"Wake up, Arya! How will I answer Shatanika and Karenumati? Please wake up!" She sobbed on the corpse's chest, wetting it with her tears.
His mouth was partially open, reciprocating the eyes that had sunken into oblivion.
The dried foam on the sides of his lips had travelled down to his jugular, which in turn, had turned a shade of laguna from his usual caramel skin.
"If you go away, I shall follow you. Neither death, nor life, nor the fears of this world would be good enough to make me stay! I DO NOT WISH TO BE ALIVE!" She cupped his face and cradled it close to her heart. Death had chilled his skin into a stone-cold carcass.
Surviving the loss of a loved one was so difficult.
Her life was fruiting under a tree of misfortunes; first her son, and now her husband had abandoned her in a barren wilderness of cataclysm. How was she going to find light in such murk?
"Uthiye na Arya! You can't be gone. I need you here, with me. What am I going to do without you?" Pain choked off her cries, and in her heart, the plaintive words began to echo in a yet more biting clamour.
Indistinct voices of some men, speaking in a foreign tongue filled her wakeful ears.
She sniffed and looked around. Blurred vision flew to places, tracing the beings who assaulted her husband without a reason.
The offenders surely had put their hands inside the wrong den, for right that moment, Chandraja was anything but forgiving.
Hands snaked towards Nakul's scabbard, as she watched the distant chaparral twitch in secrecy.
It seemed like somebody was, or were, rummaging their way throughout the thickets.
Kairavi wiped the streams rolling down her cheeks with the back of her hands, and rose to her feet.
Her fingers choked the hilt of the dagger, promising destruction for whoever was ill-omened to come out of the bushes.
Grabbing the silver blade, she angled the obelisk in such a way that the mantle nudged the back of her right shoulder.
Another movement, and the weapon was hurled in the air at a precarious speed.
It swooshed right past the towering trees and vanished into the green labyrinth.
The incoherent murmurs stopped abruptly, discharging brooding silence into the atmosphere.
Maybe she had killed someone.
Earth-shaking hollers and shrieks echoed through the meadow the next moment.
Arni couldn't figure out whether the cacophony of noises intended festivity or bereavement.
The leaves twitched more severely, making her body stiffen in vigilance. She had no idea how many they were, or if they were hospitable enough to let her mourn for her husband's death in peace.
Some savagely dressed tribals riffled the leaves out of the way, so that their leader could make himself known to the unfortunate widow.
A tall individual, with formidable muscles and an ash-encrusted torso, stood before a trunk with his minions on his side.
They rolled their tongues and jumped up and down while the chieftain stayed put in his place, smirking tauntingly at the daughter of the moon.
Her eyes travelled from the gear on his head, to the dark stripes under his eyes and his hefty beard. They finally came to a halt at the crook between his neck and shoulders, where a splash of fresh blood sat, coming from a slit.
Her weapon had narrowly missed his throat and hit the bark of the innocent tree behind him instead. But at least, she had managed to impart some damage to the enemy.
The stooges dropped on their knees and bowed their heads in reverence, as the leader walked past them. His smile remained intact.
They wore magnificent buffalo robes, ornamented and worked with beads, horsehair, and porcupine quills.
The tribal lord wore several necklaces of charms, and furry animal hides as attire.
The garlands rattled against each other as he approached Kairavi and her dead husband with slow and heavy steps.
She observed, that out of all the people in the clan, only one person carried a bow and quiver. The wooden equipment hung graciously from his buff shoulders.
Furor rushed into her veins along with the realization of the murderer's face. He was going to pay for his audacity.
"Any last wishes?" She asked, voice shaking with maleficence. The man raised his eyebrows and chuckled, "We mistook a lioness for a doe, lads." His voice was implausibly deep, and laced with casual playfulness.
There was a marvelous, dark lyricism in his baritone, the kind of defiance that is rooted in deep ostracism with little to no signs of remorse for killing an innocent individual.
"I asked something, you barbarous buffoon!" she howled. A hearty peal of laughter emerged from his coloured lips.
