Kama: Liberation (Vol-I)

Chapter 10: Dungeons (disturbing content: cannibalism)

Half a demon, half a god, residing in the mortal abode.

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Wisps of dust swirled in the air, getting agitated by the wavy movements of the Rajan's cloak. His attire was as black as the musty surrounding. Beneath his sandals was a cold floor, parts of it moistened by drops of water dripping down the ceiling. Dilrobar walked behind the Rajan while three guards remained ahead.

They stopped at the trapdoor. It opened with a creaking sound when the guards unlocked the gate, and one by one they climbed down the ladder. In front of them was an iron grille, moving which the space opened into an oubliette attached to a cavernous latrine.

In the dungeon sat the chained spy. His face was still hidden in claustrophobic shadows. Kneeling on the floor helplessly, he was caught in his place by rattling iron chains and thick cuffs. The guards lit up a torch. Soon the room was consumed by a smoke that could rip apart one's lungs.

In the light of the torch, the face of the spy could be seen, adorned by a crisscross of marks inflicted by sharp objects. One of his eyes was swollen black. The skin on his chest was red and blistered.

Rudra smirked. His werewolves had worked well. "Great."

Dilrobar coughed. She pulled the veil closer to her mouth and waved a hand in front of her face in order to keep the smoke away. Her steps, staggering backwards, spoke of a disapproval of whatever was happening. Perhaps she was drowning in raw fear. She, akin to her butterfly skin, was fragile.

Rudra took her by the hand and brought her closer to the spy. "See if you can recognise him."

With a confused stare the spy looked at the veiled woman. The other werewolves turned their back when Dilrobar finally showed her face. The spy gaped at her, dumbfounded at the discovery. "You whore....you are alive?" he gurgled.

"I am." Her quivering fingers felt the burnt skin of her cheeks. "I am alive. And yes, Rajan Rudra, I know him. He has been a spy and working for the Rajan of Revat since the age of eighteen."

The spy hurled himself at this so-called whore, cursing at the woman like a shunned lover which he never was. Chains held him back. The Rajan hissed at the man and slapped him hard. "Be quiet," he warned. "Dilrobar, you can go. I will handle this now."

She cowered, her feet curling inwards. "Ye-yes." She didn't want to stay any longer and ran back, knowing she couldn't handle what was going to occur next.

The Rajan sat across from the man. "What's your primary goal in life?" He had lost count of how many times he asked the prisoners this question. And everytime it was the same answer.

"To serve my master, the Rajan of Revat, the future Rajan of Aryavarta and soon-to-be the strongest man of the nine worlds."

"Quite impressive. You vomitted a lot." Rudra scratched his chin thoughtfully. "And what is your common goal?"

"To kill you, your Senapati." The man grinned to reveal his bloodied gums. "And to snatch away your women. I heard your Senapati married a princess. You too got a young bodygard." The man twisted his limbs, trying in vain to escape the durance. "It's not fair that I rot in a dungeon and you enjoy the company of gorgeous women."

"Ah, it's such a shame that those women will never look at you." Rudra held him by the chin and examined his edges. "It's battered and bruised. There's no charm to it."

"We need no charm. We need to dictate. The women follow."

Memories of a past, to which Rudra was captive, swum to the surface of an ocean of turbulent sanity. He gritted teeth as long forgotten fires and deaths assaulted him.