Shakti- The Warrior Princess of Brahma

Chapter 1 The Quest

Chapter 1 The Quest

It was the year 200 B.C. India as we know it, did not exist. Rather it was a cluster of many small kingdoms. The most powerful of them was the Kingdom of Naga, the Serpent Kingdom, in the north. It was the biggest on the Indian subcontinent. Their warriors were feared above all others because of their ferocity and mercilessness in battle. No kingdom had ever come out victorious in battle with them for over a century.

For the most part, the current Nagan King Narasimha, did not desire to expand his territory but was content to rule where they were, eliminating any threat to their safety however small it may be. Their beloved King had many sons of which his favorite was the Crown Prince Aditya.

Among the other kingdoms on the Indian subcontinent was a little kingdom not much heard of and significantly smaller than Naga. It was in the southernmost tip and they pretty much kept to themselves. It was the Kingdom of Brahma or as they called themselves, God's Own Country.

There was little or no contact between the two kingdoms politically as they had no common interests, at least not yet. Trade went on however, all across Asia connecting even minute Kingdoms like Brahma with the rest of the continent.

It was dawn and the golden rays of the sun were creeping slowly over the Kingdom of Brahma. Nature was waking up after a sound slumber. Birds could be heard chirping, and somewhere in the distance was the crowing of a rooster that was waking up his household.

Even though it was only the break of dawn, the inhabitants of the Palace were long awake and were hurriedly making preparations for a very important journey. The stablemen were giving the horses a last brush down while servants hurried to and from the palace carrying trunks, baskets and various other objects of varying sizes, for the journey.

Princess Shakti dressed in black garments very similar to those of a palace guard, was hurrying to the small temple in the courtyard to join her father King Prithvi in a special pooja (prayer) being held on her behalf.

She arrived in time to see the priest ringing a small bell in his hand and uttering chants in praise of their deity, Goddess Durga. The Princess was nervous, very nervous. But she simply could not let it show. So she tried to calm her mind and held a serene expression on her face. "I must be strong! I must be strong for my father and also for my people! Goddess please help me in my very first Quest! Let me die rather than come back with failure!" she muttered under her breath.

The priest finished his ritual and King Prithvi turned to face his daughter. She looked up into his eyes and was amazed to see determination and fierce pride. Suddenly she was no longer afraid. Come what may, she was her father's daughter and King Prithvi's daughter would never fail!

"Goddess Durga be with you my child! Are you ready?" asked the king.

"Thank you father! Yes, the preparations for the journey have nearly finished", answered the Princess.

"And what about yourself?" asked the King, "are you ready to face your destiny?"

The Princess looked deep in to his eyes and answered in a steady voice without hesitation, "Yes".