Chapter 22

One of the two cloaked men fighting Vidhan stopped and moved toward the unconscious cloaked man. He drew the knife hanging from his waist and threw it to drive away Raga.

Raga's quick reflexes saved him, and he ran away, barking. The cloaked man stared at Sattu, who was standing on a tree, then pulled out a flint hidden among the strips of his clothing and struck it with a knife. As soon as the sparks from the flint landed on the oil-soaked strips, his entire body became a ball of fire.

Seeing this, Sattu was stunned and lost his balance, falling from the tree. The other cloaked man, still engaged in battle with Vidhan, set his body on fire in the same way. The flames made it nearly impossible to attack him.

Sattu now faced the remaining cloaked man. Though he had picked up the sword of the unconscious man, he did not use it. Instead, he ran frantically, trying to save his life. In his panic, he crashed into a tree. The impact was so strong that his head nearly split open. Dazed, he sat there, clutching his head, as the burning cloaked man advanced toward him.

Vidhan saw that Sattu's life was in danger. The cloaked man was about to strike. Vidhan stopped fighting, focused for a moment, and then slammed his right foot hard against the ground. In an instant, the cloaked man was hurled into the air and flung far away, as if an explosion had erupted beneath his feet.

But at that very moment, the second cloaked man seized an opportunity. He struck Vidhan's back with a special stick. The instant it touched him, a powerful surge of energy jolted through Vidhan's body. The cloaked man kept the stick pressed against him. Vidhan convulsed violently, his eyes widened, his face twisted in pain, and veins bulged across his body. Within moments, he grew completely exhausted and collapsed to the ground.

As soon as he fell, the cloaked man let out a strange sound. Hearing it, the other cloaked man rose and joined him. Together, they pressed their special sticks against various points on Vidhan's body. Vidhan's limbs were numb and stiff; the only movement in his body came from the shocks inflicted by their weapons. He struggled to stay conscious.

Through his blurred vision, he saw the cloaked men lift their garments. The moment they covered themselves, the fire on their bodies was extinguished. His eyes fluttered shut for a moment. When he forced them open again, the cloaked men had vanished. Only Sattu remained, cradling his head.

That was Vidhan's last effort to stay awake. Darkness swallowed him. Thunder rumbled fiercely, and a torrential downpour began.

Sattu, still reeling from the encounter, moved toward the unconscious Vidhan when he heard Raga barking in the distance. Moments later, Anuj appeared with a battalion of soldiers.

Anuj ran to Vidhan, inspected his body, and then took out some powder. He rubbed it under Vidhan's nose before giving a few urgent orders to the soldiers. Without hesitation, they lifted Vidhan and moved swiftly.

Vidhan was placed in a room, where Anuj continuously checked his heartbeat at regular intervals and administered different powders into his mouth. Before long, Mahavira and Rupak arrived.

"Emergency medical attention is needed. We must get to Arthala immediately," Anuj said in a tense voice.

Mahavira turned to Kali.

"I will make the arrangements," Kali said and hurried away.

Meanwhile, Anuj applied medicine to Sattu's forehead and gave him some powder to eat. Once Sattu regained some strength, he recounted the entire incident in detail. Mahavira's face grew even more serious upon hearing about the cloaked men.

Not long after, Kali returned, leading a massive chariot drawn by eight horses and supported by six wheels. The unconscious Vidhan was carefully lifted and placed inside. Anuj, Sattu, and Raga also boarded.

Seated on a white horse at the front, Mahavira gave the order, and the entire group set off for Arthala with the new Earth bender.

As they departed, Kali turned to the messenger Eagle, perched on his left shoulder. He whispered an emergency message to him, fed him a small piece of meat, and sent him off to Arthala.

Flying low through the torrential rain and moonlight, Eagle soared over the chariot. He glanced back once at Earth bender, lying motionless inside, then straightened his neck, let out a loud cry, and with a powerful beat of his wings, sped toward Arthala.