(Chapter 35: The split)
As Mowgli fell at a rapid pace, he feared that he would hit the ground. The man felt the wind rush past his ears, it was the only noise he could hear. Mowgli couldn't even hear his own screaming as his body tumbled, rolled, and fell from the side of the mountain. His body didn't smack into any rocks, it was a clean fall. He made sure to hold on tightly to his axe, if he was going to go down, he would die with a weapon in arms.
As his body began to slowly flip backwards within the air, he was forced to look down at the ground far beneath him, and how quickly he was coming for it. He would crash into some trees, but the impact would still kill him regardless. He took another glance at his axe, and suddenly in his all of need, an idea popped into his mind!
As he flipped back over, he swung the axe back, and as he let out a defiant cry, he slammed the axe into the rocky surface of the cliffside! The iron blade was strong enough to pierce right into the rocks given how hard Mowgli had swung the axe. It held on perfectly, Mowgli dangled from the axe with one hand. His heart was racing, he thought he was about to have a heart attack!
Sweat rolled down the sides of his face, and leaked out of his body as he thought for certain that he had met his end. This was the biggest close call in his entire life, he looked down, and his stomach dropped when he discovered how far up from the trees he was. He gulped before looking back up, how was he going to get out of this scenario?
He could still hear the sounds of the battle going on back at the monasteries, the legions were breaking apart. This was going to be a certain victory, if not, a decisive victory for his alliance. A slight smile came to his face, thankful that his army had won the night, he could only hope that Bhediya called it quits after this. However, he was wise to not underestimate the will power of the defiant dire wolf.
Mowgli began to look around, examining what was on the rocky surface that could perhaps aid him in climbing up. There was a cave in the mountain, if he could make it to that cave, perhaps he wouldn't have to climb all the way to the top of it like he once thought. There was also some slight dents in the rocks, serving as places where he could perhaps grab on to with his hands, or place his feet in for balance. Another thing that would give him aid is the vines that hung down from the mountainside as well.
There would be one major factor that would be working against him though, the freezing torrential rainfall, and snow, would make it obscenely difficult for him to climb his way back up easily. It would be hard to not simply slip and fall, every move he must make will need to be careful, and calculated.
His body was shivering, the cold was intense. His teeth chattered, Mowgli began to think that surviving would be damn near impossible for him...
Mowgli reared his head back, and let out a scream into the night. A cry of defiance, saying that he won't be taken from the world this easily. It is then that he grabbed hold of a vine, and began to hoist himself up, reaching his foot into a tiny crack, and pulling himself up. He dislodged the axe from the cut it made into the rocks, and continued to climb up, albeit at a very slow rate...
"Retreat, the war is over!" Bhediya Khan called out as he rushed down the hill into the other temples, fighting off wolves as they came towards him.
"Mowgli has fallen!" The dire wolf continued, believing that he brought down Mowgli for good after knocking him through the last temple that sat on the edge of the cliff.
Bhediya Khan let out a victorious howl as he began to run down the pass, the Himalayan wolves and dholes followed after their leader after suffering what was a loss of their temples, but a victory in the war, or so they thought.
"Mowgli's fallen!?" Toomai shouted, repeating what Bhediya had claimed earlier in a confused tone.
"We must find him!" Bagheera roared as he hurled a dead dhole against a wall after snapping it's neck within his jaws!
As Bhediya's legions continued to retreat away from the comfort of their temples, the wolves and the rest of Mowgli's Alliance started to call out for him in a desperate attempt for a response, none was given.
"Start looking everywhere, in the temples and within the caves!" Baloo called out, and so the wolves and the others began to go on an extensive search. They called for their leader, but still, no response was given. They also looked in every temple just to find nothing, one cave was explored, nothing came of it.
The searches went on for a long time, almost up to an hour all while Mowgli continued to struggle and struggle in his attempts of climbing up to the cave...
Meanwhile, on the path leading down towards the foot of the mountain, Bhediya Khan was speaking with the Himalayan wolves as they were now starting to lead their legions away. Thinking that they have won.
"You've defeated Mowgli!?" Maximus exclaimed, a smile on his face, he couldn't imagine what he was hearing.
"Yes, I knocked him out of a hole in the wall, and sent him falling to his death." Bhediya replied with a grin.
"Good, this war is over then?" Alcibie asked, confused on what would happen next."
"Yes, the war is over. We'll take shelter in the jungle, and wait for the storm to pass before we make moves tomorrow." The dire wolf explained.
"I cannot believe it, after all we've been put through. The lives that were lost to us forever, we have done it despite the odds. I'm proud to be your heir, father." Neo said with a grin, Bhediya chuckled.
