"Oh God! It's Karna's voice! We have to go!" Ishani grabbed a pair of bow and arrows, sprinting towards the garden. 

"Arjun and Bheema, guard the entrance. No matter what happens, do not close the entrance. Understood?" Krishna warned, as they nodded.

"The passage is a deep." Ishani chuckled nervously, looking inside. Krishna shook his head, looking at Balarama.

"Who said they wanted to save Karna?" Without a word, Balarama pushed her inside, and she screamed loudly.

They both jumped inside, pulling a horrified Ishani. "How could you both be so .."

"Shh. First we've go to Karna." Krishna walked front, Ishani between both of them.

"We'll come out alive right, Adi?" She squeezed his hand uncertainly.

"We'll be alive. Don't worry." He squeezed her hand assuringly. Ishani could hear loud sounds of grounds breaking and screams. Krishna pushed the door open, holding his discus in one hand. 

"Vasusen!" Karna looked at them in relief. His legs were dripping with blood, but his eyes were burning in determination. Ishani held her breath, seeing the monster.

"Cowherd, release me or else I'll kill all of you. Ah, I sense myself in someone. Is that you, beautiful maiden?" Ishani looked at him blankly, walking close to his cage.

"Ishani! No!" Krishna warned, but she stood at the entrance, examining the monster closely.

"Are you so jobless that you time-travelled and swallowed ships and planes? Greedy pig." The monster snarled, gripping the iron rods tightly.

Karna stared at Ishani, wide-eyed. She always found a way to lighten the atmosphere.

"Shut it. How did you even chew those metal ones? Disgusting. There were drainage systems and you consumed them also. Didn't your mother tell you not to consume other's shit?" 

The three guffawed, holding their stomachs. The monster growled, shooting out an arm.

Ishani caught the arm, squeezing it tightly. She took out a dagger, stabbing the arm repeatedly. It howled in pain, trying to break free, but her grip was too strong. The Sudarshan chakra cut off another arm which tried to grapple Ishani.

The monster growled, closing its eyes as a spear lodged into her wounded arm. 

"ISHANI!" 

She chuckled, pulling out the spear. Blood dripped from her arm, and it hurt so badly that her vision blurred, but she didn't scream out. She removed her Angavastram, trying it around her arm.

"You are beautiful, maiden. Come with me and you shall enjoy all the luxuries if you free me now."

Krishna left his discus free and it went straight towards the monster, cutting its head off. Ishani sighed in relief, but another head popped , laughing loudly.

"God, no." Ishani muttered, taking a step back.

Karna winced, feeling too much pain. The monster slashed his arms and legs mercilessly, and he thought he would die.

It was a surprise that even the most Divyastras were powerless against it.

She knew there was only one way out. Karna was too injured to use his nectar.

She looked at Karna, who smiled weakly. "You'll be alright. I won't let anything happen to you all." She assured, and he nodded.

"Adi, guard the entrance to the prison. Krishna, take care of the monster and Karna. I'll end him." She closed her eyes, assuming the Jalandhar Bandha. Her body glowed faintly. 

Sweat filled her entire body, and her body rose upwards in the air. Her hands shivered, feeling too much energy being consumed. Ishani opened her eyes, as a huge golden ball engulfed her.

She moved her hands in a circular manner, and the trio watched in amazement as a sharp arrow was formed from the light.

The arrow was in the shape of a snake, it end looking curved. Ishani gasped for breath, looking at the monster. It seemed to have been shocked by her powers. 

She held her bow, fixing her aim. Her hand trembled, and the bow was about to slip from her hand but she managed to hold it.

"What are you doing, beautiful maiden? I am immortal!" 

"Nectar is the cure to poison." She whispered, letting the arrow loose. Devoid of energy, the bow slipped from her hands and she fell back.

Karna hurriedly caught her, sighing in relief.

The arrow pierced his forehead, and the monster screamed as it disintegrated into darkness. A huge blast burnt the entire prison and nothing was left expect a few pieces of burnt metal rods.

"Ishani?" Karna touched her forehead, realizing her body was abnormally heated up.

"Vasudev, her body temperature.." 

"Hurry up. Her life force is already ebbing away." Karna nodded, rushing to the entrance.

"Shreeman Karna!" Arjun shouted in relief, pulling him out. Karna collapsed, and Balarama caught hold of Ishani. 

Arjun and Bheema looked at them in shock. It looked like Karna had a blood bath. And Ishani looked so pale, as if someone had sucked the life out of her.

"Get Nakul and Sahadev fast. We can't waste any more time." Bheema ran to their chambers quickly.

"Nakul, Sahadev, please come fast." The twins came immediately, looking at both of them.

"We have to wipe his legs and arms." Sahadev dipped a white cloth in warm water, wiping the blood carefully. He gasped, looking at the deep gashes. Taking a pinch of turmeric, he began rubbing the gashes.

Karna clenched his teeth, controlling the burning sensation. 

Nakul place a cold cloth on Ishani's forehead, checking her pulse. He quickly mixed various herbs, grinding them into a paste. Parting her lips, he put it into her mouth. 

"She can wake up any time. But she has to drink plenty of juices to rejuvenate her life-force."

"Thank you." 

"Shreeman, please refrain from removing the cloth I tied to the gashes. They take sometime to heal, and may leave scars, but I'll give you a cream to get rid of them." 

"Vasudev, her shoulder wound is infected. That's delaying her awaking." Nakul removed the cloth around her shoulder. Taking a pair of instruments, he removed a dark, black liquid bubbling on top. 

A small piece of spear was stuck, and Nakul had great difficulty in taking it out. 

"The spear was infested with poison. But it's out of her body thankfully." Nakul informed, and Karna kept looking at her.

"It's all because of me. I'm really sorry." He mumbled guiltily. Had he just sat in his balcony, nothing like this would have happened.

Krishna sighed, sitting next to him. "He would have escaped one or the other day, Vasu. It's for the best. It's not your fault, okay?" 

"If something happens to her.." Krishna's expression turned solemn.

"I'll take Ishani to her room. When she wakes up, Nakul will inform you all. Nakul, it's not an inconvenience right?"

"Of course not, Vasudev." 

Nakul sat outside her chambers, hoping that she gets up. He couldn't stop thinking though. What had exactly happened that these two came out in a critical condition?

4 hours later,

Nakul checked her pulse, frowning. Her pulse was normal. Why wasn't she opening her eyes?

He checked her eyes, and they weren't even responding to light. Nakul was getting more worried. 

"Bhrata, what happened to Devi?" He gasped in relief, seeing his younger brother.

"She's not responding to light, but her pulse is steady."

Sahadev put his finger near her nose. Her breathing seemed irregular.

He moved her hands, but there were only reflex responses. His eyes widened, thinking of the worst possibilities.

She seemed normal but her brain functioning was very minimal. It was as if she was alive, but not conscious.

He had never seen nor heard of anything like that. They had to just wait for her to wake up.

How long would this continue, they had no idea.

The twins hurried to the common room, where the Pandavas and a few  Kauravas, along with Krishna were checking upon Karna. 

Nakul glanced at the huge room, covered with a curtain. Pushing the red curtain, he looked at all of them. The lamps seemed to be flickering lightly, and the room was filled with chatter.

Krishna walked up to them.

"Everything alright?" Karna looked at them eagerly.

"I am sorry Vasudev, but Ishani is not responding. We have never seen someone in a condition like that before. She is alive, but not conscious."

Karna gripped the chair tightly. It was his fault. She risked his life for him. He was nothing but a bad omen to everyone.

He stormed out of the room, rushing to his chambers.

Meme of the day: