Abar turned around to see a beautiful lady carrying a strange weapon. He instantly recognized her face. She was Celina the Wizard of the dark forest. Abar bowed down to the lady and thanked her for saving his life.
"What are you doing here Abar?" Celina inquired. "My lady, I am here on a quest," he replied to her without revealing his real intentions. "Another Quest, ha! Your King will never rest till he burns down every single village in this Kingdom. Tell me, Abar, why do you follow such an evil man? An honorable man such as you should know better."
"Evil or not he is my King. I have followed him this far and I shall not abandon him now. Once Riley conquers the whole world I shall return to my family and serve him no more. I shall honor my promise that I made to him when he took me into his service when everyone else had abandoned me."
Celina knew that King Riley had taken care of Abar as his own brother. So, it was natural that Abar felt indebted to his King.
"My lady, thanks for saving my life. I must take your leave now," saying this Abar mounted his horse. "Wait, Abar. I know where you are headed. I saw some of your men cross the Dark Forest a few days back. They were heading towards the Mystery Land. But, I saw none of them return back. I have no doubt that Riley has sent you here to scout for him," Celina stopped him.
Abar just looked at her and admired her ability to read his mind.
"Beware Abar. You have no idea what you are dealing with," she cautioned him.
"I do not fear death, my lady," Abar remarked. Celina sighed. She knew it was impossible to convince Abar.
"Take this weapon with you, it will keep you safe. Your sword will be of no good against these people," saying this she handed him her weapon. Abar looked at the strange weapon in wonder. It was a small white pipe the size of his hand and a red light was glowing inside it. There were green and red circles on the side of this pipe. Had Abar not seen the power of the weapon with his own eyes he would have passed it off as an ordinary toy.
"I got this weapon from these mysterious people. They come to the Dark forest for hunting sometimes. One of their men was mauled to death by the Lions and I found this weapon by his side," Celina explained how she came into the possession of this powerful weapon.
Abar accepted the weapon from Celina and stared at in amazement. He was surprised to find how light the weapon was.
"Abar, promise me that you will not use it on mortal men and use it only to defend yourself," Celina said holding her hand to her heart. "You have my word lady Celina," Abar promised her holding his hand to his heart.
Celina showed him how to use the weapon. "You need to press the green circle first. It opens a crystal where you can see everything around you. You need to select all the things you need to fire upon by placing your finger on the crystal. When you are done, you need to press the red circle. It took me about a year to learn how to use this weapon."
Abar wielded the weapon as instructed by Celina and fired at a nearby tree. The tree was cut in half as a red light escaped the weapon. Abar wondered how much destruction his King would cause if he came into possession of this powerful weapon. No doubt Celina looked so worried.
Abar took leave off Celina and headed to the Mystery Land. Celina looked grim as Abar disappeared out of sight. She loved Abar and hoped he would be fine.
#2: King Runal - The Elf King
Two Elves marched hurriedly into the court of the Elf King Runal. Their names were Shalan and Matas. They were the Elf spies. "We have some important information, my King," Matas addressed the Elf King. King Runal signaled all the elves to leave the court. All the Elves except his son Prince Yala and Princess Zena sat in the court. King Runal signaled his spies to deliver their message.
Matas who was the senior of the two spies spoke,"My King, a dark Wizard has raised a dead army. He plans on attacking King Riley very soon." Matas explained that the two Elves were crossing the countryside when they heard an enchantment in the ancient language of Shu fill the air. They got curious as to how a mortal man knew this language. They sneaked into the graveyard and hid behind the graves. They saw a young wizard spelling dark enchantments and raise dead spirits. They heard the spirits promised him to seek vengeance against the evil King.
As King Runal heard this detail from his spies a sinister smile crossed his face. He exchanged amused looks with his daughter and son and they all smiled at each other. It seemed like one of their plans was in motion.
