Yakshagni - An odyssey of unbroken devotion - II

36) Manohara - The Tormented Yakshi

"Ekveer..." Dharma sobbed in fear. The air crackled with tension, throwing Maurya into a tizzy.

"Who is Ekveer?" Maurya demanded, tugging Dharma to safety from the edge of the ditch. The water was rising steadily and spilling over to the floor of the house.

Dharma's agonized cry penetrated Maurya's heart with stinging pain. Hearing another man's name from her, with such poignance in particular, aggrieved him. The rawness of the anguish rendered him helpless and he fretted about her feelings for the other man.

Dharma was unaware of Maurya's despair. A plethora of soft voices besieged her. Almost identical to the profusion of nocturnal sounds in dark woods, the murmurs swamped Dharma's head. In her haste to search for the man who had haunted her dreams, she twisted her ankle and the pain shot up like an electric shock, numbing her senses. Everything began to blur for her; however, the whispers grew louder. Feeling groggy and light headed, Dharma's eyes drooped. She began to slide down from Maurya's grip. Figuring that she was passing out, Maurya wrapped his arms around her tightly and prevented her from slumping down.

"Dharma, open your eyes..." Maurya's concerned voice floated over her. Amidst the babble of voices, Dharma identified Maurya's words but they remained out of her cognizance. There were much more confusing and incomprehensible whispers around her.

"We are leaving you...."

"Go to Alaka, Hanneli..."

"We have fulfilled the promise made to your father..."

"He is Ekveer, the prince of Alaka"

"Goodbye Hanneli...the Yaksha clan has to go..."

"She is not opening her eyes...Dharma, wake up ..." a worried Maurya prodded her. Dharma was, however, inundated with subdued voices.

"We will disappear together with Yakshagni into the womb of Mother Earth."

"Yakshagni was the sacred river of Alaka; the kingdom where you were born."

"Your ancestor had promised Yakshagni that when the other end of the river be discovered, she could surrender herself to  the Earth..."

"You and Ekveer have found out this end. So now, we will depart."

"Leave for Alaka, Hanneli...They need you there."

"Love him with all your heart. He is your true love..."

"The woman who had lived here was Manohara, your ancestor. By coming here, you have released her spirit. God bless..."

"Manohara and the king had loved each other, and like you and Ekveer, they had jumped into Yakshagni. Unfortunately, they had gotten separated and landed on different eras of the time. The king was found on the banks of the river Pushpavati much earlier. Manohara was carried by the currents to this end of the river. She came ashore years later."

"The most powerful warrior of all; Time, defeated their love."

"Once they lost their precious time together in Alaka, they could never find it again."

"Hence, Manohara was haunted and cried for her lost love in Avadhi."

"The queen's curse had destroyed their journey on the other side of time."

"You have your father's blessings."

"You and Ekveer were steered to the land at the same course of time."

"Like your father had predicted, you and Ekveer would save Alaka from destruction."

"Hanneli, you know who we are, don't you?"