12. Rudra and Shivanya’s murder
~Vikram’s POV~
What the heck is this! The scripture must have been written by a drunkard in his intoxicated state. In which world, moon is violet and sun is blood red. I must look for other ways.
The mirror disappears and I left the cave in this dark night.
~Vikram’s POV ends~
*****
Vikram moves to the palace with his horse, whereas Rudra was hiding in a bush seeing him.
Few hours before,
Neil, Avni, Rudra and Shivanya are discussing about the scarf lady in the crowd.
Avni – “There are chances that the lady might be related to Vikramaditya or Suryaprakash. But we don’t know the reason behind that. Also, they are our enemies. Still they don’t have anything to do with Bhairavnath…”
Rudra and Shivanya – “Who are they? What is your enmity?”
Neil – “Vikramaditya is the Crown Prince of Pataliputra. Suryaprakash is the Crown Prince of Shesh Vansh. Vikram, Surya and I have a common goal to achieve that is acquiring the gandak. We don’t know how Gandhak looks like, but with its help, we can time travel and most importantly, we can go to all 14 worlds of the universe.”
Rudra – “14 worlds… How?”
Avni – “We don’t know. But Neil’s parents found about this in their research as they are magicians. Gandhak belongs to Naaglok and it helps to protect Naag and Naagins from various catastrophes. Neil was so young when his parents killed themselves for getting the gandhak. Neil, now holds the responsibility to find the Gandhak. Neil has sacrificed many things to stay mentally and physically balanced and trained in various kinds of war arts. Vikramaditya’s ancestors were the one who had written about it. So, with the help of Vikramaditya, we got some more scriptures regarding Gandhak which contains rites and rituals to perform.”
Neil – “But, we never know Vikramaditya would develop a passion and obsession over the gandhak. He aims to obtain Gandhak so that he would rule his kingdom with lavishness and lots of money. He is very young, but he did hardcore penances and acquired mental balance. He possesses incredible powers as a result of that. His passion has made him go any extremes. Suryaprakash have some grudges with me as Naagraj regards me superior than his own son.”
Rudra – “Okay.”
Saying this, Rudra left the house whilst others are puzzled. Rudra searched for Vikram’s location and ended coming to the cave and seeing everything.
The Flashback ends.
“Means, Vikramaditya is stronger and wiser than I expected… He found the appearance of Gandhak by his core penance. I need to inform Neil,” Rudra mutters and moves.
*****
Rudra confessed everything to Neil, Avni and Shivanya regarding Vikram.
Neil – “Is it true Rudra? I am sure Vikram knew about us that is we are not humans but naags. He is more dangerous than I assumed.”
Shivanya – “It is surprising that he possess many powers despite being a human. So he came to know about us by his extraordinary powers.”
Avni – “You have the point, Shivanya. But, we must seek the help of him to achieve the goal.”
Rudra – “No Avni, I don’t think it is healthy. I don’t think that his motives behind obtaining gandhak is pure.”
Neil – “But we don’t have any choice, Rudra. I must team up with Suryaprakash and Vikramaditya for the welfare of Naaglok.”
*****
The same day night, Prince Vikramaditya has been throwing things out of anger. No one dared to come near him. The Crown Prince of Pataliputra has been known as one of the most short tempered guy of the country. Though he is the heart-throb of many girls of the kingdom, they were sure not to marry such a psychopath nor talking to him due to their fear.
After the end of his 17, he understood the responsibilities of being a king. Vikram thought that this oppurtunity of becoming a king is because of his birth and not because he had paid something. So, he wasn’t attracted to ruling a kingdom much. He was someone who love adventure to the most.
Soon after, Neil’s parents sought the help of Vikramaditya and he too helped them by stealing the ancient scripture referring gandhak and gave it to them. By the time, he read whatever written in the scriptures and listened to Neil’s parents’ secret conversation and came to know many things. All Vikram know is, the people who are Naags, are disguised as merchants. He was taken aback by this.
In the middle of this, Vikram had found his love Swastika who is fond of performing black magics and other magics. She had even sacrificed her eyes for the sake of ritual and gained immense powers. Vikram loves Swastika passionately and so is Swastika.
But, Vikram’s love is very much less than his obsession for Gandhak. With the help of Swastika, they found many information regarding that. Being a naagin, Swastika has revealed all the Naaglok and Haveli secrets to Vikram and it is how Vikram knew many things about Neil and his parents history.
With the help of her, they got to know about the magical tree in the cave and the need of penance.
Swastika had actually helped Vikram by resisting all the snake’s poison and bites when the gigantic snakes bit him with her black magic.
[FB: Swastika was invisible when Vikram was doing penance in the cave. When the snakes attacked Vikram, she added her powers to resist the power of the snakes. After situation comes normal, she disappeared]
For the sake of penance, he decided to give up his anger and his interest on world’s mere things and meditated a day long. He focussed on learning different kinds of warfare arts for physical balance. Though he was known as aggressive personality outside, he has changed a lot inside. He made sure that his father never doubt him regarding his sudden changes.
But, when the solution to obtain the gandhak was very fancy, he couldn’t accept it. Still, he continues breaking the things.
Two snakes crawled from the window and come near him. Vikram was amazed. The two snakes turned into their human forms. One is Neil and another is Suryaprakash (Gautam Rode).
Vikram tried to act as if he is shocked.
Neil – “Vikram, we know you knew about us. So, no need of these shocks.”
Vikram – “Okay fine, what’s the reason behind your sudden appearance?”
Suryaprakash – “For a deal…”
Neil narrated whatever Rudra narrated to him. Vikram was stunned by this fact.
Vikram – “Rudra has said everything… So, what is your problem now?”
Neil – “We can join hands so that we can obtain gandhak.”
Vikram laughs louder.
Vikram – “Didn’t Rudra tell you that gandhak would appear once in 120 years on the blood sun day, violet moon and on red sky? And in which hell, do sun appear in blood red color?”
Suryaprakash – “Yes, it is possible if you look at the lines deeply.”
Vikram looks at him with disagreement.
Neil – “Vikram, its possible. Though you have many powers and know many things, still you’re a human and we are Naags. It is better to join together for the welfare.”
Vikram, Neil and Suryaprakash joined their hands together.
*****
After fifteen days,
At the Mandir of Pataliputra, the required day has come to do the yagna. It is evening where the sun is almost about to set and the atmosphere is red in colour.
Violet moon appears very rarely when two full moons occurs in a single month. The first moon appears blue and the second full moon is purple. Blue moon appeared on the day when Rudra and Shivanya obtained the boon of shapeshifting. Naagpandit of Naaglok has given the information to the trio warriors.
On this special day, sun moves to the Earth’s shadow and the moon, sun and earth are in same alignment. Only once in a 120 years for 15 minutes, Sun and moon both appears on the atmosphere.
During this time, people are asked not come outside their house.
Various pandit and sages from the various parts of India come together to do this special yagna in the temple. The temple has a open space upwards and straight to the open space, the agni was set up.
Avni, Rudra and Shivanya, King Chandrashekhar, Naagraj, Naagrani and few people are present.
Neil is standing at the west of the agni while Surya and Vikram are standing at North and South. Three of them are holding a bow with a arrow. The three arrows are not mediocre but the special arrows from Naaglok which was blessed by several gods.
As per the procedure, when Sun and moon appears above the temple’s void space at top, the trio warriors (Neil, Vikram and Surya) would aim the arrows towards the midpoint of the eclipse after getting orders from Naagpandit. The arrows are thrown at such a way so that it would strike each other and as a result of that, fireballs are created in blood red colour which superpose the sun’s shadow in the atmosphere. Then, the divine Gandhak would appear from the fire.
The warriors are so careful to make sure that no mistake would happen.
The rituals on the agni has started and the time has come to aim the arrow. Neil, Vikram and Surya are ready for aiming the arrow.
Vikram – “Pandit ji, it looks like its time to aim the arrow.”
Naagpandit – “No. You aim when I say. Don’t cross the rule otherwise you’ll face dire consequences.”
Naagpandit said with a anger tone that made Vikram, a little vext. Vikram’s ego was suppressed because of his aim to obtain the gandhak.
Rudra, who is standing near pillar of the temple with Shivanya and Avni, suddenly vomitted. It is full of blood and his throat pains miserably and he got panicked. Shivanya is looking at the rituals and doesn’t react anything. Avni saw this and gets shocked. Rudra falls down unsconscious within seconds. Avni tries to bring his consciousness and shouted. Neil, who was distracted by this, looks at Avni and Rudra. But Shivanya is standing like a statue and doesn’t react anything.
Naagpandit – “Aim the arrow.”
Jerked Neil aims the arrow in a sudden. Surya and Vikram’s arrow striked each other but Neil’s arrow didn’t strike the both arrows and hit the temple’s brick. As a result, the gigantic fire ball hasn’t created and and as the result of the two arrows’ strike, the small fireball of low velocity has been created but unfortunately it fell on the temple’s top.
The temple starts to burn. The auspicious time of eclipse hasn’t ended but they don’t have anymore arrows to aim. Everyone tries to run due to fire but Vikram spelled his magic and created a magical net so that they couldn’t move.
Vikram knelt down and shouts for his failure.
