The Rendezvous

The Major cleared his throat to gain the attention of those present. “Good Morning Ladies and Gentlemen.” He looked around to make sure he had every one’s attention. “You may be wondering why they chose a military man like me to lead this mission. Let me make this clear. It is not a simple camping or trekking trip. Imagine going to a place like the Amazon forest or a place full of dinosaurs and hostile tribals. That is the kind of trip we are going into.” He let them digest that information.

“Did anyone go on the previous editions of this trip?” two hands rose – one a sturdy black man looking menacing and the other one a lean old man with a white beard. “Good. You will be my deputies and help me in this mission.” The others gave looks of dissent. “We need leaders who can respond to unexpected situations quickly and sort them out. These two gentlemen here have an idea of what we are going to face.”

“Do you think we can’t lead?” it was a fair-skinned man of around 25 who had spoken. “Most of us have experience in leading and organising things.”

“Have you ever organised something full of unknown factors, involving a very high risk to yourself and your reputation?”

“Well........No.”

“These men have done that before. They have the experience for the job. Besides, each one of us will be looking after an aspect of the trip. So, everyone has an equal importance and responsibility.” The dissenters seem to be mollified. “Is there anyone with combat experience?” six hands were raised. The major was surprised to see a noble looking woman of eighteen years raise her hand. He addressed her. “Your name please, young lady.”

“Varsha, Major.”

“Well, Miss Varsha, where did you get your combat experience?”

“I pacified many kingdoms during my time as Heir-Apparent to the throne of Ambapuram.” There was a loud laughter at this making her look in surprise. “What’s so funny?”

“To be the heir-apparent to a throne, you have to be a princess first.”

“And you are?”

“Arjun Varma, the famous hero.” He twirled his handlebar moustache.

“So?”

“What do you mean by so?”

“How does your being a hero give you the right to judge me?” her eyes turned deadly cold. “What do you know about me that you jump to conclusions?” he was taken aback by her reaction.

“The point is to find guys who can fight if need be.” The major intervened, trying to defuse the situation. “We will plenty of combat situations that need skilful handling – both brain and brawn need to be used. So, I need both kinds of people.”

“I was trained in diplomacy as well as the art of war.” Varsha responded ignoring Arjun who was glaring at her. “as the heir-apparent.”

“You will need to train with me and the others to prove your statements.” The major stated. “I just want to know who can save my back while fight in the front.”

“Yes, Major.” The meeting continued till duties and responsibilities had been shared equally among the participants.

“Let’s meet at 0500 hrs tomorrow for our first training session.” The major announced as he dismissed everyone.

The next fortnight was spent in intense training; many of them groaned under the strict regime of the major. However, there was nothing they could do as the major did not give in to them. “This training is the difference between life and death. You will thank me for this when we return in one piece.” Varsha was among the few persons who welcomed the training. She had impressed the Major several times with her prowess in martial arts. She had bested the major several times though he came back very strongly beating her with his experience. She seemed to respect him for that.

She would spend many nights discussing various aspects of the mission that cemented the mutual respect they had for each other. The major would share his experiences with her regaling her with tales of how he completed the most critical missions. This, however, also created jealousy in the others though they did not show it. The intense training had started paying off and everyone was getting used to the routine; the major had planned the routine according to the capabilities of the individual participants. He was particularly harsh on the lazy ones while he was accommodating with the hardworking ones.

The training had the positive effect of bringing the team together. All thirty of them learnt about each other though not everyone appeared to be happy about it. The training couldn’t remove the prejudices that some of them showed from time to time. The major hoped they wouldn’t affect the mission badly. He discussed this point with Gangadhara Arun Varma who agreed with the former, yet the latter was unwilling to change the plan.

On 16th of Sravana month in the year 8672, the Major called for a final meeting. “Thank you guys for being so cooperative during the training. As I told you before, this training will prove to be the difference between life and death in the adventure tour. We are leaving for the ........ forest tomorrow.”

