Chapter 15: The Blossoming Love
You within me, I within you.
Translation
Even in the empty thoughts, it
is nothing but you
Is the delusion born out of
trance, an illusion?
All, everything in and out, soul
before soul
You within me, I within you, where
do we stand, sensing one another?
—Siddhar Sivavakkiyar Song (007)
Goodness is infectious, it either impregnates receptive hearts or sucks in good hearts, wherein dwells the innate goodness, naturally inclined to form a noble association, that emanates goodness and only goodness, that even gods envy of, bow their heads in diffidence, craving for it, they stand in long unending queues; knock incessantly on the iron doors; wait patiently for age long years; beg persistently on knees; crave relentlessly for attention, just to get a one time entry into the arena of the most cherished, uncorrupted virtues of all the time, truth, honesty, sincerity, patience and righteousness, leave alone becoming a permanent member of the association, then imagine the quality of the supreme one, who chairs the chambers, an exemplary personification, with commendable disposition of their overall goodness, that gods almighty bow and prostrate before him in shame, pleading for forgiveness, disgusted about their mean, crooked ways, either it’s about taking one’s brother’s wife, back stabbing the innocent, stealing women’s cloth or seducing another man’s wife, it’s a grave sin, in the eyes of the association of good hearts, who by nature, are given with the divine power to punish the scrupulous, unkind, insincere, arrogant, mean, cunning, jealous gods, such is the nature of the associates, who guard ethics and morality, if breached, they can rage epidemics, great wars, famine, even natural disasters, both on the gods and their devotees, if found unjust and immoral, whatever may the elusive, sweet, humane justification be, in the eyes of the guardians, sin is a sin, crime is a crime, justice will be unleashed vehemently, whoever the great might be, whatever their sacred grand reason might be, justice is not based on a set of written down punishments and compensations, in the eyes of the divine, it is about, excruciating pain and stifling injustice the victim has gone through, which will be absolutely, equivalently transferred in multitude on the inflictor, that could be lord, or even lord of lords, unbiased justice will be rolled out by the guardians, the invincible, invisible, association of good hearts, who, very strongly ensure, that each one of us, very much bear their own cross, the manipulators will face the consequences, only after justice has been served, the case will be recorded, only then the redemption will be given unto them, forgiveness will be bestowed upon them, not before justice has been restored, thus the balance will be strictly admonished by the associates of the divinity, the most noble, good hearts.
It was almost a day, since Killivalavan had left Laughing hills, he was travelling up north, in full gallop, the night was setting in, though he was not tired a bit, he didn’t have a choice, than, giving his horse ample time, for a good night's rest and a much needed vital rejuvenation, while his horse was grazing the green pastures, he was looking up at the moonlit skies, from a wider branch of a large tree, with his back freely laid upon it, far from the place where his horse was tied to, an act to deceive enemies, willful attackers, ruthless brigands from the actual spot he was resting on, to prevent unexpected direct ambush on him, there, relaxedly, he was contemplating on the mission assigned to him, the names on the palmscripts were of an indirect expression, they were clues, when he sees the targets in person, the names will make sense, he didn't have to worry about it much, but the real concern is his employer, of all, whom he least expected, the call for the assassination came from his brother Nedunenkilli, shortest of all, but the most intelligent in the family circle, sayings go with him, that he wins wars without shedding blood, purely by strategies, inscrutable plots and genuine wisdom. He was not sure, of how he came to know about the vocation he has chosen for himself, an on call assassin, the most wanted, highly skilled one, saleable only for a good cause, neither for wealth and prosperity nor for fame and honor, he accepted the mission, as it partakes in defending the motherland, the northern kings have started the invasion, they are progressing southwards much faster than the expected rate, under the leadership of a bloodthirsty, war ravaging, ruthless prince, before his spies go past the lands of vendhars, under the guise of trade house, he has to identify them, exterminate them strictly without any mercy, else as the legion calls, the savage warrior, the unappeasable, warmonger prince, will storm the armies of vendhars, in a flight of a few weeks.Over the course of time, the ever expanding northern kingdom has built such an overpowering army, might be owing to the imminent danger, foreseeing the entry in the border, Nedunenkilli has called him up for the mission, it has to be done under the guise of swift brigand, but then, the task is overwhelming, though his target is 2 warlords, in order for a close in, he has to take down all 20 men, who guard them, many stories go after this wild pack, they all seem to be well trained men, highly skilled professionals, the elite of northern kings intelligence wing, in a few minutes they can make you believe, that one of them is your childhood friend’s friend, create trust, start pulling out the information they have been seeking from you, so deceptive and smart their intelligence wing is, but still an unanswered question disturbed his mind, how come they knew the route, there has to be some insider who has been helping them out, for what, would he do this act of betrayal, his mind started probing the depths of the mission, slowly, the soft breeze lulled him into a pleasant sleep, it is a must essential art in guerrilla warfare, to sleep and live on tree branches, without falling down from it, only men who have good control over their body movements, even during deep sleep, are the apt ones for such clandestine actions, they need to be awake or sleep in routine, on high trees and deep trenches, without exposing or injuring themselves, their agility, rapid attacks, sharp aims and impeccable reflexes are the most required skills in guerrilla warfare, which, undoubtedly brimmed in Killivalavan. Tomorrow early morning he has to spy on them, their inventory, their structure, their guarding mechanism, their arsenal, especially the habits of the 2 renowned warlords, he has to study their behaviors and style meticulously, before he meets with them, face to face on the field. Most importantly, by the same night he has to exterminate them, a day gained is a day lost on his part, more time he spends on them, more likely he will be leaking about himself, his nature, his instinctual behaviors, his intentions, etc. more an enemy learns about you, more easy it is for him, to trap you and get you killed, by spying on an enemy, one should make sure not to leave traces of oneself, a slight hunch is enough for a skilled warrior to turn your own deceptions against your own self, woo you, stab you right in your heart, it is just a matter of time, every second counts, every second he loses in making his kill, the enemy spears are rushing to his bosom, if possible, he should kill them by mid noon, but also, he has to wait for the right moment, one wrong step or a slight miscalculation may ruin the whole mission, may even cost his life, the whole day tomorrow, he has to be on his toes, waiting for the onslaught, ready for the launch, that might sprout at any moment, with these thoughts, he slept cautiously, setting his biological clock to wake him up, sharp 2 hours before the sunrise, so he can have a full day to watch their behaviors, plan his attack, immediately after sunset.
Two white owls perched on one of the short branches, right of Killi, it was like they were guarding him earnestly, throughout that long night, from some haunting evil spells, ready to plunder the absolute goodness in him, their night watch duty ended, they started shrieking uninterruptedly, it subsided, when Killi opened his eyes, that fine day, he woke up amidst hooting sounds, looked straight into the face of the larger owl, they exchanged intimate glances, then both those owls flew together, disappeared into the dark horizon, he then looked up at the shining moon, it was almost full, one more night, it will expose itself fully without inhibition, he has to be there at home, on the full moon day, with endearing thoughts about home, the resonant hooting sound of the owl, that still rang in his ears and mist sprayed, feathery, whitish form of the owl, with big bright eyes, that filled his mind, he collected his possessions, climbed down the tree, walked towards his horse, with a bit of early morning dizziness. The stallion was alive, fresh, ready for the journey, in a two hour ride he could easily cross the range, position himself on top of the hill, where spies have laid their camp on that vast hill base. On the way, he attended to nature calls, took a soul refreshing bath, in a swift, rushing, fiery river, ate some ragi adais along with herbal water and ripe fruits, geared up for the drill, there he has to perch like an owl at a remote, hidden corner, continue with his long hours of strenuous observation.
