A Magical Spell ~ Ramayan | @TheLadyAesthetic

19. Conspiracies And Anger Issues

Rama's chariot came to a steady halt at the central point of the formation.

Lakshman was gone.

Apprehension attacked the eldest prince's heart as he blankly surveyed the soldiers standing around him in perfect formation, motionless and immobile, as if under a spell of some sort.

Wait, a spell?

A bolt of powerful electricity struck the greyed skies violently, and the spell seemed to shatter, for the soldiers began moving again. But that was far from the eldest prince's attention.

Rama's grip on his bow trembled as every possible calamity crossed his mind. Images from day one flashed harshly before his eyes, and his lower lip quivered as a deadly anger took birth within him.

The prince glared into the distance, his mere gaze seeming to set the atmosphere aflame.

Staring up at the oddly arrayed masses of condensed vapor, Rama uttered a dreadful vow under his breath, his eyes blazing with an unspoken fury.

"If, when I find my little brother, I come across a single trace of the slightest harm caused to him, what to speak of attempting to take his life, I shall burn the entire Rakshasa clan with a single arrow from my quiver. Let the gods be a witness to this promise. The pledge of Rama, not Dasharathnandan Rama, not Ayodhya's crown prince Rama, but his Laksh's Rama Bhaiya."

The soldiers surrounding the prince shuddered under his all-consuming wrathful gaze for a moment, a rare sight to themselves, before regaining their spirits. Glaring at the skies with a vengeance matching their lord's, the warriors roared in agreement, brandishing their deadly weapons with doubled might.

Meanwhile, on the eastern side of the battlefield, the second prince suddenly found himself surrounded by an inescapable network of maniacal demons, each striving to rip him and his charioteer apart at their first opportunity.

Unlike any normal fighter who would most probably whither under the intimidating situation, Dasharath's son stood his ground, rather pleased at the unexpected onslaught of death.

"My prince!" Bharat's charioteer called suddenly, eyeing the disgraceful Rakshasas with contempt brimming in his eyes, and the prince dislodged his ever alert gaze from the man-eaters momentarily.

"Just look at these foolish creatures, rushing towards you with upraised weapons with the ridiculous intent of taking your life, just as moths fly into a raging bonfire, clueless of their own imminent death."

Even as the royal charioteer spoke however, from the group of demented Rakshasas, a particular canibal launched himself with full force at the prince's chariot, claws outstretched in order to tear the warriors to shreds.

Unfazed, Bharat rapidly unsheathed his saber and slashed the demon to death instantly.

The remaining Rakshasas were horrified and bellowed out mixed challenges, sprinting with murder in their eyes towards Bharat.

"Jayanta! Now!" The second prince roared, and his charioteer swung into action, maneuvering the towering golden vehicle clear of the onrushing enemy's downpour of weapons.

As the chariot emerged at blinding speed from the deadly assault, Kaikeyi's son whirled rapidly in his position, his bow drawn in a full circle, and fired a dreadful cluster of flaming arrows at the division of infuriated demons.

As soon as the stinging shafts touched ground, the entire area erupted as if set off by a nuclear bomb, taking with it the lives of the blood-thirsty Danavas of heinous intent.

Jayanta laughed out loud, praising his master at length for the feat he had just achieved, and Bharat shook his head. "Will you stop your rant?" He deadpanned, genuinely annoyed after a moment, when he was sure the Rakshasas had decided to take a break from battle. The prince was one 'severely allergic to self-praise' human being, and his charioteer was doing quite the opposite of what he prefered. But Jayanta kept on the act, enjoying every part of it.