King Arinok’s penetrating stare cooled the candle flame. His thin body folded in to a full lotus position. He exhaled, disturbed by the screams of his people. No, he was devastated by the pains of war.
The Rajashans were well built, strong and fast. Led by King Tunggul they bludgeoned the Kidans. Captain Norigg staggered into Arinok’s camp, bleeding he fell on to his wasted carcass.
Startled, Arinok leaped to the almost lifeless Norigg, shouldering the wounded head on his lap. “Your Majesty, we are falling,” escaped from the cracked lips of a great Kidans legend. It was now up to Arinok to hold the fort but he was no material for plunging swords and clashing spears. He was a holy man, one that preached the religion of brotherhood and unity. A rare king he was that remained loyal to one wife and lived amongst the peasants.
The heartbroken Arinok dashed out of his encampment. He blew the royal horn. The sound traveled across the berated land reaching the ears of Tunggul. It was a call he was glad to receive. He bulldozed over wretched faces and limbs, mounted his feisty horse and rode into the grip of bitter-sweet childhood memories.
“We are brothers, Tunggul. Our fathers came from the same root. Why are we fighting against each other?”
Tunggul laughed. “It is because we are brothers, little Ari that I must groom you to be a man. There can be many kings but only one emperor. And you have to earn it.”
The peace-loving Arinok wept. He pleaded to Tunggul to call off his troops. The air in the canopy whirred as Norigg watched his beloved sire begging on his knees. He inhaled for last time; the air deflected his disappointment to the angels.
Arinok quietly said a prayer for his faithful captain as tears washed the dust on his blistered fingers. “I give you my throne. Just stop this madness,” he said.
Tunggul refrained from assaulting Arinok. He threw his sword on the ground and demanded for Arinok to wield it like a warrior. He removed his amour and exposed his muscular chest. “Arinok! Kill me this instant if you want to keep your throne and safe your people. I dare you to do it.”
A pair of lifeless hands picked the sword and returned it to the grip of its owner. “No my brother. No life should be sacrificed for the vanity of power, control and wealth. Enough.”
Tunggul marched out with anger welding in his eyes. He did not understand the philosophy that terminated the spirit of his cousin brother. One that had forgotten the role of a king was in the building of an empire for the glory of the nation’s flag. No citizen will die in vain protecting his country whether or not victory was on his side. He shall die a hero if it was to serve his people. Those who hide behind the banner of peace were cowards even if victory was theirs to claim.
Tunggul raised Kidan to the pit and won. He took over the state but was fair to the Kidans as he was to the Rajashans. Food was equally divided, children were taught to read and write while the collection of tax was regulated to stop bribery. Arinok and his family were treated like nobles but he had decided to take a different route.
Arinok visited his wife and son. He spoke to them and assured that everything will be fine. He will find a solution. An answer shall be revealed to him.
He sat in his study. Took out a razor blade and sharpened it on the belt. The first flock of hair touched the floor. He chanted the name of the creator as he shaved himself bald. He did not sleep the entire night but was in deep meditation. At the first break of dawn he left the Kidan capital without any possession but a walking stick, a water bottle, a wooden bowl and a thick blanket to cover his body. Arinok started his journey to salvation leaving behind his kingly past.
The roads led Arinok to Nirut a small village to the south of the Kidan capital where he decided to stay a little longer. At the beginning some people might have recognized him but because of his unkempt appearance they discarded the possibility of his real identity. He moved along unnoticed and was fairly pleased with it.
At Nirut he sat under a tree near a shed. He sometimes sat for days without moving absorb in his state of bliss. In this position he asked the fundamental question of why people dominated each other. What is the purpose peace if it instigates violence? Most importantly what was the purpose of his birth? But he received no answers and nothing was shown to him except for silence.
In the world outside of him people still fought over a sweet potato, a woman and who owned the biggest cow. What he didn’t notice was that since Tunggul took over the reign things were kept in better order. There were less looting and many illegal gambling joints were closed down. For some strange reasons peace was beginning to recover.
A group of misfits approached Arinok. They frisked his body and found nothing valuable except for his water bottle. There were some figs in his wooden bowl and the think blanket was stained with mud. He opened his eyes and saw three young men probably between the ages of seventeen and twenty. He smiled and told them to take what they wanted for none belonged to him. The boys felt insulted because a beggar was offering to them his stale belongings. They instead beat him up to teach him a lesson on humility.
