Meenakshi

C3: Wounded

At Sampangi Village:

Finishing his bath, Aditya looked around to find whether he could have a clue. He did find faint footsteps directed to the village, but he couldn't find their origin. Deciding to try his luck out again, Aditya wrapped the Angavastram around his torso as he followed the footsteps. They led him deeper into the forests, where the light from the sun was swallowed before it reached the ground.

"Don't move." A voice came from behind. A pin sort of thing was pointed to his neck, piercing him as he tried to move to see the person. "What are you doing here?" The voice asked.

"I am lost, I didn't mean to come here." Aditya replied.

"Lost? Why did you come here in the first place?" The voice asked back.

"I was here for a bath. I lost my way." Aditya spoke as he tried to figure out a way to escape the stranger and have a look at him. He caught a glimpse of the wrist that pointed the needle at him but nothing more.

"You are lying. And don't try to turn around. The needle is poisoned. I wouldn't hesitate to kill you. Why are you here? The river and the village are closely connected, you could have never lost your way." The voice said and Aditya slowly nodded.

"I followed the footsteps, I thought there would be a temple here where I could pray." Aditya spoke, as he looked around to trap the man behind him.

"Go home. You will be killed otherwise." The man warned. And in a moment the bushes behind him rustled and the man was gone.

Aditya slowly turned behind to have a glimpse, but the mean was nowhere. He touched his neck where the pin was placed. There was a small wound where the needle had pricked him. He let out a deep breath of sigh and walked back to the village, planning to come back well equipped again.

The next morning he woke up early hearing the rustling and the commotion of the villagers. Walking out of the house, he found out that a house not far away from the hut he was staying had been robbed. Food and grains were stolen while the clothes were burnt. The mother and the daughter were weeping while the father and his elder son were trying to fix the situation. Aditya walked up to him and helped him discard the burnt clothes.

"Chacha, when did this happen?" He asked, seeing the house robbed.

"I don't know, son. We were all asleep there. When Mala woke up in the morning to fetch water for cooking, she found the place near the utensils empty. She had a basket full of vegetables that we got from the market nearby. We are doomed son, we are doomed." The man wept, his misery seeping through his body. Aditya listened to him and helped him around the house. He also fetched water, firewood and some fruits for the family. He tried to find some clue about the intruders but his effort was futile.

He went back to the hut where he was staying. Gathering fresh clothes, Aditya took a bath and ventured back without having to encounter a situation like the previous day. He had some fruits that were leftover and decided to get to know the village well.

It was almost dark by the time he familiarized himself with the village. As he returned back to the hut, he found the old man at the entrance waiting for him. "Where did you go?" He asked, his voice gruff.

"I–I was just looking around. I am staying here for a few days and I need to know the place if I have to escape or help myself. So I decided to take a small tour around kaka." The old man nodded.

"Kaka, I have a doubt. When did all of this start?" The old man looked at him for a moment and then spoke.

"All of this started two weeks ago. We all gather for a yearly festival offering our gratitude to the forest goddess. But that day, Shankar's son slipped and fell into the water. We couldn't save him. He was a good child and his death was a shock to all of us. Gramani told us that Sindhi ma was angry at us and our prayers this time were not truthful. We didn't know whether our prayers were unfaithful, but we believed our chief. Two days after this, three houses caught fire. They are at the far end of the village. Though no one died, the accident did cause harm to the families. We tried offering cattle and food to Sindhi Ma, but it seems that her anger hasn't subsided. Since the fire, there has been constant misery in every household here. All of us have decided to vacate this place by the end of this month and start our new life down south of the river." The old man said, his eyes tearing as he spoke. "This was the place we lived and we grew old into. How can we leave our own home?" He cried. Aditya didn't know how to console him. He patted his back softly assuring that all would be well.

Aditya decided to stay up that night, trying to figure out where these people come from and why. He built a temporary manchan on top of the hut and took his dagger with him. Settling in a comfortable covered position, he waited as the night lasted.

Aditya woke up to rusting noises. He quickly sat up from his position and tried to find the source of sound. He found it coming from the trees near the village temple. Quickly getting down his manchan, Aditya slowly walked towards the source of the sound, hiding himself from giving away. He did behind a wall, as he saw a group of five men tying something together. They had something smeared around their faces making it impossible to recognize them. It looked like they had successfully looted another house. Aditya reached for his dagger and flung it at the man closest to him. The dagger hit the man right at his neck, killing him instantly. This alerted the others, and they found Aditya's spot. Leaving their loot aside, they charged towards him with their knives in their hands. Aditya quickly ran into the forests, dodging the branches and leaves. He ran until a knife cut his arm catching him off guard, resulting in him falling to the ground. He quickly recovered from the blow only to find his arm cut and bleeding. The men had reached him, trapping him from all sides.

Aditya's gaze jumped from one person to another before one of them flung his knife at him while the other three charged at him. He dodged the knife as he held the man who had his knife close to Aditya's waist. He swiftly evaded the man, twisting his arm with the knife into his own chest while landing a blow on the other. The fourth man managed to get behind him, locking him in a neck hold, making Aditya stumble. Aditya moved back and hit a tree, the blow knocking the man on his back. The man cried when Aditya twisted his arm. He found the three men on the first floor. Wiping the sweat off his forehead, Aditya looked at his wound. It wasn't deep but blood had not clot yet. He tore a piece of his dhoti and tied it around his arm tightly, to stop the blood. As he looked around to head back, he heard footsteps coming towards him. Before he could arm himself, an arrow rammed into his left shoulder, leaving a scream out of his mouth.

Aditya fell on his knees as he tried to pull the arrow. But the arrow was lodged in his muscle making it difficult for him to pull it out. Aditya quickly reached for the knife fallen near him and hurled it towards the man with the bow, hitting him straight at his heart. Aditya tried to defend himself with a stick or even his dagger but he could find nothing around him. Seeing him helpless, one of the men walked towards him with a sword in his hand, putting down the bow. Aditya looked around to defend himself. Unable to find anything, as he swayed feeling dizzy, he forcefully pulled out the arrow from his shoulder, lodging it in the man's neck, making him fall with a thud. Before the other men could raise their weapon to harm him, a shadow appeared from behind, slitting their necks before they had the time to react.

The man was in front of him before he could hit his head on the ground and the last thing Aditya noticed was the wrist. The same one that had warned him yesterday. 

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Drum rolls please. Long chapter. 

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