Chapter 3: Peacock Hunt
"I cannot take you with me," Arjuna said, probably for the hundredth time today. "Go back to your family."
And, also for the hundredth time today, he was ignored. The small monkey male, the one Karna had befriended some time ago, followed Arjun on the path through the forest. When he somehow managed to catch up, he clung to the bowman's leg and started screaming.
The former Archer tried to gently put the monkey back to the ground, but got the exact opposite result. The animal climbed up Arjuna's arm and sat comfortably on its upper part, as if he always belonged there. Tired by this prolonged and unnecessary quarrel, Arjun finally gave up.
"You are a stubborn fellow, you know?" He petted the little creature and give him a fruit picked up on the way. The monkey bit into the treat with fervor. "But why did you choose to stay with me, not him?"
Maybe because Karna asked you to look after me? Arjuna sighed, dismissing such eventuality as preposterous. Or maybe not so much, considering the fact that, since the first day in this reality, his little brother behaved like the older, responsible one?
So many ridiculous, distracting thoughts... Could it be that, after only a few days of separation, he already missed Karna?
Arjuna resumed the march, deep in thought. It supposed to be a beginning of new adventure, he should be excited, maybe happy as well. Even though he intended to avoid civilization and not meet anyone, who could trigger sad memories or tempt him to mess with the timeline of this place again.
So he just kept wandering through the forests and steppes, like he used to do long time ago. After a week or two it became really fun again. Natural. Easier this way.
Few more weeks had passed like that, in a blissful peace of mind. Soon the former Archer should reach the southern border of...
"No way!" - he almost shouted, finding himself at the riverbank that shouldn't have been there.
Arjuna looked around. Once, twice. And once more, before he admitted with all certainty, that he had no memory of this place.
Why was that? During his life Arjuna travelled across the entire country, he wasn't one to get lost so easily. Could it be that not only the timeline, but also the land itself, had changed?
The river, however, with its banks covered with reeds and characteristic, greenish smell, brought back some interesting memories.
Arjun sighed. Despite the heat, he decided to keep the distance from the alluring coolness of water. It was better for everyone involved. Or maybe he was thinking too well of himself? That woman was interested in the famous bowman back then, no way she would waste more than a glance at a mere vagabond...
Still, he had to stay here for some time. His supplies needed to be replenished after the long march, clothes and weapons demanded attention as well. The former Servant thought that he maybe had overdone staying away from civilization.
Preparing a camp and cleaning his belongings took longer than expected. For the first time since the beginning of this journey, Arjuna felt really dirty and tired. Still, he did not dare to come closer to the river and tried to wash himself in a small pond nearby. Totally absorbed in this simple task until now, he froze suddenly, with water running down his face, alarmed by an unnerving feeling of being observed.
"Why don't you just take a refreshing, long bath in the river, traveller? You avoided the banks so stubbornly, I was forced to come here to you instead. That's not the nicest way to treat a woman."
Ulupi's voice stung him like a needle straight to the brain. Wearing silver and green robes, with a snake diadem and rattling jewelry, she looked as magnificent as he had remembered.
"Forgive me my rudeness, princess," he said, struggling to tidy up. He must have looked like a disheveled savage, worse than Karna's monkey friend, right now. "I wasn't expecting any visitors."
"How do you know I'm a princess?"
Arjuna cursed his own stupidity. When did he become so careless?
"It's the air around you, my lady... So noble."
Ulupi did not believe in such a petty lie - of course she wouldn't, Arjuna thought, she was far too clever for that! - but remained silent. Her gaze weighed on the former Servant unbearably, when he wiped the dirt off his face. Why was she torturing him like this?
"Now, that we have come to an agreement, on whose lands you decided to make a camp, you should at least introduce yourself, don't you think?" - she said, sitting down in front of him, and picked up the monkey, who vigorously demanded her attention.
So he did. And then they talked near the fire, listening to the singing insects and humming of the water. Just like that, until she returned to the river very late in the evening.
But in the morning she was there again, with some food and other useful gifts, and they talked even more. It was already obvious she did not intend to let him go.
"I feel like we've been good friends for years," Ulupi said all of a sudden, petting the monkey, who resided on her lap. "Strange, isn't it?"
"Not at all, my lady. When two souls are bound by fate, it's only natural they feel attracted to each other."
What had he just said, huh? Why? He supposed not to mess up things further, to stay away from their lives... Why couldn't he just keep his mouth shut? Had he become so careless, just because she was so close, he could smell her hair?
She did it to him again. Or maybe he was just too weak, when it came to dealing with attractive women? No matter, this time it seemed... right. With no threats, despair and hurt pride. Just two lonely persons, enjoying each other's company, longing for closeness.
But was it really fair - to depend on the knowledge from his previous life to impress her? Not really. The only thing that justified such behavior, if only a little, was the fact that he knew about her situation, loneliness and frustration, and his intentions were good. They met already, fate made it happen, so the least he could give her was attention and understanding he had failed to show back then.