Passing by was a beautiful maiden named Shirta. She shouted at the boys and told them to stop bullying a beggar. The moment they saw her they began to harass her; touching her hair, molesting her breasts and one held her waist from behind allowing the other two to pin her down. Arinok was shocked and a weird sense of anger bellowed in his stomach. He instantaneously felt that he needed to do something. He had to take action.
Arinok stood up, grabbed a stone with his right hand and hit one of the attackers on the head. Without much hesitation he smacked another on the throat and the final one was hurt in the stomach. His breathing grew heavy as he looked at the three boys rolling in pain on the ground. And slowly fears crept in. What did the peace-loving Arinok do?
Shirta pulled Arinok away from the scene to the river bank. He threw himself on the grass. His heart was bulging with guilt and disbelief. He looked at the blood stained stone and lunge it into the river. He shut his eyes and released a loud scream.
Feeling nervous, Shirta placed herself next to Arinok. “I am sorry, I didn’t mean to,” she stuttered. Arinok looked at her almost perfect face, the cute button nose and the rose bud lips. “My apologies, ma’am. It is just that I have not caused another human to suffer physically before. It is not right to do so under any circumstances.”
“You are a holy man, master. Although your attire is untidy and your hair unwashed I know you are a good man. So please don’t blame yourself. Those boys deserved it.”
Arinok shook his head. “No, ma’am. This is not the case. I must do what I preach, walk my talk of peace and unity. And here I am exercising violence on three innocent lives. I am ashamed of myself.”
“But surely you must have acted in self-defense or protected loved ones from harm. It is a normal and noble thing to do. But you know master, it is the first time for me too,” she said with a shy smile on her face.
“Your first time?”
“Yes. The first time ever a man kept me from danger and did not fight another to go to bed with me.”
“I beg your pardon?” Arinok lowered his gaze.
“I was born into the brothel and have since served men when I turned sixteen. It was a late age the owner complained because they couldn’t make more money out of me earlier.” She paused and looked at the glances of dismay that were directed toward her.
Arinok was quiet. “Why don’t you leave the place of vice? There are many things that you can do at Kidan,” his words were hard and fell upon Shirta’s ears like daggers.
“Do you regret saving me from them? That you had to taint your sacred hands for a woman that sells her body? You are judging me, sir.”
“No! This is not what I mean. I mean you have a choice of walking out from doing anything that you do not like. You have a choice.”
“Are you born free? Is this what you like to do?” she asked gesturing at Arinok’s appearance.
“I like peace on Earth, ma’am,” he replied in a solemn tone.
Shirta smiled. “I like that too. I want to get out of that horrid place. Work for five more years to make enough money and I will run away with my daughter. Get the hell out of there”
“Your daughter?”
“Of course,” she chuckled humouring herself. “I am not proud of being part of three generations of brothel girls. No one should stay in that stinking hole especially my little girl.”
Arinok nodded. His world suddenly expanded. He was promoting peace, love and unity but was not aware of the real pain and sufferings of the human race. He thought that by demoting his status he could inspire but it showed to him that he what he did was stemming from arrogance. It was his narrow belief that it was unfair he was born into prosperity and high power. But he didn’t know that he could not teach others peace if he was not peaceful within himself.
They watched the sun set together that evening. Arinok’s buzzing questions rested as the stars filled the sky. He slept dreaming of his wife and son.
Arinok lifted a fig and placed it in his mouth. He slowly chewed on them when all of a sudden a violent thud landed on his face. The misfits were back with two more helpers. They kicked, punched and assailed him. They dragged him to the river side tied a heavy boulder to his foot and drowned him. The last thing Arinok felt was blood running down his face and the stinging sensation of water filling up his nostrils, eyes and lungs. Darkness surrounded him.
Two loud voices accompanied Arinok’s awakening. He looked around. It was an unfamiliar place. It seemed as if he was in a cave and he was placed before two judges. They were odd looking. One was round and bald and had thick eye brows. The other was a midget wearing a red suit. They were seated behind a huge oblong-shaped table on two steel chairs that didn’t seem to belong to any kingdom he knew. They were chattering and discussing, writing and flipping through pieces of papers.
