Swayamvadhu : The Bride he Chose

8: No More?!!

The hot salty water called tears welled up in his Hazels as he saw the figure of draupadi disappearing into those fathomless depths.........

Hearing Arjun's yell, vrinda and nakul turned to see the most dreaded scene infront of them... draupadi is falling down...

" Jiji.!!!.." A shrill escaped from Vrinda's mouth and tears welled up in her eyes...she was about to run but Nakul held her by her shoulders and vrinda sat on the grassy ground helplessly witnessing her dear sister disappearing into a trench...

Meanwhile,arjun stood there like a stone who didn't know what to do..
For the first time, the mighty hands of great savyasachi ,quivered in helplessness...He remembered his aunt Mahati's words...
"take draupadi too..take care of them and return before dusk..I'm entrusting that responsibility in your hands"

Responsibility...
No he can't flee from his responsibilities... draupadi is his responsibility and he can't leave her here...

Without thinking twice, arjun wiped off the tears which blurred his vision and turned back to see a big tree...arjun closed his eyes and pulled the string of his bow, chanting something...a divine arrow appeared on his bow and without wasting a second,he aimed and pulled the string ... the arrow directly hit on the tree , turning itself into a strong rope...
Arjun took hold of the rope and quickly declined down through the rope... nakul's heart skipped a beat as he saw his dear brother going into that fathomless ditch....he looked above and silently prayed to lord rudra to be with his brother always,even though he knew the power savyasachi's arrow...

The vision Inside the ditch was weird, according to Arjun...he never saw such a weird place before...
Darkness already engulfed the whole sky and shining stars spotted here and there at the black sky...as the lack of light increased , arjun slowed down...he felt difficulty in breathing when he finally reached deep down at the bottom of the trench....

Arjun looked around in a great astonishment...world he saw there was entirely different from the world he saw above the trench...if that was serene,then it was disturbed..if that was a blessed one then this was a cursed one...
only a single light was penetrating through the branches of tall trees ,which the source is unknown... unlike the trees on earth, the roots of trees here are creeping over the slippery rocks beside... And also the trunk of trees seemed black and leafs dark...there were so many ditches and swirling paths infront of him...he looked around to see only darkness and nothing else...Only darkness... darkness and darkness..!!!
for a minute,arjun doubted that he reached hades...

" Draupadi..." Arjun's voice echoed the whole place.... Arjun froze at the place where he was standing when he saw a group of bats came flying from inside the rocks ,shrilling and flitting away ,just above his head....

A sigh escaped from his mouth...he moved forward slowly...he moved cautiously as he understood from the first glimpse itself that this place is filled with labyrinths and illusions...

" Draupadi..." He again called looking ahead at the bleak path lying infront of him...his heart beat grew faster with the each and every step he took ahead..it's not by thinking about him..but thinking about HER...
The man inside him got distraughted thinking about the worst possibilities...what if something happened to her...?? But the warrior inside him stayed strong and held his confidence tightly...

He moved ahead through that narrow path...but what surprised Arjun more was the light rays from that unknown source is following him in each and every step he took... finally he took a step and his feet touched on something..arjun saw a figure lying, right down near his feet...with the help of that light,he recognised that person immediately... draupadi!!!!

" Draupadi.." he murmured and immediately sat down and took her head in his lap...

" Hey lord rudra!!!!!.." Arjun's squeaked in fear when he saw his whole hand was covered with a hot scarlet liquid...blood!! Her blood!!..
His whole body quivered...his throat went dry...he looked at her fragile figure in the dim light and it was covered with blood!!!!
Horror overcasted in the heart of great savyasachi...what if...no!!!

" Draupadi...open your eyes.." arjun slowly patted on her cheeks slowly...but no response came...
He slowly brought his shivering finger near her nostrils to feel her breathe..but unfortunately, he didn't feel anything...
Worst thoughts captivated the heart of arjun and it throbbed rapidly under his chest....

" Draupadi!!!" He again called in a trembling voice as tears made their way down through his cheeks...he slowly leaned down and brought his ears near her chest to feel her heart beat....he listened keenly for over a minute...but not even a single beat fell on his eardrums...

"Hey mahadev...why her.." arjun cried holding her head ...now he could see his white dhoti was turning into hue of scarlet...A drop of tear rolled down from his eyes and it touched her forehead.... suddenly he heard a clap from the side...Arjun's head turned to the direction in a blink of second....

He saw a silhouette approaching him in dim light...when that figure neared him, his jaw dropped upon seeing the figure infront of him...
A dwarf man,with a wide smile on his face, wearing weird clothes was standing infront of him , clapping his hands....arjun glanced at the man from tip to toe in astonishment....
His brain kept compelled him to stay away from that man but his conscience said him to confront him... finally he gave away the way for his conscience to rule over his brain...
Arjun took a sharp breathe and was about to ask something...he heard the hoarse voice of that dwarf man...
" So the descendant of king Shantanu, born on the month of srimukha Phalguni in star sign of uttara is finally here..."

He knitted his eyebrows in surprise as he heard that dwarf man precisely revealing the birth month ,birth star and identity of him...

" How do you know it? And who are you" Arjun asked with a biwildered expression...but instead of answering him ,the dwarf man gazed sympathetically at the inert figure of draupadi, lying on the lap of arjun...
Arjun's eyes travelled to the direction where he was gazing at ...he stared at her and quickly averted his gaze from her to that man..

" Please tell me Mahanubhav...who are you..." Arjun finally asked in a calm voice to the man ,who stood beside him all clad in his old shabby saffron robs...

" Me...I'm chaluka...I'm a sage from Vamana clan who lives here...at this hades..." He replied with a soft smile playing on his lips and Arjun's heart skipped a beat upon hearing the word hades...so his intuitions came into true ..it's hade!!.

" Don't worry... nothing will harm you here.. you are at the safe place.. Gandharvas won't come and harm you here..." Upon understanding Arjun's agony,the sage said which made arjun calm a bit...

" Pranipaat.. sorry I... draupadi.... please help us.." arjun tried to form a sentence, to ask for help as tears flowed like stream, down through his cheeks ...but as if understanding his pain, chaluka sat beside him near Draupadi's head and took her wrist in his hands...

Chaluka concentrated keenly for a minute and finally arjun saw his face stiffening...chaluka glanced sadly at arjun who was desperately waiting for chaluka to reply....

"I'm...so sorry lad...she.. she's no more..."
The ray of hope which danced infront of arjun suddenly stopped...he felt the whole world turning upside down...he felt dizzy as his whole body got numb up on hearing his statement...arjun couldn't believe his ears...the girl which was with him an hour before, chatting merrily is no more.....
His hazel eyes widened and stared at the numb figure of draupadi lying in his lap.... Unstoppable tears cascaded down through his already red cheeks...
The girl who carried extreme elegance both inside and outside with extraordinary euphony was is more!!!!!!!! Draupadi is no more....!!!!

Arjun's inner self screamed upon seeing the torpid figure of that epitome of beauty lying on his lap.....
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