So they spent more and more time together, sometimes talking about literally everything, sometimes just sitting in silence. And when they felt like it, they sparred, with mutual benefits, because Ulupi was skilled with both swords and spears.
All of it felt warm and good. As if it meant to be like that from the beginning.
She kept coming to his camp, day by day. And he kept talking about resuming his journey any moment, but it sounded like empty threaths.
"It's time for me to go."
"Mhm. This is what you were saying for the last few days."
The princess was looking at him, lovingly but also expectantly. Even their little monkey friend stared at Arjuna from Ulupi's lap, judging him in silence.
"Or... just hypothetically... I could stay a little longer."
"You certainly can."
"Y-yes... So... if I stayed... here..."
"... with me..."
"...with you, my lady." Arjun cleared his throat, trying to hide embarrassment, although it was far too late for that. How could he make everything this awkward? Ulupi's patience for a fool like him was admirable. "We could vow to each other under the sun and before the gods. If the princess is willing to accept this humble servant."
"She is." Her eyes were smiling, like if she wanted him to speak up and propose to her for some time already. "And she does not care what anyone thinks or says about it." She came closer and whispered sensually, almost hissed into his ear: "You're mine."
Arjuna nodded, trying hard to control the suddenly rapid breathing.
"And you're mine," he said in a hoarse voice, which made Ulupi laugh with happiness. She hadn't really believed she would feel loved and wanted like that ever again. So she prayed to the gods to let her keep this treasure of a man by her side, at least until they won't be needing him again.
As if in response to her wish, the clouds slightly spread apart, letting the gentle rays of sunlight fall upon them like a silent blessing.
Karna opened his eyes, alarmed by a sudden movement, not more than a floating shadow in the moonlight, at the entrance to the dormitory.
He could hear light footsteps, not really louder than the calm breathing of sleeping students of Drona. And he knew exactly, who was responsible for waking him up in the middle of the night. Only one of the boys was stubborn - or crazy - enough to sneak into darkness to train his archery skills. But this was the first time Karna, out of sheer curiosity, followed the other kid to observe his struggles.
Ashwatthama had noticed that strange habit of one of the Pandavas as well. He and Karna became quite close recently, despite their opposite temperaments. They were almost the same age and shared similar distance to many things. Ashwatthama also possessed outstanding skills, as expected from their teacher's son, so the two sparred pretty often.
Among other students there were many warriors, who could match Karna in martial arts, Bhima or Duryodhana to begin the list, but only one truly outstanding archer. The fact, that the boy was younger than Karna, made it even more annoying.
The third Pandava prince went under the name Vijaya - a bold name for a bold creature - and reminded Karna of Arjun so much it felt... disturbing. There was a familiar uncompromising atittude, bordering on stupidity, in both of them. But while Arjun reminded Karna of a still pond of crystal-clear water, at least on the surface, prince Vijaya was like a walking incarnation of fire; sometimes it seemed that only a thin barrier of skin held back the ragining inferno of passion from blowing up everything aroud him.
And now that passion was showing itself in the methodical precision of shooting in the dark. Swoosh, swoosh. One hand, then the other. Swoosh, swoosh. One hand, then the other. For so long, that the prince could not ignore the bleeding of his fingers anymore and dropped the bow. When he bent down to pick it up, the diadem he always wore slipped down from his hair, revealing a secret that supposed to remain hidden at least to the end of the training.
Karna stepped back in surprise at such unexpected view and the crack of a branch, broken under his foot, betrayed him. Vijaya turned around, looking like a frightened deer facing a hunter. Those big, shining eyes, of the colour of burnished copper, were watching Karna in pure terror.
"You... saw my face."
They stood like this, staring at each other in confused silence, for a long, tense moment. The prince was first to regain composure; he picked up the diadem and put it back on his head, then sat on the ground, trying to bandage the bleeding fingers. Although he was determined to act cool and graceful, Karna could hear his fast heartbeat even from where he stood.
Not knowing, why he felt the need to do it, Karna sat down in front of the other boy, as if nothing unusual had happened, and asked:
"So... what's your real name?"
"You don't need to know!"
For some reason it offended Karna - or rather his pride - more than he would admit.
"Does it hurt?" - he tried again, gesturing towards the wounded fingers of his companion.
"If it doesn't, you're not doing it right," the prince answered coldly. To his surprise, Karna chuckled, and it was an unexpectedly warm sound. "What's so funny about it?"
"Nothing, just... my brother used to say that often, when we were training together."
"He was right then." The younger boy pouted, struggling with the cloth. Although ambidextrous, he had problems with putting on a dressing on his right hand, probably because his fingertips were still bleeding. "That's surprising. I would never guess you have a brother."
"Oh? Is there something wrong with my behavior, that made you assume that I'm an only child?"
Vijaya shrugged, then hissed, when he accidentally irritated the wound.
"You're kind of weird," he tried to explain his feelings, not only to Karna, but also to himself. "In general. Like you're just pretending to care, but secretly look down on m... everyone. I don't really know, how to describe it, but your presence nearby is enough to annoy me and ruin my day."