“I see that our inmate is alert, “said the round one. “I am Wendoo, the guardian of the gates of Hell.”
“I am Lowdoo, the keeper of the gates of Hell.” The midget’s voice sounded like a mousy teenage boy.
“What? What hell?”
“To make things simple for you, Arinok son of Palinogg, you died,” Wendoo replied twitching his eyebrow.
“Oh! Don’t believe him. You are technically not dead yet that’s why you can’t enter Hell and are held at the gates. Some foolish humans are trying to revive you. So you have a seventy …”
“A seventy percent chance of making Hell your new home,” Wendoo interrupted.
Arinok sat up and examined where he was. He pinched himself and tried to recall what happened. He knew the misfits came by for revenge and he was brought to the river side and drowned.
“Why am I in hell? Shouldn’t I be in heaven?”
Wendoo and Lowdoo gasped and laughed so loud that Lowdoo nearly fell of his chair. “Well, there is a quota. And you didn’t get in. So welcome to Hell.”
“No! There must be a mistake. How can that be? I didn’t harm anyone and I was a peaceful king. I was kind and caring and I loved my wife. I was loyal to her. I looked after my son, my people and my state. I was a good man. I am a holy man.”
Lowdoo was busy scribbling down Arinok’s confession while Wendoo explained to Arinok. “That my friend is your greatest sins. From our records, you didn’t do anything for others. You only did things for yourself. You were selfish. You merely wanted to look “good”. Be a good king, love everyone, no war. But when your state is attacked, you allowed your soldiers to die for you while you pray and pray and pray out of fear! By the way, we love it when you do that. It is our favourite dessert.”
“King Arinok’s prayers. Delicious!” Lowdoo chipped in while his pen was still jotting down notes.
“So you are guilty as charged. You failed to carry out your duties as a king. If you don’t get it by now, there is a reason why you were born a king. I know, don’t tell me. You wanted to be like Baddhu and Sejus. They are great souls. Even from the depths of hell we respect them although they are not my cup of tea. They are just too nice. The problem with you Arinok son of Palinogg is that you copied the steps of the Baddhu without understanding what in heaven he was teaching. Not that I do or else I won’t be here.” Wendoo threw his head back and snickered.
“That was supposed to be funny, by the way…now where was I? Yes! You basically wanted to preserve your ideology of peace at the expense of your people who sincerely looked up to for protection.”
“How could I have taken the life of another human? That is the work of devils, like you!”
Lowdoo stopped writing, jumped down from his chair and walked toward Arinok. He was serious, almost menacing. “Look here King Arinok!” He inched closer. “You didn’t take the life of a man with your hands but your cowardice and selfish intentions allowed half the people of your nation to die in vain. You allowed an enemy soldier to slash down your maids because you couldn’t kill that bloke. Haven’t you heard, be in battle at times of war, be in peace at times of peace but have the brains to know the difference. Although in Hell we are constantly at war so you don’t need your brains!”
“But Baddhu said that…” Arinok stammered.
“But…but…but…you are not Baddhu, so quit pretending to be him,” Wendoo exclaimed. “And remember Baddhu said don’t follow his foot steps blindly. Test, learn and decide for yourself. You are your own Baddhu. Why am I telling you things about the Baddhu? I can’t believe this. I need to re-wire my head.”
“The point is you are guilty and you shall be punished,” said Lowdoo grinning from ear to ear.
Arinok started to cough. Wendoo and Lowdoo looked at each other. They panicked. He felt as if his entire head was tied in ropes and that he was being pulled up. There was an immense shot of electricity running through that caused him to scream and squirm. He lost consciousness.
Sunlight permeated all over him and recharged Arinok’s drenched body. He heard the murmurs of people around him and someone was shaking him gently. He opened his eyes, sat up slowly and released out a big pool of water. He was catching his breath as a heavily built man slapped his back to allow him to vomit out more liquid.
“Ah! He is alive,” a woman said.
