Week 13 Storytelling: Charmed

Part 1: The Warlord, A Charm Thief

In the Warlord's deep abyss, he sits indulging in the smell of fear that is radiating from both the heavenly and earthly creatures confined to his devilish kingdom. The rocks begin to tremble and the screams begin. The Warlord lets out a booming, maniacal laugh as lightning strikes and thunder claps. "I'm going to enjoy this for the millionth time...he says. He will enjoy my sacrifices." The rocks from the abyss begin to rain down harder. In  the pit, the stones pouring from the dark sky are knocking gods, goddesses, and other brahmins unconscious or in a fog to be devoured.

Then come more blood curdling screams as the stones became hot and more forceful.

"And you all think this is the bad part," says the Warlord.

As soon as he finishes his statement, tendrils of darkness begin seeping through the thick walls that confine them. The jet black, sticky tendrils latch on to the golden skin of each divine creature and begins tearing the flesh from their bones. The ripping sound is music to the Warlord's ears. He waves his hands as though he is directing a symphony.

Every which way he flings his fingers and flicks his wrist, the tendrils follow. The tendrils dart across the room up, down, and around with the quickness of a snake.

One goddess who is barely holding on to her consciousness and on the brink of insanity screeches out,"What has led you to bring us such despair and torture? You were once merciful. What sinister spirit has possessed you to wreak havoc upon the divine and earthly people?"

"Interrogate me? You will not. You won't even stay alive long enough for me to finish my explanation."

Immediately, with just a nonchalant straightening of the finger, the Warlord snaps her neck.

"I have more important matters to be focusing my energies on," says the Warlord.

With that thought on his mind, the Warlord draws his tendrils into a swirling portal in front of him. The dark clouds from the whirlpool manifests into an image of Shala's bedroom; however, there is no trace of Shala or the little trinket on her desk. The image then flashes to the desk at her internship, still no Shala.

The Warlord grimaces.

Woman Warrior Going into Battle

Part 2: Charmed

Shala stares out over the fluffy land preparing herself for battle. She looks down and secures her last layer of mail in place while making sure there are no areas open to penetration. The glimmer of the sun beaming through the windows makes her armor shine  like the hero she will soon be. 

From the shadows of the bookcase steps the female rakshasa."I have given you your time of meditation and research."

"How was I able to go through all of these books on the shelves so quickly? There has to be thousands?" exclaimed Shala.

"The rakshasi blood and power is within you. The magic that you possess allows the pages to diffuse right into you. Tarry no longer about what you've learned, but instead, think how you will utilize all that you know in combat." 

"Okay," Shala breathed. "Wait! How do I find him?"

"Think of those things which are in your mind and in your heart, so shall it be," whispered the female rakshasa. 

Shala thinks about defeating the Warlord in a dark scary place. 

She opens her eyes.

There, in front of millions of dead bodies, stands the Warlord.

Their gazes meet. Both pupils turn to slits and the battle begins.

Author's Note: 

This story concludes the "trilogy" and sort of series that I created since the posting of my first portfolio story. I developed all of my other stories to lead to this point. This is both the resolution and climax of Shala's "coming of age" and transition into a rakshasa warrior. I wanted this story to include both information about the Warlord and Shala's battle for the restoration of the balance between good and evil. In the previous stories More Than A Charm and My Life as a Charm, I mentioned the evil doings of the Warlord, but I never explained to the reader his role outside of being the antagonist. I thought that I wanted to illustrate a bloody battle scene, but I felt that it would make the story too long and drag on. I may include this aspect in revisions. Furthermore, this final story was influenced by the The History of Visvamitra and The Slayer of Kangsa. Visvamitra was a king whose rise and fall came from greed and an idle mind. Also, Shala, in this specific storytelling, represents the slayer of Kangsa. I really wanted to incorporate both stories without being overly collateral to the original passages. My goal was to make the incorporation of both stories smooth, which is why I decided to do a chapter/part I and part II format.

Bibliography:

Indian Story Book 

Sacred Tales of India. 

More Than A Charm