#3: King Riley
King Riley used the cover of darkness and slipped quietly out of his palace. He mounted his horse and headed to the Golden mountains. At one time it was the main source of the Gold in the kingdom. But, now the mining had been stopped as all the Gold had been mined out. King Riley had used the abandoned mines to build a Prison. This deep underground Prison was used to keep the most dangerous prisoners. Only a few trusted soldiers knew of this Prison.
King Riley got off his horse and tied it to a post. He entered the lift chamber which was guarded by two fearsome ax-wielding soldiers. The soldiers bowed down to their King and hailed,"Victory my Lord." The King raised his thumb and ordered,"Take me down to the prison." One soldier entered the Lift Chamber and pressed the lever down. The lift creaked as it slowly started its descent into the deep mine. The mine was very deep and dark. The lift took a long time to reach the bottom of the mine. As the lift touched the ground, King Riley jumped out of the lift and ordered his soldier to wait for him.
The King pulled out a torch hanging on the wall. He ducked and made his way to the prison chamber. He soon reached the prison and brought the torch in front of him to see the prisoner inside the dark cell. An old man saw the light and covered his face. "Is that you Riley?" he croaked. "Yes Father," King Riley replied. "I am here to seek your help."
#4: Sam
Sam knew that the dead spirits he had raised were not enough to destroy Riley. He knew very well that Riley had powerful Wizards and Elves at his service. He needed more help. Sam sent his spirits far and wide in the Kingdom to find out if there were others who were willing to help him. A spirit named Hawa returned to him and told him that there was a powerful Wizard in the Dark Forest who despised the King as much as him.
"You must seek her help," Hawa advised Sam. Sam took Hawa's advice and at once prepared to ride to the Wizard to seek her help in destroying Riley.
King Riley was a ruthless ruler. He ruled over the vast country of Titania with an iron hand. He was always looking to expand his kingdom and crush the neighboring states. He didn't believe in having any allies. He thought he was more powerful than any other ruler so there was no point in maintaining a truce with anyone. He wanted to conquer the whole world. And, conquer he did. For he killed millions of people and enslaved the remaining people. There was no one who could stop him or so he thought.
Sam Wrily was a simple farmer in Titania. But, he had a truly exceptional gift. He could communicate with the Spirit World. His father had passed him this family secret before dying. Sam had concealed his gift from everyone for fear that the people might hang him for practicing witchcraft. So, he communicated with the spirits only at night when everyone else was asleep. Unfortunately, Sam had been a victim of King Riley's atrocities as well. Riley's soldiers had forcibly carried off his beautiful sister Sheila. A few days later, he had found her abandoned body near the river bank. They had cut her like a pig and murdered her brutally. Sam had sworn to take vengeance on Riley and his men. He had promised that he would not die until he had reduced Riley and his men to ashes. To fulfill his promise, he started communicating with the Spirit realm to seek their help in this endeavor.
One night when everyone was sleeping, Sam went to the graveyard to practice a dark magic. He chanted several mystical spells and after some time, dark shadows started rising out of all the graves. Sam had called upon every single spirit in the graveyard to help him. Many of the people had died because of Riley and his men. And, now the spirit of these dead men vowed to help Sam. Sam was rising an army of dead men to kill King Riley and his men.
King Riley was a man of a great physical stature. He was seven foot tall and had arms the size of tree trunks. He was a gifted swordsman, archer, and horseman. He was an expert war tactician and had knowledge of every single weapon on the planet. But, his main source of power was his magical scepter. He had made friends with some wicked Elves and had given them gold and some land to live in. In return, their evil Elf King Runal had given him a magical scepter as a gift. The magical scepter made him invisible to his enemies. King Riley had to chant a secret spell while holding the scepter to vanish. King Riley had slain many of his enemies by becoming Invisible. King Riley had kept this knowledge a secret from all mortal men. Only the evil elves knew of his secret power.
