Nandini's POV
I was in the middle of conversation with Ushaji when I went a little thirsty, and so I got up and filled some water in the glass to drink. And the moment I was done filling it, when all of a sudden one of our maids rushed into my room giving me the news of my father's shocking visit.
The moment I heard it, the glass filled with water slipped from my hand out of surprise, and being blinded by this overwhelming joy about my father's visit, I looked nowhere. I ran straight out the room and set my way towards the courtroom, where he can possibly be.
After running for so long from Maid's quarter to the courtroom, Which had quite a distance, I almost lost my breath.
Sucking some deep air, I saw my father. Who was standing right in the middle of the courtroom surrounded by soldiers. Looking at him, for a moment I couldn't
believe my eyes that my father was really here. Watching my father standing few feet away from me, my tears rolled out as if it didn't know to stop.
" I knew you will come. I knew it !!" I murmured weeping.
I could see nothing as all I just saw was my father. And he was right here but before I could even reach any closer to him, King's soldiers stopped me, pointing their spears at me. I pleaded them to let me go, but of course they couldn't let me pass without their King's orders.
Unable to meet my father, I looked at Siddharth Veer with my tearful blurred vision. Siddharth Veer being a good human, I was certain that he will definitely permit me to meet my parent. And as I expected, he indeed showed his mercy and instantly indicated his men to let me pass through.
The moment they released me, I literally pounced on my father to give him a big hug as I was so happy to see him. This was the feeling which I always missed ever since I came here. There was a time when I thought that I will never be able to see my father again, but despite all the odds he is standing here for me, because all I know, he just loves me. I knew that he would come for me. Getting to hug to someone close to you, especially your only parent is so much assuring and warm. After my father and I parted from our hug, Siddharth Veer asked to my father, giving him a cold look.
"Now when you're done saying hello to your daughter, answer my question .... Why are you here ???"
" I'm here for my daughter.... and today I'm going to take her with me." I looked at my father, who snarled at him.
Listening to this, Siddharth Veer Went a little silent, I looked at him like others, who were waiting for him to say something about it.
I noticed Siddharth Veer's eyes was set only on me. Siddharth Veer and I were both looking at each other for the first time since yesterday, especially after learning about his feelings for me. And after the forceful revelation of his entirely surprising truths, which he hid it from me for some long time, and the one which was unleashed upon me yesterday, we hadn't seen each other until now.
Standing right here beside my father, for a flick of a second the entire scene from yesterday whatever happened in his room flash played before my eyes. How I forced him unknowingly to tell me what was hidden in his heart which he was never ready to tell me. And had I not threatened him that way, he wouldn't have given me any hints about his tender feelings for me.
At this point, the courtroom was still and we both just stared at each other from distance. His eyes were just stuck on me which reminded me of the time when we first saw each other, When I was trapped as his prisoner. But The way he was looking at me right now was like as if he were trying to caress me with his eyes and silently pleading me to stay. In spite of being silent, I could hear him through his eyes, which right now spoke a thousand words to me.
From the corner of my eyes I noticed Dhai Ma standing near Siddharth Veer who had just arrived in this courtroom.
Then all of a sudden he spoke
" If that's what you want .... than your wish is granted..... you may take away your daughter. ." Said Siddharth Veer without tearing his eyes from me.
Even though, there was a good long distance between us, as he was sitting up on his throne which was situated a level higher from the surface, and we were standing on the courtroom's floor but still as I looked at him, all I saw was sadness in his eyes as if he was breaking from the inside when he was granting permission to free me. He was trying hard to look all controlled and composed, but I could sense his helplessness through his eyes.
After learning about his feelings for me, I very well knew that it wouldn't have been an easy decision for him to let me go. But in a weirdest way, It was highly unexplainable for me that, somewhere, I was not okay with this decision either.
I don't know why, ... but I felt a pinch in my heart, it somewhere pained me. I was not sure whether to be 'Happy' for getting free and finally getting a chance to go with my father back to my home; or whether to be 'Sad' for leaving Jaisheelgad and this palace forever. It was heavily confusing for me, but deep down I was upset with Siddharth Veer for just letting me go like this.
Ideally, I should be jumping up and down out of happiness for finally being able to go to my home ..... my palace..... But I don't understand why this happiness was no more making me feel any happy the way I had expected it to be. I know that once I'm0 gone with my father, I will never be sent back here - not even to meet someone from here. And I know.... this time my father will make sure of it.
"What do you think .....BOY ??" My father asked Siddharth Veer. "You will show pity to me and I will jump and grab it, and crawl back to my kingdom like a spineless beggar ?? Then this is not going to happen." My father spat in hatred mixed with disgust. Siddharth Veer's brows furrowed being confused.
My father continued,
" I will free my daughter from you but ... not by getting your pity but by winning her back from you ."
" Winning me over...??!! - But why ?? He is letting me go."
I instantly said looking at my father, absolutely unable to understand him and his intentions.
"You stay out of it. Let me handle with this and like I said, I am not going to accept his pity like a beggar. I will take you along with me but not without a fight. And that is final." my father stated to me.
