by Kevin Missal
From the edge, he saw Kara. Kalki had told her that he’ll be joining the war and will fight alongside them. She was going towards the frozen river where Kalki had been standing a while ago. Some of the army was being positioned at the bridge and the rest had been instructed to go towards the valley where they began to create bamboo pillars so they could block that pathway. Whatever the Vanars did, they did for defending themselves.
And that’s what is going to kill them?
“Where do you think you are off to, kid?” Kalki heard a familiar voice. “I hope you haven’t forgotten about me, eh?”
Kalki turned to see Ratna Maru standing with Smrit. They were both geared up as well. Ratna was cheekily grinning at Padma and Kalki as she came forward.
“I thought you had done your job of saving your kind and wanted to leave,” Kalki responded.
“I did. But after hearing Kripa, I felt I should follow you, at least for this mission. You must be really special.” She winked.
“I don’t know about that, but thanks.” Kalki smiled.
“I’m sorry I didn’t complete my story. I didn’t trust you all that much, so I didn’t share it with you.” She put her hand on his shoulder. “But that was before.”
“The story where your husband . . .”
“Yes.” She sadly nodded. “He was a kind man, a good man. Just like you. You remind me of him—brave and honourable. But don’t be a fool by getting yourself killed like him. You see, now that I look back, it was his tragedy that set me on this path—to free all the Apsaras. His death became the salvation of my race. I know you are sad, but try to see this tragedy as an opportunity to become stronger. And you shall be.”
Kalki held her hand and nodded. “Thank you.”
And as Ratna was moving with Smrit towards the frozen river, Kalki asked her, “Who was your husband?”
“He was the Prince of Alakpur, Manigriva. He was killed by his own brother, Nalakuvera.” She clenched her jaw as she went ahead, not realizing she had raised Kalki’s spirits.
There was no way that he was going to lose this battle.
Before heading to fight, Kalki had to visit the man himself.
He was standing where Kalki had seen him for the first time, hanging from the cherry tree, looking at the sun. But this time, the wind was blowing fiercely and the sun was just an orange dot in the faraway horizon. The snowflakes brushed Kalki’s face, though he ignored them.
Kalki walked forward, hoping to intercept Lord Bajrang, but before he could do anything Bajrang spoke up.
“You do realize I am praying, don’t you?” Bajrang asked without turning his head. His bobbing ears had let him hear Kalki’s footsteps.
But Kalki didn’t care. He was furious at Lord Bajrang—he was not fighting for his people. It was stupid of him to just be there, praying to the sun.
“I hope you know I’m fighting for your cause.”
“I thought you didn’t care.”
“I started caring after I learnt you are doing nothing about it.”
At that, Bajrang leapt from the tree and faced Kalki. He was not smiling anymore. “I have told you the reason.”
“I know.” Kalki sarcastically smiled. “Lord Bajrang, you are a revered god. People worship you. I have sent my mother to your temple so she could be safe under your protection. But I guess I was wrong. My mother is not safe with you because you can’t even save your own kind.”
“There’s a reason, son, why my idols exist till date, because I keep my promises, my words. I have honoured my word to Lord Raghav. He didn’t want any violence and wanted me to start with it.”
“Perhaps Lord Raghav was right. Perhaps he didn’t want violence anymore, that’s why he told you to follow the path of non-violence and spread peace and harmony in this world. But have you ever thought that if Lord Raghav was alive right now, would he not break his word to protect his people?”
Bajrang shook his head. “He would never do that. He had asked Lady Sita to stay away from the kingdom because his people wanted so. He was faithful to his kind. He kept his word. They hadn’t trusted Lady Sita even though she was the most pious woman to walk on this earth. And Lord Raghav adhered to it, because he was not just a king . . . he was a god.”
“I know that.” Kalki had heard what had happened to Lady Sita. He had heard about the agnipareeksha. “He was a king, not just a husband. He trusted his wife and yet he allowed other people to influence his decisions. And Lady Sita died alone and he still kept his word to his people.”
