After the Queen was gone, Amarisa twirled around to look at me with furious eyes. I blinked back at the princess blankly, not knowing why she seemed so angry.

"What did you do to my mother?" she hissed, storming back towards me. I recoiled on my seat and stared at her in confusion.

"I did nothing!"

"Yes, you did! You lied!"

"What?" I said. "No! Your Highness, I swear I didn't—"

But Amarisa already turned her face away and called out the name that caused my hair to stand on end. "Malis!"

I gasped.

"Oh no, no! Please, don't call her!" I begged, putting my palms together. My eyes nervously darted around in panic, but Amarisa didn't comply.

Kesar and the others also stared at us in alarm.

Then we heard a powerful growl from another room. Malis appeared through the curtained doorway. Her back almost brushed the top of the doorframe. The beast trotted into the hall like a circus tiger. Her whiskers twitched, and her horribly sharp teeth bared. When Malis saw me, she gave a throaty hiss that sent me screaming and crawling out of my seat in fright.

As if the big cat already knew what her mistress wanted, she jumped over with her floaty striped body towards me. A frightened high-pitch cry escaped my lips again. Those bright orange eyes never left me. The giant tiger growled. I yelped and jumped around the hall, almost causing a stampede among the palace maids. The Mohoris and Mahoras also scurried away from my path as I threw everyone into a fit of chaos.

"Your Highness, please!" I cried, stumbling my way through the Apsaras. "I swear I did not lie about anything!"

I tripped and fell to the floor but continued to crawl on all four to a corner. The tiger leaped after me again.

"Oh dear!" I cried. Out of nowhere, Kesar came to place herself in front of me. Her arms wrapped around my body as if to shield me from the beast.

"Princess, please forgive my lady," Kesar pleaded. "I believe it wasn't in her nature to speak the untruth."

"Kesar, help me!" I said and burrowed myself into my maiden in fear.

Amarisa's sparkling black eyes burned and for a moment I didn't understand what made her even more furious.

"Malis, get over here!" she finally said, but her eyes still glared at me. The giant tiger turned her fat furry head away from us at last. I was able to breathe again.

Malis leaped back and circled herself around the princess then sat down.

Amarisa looked at us in disdain then wheeled on her heels and strode out of the hall. The rest of the maidens and dancers quickly followed after her.

I sat there, panting in after-shock. Kesar wiped the panic sweats off my forehead. Everyone else began to exit the house one by one, leaving us alone.

"Kesar, I didn't lie," I said again.

"I know, my lady, I know," she said.

~*~

The next day, I went back to my training as usual. Although the King and Queens didn't attend, we still had a chariot race at the Elephant Terrace. But my heart wasn't in it.

Atith and Tusita took me to the stable where the horses were being harnessed to the chariots.

There I saw four huge fiery-white horses before a golden chariot. Atith walked up to them. The horses had golden hooves with golden manes and hot amber eyes. When they neighed, their breath was fire.

"Holy smoke! Are they real?" I said in awe, unable to believe my eyes.

"This chariot is a gift from my divine father," Atith told me as he stood at the head of his golden vehicle. His hand kept stroking one of his fire-breathing horses.

"So you godlings always get fabulous gifts like that all the time?" I said.

"We were born to fight in their honor," Tusita said with a shrug. "The gods would at least let us indulge ourselves."

"Our team has the best charioteers among the avatars," Tepi told me reassuringly. "You need not worry about winning the race today."

"Of course, it would be a shame if we lost," Vorac said. "Atith still need to polish his horsemanship though."

"Aw, Vorac, you shall see who would beat whom in the race this time around," Atith shot back.

"Well, last time I already proved who's the best," she said with a grin.

Atith's lips pouted. The great fiery horses dropped their heads over his shoulder and whinnied softly. I watched the golden flames of their breath flickered upon his armored body. Atith jumped back with a surprised yelp, but he was not harmed by it. We giggled at him. For the first time, I was curious about his holy parentage.

"So who inspired your birth, Atith?" I asked. He just smiled brightly before boarding the golden chariot. Another bizarre thing halted my breath. The moment he stepped onto the brilliant vehicle, the two great wheels rose four inches off the ground. Atith turned his head back to me with a blinding smile.