Others are stumbled by his deep shout. While Shivanya turns into her ORIGINAL FORM Swastika.
Swastika looked at Avni and Neil and gives a thumbs-up. Avni and Neil carried Rudra’s body and escaped from there slowly while Swastika took Shivanya too from there. (Shivanya was held captive at same temple)
Vikram looked at everyone with anger.
Vikram – “Are you thinking that you’ll go safe from my hold. No, today is the last day of all your lives.”
The statement of his has shocked everyone. Vikram looked for Neil and Avni but they are under the control and they are missing from there. Rudra and Shivanya are also missing from the place. The temple is still in burning state and the fire ball (whose size is diminished from original due to loss of powers) fell on the Neil’s arrow on the temple’s brick. Due to this, a large fire ball is formed and superposed the sun and the task is completed. But no one is seeing the event.
Vikram looked the Naagpandit – “Hey oldie! You are the prominent reason why I lost my gandhak. You useless brat! If we have aimed the arrow at first minute of the auspicious time, we would have achieved the goal of getting Gandhak since Neil wouldn’t have been distracted. But you made us wait for long and spoiled everything…. You deserve death from my hands.”
He roared at Naagpandit and took a sword and shoved off his head. The blood fell on the agni. The agni starts to burn vigorously. And the magical divine Gandhak appears from the fire.
Surprised by this sudden act, Vikram took the the magical Gandhak from the fire and smirks seeing it.
Vikram – “I achieved it. My life goal has been achieved. I am going to rule the world and no one is superior to me. I am the only ruler of the world.”
Chandrashekhar, who is in the magical net shouted, “Son, You got your gandhak… Please let us leave…”
Vikram who smirked at them in the net said, “You all deserve death. I got the gandhak because of the useless pandit’s blood. Not because of your sh*tty rituals.”
Chandrashekhar – “If you think you got gandhak due to blood, then you’re dumb. Blood makes the ritual impure and things obtained from blood is never constructive but forever destructive.”
Vikram didn’t heed to his words and is about to step from there. But an anklet sound (girl’s dance) was heard from the temple’s sanctum sanctorum that makes the land shake. A girl was dancing from inside. Vikram could not move due to the shake of the earth. The fire is spreading all over the temple and a pillar fell on Vikram and the gandhak from his hand flies up and sucked all his divine powers and all and a fire comes from the gandhak stone that scorched Vikram’s body. The gandhak disappears.
Other people inside the temple also took blood, vomit and got unconscious.
But the dance sound didn’t stop and the temple was completely burnt and everyone inside the temple dies.
*****
Rudra and Shivanya are unconscious. They don’t know how they come here. Rudra’s throat was still paining. He got conscious, but couldn’t stand up. He tried to call Shivanya but in vain. A girl touched Rudra’s shoulder and make him stand up and she caressed Rudra’s face. Rudra opened his eyes to look at her. She is Shivanya. Then, who is lying on the mud? Rudra looked at her, but it is also Shivanya.
Rudra – “Who is… Shivanya… here? You or… she?”
Suddenly Shivanya (the girl who is standing with him) turned into Swastika. She punched his face and again, he fell down.
She kicks him and blood oozes from his mouth. He cries due to the pain.
Neil and Avni reached the place and took a log and lifted Rudra up and they too started beating him. Rudra didn’t expect this from his friends.
Neil – “Rudra, I never thought you are moral less cheap fellow who can stoop to any low.”
Swastika kneel down and cries – “Rudra, you never get forgiveness for what you did to my family. You killed my father and mother because they insulted your character. You stabbed them brutally but they told all your misdeeds before they die. You misbehaved with my sisters and killed them too. You threatened me to kill when I accused you of murder.”
Avni – “You are our friend, Rudra. But we don’t support for what you did to Swastika. Whatever you did was not wrong, it is a sin. You misbehaved with Swastika’s family members. You don’t deserve a good death, Rudra.”
Rudra was heavily heartbroken hearing their confrontations. Whatever they said was not true.
Flashback – 8 days before
Rudra and Shivanya found that Swastika is black scarf lady who killed Bhairavnath and she is the one who replaced the original sword by powerful sword with the help of black magic. She hypnotised Rudra to kill Bhairav. She did that so that it would give powers to Vikramaditya but Rudra got the powers since he saved many snakes from being killed. When Rudra and Shivanya go to Swastika’s house and confronted regarding the same, they got to know many more things. They found that she is lover of Vikram and she is the one who revealed all the private information of Naaglok to Vikram. They came to know that she perform black magic by seeing the magical circle and triangles of black magics. Even though she is blind, she can visualise people with the help of black magic.