The hilltop presented a pleasant view of the plains below, the rising sun added colors to the beautiful landscape at the hill base, filled with greens and moving blues, sticking to the spot, he tried to identify the nomadic camp, there were two tents, protected well, by wide spread canvas, harbouring enemies of the state, underneath its cool shade, one of them looked enormously bigger than the other, that which could easily accommodate 100 men, rationally impossible for these men to carry such a big arsenal, without being noticed or seized by the patrolling guards, they must have some real big items in it, worth trading for, by mid noon, he should know everything he ought to know about the intruders, in order to design a foolproof execution plan. He then, searched for a comfortable hideout, both for his stallion as well as for himself, he was specific that his horse has to be in his sight, he spent a considerable amount of time wandering around, looking for a safe temporary abode, thoroughly he checked each location, looked out earnestly, for simple things like, how far he has to go for his needs, how long he might take if he has to run for his stallion, what is the likelihood that he might be spotted, the questions went on and on, finally he found a comfortable spot that seemed to be a safe haven, that could accommodate, his horse nearby, himself, his arsenal and his possessions. After he tied down his horse, a few 100 paces away, onto to a tree trunk, he climbed up the massive tree, he has chosen for his hideout, the trunk of the tree was so big, it could easily shelter 50 men in it comfortably, its branches were so wide and shapely, that you can build small huts on them, dwell in it for years together, large trees were comfortable hideouts, than trenches, caves and plain grounds, that too, ideally on such dangerous missions. From the tree top, the vision of the tent was very clear, to an extent that he could see the bright patches on the dull canvas, if tried hard, he could even count the stitches made on it. Slowly men came out of the smaller tent, one after another, they were attending to their morning routines slowly, lethargically, it took almost an hour before they were all ready for the day, still then, the two warlords were not seen anywhere near the spot, that is something very peculiar, either they were hiding in some other spot, else they have mixed with these twenty men, leaving two of their men as official dupes of them, so Killi studied all the twenty men, carefully, though they were all silent and sturdy, none of them had on them, the traits of reputed warlords, moments drifted along, it was almost two hours after sunrise, a fair, medium sized, big man, came out of the large tent, immediately, his men became cautious, they were all up on their feet, he studied each one of them meticulously, then he strolled around the tent, diligently looking around for any trespassing signs, then he looked at the hills and the plains across, instructed all his men, in crisp clear statements, the short briefing took less than a minute, slowly he went across, into the plains, he was well dressed up like a professional trader, he has been obviously up, before his men got up for the day, that might be the reason he had been missing in the spot for almost an hour, but then, what has he been doing, all these hours, inside that big tent, what else is there, he has seen one of the men, whom he has to kill, what about the other one, was he there inside the big tent, as he was going over the fine details of his observation, with his eyes fixed on the big tent, he saw a heavily built man, stepping out of the big tent, he came around, stretched his back, relaxed his muscles, stared straight into the thickness, where Killivalavan was hiding, Killi’s heart stopped for a moment, a coldness shuddered his back, he sweated profusely, for a split-second, he thought of starting the strike, owing to the fear of being spotted, but then, the dense wilderness has hidden him well, the warlord, walked firmly, but slowly, towards the wilderness, he was very tall, pitch dark, broad and round shouldered, his hair was tied up, in a single knot above his head, to his right, he had on him that striking, big, dark, curly, mustache, which rolled up and covered either side of his cheeks, his looks were terrifying, but more than his looks, his walk and style, talked about the class of warrior he was made of, he walked as thought he counted each step he took, majestically, very cautiously, his peculiar large bulging eyes, under his thick curvy eyebrows moved naturally to any disturbance in and around his immediate surroundings, as though he was completely in tune with the environment, even small disturbances affected him, he was very sensitive to the happenings around, that might be the source behind his great reputation—the greater amount of sensitiveness, he very naturally possessed, as Killi was watching his lithe, calculated moves, he stopped suddenly, turned his head slowly, stared right at the spot where Killi was hiding, he stood immobilized for a few moments, watched the surrounding intently, then he called out for one of his men, passed around some instruction, then in a fraction of seconds, he swiftly ran across the length, disappeared into the wilderness, Killivalavan’s heart pounded, the man he saw was not an ordinary warlord, he must be an exemplary warrior, adimurai expert with an extensive knowledge in varmam, Killi understood the mistake he made, taken up by his stature, style, air of authority, they way he carried himself, he had been watching him overtly, in fact, he had been admiring him from the time he stepped out of the tent, that way, unaware, he had touched his opponent’s soul, that come the opponent, had sensed the presence of another warrior in and around the immediate surroundings, he should have watched him lightly, without much of intensity, that way his mind would have not traversed so far, the tall dark warrior would have not sensed him at all. Killi pondered over the next plot, he was a bit hesitant, soon this place will be visited either by him or by his men. As he expected, men in the tent divided themselves into 5 groups, 5 of them circled the larger tent, 10 of them rushed towards the spot where Killi was hiding, 2 of them ran into the wilderness in the same direction, where the dark warrior disappeared into, 2 of them ran into the plains in the direction the first warlord went across, 1 of them went into the opposite direction, disappeared swiftly into the wilderness.
Killivalavan was totally dumbfounded by the swift unpredictable movements across, tried desperately, to make sense out of the scattered men, his mind raced to cope with the speed of the changes lashed out in whimsical seconds, now he has to watch all the 6 spots, first, the one in the wilderness were the dark warrior went in, next, the plains were the first warlord has gone, third, the pack of ten men coming to hunt him down, fourth, the lone warrior who has entered into the wilderness in the opposite direction, fifth, the tent and the five men guarding them, sixth, the spot he was resting on, his warrior instincts cautioned him, not to move an inch farther, from the spot he was in, he felt being watched, now, the dark warrior is watching the spot, from some remote corner along with his men, even a slight shake in the twigs, will invite dozen of arrows, though they may not reach with the speed needed to kill a man, the arrows can still can reach the hideout, he has to be very alert, he has to move very stealthily, it has become a growingly difficult fight, out on the ground, he could easily fight all these twenty men, but now it is guerrilla warfare, they are playing his tactic against him, the sharp realization of it pained him, the thought stabbed him right in his heart, he doesn’t have time for emotions, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, relaxed himself, stretched his mind, he saw that big bulging eyes of the dark warrior, stealthily, closing on him with his two men, he is better than what he thought, he didn’t sit there and observe, rather, he packed motion with observation, so his plan will keep evolving with his every move, it will adapt to every change in the strategy that he is making here, the lone warrior will round him off from the other direction, the ten will come on to him, face to face, the other two men have gone to fetch the other warlord, to make the situation look common to the civilians, five men guarding the tent will continue their daily trade, still, he didn’t know what was there, inside the tent, it should be something which could answer for the weaponry they possessed, he focused on the insides of the tent, he saw the paws of a lion, bottom part of the cage with straight iron rods, yellowish beak of a vulture, again in a cage, a hissing cobra, lying coiled on a pedestal, inside a transparent case, they were selling wild animals, right at that time, he heard a very faint roar of a Lion, no one will ever suspect their outfit, spears, bows and arrows, they have made their ground work well, soon in an hour they will be, all over him, it is an uphill ride, they will be tired by the time they reach here, they will gasp for breath, that is the only advantage he could have, everything has fallen into the picture, now it’s time for Killivalavan’s move.