"My father is Lord Surya, god of the blazing sun, the eye of the universe, and the soul of all existence." 

~*~

Afterward, they spent sometimes preparing me for the race. We began to move our chariots to the starting line. Issarak and his team stood on the other side. They waved at me and laughed among themselves.

Tepi let me use her chariot made of light fine woods. The four horses were said to be the swiftest of all breeds though they didn't breathe fire. Some parts of the chariot were encased in polished bronze. The two wheels didn't hover off the ground like Atith's, but they were light and flexible.

Vorac also joined the race. Walking beside her shimmering chariot was Tusita, who was waving at us. I noticed Vorac's chariot was an open shell of silver, which also hovered above the earth. Her four strong horses were as beautiful and slender as reindeer. Their manes sparkled like tiny diamonds in the sunlight.

"Vorac!" Atith said. "You're ready for the race?"

"I shall not lag behind," she called back. "I am longing for victory yet again."

"Nikita, are you ready?" Tepi's voice spoke to me.

"I guess so." I shrugged. "It's not like I'm going to miraculously win you godlings anyway."

"Miracles do happen," she reassured me. "You just have to believe that they do."

The sun burned bright and hot over us. People gathered to watch the race from the pavilions. Tusita gave Vorac a kiss on the cheek for good luck. Tepi was talking to the horses, calling them by names — Champa, Champei, Romdul, and Pidor.

"Go easy today, my swift ones. Go at a wise trot and do not stray from the path. You have a new rider today."

The horses whinnied and bobbed their heads as if they understood. Tepi nodded at me in encouragement and stepped away. She and Tusita didn't join us. I noticed the other avatars also stayed behind. Ravi, Samudra, and the twin brothers stood, looking from the sideline.

After the chariots were all aligned, the gong was struck as a signal to start the race. The riders flicked their reins. The sounds of horses galloping and wheels rolling burst through the field.

I jerked on my horses, afraid to upset them. My chariot crawled forward at a slow pace while the others flew off. Issarak lashed his whip at his horses. His chariot was oily bronze and pulled by four black stallions.

"Nikita, urge the horses harder!" Tepi yelled.

I tugged on the reins as I was advised. My horses lurched forward and went into a speedy gallop. From afar, I could see Atith and Vorac were skimming alongside each other. They could have reached the speed of a flying arrow if the distance allowed.

My chariot was faster than I thought. Soon I gained on the others. Issarak looked over his shoulder and sneered at me. When I cruised beside his chariot, he whipped one of my horses on the butt, causing the animal to wail and swerve away. My chariot swayed a little. Issarak laughed and drove off, leaving me in the dust.

I continued to race along with the others. Then Morokot came up from behind. I tugged the reins harder to steer clear from that girl. She kept chasing me until she came beside my chariot. When we were about to reach the bend of the track, Morokot held her hand up with her palm out.

I frowned back at her in confusion. But then sparks of fire flared out and burst into flames around her fingers. My eyes widened in shock. Morokot thrust her hand down, releasing a stream of red fire all over my chariot's wheels.

"Oh no!" I cried. "No!"

The red angry flames started to spread out, leaving a black plume of smoke trailing behind.

Morokot was cackling like a sadist. I could have jumped off, but I couldn't leave the horses to burn to death. I looked around and spotted the water Baray up ahead. My hands steered the chariot straight towards it.

"Get out! Hot stuff coming through!" I yelled at the mermaids who were swimming about in the water.

Once the mermaids looked up and saw a chariot on fire, they let out a scream and swam away as fast as their tails could flap.

Before I could reach the pool, one of the wheels broke. The entire chariot flipped, and I plunged into the water with everything else. Fortunately, the horses snapped out of their harness and scattered away.

The water was cold against my skin. I kicked my feet and swam to the surface again. My scorched chariot was sinking beside me. Morokot's flames still danced over it.

A group of machas swam over to help me out. They brought me closer to the bank. Their eyes stared at me with curiosity. Some circled around my body and giggled. Others were bold enough to reach their hands out and touched my hair. I felt like I was some exotic animal.