King Riley looked at the world map to plan his next siege. He saw that there was only one small kingdom in the continent left to be conquered. The name of this kingdom was The Mystery Land. It was named as Mystery Land because no person had ever set foot in this kingdom. If ever someone had ventured into this land they had never returned back to tell the tale. King Riley wondered what should be his approach in conquering this mysterious kingdom. He had sent a few messengers and scouts to this kingdom to make the King surrender. But, none of them had returned back. The king decided to send a few spies to this land to gather more information before he invaded it. He wanted to know what was in store for him before he attacked the enemy with full force.
King Riley called upon his most trusted lieutenant Abar and asked him to bring information about the Mystery Land. Abar was a decorated soldier. He had single-handedly decimated many enemy regiments. He was devoted to his King and was prepared to die for him. Abar did not favor the atrocities committed by his King, but he had vowed to fulfill his king's dream to conquer the whole world. So, he promised his King that he would not return alive without getting information about the enemy. Abar mounted his horse Swift and raced out of the King's Palace at top speed.
Abar was crossing the Dark forest to reach the Mystery Land when he was suddenly attacked by a pack of wolves. A huge gray wolf jumped on him and he fell off his horse. He drew his sword to defend himself when suddenly a white light flashed in front of him blinding his eyes. When he opened his eyes, all the wolves lay dead around him.
Do you believe in Coincidences? The dictionary meaning of coincidentally is "in a way that results from chance despite being very unlikely." In my opinion Coincidences are nothing short of miracles. I am about to tell you a story which may make you start believing in coincidences.
My name is Rosa Angulo. I work in a Multi-National Company in California. One evening, my boss Lucy Meyers called me to her cabin. She said that the company had some urgent client meeting next week in India and I had to fly to the Bangalore office that weekend. I was excited with the opportunity to travel to India. I hurriedly packed my travel bags and made my travel list. Visiting Taj Mahal and the Mysore Palace was on the top of my travel list.
I reached Bangalore on Sunday evening. My company had booked a Hotel for me which was at a walking distance from my office. But, my company was about thirty miles away from the International Airport. My friends who had visited Bangalore before had warned me that the traffic in the city was horrible. To make matters worse, it had been raining continuously for the last several days. The state of the roads was in a really bad shape. I hailed a cab from the Airport to take me to my Hotel.
My cab driver was a guy called Ganesh. He was a friendly guy and liked to chat a lot. Although I was tired from my long journey I replied to his questions courteously. During my long journey of three hours, he asked me from which country I was? He asked me about my work and also about my family. I had been told by my friends that Indian people like to ask personal questions as a matter of culture and had asked me not to feel offended.
At one point in our conversation, he said he had a young friend who was also from the US. He told me that his friend was around sixteen years of age and he spoke fluently in the local language Kannada. At first, I thought that the young boy must have been around in the city for a long with his parents. But, I was surprised when the driver told me that the boy was all alone. He said the boy did not have any parents. He said that many years ago, the boy's father had deserted his mother and the boy who was just two years old at the time and had never returned back. Being an American, this seemed like an all too familiar story to me. How many mothers had to raise their children all alone? I felt really sorry for the young boy. The driver said that the boy's mother had passed away a few years back owing to tuberculosis. Now, the boy worked as a car mechanic in a Garage.
Ganesh kept me engaged in conversation for the next three hours and finally I reached my Hotel. I thanked him and gave him a good tip. He gave me his card and asked me to call him if I ever wanted to go out for shopping or to some other tourist place. I promised him that I would call him and accepted his card. I went to the Hotel and completed all the check-in formalities. I was very tired and went straight to sleep.
The next day, I had a successful client meeting and was able to close out the deal. My boss was pleased with my work and promised to give me a good raise that year. I was over the top of the world. To celebrate my success, I decided to visit the Taj before leaving India. So, I packed my bags and took the next flight to Delhi. From Delhi, I took the express train to Agra. The train was mostly occupied with various foreign nationals. The seat next to mine was occupied by a middle-aged man who seemed to be in his late 50's. He was a white man with a bald head, no beard, and thick grey mustaches. He took deep breaths in between his words which made me think that has was asthmatic.
