Week 9 Story: The Demon Slayer
As the Pandavas narrowly escapes the torments of Duryodhana by means of escaping through a secret tunnel from under their homes, they would spend the next couple of years living isolated in a cabin high up the mountains. The five Pandavas lived closely alongside their mother, as their father had died of illness a long time ago. Day by day, the kids would help out around the house with the cooking and housework as their mother would trek down the mountain to the nearby village to buy the necessary food for the day.
One day, as the usual housework was happening, Arjuna decided he would help his mother out by going down to the village below to collect the food as his mother was cooking. As he was getting older, he felt like it was his responsibility to help his mother out with the daily chores.
"Make sure to be careful and be back before the sunset!"exclaimed Arjuna's mother, Kunti.
"I will! I'll be back before you guys know it. Don't worry!" Arjuna replied.
And with that, he started his journey down the mountain. He was very familiar with the surroundings he's walked down it numerous times with his mother, but never by himself. As he reached the village, he went to the shops and bought the things that his mother asked of him to get. Food such as potatoes, rice, and other fruits and vegetables. Before he knew it, the skies were getting dark and he realized he had spent too much time down there. As he was hurrying to the gates of the village, he was stopped by the gatekeeper.
"Hello! I see that you are trying to go up the mountains and I must warn you, it will be dangerous. I would suggest that you stay here for the night to save up the energy to go back early in the morning tomorrow. It will be safer then," the gatekeeper cautioned.
Seeing that it was rather late at night, he decided that it wouldn't be too much of a big deal if he stayed the night here with the gatekeeper. His family made sure to stock up food for the week! As he laid in the spare bed provided by the gatekeeper, he quickly fell asleep. Before the sun rose, he got up and made folded up the bedding and sheets provided by the gatekeeper and proceeded up the mountain.
As he walked up the mountain and nearing his house, he saw that the door was wide open. To his horror, there was a trail of blood leading from the house to the to the forested area. As he walked in, he saw his entire family: his mother and his brothers, all laying bloodied and lifeless on the floors of the house.
All of the sudden he heard grunting and heavy breathing from the forested area near the house. He turned around and there stood a large figure, moving in abnormal fashion towards him. Arjuna backed away from the house, realizing that there was not much that he could do.
"Now, who do we have here?! I must say, your family was one of the tastiest meals I've had in a long time! I'm full already, but of course, there's always room for dessert from a mongrel like you," the demon growled.
As quickly as the Arjuna tried to run away, the demon scrambled towards him with such speed and ferocity. And as the demon was inches away from him, there was a gust of wind. Arjuna opened his eyes and the demon was cut up in pieces! Behind the remains was a figure with long hair, glazed blue eyes, with a bloodied sword in his hand.
"Make sure you don't go outside when it's dark out. It's not safe." He calmly stated as he turned his back on Arjuna and starts walking off in the distance.
"WAIT! The demon killed my entire family and I have nothing left here. Please teach me how to defend myself," Arjuna halted and yelled in desperation.
"You have no chance to become one of us. Save your strength and try to live the way you've been living"
"Didn't you listen?! I have nothing left. The only thing I can do right now is to learn how to defend myself. You have to help me!"
Clearly seeing the desperation and sadness in his eyes, the swordsman calmly told him, "If you are that desperate to live the rest of your life in the face of danger, go north until you reach a path with two white gates on either side. There, a man will help you."
With this, the swordsman vanished without a trace and Arjuna took the rest of his belongings and was on his way north. Leaving his family and the rest of his life behind.
To be continued.
Author's note: This story was a derivation of the story of the Five Pandavas following the escape from Duryodhana and continued their lives disguised as brahmin. In the beginning stories, there was a battle between one of the brothers and Baka, a demon. Of course, in the original story, it was Bhima that defeated Baka and continued with living their lives. In this story, those who know the context would see that this is similar to the initial plot of the popular animation, "Demon Slayer," which painted the story of a kid whose family was slain by a demon, and ventures on to become one of the best demon slayers in the world. Here, I've adapted the story from the Five Pandavas, using the names of Arjuna and his mother Kunti and their daily lives after leaving their house.
One day, as the usual housework was happening, Arjuna decided he would help his mother out by going down to the village below to collect the food as his mother was cooking. As he was getting older, he felt like it was his responsibility to help his mother out with the daily chores.
