-Elsewhere in another part of the world beyond the Dungeon City of Orario
/-/
In wake of the escape of the three Dungeon Monsters associated with the Grand Quest, numerous changes both big and small occurred in the world.
Where the towering Behemoth's steps had traversed, fissures and chasms formed from its mighty foot falls, creating landmarks and disrupting nearby civilization with miniatures earthquakes. Its war path was easily traceable, and the combined might of numerous Familia headed by Zeus, Hera, and Freya saw about its demise. Its fall created the near bottomless spectacle that created an area called the 'Grand Canyon.'
Then there was the Great Leviathan who fled into the oceanic depths where no adventurer dared tread lightly under mounting water pressure that could fold even steel. Entire ecosystems were destroyed and large shipping vessels were under constant threat. Under the lead of Peleus from the Thetis Familia and various navigators from the Posiedon Familia, the beast was tracked and eventually felled. Its durable hide was still used to this day to fortify ships and augment equipment in the sea, but the One-Eyed Black Dragon differed from its former compatriots.
On leather wings, it wrought death with blue hellfire. Its fangs were swords, and its claws were spears that gouged flesh and bathed the earth with blood.
The Black Dragon alone annihilated the subjugation party, leaving hardly any survivors before it fled seemingly to recuperate from its wounds.
No new subjugation parties were reestablished ever since. The Zeus and Hera Familia's were prominent, but even they were soundly defeated.
The whereabouts of the Black Dragon were debated, but consensus was impossible.
Pinpointing the Dragon's location required a certain degree of ability and courage to approach at the risk of death. Few if any were willing to do that, and even then, the Dragon was known to fly on its leather wings and shift location once discovered.
Tell tale signs were the only indication of its presence nearby.
In a distant land ravaged by disasters and inexplicable phenomenon, the kingdom of Kuru stood. Its walls were battered and beaten from dust storms and constant monster attacks.
Once there was a time where the area around the kingdom had been a fertile oasis, but one day several years ago, the plants died and the animals underwent startling changes. Without roots to tie down soil, the constant winds created clouds of dust and sand in a gradual process of desertification.
Unlike Orario, the kingdom of Kuru was dying.
Its people were in a constant state of starvation and fear that bred a type of desperation which made it common to pick fights or steal from one another. Constant storms and dust forced travelers and inhabitants to wear loose-fitted clothing and thin cloth wrapped around their heads to prevent sand from stinging their eyes.
One particular storm was raging while several people ran up and down Kuru's walls in a bid to repair them in time before more beasts could siege the kingdom. Each person may have had their differences in character and motivations, but the one aspect that tied them together was survival. Many men and women were working seamlessly to carry out the orders passed down from a daughter of the ruler of Kuru.
Shielding her face from the winds, the young woman carrying out orders, Kunti, squinted her eyes and pursed her lips.
"Take heart, the storm will pass!" Kunti encouraged.
Despite being a woman of status, wisdom, and beauty, Kunti did not bring any guards along with her. Her fair complexion and the olive glow of her skin caught many people's eyes even when covered by numerous layers of cloth. Her silk-like black hair which spilled out in the wind carried a subtle fragrance of flowers, but no one lightly approached her.
Kunti only brought two people with her, both of which were Gods with their own Familia that were supporting a young Kunti in stabilizing the kingdom of Kuru.
Flame-haired Surya, Hinduistic Solar Deity of the Sun, and cold-faced Indra, Hinduistic King of the Devas and Svarga.
Ganesh in Orario would know the two Gods well as they all lived in the same pantheon in the upper world.
Kunti frowned while yelling orders, glancing behind her at Surya and Indra who were still not being their normal selves.
Kunti, Surya, and Indra had been harmoniously working together for the sake of Kuru for the past few years now, and it all suddenly changed several weeks back. The way Surya and Indra sometimes regarded each other recently caused Kunti discomfort. Hell, the two used to banter with one another in passing, but neither so much as spoke a word lately.
"Brace the gates! We can't risk another charge from the flaming bull hordes until repairs are completed!" Kunti turned to Surya. "Surya can you ask your Familia to-"
Kunti paused mid speech.
Surya already knew what Kunti wished of him. He melted down steel ingots and began lining the gate with the heated material until it cooled into a slab of metal.
