Moths danced over the flickering flames, casting shadows against the canvas walls. Amarisa had gone for her bath. Kesar helped her disguise so that no one could recognize her.
When my beloved wife returned to the tent, I swaddled the crystal stone in a silk cloth. Then I locked it inside a wooden chest. Amarisa called out to me.
"Nikita?"
"Yes?" I said.
"What are you doing?"
"Waiting for you to come to bed with me," I said with a smile. Amarisa beamed shyly. Her eyes shimmered under the lantern light. She sat down beside me. But her eyes narrowed on my face. I saw her mind working, fitting tiles into a picture of suspicion.
"Are you alright?" Her gaze found mine as she spoke. "You seem quite agitated."
"I'm fine, love," I said with a shake of my head. "I'm just thinking about the war."
She put her soft palm to my cheek and kissed my forehead.
"Believe me, I do understand what's been taunting you after the moon god left."
My hands gathered her body to me, and we held each other with scrupulous caressing.
"You mean more than anything on earth and heaven to me," I whispered. "Nothing would change that, not even time itself."
Amarisa nodded with a smile.
"And I love you equal to the number of scales that I have," Amarisa replied softly.
"You have scales?" I asked which caused the princess to laugh in mirth.
"No, but in my past life I did, didn't I?" she giggled again.
"What a tease!" I tickled her bare belly. She let out a yelp and covered her mouth.
"Nikita, stop!" she said. "You don't want people to hear us."
"Then we should be very quiet," I said then narrowed my gaze to her plump lips. "Let me shut this mouth for you."
She pinched me gently then without another word, we rose and went over to our bed.
Lips locked and breathed thick with passion, we explored each other's heated skin. Amarisa encircled her lovely limbs around the length of my body as I did hers. The silken softness of her tongue fought against my own. I felt myself trembling at the sweet heavy wetness between those shapely legs. Amidst our muffled moans and whimpers, I thought I heard a sound of someone's retreating footstep. I turned, but there was nobody there. My mind was too foggy with excitement. It must have been my imagination.
I buried my face into Amarisa's soft firm breasts and slipped my desire into that beckoning warmth within her. And there by ourselves, we took our pleasure of one another in the way of love until a slow climbing spasm moved through us.
After the blissful fire died down, we lay breathless and satiated in the circle of our embrace, both savoring the pure joy that still lingered in our bodies. I stroked Amarisa's blushed cheek. She closed eyes and sighed softly.
It was easy in those moments, to pretend that the war had not yet begun.
But the calmness wasn't long when I awoke again to the screaming voices and rushing feet outside. Something was wrong. I threw back my blanket and got dressed. My first thought was we were under a surprise attack from the enemy.
"What's happening?" Amarisa asked, getting up to look at me.
"Amarisa, stay in the camp and don't go anywhere," I told her. Amarisa stood speechless as I dashed out of the tent.
"Nikita!"
"Kesar! Kesar!" I called out to her, eyes looking for her as I headed to the door.
"My lady?" the Kennari appeared as if she had always been there all along. Her face marred by concerns.
"Please, look after the princess for me," I said. "I'm going to see what is going on in the camp."
Before she could respond, I turned away again.
"My lady!" Kesar cried after me, but I was already running.
Along the way, I ran into Issarak, who was also running in the same direction. He almost knocked me to the ground.
"The Seventh hell! Mind your clumsy steps!" he cried and grabbed me back by the shoulder. "Good grief, you, being our leader, is still beyond me."
I tried to ignore his old arrogant mouth and asked him what was happening.
"Looks like someone has sneaked into our camp," he growled under his breath.
Then we heard the horns blew. Some soldiers ran past us towards the clamorous voices. They were holding their spears and shields, and we sprinted after them.
"Meru gods, a giant!" a soldier cried from a distance.
Then a crashing sound along with an animal roar came from the mouth of the forest. The chariots drawn by galloping horses encircled the field. Then the earth trembled beneath our feet as we sped through the plain.
At the center of the chaos was a dark silhouette of a hairy gigantic beast. My heart just stopped. It was a furry ape-like monster the size of a mountain. Even Issarak tensed with rage beside me.
"Where are the rest of the avatars?" the war god's son hissed.
"I don't know," I said. "But with all these noises, they will be here soon."
The enemy took us by surprise with a night attack, but it wasn't unexpected in a time of war.
What I didn't understand was how they got inside our defensive line so easily.
"See our men are slacking when I'm not in charge?" Issarak cried. "All they did was passing their time upon the lake. Their horses stood by their own chariots while they champed lotus and wild fruit!"
"Stop complaining for once, Issarak," I yelled at him. "Now go and fetch some ropes to help our men."
"Are you ordering me?" he snapped back. "Me, the son of..."
"Issarak, if you breathe the name of your father one more time, I will strangle the life out of you with my bare hands! Now go!"
My unexpected harsh tone had somehow stumped his wits, but I didn't waste my time to argue with him and ran to the bigger trouble in front of us.
A group of brave soldiers surrounded the enemy, but they didn't dare to attack the demon yet. The monster had wide protruded jaw and a long tail. Strangely the animal looked on without any a violent protest.
"I have the ropes!" Issarak cried, running forwards, holding several strong woven golden lassos over his shoulders.
The other soldiers came to help him. Then each separated and went around the fierce-looking intruder.
"Ready?" Issarak cried to them. They nodded then threw their ropes about the giant beast. Some wrapped around his torso and others his tree-size legs. Issarak's lasso went around the demon's powerful neck, but the animal tossed his head and brought them all to the ground. The other soldiers came in and helped to pull against the great strength of the demon, but it didn't seem to get them anywhere except being tossed around into the air. There was a loud laughter from our enemy.
As I watched the fruitless attempt to stop the animal, I finally had a brilliant idea. While the rest of us were struggling to capture the beastly thing, I darted quickly between his legs and grabbed his hanging tail.
Then I started to climb up the tail to the demon's back. When I got behind him, I grabbed his ears and pulled them back. The beast roared in surprise. He would have slapped me like a fly if his hands weren't bound. The demon ape spun around, dragging soldiers below through the ground. I climbed over his head and poked his eye. The giant beast broke the ropes and covered his face with a yelp of pain.
Then we heard the sound of conchs. I was still clinging to his hair when I saw my friends came down with the King and Queen. Our Guru and the Hora also came along.
"Stop!" Ravi cried. And only then did the battle ceased and I felt the beast collapse to the ground in a mangled mess of ropes. I jumped off his back shortly afterward. Several soldiers came to help me to my feet.
The furry demon was whining and groaning.
"Kill him! Kill him!" Issarak ran screaming and drew out his divine spear. But Ravi flicked her wrist and a gust of wind punched him in the gut. He fell to the ground.
"You fool! That's not our enemy!" she cried.
Then we saw the giant beast shrinking until he was the same size as a human. The daughter of Vayu ran over to the fallen intruder. I stepped back in confusion. She knelt beside the ape-like demon who was now sitting up again and shaking his head in a daze.
"This is Lord Hanuman, the monkey king, and son of the wind god," she told everyone.
We realized we almost killed the monkey god.
~*~
Back at the main tent, the fire was burning in the hall as we sat together, but I could feel the awkwardness as thick as smoke in the air.
Everyone kept staring at Hanuman as he sat with the Guru and the Hora. I had heard the story of his deeds, lifting a mountain and crossing the ocean to do Rama's work. And here he was, elder son of the wind god. Even the King and Queen were speechless to see the legend in flesh.
"Forgive us, brother, I did not expect you would come so soon," Ravi said apologetically to the white monkey.
"You children are forgiven," Hanuman said. "I was just testing your strength."
"Forgive me, my lord," I said. The monkey king turned to me, and I lowered my head in utter shame.
"Are you truly Hanuman and not a demon in disguise?" Issarak said to him.
Hanuman smiled. "I have a tail. You can test it to see if I'm real."
"Testing your tail? That is an insult to my might," Issarak said.
Hanuman requested him to lift his tail and see for himself. Seeing it as an offense to his glory, the war god's son, stood up and bent down, intending to flick it with his finger, but he couldn't. Not with both hands, not with the strength of his whole being. Hanuman laughed and flicked his tail over and knocked the avatar to the floor, holding him down with it. Issarak struggled, crying in surrender.
"I believe you! I believe you! Forgive me, lord," he cried. Everyone laughed. The monkey god released him.
Issarak crawled back to his place with downcast eyes.
"Now you see his unmatched power," Ravi said, looking around the hall with fresh hope. "I was praying for his help. With Hanuman on our side, we would surely defeat Rahu."