CHAPTER 21 :ANOTHER FLYING STRANGER

“Had your health permitted, would you have honoured your commitment of meeting King Ravichandran?”

“Of course, I would have! However, I do not repose much faith in these talks for they have yielded no positive results in the past!”

“Why?”

“I do not want to accept any deal if it does not favour me at all!” The King articulated.

“Therein lies the problem, Maharaj!” Aryaman pointed out. “Leaving your personal gains behind, have both of you ever thought about working in favour of the people living in Amlanagar? They have been an ignored lot with no one working for their development, progress and happiness. I have appealed this to King Ravichandran and would do the same before you, Maharaj! Please resolve this dispute peacefully as soon as possible for the sake of those poor people. Let not this tension lead you to raise arms against each other, which would be in no one’s interests. Please maintain friendly relations with your neighbor. Just because you have an arrow does not mean that you should aim it at your enemy with the intention to kill! Please remember that if the great Arjuna used his arrows to slay his grandfather Bheeshma, he also used it to quench his thirst in the battlefield.”

Chandrashekar appeared quite taken aback at these words of Aryaman, which the latter observed. “King Ravichandran tells me that you have received some boon from Sage Ananya. Had you asked a boon from him to find a peaceful solution to this impasse, things would have fallen in proper perspective by now!” Aryaman maintained.

The King took a while to respond. “I am sorry, Aryamanji, but let us not discuss about that boon. I agree that all you said is thought provoking. The next time I shall meet King Ravichandran, there would hopefully be a new outlook that may help us bridge this impasse. After I fully recover and things are normal here, I will notify you about my visit.” The King declared.

Aryaman thanked Chandrashekar and decided to leave. The fact that both the rulers had so easily acceded to his request had not missed his observation. Whatever were the reasons behind this, he was happy for the people. Before he left Sumegha, Aryaman volunteered to clean the streets of fallen trees. The administration had arranged for a huge man-drawn carriage where the trees had to be neatly arranged. Thereby, they would be taken to the dumping yard where there was a team to segregate the wood from the actual waste and provide it to the needy.

Aryaman single-handedly lifted the huge trees and put them in the carriage that would have otherwise required the services of atleast half a dozen people! This only helped in quick return of normalcy in the kingdom.

Aryaman flew towards Pallava. He was eager to tell Ravichandran that Chandrashekar was ready to extend the olive branch for a peaceful resolution to the Amlanagar dispute. Just then, to his amazement he found another person flying ahead of him in the sky. He quickly transformed himself to a crow and followed him. Soon, this person landed near the palace. Aryaman, too, landed a few meters away from the palace and witnessed the proceedings.

The guards at the gate looked at the stranger in awe.   He was tall, sturdy with long ears, thick eyebrows and moustache, big eyes and had fat lips. He was of a very dark complexion and wore a glittering crown. He wore a long, shining gold chain over his neck that had a demon with two horns, protruding eyes and tongue as its emblem.

“Tell your ruler that the King of asuras, Rajaveera, has come to see him!” He declared in his sonorous voice.

The guards could not believe what they had heard. They hesitated to obey him, which infuriated their impatient visitor.

“Did you not hear me? Either you tell him or I shall myself do the honors!” He thundered with blood-shot eyes.

The guards instantly obeyed and went inside. In a few moments, Ravichandran himself came to welcome him.

At this moment, Aryaman further changed to a tiny black ant and followed them to the palace.