Surya grunted from the exertion, and glanced at Indra who stood beside Kunti. Though weakened in their mortal vessels in the lower world, Indra was the better fighter between them and acted as Kunti's primary escort.
Momentarily, Surya's expression grew stoney the longer he looked at Indra.
The same was true of Indra to Surya.
In all her wits, Kunti could not fathom what was causing the sudden rift between her colleagues.
Kunti was human, she did not have the same inexplicable rush of visions and discomfort as Surya and Indra felt, let alone understand that she was just as much part of their current feud.
"What's wrong with you both?" Kunti knit her brows when the gates and walls were adequately repaired and the three moved into an isolated command room. "If we're going to pull out of this and keep everyone safe, then we have to coordinate together! Lord Surya, your light has always been our beacon, and Lord Indra, your lightning carves the path forward. I don't know what happened between you two, but you each look like you want to punch the other."
Kunti favored Surya, that much was evident from how often she gravitated to him, but Indra wasn't left out either. Both were indispensable to her and Kuru.
The one binding piece in this coalition was undoubtedly Kunti, and she'd be damned if she prolonged this conversation any longer. She fought through the awkwardness and glared at both of her godly friends, demanding answers.
It was Surya who broke the silence.
"Kunti," Surya said, his tone solemn. "What would you do if you had children?"
Kunti blinked at the sheer randomness of the question and missed the way Indra perked up on her other side.
"Do I look pregnant?" Kunti found it difficult to follow the logic as she gestured to her flat stomach. "At the very least I'd start thinking about it in a few more years, but why are you asking? Surely, it has nothing to do with what you both are feuding over."
"Humor him," Indra seconded.
Now Kunti was growing suspicious, but if this was what both Surya and Indra wanted, then fine.
"I'd raise them right. And I'd like to have a lot of them." Kunti freely admitted after a while. "They'd be free to pursue what they wished and what they aspired for, but it would break my heart if they ever fought and grievously harmed each other."
Surya and Indra made eye contact, the latter grimacing.
"Still, I have to find a good man." Kunti rested her hands on her hips and scoffed. "Lords know how rare they are here given Kuru's current state, and that's why I'm glad that I have the both of you to keep me company. Now if this was your attempt to distract me, well it worked. We have no more time to waste here before the next attack."
Kunti raised five fingers. "Five minutes. Please try to resolve your differences enough for the coming initiative."
Nodding her head, Kunti left the room to give Indra and Surya privacy.
Silence stretched in Kunti's absence, the two Gods of Hinduism silently assessing the other.
"It's likely nothing," Indra eventually broached the subject. "Prophecy or farce, children are not possible between mortals and God. The Pandavas…do not exist. We should not allow ourselves to be fooled. Kunti would be disappointed."
Surya's face remained stony, making it impossible for Indra to determine if Surya agreed with him or not. Before anything else, there was something he had to be certain of.
"My armor…" Surya trailed off, anger stewing in his voice. "Tell me you would not have stooped so low even if it was for your son?"
Indra's expression hardened before softening when he thought of Kunti and her efforts for Kuru.
"I don't know," Indra eventually admitted before growing irritable. "But enough of this. It doesn't change that this is likely just a God of trickery's work. Too many Gods would be involved in a prophesied war, let alone something in Kurukshetra. Let us put this to rest."
Surya's hands balled into fists, still staring fixedly at Indra.
"Five minutes! Guys, what are you waiting for?!" Kunti's impatient voice echoed as she realized neither Surya or Indra was taking any action despite five minutes long since passing.
"Right," Surya finally muttered, slapping his cheeks.
Too much was at stake to divide his attention now.
The lands surrounding Kuru had changed. Water was in short supply, but a great river still ran across the barren ground.
Sarasvati of cleansing water.
Many come to the Sarasvati River as their primary source of water, making it a hive of activity filled with the areas destitute and parched.
Once, this place was a haven. Now it was a hell perpetuated by the influence of a Monster that likely nested in the distant mountains. Its influence and magic energy had managed to somehow mutate the local wildlife and fauna, making them exceedingly dangerous for any mortals.
