'Brahmabalaks?' Wondered Akileshwar aloud. If he guessed, it meant children of Brahma. So They must've been the tribe of Brahma rather than Shiva.

Bhringi's eyes widened as he stared at Narada. After realizing who he and Adhishtavikth were, he bowed. Akileshwar followed his example and soon everyone was kneeling.

'I had heard rumors of the great children of Brahma. We are blessed with your presence. And you, great Assassin, we are blessed with your presence' Remarked Bhringi. He knew of the great Brahmabalaks. People had said they were ghosts that lived in another world with cutting edge techonology.

Akileshwar glanced at Bhringi in confusion. Assassin. That only made him not want to meet the so-called leader of the Brahmabalaks.

'No, it is us, that are blessed with your presence, great Lingamputra. The sons of Shiva are the strongest of us all' replied Narada. In response to Bhringi's praise, Adhishtavikth cocked an eyebrow, a nonchalant expression fixated on her face.

'Now tell me, great Bhringi, what you may be doing in the Maikala mountains?' Questioned Narada. Akileshwar frowned. He did not know that the mountains were called the Maikala mountains.

'Great Brahmabalak, we are on our quest, to retrieve the Mandalayu from Varuna' Replied Bhringi. Akileshwar shot him a glare for trusting this man so easily, but he just smiled in return. He also noticed he had referred to the Asura as Varuna. He did not know that the Asura had a name. 

Narada nodded. He scanned the army and his eyes first fell on Akileshwar. He was not sure whether he imagined it, but for a fraction of a second, blue energy swirled around his eyes and Akileshwar felt as though every limb and bone in his body was exposed, vulnerable.

Then, it was over. As though it had never happened.

Then, his eyes landed on Kali. She had noticed that Akileshwar had felt something different when Narada had "scanned" him, and she had no desire to feel the same way. She scowled at Narada, who just smiled.

'I presume you are the Asuran queen?' It was more of a statement than a question. Nevertheless, Kali nodded.

'Well, seeing as you are very low in numbers, may I offer to join this quest?'

After a moment's hesitation (Akileshwar guessed it was from the nervousness from the whole group looking at him at that moment) He let them in.

Narada smiled. He walked from the mountain to where Akileshwar stood. Grabbing his hand, he shook it and gazed deeply into his eyes. Akileshwar frowned slightly. He saw something in his eyes he did not expect. Respect.

▪

'Damn it!' Shouted Indra in anger. He banged the throne's armrests and the wine goblet that stood there fell to the ground, spilling wine. Immediately a maid scurried in to clean the mess, but Indra waved her off.

He had noticed that David Cross had done nothing in the battle to prevent Akileshwar and Sakradeva from defeating the tigers. If he had done his job, they would have been lifeless corpses by now!

But then the stupid Brahmabalaks had to intervene, just when the tigers had had them. 

'Get me Trailokya!' Shouted Indra at a guard who stood near his throne. The guard nodded and walked out of the palace.

Indra sighed, waiting to meet Trailokya, or else as he preferred, Trailokyamrityu. Meaning death of the three worlds. Trailokyamrityu had originally been assigned to assassinate Indra, but something had made him stop. And the two had grown into close friends, though no one knew of it. The king of the gods friends with the most feared Assassin of the three worlds, was not something one wanted to know.

The guard scurried in with a man tailing him. He wore a dark hooded dress that fell to his feet, completely in black.

Indra's face broke into a grin. 'Trailokya!' He shouted as he stepped forward and embraced the assassin. Because he was wearing a cloak, he could not know of the reaction from his face. Regardless, Trailokya embraced him back.

'Trailokyamrityu' Corrected Trailokya. Indra ignored it and stepped back. It had been a while since they met, after Trailokya's failed attempt to assassinate Rudra. How much of a joy would it have been to get rid of Shiva's incarnation.

Alas, it had failed and Indra and Trailokyamrityu had not met since. Trailokya was surprised that Indra had called for him and embraced him with open arms, despite failing the last mission. Moreover, Indra hated failures. So Trailokya had expected him to give him a punishment for their previously botched mission.

'Trailokya, I have a job for you' he said, shocking Trailokya. After his failed mission, he was going to give him another one?! Gods bless Indra's heart for forgiving Trailokya.

'What?' Asked Trailokya, his voice hoarse as though he had not spoken in a long time.

'Walk with me' Indra beckoned for him to follow him. The duo walked out of the palace and into it's gardens. It was remarkably small like a playground size with only grass and some plants on the edges. A single fountain stood in the center, sprouting fresh water from the clouds itself.

Indra touched Trailokya on the shoulder. 'My friend' He began. 'Have you ever heard of the Asuraksha?'

Trailokya nodded. He knew of Indra trying to get rid of the newly crowned Asuraksha. The incarnation of Paramatma.

'Well, he is on his way to retrieve the Mandalayu from Varuna. The Asura-' Before Indra could make anymore remarks, Trailokya cut him off.

'Well that is great news! The Mandalayu will be back in your hands and you can finish what you started!' He remarked. Indra fumed inwardly. He absolutely loathed interruptions. Especially when he was explaining a mission that was currently leading into a failure. That is why he needed Trailokya and did not behead him when he had entered the Aakashprasadh.

Trailokya gulped and beckoned for him to go on half-heartedly.

And so he did. 'You are right, my friend. But I fear they will learn the truth once they reach Naraka. But I fear they will destroy the Mandalayu. That is why, I need you to intercept them before they reach mount Vindhyachaja. And you know the rest' 

Trailokya nodded. But on the inside, he was bothered. Bad enough he had failed to kill Rudra, but if this mission failed too, he knew his life would be taken in an instant. And there was no way he could hide from the wrath from the king of the gods.

Then, he came up with a solution.

'My lord-' 

'Please, just Indra' 

Trailokya let his guard down for a second. This was the man he had grown to respect earlier, the man who did not hold grudges and was friendly around people. But he digressed.

'Indra, you do know I failed my last mission. I-' He hesitated for a second, thinking whether this was the right choice. After all, if he succeeded in this mission, his friendship with Indra would return to the way it was. But he did not want to take any risks.

'I do not think I am the right man for this job' He admitted. Indra raised an eyebrow. Despite not showing any signs of being shocked, he was beyond it.

'But I have another option' He added quickly. Indra beckoned for him to go on.

'I am currently training a man. Mara, by name. He has the skills of an assassin and would like to be one. If you gave me some time, he would be able to complete the job you have assigned me to do'

Indra gazed at Trailokya nonchalantly. 'Bring him to me. I'll see whether he is up to the job'

Trailokya nodded and scurried out of the Aakashprasadh. Indra gazed at his retreating form. He was surprised to see Trailokya tutoring. This Mara man sounded intimidating, his very name meaning death. A smile spread across his face, though he did not know why. He just felt he had found the perfect man for the job.

▪

'Where do we got next?' Asked Narada as they trekked across the last of the mountains. Turns out Narada had a big army, 50,000 by numbers.

'The Narmada, then to Mt. Vindhyachaja. The entrance to Naraka is there' Narada nodded as they reached the end of the mountain. The most dangerous river in front of them. The Narmada contained most of the people. After all, the kingdom of Ayodhya resided there. Thankfully, they were only sailing up to Mt. Vindhyachaja.

Akileshwar sighed, this was going to be a long voyage.