"I see." Karna could not understand it either, but the feeling was mutual, at least to some extent. Although the discovery he had made tonight would probably change it in some way. "Still, I don't think you're the right person to scold anyone, when it comes to weirdness, let alone 'pretending' anything..."
"I don't have a choice!" The prince almost growled at Karna; there was that familiar fire in his eyes, barely kept under control. "No one here would treat me fairly otherwise, you included." He provocatively tilted his head. "Or would you?"
It wasn't just a question, but a challenge, with a bit of not so well hidden frustration.
Karna did not know the answer. So he decided to stay silent instead, because Vijaya, as his worthy rival, did not deserve to be fed with lies and petty excuses.
The other boy must have interpreted it in his own way, because he just averted his gaze and resumed the bandaging, more aggressively than before. It was going nowhere like this. Karna could not stand it anymore, so he unceremoniously grabbed the prince's hand and took care of the wound.
"What are you doing?" Vijaya protested, but only verbally, probably already too tired or resigned for anything more.
"Helping. You don't want to sit here all night, bleeding, do you?"
The younger boy hissed like an angry cat, but swallowed his pride and let Karna finish the task.
"Thank you," he said quietly, when the wound was clean and covered at last, but panicked just a moment after, seeing how his unwanted companion - and now also a keeper of his biggest secret - stood up and turned towards the dormitory. "Karna... are you...?"
"I promise I won't tell anyone, do not worry about it. A promise is a promise, even one made to a rival."
And he walked away, leaving the prince with lots of things to think over.
"Arjun! Come, play veena for us!"
"Lay-ter," he said apologetically, intentionally making mistakes, when speaking their language. Pretending that he hadn't learned it yet, made his life a lot easier.
The snake-ladies laughed and resumed playing in the crystal garden. He could still hear them talking about him for a while, calling him 'princess' plaything' or 'pet', among others, less decent things.
Wasn't that the truth? In this reality he was just a human, with no royal or heroic background, there was no way such terrible misalliance would be ever accepted in the royal court of Nagaloka.
Arjuna sighed. He did not intend to move in to the palace, but there were... complications.
"Daddy!" A small boy ran to him on his short but undeniably human legs. He'd just learned how to change into this form and followed his father everywhere, trying to be just like him. Still, being a half-bred, an imperfect creature, Iravan couldn't hide his snake fangs and scales on his shoulders in any from, unlike pure blood nagas.
His birth alone was a miracle and a great shock to Arjun, who couldn't really expect that his false life, his incarnation in this world, was this complete. Or maybe the gods needed him for something in this reality as well, so they eventually acknowledged his existence?
It could be simply a chance to fix the mistakes of his previous life, the former Servant thought. Iravan was a son Arjuna had not even known he had, and when they finally met... he asked his precious firstborn to aid the Pandavas in battle. Such a brave and loyal soul, just like his mother, died in a war that wasn't his, because Arjuna was so focused on becoming a hero, that he forgot to be a father.
Most nagas were kind both to Arjun and his half-human son, others did not pay any attention to them. And there was the boy's uncle - a magnificent, scary figure, with shining scales and a serpent-shaped diadem, but also of a quite uncompromising and unforgiving character.
"Iravan," he scolded the child from afar; somehow always nearby, like if he was actively looking for an occasion to make a fuss. "How many times I need to tell you to not play human in the palace? You may not be a real Naga, but at least try to behave like one!"
Arjun bowed slightly before his prince and host; by giving himself to Ulupi, he became one of his subjects, at least to some extent. Still, he had a hard time pretending he didn't understand a thing in situations like this and could not restrain himself from wrapping his arm around Iravan, shielding the boy from the unfriendly relative.
The web of shady games was tangled beyond decency in the underwater court, just like in the kingdoms of humans. The former Archer decided to endure everything thrown at him, to not tarnish Ulupi's reputation further with inappropriate behavior, but the net of rumors and evil plotting was tightening around him with every passing month.
Ulupi's brother hated Arjuna in his previous life as well... at least back then he had a good reason. Still, he was an honorable prince of the Nagas, so he never went farther than verbal abuse towards his nephew and 'a stray that happened to be his father'.
His closest subordinates, however, were not that subtle. No one tried to openly bully a toddler, but several years later, when the boy grew up enough to participate in the training sessions for the young nagas, some serious problems started.
A cheerful child, who used to be loud and affectionate, changed pretty quickly. That troubled Arjuna a bit, but he eventually blamed it on growing up - the former Archer had become introverted in his youth as well. Iravan was a boy of few words, just like his parents, with tendency to bottle up negative emotions and solve problems all by himself. That's why it was such a shock, when one day he returned to their chambers all in tears, rubbing his eyes with clenched fists.
"What's happened?" Arjuna, more than worried, crouched down next to the boy to meet his eyes.
"Why do you ask, Dad?" Iravan sounded so bitterly, it almost broke his father's heart. "You always pretend not to hear or understand anything. Do you even care?"
