Note: When creating the shinduran costumes, particularly for Arslan, I tried to deviate as much as possible from the design presented in the OVA episode "Friendship Feast."
Beast Hunt. Overview. Part 4
Rajendra decided to send off his allies from Pars with a grand feast and a performance that was supposed to feature something interesting.
Arslan and his friends are waiting for it all to be over. They are all dressed in exquisite shinduran attire. Arslan's silver hair was combed back under a white turban, like the locals. His long, stiff suit, embroidered with small pearls, restricted his movement. Narasas was equally exquisitely dressed. They could have been mistaken for brothers.
Arslan's entire squad was gripped by anxiety.
And they weren't alone. In the cages prepared for the performance, trained bears, tigers, and red dogs whined and lay on the floor. They refused to listen to their mentors, and no whip could calm them.
Narsus and Daryun discussed Rajendra's plot.
And so it happened. Soon, Rajendra's men called for Arslan and his troop.
The young king Shindura asked for their help again, hinting that they could not refuse. The monster they had captured in the jungle had broken free from its cage and had already killed two guards. It had to be captured.
A glimmer of almost triumph flashed in his wine-red eyes. Rajendra said he had already spread the word that his valiant allies from Pars had helped his people defeat the monster. This time, Rajendra had caught them, just as they had caught him… He was a quick learner. An unpleasant burning sensation spread through Arslan's body, but his face remained calm. They would help.
In the lower city, in the slums, the old man's dog continued to bark. He went to get a stick but froze, seeing an unusual sight.
Something was dragging itself through the darkness. Enormous and unlike anything else, it crawled like a half-crushed insect. It raised its ugly head, ready to attack any living creature, when suddenly it was called. A man emerged from the shadows. Young, wearing a long, light turquoise caftan embroidered with a fine silver pattern, with a white turban. He was clearly from the palace. The stranger whispered something to the monster, and it obediently, like a tamed warhorse, lowered its head. When the stranger touched its palm, the sleeve immediately darkened with blood, and the silver pattern on the fabric grew even brighter. They stood like that for a while, and then together they disappeared into the darkness of the slums.
The poor old man had never seen anything like it in his life.
The monster's trail led Arslan's party into the filthy labyrinth of the Shindra bazaar. Giew, whose magnificent purple caftan, the color of his hair, was ruined by piles of rotting garbage and cow dung, was in despair. How could he appear before Farangis like this!? All was silent. They were forced to follow one another through this dark labyrinth of covered passages and stalls. Jaswant stopped again. The monster took a step and sank heavily onto the trash-strewn ground. It was wounded after a fight with a cobra and the hunters. Jaswant, hearing of the monster's escape, went in search of it. He managed to calm it, perhaps for a while. Jaswant attempted to lead it beyond the city walls so it could end its days in freedom. He felt something akin to pity for this strange creature. It shouldn't have to die in a cage for the amusement of humans. People shouldn't suffer because Rajendra failed to secure his trophy. If only Rajendra had listened to him! None of this would have happened… Rajendra will never listen to him. Slowly, step by step, Jaswant dragged him forward like a reluctant horse, hoping they wouldn't be discovered. His heart pounded hard and painfully. If Arslan's men caught up with him, they would kill him. If they clashed in battle, Arslan's men might be hurt, or worse... He didn't want anyone to get hurt. Walking in the pitch-black, fetid darkness, through the narrow rows of stalls, was almost impossible.
They were already waiting on the city wall. Arslan's squad had planned to lure the creature onto the city wall, away from the people.
It was all over quickly. Who, if not Daryun, could defeat it?
But this time, something went wrong. Instead of attacking Daryun, it lunged at Arslan… Could this creature really be that smart? Suddenly, a bright bolt of lightning flashed between him and Arslan. Where had Jaswant come from?
In an instant, they both disappeared over the edge of the city wall.
Nothing separated them from the fall. Jaswant felt himself being jerked up the wall. Very close, he saw a misshapen head and small, fading eyes. The monster's fingers loosened, and its body slowly, twisting in the air, fell downward.
People were already rushing toward the misshapen, broken body far below. From here, they looked like insects swarming over their prey. He hadn't succeeded…
Jaswant rose to his feet and was surprised to find that the quietly creeping dawn was already gilding the clouds. It was as if he saw all this for the first time. He saw everything: the silvery ribbon of the river Kaveri, the palace tinged pink by the dawn, and the endless forest cloaked in mist. He had once looked at his homeland like this, but from the edge of a cliff, amidst a boundless sea of jungle. Now he looked at it from the edge of the city wall.
He looked back and met Arslan's gaze. He was here too. The prince of Pars with his amazing retinue. Their ideas and strategies worked because they were heard by their master. Jaswant felt that he had made his decision a long time ago. Now he just realized it clearly.
He slowly stepped off the parapet, so as not to fall, and strode away.
A new warrior had joined His Highness Arslan's retinue. He was from Shindura, and it so happened that they both accidentally touched upon one of the secrets of this country, hidden deep in the impenetrable jungle…
prguitarman
snowghoul
theartofmadeline
pixelskylines
vaporwave
jbbartram-illu
