Chapter 37

Today was the day of the rehearsal, he just had to do his part and all this madness would be over. Agni’s Mind Link ability would be key today, it would allow them to communicate with each other without needing to speak. Ven wiped the sweat from his brow, today wasn’t a good day to show his nerves.

“Everyone ready?” asked Ven.

“Natalie and I are pretending to be busy sparring in the Training Hall as planned until you give us the signal,” said Brutus.

“Nikita and Agni?” asked Ven.

“Ready and waiting,” said Nikita.

“Excellent, remember everyone, just do your part, don’t do more. We have practiced this dozens of times, trust in yourselves and everything will be fine,” said Ven in a voice he thought was motivating. 

As Ven made his way to the wedding hall he realized there were more guards posted than what Rendall had told him. People stood in lines as the guards let them enter one by one into the wedding hall. Probably a security check to make sure no one brought any concealed weapons. Going around the line Ven made his way to the front, after all he was a Knight, he didn’t need to stand in line like the others.

“Excuse me, sir,” said a guard at the front of the line.

“Yes?” asked Ven.

“Sir, you’re going to have to hand over your gun and sword before you go inside,” said the guard.

“You’re asking a Knight to hand over his weapons?” asked Ven as he feigned contempt.

“Terribly sorry, sir. Direct orders from His Majesty, no one is allowed inside with a weapon,” said the guard apologetically.

“Well, if it’s what His Majesty wants, we have no choice but to comply,” said Ven with irritation as he handed over his gun and sword.

“Sir, I’ll need your knife as well,” said the guard uncomfortably.

“Of course, I forgot about that,” said Ven as he unfastened his knife, this wasn’t going very well. With this unexpected extra security, he had already lost his weapons, “Is there anything else or can I go inside now?”

“Yes, sir! Of course, sir, nothing more,” said the guard as he saluted and went back to where his colleagues were standing.

“If any of my stuff goes missing, I am holding you accountable,” shouted Ven at the guard before making his way into the wedding hall.

Ven was taken aback when he saw how plain the wedding hall was, but then again this was just a rehearsal, so it made sense everything looked so normal. People had already begun to sit down at their seats and there was a low hum of chatter as Ven made his way to the front of the Hall where Rendall stood next to Ravendra and Vassillissa.

Rendall it seemed was exempt from the rule about weapons, he stood next to Ravendra and Vassillissa with his huge sword fastened to his back as he looked at the crowd with a menacing glare. When he was a couple of feet away, Ven stopped and bowed in front of Ravendra and Vassillissa.

“Who invited him?” asked Ravendra with a questioning look at Rendall.

“I did, he’s my servant after all. Think of him as extra protection for me” said Vassillissa with a smile.

“How is he going to protect you? He’s unarmed and giftless,” pointed Ravendra out.

“And the rest of the Knights are unarmed as well because of what you commanded,” said Rendall irritably, “Which I still think is a horrible idea.”

“Right now, I want you to follow orders and not think,” said Ravendra as he took Vassillissa’s hand into his own.

“How long are you going to stand there gaping at the King, go stand in line with the rest of the Knights,” said Rendall as he pointed to where Ven should be.

Ven saluted and obediently took his place next to two Knights he had never met before. They acknowledged him with a nod and moved to the side to give him enough space as they waited patiently for things to get underway.

“They added extra security, I am inside the hall but without a weapon. The plan is off, I repeat the plan is off,” said Ven. 

“What do you want us to do?” asked Agni.

“Nothing, everyone just goes about today like a normal day,” said Ven 

“We’ll be on standby in case the situation changes,” said Nikita.

“Okay, but don’t do anything stupid, we don’t need anyone doing anything crazy, we will just regroup and try another day,” said Ven.