"Make sure to be careful and be back before the sunset!"exclaimed Arjuna's mother, Kunti.
"I will! I'll be back before you guys know it. Don't worry!" Arjuna replied.
And with that, he started his journey down the mountain. He was very familiar with the surroundings he's walked down it numerous times with his mother, but never by himself. As he reached the village, he went to the shops and bought the things that his mother asked of him to get. Food such as potatoes, rice, and other fruits and vegetables. Before he knew it, the skies were getting dark and he realized he had spent too much time down there. As he was hurrying to the gates of the village, he was stopped by the gatekeeper.
"Hello! I see that you are trying to go up the mountains and I must warn you, it will be dangerous. I would suggest that you stay here for the night to save up the energy to go back early in the morning tomorrow. It will be safer then," the gatekeeper cautioned.
Seeing that it was rather late at night, he decided that it wouldn't be too much of a big deal if he stayed the night here with the gatekeeper. His family made sure to stock up food for the week! As he laid in the spare bed provided by the gatekeeper, he quickly fell asleep. Before the sun rose, he got up and made folded up the bedding and sheets provided by the gatekeeper and proceeded up the mountain.
As he walked up the mountain and nearing his house, he saw that the door was wide open. To his horror, there was a trail of blood leading from the house to the to the forested area. As he walked in, he saw his entire family: his mother and his brothers, all laying bloodied and lifeless on the floors of the house.
All of the sudden he heard grunting and heavy breathing from the forested area near the house. He turned around and there stood a large figure, moving in abnormal fashion towards him. Arjuna backed away from the house, realizing that there was not much that he could do.
"Now, who do we have here?! I must say, your family was one of the tastiest meals I've had in a long time! I'm full already, but of course, there's always room for dessert from a mongrel like you," the demon growled.
As quickly as the Arjuna tried to run away, the demon scrambled towards him with such speed and ferocity. And as the demon was inches away from him, there was a gust of wind. Arjuna opened his eyes and the demon was cut up in pieces! Behind the remains was a figure with long hair, glazed blue eyes, with a bloodied sword in his hand.
"Make sure you don't go outside when it's dark out. It's not safe." He calmly stated as he turned his back on Arjuna and starts walking off in the distance.
"WAIT! The demon killed my entire family and I have nothing left here. Please teach me how to defend myself," Arjuna halted and yelled in desperation.
"You have no chance to become one of us. Save your strength and try to live the way you've been living"
"Didn't you listen?! I have nothing left. The only thing I can do right now is to learn how to defend myself. You have to help me!"
Clearly seeing the desperation and sadness in his eyes, the swordsman calmly told him, "If you are that desperate to live the rest of your life in the face of danger, go north until you reach a path with two white gates on either side. There, a man will help you."
With this, the swordsman vanished without a trace and Arjuna took the rest of his belongings and was on his way north. Leaving his family and the rest of his life behind.
To be continued.
Author's note: This story was a derivation of the story of the Five Pandavas following the escape from Duryodhana and continued their lives disguised as brahmin. In the beginning stories, there was a battle between one of the brothers and Baka, a demon. Of course, in the original story, it was Bhima that defeated Baka and continued with living their lives. In this story, those who know the context would see that this is similar to the initial plot of the popular animation, "Demon Slayer," which painted the story of a kid whose family was slain by a demon, and ventures on to become one of the best demon slayers in the world. Here, I've adapted the story from the Five Pandavas, using the names of Arjuna and his mother Kunti and their daily lives after leaving their house.
(Bhima and Baka. Source: IM)
Hi Long! Great story here. I must say, I was surprised that Arjuna's family was slaughtered. After all, the demon would have had to take on the legendary brothers, including Bhima. I was horrified for Arjuna when he came upon this scene...which included the demon that had killed his family. Arjuna clearly wasn't as skilled at this point as I was used to seeing him. With nothing left, it made sense that Arjuna would seek to defend himself and potentially avenge the type of beasts that took out his entire family. Great work Long, I can't wait to read more of your works!
ReplyDeleteHi Long,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this story! I loved your use of dialogue in this as it shows a side of the characters that isn't always portrayed when there isn't dialogue. I also really like how you left the story with the option to continue it in another week. The suspense that creates makes readers like me want to come back next week and see what happens next.