Surya and Indra had the sneaking suspicion that the sudden drastic changes to the area could only be the work of one creature, but neither shared those concerns with Kunti. Mere speculations that the cause of Kuru's decline was a monster that not even the combined subjugation teams of numerous Familia's could defeat was not happy news.
The One-Eyed Black Dragon.
It must be within Kuru's lands, but sounding the alarm was futile.
No new subjugation team existed, and no single Adventurer would be able to do anything. What had to be done now, was preserving Kuru in wake of the disasters the Dragon wrought.
While Kunti and Indra attended to matters in other parts of Kuru, Surya was leading a detachment of laborers to procure water for the kingdom's defenders.
Orario had it easier with numerous powerful adventures and Familia flocking to occupy the Dungeon city, but out here, high levels were rare, and most people were ordinary and just trying to eke out an existence.
Surya could not fault the acts of depravity done in desperation, but in the same vein, those that still did good in such conditions were only further emphasized.
Surya stood idle as the laborers brought from Kuru began to fill several jugs of water and load them onto horse-drawn wagons. Compared to the others lining the Sarasvati for water or begging by the water's banks, the people of Kuru were better off than those outside.
It was dangerous to congregate outside of Kuru's walls, but sources of water often gathered wanderers seeking refuge by following the river's trail.
Most great civilizations started from water, and Kuru was the same. It should have been flourishing really, but nowadays the Sarasvati was only a guide to what was left of Kuru.
Surya had wondered many times how much the land would differ if the lower world allowed him access to his full Authorities as a God, but limitations were there for a reason. Most Gods descended to the lower world out of boredom, leading to varying speculations to why. Of course, if Surya ever found merit that the reason for such limitations on Gods in the lower world was for entertainment, then he'd be the first to burn the bastard to ashes.
There was too much suffering here that could be amended with a God's hand. Kunti too would not have to gather scraps and pull together a declining kingdom. Influence would no longer have to be limited to just one's Familia.
Children too.
The what if's caused Surya to fall into silent contemplation.
What if?
What if?
"Bread! Bread, can you share any food?!"
The sudden commotion drew Surya's attention to the Saravati's banks where children and the destitute were crowding around a cloaked individual. The cloak's fabrics were nothing fancy and were made of the same material as everyone else's, but the state of cleanliness denoted a kind of affluence that was rare in the area.
For a moment, Surya hesitated as he stared at the hooded man before him. He struggled with whether he should give the man advice, or let him come to the realization that upholding values in the eyes of the desperate only made him prey to one's own empathy.
Surya didn't even have a second to struggle over the decision.
"Here, take it." The hooded man said without hesitation, bending down and rummaging through his belongings to give a rolled piece of naan-bread.
The child's eyes lit up, his gaunt figure causing him to tremble while reaching out for the food. He was severely emaciated where even breathing looked painful.
Surya's brow twitched at the action.
An act of charity?
Glancing at Kuru's laborers still finishing up with gathering water, Surya turned back to observe the man and his righteousness.
Something flickered in Surya's expression, but this harsh land was no place to lightly reach out to others.
That single act of generosity had doomed the man to what followed.
Expectedly, the hooded man was flocked by the needy and desperate begging for food to satiate empty stomachs.
Contrary to the assumption Surya had that the man would shoo them away, the man patiently distributed all that he had in the traveler's bag he was holding until there was nothing left.
In doing so, the man momentarily revealed a flicker of a golden earring beneath the traveler's hood that startled Surya enough to disturb his neutral expression.
Recognition, then denial.
I-It couldn't be?
Surya's pupils dilated, but blown horns turned his attention elsewhere.
"Enemies!" Surya's watchmen called in warning while urging Kuru's laborers into the wagons. They offered little protection against what was to come, but they were better than standing in the open.
Narrowing his eyes Surya stared into the distance at a pack of rapidly approaching bi-pedal animals. Long claws, silver-brown pelts, and jagged maw of serrated teeth behind the visage of a hound.
The violent mutations caused by the energy of the Black Dragon had altered the entire wolf species as a whole. Now, they were savage predators that were both sleek, agile, and possessed a group mentality.
Fire gathered at the tips of Surya's fingers as he considered the odds.
Horned Wolfmen?
His Familia were nowhere near him, rather he'd assigned them to help Kunti establish a semblance of order with Indra's Familia for the panicked people of Kuru. The most recent attack on the walls and following storm had taken its toll on Kuru's defenders.
