Chapter-1:
Jaipur,
1814
He lay on the ground, writhing in pain,
but despite the numerous wounds on his body; he managed to drag himself up and
limp to where his father lay on the ground.
He slipped his small bony hand into his
father's weathered one and slightly shook it.
Sanjay Singh Raizada fought the numbness
and the feeling of death creeping over him and opened his eyes. He wasn't one to give up so easily! He
would've gladly let death empower him; cause the pain he endured had reached a
new level altogether, but he still had a very important thing to do. . . He had
to pass on his legacy to his son.
The legacy of the Raizada family had
always been Hate. . . He turned his head slowly towards his son kneeling down
in front of him. He needed to see his son burn with the
fever for revenge, and until he was certain the boy understood the importance
of righting the terrible wrong done this dark day, he would continue to fight
death.
He
looked straight into the moist eyes of his son and said in a voice that still
came out booming even after all the pain he was in "Avenge my death Arnav! Take
all the hatred into you and nuture it and protect it and when you are older and
stronger make sure you destroy all our enemies! Not even their offsprings
should remain. . ."
"Promise
me, you'll do it son!" he commanded.
"Yes
father!" nodded Arnav with all his heart. "I will avenge your death!"
Sanjay
breathed slightly in contentment. He had passed on to his son, his main aim. He
wouldn't mind, if death evaded him now and if that breath was his very last; he
knew Arnav would fulfil his wishes as he saw the fire in the eyes of his ten
year old son already. Arnav had always been different from the rest of his
generation; he would always follow his father and would heed to every
instruction he was given and was also far more intelligent and shrewd than his
contemporaries.
"Tell
me the names of who did this to you. . ." asked Arnav.
Sanjay
let out a breathy laugh and said. . .
"It
has and always will be the Rathores son. It was their men who attacked; and I
had underestimated them and trusted in them. I thought they were too
weak-willed to do anything of this sort; but I was wrong, they are far too
greedy to heed anything."
"I
will destroy them all father" said Arnav.
In
the past few minutes; Sanjay had seen the ten year old son of his grow beyond
his years; his eyes shone with revenge and intensity.
Sanjay's
grip on his son's hand tightened. "This be my final lesson to you. Watch
me die and learn how to live as a warrior. When you leave me, go to the path in
the forest. Chander waits there to give you instructions for your immediate
future."
"What
of my loyal men?"
"Most
are dead."
The
despair in the boy's voice washed over the man, and he immediately tried to
reassure him. "Their sons will come back. They'll wear your colors and
claim your name. They'll follow you as their fathers followed me. The time
draws near for you to leave. Wrap a cloth tight around and around your injury
to stem the blood before you stand, or more will be lost with each step you
take. Do it now while I rest beside you."
Arnav
hurried to obey his father's command, though he didn't believe his injury was
significant enough to merit protection. Most of the blood covering his body was
from his father's wounds, not his own.
"You'll
have a scar to remind you of this black day," Sanjay predicted.
"I
need no reminder. I won't forget."
"No,
you won't forget. Does it pain you?"
"No."
Sanjay
grunted with approval. The boy had never been a complainer, a fact his father
found most pleasing. He had all the makings of a mighty warrior.
"Will
Chander send me to Kalyaniamma to tell her what happened?"
"He
will not. You will not tell that woman anything."
"But
she's your wife."
"My
second wife," he corrected. "Never trust a woman, Arnav. It is
foolhardy to do so. Kalyani will find out what happened when she returns with
her son, Shyam. I want you to be well away from here by then. I won't have you
trained by her relatives. They're all leeches."
Arnav
nodded so his father would know he understood, and then asked, "Did you
trust my mother?"
Sanjay
heard the worry in his son's voice and thought it was probably his duty to give
him a kind remembrance of his mother. Still, the boy needed to hear the truth,
and for that reason, he didn't soften his answer, but spoke from his heart.
"I
did trust her, and anguish was the result. I loved your mother. She was my own
sweet Meera, and how was I repaid for my generosity? She up and died on me,
that's how, breaking my heart and leaving me desolate. Learn from my folly and
save yourself the heartache. I never should have married again'I realize that
now'but I am a practical man above all else, and I knew I needed heirs to
follow after me in the event something foul happened to you. "
Sanjay
paused to gather his thoughts before continuing. "I couldn't love Kalyani,
or any other woman. How could I, after what my own sweet Meera had done to me?
Still, I shouldn't have ignored your stepmother. It wasn't her fault I couldn't
care about her. You must try to make up for my wrong. Try to honor her and put
up with her pampered son. Remember, your first loyalty must be to your
own."
"I'll
remember. Where will Chander send me? There is time for you to tell me,"
he persisted.
He
was deliberately stalling so that he would have a few more minutes with his
father.
"Chander could have been killed before he
reached the forest."
"It
would not matter. Do you think I would entrust such important orders to only
one man? I'm not foolish. I told others what was to be done."
"Let
me hear the command from my father."
Sanjay
relented. "There's only one man I trust, and you must go to him. Tell him
what took place here today."
"Do
I tell him everything you have told me?"
"Yes."
"Do
I trust him?"
"You
do," he replied. "He'll know what's to be done. You must seek his
protection first, then order him to train you in his image. Demand your right,
boy. Pledge that you'll be his brother until the day you die. He won't fail
you. Go now. Go to Gaurav Singhania!"
"You
will do as I command," his father said. "You're too young to
understand, and so you must trust my judgment. I want your promise that you
will go to Singhania now."
"Yes,
Father."
Sanjay
nodded. "The time has come for you to bid me goodbye. We've dallied long
enough, and I've put off dying for as long as I dare. Even now I can feel
myself slipping into sleep."
Arnav
tried, but he couldn't seem to make himself let go of his father's hand.
"I
will miss you," he whispered.
"And
I, you."
"I
love you, Father."
"Warriors
do not speak of such feelings. I love you too, son, but I won't be telling you
so."
He
squeezed Arnav's hand as a way of softening his rebuke, and finally closed his
eyes. He was ready to let death have him, for he had seen the fire burning
bright in Arnav's eyes, and he knew he would be avenged. What more could a
father ask?
Sanjay
Raizada died a few minutes later, still clinging to his son's hand. He died as
he had lived, withhonor, dignity, and on his own stubborn terms.
Arnav
lingered by his father's side for as long as he could, until he heard someone
whispering to himfrom behind. He turned to see a young soldier struggling to
sit up. Arnav couldn't remember his name, and from the distance separating
them, he couldn't tell how serious his injuries were. He motioned to the
soldier to stay where he was, then turned back to his father. He picked up the sword
resting on his chest, bowed his head in prayer for his father's soul, and then
crawled away, clutching the treasured sword to his heart. He eased over hot,
glowing embers that blistered his arms and the bloody remains of friends, which
made his eyes fill with tears.
He
finally reached the man who had called out to him and discovered the soldier
wasn't fully grown up, after all. Why, he couldn't be more than two or three
years older than Arnav. Thankfully, he remembered the soldier's name before
reaching him.
"Akash,
I thought you dead. Roll onto your back so I may tend your injuries, or you
will surely die."
After
he saw to Akash's injuries he made him slowly stand up and they walked towards
the forest crossing the various bodies lying around and moving away from the Raizada Haveli which was set ablaze by
the enemy and was now almost destructed.
As
they reached the end of the field; Arnav turned to look back at his father's
corpse and the destruction around him and vowed again that he would never ever
let the enemy walk away even if it was the last thing he did.
And
so it began. . . .
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So, That's the first chapter of the FF. . . Leave your comments and likes behind and let me know if you like it! π³
Edited by PurpleRain - 12 years ago
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