Arinok calmly entered the capital of Kidan. He climbed up to the tallest tower with a bucket of water. He cleaned himself and cut his long entangled hair. He looked down at the busy streets and saw that the Rajashans were getting along well with the Kidans. Children were giggling and playing. The people were happy. He gazed upon heaven a place he knew his prayers didn’t reach. With that he summoned his people for the final time.
“My dear Kidans. This is your king. No, the one who used to be your king is hoping to speak to you.” Everyone stopped what they were doing. Parents commanded for their child to be quiet. They arched their necks and glared at Arinok.
“This is Arinok son of Palinogg. My father was a great king. He brought peace to you where I failed. My father was a brave warrior while I was weak, hiding behind the strength of my soldiers, which should be honoured and held in high esteem. When I ran from my responsibility, you fought and sacrificed yourself. I owe you everything but my life is worthless for I have not done anything for Kidan. My speech of peace was meaningless as it is obscured by the wind…”
Underneath a tree, Wendoo and Lowdoo were watching the Kidans. “It is very touching. So do we get Arinok again?” Wendoo asked.
Lowdoo opened his books and shook his head. “No. It is unfortunate. He is going to heaven.”
“Why? Because of his great suicide speech?” Wendoo raised his voice.
“Our quota is full. There are way too many human dramas. Arinok’s is excusable.”
“That’s a shame. I was having so much of fun with him.”
The crowd muttered as Arinok dived head down into the main city square. Wendoo and Lowdoo were anticipating an out roar.
Someone shouted, “Hail King Arinok! He is the true man of peace!” And very naturally everyone said the same thing in unison. Their voices echoed as Wendoo and Lowdoo shudder in disgust.
“Don’t worry, brother. The will remember Arinok as the man of love and pillar of peace. They will erect a statue right when he died. And schools will be set up because he is a martyr. He died in the name of peace, his philosophy will be taught and man will go to war again to prove his interpretation is correct and the others are wrong. Either way, our quota will always be full which means there will be more work for me!” Lowdoo lamented.
“More work for me too! But I don’t mind losing some weight,” said Wendoo squeezing his bloated stomach.
Arinok’s remains were covered with the nation’s flag. Tunggul knelt beside him and wept. The citizens of Kidan paid their respect. The priest was thinking of canonizing Arinok remembering him as the man of love and pillar of peace.
Long live King Arinok!
The Rajashans were well built, strong and fast. Led by King Tunggul they bludgeoned the Kidans. Captain Norigg staggered into Arinok’s camp, bleeding he fell on to his wasted carcass.
Startled, Arinok leaped to the almost lifeless Norigg, shouldering the wounded head on his lap. “Your Majesty, we are falling,” escaped from the cracked lips of a great Kidans legend. It was now up to Arinok to hold the fort but he was no material for plunging swords and clashing spears. He was a holy man, one that preached the religion of brotherhood and unity. A rare king he was that remained loyal to one wife and lived amongst the peasants.
The heartbroken Arinok dashed out of his encampment. He blew the royal horn. The sound traveled across the berated land reaching the ears of Tunggul. It was a call he was glad to receive. He bulldozed over wretched faces and limbs, mounted his feisty horse and rode into the grip of bitter-sweet childhood memories.
“We are brothers, Tunggul. Our fathers came from the same root. Why are we fighting against each other?”
Tunggul laughed. “It is because we are brothers, little Ari that I must groom you to be a man. There can be many kings but only one emperor. And you have to earn it.”
The peace-loving Arinok wept. He pleaded to Tunggul to call off his troops. The air in the canopy whirred as Norigg watched his beloved sire begging on his knees. He inhaled for last time; the air deflected his disappointment to the angels.
Arinok quietly said a prayer for his faithful captain as tears washed the dust on his blistered fingers. “I give you my throne. Just stop this madness,” he said.
Tunggul refrained from assaulting Arinok. He threw his sword on the ground and demanded for Arinok to wield it like a warrior. He removed his amour and exposed his muscular chest. “Arinok! Kill me this instant if you want to keep your throne and safe your people. I dare you to do it.”
A pair of lifeless hands picked the sword and returned it to the grip of its owner. “No my brother. No life should be sacrificed for the vanity of power, control and wealth. Enough.”