He gathered his possessions, walked slowly on the tree branches, stealthily, without rush, he hopped from one tree to another, his balance was perfect, he was sure the dark warrior would have sensed his move, but he has to come a long way, he was sure, he was on his feet, so it would take more than half an hour, for him to reach the spot, he can feel him racing towards him, they were so connected, they started reading one another’s mind, what a pair they would make if they were on the same side, but Killi had never favored taking on partners, as it might get them both killed, so he always believed only in himself, for the first time, he admired another warrior, with whom he could partner with, sensibly. He had reached the spot, where he had tied his stallion, whistling softly, he packed his horse, climbed on it slowly, touched his heart, looked up to the skies, prayed to the lingam in the wilderness, uttered softly “give me victory”, saying so, he lurched forward towards the tent, he knew, these terrains well, he rode down the hills swiftly, like a riding thunder, right at that moment, the dark warrior stopped abruptly, he folded his hands back tightly, strolled back and forth with burning disappointment, reluctantly, ordered his men to climb up the trees and look out for him, his eyes never lost a minute’s focus, his gaze was always fixed, his thoughts stopped when he wanted them to stop, he was listening to the surroundings, watching over them keenly, he sensed every minute change and the strays in the course of the expected events, all his muscles were tense, red with a rush of energy, his eyes bulged so much, that it would almost pop out, he was not only controlling his mind, but his men around, furthering, tried to reach that of elusive Killi’s, when his men came down, they were alarmed, reported him nervously, on his swift ride towards the camp, he sighed lightly, stopped for a moment, instructed both the men to find the 10 sprinting up, group together, rush back to the camp for assistance, saying so, he ran towards the spot, where Killi was hiding. He knew, he can’t stop this lone assassin from Velir Thopu, whose great accomplishments have travelled many a miles that he has not physically crossed, the saying goes, “A warrior who kills in heaps and counts the severed heads in hundreds”, he will turn out to be victorious, either he has to kill him or get killed in the fight, he identified the massive tree, from where the assassin has been spying on the camp, on the ground he saw a large white feather, he liked it immediately, picked it up spontaneously, smelled it slowly, placed it close to his bosom, looked up to the skies, prayed “O! My divine mother, Makali, give me and my people a great victory”. From a distant place, an owl hooted thrice, he took that for a good omen, inserted the feather stylishly, into the single knot of his dark hair, locked it with a pin, he climbed slowly, perched exactly at the same spot, Killi, rested upon, he found few ragi adais and fresh ripe fruits, he knew, the lone assassin had left it for him, he relished it along with the morning chaos, as he ingested the food made by Sarutha, a greater love engulfed him, he tried to push it off, forged his mind, focused on the warrior riding down fiercely.
Killivalavan had changed the strategy totally, it was all upside down now, the prey has transfigured to become the predator, in another two hours the sun will be at his peak, the course of the day will unfold, as he rushed down, letting his horse carry him forward, he took his bow, positioned the first arrow, he shot at the very first head that showed up considerably close, he had never missed a target, the arrow lurched forward, took the first men in his heart, others ran towards him, before they had time to lurch their spears, he took down one more man, rode past them across the tent, now, he was on the other side of the tent, three men on this side were anticipating his next attack nervously, hiding behind the tent, on their toes, ready for the next move. Killi did the most unexpected thing, he came down his horse, took his hunting knife, slashed the tent multiple times at multiple points, placed back the knife stylishly, in its sheath, the canvas fell down gracefully, he raced forward amidst the falling canvas, with his open surul pattai, forcefully, onto his opponents, the flexible blades rattled down on the war ground, first time, he lashed it out mightily, straight, top down, with his left foot forward, then moved a step front, with his right foot forward, he lashed out second time heavily, in a crisscross fashion, all three men were on the ground, with broken down skulls, blood gushing out from the irreparable damage he had caused, to ease their pain, he stabbed all of them right in their hearts, took their lives the same moment, recoiled his surul pattai, looked around the place, it was deserted but for the animals in the cage and his beautiful dark brown stallion, he went to the wild animals, opened the cage the vulture was in, took it in his hand, looked right at the spot where he was hiding this morning, let it free, to fly high up in the skies. The dark warrior, from the deep hiding, watched everything that was done unto his camp, he was neither hurt by the killings nor moved by the intensity of the fight, but the final solemn act had touched his heart, the lone assassin is not doing all this for fame and wealth, like him, he is a man who loves freedom, the dark warrior’s heart pounded faster, he felt an intrinsic happiness, flowing within him, he literally mixed with his opponent, he felt as though they were of one being, caged in two different bodies, he felt loved, he felt softly touched inside, by the great love, after many years he smiled, he kept smiling again and again, unable to stop it, he kept on smiling, knowing well, the down to earth fact, that one of them has to die tonight, he still kept smiling, that is love, unconditional, overflowing, uninhibited, unbiased, that which happens very rarely, with a very few people whom you come across, the touch of pure divine love, a rare feeling to experience at the hands of the fast approaching death, amidst reckless fight and spilled blood, at the same time in the Laughing hills, Sarutha was talking about the great four, love was spreading its wings, it was in the air everywhere, it touched all true, sincere, honest good hearts. The dark warrior’s eyes bulged again, he saw the lone assassin walk steadily to his horse, climbed it stylishly, freed all the caged animals, disappeared into the wilderness, in the direction where the lone warrior has gone into. The dark warrior can’t help admiring at this brave, talented, lovable, intelligent, young man, especially the flexible sword he had, the one he had seen once before, in the hands of northern king’s chief commander, his smiles subsided, his eyes focused at the point where Killivalavan had entered the wilderness, he tried to connect with him, he is not going after the lone warrior, rather, he is approaching the pack of 12 men, on their sides, including the two he had sent, they will all be now rushing back to the camp, they must be close to the base, he his going to attack all of them mercilessly, in matter of seconds all 12 will be dead, if he has known the caliber of the lone assassin earlier, he would have not sent 2 men for backing up 10, he would have saved at the least 2. The dark warrior knew by heart, this night, it is going to be the toughest fight of his life, he looked forward to it, he used the remaining time silently, in observing and masterfully learning the lone assassin’s moves.
Killivalavan rushed fast, curved in, to meet the pack of 12, they have been on their feet for almost two hours, they will soon be overrun by fatigue, they will not have enough energy, even to fight back, he waited on them, in a quarter of an hour, he heard footsteps, rushing towards the plains, 8 of them led the front, followed by 3 at ten foot gap, the last one was on the verge of fainting, he was left back some thirty feet behind, Killi didn’t want to kill all these men, but if he gives them rest for an hour, they might turn out to be potential enemies soon, he alighted down his horse, ran towards them ferociously, as he was running, he took out his surul pattai, slid open its lock, the blades fell out gracefully, hitting the ground softly, making a beautiful rattling noise, all twelve stopped, looked at the direction of the rattling sound. Killi has come very close to them, the last final step, he leapt forward, high up in the air, his foot was 5 feet up in the air, a bit wide apart, knees slightly folded, his back arched back a little, his right arm was raised well above his head, his palms tightly gripping the weapon sideways, the first fiery lash crossed the last man, cut him diagonally across, his whole body was fully cut at eight different points, each part fell one after another, slowly in a rhythm, he landed softly in full control, walked stylishly exposing his side, to the aghast group, maintaining the same rhythm, he slowly turned around to meet all of them, with his bloodied weapon. The group rounded him up cautiously with long, sharp spears, their blood was pumped with an extra shot of adrenaline, that instinctually ticked off, on seeing such a ferocious brutal predator, the group circled him around, it was a dance, the pack closely watched him, they alertly waited for the right moment, to launch a synchronized group attack, Killi moved along with them, his feet moved along with their moves, firm on the ground, they almost danced to their steps, his eyes were fixed on the space before, hands, firmly holding, the extremely dangerous weapon, finally, Killi broke the standoff, he whirled around the weapon thrice, in those 3 full gyrations, all 11 were chopped off into pieces, he stood still, looked out for any mild movement, satisfied that pack has ceased to move, he whistled out loudly, his majestic dark brown stallion came slowly to him, stood by his side, he climbed it up gracefully, folded down the destructive weapon, locked it with wet, sticky, hot blood, planned his next move, he had killed 17 men, he was left with 5 more, he knew, he would take down 4 more easily, but the last one, the dark warrior, is going to prove difficult, it might even cost him his life, he has not studied his fighting moves, the dark warrior will be looking out for the same, he should not give him a chance to study his moves, he has to kill all 4 inside the wilderness, far from the big black, bulging eyes, whose gaze was always fixed, straight at the center of the virtual triangle, between the nose and the forehead. A man who can control his mind can control the universe. It is going to be a very difficult fight. The lone warrior will soon join the dark one that will be the final pair he will be fighting against in this grave mission. With this thought, he raced across the bloodied ground, strewn around bodies, towards the demolished camp. He set it on fire, often looked at the spot, where he was hiding, as though he was getting approval from the dark warrior, for every rotten thing he was doing to their camp, left the haunting place, raced towards the direction where the first warlord has gone by.