Swastika cleverly cooked up a story with drama that her parents are gold diggers and going to kill her in a senseless ritual and she put the blame on them for her blindness too. Rudra and Shivanya believed everything she said. They decided to save Swastika from her parents. Swastika spelled black magic on her innocent parents and other family members to make Rudra-Shivanya believe that her story is true.
Rudra and Shivanya confronted Swastika’s parents but they insulted Rudra and Shivanya. When they set up a ritual for murdering Swastika, Rudra and Shivanya decided to stop it. Shivanya beat Swastika’s head to make her unconscious and took her to safe place. But Swastika’s family grew angry over Rudra and called him for a brawl and he killed them for his defence. Swastika’s sisters have attempted suicide after seeing the parents dead. But little did Rudra came to know that Swastika’s parents are controlled by Swastika’s black magic and they are behaving like that due to magic’s effect. Before they realize it, Swastika confessed to Neil and Avni that Rudra and Shivanya killed her family and raped her sisters. She also told them that Rudra and Shivanya asked her to do the scarf lady one to kill Bhairav so that they can get innumerable powers. Neil and Avni are reluctant to believe her but Swastika reassured it. So, Avni used her magic and saw Rudra killing Swastika’s parents. So they believed all the informations told by Swastika and decided to give justice for her. So they planned to kidnap Rudra after the gandhak ritual to kill him and Shivanya. Due to the unexpected vomit of Rudra, Neil was distracted. But they were sure to give justice to Swastika.
Flashback ends.
Rudra felt anger from the bottom of his heart that his best friends are not at all recognizing the truth and does not believe his statement even after thousand times of confessing to them. But, he never thought Avni and Neil would try to kill him. He looked at Shivanya too and she was also heavily injured. He cries and he doesn’t have the energy to shout or to do anything.
Swastika spelled a magic so that fire spark is created and hurted Rudra’s legs. He suffered third degree burns in the legs and shouts louder though his energy was drained out. Avni and Neil couldn’t see his friend screaming in pain and asked Swastika to stop it. But his voice becomes unheard and fell unconscious.
Rudra’s shout made Shivanya gain consciousness. She slowly stand up from her place and no one helped her. She looked at Rudra lying unconscious while Swastika, Avni and Neil are standing near him without caring about him. Shivanya looked at his burnt legs and screams, “Rudraaaaaaaaa…..”
Shivanya go near him and cries seeing his state.
She looked at the three with red eyes.
Shivanya – “You guys killed him… Right? You killed Rudra…. You killed a innocent man who tried to save a innocent girl from monsters. But the mistake is, we have friends with monsters not with good-hearted ones…. You are thinking that Rudra is wrong… But once you come to know the truth, the you’ll regret for what you did. This day, on the special night, I am cursing you for all the misdeeds and sins of yours, Rudra and I will revenge you at all the births and you’ll have a merciless death always. Neil…. you’re the one who see your friend burning with a cold heart… Your Avni will die mercilessly because of fire and you will be watching it helplessly…. Fire doesn’t affect you from now on… Because you cannot commit suicide in fire seeing your soulmate dying in it…. In the following births, when Neil and Avni realize their love, death would swallow your life within 6 months. Swastika… My revenge is not to kill you but to see you suffer every single minute and you’ll be seeing the biggest betrayal of your life…”
Avni, Swastika and Neil are stunned by such curse.
Shivanya make Rudra stand up and patted his shoulder to regain his consciousness. To her luck, Rudra gained consciousness but he is weak. Rudra slowly moved her hand towards her face and cupped it and moves his head to hers and cries loud. Shivanya too cries… Shivanya too cupped his face.
A arrow which slits the air pierced the throat of Rudra and Shivanya within a nick of second.
Avni and Neil were taken aback by such incident. They didn’t expect Rudra and Shivanya die by an arrow. They suddenly looked at the direction of arrow.
And the man’s appearance is exactly like Neil. He smirked and disappeared within seconds. Avni and Neil are frozen seeing this. Swastika was also shocked.
***Flashback ends***
To be continued….
Author’s note:
Hello everyone, hope you loved the episode. Do read it carefully because the next birth starts with the basis of this small and subtle information only. The episode is quite longer than the normal size because of revelations. So, your guess is true. Swastika is the scarf lady and she is helping Vikram in accomplishing his mission. Shivanya’s curse is the reason why Neil didn’t get suffered by fire. Do give your views on Shivanya’s curse on Swastika specially. Aman and Roshni’s hatred for AvNeil is getting stronger and how will it get melted?
Why is the dance sound being heard in the temple? Who danced at the temple? Who is the mystery man again disguised in Neil’s form?
And importantly, the killer is inroduced in this episode.