"There was never any odds, we had superior numbers, I have superior strength and knowledge of the land around me. I just didn't think he would put up this much of a fight..." Bhediya replied, falling silent after his sentence.
"Why so silent, Great Khan?" Maximus asked.
"Neo is right that we've lost so much, we've lost Nirmam, Conan, Bruno, not to mention the countless innocent lives taken by that fool Mowgli. Their deaths have been avenged, and a great celebration shall be held once we cross this mountain in memory of all of those that have fallen from the world." Bhediya replied with a sigh.
"An excellent idea!" Alcibie exclaimed cheerfully, a calm smile on her face now that she is finally hearing words about the war ending.
"It certainly is, Alcibie. We'll lay low in the early hours, waiting for all of Mowgli's wolves and allies to finally leave the mountain in shame and defeat." Bhediya replied..
(Location: Side of mountain)
Mowgli had been climbing the side of this mountain for the better part of close to 2 hours, his body was suffering. He wouldn't survive this climb if he continued to be pounded by the harsh frigid elements.
It had gotten so bad that his body had stopped shivering, he lifelessly clung to the vine. His body dangling thousands of feet above the ground, one slip would be certain doom for the man.
His pupils had dilated, and his reflexes were out of whack. His breathing had become slowed down, and labored. If his body didn't receive warmth soon, he would fall from the world due to hypothermia.
He suddenly began to hear his voice being called out to him, and he slowly turned his head to look where he was hearing it. When he had turned his head to the side, he noticed that a man was seen hanging on to the vine. He had never seen this man before, but he had the same skin tone, a brown skin color of the native peoples of India, a dark stubble of a beard.
The man had more civilized clothing compared to Mowgli's rather primitive clothes, he also had proper equipment to climb the side of a mountain like this. He was the man that was calling his name, he was Abhay, Mowgli's human father that he never got to grow up around due to Shere Khan slaying Esha and Abhay many years ago.
"Wh-who are y-you?" Mowgli murmured, he could hardly talk due to freezing in the cold.
"I'm Abhay, your father. I've seen the journeys that you have been on, the near death experiences you've went through, your good times, and bad times. I'm very proud of what you've become, and what you have done in all of your years of life." Abhay said with a gentle smile.
Abhay had some sort of bright aura around his body, making him stand out in the night. In reality, he wasn't even there, Mowgli was just hallucinating. Or perhaps this was some sort of astral projection from a land beyond the stars, a spirit of a fallen loved one reaching out to one before their death.
The ones calling out Mowgli's name were coming from above him, it was Bagheera, Baloo, and Kaa. Chupake, Gray Brother, and Sundar Ek were still fighting off the dholes as they were all still trying to run down the mountain!
"F-f-f-father?" Mowgli asked.
"Yes, I'm the father you never grew up with. My name is Abhay, you were born from your mother Esha. You came from her, I know this may be hard for you to believe. My son." Abhay said as he reached out to stroke his dying son's hair.
Mowgli released one hand from the vine, stretching his other arm out to feel the arm of his father. It was warm, gentle. When he touched his arm, he was filled with many visions in a quick span of time.
He saw Esha and Abhay getting married, Esha giving birth, and fun times in the man-village before they met their end at Shere Khan. He couldn't believe those visions, and his mouth went agape in awe of what he was seeing before they faded back to viewing his human father, his biological human father, his true father...
"The animals of the jungle may call you Mowgli, my son. Your mother called you differently-" Abhay began, Mowgli thought his name was always 'Mowgli' and nothing else. It was the only name he had ever heard in his life, the one he had gotten used to.
"You are Abhik, my son. It means beloved, and fearless. Throughout your life, you've proven yourself to be both to me and your mother as we watched your adventures with great interest. It is time to rest your weary hands, son." Abhay replied, finally revealing Mowgli's real name that he never got to hear in his entire life.
"Come with me, son. For eternal paradise, for infinite joy. Everlasting peace, and fulfillment." Abhay said, now outstretching his hand so Mowgli could grab hold of it.
Mowgli nodded his head, and slowly outstretched one of his arms to grab hold of his father's hand.
"I'm coming, home. Going h-home..." Mowgli groaned as his vision faded to black, as he turned his head up he noticed something reaching down towards him, a tail!
He felt his other hand slip from the vine, and now his body was starting to free fall...
Mowgli woke up in a different place, he felt the soft touch of wheat on his toned body as he roamed throughout it. His eyes examined his surroundings, there were massive, beautiful mountains in the distance. The sun was high in the sky casting a golden glow everywhere, massive fields outstretched for as far as the eye could see. A few trees were scattered here and there with herbivores feasting on the tall grass, people were seen picking fruits from the trees.
