LEGACY OF THE FALLEN
Chapter 20
"How is he?" Jasmine asked, waiting outside the room as soon as Arihant stepped out.
"He's fine. You're the one who healed him, after all," Arihant replied.
"I'm not talking about his body. I'm asking how he is mentally," Jasmine said, her expression clouded with worry.
"He just needs some inner reflection," Arihant answered, already turning away. "Let's talk elsewhere."
They went to the hall and sat at the dining table. Jasmine was the first to speak
"What kind of power does he actually possess? I thought I wouldn't be surprised by unique types of Tejas anymore—since all the members of Mad Dogs possess weird Tejas no one's seen before—but Aksh... he's weird in a different way."
"What is it that you find different in him?" Arihant asked, crossing his legs.
"First, it's his Tejas. I thought his core was just damaged—as Dhruva had said—but maybe still functional to some extent. But when I healed him, I couldn't feel any core inside him. It wasn't broken…it was like he never had a core to begin with. But if that's true—how is he able to possess such a terrifying Tejas?
Arihant smiled and replied, "Why are you so surprised by the fact that he doesn't have a core? Aren't I the same as well?"
Jasmine's eyes widened. "But how could it be...? Your reason is entirely different. If you didn't—"
"Is there anything else you find different about him?" Arihant asked, cutting her off mid-sentence.
Jasmine calmed herself, choosing not to continue that thought. Then she replied, "Yes, there is. The tejavrittas pill we gave him—it should've had enough energy to heal his body from near-death twenty times over. But when I cured him, the energy from the pill was already spent. I had to use my own Tejas to heal him further.
"There can be only two reasons for the consumption of the energy of Tejavrittas," Arihant said. "Either the energy was used for that attack he unleashed… or it was absorbed by his body to strengthen his muscles."
"If it's the first reason, then the pill was completely wasted. But if it's the second…" He paused and grinned.
"Then Aksh might be the perfect one to utilize the Tejavrittas to their maximum potential."
"There's something strange with my body. My muscles have bulked up… and I might've gained a few kilos," Aksh muttered, staring at his reflection in the mirror as he peeled off his torn shirt.
"Hahaha! What are you talking about? Even your ribs are still showing, you skeleton. And you're saying you bulked up? What a joke! The only thing that's bulked up is your delusions—hahaha!" the voice in his mind laughed.
Aksh stomped over to the almirah and yanked out another shirt and threw it on in a hurry.
"Are you embarrassed now, skeleton?" the voice mocked.
"Just shut up, geezer," Aksh sighed and flopped onto the bed.
"Are you really going to waste the rest of your day like this?" the voice rang in his mind.
"What else can I do? Arihant told me to rest," Aksh replied, staring up at the ceiling with his hands behind his head.
"He told you to rest because he thought you might be exhausted. But you already devoured all the energy from that strange pill—and you're in peak condition right now."
"But I don't have anyone to train with right now," Aksh mumbled, turning onto his side.
"I can teach you a method where you won't need anyone else to train with," the voice replied smoothly.
Aksh immediately jumped off the bed. "Wait—there's really such a method?"
The voice answered with pride, "Haha! Of course there is! Who do you think I am? I am the Demon God! This technique was created by me—and only those who possess demonic Tejas can use it."
"So, what should I do?" Aksh asked.
"You just need to connect your demonic Tejas with your mind," the voice replied. "Once you do, you'll be able to enter your Mind World, where you can fight anyone whose Tejas has ever connected with yours—even once."
Aksh's eyes lit up with curiosity. "Then how do I connect my mind with Tejas?"
The voice chuckled mockingly. "Hah! You haven't even reached one star in Tejas yet. There's no way you can connect your mind with it. You can't even control your Tejas properly, let alone fuse it with your consciousness but…"
Aksh sat down on the bed, disappointment written all over his face. "So why would you tell me about a technique I can't even use...? Wait..." His eyes widened as he suddenly stood back up. "Are you going to control my Tejas to connect it to my mind?"
"Don't jump to conclusions, brat," the voice grumbled. "I already told you—I can't control your body or your Tejas. But—"
"So there's no way, then." Aksh flopped back onto the bed, defeated.
"When did I say that?!" the voice shouted in anger. "And stop interrupting me while I'm talking!"
"Sit down on the floor and close your eyes," the voice ordered. Aksh sat down in the lotus position without asking anything and closed his eyes. "Now do as I tell you, and don't make a single mistake, or you will die right then and there."
Aksh began to focus, and the noises outside started to quiet down—the chirping of birds, the rustling of leaves in the wind, even the faint creaking of the window panes. Every sound slowly faded as he sank deeper into concentration.
There it was.
The sound of his heartbeat.
Thump…
Thump…
Thump…
"I can hear it," Aksh replied inwardly.
"Now focus further and tell me—what is it that you see inside your heart?" the voice said.
Aksh sharpened his concentration, diving deeper into the core of his being.
"There's nothing inside my heart. It's… it's only darkness," Aksh replied.
"Focus more, or you'll be swallowed by the darkness of your own heart!" the voice shouted.
Aksh didn't respond for nearly five minutes. He didn't move. He didn't breathe. He sat there like a lifeless statue, plunging deeper and deeper into himself.
"I… I can see it," Aksh finally replied.
"What do you see?" the voice asked instantly, a tinge of curiosity in its tone.
"There's a small flame in the darkness," Aksh said slowly. "It's crimson red… and it's warm."