"Look! Have we not seen anyone's hair this golden and eyes this bright?" they said. "Her clothes are strange, even her skin is different. Surely she is a denizen of heaven."

I could feel their scaly tails brushed against my legs. Their topless bodies made me blush.

"Are you good, pale one? Or do you need help?" a male voice called out. It was the sea god's son, Samudra.

"Well, if you could help me from these fishy ladies, I would really appreciate it."

He nodded and snapped his fingers at the macha maidens.

"Please, maidens of the sea, leave this poor girl alone. She is not from here and can be easily spooked."

One by one, the mermaids reluctantly swam away, but not without pinching my cheeks left and right. Free at last, I swam towards the edge afterward.

"My lady!" Kesar's voice cried from far above. I looked up. She descended to the ground again with her wide golden wings flapped rapidly in the air.

After she landed, Kesar came and helped me climb up from the pool. Once I was out of the water, she wrapped her wings around me as if to give me warmth. I didn't realize I was shivering. A Devata spirit appeared out of a bush and gave me a fleecy towel, which Kesar draped over my shoulders.

"We saw your chariot burned," she said. "What happened, my lady?"

"I know what happened," Samudra said and pointed to Morokot, who was now riding her chariot back towards us. She pulled on the reins to stay the horses and glared at Samudra.

"Why didn't you mind your own business, Samudra?" she said.

"Morokot, what you did was against the rules!" he retorted.

"You shouldn't waste your time with this girl," she said. "We all knew she wasn't that holy as we thought she was. Just have a look at her miserable state."

"I don't think she is made for such cruel trickery," he said. "I would choose her company rather than be with a mean soul like you. You're a coward and a stain on your father's name."

"How dare you call me a coward?"

"Your misconducts proved so!"

"I despise you, Samudra," Morokot sneered. "You're just a moron after all. We don't need your favor anyway."

She pulled her horses around and was about to ride off again when Samudra went to block her path.

"You can't go anywhere until you apologize to her!" he said, pointing at me.

"As if you have the right to tell me!" Morokot hissed back. "Get out of my way!"

"I am here to keep the moral orders," Samudra said. "What is wrong must be righted, and I insist you redeem your bad deed this instant."

"Moral orders, my foot!" Morokot growled and opened her palm. Fire burst from her hand immediately. She hurled a ball of red flame at Samudra. It flew through the air like a dart. Samudra pulled a spinning backward-kick and crashed Morokot's fireball, which exploded like a firework.

Morokot stepped off her chariot and hurled another fireball at him. He jumped into the air and delivered a roundhouse kick, sending it flying back at her. Morokot swatted the flames away with her hand.

"I give you another chance, or you shall receive what you deserve," Samudra said.

Morokot sneered back. This time, I saw fire rose from her feet, circling around her body like frenzy twin serpents, even her hair was also ablaze. Hundreds of scorching tongues danced about her in the shade of red, purple and green. Morokot looked like a walking bonfire.

I realized we weren't alone anymore. The rest of the avatars were there. Tepi and Tusita came towards me. Even Atith and Vorac returned from the race along with Issarak.

"She's crazy, is she not?" Tusita said. Tepi just shook her head.

Samudra took a few steps away. Morokot stomped over.

"I'll burn you to a cinder for your insult!" the daughter of Agni opened her arms and threw her hands forward. A huge stream of roaring fire gushed out and hit Samudra.

We all gasped.

Samudra rolled himself over the ground to extinguish the fire. Black smoke came off of his burned clothes. Samudra got onto his feet again and ripped off his charred tunic. His face and arms looked raw from the hot fumes. Yet he showed no fear nor pain.

Suddenly, we heard a weird noise coming from the cave behind the waterfall. A strange sound rippled the water as something huge crawling out.

My jaw dropped when a giant crocodile swam across the pool. It almost gave me a heart attack. The reptile creature was the length of two chariots put together. It opened its long wide jaw which was full of saw-like teeth. Even the mermaids screamed and swam away from the beast. The giant crocodile leaped over the bank and crawled swiftly towards Samudra.

"Charavan, no!" he cried. "Go back to your cave!"

