Hayden
I sat staring down, resting my elbows on the arms of the chair and fingers steepled against my chin. The awkward silence and the uneasy shifting in the seats made me feel like I did not belong there.
The meeting place was adorned with bright paintings of previous High Kings and full of colossal doors and windows. Despite its cathedral-like interiors, sitting amidst the roundtable participants of the High Clan, it was as though sitting in a deep and depressing pit, one from which I couldn't climb out. In the eyes of the rich, big-headed, and full of hot air peers, I was like an island and perhaps will always be. Even the Chief Minister of Purvachand did not have a warm look on his face. Despite that, I stayed put, focusing on every point I needed to raise in this much-awaited meeting, and staying away from the thoughts of Shaytan Rup bouncing back from death.
The High King was taking a long time to appear from his personal chamber. The wait seemed interminable and I only wished it to be worthwhile. It was quite evident that the High King preferred to take his time. The sooner I get used to it the better. No matter how I tried I couldn't be in a laid-back mood like King Aghasthya was at the moment.
A servant served the evening tea and light refreshments while another servant replaced midway-burned candles with fresh ones from candelabras placed on the table. His face then twisted into an uneasy expression, hands dabbing his pockets, clearly stating that he had forgotten the matchbox. On a whim, I snapped my fingers and flames zapped out in thin strings, targeting the wick of the candles. Soft glow set across the table.
Dramatic gasps, murmurs, and exclamations echoed throughout the meeting. For once I thought if the kings were having asthma attacks all at once. Each one of them fumed at me with death stares that could have killed me if I were normal. A sigh escaped my mouth. Embarrassed, I quietly held up the teacup.
"You had to do that," King Aghasthya whispered seated next to me.
"Sorry," I mumbled and took a sip, laughing inwardly.
Finally, the door of his chamber opened and the High King appeared, hurriedly striding towards us, a bit crouched over, one hand behind his back and the other twirling a lock of his long white beard. Ashwant walked slowly behind the King of the Kings. The rest of the kings stood up and greeted the superior one with the Paramarashtrian hello gesture and so did the Sergeants and a couple of ministers who had joined us in the meeting, currently standing at a distance from the table.
"Let's begin," The High King said, putting down his velvet turban on the table and revealing the small amount of his grey hair. There was a note of panic in his voice and struggling to conceal the anxiousness. "Ashwant, address the meeting. Be clear and to the point."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Ashwant said and cleared his throat. "We are once again in a dire situation. Shashi Thribhuvan has unleashed these terrifying creatures and informally named them his clan. They are sending alarming signals to strike at any moment and one strike from them can cause serious environmental damage within seconds. They somehow seemed to be benevolent for now but we must be prepared to protect ourselves from presumptive danger in the future. The safety of the people is our divine priority and the Kings of Dakshinpur have already come up with a solution. That is to create underground bunkers, large enough to fit in the population of the dynasty."
"And how is that possible?" King of Paschimgarh, Tyrell's king, asked.
"Pruthvi Krishna is capable of building one in a mere one hour or two. He and his Constellia are tactful enough to take all the necessary precautions and also can disguise the bunkers with their Formation."
"What about public conveniences and powder rooms?"
Ashwant shrugged. "We can hire workers for constructing other facilities once bunkers are built."
YOU ARE READING
(Book 6) Hayden Mackay and The Third-Eye of the Pancharatna
Fantasy"Mrs. Zutshi, how different was Zarina Khan from you? She was a clairvoyant, that makes her a witch too, right?" "Mages have their own history, Hayden. They have categories too. Since the time of Lady Chandrika's authority over the sections of the p...