"Please, answer the question, Little Tail," Ulupi ordered, firmly but with love, like only a worried mother could.
Iravan swallowed the tears but obeyed eventually.
"Our teacher, Raktanga, sent me away. He said that a half-human weakling will never become a warrior, so there's no point for me in training with the rest. And then other kids started to laugh..."
Arjun didn't say a thing, just stood up, grabbed his bow and left the room. Ulupi did not try to stop him; she picked up still snotty Iravan, like he weighted nothing, and followed her husband, to witness everything personally.
"Raktanga! I challenge you, here and now." Arjuna entered the training hall in calm but firm steps. Surprised nagas parted before him, some exchanged observations on Arjun's perfect accent they did not expect him to master, others climbed crystal stairs and columns to enjoy the show. "Face me!"
"It speaks!" - Raktanga said mockingly, stretching his big, muscular body. He was at least twice taller and broader than Arjuna, when he rested on the entire length of the tail. "Why should I demean myself by answering to the barking of the princess' pet?"
"So it is true what they say about you." Arjun did not lag behind in this clash of insults. "That you hide behind your students' backs and come out only to fight children."
The naga warrior roared and charged at Arjun with a raised mace, but the former Servant was faster. He shot multiple times, surrounding his opponent with missiles made of condensed lightning, then released them all at once. Electric shock held the snake in place, making the spectators laugh at his helplessness.
But Arjun was not yet satisfied. He stretched out his left hand and materialized a special arrow, which looked like a big, shining feather.
"Sauparna!" He released the arrow high above Raktanga's head and ordered it to summon a flock of very angry birds. Their sudden invasion caused general panic in the hall. There were no scarier enemies for the nagas than predatory birds, servants of mighty Garuda himself.
Raktanga tried to defend himself, writhing in pain and blindly striking the birds with his mace, but there were too many - and too furious - to let him go.
"Celestial weapons? How?! How a mere stray..." He couldn't say anything more - the birds were mercilessly torturing him with their sharp beaks and talons.
Seeing that his opponent had enough, Arjuna called off the weapon.
"I do not care what you think or say about me. But don't you dare ever again mistreat or insult my wife and son." The politeness, with which he said it, made those words sound even more threatening. "Next time I won't be restraining myself."
Then he just turned around and returned to his family. Iravan came closer, tongue-tied, but with a new, crazy amount of admiration in his eyes. Arjun grasped his little hand and they slowly walked out of the training hall.
"You didn't have to do this," Ulupi whispered, following them behind. "But I'm glad you did."
Only then Arjun let himself to react with a tiny smile. The way she said it made him hope that Iravan would be blessed with a really deep sleep tonight.
"So... can you explain, why did you drag us out into the woods at this hour?" - Ashwatthama asked, dodging the branch that nearly smacked him on the nose.
"We're going to hunt peafowls," Duryodhana answered, breaking through the bushes as a leader of their little group.
Karna raised an eyebrow, surprised.
"Why?"
"Because I'm craving for peacock meat."
"But we've eaten already." It's not that the boys were hungry, all students were treated equally, no matter their status. They shared all duties and joys, like during a several-years-long camp.
"Why should I, an heir to the throne, be satisfied with things everyone here has? I want a roast peacock. All I need to do is to kill one, so why wouldn't I?"
Well, Karna could give him many reasons. Rules made by their teacher, for example. Or the fact, that someone of a high rank, like Duryodhana, shouldn't kill for meat - this was a task his family would rather bestow on their hunters. Lastly, the teachings Karna received from Arjun, that avoiding certain kinds of food can benefit one greatly on spiritual level...
But he remained silent. None of it would impress Duryodhana anyway.
He was the natural leader of their spontaneously formed team. Ashwatthama had mentality of a perfect soldier and, even if he sometimes wanted to taste other kind of life, he got hold of himself pretty quickly. Karna... didn't know yet, who he was or wanted to be. Duryodhana, however, had no such problems - free of doubts, he lived in harmony with himself and his desires.
Arranging this hunting party was exactly like Duryodhana, Karna thought. He always wanted more and had enough charisma to convince others he deserved it. Strong both in mind and body, the Kaurava prince was the one, who could shake the order of things on a whim.
When they went deeper into the forest, Duryodhana ordered his companions to stay silent. It wasn't hard to find wild peafowls at this time of the year, when the males loudly and spectacularly demanded attention of females. All the three self-proclaimed hunters needed to do, was to follow their cries to the nearest glade.
"There it is," the prince said, preparing an arrow. Indeed, a quite magnificent peacock was resting on a fallen stump, smoothing its feathers after an exhausting mating dance. "I can already taste it..."
The pierced bird fluttered spasmodically and fell to the grass. Karna frowned, not knowing why he felt so upset about it.
"What?" Duryodhana said, seeing Karna's weird expression. "It was stupid enough to get itself killed. Why pity it?"
Karna wasn't sure, if what he had experienced just now actually resembled pity. He rather felt annoyed for some unknown reason.