The man introduced himself as Bob. Bob asked me if this was my first visit to the Taj. I said, "Yes". "It is a beautiful place. I visit it every year," he replied. We then talked casually and he said, “You know Rosa, I have been coming to India for the last ten years. I am searching for my lost wife and son. I have been looking for them all over India for the last ten years."
Bob said that many years back he had come to India on a business trip. He wanted to import Indian Tea leaves and start a new business in the US by manufacturing Tea. He had come to the trip with his wife Mary and a two-year-old son. One evening, he received a call from his business partner that there was some legal hurdle in procuring the tea factory license and his signature would be needed in person. Bob had invested a lot of money into this venture. So, he asked his wife to stay in the hotel for a few days till he returned. He said that he did not have enough money to pay for the flight tickets for all of them so he asked her to stay in the Hotel and promised that he would return to her within a week's time.
Bob took a flight to the US with a transit from Dubai. During the flight transit, his luggage got mixed up with someone else and he was detained by the Customs officials. The customs officials held him for smuggling narcotics which is a very serious felony in Dubai. Bob pleaded with them to let him go and told that there was a mistake. But, he was arrested and put into prison. He was kept in the Prison for four years and was finally released when the real smuggler was caught. During this time, Bob was not able to contact his wife or son. He wrote letters to the hotel where he had left his wife and son during his Prison stay but none of the letters were answered back.
Once Bob was released, he rushed back to India in search of his wife and son. The hotel people told him that his wife had left a couple of weeks after he had left them as she did not have enough money left to pay them. Bob had left his wife in Delhi. So, he filed a missing complaint with the Delhi Police and also reported the matter to the US consulate. But, even after searching for several days he could not locate them.
So dejected, Bob finally returned to the US. He was shocked to learn that his business partner Alex had confiscated all his properties and Bank money to pay for the Tea factory. So, he filed a legal petition and got entangled in a bitter legal dispute which he finally won.
Bob kept returning to India every year to search for his missing wife and son and kept checking with the concerned authorities. When Bob had finished his sad story, I suddenly remembered my conversation with the cab driver in Bangalore. I told Bob about my conversation with the cab driver and his eyes lit up with hope. He begged me to share the cab driver's number. I shared it happily and even promised to accompany Bob to Bangalore.
The next day we went to Bangalore and I called up Ganesh. I told him that I would like to go out for shopping and that I was accompanied by a friend. When Ganesh came to the Hotel, I told him that I wished to see his American friend. He happily agreed. He took us to a car garage and pointed out to a tall slim lad who was working on the engine of a car. The boy had jet black hair and had grease all over his face and clothes. I looked at Bob. His old eyes were moist and I could see that his hands were shivering with nervousness. "Is that my son?” he whispered to me.
Ganesh called out to the boy," Tom, you have visitors." The boy looked up and smiled. "Hi, Ganesh says you wanted to see me," he said smiling. "Yes, we do," I told him and asked him to sit on a chair.
We then asked him about his mom and how he had come to be in Bangalore. He told that his father had deserted them when he was just two-years-old and never returned back. Not having any money, his mother was forced to work in a club as a dancer in Bangalore. He cried when he said that his mother had died a few years back and he was very angry at his father. Bob asked him the name of his mother. "Mary Stuggart," Tom replied. As he heard the name Bob bit his fingernails and let out a cry, “Oh God, Oh my God. I am sorry Mary. I am really sorry."
Tom was very shocked to hear this reaction from Bob. He asked us who really were. So, I narrated the whole story to Tom who was too dumbfounded to react. Finally, the father and the son hugged each other and cried. I cried too and so did Ganesh. I had just witnessed the greatest Coincidence of my life. Or should I call it a miracle?
