Shatru Sesham: Sequel of Baahubali ✔️

Chapter Thirty-Five

At Guru Dharmagupta's Ashram,
Gopal happily led the cow gifted to him by the Ashram inmates to his home. A lot of time had already been wasted in settling this dispute amicably. Everybody had their regular chores to perform and classes to attend.

As Narasimha and his mates hurried back to settle down into their regular routine, a friendly conversation ensued, "I was just thinking how unfair and unequal this world is at times. Gopal must have spent his whole life amidst cows but he didn't have a single cow of his own before this. He must have milked thousands of 'seers' of milk for others but he didn't have the money to afford a small container of milk for his son."

"So true. See the fields belong to the farmers. But their crop does not belong to them. They sow, they reap. But the grains go to enrich the coffers of that tyrant. They cannot eat a single grain of what they produce. Why in Mahishmati....", said Bhavani

Narasimha's ears suddenly pricked at the mention of Mahishmati. He casually asked taking care not to betray his extreme concern about the topic being discussed to his mates, "Were you telling that such things happen in Mahishmati?"

Bhavani again realized that she got carried away in the flow of the conversation, "I was speaking generally. I wasn't being specific about any particular place. The name Mahishmati came out of my mouth accidentally."

Narasimha sighed. He knew his friend wasn't speaking generally. She was being specific. She definitely had several issues and concerns pertaining to his father's kingdom. As a prince of that kingdom, he definitely needed to be aware about how people were feeling about the administration and their king.

There were many times when the injustice happening in a kingdom never reached its king. The officers could be corrupt and avaricious and might have been looting the people. If this was happening at Mahishmati, he had to take steps as its prince to bring this state of affairs to light before his father.

But for reasons unknown to him, his school mate thought she had to hide behind a facade.  And situated as he was, he couldn't really blame her. If he could hide who he really was at the Ashram for his own reasons and compulsions, Bhavani had every right to preserve and keep her secrets. Maybe a time would come when she would deem him worthy of her trust and share her secrets and problems with him. He would wait for that time!
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Just as the classes began in full swing, they were interrupted by the arrival of the villagers from the village of Saavari. Their perturbed faces, deep-set eyes and fidgeting body language indicated that what had brought them to the Ashram was no ordinary issue. One of their leaders spoke up, "Upadhyayji, we came to see Guru Dharmagupta on a very serious matter. Can we meet him?"

Sukruthi informed, "Guru Dharmagupta isn't here. He will not return until two more weeks."

The villagers appeared shell-shocked. They lamented, "What are we going to do now. There is nobody to protect us from the Yeti. He will destroy all of us."

"What? The Yeti?"  There was a loud round of exclamations.

"Yes, there have been three or four consecutive deaths happening in close succession. Damu who seems to have seen this apparition is half-crazed. He avers it is this legendary creature. Now there have been two or three more people who say that they have sighted the Yeti near the clearing between two mountains and the lake. We don't know what to make out of all this", said their leader. "Upadhyayji, if you could guide us in this matter, we would be indebted to you forever."
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Once, all the villagers had departed, Sukruthi turned towards his students and said, "I promised them that I would be at the village this evening to investigate this matter. I will inform Sister Arundhathi to stay back for the night. All the doors and windows of the Ashram are to be securely locked and none of you will venture outside or do anything foolhardy. I might have to spend the evenings and nights away from the Ashram to solve this mystery."

One of the student asked, "Upadhyayji can we also help you?"

"Absolutely not. This is a very dangerous adventure and none of you are old enough for it. I don't want any of you poking your nose into this affair."
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That night,
All the children swarmed around Sister Arundhathi like bees pestering her to tell them whatever she knew about the Yeti. She began, "Rumors and local tales say that the Yeti is a seven-and-half-foot tall creature with white fur, two-inch long fangs protruding from either sides of his mouth, sharp and pointed teeth, and coal-black eyes that shimmer in the moonlight. And when he leaves foot marks on the snow, they look this big..."

She drew a paw mark to approximately show how big it could be. One of the children said, "Then he must be pretty scary by all these accounts."

"He is if we go by these stories. They say that approximately ten generations ago, the people of this region caught a female Yeti sleeping in a huge cave in the mountains. They blocked the entrance of the cave with boulders and sharp thorny thickets so that she could never come out and harm them. The next night, they heard a huge roar. The roar belonged to her mate who came back for her. He did not know how to remove those thorny thickets and boulders and help her. He roared and roared throughout the night in his frustration. The people were too scared and afraid to go up and check what was happening. Then he left from there to go to the upper reaches of these mountains. But before going away, he swore revenge that he would come back one day to avenge the female Yeti."

"How did people know he swore revenge if none of them were there when he went away? Wasn't it their own guilt that was preying upon their minds? And why did he wait so long for his revenge?" The curious children asked.

"You asked me the story. I told you. I don't know anything more.  There are several old and precious books that have been preserved in Buddhist Monastery of Ashkora. They might have answers to this", said Arundhathi.

"Where exactly is this monastery?" Narasimha asked.

"It is on the plateau of Busan straddling the mountain of Neelmani. Wait a second....Why are you asking this?" An impatient Arundhathi asked. "I hope none of you are planning an escapade to that monastery. It is too impossible. Don't even dream of it!"
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"Come fast, Dilipa", Narasimha egged on his companion.

"I can't believe I am doing this for you. Narasimha, the perfect disciple, breaking rules?" A breathless Dilipa gasped as he trudged on.

"We are in this together, Dilipa. All for one, one for all!" Bhavani said in an effort to lift up the despondent mood of Dilipa. "I think by this time, they must have discovered that we are gone from the Ashram."
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About two hours ago,
Bhavani and Dilipa stopped Narasimha outside the Ashram, "Where are you going at this ungodly hour? We are all supposed to be inside."

"Then what are you two doing outside?" Narasimha hurriedly asked.

"We saw you going out stealthily. So we followed you." Bhavani replied.

Narasimha said, "I am going to that Buddhist monastery to get the proper answers to my questions. Both of of you got your answers? Now go back to the Ashram."

"But it is against the rules!" Dilipa reminded him.

"I don't care. The people in the village are suffering. I can't stay back doing nothing", said Narasimha with determination.

"You might not be able to do this....It might be dangerous..." Bhavani warned.

"I will not give up. I might fail....but I might succeed too....Fear of failure will not make me retrace my steps!"

"Wait...If at all you have to go, we are also coming. Aren't we, Dilipa?"

Dilipa looked back and forth between his two friends who were looking at him with anxious eyes and reluctantly agreed, "Either all of us stay back or all of us go...."
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Authors's Note:
Friends I am back. Things have settled down at the personal front and I have begun writing again. So updates will keep coming at regular intervals from now onwards. How  did you find the latest chapter? Please vote and comment if you liked what you read.