"That shouldn't have happened," he whispered, more to himself than to his companions.
Still, he did not avert his eyes, when Duryodhana had plucked the bird, and even assisted Ashwatthama with preparing a small campfire in the forest. After a while, the three of them were sitting and chatting around it, surrounded by the pleasant smell of roasting meat. Duryodhana, visibly happy, offered his companions to join the feast.
"Whatever, it's already dead." Ashwatthama bit into the wing with relish, letting the drops of fat run down his chin.
Karna politely refused, claiming he wasn't hungry, but he helped his partners in crime cover up the traces of their wrongdoing.
In vain. Drona knew about their escapade for some time already - the boys weren't as clever and stealthy as they thought - and waited for them at the entrance to the dormitory, with his arms crossed and sadness painted on his usually unmoved face.
Duryodhana winced at this view, not eager to submit to a well-deserved punishment. Ashwatthama, however, began apologizing right away and Karna followed soon after. Drona's disappointment hurt both of them much more than additional cleaning duties they were assigned to as a punishment.
"Father, you shouldn't punish Karna, for he did not eat with us," Ashwatthama said, guided by his strong inner sense of justice.
"It's fine, Ashwatthama. I was with you two all the time and did nothing to stop you, even though I recognized what we were doing as wrong." Karna bowed slightly before his teacher. "I deserve punishment as well."
Drona was looking at him for a long while, before simply nodding in agreement. He let the boys go and join the training, except Karna, with whom he wanted to talk in private first.
"Whoever your first teacher truly was, he can be proud of you," Drona started, glancing at Ashwatthama, who kept looking around all the way to the training grounds, as if he was afraid what impossible challenge his father had planned for his friend.
Karna thanked for the praise, even if it wasn't only for him. Somehow Arjun's shadow followed him here... but it wasn't a bad thing. He missed that hopeless peacock, more than he would admit. But what if his brother had forgotten about him already?
"Are you sure you've never heard of him, Guruji?"
Drona was thinking for a moment, then shook his head.
"As I told you before, there was no one named Arjun among my students. I do not recall anyone matching your description either."
Karna accepted this, kind of expected, answer with a nod. The peacock never mentioned Drona either, so maybe it was just a false lead? But then why Arjun seemed so concerned about the well-being of the Pandavas?
"Karna... you probably know already that there's not much more I can teach you. Of course, you're welcome to stay as long as you like, to get more experience and spar with the rest of the boys."
"Thank you, Guruji." Karna bowed with respect, understanding the message. He'll need to think of finding another source of knowledge. But what if he'd never meet anyone able to surpass his brother's skills? Should he turn to the gods for knowledge then?
Drona stared, carefully examining his student's face, as if he could read his mind and look through those ambitions. But he said nothing in the end, just let Karna go back and train with other boys.
Even someone as experienced with teaching warriors as Drona could not really understand this young man. He behaved properly, flawlessly even, but... there was something cold in him. Did he really believe in what he was doing or someone just taught him to act like that and he mindlessly followed the rules?
No, there clearly was a flame of passion in Karna... but for what exactly?
Some students were passionate about arts of war, just mastering their skills made them happy. Others went through the training only because their parents ordered them to do so. There were also boys motivated by possible gains and prestige. And certain individuals, like Nakula and Sahadeva, although talented, would rather spend their days back in the forest from where they'd come than on the battlefield.
But Karna... Drona could not understand him. His goal seemed somehow distant, abstractive even, but the young bowman pursued it with unprecedented determination, cold as iron. Why was that?
Like any other human being, Karna had his triggers. Dismissing him because of the lower status was certainly one of them. Still, when he took a liking to someone, he remained loyal as a dog, despite all the bad treatment he might experience from their side. As for other shortcomings, he accepted all kinds of behaviors and flaws in people with disturbing ease.
Well, except in his second major trigger - prince Vijaya. Why was he so easy to provoke by this boy? Their rivalry in the art of archery could not be the sole reason. Something must have happened between those two, but even Ashwatthama had no idea, what exactly.
There was something weird between Karna and the Pandavas from the very beginning, more than just consequences of the promise given to the mysterious teacher. Drona could not stop himself from comparing these kids either. The five brothers were honest and easy to read. Karna possessed the same kind of nobility and boldness, but his motives were somehow unclear for Drona. A set of characteristics this young man represented, and the skills he had already mastered, made for a dangerous mixture.
Left with more questions than answers, Drona sighed, hoping that his choice of letting Karna train under his wings was the right one. It must have been, wasting such talent would be a sin and an insult to the gods, he thought, with a tiny smile dancing on his lips, so faint it could be taken for a wandering shadow. Even though the old master would rather avoid conflicts between his students, he, too, was secretly hoping to see, which one of these two boys will become the best archer of their times.
Arjuna woke up to someone massaging his back. He stretched in the sheets, when soft, teasing kisses joined the skillful hands. He felt spoiled by his lovely wife.
