Part 7

It had been half an hour as Nair and Meghraj stood behind the lines of trees obscuring them from the view of the people at the funeral.

Their hands clutching tightly at the reins of their horses, at any moment now the signal might come and they would need to make a run for their lives as well those depending on them.

The priest stood beside the corpse of the dead man and uttered the holy mantras, relentlessly while the young widow was held back by two strong mens.

Suddenly, the priest stopped turned around and said something and to Nair's utter horror he saw a regally dressed young man to come forward with the fire torch in his hand.

'He was going to lit the pyre! '

And soon he did, the wooden logs slowly creating a humongous hallow of light that rapidly consumed the dead flesh of the man. The two men who until now had kept the woman pinned to ground now pulled her up.

"May the soul of great King Uday Narayan rest in peace! Rest in peace! "They all chanted together.

The men carried the lady towards the burning pyre as the chants grew louder and louder.

A few more empty beats passed and Nair was about to tell Meghraj something but the words were hammered back into his throat as he saw the greyish fumes filling into the glade.

The whole area getting under a layer of mist as everyone looked around startled.

Just as per their plan, their guards were fanning the burning coals to create such effect, hiding behind the trees of the forest on either side.

"What's happening? "Someone shouted from the army and that's when Mohini entered into the glade, strolling from the temple. She was dressed in green, thr jewels of the the goddess now adorning her, the sword of the godness now clutched tightly in her grasp and her gait was something Nair had never seen before.

She walked like a tigress preparing to pounce on her prey.

"How dare you! "Her voice reverberated through the place as people gaped at her.

"Who's she?" Someone murmured and that's when her identity came into light.

A man among the commeners replied. "It's the goddess! It's the goddess herself! "

And within the next moment every single man on that infertile land kneeled on the ground, their heads bowed down, their hands joined.

Be it the commoners, the guards, the soldiers or even the courtiers. Except the men of the royal family who stood still and glared at Mohini.

"Stop this bullshit right away! "The man who had lit the pyre a moment before roared. "Stand up everyone and arrest this girl who dared to create hindrance in my father's funeral! "

A few of the guards had barely raised their heads on getting that order when Mohini forced them back to the ground with her laugh.

A laugh so boisterous that could shook upto the spines of weak. "Who gave you the power to take an innocent life?"she roared, looking straight into the eyes of the prince while the rest of the population kept kneeling on the ground.

"You wretch! "The prince pulled out his sword. "You think you can fool me with that attire and false mist? Tonight I will burn you alive as well! "And no matter how much Mohini tried she could not keep the fear that came to her as the foreign prince strode towards her.

And that's when Maya whistled. As loud as she can afford to.

'It was time! '

Through the mist then came a pair of riders who did not spoke, who did not faught but were gone as mysteriously as they appeared but gone with them were the 'goddess of woods' and the 'young widow! '