"Keval shabdon ke teer chalati ho, ya dhanurvidya ka kuch gyan bhi hai?"
"None of my husbands ever atrocized any tribes dwelling here. We always treated your people with respect and care; so who gave you the right to snatch my spouse away from me?"
Despair leaked like an unruly dam from her voice. She looked so unrealistically pretty, even with wild tears running down her face that the forest dweller couldn't help but admire her.
"In our culture, we would perceive that as an invocation for a battle." He swiped out some of the blood from his injury, making sure she observed his every move.
The dhanush was lifted from his buff shoulders and an arrow was pulled out of a stash next.
Stretching the string taut, he aimed at Chandreya and grinned.
"Does your culture also teach men to attack warriors behind their backs and raise weapons at an unarmed woman?" Arni criticized while taking a few steps back to Nakul's body. The cult leader, however, paid no attention to her utterances.
He was only so close to being cursed by a wistful victim, but that was far away from being bothersome to him.
There was something comforting about him, and Kairavi was not sure whether it was his easy manner or his complete immunity to her anguish.
"Anagh." The coloured robe one declared, and released the string.
The arrow flew towards Chandrasuta, making her eyes widen in horror. It whistled in the air while approaching the ex-queen of Indraprasth with the speed of thoughts.
Swallowing a shriek, she squeezed her orbs shut as the dart went right past her, and stabbed the tree behind.
Twang!
It called out, and the dome of the sky seemed to echo the sound.
Her soul trembled on her lips like dew on a flower, making the poor woman bawl some more silent tears for her husband.
That's exactly how he must have felt when the arrow pierced his body; numb and agonizing.
She lifted her gaze off the ground, where she didn't realize her eyes had been looking at.
She wasn't in charge of her body anymore; for her hand, as if it had a mind of his own, reached for her ear.
Something slimy sat on top of her skin, making her wonder if it was the same poison used on her Arya. She looked at her fingers and confronted a crimson liquid, the same on Anagh's shoulder.
"That makes us equal."
Kairavi let the words sink in. What was this man trying to prove? Who was he, and how did he plummet into her life like a catastrophic avalanche off a glacier?
"Why?" She begged. "Why did you kill my husband?" "He is not dead." He replied, rather nonchalantly as if it was something he did every day.
Chitra gyrated on her heels, faster than a tornado to examine any signs of life on Nakul's corpse. But there were none.
She turned back around and screamed, "He is dead!"
"It is fun, going back and forth with you. But unfortunately, it will lead to nowhere. How about we strike up a deal?" He offered, taking a few steps closer to her. "I shall revive your husband if you defeat me in a duel of swords."
"What happens if I lose?"
"You die along with him."
"What if your leeches attack me?"
"That will not happen. I give you my word."
He stared back at her with his fierce hawk's gaze. "If I die, my men will resuscitate your husband on my behalf."
Usually, an enemy's promise would not have had such an effect on Kairavi, but he was a little different. He reminded her of her family as he held her captive under his mesmerizing gaze.
Was she being tested?
Even Parshuram's curse seemed to have taken a leave for the time being, for his pledge infused hope in her veins. She decided to cling to her fleeting ambition.
"I will kill you before you can even swing your sword." Her voice was reduced to a gruff murmur, denoting her ever-growing wrath.
She mentally vowed, to not stop fighting until she or he reached the threshold of Yamraj's abode.
Anagh stretched his hands, and a subordinate handed him two large swords, each with detailed metal engravings.
The two weapons shone like a mirror under sunlight, reflecting Kairavi's face on the blade as she accepted the challenge.
Chandreya's eyes puked fire. The past three years of her life, her knowledge, her training, her spontaneity were being put to a test.
Her pulse raced, pounding in her ears above the placid wind. The thought of Nakul's life depending upon the outcome of this fight sent a nervous chill down her entire body.
Closing her eyes, Arni whispered a prayer for her inner strength to guide her path.
'Always let the enemy make the first move.
Observe the attacking order, and charge eagerly.' Sahadev's lessons resonated in her ears.
