
"Well doofus, did you think I just gave you a useless piece of wood, just for show" said Haldi with a smug.
"It's mythril, the metal that conducts magic. Furthermore mana stones are embedded in it with rune inscribed on it by the legendary rune-smith herself" he said continued further.
"It will perform similarly to your other limb if not better. Here's the manual, you like to read don't you" said Haldi while throwing a roll of scribbled handwritten notes towards him.
Satvik caught the notepad with his left arm and looked at his arm clutching the roll with a satisfied look on his face.
"I know it looks ugly but there's a reason for it, to avoid unwanted attention" said Haldi with a wink.
Satvik turned a few pages and then he kept the notes in his luggage. He dug out another note bundle from his bag and threw it at Haldi.
"Take this" Satvik said with a smile.
"What's this? A note expressing your gratitude?" Haldi said with a smirk dripping with sarcasm.
"Nope, not at all! That note contains details of White Gold." said Satvik with a mischievous grin.
Haldi opened the notebook and inside the notebook its title was written in bold.
"Now what's 'Sugar Crystals'? Is it some sort of a gem" asked Haldi with curiosity.
"Kind of. Follow the instructions and you'll know. It will help you to accumulate enough funds for our future plans." said Satvik while going towards his family.
When his family members saw his new prosthetic arm they were deeply delighted.
Vani started poking with her finger while asking, "Can you feel it, bhaiya?"
"A little bit. Although it's not comparable to the real stuff but there's a minute sensation" he said while ruffling her hair with his left arm for the first time.
"So I'll be leaving mum" said Satvik while standing before Aisha.
Aisha embraced him for what felt like an eternity to others. Tears were pouring from her cheeks while she squeezed Satvik.
"Mum, I can't breathe" he said while tapping her back lightly.
Aisha let go of her embrace, Satvik saw his mother's tear-soaked face and swollen eyes.
With a sigh he wiped her tears and said, "Don't worry mum. I'll be back before you know it."
Aisha nodded and said, "Promise me you'll come back, unharmed. Don't do anything unnecessary that will put you in harms way"
Satvik remained silent for a few seconds and then with a gentle expression said, "Of course!"
Although the guilt of lying to her ate him from inside, he knew very well that for now, lying was the best way to handle this situation. She leaned down and gave him a good luck kiss on his forehead.
Then Dhruv hugged Satvik and muttered in his ears, "Don't push yourself too hard, kid."
"Of course. But you must ensure their safety old man" replied Satvik.
"I never wanted to hear that from my 12 year old kid" he said while giving him a side stare.
Then Satvik felt a light tug on his legs. He then found Vani holding his pants with a sad expression and it looked like she was about to cry.
Satvik sat on his knees and gave her a tight hug and kiss on her forehead.
"I will miss you bhaiya. Please come back soon" she said while sniffing and wiping her tears.
"Of course kiddo! Take care of them for me, will ya?" he said while pointing at their parents.
Vani nodded and gave him a salute like a soldier who just got their orders.
Then Haldi came right next to the family and said, "I hate to do this, but you should get on that carriage soon boy or they will leave without you."
Satvik nodded and got in the carriage. Satvik waved and soon the carriages were gone.
"He has grown so much, but is still a terrible liar" muttered Aisha still looking at the carriage that was long gone from the sight.
"What are you talking about?" questioned Dhruv.
"When I told him to make sure he never puts himself in harm's way, he lied" said Aisha.
Dhruv didn't say anything and looked in the direction where the caravan went. Then he simply kept his arm arm around Aisha's shoulder and pulled her in for a hug.
"You don't have to worry that much. You already know that he's more than capable of avoiding any situation and he's far more calculating and smart than all of us, combined," muttered Dhruv.
Aisha nodded and with aching heart the family returned to their home.
___________________
Satvik was sitting in a simple carriage and was looking back towards the city wall as he moved further and further away. This city held many memories, sweet and sour. The only memories he had of this world
What saddened him the most is the fact that he won't be able to enjoy Aisha's love and care, bantering with Dhruv and witness Vani grow into a lady.
When the city wall was no more visible, he muttered, "You know, although you're well hidden I can still smell you."
"Tch, I've become quite rustic"
A feminine voice was heard inside the carriage. Then behind the barrel and boxes came out a silver head of a woman.
"Hehehe, why do you think I gave you that perfume back then?" while giggling asked Satvik.
"Because of my bad body odour?" replied Meera with a sad expression.
Few weeks back Satvik had given her a present. At first she was quite happy to receive the present. But when she found a bottle of perfume inside her whole world had collapsed.
Dark elves never had any issues with body odor. It was their racial characteristic that they had a natural musky body fragrance but when she saw the perfume, she thought that Satvik didn't like her body odor and it saddened her.
After that day, she used to douse herself with the perfume Satvik gave him.
"Heck no! you smelled gre..." Satvik stopped mid-sentence and after clearing his throat continued.
"Ahem, you smelled fine. It was a perfume that cannot be removed easily. So you can use all your skills to hide but the perfume was a dead giveaway" he said.
Meera beamed with a smile. She didn't care what he said after accepting the fact that she smelled great. She pounced over him like a cat and held onto his right arm in her embrace while nuzzling next to him.
"Hmmm, what are you doing now?" asked Satvik.
"Please at least let me accompany you for a little more on your journey. I'll leave once we are about to leave Doina's peripheral area" said Meera with an innocent voice.
"Fine! Do as you please" said Satvik.
He didn't want to say out loud, but being next to a beauty has perks in itself.
Satvik and Meera enjoyed their ride for a while, then the carriage stopped. Meera handed over a stone to him, kissed him on the cheek and then embraced him while saying, "Take care and don't push yourself too much, Master."
Satvik nodded and muttered, "Please protect my family."
Meera nodded and then dashed back towards Doina City.
Then the carriages started to move again towards their destination that was eastern borders where the Kaziranga Empire and Baimum Theocracy shared the common boundary.
Within half a day the caravan had travelled from the City and arrived in the middle of the forest where lied the first destination of Satvik's, as well as the territory of the closest demigod to the city.
The territory of the arachnids and their demigoddess.
The carriages came to a halt and the appointed capitan of the merchant column came towards Satvik's carriage.
"Young master, I'm afraid this is as far as we can go into her territory. You will have to head on further on your own" he said and continued further.
"We'll be waiting for you for next two days. If you don't return until then, we'll assume you're dead and we'll leave this place asap" he said.
Satvik nodded and got down from the carriage. He grabbed some provisions and started walking in the East direction.
After a few while he felt dozens of gazes on him. He then fished out the gem Meera had given him from his pocket.
Then suddenly a huge spider almost similar to a minivan in size, jumped before him and after looking at the gem screeched. In response to his screech several screechs were heard throughout the forest.
Then he was surrounded by huge spiders. Satvik gulped with nervousness, but none of the spiders attacked him.
Then the huge spider in front of him turned around and started walking in opposite direction while other smaller spiders pushed Satvik in the same direction, as if telling him to follow the huge spider.
So Satvik followed suit and put his feet to the task of following a giant spider through an unknown forest.
hen_pai_san
Looking forward to your support
