Shiva - The Saviour

Cholas ruled the state of Chandragiri with dignity and pride. They never breached their code of conduct since they always followed the rules and regulations perfectly in the war. Rudras on the other hand couldn't digest the blow they took at the hands of Cholas. They desired to usurp Chandragiri but got defeated in the fair war thanks to the brilliance of Chola warriors whose relentless fighting spirit rendered them a morale-boosting victory over their rivals. The head of Rudras, Ravan itched for vengeance even if it meant breaking the law by resorting to treacherous acts. By hook or by crook, he needed Rudras to beat Cholas and seize Chandragiri under their control. They came up with a cunning plan which was to betray their rivals by not following the code of conduct. Cholas emperor, Vishnuraj was a man of a golden heart who always worked for the well-being of his citizens. He was deeply respected by the citizens and was treated as a God for being virtuous. The wave of happiness appeared to descend over Chandragiri as the people rejoiced in their victory over their rivals, Rudras. As per the rule, Rudras had no license to wage another war against the Cholas for five years since they bit dust fairly and squarely. 

Cholas had no idea about the conspiracy devised against them. In fact, Rudras had sent a letter to them congratulating them for their deserving victory as if friendship was to brew between them. As per the code of conduct, soldiers were barred from using weapons at midnight from 12 to 4. Rudras decided to ambush Cholas at this time when their soldiers are retired to sleep. The defeat at the hands of their rivals had stirred their anger and they thought it was the right opportunity to unleash their vengeance through treacherous acts. All their brainwashed soldiers came with a wood lit on fire in their hands. They set ablaze in the beautiful city of Chandragiri which made the people run helter-skelter. The soldiers couldn't use the weapons since they never broke the law and their rivals took complete advantage of their helpless situation. Chola warrior, Vishnuraj pleaded with them not to resort to such heinous acts by causing harm to innocent men and women but his plea fell on deaf ears. Many of the Chola soldiers died and some were held captive including their emperor Vishnuraj. The beautiful city of Chandragiri brimming with pride was now seized by the cruel Rudras through unfair means. Their remorseless act was despicable and reprehensible. 

Tears encompassed the eyes of Vishnuraj who was now locked inside a jail. His family too was locked in a cell as if they were criminals. Ravan cut a wry smile at the hapless Cholas whose happiness had evaporated thanks to Rudras. They formulated their own rule according to which every day a Chola citizen would be hacked to death in a barbaric manner and his demise would be celebrated by gulping his blood. Even if a child was crying, Vishnuraj used to feel pity for him or her but now his people are being massacred and being the emperor he was in a hapless condition. He begged God to show some mercy to his people. There was no way Rudras would make amends for their duplicity rather continued to wreak havoc in the lives of Cholas. Ravan pledged to wipe out the entire blood of Cholas in a span of one year. 

One of the Chola soldiers had escaped from the Rudra attack and he came to the forest where Vishnuraj's son Shiva was residing. Shiva always loved to spend time alone with nature and refused to take over the reins of his father. His father respected his son's wishes and had not forced him to take over the reins of Cholas. The news came as a shocker for Shiva who took some time to come to terms with it. He had never seen his father being in a helpless state before but this devastating treacherous act against his father and his people aroused his anger. He vowed to avenge the innocent death of Cholas. There was no way he could survive alone against the Rudras so he had to come up with a master plan. He was duty-bound to save his father and the Cholas.

Shiva came to meet Ravana intending to join their group but the latter would not accept anyone until he sees the real talent in them. Shiva's ripping physique was a sight for the sore eyes and he had divine look on his face too. Ravan agreed to enrol Shiva into his squad on one condition which expected him to defeat Tampaka, the beast-like man. Initially, Tampaka had the upper hand over Shiva thanks to his beast strength but slowly Shiva read his mind and understood how to counter him. Eventually, through his genius mind, Shiva picked up a convincing victory over Tampaka thereby winning the heart of Ravan who agreed to induct him into his group. Since Shiva was now part of Rudras, he got a chance to glance at the captivated Cholas including his father. His father couldn't recognize him because Shiva had coloured his face which acted as a camouflage to conceal his real identity. How can Shiva be able to help his men alone? What may materialize if Rudras deduce his plan eventually? Many unanswered questions seemed to search for answers. 

