Kama: Liberation (Vol-I)

Chapter 48: Long-lost Friends

Friendship isn't knocking on the door everyday, it is appearing when your friend needs you.

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Before leaving Revat, the Four decided to pay a visit to the werewolf pack in the Valley of Saints. There were many powerful creatures living there, and they could be of help.

What was not helping Indumala now was the fact that her Baba too, was something other than a human, like Rudra.

She had been living with him since birth. She had known him as mother and father. When she would get a fever after dancing wildly in the rain, he would sit beside her head all night and take her care, just like a mother. When some boy would mock her birthmark and call her ugly, he would instill in her confidence, like a father. He was both the protective umbrella and the fluffy cushion during times of distress. She thought she knew him too well, probably the most in the world, but her beliefs came crashing down.

Aryamna walked ahead of them, away from her and Ishvara. Indumala had asked her Maa if she knew anything. Of course, she was shocked too. Indumala pursed her lips. Would her Maa be upset and consider this as betrayal? What if the marriage's foundation was shook?

"I believe he kept it hidden from you too?" Ishvara asked all of a sudden.

"Yes. All these years I was spoonfed a lie."

Ishvara grimaced. "I-I think he did it because he didn't have an answer to explain why he is this. Perhaps he was scared of scaring you."

Maybe Indumala would have been scared to have a Baba like that, but only if she was given an option. Now when she was already so much in love, it would be stupid to expect that Indumala would abandon her Baba. Also, what right did she even have to discard him? He could have thrown her away to die as a baby. Yet, he chose her. He loved her, a bundle of mess with a curse lurking in her past.

It was the same bond of love that caused Indumala to look woebegone. She couldn't imagine her father sinking his fangs– not teeth, but fangs– into the skin of another. It made sense now why Hamal and Aryamna were calling each other similar– both were vampires.

Indumala heaved a sigh. Her lover fed on the meat of humans and animals alike, and her father drank blood. She wouldn't be shocked if she knew she too was some crazy being.

They stood in front of a thick greeny gate cut out of climbers and bushes. The men, whom Indumala guessed to be werewolves too(now in human form like Rudra), weren't so surprised to see Ishvara than they were on seeing her. Their beady round eyes whispered through silent exchanges.

Rudra sat on a throne carved out of pure onyx. It was grand, glinting a silver twinkle in the night. The pack surrounded him, with Aryamna standing at his right.

"Glory to Alpha Rudra Arumugan."

The werewolves knelt, including Aryamna.

"Indumala, come here," Rudra called. "Rest, rise."

Indumala could feel the tickling breeze tease her neck. Her hands were gleaming in perspiration, strung out by the focused gazes of the men around. She stood on Rudra's left, who casually brushed back her curls and then glared at his pack. "This is Indumala. I hope I don't need to tell you more."

His voice was grave, and it sounded more like a warning. The men nodded, acknowledging the weight of Indumala's importance.

"Indumala is a part of the pack like us, and also Ishvara, them being companions of the Alpha and the Beta. Thought I should make it clear verbally. Anyways, there is an announcement to make." Rudra crossed his legs. "We are going on war with Hamal the Second."