" But father- this is not needed. He is already letting us go. And didn't you come here for me, to take me away along with you, Then why to pick up an unnecessary fight ?? -- Why to challenge him??" I spoke softly to my father, explaining him my point.
".. I will take you along with me, but not ruining my pride and bowing my head in front of a boy who's just half of my age. I would rather not look small in front of him in his kingdom. Listen to me Nandini, I cannot jeopardize what I hold the most dear to me and that is my PRIDE. So, Stay out of it and let me do what I am doing." My father said to me sounding too determined, while I looked at him blankly as he seemed unrecognizable.
My heart went heavy being disappointed to hear this from him .
"For all this time, I thought that I am the only one who is important to my father. And he just and only loves me, but today he proved me wrong because he is not here to take me, but he is here to fight and defeat Siddharth Veer Singh and prove him that he is no less than the King of Jaisheelgad." I thought internally
If I would have been in my father's place, I wouldn't have picked up a fight because of some stupid pride of mine, because for me nothing would have been more important than my daughter. I would have in a blink taken my daughter and had already reached to my kingdom but ..... this ....what my father was doing was actually not expected by me.
If he'd loved me dearly, then he would have already walked off holding my hand, but he wants to fight for his fake pride and this feeling was drowning me in sorrow as I felt unloved and uncared.
" I know that your army will always win in front of mine, and you will defeat me in the war..... and so ... I hereby challenge you to fight with me ... Alone. It will be you against me and whoever win will take Nandini and his Kingdom ." My father proposed his lunacy to Siddharth Veer.
I looked at my father with my mouth agape as whatever he just said was so not expected from him - very much not expected.
I didn't wanted Siddharth Veer to accept this proposal. He is a good man, and must not get indulged into this lunacy, because I didn't wanted him to fall into my father's trap as I very well understood what my father was up to. I just hope that he quickly gauges what exactly my father's intention was.
Whatever my father is doing is not right. Where Siddharth Veer In spite of being in his own palace and having a full power to erase my father in one go, was patiently entertaining to his unethical and illogical proposal.
"I don't wish to fight, because I have already granted you my permission to free your daughter. And by the way, there is no question of winning her as She is not any object to be won." Said Siddharth Veer, making his straight face in his serious tone.
Listening to him, I was
left awed by his noble words because he mentioned me as 'not an object' and opposed what went against my honor, and which shouldn't have been uttered by my father in the first place.
" Are you scared of me, little boy ...?? Taunted my father and I could clearly see that my father was trying to provoke Siddharth Veer to fight.
" I am not scared of anything, But will you be ready to be beaten up by me in front of your daughter??" Said Siddharth Veer, snorting.
"Who will be beaten, and who will win, that time will only tell us. So, I challenge you boy come meet me in the battleground and fight with me. The one who loses will die and the one who wins get my daughter and his respective kingdom ." stated my father, successfully making me ashamed of him.
"Then be it. " Replied Siddharth Veer gritand eyeing my father sounding firm. "I accept your challenge Shaktinand, get ready to die..."
Listening to this, my father lips curved up posing a malicious smile. I know that Siddharth didn't want to fight but as my father pushed and challenged him in front of his people, and so to keep his honor and accepted this absolutely nonsensical challenge of my father.
My heart was raced as I didn't want it either of them to fight. I saw Siddharth Veer removing his crown from his head, his stole from his shoulder and than stood tall up to step down on the floor, eyeing my father with hatred. I noticed my father do the same and stood flaunting his beefed up body with all his glory and look absolutely ready and excited about the fight.
His face explained that how satisfied and happy he was to push Siddharth Veer to fight him because now I know, that's what all he wanted.
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We all came to the giant front lawn of this palace. The entire palace gathered to watch this 'one-on-one fight' Between their beloved king and his enemy, My Father.
There the fight was not yet started also, and here I was being swallowed up by my worries.
Siddharth Veer and my father were standing few feet away from each other in the battleground, very much ready to get into the ring, while I and Dhai Ma stood together in tension, somewhere away from them.
I prayed for this fight to never begin in the first place, but how was that to happen?? And soon it started when we all saw both of them getting into the ring and looked at each other as if they were going to tear each other's flesh with their teeth. For a few moments they circled around, eyeing each other bringing their fist up. And once their circling got completed they advanced forward to start the fight.
I saw my father made his first move, punching Siddharth on his face, but My father was pushed instantly by him.
Siddharth too gave a strong blow on my father's face and soon like this the fight took its accelerated speed ahead, while I and others were standing and watching it with their extremely anxious faces. In front of Siddharth my father looked huge and bigger but Siddharth Veer was not a weak man. He too had an excellent physique Just like my father, only a little leaner and a little shortened than him.
We saw both of them were thrashing each other with their full strengths and might, to win the goal.
Whenever I saw Siddharth Veer hit my father, it hurt me, because even if for my father his pride is more precious than his only daughter. But for me, he's still my father and I cared for him. But weirdly strange it was, when my father hit Siddharth. For an unknown reason, I felt hurt too. I was hating it that he had to face this, where he didn't deserve any of this.
Watching them fighting like this, my heart sunk in my chest. I wished if I only could stop them somehow... Anyhow. I looked at Dhai Ma in worry feeling helpless.