Have you ever had that feeling while you were sleeping and you felt like you were falling? You are falling fast into a deep pit with no boundaries and no light. You are screaming for help but you can't even hear your own voice. You feel light. You feel helpless. And, just when you have given up all the struggle you fall hard and your head smashes with full force on the ground. This is about the time when you wake up. You check to see if your head is still in one piece. You look around and make sure everything is normal. In the end, you smile thinking that it was just a bad dream. I am sorry to tell you that you are wrong.
This is the story of a little boy called Olaf. Olaf was a lean, tall and strong boy of eight years. He worked in the farms with his Papa and two elder brothers. He had a little sister and an elder sister who stayed at the house with his Mamma. Olaf looked after the cattle and fed the chickens. He ran around the farm and helped his brothers with endless things. One evening, Olaf was returning home with his pet dog Jojo. Jojo loved to play with him. Olaf had a ball which he kept throwing so that Jojo could fetch it back to him. During their game, Olaf once threw the ball a long way. Jojo ran to fetch the ball. But, he did not return. Instead, Jojo started barking at something. Jojo was looking towards a big old Oak tree and barking. Olaf came to Jojo and looked around to see why he was barking. But he could not see anything. Jojo kept barking at the tree and did not move from his place.
Suddenly there was a big gush of wind and the Oak Tree started shaking menacingly. The little dog got scared badly and ran away back to the farm leaving little Olaf alone. An eerie sound was coming from inside the tree. Suddenly, three spirits emerged out of the tree and started to hover in circles over little Olaf's head. One of the spirits was wearing a bright red coat with big buttons. On its head, this spirit wore a big blue hat. The other spirit was completely white. The only thing Olaf was able to make out was its big head, small eyes, a little mouth and a big tail. The third spirit was a lady's spirit. She wore a black dress and a big black colored hat. Poor Olaf was scared to see all the ghosts and asked what they wanted of him.
The lady's spirit stopped circling around him and stood in front of him. The spirit was very tall and when she opened her mouth to speak Olaf could see her rotten golden colored teeth shining inside her big mouth. "Little boy, we are the spirits of this tree. You and your dog have disturbed our sleep. Now, you will have to pay up for it with your life", saying this she brought both her hands forward menacingly and took them to Olaf's neck to strangle and choke him to death. Olaf got really scared and screamed,"Spirit, I am really sorry. Please don't kill me. Tell me what I can do so you can spare my life?". The spirit laughed wickedly. It was as if she had been waiting to hear these words from the little boy.
"We have been caught on this tree since two hundred years, you will need to free us if you want us to spare your life." Olaf replied,"Tell me spirit, how can I do that?". The spirit smirked and replied, "You will need to find three other people who are ready to die and take our place on this tree. You have three days until the next full Moon to complete this task. If you fail to bring three people then we will come and take you with us." Saying this, the spirits started laughing and started circling around the little kid and finally disappeared again.
Little Olaf was scared and walked back home. He kept thinking where he would find three people who were ready to die for him. He was sad and was quiet during the dinner. His Mamma Jenny saw that her little boy was very quiet that day. After the dinner, Jenny called him aside and asked him what the matter was. Olaf never hid anything from his mother, so he told her the entire incident and how he had to find three people who were ready to die for him in three days time.
His Mamma listened to him and assured him,"Go to sleep, my little boy. Let me take care of this problem. Pretend nothing happened to you and do not tell about this incident to anyone else." Olaf promised his Mamma that he would keep this incident a secret and he would not tell his brothers, sisters or Father about this incident.
