Beyond {UNDER EDIT}

Prologue

Aarush could not endure any longer. His lungs were burning and his heart was pounding hard. He took a few fatigued steps before his legs finally gave way and he collapsed on the ground. Gasping for breath, his senses were all alert. He could hear the cicada crying loudly and the distant flow of the Makara River. A peacock cried loudly, calling its mate. Comprehending that these sounds would mask his commotion of wheezing gave him great relief, but he was still well exposed and unarmed.

He carefully scrutinized his surroundings under the bright moonlight. His eyes were well adapted to the darkness of the night by now. Everything was vivid. Tall trees surrounded him. The silhouette of a mighty bear moved slowly in the darkness. Probably going out for a hunt, he settled. A cold breeze swept by and his body trembled for a moment. His clothes were torn and his blood had dried. He could not waste any more time.

Purely on the strength of will, Aarush picked up a stone with a sharp end, stood up, and started walking. He could now hear the faint approaching footsteps. He took a deep breath. He had to reach his town and warn the citizens of the approaching doom. Thousands of lives were at stake. A sense of responsibility flared in him.

In the past two weeks, his life had radically reformed and he had seen and learnt things, which he was not supposed to. A brief flashback of these events strengthened his grip on the stone.

I have to do this. I have to get out of this place alive. I have to do this.

Each word seemed to further strengthen his resolve; a much needed motivation.

His chant was interrupted by a heavy voice

"Eh! Here you are!"

A tall, sunburned man stood behind him. His body was well built, perfectly chiseled and decorated with copious battle scars, all across his face, stomach, arms and torso. His biceps were adorned with handmade wooden bracelets.

Panic shot though his body.

How did he not hear him coming?!

The man continued in a harsh tone

"Aye listen up, the thing is, I haven't got much time to waste, you see, so let us finish this off real quick. My name is Shishir, and I am your death. If you think you will go back home and tell everyone about what you saw, then no, it's not going to happen that way, brother..."

Fierce anger gripped Aarush and with sudden burst of energy he jumped at his opponent with his primitive weapon pointed at him. But his attempt was greatly misjudged. He had hoped to injure him with this surprise spasm, but instead Shishir stopped his hand with a surprising reflex.

"My my, look how you frown." He smirked and twisted Aarush's wrist. Intense pain passed through his hand and an agonizing scream escaped his mouth. He dropped on his knees, tears in his eyes.

Shishir laughed and pushed him back.

He fell on his back. His hands and feet would not move. He saw the brawny figure of his foe standing in front of him. Shishir gripped the hilt of his sword and unsheathed it. Under the moonlight, the sword shone brightly. But the sword was peculiar; unlike other swords it did not have a smooth edge, but an uneven, jagged one.

This momentarily interested Aarush but before he could ponder any further, Shishir answered his doubts.

"Aha! See this? I personally customized this sword to give my adversaries a more passionate death. You see, dying is a rather graceful art."

He snickered and leapt in the air. With one swift move he stabbed Aarush right in his stomach. It was so quick that Aarush barely saw it coming.

"So how does it feel?"

Shishir asked with a taunting tone and pulled back his sword.

Pain, penetrating and excruciating.

Aarush could not even whisper. His vision was blackening. His resolve had weakened. He had now lost all his will to fight and had desolately accepted his fate.

Looking at his deserted condition, Shishir laughed again and stabbed him for the second time, this time puncturing his right lung. He pulled back his sword again and laughed again. Each of his evil laughs felt like thunderbolts upon Aarush's ears. His vision had completely blackened. All he felt was agony.

"You monster..." He said faintly with an agonizing expression on his face. The last thing he saw was his own bright red blood sliding down Shishir's jagged sword before everything turned black.

"Eh? Aye, wake up. Over so soon?"

He poked the poor boy's dead body till he was assured of the fact.

"Yet another weakling."

The dissatisfied Shishir turned around and stretched his arms. For a few seconds, he stood there; gazing at the lucid moon, leaving the body for the beasts to feast upon, he walked steadily towards the dark misty depths of the forest, whistling a tribal tune.