Shiva stared at his hands — the tattoos pulsing faintly, one on the right and one on the left.
The warmth in his veins felt… alive, like two distinct heartbeats echoing inside him.
He blinked. "What the hell just happened?"
The Interface shimmered to life before him — brighter, sharper, as if responding to his confusion.
....
[Status Update Detected]
[System Level: 4 → Confirmed]
[New Attribute Unlocked: LUCK (Evolved from PRANA)]
[Adaptive Evolution: Energy Flow Optimized]
[Note: Link Synchrony Between Entities — Stable at 78%]
....
Shiva frowned. "Luck? That's new."
He scrolled through the glowing window — everything looked smoother, refined. His skills pulsed with faint glyphs of fire and wind.
For the first time, he could feel both — the slow burn of the Ashen Ram, and the swift whisper of the Azure Deer.
Turning toward the doorway, he called, "Baba?"
Shyam Baba was sitting cross-legged outside the hut, eyes half-closed, the morning light turning his white hair golden. He didn't turn, but his lips curved faintly.
"So… you've met your second companion."
Shiva sat beside him, still dazed. "I don't understand. They both appeared out of nowhere. I fought the deer… and then it just—merged with me. Like the ram."
He rubbed the tattoo on his left hand. "And now this 'luck' thing shows up."
Baba nodded slowly. "You are walking the path of the old gods, boy. The system only records what once flowed through the veins of sages."
He picked up a stick and drew two simple shapes on the earth — a flame and a swirl of air.
"Agni and Vayu — Fire and Wind. Two divine forces, bound since the dawn of this land. They walked among men once, their powers carried by beasts — the ram of fire and the deer of wind. When the gods retreated, their mounts lingered as fragments of their essence."
Shiva looked at him, silent. "You mean… the beasts I'm linking with are their echoes?"
Baba's eyes opened, calm but unreadable. "Their vessels. You are their bridge."
Before Shiva could respond, the world seemed to tremble faintly — not the ground, but inside his head.
A low, rumbling chuckle brushed his ear.
"Finally awake, are you, boy?"
He froze. The voice was deep, resonant — the same heat he'd felt from the Ashen Ram.
Then another voice — higher, softer, laced with mischief — whispered from the other side.
"He's slow, as always. Took him long enough to notice us."
Shiva spun around, but there was no one there.
Only the faint echo of both voices, overlapping, circling inside his skull.
He clutched his head. "Who—what are you?"
The deep voice rumbled, amused.
"We are you. The flame that burns."
The lighter one followed, a soft breeze through his mind.
"And the wind that guides."
The Interface pulsed again, confirming the truth.
....
[Neural Link Activated: Ashen Ram / Azure Deer]
[Voice Communication: Enabled]
[Link Integrity: Stable]
....
Shiva exhaled slowly, lowering his hands. The air around him shimmered faintly — heat and wind intertwining like two old friends reborn.
Shyam Baba simply smiled, watching the glow in Shiva's eyes — one flickering red, the other faint blue.
"Now," Baba said quietly, "your real journey begins. The voices of the old world walk beside you."
And for the first time since his resurrection, Shiva didn't feel alone.
End of Chapter 15