The dark warrior, watched his every move, it was interesting the way, he went around, with complete sureness about things, he walked with such great composure and agility, that even nature will bend down to him, let him go by, without any hindrances. He felt a distant sound of the coming footsteps, he knew, that one of his men had come up looking for the lone assassin, before he would mistake him for the assassin, he whistled softly, one of his traditional notes, which was immediately recognized by his companion, who then sprinted up the trees, to meet him at the top of the branches, which easily accommodated both of them, he saw the remnant of his camp, heavy with thick black smoke, he was startled to see, if there was someone good enough to fight against Muthupandian, the dark warrior, the human fort in all their previous endeavors, where they have tasted only victories, seeing to the seriousness of the situation, he asked him very humbly, sincerely, “What should I do?” he would have given his life the same moment, if it was asked for, rather, Muthupandi sent him home, asked him to report to their commander that the unit has been decapitated, then, he looked straight into his eyes, and said, “Even if I survive the fight, I might not return, rather, I would prefer to die fighting this horrendous mighty beast.” Saying that, he patted him on the back of his shoulders, took his weapons, sent him back to his hometown, he was happy that at the least one of his men, for sure, has left the ground safe and alive. It was mid noon, his stomach twitched with hunger, he wanted to hunt, he looked around, found a pigeon on one of the high branches, he shot his arrow, it fell down, he climbed down to collect his food, he made fire in less than a quarter of an hour, with his knife, a small flint stone, few dried leaves and a handful of twigs, swiftly, cleaned the bird like an expert, roasted it in less than a quarter of an hour, his lunch for the day was ready, he leaned over the tree trunk, slowly he started chewing on the fragile bones, went through the day’s events one by one methodically, the lethal moves that his opponent is capable of, evolved in his mind gradually, it formed a clear picture, slowly he let himself doze off, leaning onto the massive tree trunk.
Killivalavan was tired racing across, he turned around, distantly, he saw the fume emanating from the ravaged camp, for sure, the warlord will sprint forward, the moment he sees the smoke, hence he decided to rest in the nearby mountains, attack him on his way back, rather than going after him. He very badly needed some rest, so he went into the forest, found a fresh water river, flowing turbulently, washed himself clean off the blood, wiped his weapons, dried them, with his ears and eyes wide open, waited earnestly for the next flight, in the meantime, he found a big fish around the corners, which he hunted down with his spears, cleaned it, roasted it in a span of half an hour, by the time he savored the fish, a mild dizziness took over him, he fell asleep, unaware, exactly at the same time, Adhavan and the dark warrior were also asleep, this strange coincidence has a greater truth to it than the superficial meaning, especially, when two great warriors, sleeping off amidst a war zone situation, would raise eyebrows of any rational being. The time passed by, he heard a group of female voices, a young girl was trying to pull out a hunting knife, from Killi's belt, which ultimately woke him up. On seeing him awake, the young girl ran towards her mother, sat on her lap, safe and secure, she had olive brown eyes and a beautiful face, she watched Killivalavan lovingly, the sun has set, darkness has crept in, he can’t forgive himself for being so lethargic, he was left with five more men, they might kill him the moment they find him, fortunately, something has stopped them from coming anywhere near him, the thought gave him a cold shudder, he washed his face, arms and legs, climbed up his horse, rode swiftly to the camp, in an hour’s ride, he was near the camp, there he could see a dark silhouette of three men, he recognized all three, the first warlord and two of the men whom the dark warrior has sent across to fetch him, he raced towards them, as he was racing, he took his bow, placed his arrow, pulled the string tight, targeted the warlord, the straight racing arrow pierced his skull, he yelled in pain, even before his men had time to recollect their senses, he shot dozen more arrows, all three men were down, by the time his horse raced across them, they were all dead, now he is left with two more. He waited patiently, looking out for movements, in the tree tops.
The painful sounds of the yelling men woke up Muthupandian, he rubbed his palms together, pressed it hard against his rough cheeks, then rubbed his face hard, closed his eyes, massaged it gently with his thumbs, upside down, watched his breath keenly for a moment, it steadied involuntarily, his eyes bulged, then he swiftly climbed up the tree, from the top, he saw the silhouette of the dreaded man hunter, three more of his men were lying on the ground, dead, he cursed himself for his stupidity, for letting himself sleep on the war grounds, amidst the impending danger, he knew the time has come, he was very thirsty, he needed some water, before he could wage the best of his fight, which anyhow will be drawn out of him tonight. He looked around, nearby, there were many tree forks, he searched each one of them, from tree to tree, some of them have become natural storage points of rain water, he took one of the large leaves, rolled it out delicately to the size of his index finger, leaving a thin gap in between, he used it as a pipe, sucked out all the water from the junctures, he heartily emptied, such 7 branching points, the movement in the tree tops, would have confused the lone assassin, once his thirst had been quenched, relaxed, he climbed down slowly, walked sure footed, steadily towards the man hunter, he had with him just 2 spears, pair of hunting knives and a few throw knives, he has left his bow and arrows in the tree branches, has decided to meet with his opponent face to face, his arms and ankles were guarded heavily with big well rounded braces.
The moment Killivalavan saw movements in the tree tops, he knew, he could expect the dark warrior and one of his men to charge at him, at any moment, with full force, moments passed by, to his surprise, the dark warrior alone was walking straight to him, with an air of self mastery, that can never be substituted with any other combat skills, he looked out for the lone warrior, he wasn’t there, he has left this place alive, Killi felt a sharp pain in his heart, the message will reach the enemies sooner than he expected, all these killings doesn’t matter, if one person can report the loss and explain the true state clearly, the enemies will soon gain control over the lost situation, they will build an improved counter intelligence, it is a matter of time and correctness of information which decides the lives of millions, he should have not let the man go alive, now all these killings cannot be branded against an unknown forest brigand, rather, it will be politicized as an onslaught of enemy civilians, by covet indigenous operations, good enough reason to brew a hostile war, it means, though he has killed 20 men, the dark warrior has set the path for the great invasion, it simply means Killi is far away from his mission, whereas the dark warrior is close to his objective, it terribly pained him, obviously he is the insider, who has been setting up northern kings against the mighty eastern vendhars, there might be some strong political reason for his doing, he has come near, he was just 100 feet away, every pace he took forward, his heart pounded faster and faster, slowly the throbbing grew heavier as he closed in, he has never experienced this internal flow of goodness, a sensuous flapping inside his heart, the dance of pure love in bliss, it was like they exchanged their souls, that too, incredibly, amidst blood shedding fights and heavy killings, there was a strong current of love flowing between them, Killi realized that he will also be feeling the same way with him, love at this point looked ridiculous, he came still closer, he stopped abruptly, when he was just fifty feet closer to him, he stabbed the shorter spear onto the grounds, took the longer one, the spear head stood a foot above his head, he flipped it hard, back and forth, it created a peculiar booing sound, owing to its inherent suppleness, though the spear was made of cast iron, it bent like a bamboo staff, it was supple enough to bend the way the warrior wanted it to bend, it was rounder and much bigger than the regular ones, one hard strike can shatter his bones, that is the power of the mighty weapon in the hands of the highly potential, skilled warrior. Killi released the lock of his surul pattai, 8 flexible blades hissed out, creating a litany of rattles, it touched and rippled over the bloodied grounds, two great warriors of the same time moved in circles, they slowly closed in, they were very cautious in each and every move, the surrounding environment got highly electrified, it responded, a strong wind whirled around them, a lightning appeared in the sky, under the same bright moon, they charged against one another, with full force.
