The Princes of Ayodhya-The Ramayan Through Short Stories

Angad, Son of Vali

Warning-I might mix up some stuff, so please don't get offended. Also might skip some stuff. Please don't get offended, lol. I always mix stuff up from this time. I get my research from Wikipedia, and we all know how reliable that is.

Ram crossed his arms across his chest and stared over the ever unresting waves. His lip curled up in a snarl, which he quickly removed from his face, but his eyebrows couldn't resist furrowing together into a frown. The waves could froth all they wanted and the ocean could rise into a wall, but nothing could stop him from gazing upon Lanka with anger. He thought he could see, with his lotus eyes, the tip of Ravan's dome shaped palace. He took in a deep breath, and tried to unhook himself from the sight, but he couldn't.

"Where are you, Sita?" he wondered. "What are you doing?" He took in a deep breath, trying to clear his mind, rolling his shoulders, shaking his hands and staring at the sky. "What am I doing here? Just standing." He stepped back from where the ocean tentatively touched the sand before rushing back again as if abashed. "It pains me when a mere veil separates me from you, but now there's an ocean. A veil I can brush aside-but an ocean?" Ram exhaled, clenching his hands into fists.

"You think I'm capable Sita, don't you?" He thought he felt the wind whisper back to him-Yes. "That's all I need, don't I? You believing in me, and my ability? So why am I waiting here, simply watching the ocean envelope itself? Why am I just standing here when I could be doing something else. Anything else?" Ram curled his lip and kicked the ground again, but unlike the soft sand he stood in before, there were suddenly sharp stones and bedrock Ram had kicked, and he jumped back, his foot suspended in mid-air.

And then...Ram chuckled. "Yes, that's right Sita. I need to answer my own questions sometimes. No one has all the answers, now do they?" He stepped back once more. "This was a nice talk, thank you." He paused. "Do you talk to me sometimes, when the night arrives and the rakshasas are less alert? Do you look at the ocean, the moon, and remember when we used to watch it together, and do you just talk to me? Do you?" Ram looked up, and though it wasn't even sunset yet, the shadow of the night moon caught his eye, and he grinned.

-----O----

Ram brushed aside the leaves, shaking his head, and halted in front of the gathering of varanasi, who stared back at him with eyes. He made his way through the crowd to where a table stood, and his mouth dropped a little. Thin sheets of bark were spread across it, as well as a little twig with blackberry juice. Parchment and ink. Ram looked up to where Raja Sugriv stood, head high, arms folded behind himself. "I look forward to helping you recover your wife, Shri Ram." he stated calmly.

Ram turned towards Hanuman, who looked right back at him, taller than ever, head angled down in respect. Then Angad, who gave a playful salute. Nal, who gave a full army salute. Neel, even more dramatic, gave a deep bow, but his eyes were hardened and serious as they met Ram's again. His head rotated right back to Sugriv, who smiled. "Prabhu Shri Ram, should we start planning now?"

Ram almost nodded, before raising a finger. "Angad," he began, and Angad quickly straightened, hands folded in front of him. "We will give Ravan one more chance, just one more, before we march upon Lanka. Before we plan and mobilize, perhaps we should not doubt the little bit of humanity in Lankesh. I think that you will be a good messenger from our side. Just try not to burn Lanka as Hanuman did-that might not be a very peaceful overture from our side." Hanuman blushed sheepishly, but Ram's eyes twinkled. "Go Angad, and represent us well. We believe in you."

Angad stood at attention and gave another salute. "I shall try my best! But I couldn't possibly represent all of us. I'm not nearly large enough to pretend to be a million monkeys at once, but I've the personality to for sure!" This resulted in a lot of chattery laughter from the rest of the army, and Angad raced off to put on his crown and a small amount of armor. Ram watched him go, exhaling.