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Anagh went for an analytical move first; wielding the blade in a semicircular arc towards Chandraputri's thigh.
She blocked it easily.
He quickly removed the weapon before she could vivify her senses back for the next onslaught; and spun on the ball of his foot, bringing the deadly edge over Kairavi's neck.
Fortunately, she ducked just in time to avoid getting beheaded at the beginning of the fight.
Emerging from below his elbow, she glared up at the chieftain. "Hmm, not too shabby." he accoladed.
The rest of the tribe stood frozen in place, as Arni and Anagh's irises clashed into a battle of their own.
The meadow was particularly silent that day; for even the rustling of dry leaves felt like being pierced with spears in the eardrums.
Chandraja groaned and strode towards him, dagger raised in the offense.
Spinning like a toy, she whirled the sword at his torso while trying to make him lose his balance at the same time.
Her hair fluttered in the air and hit his face repeatedly, having him use his other arm as a shield to protect his eyes.
He could hardly see where his or her weapon was going.
'Deception is a crucial art when it comes to combats.'
Estimation could only protect him for so long. Kairavi sped up and began slashing small cuts on his arms and chest with the tip of her sword. But the tribal leader was quick to catch on.
She rejoiced mentally as he learnt the pattern and made his counter-attacks in accordance with her.
The fortissimo collisions of metals had transitioned into rattles, as both the warriors continued clattering against each other's blades that sent sparks flying into the air.
Grasping Anagh's silver blade with her left hand, she changed directions using his rapier as a fulcrum.
Seeing the shank coming at him to grouch his eyes out, the tribal lord dipped and side-stepped to the right, dodging the attack by a hair's breadth.
He snatched his weapon, drenched in his opponent's blood from her hand, making Kairavi wince in pain.
Screaming with anger, she charged at him again.
Her dagger was flinging barrages at the headman at a perilous pace. She smiled at her impressive moves, finally getting the upper hand in the battle.
'Overconfidence is the certain death of a warrior.'
Anagh had had enough. Revolving the weapon in his hand, he caught the hilt in such a way that the blade was facing backward.
With one swift movement, he smacked Chandraputri with the wooden part, sending her tumbling to the ground.
Blood spilled out from between her fingers that held her nose.
Tears stung the corners of her eyes as she watched the chieftain approaching her with the same smirk on his face.
"You remind me of a weasel. So prompt and sneaky."
Kairavi snarled at his coy comment. Quick to recover, she sprang up on her ankles, hands tightening around her sword.
"This fight will go on till one of us drop dead on the ground," she growled.
"Pretty eager to die, huh?"
"Although I am unconvinced that I desire life anymore, I am not yet ready to embrace death."
Another round of aggression began. Chitrakshi's wrists were flicking at an unbelievable speed, backing him towards the river.
However, she didn't know that. His broad stature successfully hid the waters from her front view, and she was too occupied to pay heed to her peripherals.
Feeling the ground sinking beneath his feet, Anagh immediately figured that he was going to meet his defeat soon.
His mind was agile to respond and he came up with a way to turn the tables on her.
Just as soon as his heel touched the edge of the bank, he swiveled on one leg and moved out of the way. Arni gasped as her unstoppable feet stumbled, directing her straight into the belligerent current.
Anagh grabbed a fistful of her hair and wrenched her towards himself to prevent the fall.
Her back crashed against his chest. "Don't lose so soon. We are just getting started," he whispered into her ear as Chandreya wheezed for air. He propelled her back to the ground mercilessly.
She moaned, feeling her muscles cramping up from the impact of the rough descent.
Her vision was going black and she could hardly retain her thoughts in order.
The roughshod cheers of his minions were muffled, as she saw them skipping and dancing for their leader's victory.
At that point, all her training knowledge had escaped from her mind through the throbbing in the back of her head.
Narrowed vision saw Anagh towering over her fallen body.
She blinked several times, trying to regain the sentience that had given up on her.
"Arya..." She glanced at Nakul one last time.