It was almost a day, since Killivalavan had left Laughing hills, he was travelling up north, in full gallop, the night was setting in, though he was not tired a bit, he didn’t have a choice, than, giving his horse ample time, for a good night's rest and a much needed vital rejuvenation, while his horse was grazing the green pastures, he was looking up at the moonlit skies, from a wider branch of a large tree, with his back freely laid upon it, far from the place where his horse was tied to, an act to deceive enemies, willful attackers, ruthless brigands from the actual spot he was resting on, to prevent unexpected direct ambush on him, there, relaxedly, he was contemplating on the mission assigned to him, the names on the palmscripts were of an indirect expression, they were clues, when he sees the targets in person, the names will make sense, he didn't have to worry about it much, but the real concern is his employer, of all, whom he least expected, the call for the assassination came from his brother Nedunenkilli, shortest of all, but the most intelligent in the family circle, sayings go with him, that he wins wars without shedding blood, purely by strategies, inscrutable plots and genuine wisdom. He was not sure, of how he came to know about the vocation he has chosen for himself, an on call assassin, the most wanted, highly skilled one, saleable only for a good cause, neither for wealth and prosperity nor for fame and honor, he accepted the mission, as it partakes in defending the motherland, the northern kings have started the invasion, they are progressing southwards much faster than the expected rate, under the leadership of a bloodthirsty, war ravaging, ruthless prince, before his spies go past the lands of vendhars, under the guise of trade house, he has to identify them, exterminate them strictly without any mercy, else as the legion calls, the savage warrior, the unappeasable, warmonger prince, will storm the armies of vendhars, in a flight of a few weeks.Over the course of time, the ever expanding northern kingdom has built such an overpowering army, might be owing to the imminent danger, foreseeing the entry in the border, Nedunenkilli has called him up for the mission, it has to be done under the guise of swift brigand, but then, the task is overwhelming, though his target is 2 warlords, in order for a close in, he has to take down all 20 men, who guard them, many stories go after this wild pack, they all seem to be well trained men, highly skilled professionals, the elite of northern kings intelligence wing, in a few minutes they can make you believe, that one of them is your childhood friend’s friend, create trust, start pulling out the information they have been seeking from you, so deceptive and smart their intelligence wing is, but still an unanswered question disturbed his mind, how come they knew the route, there has to be some insider who has been helping them out, for what, would he do this act of betrayal, his mind started probing the depths of the mission, slowly, the soft breeze lulled him into a pleasant sleep, it is a must essential art in guerrilla warfare, to sleep and live on tree branches, without falling down from it, only men who have good control over their body movements, even during deep sleep, are the apt ones for such clandestine actions, they need to be awake or sleep in routine, on high trees and deep trenches, without exposing or injuring themselves, their agility, rapid attacks, sharp aims and impeccable reflexes are the most required skills in guerrilla warfare, which, undoubtedly brimmed in Killivalavan. Tomorrow early morning he has to spy on them, their inventory, their structure, their guarding mechanism, their arsenal, especially the habits of the 2 renowned warlords, he has to study their behaviors and style meticulously, before he meets with them, face to face on the field. Most importantly, by the same night he has to exterminate them, a day gained is a day lost on his part, more time he spends on them, more likely he will be leaking about himself, his nature, his instinctual behaviors, his intentions, etc. more an enemy learns about you, more easy it is for him, to trap you and get you killed, by spying on an enemy, one should make sure not to leave traces of oneself, a slight hunch is enough for a skilled warrior to turn your own deceptions against your own self, woo you, stab you right in your heart, it is just a matter of time, every second counts, every second he loses in making his kill, the enemy spears are rushing to his bosom, if possible, he should kill them by mid noon, but also, he has to wait for the right moment, one wrong step or a slight miscalculation may ruin the whole mission, may even cost his life, the whole day tomorrow, he has to be on his toes, waiting for the onslaught, ready for the launch, that might sprout at any moment, with these thoughts, he slept cautiously, setting his biological clock to wake him up, sharp 2 hours before the sunrise, so he can have a full day to watch their behaviors, plan his attack, immediately after sunset.
Two white owls perched on one of the short branches, right of Killi, it was like they were guarding him earnestly, throughout that long night, from some haunting evil spells, ready to plunder the absolute goodness in him, their night watch duty ended, they started shrieking uninterruptedly, it subsided, when Killi opened his eyes, that fine day, he woke up amidst hooting sounds, looked straight into the face of the larger owl, they exchanged intimate glances, then both those owls flew together, disappeared into the dark horizon, he then looked up at the shining moon, it was almost full, one more night, it will expose itself fully without inhibition, he has to be there at home, on the full moon day, with endearing thoughts about home, the resonant hooting sound of the owl, that still rang in his ears and mist sprayed, feathery, whitish form of the owl, with big bright eyes, that filled his mind, he collected his possessions, climbed down the tree, walked towards his horse, with a bit of early morning dizziness. The stallion was alive, fresh, ready for the journey, in a two hour ride he could easily cross the range, position himself on top of the hill, where spies have laid their camp on that vast hill base. On the way, he attended to nature calls, took a soul refreshing bath, in a swift, rushing, fiery river, ate some ragi adais along with herbal water and ripe fruits, geared up for the drill, there he has to perch like an owl at a remote, hidden corner, continue with his long hours of strenuous observation.