“Are we on our own or do we have someone to guide us through the forest?”

“We are meeting a young tribal warrior who will act as our guide. The first leg of our tour will be to visit the mysterious village of ......... my intel is that we won’t survive for more than ten minutes without him.”

“Who is he?”

“Someone named Subahu.” Varsha’s expression turned serious for a fraction of a millisecond that was caught by the Major but he kept quiet. “Any other questions?”

“When are we leaving?”

“At 0700 hrs tomorrow.” He looked at them sternly. “Pack only the essentials. Camping gear, weapons, canned food, emergency lights, batteries, extra fuel, clothes, mosquito-repellant creams, basic first aid kits, medicines and water. We will have to carry these ourselves so be careful about what you pack.” He looked around the room. “No jewelry or valuables of any kind. Pack only what we need, be practical. Dismissed.”

That left some of them shaking their heads at the announcement. That turned into wild glares of annoyance when the major actually went through the luggage and meticulously separated the unnecessary items, filing and packing them neatly and handing them over to the fort security. He ignored the grinding teeth behind him as he led the group into the vehicle that was to ferry them to the ......... jungle.

$$$$$$$$

The sun rose on the beautiful, picturesque hills. The orange glow gave a divinity to the majestic peaks standing guard as if to protect the world from invaders. The tall pine trees swung their heads back and forth nodding their approval to the cool breeze that passed by them. The shrubs and bushes laid a thick carpet to those who dared to venture towards the famous Niladri hills. Named for their appealing beauty and almost sky high height, the Niladri Hills were popular among the adventurers and the daring, dashing youth. The thick forest was home to many traps set by carnivorous plants and insects making it dangerous. It was also home to many beasts of prey that would eat you at their leisure. One look into their eyes would make you feel as if the beasts were pondering how to devour you – alive or dead. There were also many birds that were large enough to carry away a 7 foot fully grown human without any effort. I leave it to the imagination of the readers how the unfortunate victim would meet his/her end at the hands of the bird’s young ones. It is too scary to describe. It was into such a dangerous forest was the party of 30 people moving at a steady pace. The leader of the party signalled for a stop at the edge of the forest. “Huddle up!” he shouted. 6 and half feet tall, he towered over the rest of the group. Though lean and tall he had the stamina of a hundred elephants and could easily outmarch and out run the fittest soldier on the planet. Besides he had a voice that sounded like a cannon.

As the group came closer, he looked at each one of them counting off in his mind, his moving lips an indication of the fact. Once he was satisfied that no one in the group was missing, he cleared his throat. “As was explained before, we are about to enter a forest with a mind of it’s own. Every misstep might be death. Since even I do not know the correct, safe path into this forest, we will now be led by the local tribal leader. While we wait for our escorts, I suggest that you let me do the talking as they are easily offended and might lead to a death trap. If any of you wishes to come out alive out of this forest, each one of you must respect the tribals and behave very decently and carefully, putting aside all your prejudices and dislikes. Anyone who disobeys this suggestion will be handed over to the tribals for justice. Let me tell you, their sense of justice might be really painful to the offender. Thank you.”

Varsha pondered over the information as she started observing the surroundings and the other people in her group. Most of them seem scared though she had been told they were the bravest people available. She doubted they would last long in a life and death battle. It was a good thing she had insisted for a heavy staff. Anything lighter would be useless.

“Ma’am look! The savages are here!” Hema pointed out excitedly. It seemed despite the advances made in the society, some prejudices still existed in the minds of the so called civilised people. Varsha looked towards the direction Hema was pointing and felt a thrill of pleasant surprise.

Varsha was pleasantly surprised to see a team of 20 tribals holding what looked like spears, bows and arrows. “How did Subahu reach this planet? And how did he become their leader? Did he get banished too? At least it’s a relief to be among known friends.”

“Ma’am, do you know those?” Hema asked making Varsha realise she had spoken her thoughts aloud. A faint tinge of pink in her cheeks was the only reflection of the embarrassment she felt.

