Chapter 63 – Joyride
The street before them was drenched in darkness, barring the solo streetlight whose orange light lit the car that stood below it.
“Dude! Is that a Camry?” Rambha exclaimed. Her eyes were wide as a plate as she marveled at the silver shine of its unblemished body.
“Where did you get this?” asked Uruvi.
“Where else? It was Guru’s car,” Ashwin replied.
Rambha put her hand up and said, “I am driving.”
He quietly passed the keys as he and Rambha trotted over the right side of the car. Vishwas opened the door and shoved their guest, Dev, into the backseat.
“You take the backseat,” said Uruvi as she opened the door to the front seat.
“Yes, ma’am,” he murmured as he got in, pushing Dev to the center.
The doors snapped close and the engines roared to life at the turns of the key. Rambha let out a gleeful squeal as she pulled the car out of the narrow street and set it on the path to their destination.
“You know how to get there?” asked Ashwin.
“Relax. I got my darling assistant to guide me,” said Rambha.
‘Huh. I forget everyone has got an assistant like you, Arya,’ thought Uruvi.
“Affirmative. Every contestant is assigned an assistant.”
The car jerked into motion as she gently lifted her foot off the clutch.
Ashwin’s eyes drifted towards Dev, whereupon he noticed him sweating and breathing heavily. “You are alright? You are sweating like crazy.”
Dev wiped the sweat off his lips and said, “Yes. Yes. Just a light fever.”
“Seriously, matcha? If I get sick, I am going to thrash you!” said Vishwas.
The car hummed gently as it weaved its way through the maze of narrow roads. As the noise in the car simmered down, it was replaced by an awkward silence, a mix of sadness and anxiety that was starting to get on Rambha’s nerves.
“Babe, I had to ask. How did you do it? How did you beat that monster?” she asked.
“A little bit of skill and a whole lot of luck. That bastard at his core was still a brute with a few tricks up his sleeve,” said Uruvi.
“And what were they?”
“For one, he has the blessing of Vayu (air).” The sentence earned her a lot of gasps from the occupants of the car.
“Seriously?” asked Rambha. “How did that bastard manage that?”
“Don’t know. He didn’t say. Even then, his strategy was to out-heal his damage.” She pulled the locket out from underneath her shirt and gazed down at it. “Thanks to the blessings of the Varuna and Arya, I managed to barely make it out.”
“Arya?” asked Rambha.
“My assistant. I gave him a nickname.”
“Oh! I call mine Tobey,” said Rambha, letting out a giggle.
Vishwas leaned forward, popping his head between them. “I saw the wreck. The whole place was levelled. I seriously wish I had gotten to see the whole thing!”
“You should tell us everything!” said Rambha.
“Yeah. Once this is done. We will have plenty of time to talk,” said Uruvi.
The car climbed up a steep incline as it exited a row of clay-baked houses through a small stone archway. The change in environment was noticeable, as the narrow road widened into a four-lane highway. The suffocating layout of the old city was replaced by a much more spacious but equally dense cityscape. However, the destruction from the day’s prior lay barren on the street before them.
Rambha expertly guided the car around the carnage that peppered the street. The place was quiet, and the only source of light was the moon that watched over them. That is, until a pair of bright headlights appeared from behind them. Her eyes drifted to the rear-view mirror. “Guys. You see that?”
Vishwas peeked back through the rear window. “Yeah. Could be anyone.”
“Doesn’t hurt to stay vigilant. Rambha, see if you can take a detour,” said Ashwin.
“Right.”
The street before them cleared up, devoid of any carnage. “Looks like they have started cleaning up…,” said Uruvi.
“We must be entering one of the colonies. They have…” Ashwin’s words were cut off as his eyes caught their fellow companion acting strangely.
Dev grabbed his knees and squeezed them tightly while whispering the word – “Please don’t”, repeatedly. Sweat poured down his forehead and arms and drenched his clothes. His face had turned red, and his pupils had narrowed.
“Please…,” Dev whispered.
Ashwin’s eyes widened in horror as he shouted, “Rambha! Stop the car!”
Dev’s head tilted back, his eyes turned white, and his jaw dropped. His red tongue twisted and turned purple before shooting out and slamming into the roof of the car, before bouncing off it and cutting through Rambha’s arm and into her foot on the accelerator.
Rambha let out a painful scream as the car pushed forward, throwing its occupants back into their seats. The car skidded off the dry asphalt, losing control for a moment, before she gripped the wheel and steadied it once again.
Uruvi, who was still trying to make sense of what happened, saw the twisted stretch of flesh that cut into Rambha’s foot. She immediately pulled her axe up and sliced through the tendril and the roof. Dev let out a monstrous squeal as its tendril retreated, while the rest of it disintegrated before their eyes. “Babe! Your arm!” said Uruvi.
