THEY walked about various sections of the town, collecting dried nuts, fruits, and vegetables and some smoked meat. Then they had their weapons checked by a local smith; the town did not seem to have an arsenal, no doubt because of the lack of soldiers or guards, but the smith himself seemed to have enough knowledge to repair their items.

“Give me a day and I should have them repaired well,” said the smith as he inspected the weapons. “Ah! Be careful you don’t travel through the arch at the far end of town. Every so often, a strange fog happens to come up upon the hill. Many of our people become lost for days on end and some have even claimed to have seen a sorcerer atop it. They in good mind didn’t approach him and I’d expect the same from anyone else. Not good to deal in magic here.”

“Do you mean magic or the use of powers?” asked Nakthaḥm.

“What difference does it make!” said the smith. “No good comes from dabbling in such things, even if it were at one time given to us by the Gods. The only ones we trust with such abilities are the Servants. Anyone else is just asking for trouble—such things attract demonic behavior! We’ve had many problems with such individuals and threw them out from here. They’re said to reside in the Banyan Forest toward the west of here.”

“Demonic, you say,” said Nakthaḥm as he grinned. “That may very well be the case, but this sorcerer you speak of does sound interesting, and I have been quite bored as of late. Perhaps I shall venture to see them.”

The smith sighed and said, “Do as you wish. I’ve warned you now so don’t blame me if any ill should befall you!” He then spotted the Dvı̄sahlvah within the weapons and, taking them out and looking at them closely, he said, “Quite interesting gems. I’ve only known royal folk to have put such things in their weapons.” He then gave them a suspicious look but at last tossed them over their way and said, “No matter; take them with you. Better they’re not here while I’m working. Enjoy your day, folks!”

And so the group bowed to him and took their leave with the Dvı̄sahlvah. They spent some more time walking about the town before stopping by a Triahkṣhel. Nakthaḥm and Sanyhaḥmān talked with each other for some time, while Tūmbṃār still remained silent. Vrihkhaḥ kept watch over him but could not so much as whimper or grunt in the boy’s direction.

They afterward passed through the wide streets and happened upon a pond and took shelter under a nearby banyan. The wind was calm, and there were some children who played on the other side. There were also some fisherman using tridents to pierce the fish by the edges of the pond. They would use a unique whistle to call the fish to their side and when they were close enough, they would quickly plunge the trident, at times skewering three of them within the center prong.

When the sun began descending into the west, the four of them left from the shelter of the tree and made to the northern edge of town where the arch was set. The path seemed clear, with only grass and some rocks in the way. No fog could be seen toward the summit.

“You sure we should do this, Nakthaḥm? We don’t even have our weapons upon us,” said Sanyhaḥmān.

“You can stay here if you wish, but I am very bored now,” said Nakthaḥm, yawning. “If the sorcerer really is at the peak, perhaps we can strike a quite interesting conversation—before he turns us into unsightly creatures.”

“That’s what I’m worried about. You probably don’t have to care, being already an unsightly creature already.”

“If only that were the case, not even Demons are immune to such things. Not as if it would matter, given my body is sealed.” He turned to Vrihkhaḥ and said, “I assume Tūmbṃār shall come with us, so look after him.”

The wolf nodded, and the four of them began their ascent.

The hill at first glance was not very tall, perhaps only a few hundred feet. But the trail that spiraled around it seemed to go on for long. After much time was spent moving around the base, it seemed they were not even half-way up. The sun, however, remained as it was, and this bode ill for they sensed something strange occurring, not unlike the illusion in the desert. Yet they held to their resolve and continued to climb. The grass seemed to grow longer as they ascended, and the rocks even larger. The path became wide and also steepened.

Then, without warning, the fog descended and so thick it was that they could barely see in front of themselves. They walked slowly through it. Tūmbṃār felt a familiarity with this. Without warning, he raced past the others and they tried to follow him. But his footsteps quickly faded and all sign of him vanished.

“Ah! Just our luck,” cried Sanyhaḥmān. “How’re we going to find him now?”

“With haste and speed, monkey!” said Nakthaḥm, pulling Sanyhaḥmān in his sprint. “We will catch up to him. Vrihkhaḥ, move ahead, and find Tūmbṃār!”

Vrihkhaḥ answered the call and raced into the fog, now gone like the boy. The day was to be long. Now already set with an unfortunate turn of events.