As he wiped the sweat from his brow, Ven looked around and noticed that most of the seats in the hall were full, was it normal for there to be so many people for a rehearsal? This couldn’t be right. More security than what Rendall had told them about and more guests than normal, something was going on, he didn’t know what, but something was wrong here. Ven looked towards Rendall for a hint or something, but Rendall was busy talking to Ravendra and didn’t notice Ven staring at him. Annoyed Ven started looking for Audrey amongst the guests.

“Guards close the doors, we do not have time for stragglers today!” said Ravendra in a loud voice which carried throughout the hall, “Some of you may have noticed there are far too many people here, to those of you who noticed. Yes, there are far too many people! But there is a reason for that! Friends today we are gathered here for our wedding!”

“As all of you know, Nagiri still has enemies all around us and they might have tried to harm me or my beloved on our wedding day, so to disrupt their plans I decided to use this rehearsal as the perfect opportunity to get married.”

“For far too long have we let the enemies at our borders have their way, for far too long have we tried to peaceably negotiate with them for the world to be a better place. But has it worked? No! Instead we are locked in a battle of intrigue with one another. I say it is enough! After today, we will declare war on Shor!”

“There will be sacrifices and pain! We will lose those we love! But we must do this for the greater good! If we want to make the world a better place, we must not be passive about it, we must take hold of the reigns from those that would resist us! And then, only then, can we say we have made the world a better place for everyone! Tell me my friends, are you with me?!”

The hall broke into thunderous applause as Ravendra paused with open arms. All around people shouted praise to Ravendra while others started chanting Ravendra’s name. This was the man they had heard tales of their whole lives, the warrior king that had united an entire land, this was the man their ancestors had followed!

Ven looked at Vassillissa with shocked eyes, the words Ravendra had spoken were eerily close to what she had said to him during their first meeting – ‘for the greater good’ and ‘world peace’. As these thoughts raced through his head, Vassillissa turned towards him and smiled, shrugged her shoulders and then winked. She had lied to him, she didn’t plan on having a quiet life with Ravendra, she had just played along so Ven would keep Rendall distracted. He had been duped; he had been far too naïve. Dejected he looked towards Rendall and saw the same look of shock and anguish across his face. He hadn’t known about this announcement either.

Was there anything he could do now? Vassillissa had the upper hand, she would become Queen and manipulate Ravendra into going on a self-righteous crusade to save the world! Thousands would die, others would be maimed for life or left behind as widows and orphans. He had seen that kind of world before and hated it. Ravendra might have forgotten what it was like back then, but he remembered, he remembered far too well. He had to stop both of them!

“The plan is back on. Brutus and Natalie, how long do you need to set off the explosives?” asked Ven.

“Ummmm…. maybe ten minutes, I can’t be certain, I thought the plan was cancelled,” said Brutus in a panicked voice.

“This isn’t a rehearsal; they are getting married today! We won’t get another chance, this is it! So, get a move on!” said Ven.

“But you don’t have a weapon, how are you going to kill him?” asked Nikita.

“I’ll improvise. Brutus and Natalie, split up and set off those charges in two different locations, as far apart as possible. There are far too many guards here, we need to spread them out!” said Ven, “Agni and Nikita, where are you two?”

“We’re outside the wedding hall,” said Agni.

“Why are you outside? You should be in here!” said Ven irritably.

“They closed the doors early, we are out here with a bunch of other people,” said Nikita.

“The flash bangs, can they be set off from out there?” asked Ven.

“I don’t know, maybe. It depends on how thick this wall and door are,” said Agni.

“If it doesn’t work, improvise and get those doors open!” said Ven.

In a panic now, Ven started looking around fanatically for something, anything he could use as a weapon. He started by looking at the obvious places, the Knights unfortunately were the same as him, unarmed. He shifted his gaze to the guests, but even if one of them had managed to sneak a weapon in, they were too far away, there was no way that he could get to them and come back in time to launch a surprise attack. No, there was only option left to him, Rendall’s two-handed sword, but just how was he going to get that huge thing off Rendall’s back and attack Vassillissa. It would take too long, Ravendra would notice and with one push of his mind send him flying.

