A huge vertical eye slowly opened on the forehead of the apparition.
An ominous feeling rose in the heart of the Rakshasa and the Village Chief as the huge eye gazed at them. The eye turned scarlet red as a huge fireball began to form in front of the eye. The fireball appeared like a miniature sun in the sky as it covered the entirety of the inner village. The fire blazed brighter and brighter as it illuminated the entire village. The surrounding began to rise as beads of sweat trickled down from the body of Rakshasa and the village chief.
The Rakshasa and the Village chief turned pale as they frantically tried to rush from the impact range of the fireball. Huge rings of fire and lava erupted from the ground as it surrounded the inner village and blocked at the possible route of escape. The Rakshasa brandished his battle-axe as his body turned crimson and huge amounts of baleful energy began to emit from his body. He directed the entire reserve of his body into his battle-axe in a desperate attempt to open a pathway and flee from the giant fireball hanging above their head.
The village chief noticed the desperate attempt of the Rakshasa and grabbed his spear tightly as he too focused the entirety of his energy reserve on the tip of his spear and thus contribute to open a way out from this ring of fire.
Roar!.....aah!
Both of them charged their respective attacks and then decisively swung their weapons at the ring of fire. The huge apparition sensed their rebellious tendency to try to escape from the retribution of their deeds. The apparition's eyes shined brighter as the wall of fire was strengthened.
Clang!....Clang!
Both of the attacks landed on the wall of fire but a sound reminiscent of metal colliding with metal rang as their attacks were blocked. The recoil from their attacks shattered both of their weapons as it traveled to their arms and legs ripping apart their flesh and badly injuring their inner organs as both of them spurted a mouthful of blood. Their injuries were very serious as they hopelessly looked at the giant fireball in the sky.
The Rakshasa had a very tragic expression as he remembered his past. He was able to escape from the onslaught of the Brahamãstra as he on the outer edge of the point of impact and thus was able to preserve his life though barely. That moment gave him injuries grievous enough to take a recovery time of centuries. He escaped to this faraway backward place devoid of any powerful warrior in an attempt to recover enough to retreat to the underworld. But who would have known he had unknowingly provoked the wrath of a very powerful deity and now he would pay for his sins. The Rakshasa closed his eyes as any thoughts regarding resistance were suppressed.
The village chief had entirely different thoughts from the Rakshasa. The curse uttered by the Sudra woman Gangi rang in his ears almost deafening his hearing. He was only a teenager when his father the previous Village Chief brought him to view the so-called implementation of Justice. His inner soul always reminded him of his deeds, labeling them as wrong and unjust. But he was blinded by greed, power, and status as he abused them to harm innocent people. But such were the rules set by the higher hierarchy of the society.
'Were they wrong for setting such rules? Were their thoughts tainted by the blind status of power and wealth up to the point that it made them immune to the miserable condition they forced upon fellow humans?'
He had no answers to these questions. Maybe it was his education that blindfolded his sense of judgment or perhaps it was a part of him that refused to provide justice when he saw that poor Sudra woman getting burned to death. The thoughts of the village chief got cleared as he calmly braced himself for his punishment.
If only he had voiced out the injustice of the matter at the moment of execution of that poor Sudra woman, may things would have taken a different route from now. Alas, it was his destiny and fate that lead him up to this moment. He had regrets, lots of regrets as he silently faced the heaven's execution.
The appearance of such a huge fireball caused panic among the villagers. Many people from the inner village tried to escape to the outside of the village only to be blocked by the ring of fire. Ironically, all of the people trapped inside were the so-called people of the higher Varna who gazed at the outer village with scorn or discontentment.
The fat landlord was frightened by such a huge commotion as he gazed at the huge fireball floating in the sky from the balcony of his manor. His heartbeat began to rise in trepidation as his feet lost the strength to support his body and he keeled over on the ground. Panic ensued in the manor as the rest of the people began to frantically escape from this calamity. The fat landlord hurriedly gathered his family members including his wife and both of his sons as they jogged out of the manor.
He was welcomed by the sight of people running around in a frenzy as he spotted the family of his business rival rushing towards the exit of the inner village. He quickly gathered his wits as he urged his family to rush towards the exit. Their frantic rush was halted by a huge crowd of people lifelessly staring at the exit which was being blocked by a large pillar of flame. Their so-called higher society and standing were comparable to horse feces as the walls they built to separate themselves from low-lives Sudra acted as a prison now. Despair and dread rose in their heart as they were unable to figure out the absurdity of the situation.
Somebody voiced their idea to visit the village chief at the public square and the rest of them followed. The sight at the village square stunned them as they spotted the huge Rakshasa and their village chief lying injured on the ground. A huge pillar of flame blocked their vision from spotting Rudra at the center of the rock platform. The huge pillar of flame acted as a sort of protection for Rudra.
All of the people of the inner village were gathered again at the Village square, this time out of panic. The heat intensity began to rise as the ground began to melt, burns appeared on the flesh of mortals as warriors began to fend the heat with their inner energy to no avail. The Huge fireball began to descend slowly as the ground began to crack and lava and fire began to erupt from the ground.
Most of the people surrounded Guru Bharstacharya to seek protection as their spiritual support. Guru Bharstacharya was terrified to the limit as he stuttered,
"This is.... a test set by gods..... to measure our faith. We have to stay strong and embrace it."
But his words and actions weren't in sync as he curled up his body in fear.
Boom!...Boom!
The fireball landed on the ground. Utter silence…..utter silence ensued for a while before a deafening explosion occurred. The fireball exploded and large swaths of fire engulfed the villagers as their flesh and bones were incinerated to ashes. A huge current of fire rose high up in the air. The luxurious manors and houses were burnt to the ground as no sign of life was left in the vicinity. The sole sound of the sobbing of a child broke the eerie silence as he was surrounded by large volumes of lava and fire. But the child paid no heed to it as he clutched on to the bodies of his parents. The bodies turned into ashes as he embraced them. He lifelessly gazed on the horizon as he collected the ashes in a rag.
Rumble!.... Rumble!
Clouds began to rumble as flashes of lightning discharged into the air. Large amounts of downpour drowned the village as it cooled down the lava and flames in the village. But it was unable to put down the fire on Rudra's body. Rudra stood up as he aimlessly began to march forward, wherever he walked a trail of destruction followed as everything was burnt to ashes. He marched past the kneeling Sudras in the outer village as he tightly clenched the rag with ashes of parents in his hand.
Days passed away,
Rudra continued to march forward devoid of any thirst or hunger as he was drowned in eternal sorrow. No wild beast or animal dared to approach him as some who approached near him were crushed to oblivion by his new-found strength. Now his fists were capable of crushing boulders and shattering mountains. But there was no happiness in his eyes, only sorrow. The fire on his body was doused off but his heart was still burning in agony over the loss of his loved ones.
"Halt Vatasa!"
His aimless wandering was interrupted by these sudden words. Rudra was shaken out of his thoughts as he turned around and stared at the intruder.