The Churning ( Part 6 )

The passionate speech of the servant cleared Vajradandaka's mind a little. But just a little. Opening his eyes some, he uttered a single word. "Damn."

Tears poured out of the servant's eyes like a waterfall. "Martanda, Goddess Vak resides in your mouth. How can you sully that sacred temple! If not for me, for she who is the wife of Vision, for she who is the mother of Emotions, the friend of Musicians and the Lover of Wisdom, please cease your obstinance. Martanda, I am just an insignificant soul in your service. You need not blaspheme yourself just for me!"

By now, Vajradandaka sat up and clutching his head. He had a terrible headache, but was unable to point out the reason for it. He saw with blurry eyes, one man cursing using Vedic nomenclature on one side, a boy lazily smiling on another side. He just wanted to push the servant and get away, but that would be considered rude and ill-mannered. He wanted to say shut up, but that will just provoke another teary lecture. After he ascended, all kinds of devout and teary people surrounded him, wanting to serve him as though they were really serving a god. They made him feel stifled. Unable to get out of this conundrum, Vajra dealt with it the same way he would then things get tough at court. He used the logic of a child, opened his mouth and bawled his lungs out. At first it felt really unnatural, but he soon found his rhythm after realising he really wanted to sleep but the world wouldn't let him.

The servant was surprised into silence. Kush pursed his lips in amusement. How could he, after all this time, not know that Vajra was faking it? But as it often is the case with children, though they fake it in the beginning, the crying easily turns into reality very soon. Same was the case with Vajra, who couldn't stop once he began.

"Oh fuck!" Kush expressed quite sensibly when he realised the wise sage who just lectured him in full was truly bawling like a dirty little monkey now.

The servant was spooked, yet he still reprimanded Kush sternly, "Little Lord of the Barbarians, your impure mouth is rubbing off on our monarch! Please have some decorum."

As if he heard it through all the noise, Vajra cried even louder. The bawling sounds carried far into the night echoing tragically across the desert. They made the lone bard sing a tune about the poor orphan who was abandoned in the raven desert night. The bawling noises only stopped when Shaura put down what he was doing and rushed up the dune to take his king away. However, they took a different tune when the boy who was thrown on to the giant's shoulder began beating his back and kicking up his legs creating tragic sounds as though he was a kid being kidnapped from the market place. Shaura seemed used to it though. Exactly when has the king not thrown a temper around him? He began walking away on the sliding sands with large strides.

"You! Servant of the Nara clan," he demanded roughly over the screaming noise, "Don't you know Martanda gets antsy when he is feeling sleepy? Why did you purposely agitate him at this time!"

"I didn't know, my lord!" the servant said. He looked shaken.

"Are you an idiot? Don't you have any children? Go receive ten lashes from the punishment officer!"

"Your order, lord!" the servant bowed and was about to leave. But just then Vajra roused from his tantrum and pushed Shaura's shoulder, shaking his head.

"The order's already been given. It cannot be rescinded," Shaura frowned, looking at the boy. His scar marked faced looked fearsome in the dim light.

The boy king used one twirling little hand to rub his eyes, taking a while to settle his temper. "It was my fault. I was acting like a child…" he mumbled, hiccupping.

"You're supposed to act like a child, because you are one."

"I'm not…" the boy looked away, whining with the voice of sad mosquito. "I'm supposed to act like god…" If not, I'll never become one, and everyone will go to hell.

"There's no such thing. Go to sleep on my shoulder. We can talk about it tomorrow."

"Wu wu…"

"Kshatriya don't cry. Go to sleep!"

"Ok." With the military man's little jolt, Vajra immediately fell asleep. It was as though a bulb has gone off in his head.

On the other side, Kush who was left all alone on the desert threw one last look at the boy who had been pampered silly by his sisters and basically everyone around him. This was the same kid who his teacher so admired the character of, even pointing him out as an example of noble temperament. What noble temperament? This kid was just a brat with an oversized brain.

More importantly, "He wants the desert…" Kush mumbled to himself. "The desert…What's in the desert?"

"The desert. The desert. The desert…" he couldn't stop thinking, not underestimating the deviousness of his rival one bit. "When the ocean is churned, many treasures came. What was the first one…Was it the desert? Or something that is found in a desert…Was it a cactus plant?"

A faint and lonely voice that seemed to accompany the moon whispered at his side. "Poison."

Even Kush who was quite used to the phenomenon jerked. After the moment's panic passed, he looked around the dim dark expanse of the desert. As usual, he found nothing. "Teacher?"

"The first treasure was poison."

A silhouette flickered on the horizon, appearing like a mirage of silvery pink waters. The water looked like some mysterious potion that one wished to drink without leaving a single drop. Moments later, Ashangi's soft figure appeared beside Kush, the flush of her fair face resembling the silky mists of a heavenly waterfall.

"Teacher, you're still here?"

Ashangi was silent. She looked towards the horizon. "Not for long." Her voice was faint, as though coming from a great distance, but clearly, she was right next to Kush. "I've come to answer your doubts."

Kush retraced his thoughts. He quickly asked, "Poison…The first treasure was truly poison?"

"A calamitous poison that could potentially end the world," Ashangi said in her sweet, full voice, making Kush feel as though he was cocooned by velvety silks it in the lonely desert night.

"So what happened to it?" Kush asked curiously.

"Someone drank it." Ashangi looked at Kush and smiled ever so little. "Little Kush, if that boy wants the desert, then give him the desert. After all, it truly is the first treasure that you two will churn out from this…ocean of milk." Her pretty jade like hands gestured expansively at the land. The patterned sand dunes seemed to undulate in the dark watery light of the moon, resembling none other than the milky ocean.

Only Kush knew how evil that tiny smile on his teacher was. What his nice, sweet and immensely beautiful teacher was saying was, if he wants the poison, just give him the damn poison. What are you so worried about?

And they say, who taught Kush to be so greedy.