Chapter 306: Side Quest: Unniyarcha

For the first time in sixteen months, it rained on Ichi Island.

Krethik could not craft his morning kolam, which was perhaps for the best. It was a bittersweet day for his small Party, and he’d spent his last evening and the early hours of the morning with Ishani to say his goodbyes.

However, when Ishani was ready to depart for Madhyam, Naeemah was nowhere to be found.

“I understand if she’s upset with me,” Ishani said, averting her sanguine gaze from Krethik’s face.

“Even if that is so, she should still be here to wish you well.” While he was empathetic toward Naeemah’s emotions, courtesy was a virtue he wished to instill in the youth.

Naeemah is a woman now, he corrected himself. She had received her gift of choosing a Class shortly after they’d met, and she carried herself with a grace of years beyond her age. But there was still so much he wanted to teach her. So many things to prepare her for.

“Please, Ishani, wait here. I’ll find her.” Krethik placed a gentle hand on Ishani’s shoulder.

“Of course.” She caressed her stomach with her fingertips, her long tail swaying behind her. “You have given me such a wonderful gift, Krethik. The least I can do is wait.”

He smiled. Ensuring the island’s population was part of his position as a man, certainly, but he relished the joy that kittens brought to their mothers. He would do everything in his power to keep his people safe and protect their happiness. 

“I’ll be back shortly.” Having searched every corner of the citadel, Krethik moved outside. While rain was typically seen as bad luck for a new beginning where he’d grown up, on Ichi it was a blessing. It would replenish their water stores and offer their crops a much-needed drink. 

He didn’t bother covering his head, allowing the cool droplets to cling to his hair and neck to offset the warm desert air. Mariamman herself could not have summoned a more perfect rain in Rājadhānī, but he sent his silent thanks. Just in case.

There were two places that he sensed Naeemah could be hiding. The first was the stables, where she often spent time with the gigashanks and horses. Unfortunately, he only found the Encroachers and the young lady tending to them. With a quick greeting and apology, Krethik headed for the training grounds.

Naeemah moved and spun in the center of the sparring ring, performing the fluid motions of the Kalaripayattu just as Krethik had taught her. Instead of the traditional katar, she wielded twin daggers crafted for her hands alone. He’d never seen her move through the sets so quickly, and she struck the air like a serpent, bending and pivoting so the rain never seemed to strike her. Her long hair, tied back high on her head, whipped around her body like a single-bladed urumi, its point snapping at the droplets that dared approach.

“Naeemah,” Krethik called from the edge of the ring.

Naeemah didn’t respond. She kicked high into the air and howled into the sky.

“Naeemah!” Krethik snapped.

She dropped her heel to the dirt and marched forward. “This is when we do Kalari together every day, Krethik,” she hissed. “Or has that changed, too?”

Krethik crossed his arms. “Ishani is waiting for you to say goodbye.”

“I know!” Naeemah spun and threw one of her daggers at an archery target at the other end of the training yard. The point lodged itself just outside of the bullseye, and she growled. “I know.”

“Naeemah–”

“Two years she’s traveled with us. Two years in our Party. Does she hate us?” Her voice cracked on the question. “Does she hate me?”

He softened his tone. “Of course not. Ishani has nothing but the highest respect for you. She’s chosen a new life for herself. It wouldn’t be fair to ask her to raise her children and fight.”

Naeemah’s grip tightened around her remaining dagger. “I would never abandon my post for something so ridiculous.”

“Wanting a family is far from ridiculous,” Krethik countered.

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“Is it? Why doesn’t she just leave her kitten with a nyanny, then? They can pass her around when it suits them like they did to me, and then Ishani can stay with us.” Her voice had escalated to a yell, and she gestured wildly with both hands.

“You know that this is for the best,” he replied calmly.

“No. You know what isn’t fair? Everyone leaves, Krethik. My mother, my nyannies, and now Ishani.” She focused her stare on the ground, and her shoulders slumped. “I’m… I…” Her ears flattened against her head, and she squeezed her eyes shut.

Krethik stepped forward and pulled her into a tight embrace. She’d never let him get so close before. But now, as her dagger fell to the ground with a thud, she threw her hands around his waist and buried her face in his chest. The sound of rainfall muffled her quiet sobs while Krethik stroked her hair and murmured strings of a lullaby into her ear.

A fond memory swirled into his mind’s eye like the sweet breeze that caressed his cheek. “You’re just like Uuniyarcha, Naeemah.”

She sniffled and mumbled against his shirt, “Who?”

Krethik smiled. “Uuniyarcha. She was a legendary warrior with—” he considered how to tie the urumi into Nyarlea “—four sleek tails made of metal.”

Naeemah pulled away and wiped her nose on the inside of her sleeve. “How did she get dressed?”

“Very carefully,” he laughed. “Uuniyarcha was a master of Kalari, you see. She used her tails as her weapon, and she fiercely protected what she believed in. There are many stories about Uuniyarcha taking on a dozen adversaries at once and coming out victorious.” He brushed the last of the tears away from Naeemah’s face just as the rain began to ease. “And her beauty captured every eye that was lucky enough to see her.”

Naeemah stepped aside and knelt to retreat her dagger. “That doesn’t sound like me at all.”

“You may not see it now, but I trust that you will in time.” He watched as she straightened and returned the dagger to its sheathe. “And in that time, people will change, the world will change, and we will change. Ishani’s decision is one to be celebrated, not scorned.”

She chewed on his words and looked up at the sky. “Will you leave me, too, Krethik?”

He hesitated, then chose to speak his heart. “Not until the goddess calls me away from you, Naeemah. You have my word.”

A tense silence passed between them, and then Naeemah nodded. “I believe you.” She glanced over her shoulder at the target, and a light blush tinged her cheeks. “I… I want to wish Ishani well. I’ll go get my dagger and meet you inside?”

“Of course. We can continue practicing Kalari after she’s left if you’d like.”

Her face brightened, and her ears twitched contentedly. “Okay!”

As Krethik watched her jog toward the target, his heart felt lighter. He often wondered if he should tell her how difficult it was not to think of her as his daughter.

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