Avantika And Her Quest

The Ambush

Arjun soon caught up with me and we admired the forest. The forest was beautiful during the day. You could hear the birds chirping and slanting sunrays peeking through the leaves. Arjun quietly nudged me and we both observed in awe as a deer ate leaves beside us. As the deer left, we enjoyed the peaceful silence broken only by the crunch of fallen leaves and twigs under our horses.

We soon heard the sound of flowing water and Arjun took one look and me and yelled, "race you to the river." I huffed and nudged my horse as I struggled to find the river. Arjun would find it soon with his archer senses. Suddenly I felt as if a shadow passed by. I turned around to look but I could see nothing. The forest looked just as peaceful as a few minutes earlier. I ignored it and rode towards the sound of the water. I jumped down from my horse and led her past the trees into the clearing. There I was greeted with a magnificent sight. The falls were tall and water fell with great force. The mist from the fall created a rainbow and sun made the frothy water glisten like silver. I forgot about Arjun, my kingdom and everything else in that moment as I took in the grandeur of nature. I was startled by Arjun, "Beautiful..isn't it, " he asked but he was only looking at me.

"Yes the falls are beautiful," I replied stressing the word falls. He shook his head at me. He never failed to surprise me. Even after receiving so much scorn and hate, he excelled as a warrior and was the most kind-hearted man I knew. My gaze softened and I asked, "how are they treating you?"

He looked startled for a second and then realized what I was talking about. He sighed as he sat down near the stream. "The usual, calling me a barbarian and calling my victory over the kingdom of Surasena bloodthirst," he replied.

"But, that wasn't your fault, the king of Surasena insulted you in public and challenged your country to a battle," I said.

"I know, but I should have handled it in a more mature way. I shouldn't have given them more of a reason to comment on our class as Kshatriyas," he said.

"Your class as a Kshatriya shows that you are strong and powerful, it doesn't make you less than any of those other 16 kingdoms," I said as I sat down beside him.

"Yes, it shows I am powerful but I am not a Brahmin: an elite scholar, like you Avantika and that, is reason enough for them to humiliate and hate me and my kingdom," he sighed.

I clasped his calloused hand in mine and said, "if only they could see your kindness and intelligence, they could see you are no less than a Brahmin Arjun."

"Yeah? Only you and your father seem to think that Avantika," he said.

"Yes, us and both of our kingdoms isn't that enough," I questioned.

Arjun deeply sighed and said with the beginnings of a smile, "I guess it will do for now." As I started to get up, he pulled me back by the hand I held his with and said, "your kingdom won't know what hit them, you'll make a great queen." I ignored the warmth rushing to my cheeks and said, "well, I think we should get back or father might think you have kidnapped me."

Arjun immediately turned around to look at me with a terrified expression. I looked at his expression and giggled. "You are joking right?" he asked.

"You'll never know," I replied. Suddenly an arrow whizzed past my head and I fell down from my horse in my effort to dodge it. Arjun yelled my name and took a defensive position in front of me with a bow. He scanned our surroundings. When he saw the shadow that zipped past us, he shot his arrow towards it, guided solely by the sound of its tread. We immediately heard a scream and then utter silence. I found the man and examined the markings and badges on his clothes. My heart constricted in fear, he was a soldier in the Chetiya army, one of the most powerful kingdoms in the realm.

I ran back to Arjun, praying that I wouldn't be too late, and I saw that he held a note in one hand and the arrow I was shot with, in another. Three words, three simple words was all it took to shatter my spirit. They were coming.