The hilltop presented a pleasant view of the plains below, the rising sun added colors to the beautiful landscape at the hill base, filled with greens and moving blues, sticking to the spot, he tried to identify the nomadic camp, there were two tents, protected well, by wide spread canvas, harbouring enemies of the state, underneath its cool shade, one of them looked enormously bigger than the other, that which could easily accommodate 100 men, rationally impossible for these men to carry such a big arsenal, without being noticed or seized by the patrolling guards, they must have some real big items in it, worth trading for, by mid noon, he should know everything he ought to know about the intruders, in order to design a foolproof execution plan. He then, searched for a comfortable hideout, both for his stallion as well as for himself, he was specific that his horse has to be in his sight, he spent a considerable amount of time wandering around, looking for a safe temporary abode, thoroughly he checked each location, looked out earnestly, for simple things like, how far he has to go for his needs, how long he might take if he has to run for his stallion, what is the likelihood that he might be spotted, the questions went on and on, finally he found a comfortable spot that seemed to be a safe haven, that could accommodate, his horse nearby, himself, his arsenal and his possessions. After he tied down his horse, a few 100 paces away, onto to a tree trunk, he climbed up the massive tree, he has chosen for his hideout, the trunk of the tree was so big, it could easily shelter 50 men in it comfortably, its branches were so wide and shapely, that you can build small huts on them, dwell in it for years together, large trees were comfortable hideouts, than trenches, caves and plain grounds, that too, ideally on such dangerous missions. From the tree top, the vision of the tent was very clear, to an extent that he could see the bright patches on the dull canvas, if tried hard, he could even count the stitches made on it. Slowly men came out of the smaller tent, one after another, they were attending to their morning routines slowly, lethargically, it took almost an hour before they were all ready for the day, still then, the two warlords were not seen anywhere near the spot, that is something very peculiar, either they were hiding in some other spot, else they have mixed with these twenty men, leaving two of their men as official dupes of them, so Killi studied all the twenty men, carefully, though they were all silent and sturdy, none of them had on them, the traits of reputed warlords, moments drifted along, it was almost two hours after sunrise, a fair, medium sized, big man, came out of the large tent, immediately, his men became cautious, they were all up on their feet, he studied each one of them meticulously, then he strolled around the tent, diligently looking around for any trespassing signs, then he looked at the hills and the plains across, instructed all his men, in crisp clear statements, the short briefing took less than a minute, slowly he went across, into the plains, he was well dressed up like a professional trader, he has been obviously up, before his men got up for the day, that might be the reason he had been missing in the spot for almost an hour, but then, what has he been doing, all these hours, inside that big tent, what else is there, he has seen one of the men, whom he has to kill, what about the other one, was he there inside the big tent, as he was going over the fine details of his observation, with his eyes fixed on the big tent, he saw a heavily built man, stepping out of the big tent, he came around, stretched his back, relaxed his muscles, stared straight into the thickness, where Killivalavan was hiding, Killi’s heart stopped for a moment, a coldness shuddered his back, he sweated profusely, for a split-second, he thought of starting the strike, owing to the fear of being spotted, but then, the dense wilderness has hidden him well, the warlord, walked firmly, but slowly, towards the wilderness, he was very tall, pitch dark, broad and round shouldered, his hair was tied up, in a single knot above his head, to his right, he had on him that striking, big, dark, curly, mustache, which rolled up and covered either side of his cheeks, his looks were terrifying, but more than his looks, his walk and style, talked about the class of warrior he was made of, he walked as thought he counted each step he took, majestically, very cautiously, his peculiar large bulging eyes, under his thick curvy eyebrows moved naturally to any disturbance in and around his immediate surroundings, as though he was completely in tune with the environment, even small disturbances affected him, he was very sensitive to the happenings around, that might be the source behind his great reputation—the greater amount of sensitiveness, he very naturally possessed, as Killi was watching his lithe, calculated moves, he stopped suddenly, turned his head slowly, stared right at the spot where Killi was hiding, he stood immobilized for a few moments, watched the surrounding intently, then he called out for one of his men, passed around some instruction, then in a fraction of seconds, he swiftly ran across the length, disappeared into the wilderness, Killivalavan’s heart pounded, the man he saw was not an ordinary warlord, he must be an exemplary warrior, adimurai expert with an extensive knowledge in varmam, Killi understood the mistake he made, taken up by his stature, style, air of authority, they way he carried himself, he had been watching him overtly, in fact, he had been admiring him from the time he stepped out of the tent, that way, unaware, he had touched his opponent’s soul, that come the opponent, had sensed the presence of another warrior in and around the immediate surroundings, he should have watched him lightly, without much of intensity, that way his mind would have not traversed so far, the tall dark warrior would have not sensed him at all. Killi pondered over the next plot, he was a bit hesitant, soon this place will be visited either by him or by his men. As he expected, men in the tent divided themselves into 5 groups, 5 of them circled the larger tent, 10 of them rushed towards the spot where Killi was hiding, 2 of them ran into the wilderness in the same direction, where the dark warrior disappeared into, 2 of them ran into the plains in the direction the first warlord went across, 1 of them went into the opposite direction, disappeared swiftly into the wilderness.
Killivalavan was totally dumbfounded by the swift unpredictable movements across, tried desperately, to make sense out of the scattered men, his mind raced to cope with the speed of the changes lashed out in whimsical seconds, now he has to watch all the 6 spots, first, the one in the wilderness were the dark warrior went in, next, the plains were the first warlord has gone, third, the pack of ten men coming to hunt him down, fourth, the lone warrior who has entered into the wilderness in the opposite direction, fifth, the tent and the five men guarding them, sixth, the spot he was resting on, his warrior instincts cautioned him, not to move an inch farther, from the spot he was in, he felt being watched, now, the dark warrior is watching the spot, from some remote corner along with his men, even a slight shake in the twigs, will invite dozen of arrows, though they may not reach with the speed needed to kill a man, the arrows can still can reach the hideout, he has to be very alert, he has to move very stealthily, it has become a growingly difficult fight, out on the ground, he could easily fight all these twenty men, but now it is guerrilla warfare, they are playing his tactic against him, the sharp realization of it pained him, the thought stabbed him right in his heart, he doesn’t have time for emotions, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, relaxed himself, stretched his mind, he saw that big bulging eyes of the dark warrior, stealthily, closing on him with his two men, he is better than what he thought, he didn’t sit there and observe, rather, he packed motion with observation, so his plan will keep evolving with his every move, it will adapt to every change in the strategy that he is making here, the lone warrior will round him off from the other direction, the ten will come on to him, face to face, the other two men have gone to fetch the other warlord, to make the situation look common to the civilians, five men guarding the tent will continue their daily trade, still, he didn’t know what was there, inside the tent, it should be something which could answer for the weaponry they possessed, he focused on the insides of the tent, he saw the paws of a lion, bottom part of the cage with straight iron rods, yellowish beak of a vulture, again in a cage, a hissing cobra, lying coiled on a pedestal, inside a transparent case, they were selling wild animals, right at that time, he heard a very faint roar of a Lion, no one will ever suspect their outfit, spears, bows and arrows, they have made their ground work well, soon in an hour they will be, all over him, it is an uphill ride, they will be tired by the time they reach here, they will gasp for breath, that is the only advantage he could have, everything has fallen into the picture, now it’s time for Killivalavan’s move.
He gathered his possessions, walked slowly on the tree branches, stealthily, without rush, he hopped from one tree to another, his balance was perfect, he was sure the dark warrior would have sensed his move, but he has to come a long way, he was sure, he was on his feet, so it would take more than half an hour, for him to reach the spot, he can feel him racing towards him, they were so connected, they started reading one another’s mind, what a pair they would make if they were on the same side, but Killi had never favored taking on partners, as it might get them both killed, so he always believed only in himself, for the first time, he admired another warrior, with whom he could partner with, sensibly. He had reached the spot, where he had tied his stallion, whistling softly, he packed his horse, climbed on it slowly, touched his heart, looked up to the skies, prayed to the lingam in the wilderness, uttered softly “give me victory”, saying so, he lurched forward towards the tent, he knew, these terrains well, he rode down the hills swiftly, like a riding thunder, right at that moment, the dark warrior stopped abruptly, he folded his hands back tightly, strolled back and forth with burning disappointment, reluctantly, ordered his men to climb up the trees and look out for him, his eyes never lost a minute’s focus, his gaze was always fixed, his thoughts stopped when he wanted them to stop, he was listening to the surroundings, watching over them keenly, he sensed every minute change and the strays in the course of the expected events, all his muscles were tense, red with a rush of energy, his eyes bulged so much, that it would almost pop out, he was not only controlling his mind, but his men around, furthering, tried to reach that of elusive Killi’s, when his men came down, they were alarmed, reported him nervously, on his swift ride towards the camp, he sighed lightly, stopped for a moment, instructed both the men to find the 10 sprinting up, group together, rush back to the camp for assistance, saying so, he ran towards the spot, where Killi was hiding. He knew, he can’t stop this lone assassin from Velir Thopu, whose great accomplishments have travelled many a miles that he has not physically crossed, the saying goes, “A warrior who kills in heaps and counts the severed heads in hundreds”, he will turn out to be victorious, either he has to kill him or get killed in the fight, he identified the massive tree, from where the assassin has been spying on the camp, on the ground he saw a large white feather, he liked it immediately, picked it up spontaneously, smelled it slowly, placed it close to his bosom, looked up to the skies, prayed “O! My divine mother, Makali, give me and my people a great victory”. From a distant place, an owl hooted thrice, he took that for a good omen, inserted the feather stylishly, into the single knot of his dark hair, locked it with a pin, he climbed slowly, perched exactly at the same spot, Killi, rested upon, he found few ragi adais and fresh ripe fruits, he knew, the lone assassin had left it for him, he relished it along with the morning chaos, as he ingested the food made by Sarutha, a greater love engulfed him, he tried to push it off, forged his mind, focused on the warrior riding down fiercely.