“Well, they seemed to be similar to the tribes on our world.” She said gazing at the tribal leader who was conversing with the Major. He seemed a bit agitated as he kept shaking his head sorrowfully. The Major too seemed to be adamant as was seen from his flushed face, stiff posture and hands curled up in fists. The atmosphere was too aggressive for a dangerous foray into the forest. Her eyebrows rose in surprise as she saw the Major catch hold of the tribal leader’s hand. It was a gesture of aggression and would be dealt with by killing the offender on her world. It was no different here. There were 10 bows drawn instantly with arrows, ready to be fired on command. 5 spears and 4 swords were also drawn. The leader looked the Major in the eye for a few seconds, said something and drew his knife. Varsha, recognising the gesture to be far more dangerous than an open attack, ran forward uttering a shrill cry startling the leader and making him look in her direction. She had difficulty moving forward as Arjun Varma tried to stop her. She gave a battle cry full of rage and kicked him in the gut making him wince in pain and stagger a few steps back. Though she was surprised by his strength she did not wait as she ran like a hare through the small gap she had made. Before the others realised what was happening, she was beside the Major.

“Ooom ha su bum bum ra, Subahu!” she spoke in the native tribal dialect used by Subahu before he joined the Elite Royal Guard of Ambapuram. A clear recognition could be seen in his eyes along with a bit of shock.

“Aam ha tu rimbola, yuvarani!” he spoke angrily.

“kshama aachu su ni yuvarani, Subahu! Tai sa hu budi manav si.”

“Arna vu sum ta ree na vishu yuvarani.”

“Samha suri ho Subahu.”Subahu put his knife back signalling the others to lower their weapons. The Major and the others were shocked at the turn of events. How had this young woman managed to speak their tongue? Not to mention the way she seemed to de-escalate a crisis.

“What’s going on? How the hell did you speak their tongue? Are you one of them? What did you just do?” Major Chakrapani asked sounding both annoyed as well as puzzled. For a man dying with curiosity, he had kept his voice steady and calm.

“He is an old friend of mine who served in the Elite Royal Guard tasked with protecting me. He went to his village to get married a few days before I had been banished. He says you offended his authority in front of his men. So he is honour bound to cut off your heart and offer it to the village Deity and leave your carcass to the vultures.”

“What! You didn’t agree, did you?” there was a panic in his voice that made the tribals smile. Varsha recognized the false fear of the Major. “I convinced him to reduce the punishment to five days imprisonment and slavery. You will be his slave for five days and will be banished from the village never to set foot in this forest again. Besides he will allow only ten people to go with them.”

“What? Me be a slave to a savage? No way!” the Major seemed to be putting on a good show of arrogance.

“You would prefer to have your heart plucked by a knife while you are alive then?” she asked making him pale.

“He wouldn’t dare to do that, will he?”

“He can and he will. They take their honour very seriously. I suggest you gulp down whatever pride you have or your will see your heart taken out in front of your eyes.” He shuddered at the thought.

“Do ra saam si, yuvarani.”

“Amo hari, Subahu.”

“What does he want now?”

“We need to nominate ten people. So I suggest you select them quickly. Hema will be my attendant. The rest nine you choose.” The Major took a deep breath as he began naming the persons who were to go with them. He selected eight making sure he had the necessary tech crew to complete the mission successfully. Besides, they would be decimated without Varsha’s presence he realised.

“We need one more.”

“What? You mean they are allowing 11?”

“Oh, slaves don’t count as people. So, select one more.” The Major swallowed the insult. He would wait for his chance and repay with interest. So he named one more member to accompany the team. Finally ready, Subahu arranged the team like a covalent bond keeping his warriors around the group. He himself was in the front leading the way. Varsha was also holding her staff ready to respond to any sudden attack at a moment’s notice. The rest of the Adventure team were to wait for their return. In this way the team of 30 humans started walking into the forest that was thick with dangers that sent shivers down the spines of the bravest people.