Tunggul marched out with anger welding in his eyes. He did not understand the philosophy that terminated the spirit of his cousin brother. One that had forgotten the role of a king was in the building of an empire for the glory of the nation’s flag. No citizen will die in vain protecting his country whether or not victory was on his side. He shall die a hero if it was to serve his people. Those who hide behind the banner of peace were cowards even if victory was theirs to claim.
Tunggul raised Kidan to the pit and won. He took over the state but was fair to the Kidans as he was to the Rajashans. Food was equally divided, children were taught to read and write while the collection of tax was regulated to stop bribery. Arinok and his family were treated like nobles but he had decided to take a different route.
Arinok visited his wife and son. He spoke to them and assured that everything will be fine. He will find a solution. An answer shall be revealed to him.
He sat in his study. Took out a razor blade and sharpened it on the belt. The first flock of hair touched the floor. He chanted the name of the creator as he shaved himself bald. He did not sleep the entire night but was in deep meditation. At the first break of dawn he left the Kidan capital without any possession but a walking stick, a water bottle, a wooden bowl and a thick blanket to cover his body. Arinok started his journey to salvation leaving behind his kingly past.
The roads led Arinok to Nirut a small village to the south of the Kidan capital where he decided to stay a little longer. At the beginning some people might have recognized him but because of his unkempt appearance they discarded the possibility of his real identity. He moved along unnoticed and was fairly pleased with it.
At Nirut he sat under a tree near a shed. He sometimes sat for days without moving absorb in his state of bliss. In this position he asked the fundamental question of why people dominated each other. What is the purpose peace if it instigates violence? Most importantly what was the purpose of his birth? But he received no answers and nothing was shown to him except for silence.
In the world outside of him people still fought over a sweet potato, a woman and who owned the biggest cow. What he didn’t notice was that since Tunggul took over the reign things were kept in better order. There were less looting and many illegal gambling joints were closed down. For some strange reasons peace was beginning to recover.
A group of misfits approached Arinok. They frisked his body and found nothing valuable except for his water bottle. There were some figs in his wooden bowl and the think blanket was stained with mud. He opened his eyes and saw three young men probably between the ages of seventeen and twenty. He smiled and told them to take what they wanted for none belonged to him. The boys felt insulted because a beggar was offering to them his stale belongings. They instead beat him up to teach him a lesson on humility.
Passing by was a beautiful maiden named Shirta. She shouted at the boys and told them to stop bullying a beggar. The moment they saw her they began to harass her; touching her hair, molesting her breasts and one held her waist from behind allowing the other two to pin her down. Arinok was shocked and a weird sense of anger bellowed in his stomach. He instantaneously felt that he needed to do something. He had to take action.
Arinok stood up, grabbed a stone with his right hand and hit one of the attackers on the head. Without much hesitation he smacked another on the throat and the final one was hurt in the stomach. His breathing grew heavy as he looked at the three boys rolling in pain on the ground. And slowly fears crept in. What did the peace-loving Arinok do?
Shirta pulled Arinok away from the scene to the river bank. He threw himself on the grass. His heart was bulging with guilt and disbelief. He looked at the blood stained stone and lunge it into the river. He shut his eyes and released a loud scream.
Feeling nervous, Shirta placed herself next to Arinok. “I am sorry, I didn’t mean to,” she stuttered. Arinok looked at her almost perfect face, the cute button nose and the rose bud lips. “My apologies, ma’am. It is just that I have not caused another human to suffer physically before. It is not right to do so under any circumstances.”
“You are a holy man, master. Although your attire is untidy and your hair unwashed I know you are a good man. So please don’t blame yourself. Those boys deserved it.”
Arinok shook his head. “No, ma’am. This is not the case. I must do what I preach, walk my talk of peace and unity. And here I am exercising violence on three innocent lives. I am ashamed of myself.”
“But surely you must have acted in self-defense or protected loved ones from harm. It is a normal and noble thing to do. But you know master, it is the first time for me too,” she said with a shy smile on her face.
“Your first time?”
“Yes. The first time ever a man kept me from danger and did not fight another to go to bed with me.”
“I beg your pardon?” Arinok lowered his gaze.
“I was born into the brothel and have since served men when I turned sixteen. It was a late age the owner complained because they couldn’t make more money out of me earlier.” She paused and looked at the glances of dismay that were directed toward her.
