Behind
The Black Clouds
—
Abhinav Chandel
“What
do you think, is tomorrow
the D-day?” Jai Singh asked.
Abhaya
didn’t answer; he was just looking towards the blood-red horizon. By his
calculations, the fourth Pahar of the day was about to end. He wondered why
days start getting shorter during the later months of monsoon and why black
clouds return every year. He hated the rains as he saw another set of black
clouds approaching from the south west skies; it felt as if a storm is brewing
up in the sky to accompany the one about to shake the earth. He sipped some
more of the alcohol; Jai Singh brought a bottle of it, especially for him.
Jai
Singh is right; it’s one of the finest liquors I have ever tasted.
He thought.
“They're
saying that Seleucus has asked to organize the troops,” Jai Singh whispered
into his ears.
“I
heard about it, I guess tomorrow is the day then,” Abhay replied.
“And
death, with its black veil like these dark clouds, will be again standing to
cover those lifeless bodies,” Jai Singh turned philosophical. The liquor was
showing its effects as he chewed on a piece of lamb.
Abhaya
never liked the smell of cooked flesh, after all these years in the warrior
tribes, he had never gotten used to eating meat. There were times when that's
all he got to eat, but he never savoured it.
He
saw a few cows grazing nearby on the banks of Jhelum, at a stone throw distance
from the piece of rock he and Jai Singh were sitting on. Abhaya wondered if
those cows were feeling the same anxiety about what was going to happen the
next morning.
He
picked up his sword and got up to patrol the area. He and Jai Singh were
in-charge of that part of the jungle, as it was rumoured that the troops of
King Purshottam had lined up on the other side of the river anticipating the
oncoming attack.
“Abhaya,
I guess you must be aware of these parts of Punjab. After all it’s your land,”
Jai Singh questioned.
A
memory which was lying dormant in some corner of Abhaya’s mind immediately
caused a whirlwind; he closely observed the abandoned Goddess Durga temple on
the other side of the river. He remembered that temple; it was his father who
bought him there for the first time. And since then he and his younger brother,
Aditya, always came there and discussed about various topics from politics to
religion to different techniques of seducing women.
20
years ago:
“Mother,
I have to leave now. It’s pointless stopping me,” said Abhaya, as he picked up
his bundle and proceeded towards the door.
“Please
stop him; you’re his father,” his mother pleaded to the father. However, Abhaya
had decided to fulfil his wishes. He always wanted to explore new lands; even
though, his father wanted him and his younger brother Aditya to join their
cloth business.
“No
mother, today I am not going to stop. After all, what kind of Kshatriyas are we?
We should be out there saving people and fighting battles instead of selling
clothes,” Abhaya argued.
The
father intervened, “But that’s what our ancestors have been doing from
centuries; we can’t just abandon our business. Because of this cloth business,
we have our home, our own land and enough money to live lavish life.”
“Yes,
a land which has been given to poor farmers who get only 10% of what we earn
through that land, even though they have given their life to keep that piece of
land fertile. We should be out there fighting for the rights of these farmers,
instead of being the ones exploiting them. Why
did you name me Abhaya, the fearless, and my younger brother Aditya,
the sun, if you had to wrap us in in such luxuries; like this house that
you made by tricking the traders?” Abhaya’s eyes grew red with
anger.
“Brother,
father is right. This is what we have inherited, and this is what we’re
supposed to do,” Aditya intervened.
“Then
you be the perfect son, and I’ll be what my heart says,” and Abhaya stormed out
of the house, leaving a crying mother and fuming father behind. He couldn't
believe that Aditya went against him; he was his best friend since childhood.
They both took an oath as kids that they would join the army. However, once
Abhaya reminded Aditya about the oath, he just laughed it off saying that they
were stupid kids.
It
had been 15 years since then, Abhaya roamed around for years in the company of
traders. He was a great swordsman, and very few could dare to compete with him
in the physical attributes. In short, he was a beast who could handle ten men
at once. This made him a favourite among the traders, who asked him to come
along and thus protect them from the dacoits.
Abhaya
had been to the land of Far East. He had seen the great ocean where Ganges
ended its journey, and had been as far as Persia in the West during one of his
travels. However, one day, the clan of traders finally decided to settle down.
Abhaya didn’t like the idea, and that’s when he met Jai Singh.