There had to be something he could do, it couldn’t end like this, he wouldn’t let Vassillissa do this to the world. Nagiri wasn’t perfect, but it had peace, he would not let her take that away from them! For the first time since he had been awakened, he loathed his weakness and giftless existence, if only he had a gift! He wouldn’t be in this situation; he wouldn’t need a weapon!

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to witness the coming together of two wonderful people.”

The words shocked Ven out of his reverie. Priest? Where did he come from, Ven had not seen him here a few moments ago? Puzzled he looked around for where this man had come from, but couldn’t find an answer. Looking at the elderly priest more closely Ven saw he was leaning on a cane. A walking stick? Could that work? He would have only one chance to find out.

As the priest continued his sermon, Ven looked at the time, it had been a little over ten minutes. He steeled himself for the first explosion, he needed to be ready, and then it happened. The Hall shook violently as a loud crash could be heard in the distance, several women screamed in panic and then nothing happened, pure silence.

Rendall signalled for the Knights to form up around Ravendra, Vassillissa and the Priest as he barked orders into his phone to find out what was going on. The man was a better actor than Ven had expected.

“Priest, speed things up, it seems my little trick might not have been enough,” said Ravendra.

Prompted into action, the Priest only hesitated for a moment before he continued the wedding ceremony, speaking far faster and less clearly than before.

“We need the second explosion guys,” said Ven.

“There are too many guards, if I set it up now, they will know I did it,” said Natalie.

“Natalie, get out of there then, abandon that plan! Agni, what’s happening with the flash bangs!” said Ven.

“The remote detonator isn’t working from this distance; I need to get inside!” said Agni.

“Find a way guys, we don’t have time!” said Ven in a panic.

“Damn it! I am going in!” shouted Nikita.

A loud explosion was heard as the doors to the Wedding Hall sprung open in a ball of fire and smoke as splintered wood flew in all directions. People jumped to their feet in panic as a young girl with a shotgun ran into the hall and fired two shots in the air before she started charging towards Ravendra and Vassillissa.

“Stop her!” shouted Rendall as he signalled at the two Knights standing next to Ven.

Immediately the two knights standing next to Ven sprang into action as they ran to intercept Nikita. Pausing for a second to change direction, Nikita threw a grenade towards the charging knights, followed by another grenade at where the rest of the Knights were standing, which Ravendra effortlessly pushed away using his gift.

“You think these two losers are enough to stop me!” shouted Nikita as she fired shot after shot at the Knights as they desperately tried to find some sort of cover while one of them threw a ball of fire towards Nikita, “You’re going to have to do better than that!”

People screamed as they pushed each other out of the way trying to make their way to the only exit in the room. Hoping to make it out before they got caught in the crossfire of whatever was going on at the moment. Realizing Nikita would soon need to reload and lose the advantage of having a gun, Agni forced her way against the crowd of people as she constantly kept pressing on the detonator.

“All of you, back them up and apprehend that little girl. Ven, you stay here with me! You see why unarming my knights was a stupid idea!” shouted Rendall angrily at Ravendra as he handed sword to Ven, “If anyone gets too close, cut them.”

A sword! Yes, this was perfect! This was exactly what he needed! As he gripped the two-handed sword properly, he felt it get pulled out of his hands by and unseen force. It waited in the air for a second before Ravendra held it by the hilt.

“Everyone, out of the way! The little girl is mine. This will be a nice warm up before I start my campaign against Shor!” said Ravendra with a vicious smile on his face.

“But our wedding!” shouted Vassillissa.

“It can continue after I am done with this little girl,” said Ravendra.

Slowly the Knights who had been moving in on Nikita nodded to one another and moved out of the way as Ravendra made his way towards her with the two-handed sword in his right hand.

The crowd that been trying to get out until now paused and turned around, their eyes glued to this spectacle. None of them had ever seen Ravendra fight before, they had heard the stories about how he was an unmatched swordsman, but this was the first time they had seen him with a sword in his hand. So, they stopped and stared as they waited with bated breath to see how exactly Ravendra would handle this little girl.