Blood trickled off the open gash on her arm and dripped down onto her thighs. “I am fine! I am fine,” said Rambha as she violently shook her head. The tear began to close itself, leaving behind a thick red line.
Uruvi turned back and saw Ashwin raise his sword and pierce it through Dev, who had transformed into a monster she was all too familiar with. However, this time the Pisacha appeared to be inflating like a balloon.
“Rambha, let’s get onto the side,” said Ashwin.
The headlights from the car behind brightened, till they blinded Uruvi. “Brace for impact!” she shouted as the car slammed into them. The rear window shattered, sending shards of glass flying through the car. She turned her attention back to the monster, from which large spikes began to protrude.
“Shit!” Vishwas shouted on seeing the spikes.
“Guys! Shields up!” Uruvi shouted.
The Pisacha popped like a balloon, sending spikes of flesh in all directions. Uruvi threw herself between Rambha and the spikes as a shield appeared before her. The spikes slammed into the shields and bounced off them, while a few of them ricocheted until they shattered.
“Are you guys okay?” asked Rambha. “Should I stop the car?”
“No! Keep driving,” said Ashwin. The Pisacha was about to inflate once again. “Vishwa, grab him!”
He did as he was instructed. The two men grabbed the monster and, in a swoop, pushed it through the rear window with all their might. The metal frame bent and tore as the ballooning Pisacha was forced out of the window, before it bounced off the rear hood and fell onto the ground. The car behind them ran over the monster just as it exploded. A powerful shockwave erupted from the Pisacha, tearing the enemy’s car into shreds while violently shaking their car.
Ashwin turned his gaze back towards Uruvi. “Uruvi, you bleeding!”
She looked down at her arm and saw spikes covered from the neck to the back of her hand, which were slowly turning to dust. She shot a glance at her health and saw it sitting comfortably above 80 percent. “Its fine. I have faced worse.”
“What the hell happened?” asked Rambha. “Did that guy turn into a Pisacha?”
“He did… He was also repeatedly murmuring not to do it. Seems like someone was able to trigger it on command,” said Ashwin.
“Seriously? What kind of people are we dealing with?” asked Rambha.
Vishwas threw his head back and let out a sigh.
“You okay, matcha?” asked Uruvi.
“Yeah… Don’t worry, I am not hurt. But what are we going to do now? Did he even give us the correct place?” he asked.
“Yeah. I had the same suspicion. So, I tried to check the place. It is practically a small mansion in the middle of the city. It’s registered under the name Madhu,” said Ashwin. He managed to draw awespired looks from his companions.
"Wow. You did all that so fast?” asked Uruvi.
“Long story, I will explain it to you when we get time,” said Ashwin. “I could not verify if it is the same man or if he is still there…”
“But it is our best shot. Got it,” said Rambha.
Uruvi turned her attention to Rambha and asked, “You alright to drive, babe?”
Rambha shot a smirk and replied, “Relax. It is just a scratch.” Suddenly, her smirk vanished and was replaced by pure shock. She swerved the car to the left, just as a massive shadow shot past them.
“What the fuck!” Vishwas exclaimed as they turned their attention behind them.
The massive winged monster flew high into the air, encircling the car beneath it. Uruvi looked through the tinted sunroof and immediately recognized the spiteful creature. “Not this fucking thing!” She reached for the lock and unthatched it, sliding the glass pane as she crawled her way out of it.
“Babe? What are you doing?” asked Rambha, but got no answer.
Uruvi planted her feet onto the roof of the car and steadied herself. Her eyes were locked onto the winged Pisachi that swooped towards the ground behind them. She tightened the grip on her axe and held her breath as she watched the monster take a sharp turn just before it reached the ground.
The number 20 appeared above its head. ‘Tch! Piece of cake!’
She dropped her shoulder and loosened her knees, waiting for the Pisachi to reach her. The monster extended its left arm, baring its sharp claws. However, before they could even reach her, she sliced its arm off with one swing. The monster let out a loud screech as it shot back up into the air.
She watched it circle back towards them as its arm grew back. The Pisachi dropped towards the ground before making a sharp turn and heading straight for them.
Uruvi knelt down and said, “Rambha, brake when I tell you to.”
“Okay!”
She stood back up and patiently waited for the monster to reach them. Just as the monster was a few feet away, she shouted, “Now!”
The car came to a screeching halt, throwing Uruvi towards the monster, who appeared to have been caught completely off guard. It tried to pull itself back, but Uruvi used the momentum and the swing of her axe to slice right through the neck of the monster.
The body of the Pisachi bounced off the roof of the car, while Uruvi landed back onto the asphalt with its head. She turned back and saw the body of the monster lying on the ground as it slowly turned to dust.
The car drove up to her before coming to a stop beside her. She quietly hopped in, and they continued on their way to meet the man responsible for the chaos.