Devasena - Bride of the War God

Chapter 3

Devasena's mother, Sachi and her grandmother, Aditi stood on the topmost steps of Indra's Palace. Devasena saw from a distance her grandmother bless her father and heard her grandmother say the words " May you return victorious in battle or seek a glorious death as befits a warrior!" Devasena wanted to move, she wanted to wrap her arms around her father and tell him how much he meant to her. There was so much she wanted to say but she stood rooted to the spot with her eyes glued to the scene. Her father tenderly hugged her mother and her grandmother. Indra leapt onto his flying chariot, the sun causing his diamond armour and crown to glitter with blinding brilliance.  He was accompanied by his brothers, gold armored Surya and a bronze armored Agni. Devasena could barely believe that every one from her family was riding into a battle which could very well be their last battle.

Later, in the Court Room in Indra's Palace 

"Quickly, send these medical supplies" ordered Sachi to a few messenger gods, "I heard that several gods have been severely injured" her voice ringing, loud and clear, in the court room of Indra. An older matronly voice added, Devasena's grandmother Aditi, "Send our best men who are guarding this palace to rescue and evacuate the refugees"

"Ask the Goddess Annapurna to kindly send as much food as she can" added Sachi and said, "Ask Lord Kubera to send as much money as he can, he is the banker of us gods after all. Tell him we will repay with interest soon." Sachi sighed angrily, "Curse the wretched Rule that the gods cannot allow the humans who are not yet dead to come directly into Amaravati, I have never felt so helpless in my life. The only way we can help is only indirectly to send aid through our messengers"

"Calm down, Sachi, it is unbecoming of the Queen of the Gods to show vulnerability. We must stand strong and provide all the help we can." Sachi quickly added to her assistants, "Tell the divine architect, Maaya, to present himself. He must quickly build makeshift structures to house the swelling numbers of displaced refugees"

Devasena watched her mother and grandmother effectively contributing and felt pride in her heart. Sounds of a Pushpaka Vimana, a flying chariot-shaped ship, landing outside, were heard from outside. "She is here" whispered Sachi, tears glinting in her eyes.

Devasena saw her heavily pregnant sister, Jayanthi and her brother-in-law, Shukra arrive.

"Is the medical team ready?" barked Shukra

"Ready to start, when you join them" said Sachi said, gesturing to the medical team assembled beside her

Shukra nodded and made his way to the medical team, discussing with the Twin Gods of Medicine and the young prodigy of medical science, Dhanwanthari. Within two minutes, Shukra and the medical team exited the court hall. Devasena was shocked and ashamed of herself when she saw her pregnant sister leaving with the medical team. Devasena hurried after her sister and ignored her mother shouting "Devasena, you come back here right now! Where do you think you are going?" She grabbed her sister's wrist, "Take me with you! I cannot let you do all the work, you need all the help you can get!"

Jayanthi nodded, smiling happily but her smile froze on her face when she looked past Devasena.

"What happen....?!" Devasena could barely complete her sentence, when she was seized roughly, tossed onto a broad shoulder. Devasena saw her fully armoured brother, carrying her with ease and punched his shoulder "Let me down!" but her effort only got her bruised fists. He dropped her unceremoniously in her room and bolted the door from outside, "Take care of that brat, Mother!" Devasena could hear his voice from outside the door, she heard her mother bless him, "May you return victorious, Jayantha" and heard sounds of his heavy footsteps exiting the court room.

Devasena could not believe that she had been left behind, her sister badly needed someone to assist her. She had hid truth about her family to Skanda but the truth was Jayantha never allowed her to do a single thing independently. He would always make it a point of showing that he could do everything better than her. Any decision she made based on her own choice, Jayantha would be the first to cut it down. Her sister, Jayanthi, hated this about their brother and avoided interacting much with him, especially after her marriage. Jayantha was the fine warrior son, a capable Commander who Indra took pride in. Jayanthi was Indra's valuable asset of a daughter who married the best medical genius of the world – Shukra.

What am I, then? Devasena thought bitterly, a permanent peacemaker for your warring parents, a voice whispered snidely in her head. Devasena heard the sound of a flying chariot passing by, she peered through the window of her room and saw a war goddess pass by. It was the wife of the Ashwin Twins, Usha.

"Lieutenant-General Usha!" she called out, the goddess stopped and hovered near her window, "Please take me with you"

The goddess nodded, "We need all the help we can get. Hop in, child!" Devasena leapt into the back of the flying chariot and held onto the goddess' waist tightly as the chariot dashed forward.

As they flew over the battlefield, Devasena felt nauseated, the ground seemed stained red with overflowing blood. Within minutes they landed into the corner of the huge battlefield where the medical team was located. Devasena could still hear the sounds of hooves, the trumpeting of elephants, wheels running on the ground, dying screams and sickening sounds of metal piercing flesh and armour.

As soon as Devasena entered the medics tent, Usha left to fight alongside the other gods.

"Make way! Make way!" Devasena turned around and saw an amputated god brought in.

"Quick, girl!" shouted the Ashwin Twins, "Hold him still!" Devasena nodded and held the man down by the shoulders. Her brother-in-law Shukra dabbed Ambrosia on the wounded god's amputated area. The man screamed as if he was being burnt by fire, "Muffle him!" roared the Ashwin Twins, "Get the next patient, now!"

Devasena saw bone and flesh growing again on the man's amputated area, the man seemed as if he would prefer death than the agony, Devasena shut her eyes and shoved the cloth deeper into the man's throat.

A goddess was brought in next, a breast slice clean off, Devasena curbed her nausea and rushed to help her lie down and quickly undid the straps of the lady's armour. Shukra quickly dabbed ambrosia and the woman's pained shrieks made Devasena wish she could pierce her eardrums.

Devasena was drenched with sweat, by the time she tended to the hundredth patient within just one hour of arriving there. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her sister and the young Dhanwantri mix Amruth, the ambrosia liquid with the right amount of Sanjeevani leaves and dilute it with the river water of Ganga. They boiled this mixture, creating a concoction, which was then applied to the patients.

Unlike the patients, who could be brought inside the tent, they had to tend to the wounded animals outside the tent. Devasena felt tears prick her eyes when she saw her father's elephant, Airavata, groaning in pain, as its entire trunk was chopped off. She dabbed ambrosia mixture on it and shut her ears at the ear-splitting cries of the poor elephant. Several warriors and animals had been amputated or blinded and Devasena assisted the medical team with everyone of the patients – the warriors and their animals.

Within the next five hours, Devasena was covered from top to bottom in congealing blood and her own sweat, her body screaming in protest as she had tended to nearly five hundred patients. Devasena could barely stand, she felt her knees buckle but she was held, just before she fell down, by her brother-in-law, Shukra

"Well done, Devasena" he chuckled, helping her sit down, cross-legged, on the floor. She tilted her head back and inhaled deeply to relax, no longer bothered now, by the foul stench of pus, gangrene and blood.

"Quick, make way!" why was the voice so familiar? An image passed in her mind at the voice, of a boy forced to become a man before his adolescence.

She snapped her eyes open, energy flooding every inch of her tired body from the adrenaline rush. She saw Skanda arrive, pushing past the curtain of the tent, badly injured but supporting her father who was wounded as well.

His gaze landed on her face and his eyes widened, "De...Devasena!?"