Never Ending Demands

      

A long time ago, there was a town in the lap of the enormous mountains and across the river, called Igara. In this town, a very beautiful girl lived, Myra. She always wore a white long frock waggling inches down to her knee when she whirled herself. Her long golden curly hair made her look like a princess. She was too pretty that every boy in the town got easily fell for her. And apparently, they should have to. As she was the epitome of beauty. But her only inclination was to search for a better person. A person who take care of her, look after her all desires, chant for her beauty and shall never order her for anything.

Whenever she goes to the market, she always sings a song:

 

“I am a fairy angel,

Where is my lucky prince?

He could take me to his castle.

He shouldn’t be on a whim,

So I can go with him.”

Several men out there have answered her, “I am the one. I am the one.”

She gazed at one of them and asked,

“If you are my one and only,

Can you do for me things easily?”

“Yes I can.” said one man.

Beautiful Myra thought for awhile and said in a dear voice,

                        “I love the birds of how they fly, over the sky.

                         I love the fish of how they swim, but never come to the brim.

I’d like to see you fly. I’d like to see you swim.”

 

Abruptly, one man climbed a tower and jumped down from it. He didn’t fly rather he did broke his legs. Another man jumped into the river but he didn’t know how to swim and the river flew him away. Myra looked at the others and added further,

 

“My appetite has gone. My throat has drained.

I covet for someone. Where can I see my love?”

“I can see it in your eyes.” said the one.

“But I’ve never seen you before.”

“I can see it in your smile.” said the second man.

“I’ve never seen you as well.” Myra reverted again.

Myra denied their proposals because they failed to please her. And then she asked them a last question,

“Can you fight with Khalis for me? Can you defeat him?”

They all stepped back in fear and no one dared to answer her. In fact, no one wanted to fight with Khalis. In that town, a deleterious man has lived, named Khalis. He was devil by nature and showed no mercy to anyone�"whether it would a child or an animal. No one in that town has got any gut to protest him. Khalis was heavily drowned at the beauty of Myra and wanted to make her his spouse.

She winced at all of them and just said, “You really can’t.”

* * * * *

A boy from the other town came to Igara one day to find out someone that he hasn’t found in his own town. His name was Arav. He was a coherent, good-looking and an adorable young boy. His only wish was to meet the girl of his dream. A girl whom he could love to the end of his life, whom he could hold her hand for eternal and whom he could live with until his last breath.

            “I’ll never let her go. As I’ll devote myself so.” Arav said most of the time.

                        “When shall I meet my love?

                         Sing the song and look above.

                         And that I could feel for her,

Relish her lips and odour her scent.

So I could hold her hand,

                        Would write her name in the sand.”

Arav encountered Myra across the market. His eyes got wide. He left out of words. He stopped still to look at her more and thought in his mind, ‘The sweetness has gone from my life. I cried, I cried I cried a lot. I’ve been crying every day. I see myself in the mirror. I find myself all alone. I need to be with someone else. I need someone. I need one. Then I saw you and it came to my life. I can see glimpses running in my brain. I can feel the blood in my veins.’

Myra gauged at the face of the strange boy. Found him graceful and said,

                        “O, stranger! You are new here.

                        Doesn’t looked fear. Tell me clear.”

Arav bent on his knee to respect her and said calmly,

                        “No matter how far I live or you’ve never seen me before.

                        But my heart does beat for you. There is nothing I can’t do.

                        Something is peculiar within us. Our love will never be less.”

Myra showed interest on him and on his candy words,

                        “Why have your eyes got wet?

                        There is no special how we met.

                        It seems you’ve cried a lot.

                        Is that all that you got?”

The boy said further, “I am not crying that I have a pain. I am not crying cause I don’t have anything. I am crying because I can’t find anyone who could hold my hand and stay by my side, every time�"in the moment of sorrow, in the moment of pain, in the moment of joy and in the moment of delight.”

“And you think that would be me?”

“I wish to feel the touch of your hands in my hand. I can do anything for you.” Arav said desperately.

“No you can’t.” said Myra.

“Yes, I can.”

