The Princes of Ayodhya-The Ramayan Through Short Stories

Illusion-Part 2

Hanuman exhaled as Sita was pulled back. In a flash, Indrajit drew his shining blade once more and dug it into Sita's abdomen. A loud shriek penetrated the shocked silence as Sita bent over slightly with the flash of pain in her stomach. Drops of red splattered on the ground. Nal and Neel looked up. Sita's eyes widened once more. "RAAAAAAAAA-" her scream was cut short as her eyes dilated, and her shoulders stopped struggling. The pulse in her neck, visible by Nal's sharp eyes, disappeared. A small breath was exhaled.

"MAA-" Hanuman shouted, running forward as fast as lightning, preparing to take flight, but before he could, laughing like a madman, Indrajit pushed Sita's dead body into the back of his chariot and rushed away, flicking the reins intently. "Maa...." Hanuman trailed off softly, beating his chest. "NO! NOOOO-" Sugriv pulled him back. "No." he whispered.

"With what face do we go to Prabhu?' Angad asked. "What face? We could have done something, anything. We were willing to sacrifice our lives, and we didn't. What face?" WIping his face, he walked away, followed dejectedly by Nal and Neel. Jambavan didn't repack his herbs, still staring at the place in the sky where Indrajit, and Maa Sita, had been. And Hanuman still kept his mouth slightly open. He had only known her for moments, at most, but she had already struck him as so good, so righteous, it was, it was-wrong. Wrong that she should die like this. It was wrong that she should be held captive. Wrong, that Hanuman could do nothing to save her.

-----O-----

"What?" Ram whispered. "What?" Hanuman did not repeat himself, instead staring at the ground, his head hung. Behind him, the hordes of monkeys mimicked his actions. Hands limp, heads hung, maces on their backs forgotten. His hands trembled as he placed them in Hanuman's. "Look me in the eyes, Hanuman, and tell me you are saying the truth." he paused, waiting with bated breath as Hanuman looked up.

The monkey did not have to speak. Ram knew from the tears which invaded those fierce eyes. "No." he said, the word hissed out like a taboo. "No." he stepped back, and stumbled, his foot catching on a rock laying there, on the ground. Lakshman caught him before he could fall, and Ram found arms being wrapped around him, those strong arms of his brothers. "NO!" he yelled, his voice shrill as he punched Lakshman's arms.

"NO! NO! NO!" His yells became more frequent as he struggled, and Lakshman would not give way. "NO NO NO NO NO!" Ram did not wait to catch his breath, he lurched forward. He had to do something, anything. His eyes landed on the Brahmastra. Perfect. They had to suffer. They had to suffer, they had to die. They had to die, because his Sita was dead. If only he could make it longer, more torturous.

Lakshman caught his arm, however, before he could reach for the astra, hugging him tightly from the behind once more. "Bhaiyya," he began. "Bhaiyya. Bhaiyya." Ram shook his head, his eyes clouded with tears. "Bhaiyya, you need to stop." Ram shook his head some more, pointing aimlessly to the quiver full of arrows. He could kill them. He could kill them all. He was so close-"Bhaiyya." Lakshman said again. His voice was not firm, but it was certain. "Bhaiyya, you need to stop. Not everyone should suffer for their crime. Bhaiyya-"

And eventually, Ram did stop, sinking to the ground. "Sita," he whispered. "My Sita. You should have been a queen. You should have been so many things. Dumb!" Ram slapped himself. Lakshman winced, but managed to keep his eyes open, for the next time Ram tried to hit himself, he was stopped. "WHY? WHAT DID SHE DO, UNIVERSE?" Ram hung his head down, exhaling, before looking at Hanuman. His eyes drifted, all the way to the entrance of the tent, where Vibhishan had just poked in.

"What happened?" asked the weary man, glancing around uneasily himself. He was about to ask 'Why so green?' (because you know, the green of the tent reflects on them), but decided that was against all context clues. For one, Ram was sobbing. "What happened, Prabhu?"