The Last Chance

The atmosphere inside King Bajrabaahu's room was so tense that it was almost suffocating. The events of the day had completely dumbfounded the trio, who now sat together around the ivory table, looking rather feeble.

Bajrabaahu had his face cupped in his hands, while Vidala seemed busy swirling the liquor in his cup. Utpala was the most agitated of the three, and also the most disappointed. He had genuinely hoped that he could get rid of the thorn in his flesh, but instead of being easier, the situation had only further hardened for them. Now Mallika was with Lord Arjun, and of all bad things on earth, this was probably the worst!

"We need to do something!" He finally spoke up, unable to bear the silence anymore. "We need to get her back!"

"We cannot rush," Vidala replied, somewhat indifferently. He knew his indifference wouldn't be a surprise to his brother who was aware of how cold-blooded he could be. But even then, Utpala seemed to get irritated.

"Cannot rush?" He spat angrily. "Mallika killed Durg today! The dormant energies in her have already manifested once. The more time she spends with Lord Arjun, the more she will blossom. The more she blossoms, the more dangerous it will be for us. Then what are we waiting for? Our death!!"

"It's exactly because she killed Durg today that we cannot rush," Vidala pointed out. "We do not know how much development she has undergone. We do not know what stage of self-realisation she has reached. If what we are fearing has already happened, then there is nothing we can do to stop her. But if it hasn't, we still have a chance. Before we figure this out, we cannot be rash."

"You are right!" Bajrabaahu finally looked up. "But what about Lord Arjun?"

An awkward silence engulfed the room again.

After a long while, Vidala let out a deep sigh. "We have some benefits too. Lord Arjun should be busy taking care of Mallika these days, if she refuses to return here-- which is the most probable. King Bajrabaahu, you can use this chance to disown her and taint her reputation. Lord Arjun won't bear this. He will further become engrossed in dealing with these things. We can then use this opening to look for and gather all the necessary herbs and plants that we need for our research. How about this?"

"I should not disown her," Bajrabaahu rubbed his temples. "If I do so, then she will be completely out of our grasp. Even in the future, we will have nothing to do with her. Family means a lot to that girl. We should let her weakness remain."

"Hmm...That sounds reasonable," An evil smirk spread on Vidala's lips. "Then just taint her image. That's what I basically need to engage Lord Arjun."

"Tsk...Some people just don't learn."

A deep voice sounded through the room, and immediately, the three men sprang to their feet.

Turning around, they received what seemed like the biggest shock of the day.

Lord Arjun stood in a relaxed manner in front of the window, the incoming moonbeams tracing his elegant silhouette. He had one elbow propped against the window sill in a lazy manner, while with his other hand, he gently stroked the hilt of the naked sword dangling from his waist.

"Ho...How did y..you come in?" Utpala stuttered.

"Ah, no need to feel bad, Prince Utpala," Arjun smiled, moving from the window side to the table. "I don't understand why you forgot to invite me to this very solemn meeting of old friends. Nevertheless, I realised how very important my presence here should be the moment I stepped in. After all, I am the centre of all your worries, right?"

He leisurely dragged a chair and sat down comfortably.

"You have been eavesdropping on us!" Utpala shouted. "Have you no sense of..."

"Don't get me wrong!" Arjun smiled. "I have not been eavesdropping. Eavesdroppers don't reveal themselves. But here I am, sitting right in front of you, 'listening' to your conversation."

"And who gave you the right to do that?" Vidala frowned.

"You did."

Something in Arjun's voice changed the moment he set his eyes on Vidala, and this time, it was no longer the previous one, but one that exuded a sense of danger and threat. Vidala flinched at his voice.

"How exactly did I?"

Arjun leaned back. "Durg was your man. He tried to mess with me on your orders, I suppose. And, as a victim, I deserve the right to confront you regarding this blatant injustice."

"Hah!" Vidala waved in the air. "Why do we need to be pretentious, Lord Arjun? We both are aware of each other's real pictures. What do need this script for then? You, a victim. Haha!"

