Scimitars overflowing with dark energy glinted in the light emitted by the translucent array protecting the monastery. The demon army had scaled the cliff and tried to wear the array down with repeated attacks.
The sound of the scimitars attacking the array filled the air and it drummed in the library. Vrishaketu looked at the collapsed young man before him, and his eyes were filled with compassion.
The thought of death must be terrifying, he thought.
He gently bent down to pick up the young man by the shoulder.
“Pull yourself together, Aparajita,” said Vrishaketu, his voice gentle but firm, “now is the time to act. Take a moment, compose yourself and gather everyone into the main hall.”
“Yes, Venerable One,” said Aparajita, his master’s voice sobered him up and brought him back to reality. He took a deep breath and left. Vrishaketu looked at the mural one last time before leaving for the main hall.
—
The monk had gathered in the large main meditation hall, they occupied their respective seats as they do when they sit in their collective cultivation sessions. Vriskaketu stood to address them and Aparajita was standing by his side.
“Dear brothers,” said Vrishaketu. “We have a catastrophe waiting at our doorsteps. Raktabija has returned to invade the Bhu-loka once again. His army of rakshasas are trying to enter the monastery as we speak. The spiritual array is the only barrier between us. If we pour our spiritual energies, we stand a chance to hold them for longer.”
“Raktabija!” uttered an old monk in shock. “How is that possible? He has been defeated centuries back!”
“He has returned,” said Vrishaketu.
The monks broke into murmurs amongst themselves.
“This is bad,” some monk said. “Raktabija nearly destroyed the monastery centuries ago. It was only due to the intervention of the gods, we were saved.”
“They would come to our aid, surely,” some other monk said.
“Quiet brothers,” said Vrishaketu with a gentle tone. Everyone became silent at once.
“The gods won’t be coming to save us,” he said.
Some monks gave a collective gasp, while others remained serene.
“Why would the gods abandon us,” some asked aloud.
“It’s not that the gods abandon us,” said Vrishaketu. “The barrier between the worlds is sealed. They cannot descend from Swarga-loka at the moment.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
“The gods can’t descend?” They repeated. “The gods can’t descend? Is that even possible?”
“How long can we hold them, Venerable One?” asked one of the younger monks.
“Hmm,” said Vrishaketu. “A few hours at best.”
“What happens after that, Venerable One?” asked another monk.
Vrishaketu was silent for a moment.
“I will be brutally honest,” said Vrishaketu. “The demon lord and his army can overtake us once our spiritual array is breached.”
“What’s the point of fighting then, Venerable One?” asked younger monk.
“Do we give up without resistance then?” asked Vrishaketu.
“If the end outcome is the same,” said the younger monk. “Why not, Venerable One?”
Vrishaketu looked at them with serene eyes.
“How many of you are of this opinion?” asked Vrishaketu.
Some of the monks raised their hands silently.
“I will give you brothers a chance to think about this issue for some time,” said Vrishaketu.
He went to the wall behind him and pressed a hidden lever that opened a secret door.
“This secret door leads to a long tunnel that ends at the bottom of the cliff on the other side, the demon army won’t be able to reach it at least for some time, you have a chance to survive on your own. All of you, this option is before you, anyone who wants to leave may leave now, the rest whoever wishes to stay please focus your spiritual energies on reinforcing the array.”
“Make a decision quickly,” said Vrishaketu and he sat in cross-legged position.
For a few moments, none of the monks moved but slowly a few of the younger monks and some of the older monks got up. One after the other, they bowed to Vrishaketu and left through the tunnel.
“Cowards,” muttered Aparajita under his breath.
“We do not judge,” said Vrishaketu.
“My apologies, Venerable One,” said Aparajita biting his tongue and recalling how he had reacted earlier.
The sitting monks along with Vrishaketu and Aparajita began their chants and raised their right hand into a mudra that channelled their spiritual energies into the spiritual array outside. The array began to glow with the newly infused spiritual energy and grew stronger.
—
Raktabija, floating in the air to have a vantage point of the monastery, narrowed his eyes, looking at the reinforced spiritual array.
“They think this measly array is going to stop us?” he said. “Why is it taking time, Chaaya?”
Chaayasura, the demon of darkness, was a high-ranking general in the demon lord’s army. He was an expert in manoeuvring dark energy.
“All of the monks are using their spiritual energy to reinforce the array,” Chaayasura said. “While it may make the array invincible for a short while, the intensity of the reinforcement will reduce quickly, my lord. It’s just a matter of short time before we take them.”
—
Inside the dark tunnel, the monks who had started walking their way towards the bottom of the cliff, lighting the way with spiritual orbs formed from their spiritual energy.
“Brother,” one monk pulled the robes of his neighbour. “I feel guilty as if I’ve forsaken my duty.”
“We are guilty,” replied the neighbour. “We want to survive. It’s a choice we’ve made.”
—
The array surrounding the monastery began to dim under the relentless onslaught of the demon army. They scimitars attacking the array spreading the dark energy that is devouring the spiritual energy and slowly overpowering it.
The monks inside the main hall kept chanting and channelling their spiritual energy into the array without any break. Some broke out in cold sweat as spiritual energy started to get sucked out of them to maintain the array.
—
Raktabija closely monitored from his vantage point in the sky as the dark energy began to close over the spiritual array. His eyes gleamed with a devilish glare. But just as the dark energy was about to completely take over the array, the spiritual array grew stronger once more and started to evade the dark energy.
—
Inside the main hall, the monks had returned from the tunnel.
“We understand now, Venerable One,” one of the monk’s who returned said taking his seat. “We fight because that’s the duty of the spiritual master, to stand against oppressing evil force. Whether we win or lose, it is of no consequence, to fight is the only thing that matters. That is the way.”