" What is going to happen?? This is getting worst. Please make them stop ." I requested Dhai ma hurriedly in tension.
"I'm clueless too,Nandini." said Dhai Ma, keeping her eyes on the battleground.
" But we got to do something or else one of them is surely going to end up dead. And I don't want either of them to even get a scratch."
Dhai Ma stayed paused for a moment.
" Then there is only one thing which Can stop them." she stated thinking.
" What ??!!... What can stop them?? " I asked curiously.
" It's you Nandini, only you can make this stop"
" Me? How can I do it." I asked being clueless.
Dhai Ma brought her lips close to my ear and whispered to me. I looked at her in confusion, but whatever she just told me was an only way to stop them both.
I nodded my head vigorously.
Obeying her idea, I immediately execute it without any hitch because I was just ready to do anything which could stop this fight. I instantly loosely fell on the ground closing my eyes pretending to fall because of being unconscious, which further caused commotion among the palace women, especially the maids.
" Oh God !! What happened to her !!! ...Nandini!! ...?? " Dhai Ma purposely shouted, looking at both the men fighting.
All the maids rushed closer to assist me while I carried out with my acting to be fainted. I laid down straight on the ground closing my eyes without moving a muscle.
As the maids came closer for my help, luckily there was a little space left from where I could see what I wanted to keep my eyes on. As my eyes were closed, I vaguely opened my eyes to inspect their reaction and internally prayed to all mighty Lord to somehow make this fight stop.
I couldn't see them clearly with my almost closed eyes, but still with my scarce vision I could make out what was going on. I saw them still fighting while they blew punches and pushed each other, but suddenly.
" What happened ...!!?? " asked a panicked voice, but unfortunately, it was not of my father's, it was the voice of Siddharth Veer who spoke in his affectionately worried tone.
Which was shockingly absent from my father.
With my little vision, I saw that the fight stopped, but again I could make out that one punched another. It was my father hitting Siddharth Veer when he tried to advance his step to come for me.
" Where are you escaping, Boy ?? This is the fight between you and me, and you cannot back off like this." said my father's hoarsed voice and grabbed Siddharth Veer and punch him again.
I was lying still but listening to my father's words, I felt like crying aloud out of pain. I was all this time so wrong to think that my father loved me, and how was I suppose to know because such a situation never a raised before in my life when I was in my palace, where the fate did not put me in such a situation where my father's love for me could be tested.
In a way whatever happened I was thankful to God to put me in this situation and open my eyes, and let me see who was actually for me, who really cared for me and who didn't in reality.
When Siddharth tried to come for me, my father hit him from behind but again when he brought his fist to punch Siddharth, He turned and grabbed my father's thick fist blow with his hand and stopped him thundering.
" ENOUGH. ....!!!"
Siddharth Veer shook in anger and spoke.
" What monster are you ?? You just saw your daughter fainted, but instead of running to her, you are only worried about this fight." Siddharth Veer shouted being pissed to see my father uncared behaviour for me. He jerked down my father hand which he held and took a step forward to reach here.
Hearing Siddharth Veer and watching him walk off, my father huffed angrily,
" YOU ARE A COWARD !!! ... You cannot back off from this challenge. " Spat my father, who was trying to infuriate Siddharth Veer to fulfill his hostile intentions.
Siddharth Veer angrily turned to face my father again and said.
" Let me remind you that you are in MY KINGDOM, and HERE only that happens what I wish for. And Now I wish to call this fight off." Stated Siddharth Veer, but he paused while speaking as if he were trying to relate something.
" Okaaaay. ... now I see, ... why are you so eager to fight with me? You are just not here for your daughter but to make me fight with you, putting a condition in between. And this was your sole plan from the beginning so that you can defeat me and take everything from me. And as cunning you are I should have sensed it long back, but I was a fool to set my foot into your trap and get into this fight and give what you want. Until now." " You got enough of my attention. Furthermore, you should be Thankful to Your daughter that in spite of standing in my palace you are blubbering your gutter out from that mouth of yours, and that too with your brainless head intact to your spine. You should be grateful of ME that in spite of mercilessly killing my Father and raping my innocent aunt, you have an audacity to even look at me. The one whom you took away his last parent ..... but Don't worry Shaktinand. ... I will not kill a swine like you in my palace. I WILL SURELY see you in the war zone. And there I will RIP OFF your head with my own bare hands. And with eternal bliss." Said Siddharth Veer in sheer hatred.
My father stood still helplessly, seizing his action and gritting his teeth. His gesture stated that he understood very well that Siddharth Veer will no longer be influenced by any of my father's brainless and nonsensical talks and challenges, but before my father could say or do anything.
" Enough of this !!" Siddharth Veer announced and ordered his soldiers
"GUARDS!!" "Take him away."
And within no time Siddharth Veer hurried his way to me and picked me up in his arm and straight headed to his room for my treatment accompanied by Dhai Ma and others.
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🧚♀: We are soon heading towards the end of this story....... anything can happen.....
Will Siddharth stop her in the end? To know more, stay tuned with me and FOLLOW ME for the same.
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