The girl stepped back, looked above and said,

                        “I’ve seen the stars,

                        Those who brightened the sky,

                        Numbers in multiply, looked shy.

                        Could you bring that one for me?

                        And for so, your love I can’t deny.”

 

Boy said without moving his eyes from hers,

“My love, at night or at day,

                         I can still see the stars,

 Glittering in your eyes.

                        How can I bring those stars?

That sparks less than of your eyes.”

Myra looked satisfied a little. She raised her hand to point at the mountains,

                        “I’ve never gone too far.

There is lots of white snow, I know.

Could you bring me some of those?

Only that you can get my love.

Boy said,

                        “My love, you don’t need any of them.

                        Cause you’ve everything rather than some.

                        White snow does fade but your beauty stay.

Don’t have a problem to bring that one.

Easy for me to get this done.”

                       

She blushed. She flattered. She came close to the boy, held his hand and kissed on them. Myra has started liking the boy gradually. She told him about Khalis. Was he capable enough to protect her from that giant savage man? “If you do so�"only that you can get my love.” said she.

“I can fight to the whole world for you, my love.” said the boy.

“THEN SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT, LITTLE BOY!” Khalis hollered from the back.

Arav drew his sword out after seeing the big and sharp sword of Khalis. But it was not enough to scare Arav. He ran towards the giant and shielded himself from his abrupt attack. Arav was lucky that he hasn’t touched by the intense edges of his sword. One thing that Arav noticed in the little time that Khalis was poor at running but quiver into waving the sword. He took advantages to attack Khalis’s legs. One right move and cut Khalis to bleed. Arav’s attack was so deep that he cried in pain. Like a mad bull, Khalis again ran towards Arav but this time, he did care for his legs and Arav did cleverly saved himself again. Arav was the born fighter and he belonged to the prestigious family who perfectly skilled themselves at the very young age of six. So he knew what, when and how to attack. As when Khalis was near him Arav jumped and collected his all energy at the end of his right hand where he held his sword. And in an instant, he gave a big scar in Khalis’s throat and all his blood poured down in a minute. He was dead. Khalis was defeated.

“You are my lucky one and I choose you to be my one and only.” Myra was that much happy that she had not been in her life before. She embraced Arav and filled his face with uncountable kisses. No one in this town has ever dared to say a word to Khalis, and at the first attempt of meeting with him, Arav has done it with no shades of fear on his forehead. He promised to stay by her side in every moment and will never let her parted.

* * * * *

Arav did accomplish Myra’s each demands, each wishes with no further inquiring. He loved Myra no one in the world has ever loved. And he was so lost to fulfil her wishes that made him unaware of the situation that could be horrible. And it was. On one evening, over the ground, they lay down in the shadow of a big tree and Myra teases him in a gentle way.

“If somehow I asked you that I haven’t seen a heart, I’ve never felt how it beats�"do you bother for me to bring it?” she said.

“Anything you ask, my love,” he said and pulled her hand to touch his chest. “Now you feel it.”

“If I say I want to see a real heart. Can you do it for me?”

Arav waved an enigmatic smile to her and went back to the tree. He fished a small knife from his pocket and directly stabbed right into his chest. The pain was too severe that made him to nearly cry, but he didn’t want to disturb his love and with one hand he closed his mouth and with the other hand he sliced the flesh of his chest wide. He then inserted his some fingers inside his chest and forcefully dragged out his heart. It was voraciously surfaced with blood all over. His hand, his body and his cloth totally bathed in red colour. That was blood. A real blood. And a real heart. Arav stood still and his heart was thumping widely in his hand. Some nerves of the heart were still attached to his inner body. Arav again proved that he has a blood of true warriors. He uttered thrice the name of his love Myra and when she came back to the tree, he advanced his hand having his heart on to it and said the last time merrily, “Anything for you, my love.”

Myra looks at the heart in amazement for awhile, then throws it to the ground in disgust and then sings her song while walking,

“I am a fairy angel,

Where is my lucky prince?

He could take me to his castle.

He shouldn’t be on a whim,

So I can go with him.”

* * * * *

 - C.K. Dhyani