The next day Jenny got up early in the morning. She took a large Axe and headed straight to the tree Olaf had described to her. She took Jojo with her so that he could point out the right tree to her. Jojo accompanied her and as soon as they approached the tree he became scared and started whining with fear. So, Jenny told him to leave. Jojo ran back to the house. Jenny went straight to the Oak Tree and started chopping it with the large Axe. As soon as the first blow of the Axe landed on the Tree the spirits arose and let out an eerie cry. Any other person would have got scared and run away from the place. But, not Jenny. She was prepared to do anything to save her child. So, she kept chopping the Tree. The spirits of the Tree got very angry and attacked Jenny. Jenny was not scared and she kept chopping the Tree. Finally, the lady's Spirit requested her to stop. But, Jenny would not listen. So, the lady's spirit begged her,"Please don't chop this tree. If you cut this Tree we will never be freed from our curse. We would keep haunting people for eternity." Jenny stopped finally. She told her,"I'll stop. If you promise not to hurt my child." The lady's spirit told her that it was beyond her power to save the child. The deal Olaf had made to them was now approved by the Devil himself. So, Olaf had to keep his promise or else the Devil would come to take his soul.
Jenny asked her if there was no other way to save her child. So, the lady's spirit replied that if she agreed to take her place on the Tree then her child would be spared. Jenny agreed. The lady's spirit entered Jenny's body and Jenny's soul was now bound to the Tree. The lady's spirit was called Diana before she has become trapped in the Tree. Diana was very happy to get a new body after two hundred years. She headed to the farm to her new family.
Meanwhile, Jenny came to know about the other two spirits. One of the spirits was a French Naval Doctor called Abraham Petit. The other spirit was of an unborn child. The lady Diana was his wife. The Doctor had been hanged on the tree two hundred years back for murdering another man during a drunken brawl. Two days later his pregnant wife had hanged herself from the same tree. Jenny said that she was sorry for what had happened to them. Abraham told her that Diana had lied to her. She would kill Olaf and her husband on the full moon night so that he and his unborn child would also be freed from their curse. Jenny was very angry when she learned this. She tried to fly back to the farm. But, her spirit was caught in the branches of the tree. Invisible chains bound her to the Tree. She could not escape these chains. So, she wept for her child and husband.
When Diana returned home, Jojo saw her and immediately recognized that she was the evil spirit. But, when he saw the large Axe in her hand and saw that she was heading straight to him he realized that she was coming to kill him. So, he ran with top speed and disappeared. Diana was happy that no one could recognize her now. She prepared a great meal that night and came to know about everyone in the family. She waited for the full moon night two days later because her husband had been hanged on a full moon night. Their curse would be released only on the Full Moon night.
That night, when Olaf was sleeping he saw a dream. In the dream, he saw that he was standing in front of the Oak Tree. He saw his mother was trapped in the Tree and she was calling him for help. He climbed the tree to talk to his mother. His mother told him of what had happened to her and told him to go back. Suddenly, the other two spirits attacked him and he lost his balance and fell from the tree. As he fell he screamed. But, he could not hear his own voice. He fell with a big thud as his head smashed against the earth. The next instant, Olaf woke up from his dream. He turned around and saw that he was lying in his own bed. He went to his parent's room and saw that his mother was sleeping peacefully. He smiled thinking that it was just a bad dream. So, he went back to sleep.
The next day, Olaf was sad because he could not find Jojo anywhere. He searched for him everywhere. But, he could not find him. That night, Olaf saw the same dream again. This time he saw that Jojo was sitting near the tree. To his surprise, Jojo was speaking to him in human tongue. Jojo warned him that Diana had captured his mom's body deceitfully. He warned that tomorrow night she would kill him and his father. Before he could tell him any further. The other two spirits of the Tree attacked him and once again he fell down with full force from the tree and smashed his head. Once again, Olaf woke up in his bed drenched in his sweat. This time he was convinced that what he had seen was not a dream.
The next morning, he ran to the Oak Tree and saw Jojo sitting next to it. Jojo ran to him and licked him with great joy. Olaf understood that their lives were in danger. So, he called his mother's spirit for help. Jenny appeared from the Tree and told him,"My dear child. The wicked Diana will try to kill you and your father tonight. However, if you can find her grave and place a water lily on it before the night she and her family will be released from this curse. She will no longer trouble us and I will return to you. Go soon my child for we have very little time left."