Killivalavan had changed the strategy totally, it was all upside down now, the prey has transfigured to become the predator, in another two hours the sun will be at his peak, the course of the day will unfold, as he rushed down, letting his horse carry him forward, he took his bow, positioned the first arrow, he shot at the very first head that showed up considerably close, he had never missed a target, the arrow lurched forward, took the first men in his heart, others ran towards him, before they had time to lurch their spears, he took down one more man, rode past them across the tent, now, he was on the other side of the tent, three men on this side were anticipating his next attack nervously, hiding behind the tent, on their toes, ready for the next move. Killi did the most unexpected thing, he came down his horse, took his hunting knife, slashed the tent multiple times at multiple points, placed back the knife stylishly, in its sheath, the canvas fell down gracefully, he raced forward amidst the falling canvas, with his open surul pattai, forcefully, onto his opponents, the flexible blades rattled down on the war ground, first time, he lashed it out mightily, straight, top down, with his left foot forward, then moved a step front, with his right foot forward, he lashed out second time heavily, in a crisscross fashion, all three men were on the ground, with broken down skulls, blood gushing out from the irreparable damage he had caused, to ease their pain, he stabbed all of them right in their hearts, took their lives the same moment, recoiled his surul pattai, looked around the place, it was deserted but for the animals in the cage and his beautiful dark brown stallion, he went to the wild animals, opened the cage the vulture was in, took it in his hand, looked right at the spot where he was hiding this morning, let it free, to fly high up in the skies. The dark warrior, from the deep hiding, watched everything that was done unto his camp, he was neither hurt by the killings nor moved by the intensity of the fight, but the final solemn act had touched his heart, the lone assassin is not doing all this for fame and wealth, like him, he is a man who loves freedom, the dark warrior’s heart pounded faster, he felt an intrinsic happiness, flowing within him, he literally mixed with his opponent, he felt as though they were of one being, caged in two different bodies, he felt loved, he felt softly touched inside, by the great love, after many years he smiled, he kept smiling again and again, unable to stop it, he kept on smiling, knowing well, the down to earth fact, that one of them has to die tonight, he still kept smiling, that is love, unconditional, overflowing, uninhibited, unbiased, that which happens very rarely, with a very few people whom you come across, the touch of pure divine love, a rare feeling to experience at the hands of the fast approaching death, amidst reckless fight and spilled blood, at the same time in the Laughing hills, Sarutha was talking about the great four, love was spreading its wings, it was in the air everywhere, it touched all true, sincere, honest good hearts. The dark warrior’s eyes bulged again, he saw the lone assassin walk steadily to his horse, climbed it stylishly, freed all the caged animals, disappeared into the wilderness, in the direction where the lone warrior has gone into. The dark warrior can’t help admiring at this brave, talented, lovable, intelligent, young man, especially the flexible sword he had, the one he had seen once before, in the hands of northern king’s chief commander, his smiles subsided, his eyes focused at the point where Killivalavan had entered the wilderness, he tried to connect with him, he is not going after the lone warrior, rather, he is approaching the pack of 12 men, on their sides, including the two he had sent, they will all be now rushing back to the camp, they must be close to the base, he his going to attack all of them mercilessly, in matter of seconds all 12 will be dead, if he has known the caliber of the lone assassin earlier, he would have not sent 2 men for backing up 10, he would have saved at the least 2. The dark warrior knew by heart, this night, it is going to be the toughest fight of his life, he looked forward to it, he used the remaining time silently, in observing and masterfully learning the lone assassin’s moves.
Killivalavan rushed fast, curved in, to meet the pack of 12, they have been on their feet for almost two hours, they will soon be overrun by fatigue, they will not have enough energy, even to fight back, he waited on them, in a quarter of an hour, he heard footsteps, rushing towards the plains, 8 of them led the front, followed by 3 at ten foot gap, the last one was on the verge of fainting, he was left back some thirty feet behind, Killi didn’t want to kill all these men, but if he gives them rest for an hour, they might turn out to be potential enemies soon, he alighted down his horse, ran towards them ferociously, as he was running, he took out his surul pattai, slid open its lock, the blades fell out gracefully, hitting the ground softly, making a beautiful rattling noise, all twelve stopped, looked at the direction of the rattling sound. Killi has come very close to them, the last final step, he leapt forward, high up in the air, his foot was 5 feet up in the air, a bit wide apart, knees slightly folded, his back arched back a little, his right arm was raised well above his head, his palms tightly gripping the weapon sideways, the first fiery lash crossed the last man, cut him diagonally across, his whole body was fully cut at eight different points, each part fell one after another, slowly in a rhythm, he landed softly in full control, walked stylishly exposing his side, to the aghast group, maintaining the same rhythm, he slowly turned around to meet all of them, with his bloodied weapon. The group rounded him up cautiously with long, sharp spears, their blood was pumped with an extra shot of adrenaline, that instinctually ticked off, on seeing such a ferocious brutal predator, the group circled him around, it was a dance, the pack closely watched him, they alertly waited for the right moment, to launch a synchronized group attack, Killi moved along with them, his feet moved along with their moves, firm on the ground, they almost danced to their steps, his eyes were fixed on the space before, hands, firmly holding, the extremely dangerous weapon, finally, Killi broke the standoff, he whirled around the weapon thrice, in those 3 full gyrations, all 11 were chopped off into pieces, he stood still, looked out for any mild movement, satisfied that pack has ceased to move, he whistled out loudly, his majestic dark brown stallion came slowly to him, stood by his side, he climbed it up gracefully, folded down the destructive weapon, locked it with wet, sticky, hot blood, planned his next move, he had killed 17 men, he was left with 5 more, he knew, he would take down 4 more easily, but the last one, the dark warrior, is going to prove difficult, it might even cost him his life, he has not studied his fighting moves, the dark warrior will be looking out for the same, he should not give him a chance to study his moves, he has to kill all 4 inside the wilderness, far from the big black, bulging eyes, whose gaze was always fixed, straight at the center of the virtual triangle, between the nose and the forehead. A man who can control his mind can control the universe. It is going to be a very difficult fight. The lone warrior will soon join the dark one that will be the final pair he will be fighting against in this grave mission. With this thought, he raced across the bloodied ground, strewn around bodies, towards the demolished camp. He set it on fire, often looked at the spot, where he was hiding, as though he was getting approval from the dark warrior, for every rotten thing he was doing to their camp, left the haunting place, raced towards the direction where the first warlord has gone by.
