Shatru Sesham: Sequel of Baahubali ✔️

Chapter Sixty-Six (Part 2)

At Kanchu Kota,
Night had fallen. Mrithyunjay had failed in finding a way to penetrate into that impregnable fortress of copper. A mood of despondence had set in. There were many times in the past when he had felt lonely and isolated; many times when he had felt that he was fighting a lone battle on a one-man island.

There was this vision of him fighting formless and shapeless opponents that often intruded his consciousness. It was his own existential crisis. Many times, he would be hurtling down this labyrinthine abyss. Many times, when he felt he would be lost forever, it was Aparaajitha and her thoughts that pulled him out of this emotional rut. Aparaajitha's revenge was more simpler. She knew whom she was fighting and for what. He knew not. Today even she wasn't here with him. She had battles of her own to fight.

The mountain breeze had picked up. It was a barren landscape for miles and miles. There wasn't a single tree, bird or animal in sight. His thoughts started wandering towards the mad man he had encountered on the moor. He laid back on the bare ground. Suddenly , an odd stench seemed to emanate from somewhere nearby. It was too overpowering that he had to close his nose and hold his breath. After a moment, the stench still remained but its effect wasn't so potent as it was initially.

"Waste from the Vaithrani being expelled outside the fortress. That is the only way you can enter into the Kanchu Kota without attracting attention towards yourself."

It was the same mad man. His eyes still looked half-crazed, his clothes in tatters, his hair as matted and unruly as before. But the limp and the humpback were strangely missing. He spoke with a crystal-clear clarity that seemed to belie his external appearance.

"You aren't mad?" Mrithyunjay cautiously asked.

"I am not, but I see that you are", the man calmly replied. He threw a glance at the scroll tucked into the folds of Mrithyunjay's dress before facing him. "I do not understand your motivation in coming so far."

"I don't see yours either for remaining here and pretending to be mad", Mrithyunjay quickly retorted.

"I managed to escape but I had to leave all the rest behind me. I was free but I found that I was no longer free. I carried a burden; an immense burden, my duty towards my fellow companions and prisoners of war", the man smiled poignantly. But his tone carried an underlying hint of sadness. " I bided my time and pretended to be a madman in the hope that one day that opportunity where I could free all of them would come."

"Then you must help me", Mrithyunjay instantly warming up to the man in front of him. "I've come from very far. Do you by any chance happen to know a Bhairava Varma?"

The man's eyes flickered and softened momentarily. His hands reached up to hold Mrithyunjay's sinewy arm before he left it fall suddenly, "No!"

Mrithyunjay's eyes fell. He had been hoping that the man might have known his father. But nevertheless, he wasn't here to give up on his quest, "For someone who has suffered so much, you are terribly optimistic."

"When you have nothing left to take comfort in, hope and optimism are the only things left", the man said shrugging his shoulders.

"You seem to know quite a lot about this place", Mrithyunjay trying to elicit more information from the stranger.

"Yes, I do", the man said casually.

"In that case, I should benefit from your knowledge. Tell me about this place", Mrithyunjay asked.

"Goddess Gauri was born on this very mountain as the daughter of a sage. She took the form of a live volcano to destroy an evil demon. This mountain houses one of her most sacred shrines on this subcontinent", the man began.