Dream - A Karna SI

32. RAGE

Karn - 30 years

Yudhisthir - 27 years

Bhima & Duryodhan - 26 years

Arjun - 25 years

Nakul & Sahadev - 23 years

Abhimanyu - 3 years

(Place: Kamyakvan)

(Karn's POV)

I approached the general location of the Pandavas, my thoughts simmering with a mixture of anger and disbelief. Nearly a week had passed since our mutual banishment. The Pandavas had taken refuge in the northern forests of Hastinapur, while I had been exiled to the east. As I neared their encampment, the sight that greeted me was a scene of utter desolation-a cluster of men and women, sitting wherever they could find space, their faces etched with the heavy burden of shame and despair. The melancholy in the air was almost suffocating.

A few of them hailed me as I passed through, but their greetings were muted, their voices weighed down by the gravity of their situation. Soon, I found myself standing before the Pandavas, who were gathered under the shade of a Pipal tree. Their eyes burned with silent rage and impotence, their expressions as stormy as the skies before a tempest. Yet, seeing them like this stirred no pity in me. Instead, it fanned the flames of my own anger. How could Yudhishthir have been so utterly foolish? How could he have walked into a trap-not once, but twice-driven by his inflated pride? My earlier belief in his fitness to rule now seemed like a cruel joke.

The commotion of my arrival caused the Pandavas to glance in my direction, but none could meet my gaze. They averted their eyes, their shame evident.

"Pranam, Kshatriya-Shiromanis!" I greeted them, my voice laced with bitter sarcasm. "Pranam, O protectors of Gau-Brahmin-Stris! You all must be so proud of your... accomplishment."

Their faces paled as my words cut through the silence like a sharpened blade. It was the first time since the dyut sabha that anyone had dared to chastise them so openly. But as much as I wanted them to feel the full weight of their disgrace, I realized the setting was too public.

Turning toward the people who sat nearby, I raised my voice. "Pranam, citizens! I know you are all eager to know the next course of our action, but please, give us some privacy. We need to discuss state matters without any distractions."

The crowd, sensing the tension, began to disperse slowly, giving us the space we needed. Once they had moved away, I turned my attention back to the Pandavas. "What, nothing to say? Are you all struck dumb with shame? Come on, tell me how you've proven your valor in battle like true Kshatriyas! Surely, win or lose, the fight is what matters, right? Or tell me how you have achieved veergati without becoming... ranchods?"

Nakula, unable to bear it any longer, snapped, "Have you come here just to mock us, Karna?"

"Mock you?" I shot back, my voice rising. "Who am I to mock such stalwart warriors, the dev-putras! The princes of the famed Kurus. The kings of... NOTHING!" I sneered, the word dripping with contempt. "Oh, but not nothing-you still have your freedom, don't you? Shall I arrange for some gamblers to take that away as well?"

"Karna, don't you dare provoke us!" Arjun exclaimed, his voice trembling with barely restrained fury.

"Oh! You can speak now, can you? Where was this indignation in the sabha?" I taunted, my eyes narrowing as I stepped closer.

Sahadeva, his voice filled with quiet pain, asked, "Do you really wish to wound us, Karna?"

"Wound you? Who am I to wound you?" I scoffed. "You seem perfectly capable of destroying yourselves without any help from me."