A Heart of Gold

Chapter 10: Nightfall Part - II

Trigger Warning: This chapter contains death of a major character. Please proceed with caution. Graphic depiction of an Execution, torture and gore. If you feel uncomfortable with any of these please skip the part enclosed in **. I shall put a small summary for it.

Disclaimer: This chapter does not claim any reference to the original Mahabharat. It is a sequence inspired from the T.V. serial Suryaputra Karn. This however, has a slightly greater historical basis than the one in SPK.

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Radha maa collapsed. Vrishali and Vaishali started wailing. But Radheya did not notice. All he could see was Shon kneeling before the Emperor, quiet, silent, and unafraid. He did not look resigned, rather he looked like it was something he could already foresee and accept. Radheya gaped at his calm countenance, unsure about how he could do it. The Kaurava faction went up in flames, boys protesting and throwing limbs around. The Grand Regent looked troubled. His father fell to his knees weeping and begged, " My Lord, O our excellent Emperor, what justice is this? We came here, a servant of the Crown, expecting justice from the ruler. O fair one, shall we be thus deprived of our child?"

The blind Emperor swiveled his head from side to side, feigning confusion. Murmurings grew among the courtiers as they debated the merits of this decision. The five brothers, illustrious sons of the Late Emperor Pandu, were shocked into silence. Two of them looked like they would throw up. Prince Yudhisthir clearly hadn't thought about the gravity of his words. The Empress pressed her palm to her mouth in horror. Radheya felt something hot and wet pouring across his cheeks and realized they were his tears.

Some of the gathered priests could barely contain their glee, the majority looked nauseated. Their spokesperson rubbed his hands in excitement and prodded one of the sentries, "Go bring some freshly prepared molten lead, what are you waiting for, you buffoon? "

The sentry cast a terrorized look at the Prime Minister who nodded resignedly. Staggering, the man reluctantly left to accomplish his barbarian task. The wait was excruciating, with most of the Kaurava boys - who knew them - shouting and screaming. Even Prince Yudhisthir mumbled about the righteousness of such punishment. Prince Arjun sat with his head in his hands. Radheya's family was sobbing. Vrishali was practically on his lap, squeezing his fingers so hard it hurt. The stunned courtiers sat in shocked silence. Radheya stood still through his tears, as if waiting for something.

An eternity later, the sentry stepped in, pale and gaunt, bearing a steaming bowl of murky liquid on a wooden plate, a wooden pincer kept beside it. The priest leapt forward and snatched the plate from him. One of the priests, horrified, said, "It is not right Swami, what is about to happen. "

The priest waved his hand as if swatting away a fly, "It is decreed by the holy scriptures. You dare speak against it?"

"But - " the other priest began, only to be elbowed by his neighbor.

"Lie down on your right side boy." The priest ordered an unnaturally calm Shon, who stretched out on the carpeted floor. Somewhere, it registered in Radheya's mind, what was about to come. Suddenly, it did not matter where they were, or what the consequences of his actions could be. He roughly pushed Vrishali away and lunged forward. The guards, not anticipating this movement, scattered. Someone was shouting hoarse pleas and pathetic threats and Radheya was ashamed to find out it was him. Strong hands grabbed his upper arms and he was forcefully pulled back. He struggled with all the brittle strength in his young body, kicking and swinging like Kripa aacharya had taught him more than a dozen months ago.

Dimly, he heard his father tell him to stop. It did not matter. His brother was dying, and nothing else mattered. But then Shon, still lying on the ground, turned around and gave him a soft smile, shaking his head. Radheya's legs gave away under him. Three pairs of powerful hands held him down, forcing him to kneel. His vision blurred with pent-up tears. The priest was screaming bloody murder. Radheya couldn't care less. The agitated Emperor said something, waving his hand. The two Empresses added to it and the Grand Regent stood, furiously shaking a long, powerful finger.