His body felt warm, calm, relaxed. A great sense of peace had washed over his entire being like a spell, but he had his free will even still. Suddenly, his vision was overcome by a bright light, his environment was nothing but a white veil.
The light was so bright that he had to cover his eyes, and groan in pain. It was too much for him, it was slightly painful, but at the same time, it was joyful and peaceful. He had never felt so good in his life.
"Mowgli, it is not your time yet. You still have yet to complete your journey in your life, head back to Earth. Your friends are waiting..." A loud voice thundered within the light, as loud as thunder during a storm. It had a booming echo to it, like it was some sort of divine message.
The light flashed away all so instantly, and then Mowgli woke up again.
Mowgli woke up in the darkness of the night, in the coils of Kaa. His body was warm now, it felt so great to get warmth that he groaned with pleasure. The snake smiled sweetly as she lowered her head to his, licking his face thoroughly.
"Are you alright, dear?" Kaa asked as she massaged Mowgli's cold body with her warm coils, flexing her smooth body and then relaxing it around him.
"Yes, I'm fine...now." Mowgli replied, his voice was confused.
"Your vitals had stopped working briefly, but we brought you back. You were dying." Bagheera said with tears flowing down his face, Gray Brother climbed up on the snake's coils and licked Mowgli's face.
"I died?" Mowgli asked, having a raised eyebrow.
"Yes, you were dying. We didn't lose you completely, but it was close." Chupake replied.
"Tell me, Mowgli. What happened when you were out of it?" Baloo asked.
"A voice told me that it wasn't my time. I was in a strange, but beautiful land. My body was overwhelmed by...by greatness, is all I can describe. The feelings were euphoric, I never felt so good in my entire life. I cannot remember what happened before though..." Mowgli said, describing what he saw, and how his body felt.
His soul had actually left his body, and he had ascended beyond the stars in a matter of seconds. He had entered the afterlife, he spoke to God. His soul had been sent back to Earth, back into his body, and he was alive again. Granted a second chance.
"Thank Tha you're still with us." Sundar said as she gently nudged her head into Mowgli's face, every animal shown their leader affection. Especially the larger ones that he hung out with several times.
"What of the storm?" Mowgli asked, noticing that the freezing rain and blinding snow had calmed down.
"The worst has come to pass, everything is calming down now." Bagheera replied.
"Good, what you done was foolish, but I forgive you." Mowgli said with a slight laugh, thinking that Bagheera's gutsy decision to launch a full fledged assault on the legions given the harsh weather, was a stupid idea.
"I regret the decision I made, I put your life in danger. I'm sorry for it..." Bagheera replied, his voice soft as he glanced at the ground with a sigh.
"I forgive you, brother." Mowgli said with a gentle smile.
"Thanks, we've routed the dholes. Bhediya thought that he had killed you off, they think they've won." Bagheera responded, bringing the news that Bhediya had thought he had won the war.
"Consider it a small victory for them, for he had certainly managed to bring about my doom. Had it not been for Kaa to warm me up, I'll host a meeting tomorrow back at the top of the mountain. I'll give plans on what we do next, because this war is certainly not over..." Mowgli replied before letting out a yawn, causing Kaa to giggle.
"Tired, sweetie?" The snake asked before nudging her head into his gently with a cute smile.
"Yes I am." Mowgli responded, Toomai turned his back to look into the woods.
"If we fall asleep, we'll be destroyed by the legions." The elephant handler spoke, fear in his voice.
"No, they'll relish in what they think is their victory. Tomorrow, we'll tax their morale greatly when they see that I stand among the living..." Mowgli said before being lulled to sleep by Kaa.
(The next morning)
By dawn's first light, the harsh weather and stormy skies had passed over the Himalayan woods, heading further South where it would eventually calm down into just a simple torrential rainfall in which the Seeonee Hills was used to during the rain seasons.
Mowgli was woke up by Kaa licking his face, announcing that the morning had come. It was time to discuss the attack on the temples of the red dogs from the night before, and what they should do moving forward.
"It is time to take council up at the top of the mountain, I've got some stuff to discuss in terms about what happened the night before. Now that the sun has come again, I think we should all take a moment to breathe. Consider the taking of this mountain another battle won, let's move." Mowgli announced to the pack as he began to lead them all up the path.
It took them a good while to reach the top, but when they did, it was time for council. Mowgli sat on the top of a temple with the other larger allies of his sitting next to him or behind him to his side, his entire fighting force all stared up at him in awe after what they have all accomplished.
"Last night, we engaged in a battle. Not only engaged, but were forced into a battle when Bagheera would lead a charge up to the top of this very mountain to the spot where we stand now-" Mowgli began with a smile as he looked down upon them all.
"I came close to dying, the closest in my life. I felt calm, at peace with the way things were going on. I was knocked through a window, and saved myself until the cold got to me. However, I stand before all of you alive and well!" Mowgli screamed, getting the entire fighting force to cheer for him, this brought a smile to his face and a light hearted laugh.
"Bhediya Khan believes he has won the war, well, how about we prove him wrong? This war isn't over yet, but I feel that it will be soon. Soon it will end with his legions slowly but surely starting to decline in number thanks to superior strategy. We have a chance to overpower him, and defeat him for good. The law of the jungle will be saved, and we may all return to our peaceful lives that we once had..." Mowgli continued as he slowly turned his head to face Bagheera.
"Bagheera stated that he has plans for the war, and now I shall let you all hear what he has to say. It is of our upmost importance to know what is about to happen as we draw closer and closer to the fortunate end." Mowgli replied, the panther approached him with a smile.
When Bagheera looked into Mowgli's eyes, he didn't see the tall, toned body, with a well kept beard that he had been for the past year. He saw the young eleven year old boy, he saw the young boy before he turned eleven. Remembering all the times that they had shared in the jungle, both good and bad.
"It is time that we take the war in separate directions, divide and conquer. I'm going to carve a straight line towards the Dekkan, they're weakened, and their morale is low. This war is all but over." Bagheera told Mowgli of his plans.
"Go for it, brother. You've proven yourself last night, it was a complete success. Perhaps I've gotten arrogant in my leadership, I apologize for that." Mowgli replied as he petted the panther on the head gently.
"No need for apologies, I know your heart, Mowgli. I knew you would realize crucial errors when the time arose for it, I'll start my journey tomorrow towards the Dekkan with a bulk of your fighters. What shall you do with what remains of them as I take up most of them to join my cause?" Bagheera said, asking Mowgli what he will do with the few fighters he would have when Bagheera leaves the next morning.
"I'll take whatever I have, and head home to the Seeonee Hills to pursue a life of peace. I wish to see you return in glorious fashion as we take victory over the jungle, when you have Bhediya Khan dead at your feet, tell him you send my regards." Mowgli replied with a grin, Bagheera chuckled at this.
"I certainly will, but for now lets head back down towards a more familiar location. Feast on a great morning meal, and enjoy our day before we part ways tomorrow." Bagheera said, he could only imagine how a finally defeated and slain Bhediya Khan would look as he stood triumphant over him...
One of the vultures was watching from above as they spoke...it was Charon, one of the vultures that wasn't hypnotized by Kaa. He was in shock, Bhediya had told him that Mowgli had been defeated, but there the man stood alive and well!
He lied to me? Charon thought as he flew South towards the location of Bhediya's remaining legions as they continued their march back towards a safer location as they would wait for Mowgli's pack to leave the area before heading back up the mountain.
After around a few solid hours of non-stop flying, he came across them all walking in a large mass. Relieved that he was finally able to land, he slammed to the ground on his feet at the front of the dire wolf.
"Bad news, Great Khan." Charon warned, Bhediya raised an eyebrow. He dreaded what the vulture had to say, he wasn't afraid, he was concerned that he would be very angry or annoyed at the news he was about to receive...
"Break words..." The dire wolf growled softly.
"Mowgli isn't dead, he's alive with the pack..." Charon stated, all went silent.
"I killed him, quit your lying. I saw him fly through the hole in the wall, thousands of feet towards an inevitable end on the ground..." Bhediya growled, his voice sounded confused, angry, and shocked at the same time.
"My eyes don't deceive me, the man remains among the living." Charon stated.
"The war isn't over then..." Neo sighed as he looked towards the ground, Bhediya Khan was still silent.
"MOWGLI!" Bhediya Khan roared into the sky, infuriated at the news that his sworn enemy was still alive and well. He couldn't believe that the legend of the jungle was alive, holding nothing but extreme odious thoughts towards the human.
"The gods of the jungle are favoring him, the gods of the trees and all of the animals, they favor a man...not born from the womb of a wolf..." Alcibie growled hatefully.
"When I find Mowgli, and slaughter him, I'll piss on what those gods think of him. If he thought dealing with me at the temples were rough, he should wait until the day comes when me and him face off in proper combat..." Bhediya growled, he had fought on an empty stomach at the monasteries, and wasn't at one hundred percent...
"I want a few hundred of all of you to stay here and hold them off while we move South for the Dekkan Plateaus, we'll be in familiar territory and we will crush them all!" Bhediya promised, hellbent on destroying Mowgli now more than he ever was before...