Abhaya
had once defeated Jai Singh in a wrestling match and since then earned an
admirer in him. Jai Singh invited him to join the warrior tribes. They didn't
belong to any one kingdom, just fought for whoever paid them more money, and
they were the free people. Abhaya liked the idea and decided to join Jai Singh’s
tribe.
Present:
“Abhaya,
don’t you miss your brother Aditya,” Jai Singh asked as they strolled on the
banks of Jhelum, the 3rd Pahar of the night had started. The sky was
full of stars and the moon was creating a magical effect on the calm and icy
cold waters of Jhelum.
“I
don’t, but that’s because I know that at any moment, I can go back to my home
and meet him. It’s just a three-day journey from here. Maybe after this battle,
I’ll go and meet him,” Abhaya answered, and Jai Singh smiled. He put his arm
around Abhaya's shoulders as they took a view of their surroundings. The area
was secured and they had already received the message that the next day is the
one.
Abhaya
decided that once the battle is over, he would immediately go back to his home.
He wanted to meet his brother; it had been 15 years.
***
“Abhaya,
in case I die, just go back to my home and tell my family that I love them the
most,” Jai Singh shouted as they galloped towards King Purshottam’s infantry
shielding the elephants.
“I
think at this moment it’s those elephants that should be scared of you, not the
other way around,” Abhaya shouted and they both laughed.
The
battle of Hydaspes river had started; Alexander had finally attacked India. The
body
pieces were lying on the ground as Abhaya and Jai Singh continued
surging forward along with their tribe.
“This
seems too easy,” Jai Singh shouted as he sliced across the chest of an enemy
soldier.
“Yes
it might, but their army is ten times the size of ours,” Abhaya replied as he
beheaded one more of King Purshottam's army.
“Abhaya
watch out...”
Abhaya
turned around to see two bloodshot eyes staring at him; the enemy soldier, with
a spear in his hands, stayed rooted to his place. His spear didn't move an inch
further, as it remained just a finger nail away from piercing Abhaya’s heart.
This
couldn’t be possible. It was the first thought that sprang into Abhaya’s
mind.
“Brother...”,
Abhaya was shocked.
“Brother
Abha...”, even before the soldier could have completed his sentence, Jai
Singh's sword had finished its business.
Later
that night:
Alexander’s
troops were celebrating their success as Abhaya continued his walk towards the
battle ground along with Jai Singh.
“Abhaya,
was that your brother?” Jai Singh asked for the umpteenth time, but Abhaya didn’t
reply.
They
reached at the spot where the battle took place; Abhaya remembered the green
piece of cloth that soldier had tied on his elbow. It was the same cloth that
he gave to Aditya before leaving his home; Abhaya was still finding it hard to
accept that soldier who almost killed him was Aditya.
After
searching for few minutes, he finally found the dead body. The piece of cloth
was tied to the right elbow; he lowered himself down and stared at Aditya’s
head lying nearby. Aditya’s eyes were still open, but Abhaya wasn’t able to
understand the expression in those eyes. Was it the shock of almost killing his
own brother or was he happy that after all these years they were together, even
if for only 10 seconds?
A
cold drop of rainwater fell on Abhaya’s neck as he almost cursed, he hated
rains. The thought of clouds covering the sky and the rain spluttering down all
the time again crept into his mind. He remembered his conversation with Aditya from their teen years.
“I
hate this rainy weather; I am missing the calming presence of the sun,” Abhaya
complained as Aditya sat down next to him in the ashram.
“Why
do we have so many black clouds after the summers? Why can’t we have the sun
for some more time?” Abhaya continued as Aditya smiled at the ignorance of his
elder brother.
“Guruji
said that as the summer gets over, the earth gets thirstier and therefore, to
quench its thirst these clouds come here with the water. He says that we miss
the sun only when it’s farthest away from us, behind those black clouds,”
Aditya answered to his brother.
Abhaya
immediately stood up and looked towards the tents of his own troops; they were
dancing around the bonfire while drinking the delicious foreign liquor and
chewing the juicy pieces of lamb. The smell of cooked flesh was mingling with
the smell of rotting human flesh and creating an unbearable environment for
Abhaya. However, he didn't care, as there was something else causing a commotion
inside his head.
A
tear drop rolled down his cheeks. He closed his eyes as those words repeatedly
echoed inside his mind, “We miss the sun only when it's the farthest
away from us, behind those black clouds.”