"You won't give me a break, will you?" He chuckled. Snakes were a symbol of desire in many cultures not without a reason, it seemed.
"It's not my fault that archers have so wonderfully shaped backs," Ulupi explained without a shade of guilt in her voice. "Besides, we should start working on Iravan's birthday present."
"He still wants a little sister?" Arjuna laughed, when the princess confirmed it with an amused murmur. "Stubborn boy."
"You find it surprising? Is there anyone weak-willed in this family?"
"Me, every time you show some skin, for sure."
Ulupi smiled, appreciating the praise, and resumed the massaging with even more fervor than before. Arjuna needed all his willpower to restrain himself from purring like a happy cat and decided to focus on a casual chatter about everything.
"Lots of younglings went wandering to the surface recently," he noticed at some point, making Ulupi smile again. Arjun wasn't referring to her kin as 'nagas' or 'snake people' anymore. He spoke their language, ate their food and wore their clothes. They became 'his people' and Nagaloka was now truly his home.
After the incident in the training hall, Arjuna's status in the court started growing drastically. As a result of a series of weird happenings, several years ago he accidentally ended up as a commander of the defence forces at the northern border and successfully drove away the invaders. Since then he had many occasions to prove himself in battle and even Ulupi's brother could not ignore his devotion and bravery anymore. Despite being a human, Arjun received a title of honorary captain of the Nagas army and wore the emblem of Adishesha, the many-hooded lord of serpents, on his chest with visible pride.
"They are jealous of my husband and try to find one like him for themselves," she replied, teasing Arjun with a hot breeze of breath on his neck.
"I can only feel sorry for them. I'm one of a kind." He smiled widely, not even pretending to be serious. "They won't ever find anyone this charming, skilled and handsome."
"Or humble."Ulupi giggled. "The truth is, many nagas want to see the tournament. The princes of Kuru, students of mighty Drona, will soon finish their training."
Arjuna fell silent, deep in thoughts. No matter how he counted, various happenings did not match the timeline he remembered. Too many things went differently in this strange reality... How many years had passed on the surface? Maybe in Nagaloka time wasn't bound by the rules of the world of mortals?
Ulupi sighed, feeling the sudden tension in the room. If she had expected such drastic change of the mood, she would have avoided the topic.
"You miss someone?" It wasn't really a question, the princess just knew Arjuna so well.
"I miss my brother," he admitted quietly, as if he was ashamed of his feelings.
"Is he one of Drona's students?"
"Most likely. It's not that I fear that something might have happened to him, he's not only skilled, but also won't die as long as he has his earrings, still..."
"You want to go and see the tournament?" She slipped under his arm, as nimble as a snake, obviously. "To see how he progressed?"
"Yes," Arjuna admitted quietly. "I'm not sure why, but I feel that I should be there."
Ulupi just nodded with silent understanding. She wouldn't try to stop him. This man deserved a lot more than to spend the rest of his days in a crystal cage. He was a tiger, not a tamed kitten, the princess respected and loved him too much to take away his freedom. All the years they spent together were a blessing and she could hope for more, but would never demand it.
"Iravan, you're too big to just walk in here without warning," Arjun said cheerfully to the intruder at the entrance of their chamber, snapping Ulupi out of her thoughts. "You shouldn't come in like that, when your parents are cuddling."
"But you're cuddling all the time and that would mean I won't ever see you again!"
"A fair point," Arjuna admitted, ruffling the boy's hair, when he unceremoniously joined them on the bed, with the monkey clinging to his back. "Have you learned another spell today?"
"Mhhm." Iravan nodded with enthusiasm and made a complicated gesture with his hand. "Look what Mom's taught me!"
An image of a strange snake appeared on his palm. Its blue head was swaying in place for a moment, before the creature spread out its green tail, that belonged to a peacock rather than a reptile.
"Splendid," Arjuna praised, honestly impressed. He could dispel illusions or create images of monsters assisting him into battle, but such spells were far beyond his reach.
Ulupi was a master of illusions and a skilled mind-manipulator. Iravan inherited most of her magical talents, but his human part made the boy more straightforward and honest, which affected the spellcasting as well. His tricks were not meant to deceive anyone, rather to impress and bring smile to people's faces.
"Soon I'll make it fly, you'll see!" Iravan smiled, but that expression changed quickly, when he looked at his father. There was a terrible sadness in Arjun's eyes, as if he did not believe he would still be here to see more magic tricks. "You're leaving, Dad?"
"Yes."
The boy frowned. It sounded too serious for a simple hunting party or military expedition. This must have been a journey of a different kind.
"Will you come back?"
"I do not know. But I can promise you that there will be always a place for you by my side, wherever fate may throw me."
Iravan took a deep, long breath. So it was this serious. Mother warned him many times that humans belonged to the surface and forcing them to stay forever in Nagaloka was simply cruel. The boy rubbed his eyes with his fists and clung tightly to Arjun, pressing his face into father's chest to hide the tears. Being aware of the inevitable did not make this moment any less painful.