The dark warrior, watched his every move, it was interesting the way, he went around, with complete sureness about things, he walked with such great composure and agility, that even nature will bend down to him, let him go by, without any hindrances. He felt a distant sound of the coming footsteps, he knew, that one of his men had come up looking for the lone assassin, before he would mistake him for the assassin, he whistled softly, one of his traditional notes, which was immediately recognized by his companion, who then sprinted up the trees, to meet him at the top of the branches, which easily accommodated both of them, he saw the remnant of his camp, heavy with thick black smoke, he was startled to see, if there was someone good enough to fight against Muthupandian, the dark warrior, the human fort in all their previous endeavors, where they have tasted only victories, seeing to the seriousness of the situation, he asked him very humbly, sincerely, “What should I do?” he would have given his life the same moment, if it was asked for, rather, Muthupandi sent him home, asked him to report to their commander that the unit has been decapitated, then, he looked straight into his eyes, and said, “Even if I survive the fight, I might not return, rather, I would prefer to die fighting this horrendous mighty beast.” Saying that, he patted him on the back of his shoulders, took his weapons, sent him back to his hometown, he was happy that at the least one of his men, for sure, has left the ground safe and alive. It was mid noon, his stomach twitched with hunger, he wanted to hunt, he looked around, found a pigeon on one of the high branches, he shot his arrow, it fell down, he climbed down to collect his food, he made fire in less than a quarter of an hour, with his knife, a small flint stone, few dried leaves and a handful of twigs, swiftly, cleaned the bird like an expert, roasted it in less than a quarter of an hour, his lunch for the day was ready, he leaned over the tree trunk, slowly he started chewing on the fragile bones, went through the day’s events one by one methodically, the lethal moves that his opponent is capable of, evolved in his mind gradually, it formed a clear picture, slowly he let himself doze off, leaning onto the massive tree trunk.
Killivalavan was tired racing across, he turned around, distantly, he saw the fume emanating from the ravaged camp, for sure, the warlord will sprint forward, the moment he sees the smoke, hence he decided to rest in the nearby mountains, attack him on his way back, rather than going after him. He very badly needed some rest, so he went into the forest, found a fresh water river, flowing turbulently, washed himself clean off the blood, wiped his weapons, dried them, with his ears and eyes wide open, waited earnestly for the next flight, in the meantime, he found a big fish around the corners, which he hunted down with his spears, cleaned it, roasted it in a span of half an hour, by the time he savored the fish, a mild dizziness took over him, he fell asleep, unaware, exactly at the same time, Adhavan and the dark warrior were also asleep, this strange coincidence has a greater truth to it than the superficial meaning, especially, when two great warriors, sleeping off amidst a war zone situation, would raise eyebrows of any rational being. The time passed by, he heard a group of female voices, a young girl was trying to pull out a hunting knife, from Killi's belt, which ultimately woke him up. On seeing him awake, the young girl ran towards her mother, sat on her lap, safe and secure, she had olive brown eyes and a beautiful face, she watched Killivalavan lovingly, the sun has set, darkness has crept in, he can’t forgive himself for being so lethargic, he was left with five more men, they might kill him the moment they find him, fortunately, something has stopped them from coming anywhere near him, the thought gave him a cold shudder, he washed his face, arms and legs, climbed up his horse, rode swiftly to the camp, in an hour’s ride, he was near the camp, there he could see a dark silhouette of three men, he recognized all three, the first warlord and two of the men whom the dark warrior has sent across to fetch him, he raced towards them, as he was racing, he took his bow, placed his arrow, pulled the string tight, targeted the warlord, the straight racing arrow pierced his skull, he yelled in pain, even before his men had time to recollect their senses, he shot dozen more arrows, all three men were down, by the time his horse raced across them, they were all dead, now he is left with two more. He waited patiently, looking out for movements, in the tree tops.
The painful sounds of the yelling men woke up Muthupandian, he rubbed his palms together, pressed it hard against his rough cheeks, then rubbed his face hard, closed his eyes, massaged it gently with his thumbs, upside down, watched his breath keenly for a moment, it steadied involuntarily, his eyes bulged, then he swiftly climbed up the tree, from the top, he saw the silhouette of the dreaded man hunter, three more of his men were lying on the ground, dead, he cursed himself for his stupidity, for letting himself sleep on the war grounds, amidst the impending danger, he knew the time has come, he was very thirsty, he needed some water, before he could wage the best of his fight, which anyhow will be drawn out of him tonight. He looked around, nearby, there were many tree forks, he searched each one of them, from tree to tree, some of them have become natural storage points of rain water, he took one of the large leaves, rolled it out delicately to the size of his index finger, leaving a thin gap in between, he used it as a pipe, sucked out all the water from the junctures, he heartily emptied, such 7 branching points, the movement in the tree tops, would have confused the lone assassin, once his thirst had been quenched, relaxed, he climbed down slowly, walked sure footed, steadily towards the man hunter, he had with him just 2 spears, pair of hunting knives and a few throw knives, he has left his bow and arrows in the tree branches, has decided to meet with his opponent face to face, his arms and ankles were guarded heavily with big well rounded braces.
The moment Killivalavan saw movements in the tree tops, he knew, he could expect the dark warrior and one of his men to charge at him, at any moment, with full force, moments passed by, to his surprise, the dark warrior alone was walking straight to him, with an air of self mastery, that can never be substituted with any other combat skills, he looked out for the lone warrior, he wasn’t there, he has left this place alive, Killi felt a sharp pain in his heart, the message will reach the enemies sooner than he expected, all these killings doesn’t matter, if one person can report the loss and explain the true state clearly, the enemies will soon gain control over the lost situation, they will build an improved counter intelligence, it is a matter of time and correctness of information which decides the lives of millions, he should have not let the man go alive, now all these killings cannot be branded against an unknown forest brigand, rather, it will be politicized as an onslaught of enemy civilians, by covet indigenous operations, good enough reason to brew a hostile war, it means, though he has killed 20 men, the dark warrior has set the path for the great invasion, it simply means Killi is far away from his mission, whereas the dark warrior is close to his objective, it terribly pained him, obviously he is the insider, who has been setting up northern kings against the mighty eastern vendhars, there might be some strong political reason for his doing, he has come near, he was just 100 feet away, every pace he took forward, his heart pounded faster and faster, slowly the throbbing grew heavier as he closed in, he has never experienced this internal flow of goodness, a sensuous flapping inside his heart, the dance of pure love in bliss, it was like they exchanged their souls, that too, incredibly, amidst blood shedding fights and heavy killings, there was a strong current of love flowing between them, Killi realized that he will also be feeling the same way with him, love at this point looked ridiculous, he came still closer, he stopped abruptly, when he was just fifty feet closer to him, he stabbed the shorter spear onto the grounds, took the longer one, the spear head stood a foot above his head, he flipped it hard, back and forth, it created a peculiar booing sound, owing to its inherent suppleness, though the spear was made of cast iron, it bent like a bamboo staff, it was supple enough to bend the way the warrior wanted it to bend, it was rounder and much bigger than the regular ones, one hard strike can shatter his bones, that is the power of the mighty weapon in the hands of the highly potential, skilled warrior. Killi released the lock of his surul pattai, 8 flexible blades hissed out, creating a litany of rattles, it touched and rippled over the bloodied grounds, two great warriors of the same time moved in circles, they slowly closed in, they were very cautious in each and every move, the surrounding environment got highly electrified, it responded, a strong wind whirled around them, a lightning appeared in the sky, under the same bright moon, they charged against one another, with full force.
To be continued...
Written on Dates: 04/25;05/06;05/07;05/08;05/09/2015
Chapter 01 The Realization of the Vocation
Chapter 02 The First Glimpse of the Third Eye
Chapter 03 The Complete Surrender
Chapter 04 The Sacredness of the Divine Incarnation
Chapter 05 The Veneration of a Guru
Chapter 06 The Immortality
Chapter 07 The Art of Dying
Chapter 08 The Good Cause
Chapter 09 The First Dissemination
Chapter 10 The One behind the Spiritual Transformation
Chapter 11 The Smothering of the Class Distinctions
Chapter 11 The Smothering of the Class Distinctions