Bajrang nodded. There was no doubt in his mind as he said, “He kept his word and that shows what a true god he was.”
“I know that. He was the perfect man, that’s what my gurukul taught me, the perfect man who did perfect things and strived to create a perfect society. But what is so great about perfection?” Kalki stood close to Bajrang, meeting his eyes. “I would break every word, every oath if it means I could save a single soul. I would break it without thinking twice. I don’t care if I am thrown in hell and I’m considered disrespectful because of it. That’s the difference between you and me. You are right. We all have our battles to fight. And unfortunately, I’m fighting your battle. But it’s all right because if you can’t do it, I will. Taar is a monster created by you. Now he’s someone I have to kill.”
Kalki turned to leave and Bajrang stood frozen to the ground, his face impassive.
Sitting on Devadutta with his head held high, Kalki tightly wrapped the warm fur that covered his body. He was at the Frontier near the frozen river. Kara stood close to the shore, ready to pounce and attack. He saw Ratna and Smrit taking their battle stances. Most Vanars here were on foot, some were on horseback, and the smaller Vanars were on mules.
Kalki waited for Kara’s order, who was leading the army. He dismounted from the horse and looked across the lake where Taar was with his army. Aruna was standing next to him with many of his ferocious, scarred Vanars along with him.
“We cannot move further,” Kalki said to Kara. “The ice is thin and it might break if there’s an army fighting on it.”
Kara nodded. “But they don’t know that, right?”
Kalki smiled. “Then start the mocking.”
Kara smiled back and then ordered in her Vanar language to spew abuses and vulgar words at Taar and his men. Taar initially didn’t do anything but then he glanced at Aruna, and with two of his thick burly fingers, he signalled his army to move further. Taar and Aruna stayed in the same spot.
They did what Kalki and Kara had anticipated. They were walking on the ice, but Kalki noticed something—the ice wasn’t shattering. They were tiptoeing on the ice, and didn’t have any heavy weapons or armour to increase their weight. They were nimble-footed and their steps were unhurried. Slowly and steadily, they were advancing towards Bajrang’s camp .
“If they continue like this, we might have to jump on the frozen lake as well,” Padma suggested.
Kalki shook his head as he took off his fur. He walked and stood close to the frozen lake, though a little bit away from the actual ice. Looking at his reflection in the lake, he knelt down.
“What are you doing, boy?” asked Ratna in her high-pitched voice.
Kalki didn’t respond.
It’s better to do than to say.
He pulled up his arm, flexing his muscles as he saw Taar’s army approach them. Almost a hundred of them were trudging over the ice.
And then, curling his strong fingers into a fist, he punched the frozen lake.
“What!” Kara exclaimed. “You cannot break it! It’s too hard.”
Kalki didn’t listen. He punched the ice again. The army was getting close. His fist was bleeding and the blood was seeping into the ice. And then the ice turned white and black at the same time—a crack appeared.
It was happening.
Kalki delivered one final blow on the lake. The cracks started widening and slowly reached the entire facet of the river, making way towards the army who just looked at it, uns
ure of what to do next.
And then the ice smashed.
The entire army was plunged inside the cold, harsh water, fighting for their breaths. He looked up to see the Vanars, trying to reach the shore, but getting drowned in the chaotic waters. He also saw Taar’s face. He was petrified but furious. Flaring his nostrils in anger, he left the scene.
“I think we surprised him.”
Kalki could hear applause from everyone until a panting, restless Vanar came towards them, running from the bridge.
“What happened?” Kara asked, trying to calm him down.
“Madam, Taar’s army . . . they are crossing the bridge. They are about to attack our men!”
Kalki gritted his teeth.
He knew what he had to do next!
Manasa saw chaos.
As she entered the once glorious kingdom of Suparnika, she saw chaos. And it was not Tarakshya’s fault. It was Kadru’s. Things were blowing up. Fire had engulfed everything. People were running around here and there. As the flying eagle stopped and landed, Manasa lurched from it.