Arinok was quiet. “Why don’t you leave the place of vice? There are many things that you can do at Kidan,” his words were hard and fell upon Shirta’s ears like daggers.
“Do you regret saving me from them? That you had to taint your sacred hands for a woman that sells her body? You are judging me, sir.”
“No! This is not what I mean. I mean you have a choice of walking out from doing anything that you do not like. You have a choice.”
“Are you born free? Is this what you like to do?” she asked gesturing at Arinok’s appearance.
“I like peace on Earth, ma’am,” he replied in a solemn tone.
Shirta smiled. “I like that too. I want to get out of that horrid place. Work for five more years to make enough money and I will run away with my daughter. Get the hell out of there”
“Your daughter?”
“Of course,” she chuckled humouring herself. “I am not proud of being part of three generations of brothel girls. No one should stay in that stinking hole especially my little girl.”
Arinok nodded. His world suddenly expanded. He was promoting peace, love and unity but was not aware of the real pain and sufferings of the human race. He thought that by demoting his status he could inspire but it showed to him that he what he did was stemming from arrogance. It was his narrow belief that it was unfair he was born into prosperity and high power. But he didn’t know that he could not teach others peace if he was not peaceful within himself.
They watched the sun set together that evening. Arinok’s buzzing questions rested as the stars filled the sky. He slept dreaming of his wife and son.
Arinok lifted a fig and placed it in his mouth. He slowly chewed on them when all of a sudden a violent thud landed on his face. The misfits were back with two more helpers. They kicked, punched and assailed him. They dragged him to the river side tied a heavy boulder to his foot and drowned him. The last thing Arinok felt was blood running down his face and the stinging sensation of water filling up his nostrils, eyes and lungs. Darkness surrounded him.
Two loud voices accompanied Arinok’s awakening. He looked around. It was an unfamiliar place. It seemed as if he was in a cave and he was placed before two judges. They were odd looking. One was round and bald and had thick eye brows. The other was a midget wearing a red suit. They were seated behind a huge oblong-shaped table on two steel chairs that didn’t seem to belong to any kingdom he knew. They were chattering and discussing, writing and flipping through pieces of papers.
“I see that our inmate is alert, “said the round one. “I am Wendoo, the guardian of the gates of Hell.”
“I am Lowdoo, the keeper of the gates of Hell.” The midget’s voice sounded like a mousy teenage boy.
“What? What hell?”
“To make things simple for you, Arinok son of Palinogg, you died,” Wendoo replied twitching his eyebrow.
“Oh! Don’t believe him. You are technically not dead yet that’s why you can’t enter Hell and are held at the gates. Some foolish humans are trying to revive you. So you have a seventy …”
“A seventy percent chance of making Hell your new home,” Wendoo interrupted.
Arinok sat up and examined where he was. He pinched himself and tried to recall what happened. He knew the misfits came by for revenge and he was brought to the river side and drowned.
“Why am I in hell? Shouldn’t I be in heaven?”
Wendoo and Lowdoo gasped and laughed so loud that Lowdoo nearly fell of his chair. “Well, there is a quota. And you didn’t get in. So welcome to Hell.”
“No! There must be a mistake. How can that be? I didn’t harm anyone and I was a peaceful king. I was kind and caring and I loved my wife. I was loyal to her. I looked after my son, my people and my state. I was a good man. I am a holy man.”
Lowdoo was busy scribbling down Arinok’s confession while Wendoo explained to Arinok. “That my friend is your greatest sins. From our records, you didn’t do anything for others. You only did things for yourself. You were selfish. You merely wanted to look “good”. Be a good king, love everyone, no war. But when your state is attacked, you allowed your soldiers to die for you while you pray and pray and pray out of fear! By the way, we love it when you do that. It is our favourite dessert.”
“King Arinok’s prayers. Delicious!” Lowdoo chipped in while his pen was still jotting down notes.
“So you are guilty as charged. You failed to carry out your duties as a king. If you don’t get it by now, there is a reason why you were born a king. I know, don’t tell me. You wanted to be like Baddhu and Sejus. They are great souls. Even from the depths of hell we respect them although they are not my cup of tea. They are just too nice. The problem with you Arinok son of Palinogg is that you copied the steps of the Baddhu without understanding what in heaven he was teaching. Not that I do or else I won’t be here.” Wendoo threw his head back and snickered.