The crocodile just swung its spiky tail back and forth. Now I understood. Charavan was Samudra's mount. I stared at that thick rough skin, all thorny and hard as a rock. Those bright yellow eyes with vertical slits blinked slowly. Charavan's jaw was big enough to swallow a whole cow.

The crocodile moved towards his master.

"You brought help? Who's the coward now?" Morokot said. Then she put her fingers between her lips and whistled. A moment later, it felt like a herd of wild bulls was galloping downhill.

Her ugly rhino emerged onto the field. Everyone dove away from his path. The rhino's massive horn pointed forward.

Morokot ran over to her mount and jumped onto his back. There was nothing Samudra could do but to mount his mighty crocodile, too.

"Oh wow! Awesome! This is the mood we need! Yes, in the gods' name, fight!" the twin avatars cheered them on. It looked like almost the entire encampment was here to watch.

"Shouldn't we stop them?" I said. "This was blown out of proportion."

"Let them be, Nikita," Tusita said. "They will be fine."

All we could do was waiting to see who would walk out in one piece.

The two powerful avatars made their mounts sprint towards each other. Morokot's whole body was still aflame. Her rhino didn't seem to mind the heat. That thick armor skin was also fireproof.

Once they clashed, Charavan snapped at the rhino with his great jaw, but he was knocked aside by the rhino's steel-like horn.

Morokot fired at Samudra again. The sea god's son dodged the flame but it still hit him on the shoulder. Samudra yelped and steered his mount away.

"Back into the water, Charavan!" Samudra ordered. It only took his werecrocodile two leaps to plunge back into the water and swam away with his master on the back. Morokot's rhino had to skid to a halt by the bank.

"Don't you run, coward!" Morokot snarled after him. "Is that all you got?"

She waved her fist in the air angrily. Samudra said nothing. His back was turned to the waterfall. Morokot bit her lips and raised her hands above her head. Fire soared up like a pair of blazing wings. The flames whirled and entwined each other until Morokot thrust her hands forward. The fire arched in the air and flew towards Samudra in the shape of a serpent.

Samudra raised his hands and the water rose from the pool. It formed a protective wall and put out Morokot's fire. The water kept rising another hundred of feet into the sky.

We were standing on the safe side, watching thousands of gallons of water arching like a tidal wave. Samudra's eyes were closed, but the great wave was still rising, threatening to crush the life out of anyone in its path at any moment.

Morokot gritted her teeth and tried to summon fire again. Her flames built up only a few second when Samudra hurled the wall of bone-crushing water at her and her rhino.

Morokot tried to pull the pet away from the wave in retreat, but it was too late. The deadly sheet of water crashed onto the earth like a giant palm, smashing over the running pair.

Samudra held his hands up to command the element again. It twirled into a standing whirlpool and scooped Morokot off the ground. She was locked in a massive watery grip.

The girl tried to break free by firing off her fireballs, but now she was like a small bug swimming inside a giant droplet.

Before Morokot was about to drown, Samudra made a tearing gesture. The water split apart, releasing her to the muddy ground again.

Morokot lay there, choking and coughing. The rhino had collapsed on his back with his hooves waving helplessly.

The machas cheered from the other side of the Baray. Samudra got off Charavan and motioned for the crocodile to go back into his cave. The mount wagged his tail like a dog before swimming away.

Samudra climbed over the edge of the pool and walked towards Morokot. He put his hand out to her, but Morokot swatted it away.

"I don't need your help," she muttered and staggered back onto her wobbly feet. Morokot was covered in brown mud from head to toes. She walked over to her rhino and tried to push him back onto his feet. The other avatars laughed at the sight.

Issarak was gone. When the girl needed a friend, she got none.

I felt pity for Morokot then found myself running over to her. Once I reached the drenched girl and her overturned rhino, I put my hands up and started to push the animal, too.

Morokot snapped her head to me. Her eyes stirred with confusion and rage, but at least, she didn't start frying me. I gave her a small nod. She turned her face away and started to push her mount again.

The crowd was quiet as we both helped the rhino onto his feet. Then Morokot and her pet walked off the field in silence. The crowd parted for them. Tepi came to place her hand on my shoulder. Samudra was standing by the pool, looking as grim as the defeated girl.

"I hope she has learned her lesson," Tepi said.