People were running, trying to find some sort of refuge while others jumped on their own vimanas —the flying Amrit or Soma induced vehicles—trying to escape. They looked similar to the one she had seen Padma riding back in Indragarh, albeit with a few modifications. Here the vimanas were crafted better, with light metal to hold them higher in the sky and to take sharp turns with strong wings.
Manasa knew that the ground was shaking and the city would crumble any second, because the pillars had started to collapse and it was destabilizing the entire order of the place.
“Listen,” she called out to Tarakshya and her guards, “get as many as you can on this vehicle of yours and other vimanas. We do not have time. We need to help everyone escape. How long can the pillars sustain this city?”
“Not for long.” Tarakshya was shivering as if he had seen a ghost.
“Do you know how this could have happened?”
“The Somalata plans, they are infused with an oil which is very combustible but the Somas themselves are not. That’s why whenever we fly in the sky, we do not let the oil touch the fire when we ignite it. We bind the Somas from one edge of a cloth when we . . . uh . . . from where the oil comes out, so it doesn’t come out when we bind it, I mean. In that way, the flying is not harmful or dangerous to the passengers.”
“I don’t want to know the physics of your bloody vehicle! For all I know, they are made of stupid magical contraptions.” She cursed. “I want to know how this happened. Why are the pillars weak?”
“Uh . . . everything is connected to the oil from the Somalata plants. There are vines that are attached to the pillar which push out the oil. Someone must have brought combustible material inside the caves, which is strictly prohibited, igniting the plants. This may be why it has spread like wildfire.”
Manasa understood the situation. Kadru must have burnt down the Somalata plants or at least ignited the oil, causing it to spread. This fire was eating away the strong pillars, and with every minute, it was devastating the foundation of the city.
“Get the biggest vimanas, the biggest ships, and get the people out of this city and down to the bridge or the meadow, where they could be safe! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?”
Tarakshya nervously nodded.
“What are you going to do?” asked Tarakshya.
“Stop Kadru!”
From there Manasa walked forward, with a sword dangling on her waistbelt, encased in a sheath. She walked as the frantic public ran around aimlessly. She finally saw the remnants of the feast, but there was so much screaming in the streets that were being engulfed by the unrestrained fire, that she could make neither head nor tail of the situation. Worse, the city was quaking every few seconds. It was getting hard for her to maintain her balance.
There she is.
Her eyes caught a glimpse of Kadru and Jamun racing towards one of the vimanas at the flying station. The guards didn’t care to stop them. They were busy running away from the fire. Manasa walked towards Kadru and Jamun, pulling out her sword from the sheath, keeping her limp hand close to her chest.
“KADRU!”
Kadru turned and Manasa realized how different she looked with a one-eyed patch. Her other eye was twitching in hellish rage.
“Oh god!” exclaimed Kadru as she hopped on to the vimana, hastily positioning herself on the seat along with two sacks that she kept on it carefully.
They must be the plants to be used for the astras. I have to retrieve them from her.
Manasa moved forward. She saw Kadru pushing Jamun aside. He was trying to get himself up on the vimana, but was finding it difficult to climb in because of his weight.
“I don’t have time for this,” Kadru yelled.
Jamun was shocked by Kadru’s betrayal as the vimana flew up in the air, leaving him behind. Manasa cursed at her. Jamun saw Manasa coming close to him, screaming for vengeance. He instantly dropped down on his knees, begging for his life.
Manasa didn’t take much time. She knew what she had to do.
She plunged the sword inside Jamun’s throat and pulled it out, letting the blood spray on her gown as he fell on the ground, lifeless.
“This is for Nanda, my dear,” Manasa spat at the corpse of Jamun.
She had to act fast. She went for the nearest vimana regulated by a Suparn guard. Manasa knocked and elbowed him out of the way as she started to pilot the vimana. She could see a lot of buttons and switches. Unable to figure out how it worked, she started to panic. And then she saw a lever.