Olaf ran back to his home. He went back to Diana and pretended that he did not the truth about her. After sometime Olaf noticed that Diana got up silently and started going out of the house. He followed her precariously keeping a good distance from her so that she could not see him following her. He saw that Diana went to an old abandoned French house. She disappeared in this house for some time. Olaf waited for her to return. After some time, he saw her coming out of the house wearing a blue hat and carrying a rattle. She was smiling and talking to herself. Suddenly, she burst into a loud laugh and started singing a lullaby in a hoarse voice. Olaf had never heard of this lullaby before. But, he was very scared seeing Diana singing the lullaby to herself. Olaf waited till she had gone out of sight. He then sneaked into the abandoned old house. As he walked into the house, the old wooden floor creaked beneath his feet and produced a blood-curdling sound. Olaf was scared. But, he had to save his parents. So he searched the house looking for some clues.
Olaf saw an old painting hanging on the wall of the bedroom. The painting showed Diana and her husband standing in front of their house. It seemed like their wedding painting. Diana was wearing a blue lily in her hair. Olaf searched the whole house but he could not find any clue where to find the grave. So, disappointed he came out of the house. As he opened the door, to his shock he found Diana standing outside. "Why you little brat, you thought you could sneak up on me," saying this she pounced on the little kid. Olaf ran back inside the house scared. He ran up to the first-floor bedroom and locked himself inside. Diana started banging the door violently. The scared child saw a window and an Oak Tree adjacent to it. So, he opened the glass window and climbed the nearest branch. Just then, Diana opened the door and burst into the room. When she saw Olaf climbing the Tree she went to the branch and shook it with full force. Olaf lost his balance and fell down.
As Olaf fell he remembered his dreams. But, he knew that now he was not dreaming and he was sure to die. So, he just gave up and closed his eyes. But, as he fell he landed straight into a pond. He swam to the top to see Water lilies growing all around him. He looked up to see Diana staring at him angrily and cursing. She disappeared from the window screaming loudly. He knew she was coming to get him. He jumped out of the pond and plucked a water lily. Olaf ran and turned behind to see Diana running behind him. As he ran, he heard the bell of an old church. He had never before come to this part of the village and did not know if any church existed there.
Olaf ran with all his energy towards the church. He was surprised to find the church abandoned. He wondered who had rung the church's bell. He suddenly heard his mother's voice,"The grave is in the church's backyard. Hurry my child." Olaf ran towards the door but he saw that Diana was blocking it. He ran towards her hoping he could slip below her. But, Diana flung her arm towards him to catch him. Just then, Jojo appeared out of nowhere and flung at her and bit her hand. She writhed in pain and started cursing loudly. She attacked Jojo and tried to throw him down. Meanwhile, little Olaf ran out and searched for the graves. In the backyard of the church, he saw a graveyard. He searched frantically for Diana's grave. He finally found her grave in a corner. Just then, Diana emerged out and ran towards him with great menace. Olaf placed the water lily on the grave. Just as he did this, he heard a loud scream from Diana,"No." She fell down and he saw a dark spirit leaving his mother's body.
He ran to his mother. Jojo came and licked her face. Soon, Jenny regained her consciousness. She was very happy to see that her son was alright. She said that Diana would never trouble her family again. The next day, Jenny accompanied her husband and burnt the Tree. A Pastor was called to offer prayers at the spot. Diana and her family were released from their curse and they were free to be reborn as humans again. As for Olaf, he now knew that if someone fell down in a dream it was a warning of a bad thing about to happen in real life.
My name is Rohit Bhalla. I am a Psychology student. During one of my classes, my professor Dr. Ashok Rai narrated a story to us.
There was once a very learned and wise monk. His name was Lei Wunk. He had mastered all the ancient philosophies and religious scriptures. He had studied under the highest philosophical Masters of the time in Tibet and India. He was traveling to the great city of Pushpa Aranya in India to spread his religious philosophies. To reach the city he had to get across the river Brahmaputra. He climbed onto a passenger boat. The wooden boat could carry a maximum of three passengers along with the boatsman.
The wooden boat was carrying another man and a child as well. On conversing with the man Lei Wunk came to know that the man was the heir to the throne of Pushpa Aranya. His name was Prince Vichitra Virya. The Prince had just completed his Gurukul education and was returning to Pushpa Aranya to be coronated as the next King.
Lei Wunk took a quick look at the child who was a slender looking eight-year-old boy with sunburnt dark skin and long disheveled hair. He was not so much curious about the identity of the child. So, he did not try to ask him his name or who he was. He, however, asked the boatsman's name and came to know that it was Shishupal.
Shisupal started rowing the boat to get across the Brahmaputra and reach the city of Pushpa Aranya. The boat journey was about two hours long. Shishupal thought that once he reached the city he would head to the Inn for having his lunch and take a short nap before making the return journey. Shishupal sang a local song to entertain his passengers. Lei Wunk was thinking about the great religious work he was about to do when he reached the city. Vichitra Virya was excited at the prospect of becoming the new King. While the little child was happy to see the river and enjoyed the journey listening to Shisupal's beautiful song.
Somewhere, in the middle of the journey, the weather changed suddenly. It started raining very heavily and the boat was being tossed in the raging river. Suddenly, there was a leak in the boat and water started filling inside the boat. The Prince and the Monk got worried that the boat would sink. However, the child remained calm. Shisupal said that he was an expert boatsman and he had faced similar situations before. He said that he could steer the boat to safety. But, there was a problem. He said that two of the passengers had to voluntarily jump off the boat so that he could maintain the balance of the boat. Only one passenger's life could be saved.
At this point, Dr. Ashok Rai stopped the story narration and turned to the class. "Who are the two people you think who should jump off this boat?".
My classmate Aarti lifted her hand. The professor gave her permission to speak and she answered,"Sir, I think the Prince and the Monk should jump off the boat. They should save the innocent child's life."
Next, my classmate, Alok answered,"Sir, I think the Monk's life is more important. Since he can save thousands of more lives by spreading the message of peace and love."
One of my other classmates Neha also answered,"Sir, I think the King's life is the most important. Since a great ruler could transform a whole Nation."
Our Professor appreciated all their answers. Finally, he turned to me and asked, "Rohit do you agree with any of them or do you have your own theory?".
I got up shyly and looked around me. Everyone seemed to have fixated their eyes on the last bencher. I adjusted my looking glasses and coughed slightly to clear my throat's dryness. I answered in a low tone,"Yes Sir, I have a theory of my own. Though, I am afraid it may not be correct."
"It's alright Rohit, go on please," the professor encouraged me. So I began,"Sir, I think that the boatsman was a liar. If he would have really been in this situation before there was no need for anyone to die. Lei Wunk was a wise person. The instant he got into the boat he noticed that the child was the boatsman's own son or kin. The way the child felt confident and self-assured in the presence of strangers made him feel that the boy was somehow related to the boatsman. So, he did not bother to ask the child about his identity when he got into the boat.
Shisupal perhaps was aware that the weather would be bad along the journey. His remark that he had been in this situation indicates that he had looted several of his passengers in the same manner. Most of the passengers would see the little child and out of pity would jump off into the river leaving their luggage in the boat. Some others that did not want to die would offer to pay him a handsome fee if he helped them to cross the river safely. So, it was a Win-Win situation for Shisupal.
Sensing the situation, Lei Wunk would have whispered the wicked plot of Shisupal to the Prince. The Prince angered by the boatsman's deceit would have threatened Shisupal to steer the boat to safety or face dire consequences. On reaching the city, Shisupal would be reprimanded for his crimes."
There was pin-drop silence in the class once I finished my narration. The Professor looked at me with admiration and remarked,"Great thinking Rohit," and started clapping. The whole class started clapping and applauded my theory.
