Adhyalekha:The Throne of Flames

06|The tale of the Dagger

Hello everyone,thanks for giving your time to my work.

Hriday

My horse ran through the thickets of the forest at the speed of light. The wind kept hitting my face, giving me a sense of adrenaline rush.

The path ahead of me was not much visible. The moon was the only source of light for us. I am just glad I haven't hit my head on a branch in the way.

By now, we were far off from the Palace. I looked at the surroundings, trying to see through the dim light. I slowly caressed Shakti's back, signing him to reduce his speed.

As his pace grew slower,I noticed we were near a lake. Shakti stopped at the sight of it, and I climbed down his back.

I hugged him and caressed his head a little.

"Sahayta ke liye dhanywad Mitra"

"Thanks for helping me, friend."

He neighed at me in response and leaned into my touch. I smiled at him and freed him from the briddle,allowing him to relax a bit. He went near the lake and began drinking water.

While he was drinking water,I gathered a few grass for him to eat. Placing the grass in front of him,I sat beside him on the edge of the lake.

I could see the reflection of the moon in the water. The water was still and soothing. Staring at the reflection,I recalled the recent events.

My plan had flopped badly,terribly! My wait of so many months went down the drain. I was so...so damn close,yet I missed it. All because of HER! If only she kept shut for a few more seconds,I would have easily completed my task and eluded.

The moon reminded me of her face, and the way her eyes stared at me before going unconscious was something... something which I had never seen before. It felt like she was trying to say something but through her eyes. She wanted to express something that her words failed to express.

My opinion about her was ambivalent. A part of my heart was angry that she was the reason behind my loss, but another part was a bit guilty of using her as my scapegoat.

When she fell unconscious in my arms,my knees almost went weak for a second. I wanted to help her,apologize to her... Maybe even wait for her to regain consciousness.

It was like my mind was convincing me to hate her, but my heart denied.

But amidst all of this,I remembered the purpose of my life. The day I saw the dead faces of my family,avenging their death has been the sole purpose of my life, and Adhyalekha Suryavanshi was being an uninvited,unnecessary hurdle in my path. Be it her fault or not,she came in between  so she has to bear the consequences of it.

My eyes darkened with the fury of my revenge. At this point,nothing was right or wrong for me. Morality-Immorality all felt crap to me. The only thing that mattered was the death of Rajveer Suryavanshi. Anything that falls between that and me has to be removed!

I clenched my jaw, trying to calm my anger. I needed to think with a clam mind. I looked at Shakti,who was feeding on the grass silently. He looked tired.

I didn't want to disturb him,but we had to escape from here as soon as possible. By now,the security forces must have built a plan to catch us.

I got up and patted Shakti's back, signaling him that It was time to move. He neighed at me in response and drank some water.

After he finished, I climbed on his back, and he began the journey. This time,we chose to move at a regular pace since we were already close to my home.