"Fine then," he declared, swallowing sadness. "But if you ever feel lost and can't find the way home, I will come to bring you back."
The monkey was observing his human companion from afar with unquestionable curiosity. That weird man had spent few hours before dawn preparing some mysterious constructions in the forest and now was swirling between them, practicing shooting... but why blindfolded? Was he doing it for fun? Shouldn't he rather do something more productive in his free time, like petting his animal friend or feeding him fresh fruits?
The mokey did not know. He was watching the training for some time, eating snacks, until he got bored and sniffed around. Someone was coming slowly through the bushes, someone familiar and awaited. The small male ran happily to meet him.
Karna petted the monkey with a fond smile and silenced him with a meaningfully stretched finger. He let the animal climb to his shoulder, then to the nearby branch, and sneaked closer to the practicing Arjun, as quiet as he could.
"My, you're thinner than I remembered. Your clothes and hair are all messed-up. I wasn't around for a while and you've already forgotten to take care of yourself? What a hopeless peacock you are!"
For a split second Karna wasn't sure, if he had been recognized. Arjuna ignored the intrusion for a suspiciously long moment, then suddenly moved around and sent a swift arrow towards his brother, aiming for the heart.
Karna reflected it with the back of his hand and immediately prepared his bow. More missiles were coming, from all directions, as if Arjuna somehow multiplied himself and shot from behind the trees.
"Hm." Karna smirked, letting the arrows come closer and burned all of them at once with a fire blast. He could already feel the joy of battle in his veins, helping him focus and filling his body with another levels of strength. Sparring sessions with Drona's students, maybe except Ashwatthama, were never this intense.
And now, when Karna again got used to the inhuman speed of his brother's attacks, it was his turn to make a move. One mighty shot was meant to keep Arjun at bay, next were supposed to disorient him for a while, and the last one...
Arjuna gracefully avoided the strongest missile, but needed to stop for a moment to listen to the surroundings. He heard how Karna released twelve arrows, one after another, with almost no pause, yet only eleven were coming this way.
Concluding that Karna tried to force him to stay in a particular spot, Arjuna rushed forward, deflecting only the arrows that were on the way. The brothers met at full speed in the centre of their improvised battlefield. Arjun, being only slightly faster, ended victorious, with the tip of an arrow ready to be released just an inch from Karna's neck.
"This is it?" The former Servant raised an eyebrow; he clearly expected to see some clever trick, invented by his student especially for this occasion. "I see. Older not always means wiser."
"Exactly, Arjun. Exactly," Karna agreed, retreating to a safe distance.
And then the former Archer heard it - the last arrow Karna had shot before attacking head on. It multiplied far above the veil of leaves and now was falling at Arjuna like a razorblade rain.
He smiled, thinking how skilled his student had become, but didn't even try to dodge or move away. He welcomed the attack on his bent knees, with the bowstring stretched to its limit... and shot down every single arrow coming at him.
The silence, that fell after the duel, was so heavy they could hear their own breaths in the still misty forest. Arjuna stood up straight again and finally put away the blindfold.
"I would gladly continue, but this lovely place did nothining to deserve being destroyed," he said, waiting for his eyes to adapt to a sudden excess of light. When they did, Arjuna scanned his pupil from head to toe. "Good to see you, by the way."
The corners of Karna's lips curled up slightly in a soft smile - the joke wasn't of the highest caliber, but the peacock was trying his best. Karna wanted to say something, but stopped for some reason, then came closer and just hugged Arjuna without warning.
This supposedly simple gesture was stiff and awkward, but full of emotions neither of them would admit at loud. Arjun tensed at first and almost stopped breathing, but then just let it go and gently patted his pupil on the back.
"So... what brings you this far to the north?" - Arjuna started, mostly just to say something, while slowly stepping back.
"Haven't you heard of the tournament?" Karna almost rolled his eyes. "I shouldn't be surprised, it's you, after all. Where have you been for all those years? Hiding underwater or something?"
The peacock only smiled mysteriously at this little provocation. There were so many questions Arjun wanted to ask (where Karna lived for all those years? what has he learned and from whom? has he met the Pandavas and... was there another version of Arjuna among them?), but they all seemed selfish. Karna did not deserve such treatment and the former Servant had already realized that he cared for his brother too much to make him feel like anything less than a precious family member. So he chose only one, the most important of them all:
"Have you made any friends?"
Karna looked baffled for a moment, but then just smiled.
"Yes, I suppose. I've met some nice, interesting people. I do feel attachment to them. I can only hope it was mutual."
"Good to hear that." Arjuna said in an unexpectedly soft voice. He looked so peaceful, happy even. It was a warm and honest expression, that positively surprised his student. "Come, let's eat something and prepare for the journey. We should arrive at Hastinapur just on time, if we depart tomorrow before dawn."
Karna, who was observing the peacock carefully from the beginning of their reunion, had already noticed that subtle change in him - some new kind of kindness and maturity that weren't there before, at least not out in the open. He actually liked this version of his brother better than the forever struggling, uncertain one, who ran away from every problem. But also wondered, what or who was responsible of this progress.
Arjun soon enlightened Karna about it himself, casually throwing the words through his shoulder, as if it wasn't a very important information:
"Oh, there's something I need to tell you... you're an uncle now."
Karna stopped abrubtly and dropped his belongings. The monkey, who had already returned to his arm, almost fell to the ground and loudly expressed his displeasure.
"I'm a what?" Karna blinked, several times. After first shock, there was an understanding painted on his face, which later turned into an enthusiastic outburst of happiness. "Oh... That's awesome! It's a boy or a girl?"
"A boy. Name Iravan," Arjuna replied with another gentle smile. Karna's reaction to the new family member made him really happy. "His mother is a Naga princess."
"So you did spend all those years underwater? That supposed to be a joke..." Karna shook his head. The peacock was hopeless! "Will I be allowed to see him?"
"Of course. He'll be happy to meet you."
"You really think so? I have no idea how to be an uncle," Karna admitted, deep in thought. "Will I be a good uncle?"
"You already are." Arjun laughed. Karna's outright acceptance and dilemmas were enough for a proof he'll be the best uncle Iravan could hope to have.
That broke the last remnants of ice between the brothers - they ended up chatting, joking and making fun of each other again, like if they'd never been separated. In such great mood, the trip to Hastinapur was over in a flash.
There was only one thing about travelling together, which made Arjun feel bitter - the fact, that their monkey friend completely ignored him since the moment of Karna's return. The former Archer got used to additional weight on his arm, so now he felt an undefined kind of emptiness; he needed to be careful and not talk to the animal, who wasn't sitting there anymore. All his attempts to bribe the monkey to return to his shoulder failed miserably. Although he felt somehow betrayed and abandoned, he could only accept it in silence.
Arjuna should have been used to this feeling already, because, just like Lord Krishna had said, his student's story went on just fine without him. As expected, Karna finished the training with Drona. He met the Pandava brothers, including the mysterious prince Vijaya, of whom he refused to tell anything more than calling him 'as annoying as talented'. Then he convinced the sage Parashurama to teach him as well, this time without lies, tricks and curses, just by sheer stubbornness and display of archery skills.
Arjun felt proud and happy for his brother. He really did. Still...
He must have drifted away too deep into thoughts again, because he almost jumped in place, feeling Karna's hand on his shoulder.
"We're here," the younger warrior said, glancing slightly up, with pure admiration in his gaze.
Indeed, Hastinapur looked as magnificent as Arjuna remembered. The giant gates, large enough for a shooting tower pulled by two elephants, were now filled with people, heading to the arena.
The brothers merged with the crowd and let themselves be carried away by the river of people and emotions. The strongest one Arjuna recognized at the moment was the joy of returning home. It seemed so unreal, especially while walking next to Karna and feeling so comfortable in his company.
They bought some snacks and found seats with a pretty good view at the arena. Arjuna glanced at Karna, who tensed visibly, when the names of the first challengers had been announced.
That fiery, competitive gaze Arjun knew too well... it was a bad sign.
"Karna..."
"Yes, I do remeber my promise. Don't worry, you don't have to run away this time, just enjoy the show."
The former Archer wanted to protest, but only hopelessly shook his head. Something else caught his attention anyway - a woman, who had just sat on the audience next to the queen.
Mother! Kunti looked so calm and proud of her sons... and Arjuna needed to remind himself, that, in this strange place, he was not one of them.
Despite all his fears and haunting thoughts, the former Servant had fun watching the tournament. He cheered for Bhima, when his most beloved big brother was beating arrogance out of Duryodhana with his mace. He winced, when Yudhishthira got provoked and retreated from the duel, too angry to continue it in a peaceful manner. He loudly applauded Nakula's and Sahadeva's skills with the blade.
But when the audience's favorite, prince Vijaya, entered the arena... all Arjun's joy and inner peace was suddenly gone.
Although the young warrior behaved perfectly, seemed charming and possessed outstanding skills with the bow, there was something... wrong and pretended about him. Arjuna's clairvoyant eyes of a former Servant quickly let him see through the masquerade.
The core of his very being ached at the discovery. He would recognize that person's soul everywhere and parts of it were right before his eyes. What kind of a cruel joke of fate was that?
As expected, the third Pandava prince had won the tournament and ended up announced 'the best archer in the world' by Drona. Karna had promised to refrain from challenging him, so no drama should ensue; no dark thoughts and feelings should ever come to light, if they'd ever been there in the first place. Karna will now resume his journey for knowledge and Arjuna will return to his wife and son, happy that he was able to see his entire family for once, even though only from afar...
"This is it?" He heard Karna's voice, breaking through the noises of the applauding audience, clear, loud and slightly mocking. "My teacher can best all those cheap tricks, even with his eyes closed!"
The stunned silence, that had immediately fallen around them, was hard to describe. Struck by the realization, what Karna had just done, Arjun exhaled painfully, preparing for troubles.