At midnight, the same time when Rudras ambushed Cholas, Shiva killed Ravan's elder brother Kumba. Kumba used to mercilessly kill the Chola citizens every day and distributed the blood to everyone as if it was a magical potion. Shiva had ensured there was no one when he pummelled Kumba to death and the news spread like a wildfire. Nobody could comprehend the reason behind the murder but losing his elder brother angered Ravan and he vowed to cut the murderer into thousand pieces. He alerted his men to ensure such casualties wouldn't materialise hereafter. Subsequently, he carried out the funeral of his elder brother who had played an instrumental role in his life. Consequently, he decided to erect a statue of his brother to commemorate his life every day. This was just the beginning for Shiva who intended to run riots to see to it that Cholas would soon be freed from the stranglehold of their rivals. He had to be cautious while exercising his plans because even a small fault can be perilous. 

The next midnight, Shiva set ablaze the garden room where multiple soldiers slept. The fire consumed the lives of cruel soldiers who were part of the bad karma accumulated by Ravan. Ravan couldn't believe his eyes when he saw the fire god wreaking havoc in his own palace. Who is behind all this? Why his own men are dying? Zillions of questions hovered over his mind as he believed there was a mole in the group who was trying to sabotage all his plans. He lumbered across the corridor of his palace allowing his thoughts to interweave and come up with a plan. A plot seemed to germinate in his mind as he wore a wry smile. 

The next day, Ravan dragged Vishnuraj to the centre of the stage where a noose hung around. A famished lion was roaring inside a cage ready to rip apart people to satisfy his hunger. Tampaka was sharpening his knife as if to cut someone into millions of pieces. Everybody was asked to assemble to witness the murder of the Chola Emperor. The heartbreaking news shook Shiva because his own father was on the verge of dying in a barbaric way. 

"I am going to allow the lion to tear apart my best friend and everybody is hereby ordered to applaud as Vishnuraj would die most brutally. I know there is a mole hidden beneath the cloak of Rudras. If the mole doesn't voluntarily come up and surrender, I will not only feed Vishnuraj to the lion and will also allow Tampak to butcher all the remaining Cholas to end this game once and forever."

His words tore apart Shiva's heart. No son wants to see his father being fed to a hungry lion. There was no way he could mute himself now. He just walked toward the centre of the stage which astounded Ravan who had trusted Shiva blindly. His eyes reddened when the reality revealed itself that Shiva was Vishnuraj's son. The Chola emperor broke down and cried for his son who had come in the disguise of Rudra's supporter to save his men. He felt proud of his son but feared the consequences that lay before him. 

"I had a faith in you but you betrayed me. Is this what Cholas are all about? You broke the code of conduct honoured by your men. You are a disgrace to the Cholas," Ravan fumed.

"You attacked our men from behind at midnight when the soldiers were barred from using weapons. You guys leveraged on the helplessness of my men and now you are teaching me about honouring the code of conduct?" Shiva was seething in anger.

Ravan ordered his men to kill Shiva with immediate effect before the latter gains the upper hand over his men. Shiva equipped with excellent combat skills put up a brave fight and killed many Rudras singlehandedly but the number game got the better of him. He was soon outnumbered as the swarm of soldiers attacked him from all directions to finally kill the brave warrior. Vishnu Raj couldn't handle the excruciating pain of seeing his son die in front of him as he collapsed and blacked out. 

"Nobody can touch the Rudras!! We are the real heroes!!" Ravan broke into wicked laughter but it was short-lived.

Before he could bark out an order to kill the remaining Cholas, the clones of Shiva materialized out of nowhere taking him off guard. He just couldn't fathom what just transpired. The clones kept on multiplying in large numbers soon outnumbering his men. They all killed the Rudra soldiers including Tampak. In a jiffy, Rudra's entire heritage now fell on Ravan's shoulders because he was the only survivor. One of the clones opened the door of the cage from which the voracious lion came out and pounced on Ravan. He begged for mercy but had no good karma in his tank to save him as the lion growled and tore him apart. It licked his blood to mark the end of Rudras. All the clones converged into one and glittered with brilliance. Everybody folded their hands in disbelief. Cholas got back their empire and they continued to rule Chandragiri for a long time thereafter.