She had no idea what it would do. And still, she pulled it.
As soon as it was pulled, heat started emanating from the end of the vimana which was shaped like a tail. The heat hit the Amrit that was inside. The fire crackled and with a blast of smoke, Manasa was up in the air.
Manasa thought about how she would one day like to sit down and understand the machinations of the vimana. But not today! The only purpose in her mind right now was to kill the bitch.
The vimana suspended her in the air as the wind grew harsh. There was a small explosion in the city, but Manasa’s face was locked on to Kadru. She could see Kadru flying away into the distance, out of her reach.
Manasa looked at the mechanism now. There were a few other levers that she could see. She began to pull them one by one, and with each pull something or the other was happening. The vimana was tilting, turning upside down, and changing positions. Manasa was getting agitated when at last, she pulled a lever that speeded up the vehicle. The heat was maximized now, as she could feel the heat wave emanating from her seat. But she didn’t care. She had to catch up to Kadru. She had to reach her before the fuel ran out. She had to stop her.
Her vimana had now caught up to Kadru’s vimana. They were positioned parallel to each other. Manasa used the wheel in front of her to manoeuver her vimana and rammed it against Kadru’s vehicle, causing the right wing of her vehicle to blast. The wing was now scorched and her vimana started to spiral.
And then Manasa realized that the speed was depleting the fuel. The vehicle’s movements were getting slower, and the vimana was losing altitude.
She had to do something.
And she did the unthinkable. They were above fifty feet, in the midst of clouds where the breeze was strong.
She had come to Suparnika to talk to Tarakshya. Here she was now, standing in mid-air, about to do something she had never done before.
Here goes nothing.
She jumped.
She jumped from one vimana to another, grabbing onto the edges as she came inside the space where Kadru stood. At that moment, Kadru attacked her with her sword. Manasa parried it with her own sword, climbing inside the vimana in the process.
“It’s over, Kadru. STOP.”
“I’ll only stop if you kill me. But today is not the day I die.”
The clanging of their swords went on for some time. Kadru managed to wound Manasa’s shoulder. Manasa howled in pain, l
etting her sword fall. She was standing near the edge. Kadru came forward pointing her sword at Manasa. And with a quick and a final strike, Kadru charged at her with tremendous might.
In an instant, Manasa lowered her stance and grabbed Kadru by the waist, taking her by surprise. It happened in a flash as she pinned her against the edge and toppled her from the vimana. Kadru managed to grip the edge, but her sword fell from the skies, never to be seen again.
“Please . . . please . . . sister, grab me,” she pleaded, her hand outstretched.
And for a moment, Manasa saw the cousin she had always loved and mentored.
She had waited for this moment. She wanted to revel in it. But all she felt was deep-seated sadness.
“I would have, but Nanda, Vasuki’s children . . . There is no place for you even in the deepest reaches of hell. I fare you well, sister.” And Manasa picked up her sword, stabbing her in the arm. She plunged the steel as deeply as she could. Kadru screamed and howled in agony, as she dangled from the edge, unable to die.
Kadru knew the look on Manasa’s face. It was pity.
Manasa pulled the sword out.
And she fell . . .
Down . . .
And down . . .
And down . . .
Kadru became a dot and then disappeared altogether. Manasa sighed. She had fulfilled her mission.
At that moment, she sent a silent prayer for the souls she had loved, those who had left her too soon.
They were on the run.
Arjan had asked Urvashi for some time off with Rudra before he left for prison. She had asked Rudra to leave without a fuss, so that she wouldn’t face any political brunt. But Arjan didn’t care. As soon as they got their private time in the room, Arjan packed his sack and asked Rudra to run away with him.
Rudra agreed. He was afraid of going back into that hellhole where he had had to spend most of his life. Never again. Ramras’ attempts to incriminate him would be in vain. Today was the day he would be truly free.