Limited in his mortal shell, Surya was not helpless, but he estimated that he could only take on one or two Horned Wolfmen in his current state. However, there were at least two dozen based on the cloud of dirt they were kicking up in their wake. Unless he utilized an Arcanum, many people would die here…but even if he didn't, he could live by escaping.
Shame crept up in Surya's heart as he had entertained the thought. If he was still as he was in the upper world, he would never stand for such injustice, yet here, he'd grown habituated to it all in this harsh land.
Yet, the decision was taken out of Surya's hands from the very beginning.
"It's dangerous. Stand back."
Surya subconsciously pulled his hood further down his face when the man from earlier drew close and began walking forward to meet the pack of Horned Wolfmen on his own.
"Weapons are for beginners."
The man mumbled words that would have marked him as insane, but Surya could not utter a sound when the man opened the hood of his cloak just enough to reveal a pair of heterochromatic irises.
"A real hero will kill you with just their eyes."
Heat gathered in the form of magic energy caused goosebumps to rise over Surya's skin. It was the warmth and fire of the glorious sun of the upper world.
Horned Wolfmen had keen sight, and seeing the man step forward weaponless, their vigilance was at their lowest. The man appeared nothing more than a sacrificial fool, and then the world burned.
The glaring light of the sun spilled forth from heterochromatic eyes and created a beam of concentrated heat that ravaged the unsuspecting pack. The nearest Wolfman was incinerated on the spot as the beam of death swept through horizontally, killing another dozen before the energy detonated and created an inferno.
The remaining wolfman paused in terror, growling and hesitation as the remaining animal instinct within them warned them of death.
Howling, the survivors hurriedly retreated much to the dumbfounded expressions of those watching.
Leisurely, the man pulled the hood back over his eyes and paused as he realized he'd become the center of attention. Nonetheless, it wouldn't have changed his actions. A warrior must never run from combat or risk the humiliation of having one's honor and reputation tarnished.
In which case, a single outcome remained now that the cloaked man had acted.
"I'll be late for a prior meeting with my compatriots, but I will escort you all back to your camp." The cloaked man offered to all those at the banks of the Sarasvati including Surya.
Surya found his throat dry, but still mustered the resolve to seek out answers.
"Why go to such an extent? You've already saved many." Surya asked.
It was a feat of benevolence one would have to repay. For there was no favor greater than saving another's life let alone multiple.
The cloaked man hesitated at the sincere praise and eyes of the people beyond Surya. Admittedly, the man had something of an ulterior motivation mixed into his righteous chivalry.
It was a matter that was impossible to not have heard of for anyone living in the area in Kuru.
"There is a woman I've heard that's trying to make life more bearable for the people here." The cloaked man said slowly, a hint of reminiscence bled into his tone. It wasn't the main mission, but he just wanted to help in his own way, even if there were no face to face meetings. "She means well, and the least I can do is do my part. We as humans are stronger together, not divided. Besides, low would I be to abandon those who need protection."
Surya's expression tightened, his jaw clenching.
Benevolence and honor that soared through the heavens…
Even Indra would not be able to deny it.
"..." Surya lost his voice, but the cloaked man still turned to face Surya after noting that the people of Kuru were awaiting his orders.
"Are you the leader?" The cloaked man asked.
Surya shook his head, still in a daze. "Call me Yatree, I am but another wanderer who led people better than others."
The cloaked man grew silent, but nodded his head all the same.
A man of few words then.
Both men had their features concealed by the common clothes that shielded them against constant sandstorms and small flying debris.
"Warrior," Surya swallowed, hesitating only a second before opening his mouth. "What is your name?"
"My name?"
Neither had seen each other's faces clearly, but the cloaked man was different. He had nothing to hide to begin with.
When the wind of another sand storm blew, the head piece he wore which he'd loosened to deal with the Horned Wolfmen began to gradually unravel.
White hair, pale complexion, and an eye that matched Surya's own.
Sunlight pooled down over features Surya could never mistake as the man broadened his shoulders and stared at Surya for a proper face to face.
"Karna." The man said.
He who helps.
"My name is Karna."
.
.
.
-Composed on the surface, Surya had a clenched fist with Indra's name on it.
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