There was a huge forest neighboring the kingdom of Prastha. Deep in the forest there stood a girl on the side of a river. Looking at her one can easily be swayed by her beauty. She was still in her teens but she was counted as one of the most beautiful princesses on the mortal plane. She was standing on the bank of the river, eyes full of tears, and staring at a basket carrying a newborn child.
"Forgive me, my son, your mother is bound by her duties. I can not bring you to your home. I'm not scared of the taunting or the shaming or punishment or stigmas for being an unmarried mother. I'm scared of what the Kashyapa Clan will do if they find it out.
They'll kill every single person in the kingdom, destroy the whole foundation of the kingdom and even the king and queen, my parents who don't even know about it will not be spared in that bloodbath. I fear that even you, my son will be punished and thrown in that fire. The whole kingdom will be punished for my sin."
The girl said while tears kept flowing from her eyes.
She was hoping that one day her son will understand why his mother had to discard him. She was hoping that by saying all this, one day his son will understand that she was bound by her duties when she left him in the river. She was hoping that he will understand that he was not the sin but she was the sinner.
After looking at the newborn in the basket for a while she slowly and very carefully put the basket in the water and the water started carrying it away far from her. She stood there looking at her son who was getting away from her.
...…
Far from there, a battle was going on between Kashyapa Clan army and Shakya Clan army.
If someone had to witness it, they'll say it is nothing less than a fierce battle, where both sides were slaughtering each other like pigs and dogs. But if someone looks at the battlefield closely, he will find it very strange cause one side was full of young men, almost no one was more than 20 years of age, they were all between 15-20 years of age whereas at the other side, no one was less than 20 years of age but there was one thing common among both of the sides, both sides were fighting fiercely.
The army full of young men were at a slight disadvantage cause they were very less in number but they were filling up this disadvantage with their fierceness.
In the middle of the battlefield stood a young man, a mocking smile all over his face and looking at front with disdain. But in contrast to the smile on his face, his whole body was full of piercing arrows and slicing marks from swords. Blood was oozing from all over his body that it makes him look like that he was wearing a protective armor made of crimson liquid. But still, there was no hint of pain or dizziness on his face instead he looked at the thirty-some people surrounding him and said...
"Haha, so this is the army of Shakya Clan, I had thought, they would be brave and strong but… Heh."
"Prince, say whatever you want. Right now you're nothing less than a captured and wounded lion waiting for his death." Someone taunted him back.
"Hahaha, captured lion waiting for death? Princes of the Shakya Clan like you five can be this weak but I'm still more than sufficient to take all of your head."
"Senior brother, let's capture him and bring him to the capital and torture him to death." One of the Shakya Prince suggested to the man standing face to face with the Kashyapa Crown Prince.
"No senior brother we should kill him right here, who knows for long we could keep him and Kashyapa Clan will not attack us with its main army."
"Yes, senior brother we should kill him here and save ourselves from future trouble. After his death, the mighty Kashyapa Clan will be heirless."
"Senior brother, how can they be heirless? doesn't he have a younger brother?"
"Heh… what can he even do? He's just a blind bastard, I have heard he is so weak that he couldn't even retaliate when the younger sister mocked him and almost beaten him to a pulp...Hahaha.."
"Do you think that coward bastard can lead an Ancient Clan? I think even people will rebel against him if he's made crown prince after this one's death."
"I will kill every single one of you." A voice came from the wounded young lion. This time there was no smile on his face but a fierce glaring with the blood-red eyes. That incident with his younger brother was like a stain on his pride. A princess of an upstart clan had dared to mock and beat a prince from an Ancient Clan. When he, the crown prince of the Kashyapa Clan came to Shakya Clan to bring her punishment, she refused to accept it and even her clan retaliated against him.
"Brothers let's send him on his way to meet King Yama."
Just as they all were preparing for the act, suddenly the black clouds covered the sky and a roar was heard.
"DON'T LET A SINGLE ONE OF THE SHAKYA CLAN ALIVE ON THIS BATTLEFIELD"
At once everyone shuddered, they were jolted like a rumble of thunder had struck them. They all know whose this voice belongs to. There was no one on that battlefield can claim that he would be able to survive one of his slaps.
"Oh no senior brother, he is here. What should we do?"
"Senior brother let's escape from here."
"Yes, senior brother I have heard he is even the teacher of the Crown Prince. If he sees us how bad we have injured this guy, he'll kill us for sure."
"No he hasn't found us yet, let's kill this guy first. This is our only chance and only choice or there'll be no limit of troubles we'll face if he's left alive. Maybe our Clan will...." The senior brother didn't say anything after that. But he was still visibly shaken and even a little bit terrified when he heard that roar. But his determination is suppressing all of his fears and terror.
They prepared themselves and jumped on the young man in the middle.
Thud Thud Thud Thud...…..
They heard something falling. They tried seeing what it was but they were blinded by the droplets coming from above. Suddenly it's raining and bathing them. They smelled that there was a smell coming from the rainwater. They recognized that smell, that smell was fresh to their memory and it's even all over the battlefield. They put their hand forward and raindrops fall on their hands. The rainwater was crimson in color.
Thud Thud Thud Thud.....
Again something fall and raining stopped suddenly. When they saw what had fallen, they, the two people who were the only survivors there, had different reactions on their faces. One was furious, disappointed but happy, the other was furious, terrified, and paralyzed.
The fallen objects were bodies and heads of the people there a moment ago. Blood was still gushing out from the headless necks. The necks were cleanly separated from their heads. And as for the heads, they were covered in the crimson liquid as they have also bathed in the previous crimson rain.
Thud...
Again a falling sound was heard and the young man in the middle looked toward it. Amazed seeing it.
The senior brother of the Shakya Clan was on his knees now, maybe cause his legs were trembling or maybe he was unable to take it or maybe he knelt before the bodies of his brothers for showing respect or maybe he's showing respect to the person coming towards them.
"You have quite some guts."