Chapter 32 Dawn at the Border The End of a Friendship
The sun rose with a scary red light as if the sky itself was warning of the bloodshed to come The sound of Dhvaniks clashed from all directions War drums made the ground shake The noise of chariot wheels horses neighing and thousands of soldiers cheering together created a terrible symphony The only possible end was death
Two huge armies stood facing each other across a valley One had golden red flags the other blue silver The land between them was empty and silent waiting for death
The two kings rode their chariots to the middle Their faces were like iron masks only their eyes showed a burning old hatred
King Anilraj voice deep like the ocean broke the silence Tejendra If you wanted war you should have challenged us openly Attacking our general from behind is a coward act Is this the bravery of Tejgarh
King Tejendra voice like a volcano erupting roared back And kidnapping our general and painting our gate with his blood is this the honesty of Neelgarh
Kidnapping Anilraj fist tightened on his sword What lie is this Are you throwing mud at us to hide your own dark deeds
Words are useless now old friend Tejendra spat out bitterly You wanted an excuse for war right Here it is Now come lets see whose resolve has more fire
At that moment Tejendra raised his sword Sunlight fell on its edge making it a bright ray of death He struck hard Anilraj blocked it The clash of their swords scattered sparks in the air That was the signal
Both armies roared together And then the world broke apart
This was not a war it was the explosion of a giant beast Swords flashed spears flew horses screamed Drops of blood flew in the air fell to the ground and a warm coppery smell poisoned the air Streams of blood began to flow on the battlefield
And in the middle of that horrible firestorm a quiet painful island formed
Prince Agni and Prince Neer stood facing each other All around them the storm of war raged and cried but the air between the two friends was frozen and heavy Neer smile was gone Agni seriousness was gone Both faces showed the same expression an unspeakable tearing pain
The general of Tejgarh took the head of my father most loyal friend Neer voice trembled tears in his eyes I tried everything to stop it Agni Everything I begged every minister even my father But I failed
Agni lowered his sword Neer we don't know why Raghuvir did that Believe me Neither I nor my father gave him such an order This this is something else A trap
Whether its a trap or the truth now Neer said a tear drawing a clean line through the dirt on his cheek the war has started And both of us we are too small to stop it
Then we must fight for our own kingdoms Agni said but it sounded like a question
No Neer shook his head his voice full of finality Agni if we two face each other no one will survive I I cannot come back from that
There is no choice left Neer Agni voice rose for the first time with a desperate scream Can't you see This is hell Our people are dying We have to face each other
I will not raise my hand against you Neer said planting his sword in the ground I will not pick it up
Agni closed his eyes When he opened them they had the same determination Neer often saw in their school days and now it was against him Then I will start
Agni moved forward and attacked Neer did not pick up his sword He only blocked it with a shield of water he summoned Water and fire collided with a sharp hiss
Stop Agni Neer shouted
No There was fire in Agni voice now the fire of pain the fire of anger This war will not stop now
And then it happened what both feared Neer was forced to defend himself He had to pick up his sword Their duel began
It was nothing like their friendly sparring in school It was a painful dance Every strike was tied to a memory of a decade of friendship Every block broke a promise Tears kept flowing from Neer eyes as if he was cursing himself with every strike he made
Then a moment came Agni made a complex move Neer guard faltered and Agni sword cut through Neer arm
Slash
A sharp wet sound Neer blood a bright red stream burst from his arm He stumbled back stunned not by the pain but by the truth that Agni had hurt him
Agni froze His sword deadly a moment ago slipped from his hand and fell clattering to the ground A heart wrenching scream came from his throat No
He moved forward to support Neer But at that moment his eyes fell far away on the other end of the battlefield Where his father Tejendra was fighting with King Anilraj And there shot unknowingly from Agni own hands a fire arrow flying in a divine path was going straight into the space between the two kings
Boom
An explosion A ball of orange and white flames spread When the smoke cleared there was debris from both kings chariots and their still burning standing poles Both kings were gone Only ash and smoke remained
Time seemed to stop
Then a scream so sharp and broken that it cut through all the sounds of war Father
It was Neer In his eyes was not pain but almost a flame of madness From his injured still bleeding arm he raised his hand Moisture began to condense in the air around him dew drops turning into drops of blood He screamed with all his power and from his hands burst a huge angry stream of water a liquid weapon that hit Agni straight in the chest
Thud
The sound was soft but the impact was devastating All the air left Agni lungs For a moment he saw Neer eyes those deep blue seas where now there was only storm and endless pain Then darkness took him He fell unconscious to the ground
The war suddenly stopped with a shudder Both armies saw one prince was crying covered in blood standing over his friend unconscious body And far away no sign of their kings
A terrible bone chilling silence fell on the battlefield
On the Mountain Shadow and Smile
Far from the battlefield on a high mountain peak two figures stood One a tall thin man his face covered with thick black cloth only his eyes visible cold emotionless like transparent stones The other a woman shorter holding a divine mirror showing the whole scene below clearly
The woman smiled and lowered the mirror See As we said The human heart the easiest thread to break Once broken everything is destroyed
The man gave no reaction His eyes were fixed on the scene below where Neer was bent over Agni streams of tears still flowing from his eyes his lips moving as if in prayer or curse
The woman smiled again the smile not reaching her eyes Now he will utter the curse himself He will think it is his own pain his own anger But those words the words he will speak now will bend their destiny Not just for this life but for lives to come
The man nodded slowly a slight acknowledgment His voice if he spoke would probably be as cold and sharp as the mountain winds But he said nothing
Below Neer looked at Agni lifeless body then at the smoky heap of his father chariot far away A sea of pain rose in his eyes a fire of anger flared and a despair that shook the very strings of his soul He raised his hands to the sky his voice echoed like a broken storm containing everything love betrayal death and a curse coming from his very core
May our paths cross again and again lifetime after lifetime only to end like this In blood betrayal and this endless pain Let this bond never break let this wound never heal Forever
The sky thundered Lightning flashed And on the mountain peak the woman smiled taking a long satisfied breath It is done Now no one can stop it This curse this war this hatred will last for centuries And we we are just spectators
The man looked down one last time where Neer was now lifting Agni body in his arms his eyes closed his face calm as if embracing a corpse he himself had killed Then he slowly turned back and the man wrapped in black cloth and his female companion vanished into the mountain shadow only the feeling of their cold emotionless smile lingering in the air
Below the armies began to retreat in disarray The kings were dead The princes one unconscious one broken And a light rain started from the sky as if nature itself was trying to wash away the blood that had now become part of the earth
But the war was not over It was only a pause in a conflict that was no longer just between kingdoms but between two souls two hearts and a curse whose roots had now gone deep into destiny beyond time
Thus ended that day when the sun drowned in blood friendship turned to war love transformed into a curse and two souls were bound in a bond from which escape was perhaps impossible And on the high mountain two unseen eyes with a cold smile watched all that had been decided for the centuries to come
The rain continued to fall soft and cold washing blood into the soil Neer knelt on the battlefield Agni unconscious body locked tightly in his arms his tears mixing with rain and ash No one dared come closer
Suddenly beneath Neer trembling hands Agni chest twitched Once Barely noticeable Neer froze His breath caught as a faint warmth flickered under Agni skin a dying ember that refused to go out At the same time far away deep beneath the ruins of the kings chariots the earth cracked with a low ominous sound as if something ancient had been awakened by blood and curse alike
High above hidden by storm clouds a single star blinked out And somewhere beyond sight beyond time destiny smiled Because this was not the end of their story It was only the first time they had destroyed each other
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