“That was supposed to be funny, by the way…now where was I? Yes! You basically wanted to preserve your ideology of peace at the expense of your people who sincerely looked up to for protection.”
“How could I have taken the life of another human? That is the work of devils, like you!”
Lowdoo stopped writing, jumped down from his chair and walked toward Arinok. He was serious, almost menacing. “Look here King Arinok!” He inched closer. “You didn’t take the life of a man with your hands but your cowardice and selfish intentions allowed half the people of your nation to die in vain. You allowed an enemy soldier to slash down your maids because you couldn’t kill that bloke. Haven’t you heard, be in battle at times of war, be in peace at times of peace but have the brains to know the difference. Although in Hell we are constantly at war so you don’t need your brains!”
“But Baddhu said that…” Arinok stammered.
“But…but…but…you are not Baddhu, so quit pretending to be him,” Wendoo exclaimed. “And remember Baddhu said don’t follow his foot steps blindly. Test, learn and decide for yourself. You are your own Baddhu. Why am I telling you things about the Baddhu? I can’t believe this. I need to re-wire my head.”
“The point is you are guilty and you shall be punished,” said Lowdoo grinning from ear to ear.
Arinok started to cough. Wendoo and Lowdoo looked at each other. They panicked. He felt as if his entire head was tied in ropes and that he was being pulled up. There was an immense shot of electricity running through that caused him to scream and squirm. He lost consciousness.
Sunlight permeated all over him and recharged Arinok’s drenched body. He heard the murmurs of people around him and someone was shaking him gently. He opened his eyes, sat up slowly and released out a big pool of water. He was catching his breath as a heavily built man slapped his back to allow him to vomit out more liquid.
“Ah! He is alive,” a woman said.
Arinok calmly entered the capital of Kidan. He climbed up to the tallest tower with a bucket of water. He cleaned himself and cut his long entangled hair. He looked down at the busy streets and saw that the Rajashans were getting along well with the Kidans. Children were giggling and playing. The people were happy. He gazed upon heaven a place he knew his prayers didn’t reach. With that he summoned his people for the final time.
“My dear Kidans. This is your king. No, the one who used to be your king is hoping to speak to you.” Everyone stopped what they were doing. Parents commanded for their child to be quiet. They arched their necks and glared at Arinok.
“This is Arinok son of Palinogg. My father was a great king. He brought peace to you where I failed. My father was a brave warrior while I was weak, hiding behind the strength of my soldiers, which should be honoured and held in high esteem. When I ran from my responsibility, you fought and sacrificed yourself. I owe you everything but my life is worthless for I have not done anything for Kidan. My speech of peace was meaningless as it is obscured by the wind…”
Underneath a tree, Wendoo and Lowdoo were watching the Kidans. “It is very touching. So do we get Arinok again?” Wendoo asked.
Lowdoo opened his books and shook his head. “No. It is unfortunate. He is going to heaven.”
“Why? Because of his great suicide speech?” Wendoo raised his voice.
“Our quota is full. There are way too many human dramas. Arinok’s is excusable.”
“That’s a shame. I was having so much of fun with him.”
The crowd muttered as Arinok dived head down into the main city square. Wendoo and Lowdoo were anticipating an out roar.
Someone shouted, “Hail King Arinok! He is the true man of peace!” And very naturally everyone said the same thing in unison. Their voices echoed as Wendoo and Lowdoo shudder in disgust.
“Don’t worry, brother. The will remember Arinok as the man of love and pillar of peace. They will erect a statue right when he died. And schools will be set up because he is a martyr. He died in the name of peace, his philosophy will be taught and man will go to war again to prove his interpretation is correct and the others are wrong. Either way, our quota will always be full which means there will be more work for me!” Lowdoo lamented.
“More work for me too! But I don’t mind losing some weight,” said Wendoo squeezing his bloated stomach.
Arinok’s remains were covered with the nation’s flag. Tunggul knelt beside him and wept. The citizens of Kidan paid their respect. The priest was thinking of canonizing Arinok remembering him as the man of love and pillar of peace.
Long live King Arinok!
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