Arjun responded with a bright smile. "You call this pretension? I thought this was being polite. If I had to cut to the core and reveal my purpose directly, I am afraid you would not be standing till now."

His voice was almost a hiss. His dark eyes seemed to have transformed into bottomless pits and the glint in those orbs could rival even the glaring fires.

Bajrabaahu felt his body go weak. This was not heading towards a good direction. Not that he had expected it to. He knew there could be no negotiation between them. He knew Lord Arjun would never let Vidala accomplish what he wanted, and the latter would simply not give up. But why did he keep feeling this was going to be more than a series of hurtful words? At the moment, this premonition was driving him crazy.

"What do you want?" Vidala slammed the table loudly, bending over to face Arjun.

"I am not here to ask anything from you," Arjun replied. "I am here to give you something. Listen properly, all three of you. The purpose of your Old Alliance will never be fulfilled in this manner. You can keep trying, but I assure you, I will myself ensure that you fail every time. Unless and until you mend your ways and work for the good of this world, I will never let you succeed. Take this as a last chance from my end."

"Who are you to give us chances?!" Utpala roared. "Lord Arjun! You think too highly of yourself! You cannot stop us if we want to do something. Lets see how much longer you can protect this silly world! Lets see how much longer that cursed girl stays safe!"

The fire in Arjun's eyes flashed. He stood up slowly. "What did you say?"

Bajrabaahu wanted to stop Utpala, his heart was hammering under the tremendous pressure. But not a single sound came out of his throat. He glanced at Vidala, but the usually sensible man too seemed to have been overcome by rage. Yet he was controlled. Why did the Prince of Vaimadri have to be so hot blooded?

"We will destroy Mallika!" Utpala shouted, pulling out his dagger from the folds of his belt. "Noo!" Bajrabaahu finally found his voice. Attacking Lord Arjun was the least sensible thing to be done in this situation. But it was too late.

Utpala strode right up to where the Lord stood, ready to thrust the blade into his body. But before the dagger could touch him, Lord Arjun hit the prince's wrist with his palm, rotating it a clear 180 degrees, snapping the joint in the process. Before Utpala could have processed what had happened, two searing thrusts of pain ran through his body. One, he realised immediately, was because his wrist was broken. And the second was because the same blade had been thrust into his own stomach, and blood was all over the floor.

Arjun had directed his blow back to himself.

"Guards!!" Both Bajrabaahu and Vidala shouted, as they broke into a cold sweat.

Immediately, the doors to the room swung open, and tens of armed guards swarmed into the room.

Vidala ran up to the limp wounded body of his brother, trying to stop the bleeding. "Arrest him!" Bajrabaahu shouted.

But none of the soldiers dared to move. In fact, they had been petrified the moment they had entered the room.

There was the sudden sound of anklets.

"Your Majesty! Is everything o..?"

The voice froze abruptly as the person entered the room. It was Queen Svetmala. She looked paler, and somewhat devastated. The events of the day had taken their toll on her. But she hadn't, in the least bit, expected to see this scene.

There was blood all over the floor, and one of the men were crouching in pain, the hilt of a dagger protruding from his stomach. Another was bent over him, frantically trying to stop the blood. Bajrabaahu stood some distance away, white with shock. As for the cause of all this, that man looked unusually enraged.

"Destroy Mallika, huh?" He smirked, eyeing the crouching figures in front of him. "If I had wanted, that dagger could have pierced your skull by now. I dare you to misuse this last chance. Don't worry, I won't be so lenient next time."

He wiped away the streaks of blood from his hand, as he turned round to leave. For a split second, his eyes met that of the queen, and his expression softened considerably. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

"Go after him!" Bajrabaahu shouted. "He...he should not leave!"

But the guards did not budge, and Bajrabaahu did not have to be told why.

He shook his head. "Go call the doctor! Make arrangements! Carry the prince for resting!"

Svetmala stood rooted to her spot. In front of her eyes, flashed by the memories of that fatal day, twenty years ago...