“Get out of there, Nikita!” shouted Agni as she finally managed to push through the crowd and trigged the bombs.

Shouting and panic once again ensued as a series of explosions rocked the hall once, people stumbled and fell over one another as they tried to run towards the exit. Ravendra stood silently through it all, as he contemplated his next move. Shielding his eyes with his free hand, he waited for the explosions to stop. It was a clever ploy to try escape in the panic, but just like everyone else in the hall, they had to make their way out of the single entrance, so if he got there first, they wouldn’t manage to escape.

Seizing the moment while everyone was distracted by the explosions around the hall, Ven punched the Priest and took his cane forcefully, realizing what was happening Vassillissa turned around and faced Ven down with a proud look in her eyes.

“Planning on finishing the job?” asked Vassillissa mockingly.

Ven looked from the cane in his hands and back at Vassillissa, as he thought of what he wanted to do next. Slowly, he raised the cane up with both hands and brought it down on his knee with a sudden movement causing it to break into two pieces. Stunned by the sudden action, Vassillissa stood motionless.

“I could never kill you; you know that. Why did you lie to me, Vas?” asked Ven with watery eyes.

“That’s the first time you’ve called me Vas,” said Vassillissa in a low voice.

“I know,” said Ven as he threw away the remains of the cane in his left hand and used it to rub his eyes.

“Why didn’t you call me by that name sooner?” asked Vassillissa as she made her hands into fists.

“You were going to marry him! How could I call you Vas!” said Ven as he took a small step towards Vassillissa.

“He’s not the Ven I used to know, he’s changed so much from the man I loved and knew,” said Vassillissa as tears started dripping down her cheeks, “This isn’t our world, no matter how much we pretend it is, no matter how hard we try to learn and blend in, we are never going to make up for hundreds of years. Don’t you see? This is the only way I can connect with him; I’ll make things like they were before I died, a world at war where Ven is the hero of all, bringing hope and justice, I need this war!”

Ven reached forward and pulled the crying Vassillissa into a hug as she kept sobbing into his shoulder. After waiting a moment for her sobs to die down he lifted her chin with his left hand so he could look into her big blue eyes, and whispered, “Vas, is there nothing I can do to change your mind?”

“No, this is the only way,” said Vassillissa with a shaky voice, “You better escape now, while you have the chance.”

“I will but first,” said Ven as he leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers, she resisted but for a moment, and started kissing him back. With his eyes closed, he knew, he knew for certain now, she might not look exactly like his Vas, but this was his Vas, and his Vas wouldn’t hesitate to make the world burn for him, it was just the kind of woman she was.

“Why?” said Vas she reeled back in pain and looked down at the red patch on her stomach where the remnant of the Priest’s cane was stuck.

“You know why,” said Ven through tears as he reached forward and her held her in his arms as the life slowly ebbed away from her body.

“Promise me you’ll come back alive,” said Vas for the last time as she raised her bloody left hand and touched Ven’s left cheek.

“I promise,” said Ven as he tried to kiss her left hand but missed as her hand fell lifelessly to the side.

He rested her body down gently on the floor as he moved her now dark hair out of her eyes and placed both her hands on her chest. Vas had changed back to the woman she really looked like, a dark-haired woman with brown skin. In this world, Vas was a Nari, just like him. Yes, this was Vas, and this time he had killed her by his own hands. He had promised her he would come home alive, for the first time since he had started making the promise to her, he intended to break it. Leaning down he kissed her forehead for the last time before standing up straight.

“VEN!!!” roared Ven. “Stop cornering a little girl and face me, you spineless swine!!”

That was a roller coaster of a chapter to write! I can only hope it was the same as you read it, really looking forward to hearing your opinions on the chapter.

As always, take care of yourselves and stay safe out there!

Anderoth