The beast invites surprises.

****

When the Rajan's sandals touched the floor of the palace, silence reigned as a sole monarch.

This meeting was very important to the Gandhar royals and they had the best girl to seal the deal with. The Rajan was the most eligible bachelor, one would say, in terms of money and status. No other king in the world could dare to be his enemy. He was, quite literally, a monster.

People didn't know if he was also a monster to pretty girls, and no one really cared about it.

His black cloak matched with the darkened interiors of Gandhar submerged in the secrecy of the night. Perhaps this was a clandestine affair, or else the Rajan wouldn't have demanded to be welcomed in darkness. No one dared to look into his formidable pair of ebony eyes, resembling beads plucked from a necklace of black pearls.

When the Gandhar royals heard the door to the hall open with a screech, they all knelt with their heads lowered and palms resting on the ground. The Rajan stopped some distance from them.

"Maharajadhiraja Indrasya Rudra Arumugam." The Gandhar royals greeted.

"Rise."

The royals stood. A woman commonplace in his judgement came forward. "May the Rajan live long. I am Arundhati, the sole candidate for the throne of Gandhar."

"I didn't ask."

Arundhati flinched. His voice was too deep and husky to be even human. "I-I thought it was required for me to do an introduction. But nevermind..." Arundhati gestured to the maids to bring for the Rajan and her two chairs. "Please, be comfortable."

The Rajan's face was a marvel of God. His glare was intimidating and stoic, frozen pink lips chilled to a deadly shade of blood. He licked them, probably understanding where Arundhati's eyes had landed on. She gulped. She would do anything but become his prey. Her life was too precious to become the Rajan's dinner.

"I didn't ask you to sit down," he said. "I am impressed by your audacity."

Arundhati immediately rose up and pushed away her chair. "Forgive me, Rajan Rudra! You see, I am not so well-versed in etiquette and the mannerisms of–"

"It isn't in the luck of everyone to host me. And when I have personally wanted an audience, you should have understood the urgency of the situation. You could have worked harder on the minor details."

Arundhati hung her head low. "Yes, my Rajan."

"Where is the princess? I want to see her."

Arundhati whispered to the maids to bring the woman. In a matter of moments the jinxed princess arrived.

"Sit down," Rudra said, pointing to the chair where previously Arundhati had sat. The latter's eyes widened. She clenched her fist, swallowing the temptation to humiliate that unholy woman for sitting in her place.

This woman, who was to be handed over to the Rajan, was a strange anomaly of nature– neither did she remember her name nor did she know her heritage. She would cry in the dead of the night and no one except Queen Ambalika, now up in the skies, would be there to console her.

Rudra's eyes lingered on the princess. As usual, no one could crack the meaning of it. Was he lusting? Was he admiring, or was he measuring the beauty? Nobody knew. But then, his drooping eyelids created a picture of uncanny warmth, and a smile formed on his lips. "What is your name?"

The Rajan looked at the princess expectantly. She, however, was too timid and meek to even raise her gaze. "Ishvara," she answered in her dulcet voice.

"Ishvara, so a goddess incarnate," Rudra mused. "I have heard that your touch has the capability to heal people."

Ishvara fidgeted in her position. "I-I don't understand. It happens. I only know it's the Divine who helps me in it."

"Who is the Divine for you?"

For the first time, she smiled. "Everyone is, but the name of Krishna comes to my mind very first."

Surprise painted on Rudra's face, he intertwined his fingers together and crossed his legs. "I see. Tell me, what are your likes and dislikes?"

"What?"

"Your likes and dislikes."

Ishvara was perplexed. "I... I never thought about it."

"Ah, what a gorgeous soul and she has no idea about what abhors her and what calls her heart? You need to work on it. Such a shame."

"She likes to sing, Rajan Rudra. We often find her humming," Arundhati interrupted in hopes of controlling the damage.

Ishvara pondered about the words of the Rajan. What did she like? She liked to be alone, she liked to talk to Krishna, and she liked to sing. But whenever she went too far into the melody, her head would burst with pain. And she had to stop.

And what she didn't like? Well, Ishvara was not sure if she had the right to choose it.

"I look forward to hearing your singing someday. Hope you have no problem with it?" Rudra asked.

"No." A tired consent.

"So," Rudra exhaled and leaned forward, "I would like to finalise this." Determination bubbling in his tone, he lured them with offers. "I am going to give you land and gold as gifts for this marriage. All the members of the Gandhar royal family will receive exquisite dresses of the rarest quality, jewels, and anything else you can think of. I am going to be responsible for covering the cost of this marriage."

"Thank you so much for accepting a woman of our family, Rajan Rudra. May our alliance grow stronger with this bond," Arundhati said with a flattering bow. "Your resources and support will help me work on rebuilding Gandhar."

"I am happy to know you are interested in improving your kingdom."

"I hope Ishvara has no objection to this marriage," Rudra said, looking at the princess. "I assure he is a very kind and benevolent man."

"Bu-but my Rajan, aren't you going to marry her?" Arundhati asked.

"No, absolutely not," Rudra answered blatantly.

"Then, why did you not inform this before? We assumed she was going to be the Queen of Aryavarta."

Rudra chuckled. "She is going to be no less than a Maharani, Arundhati. She is going to be living better than all of you combined and command more respect than all the ministers of Aryavarta. I had told you I want her hand in marriage, but never mentioned for whom."

As much as Ishvara was relieved to know she wasn't marrying this infamous Rajan, she was also worried about her now unclear future. Her future husband ought to be a trusted fellow of the Rajan, and that made her feel dubious enough about his personality. The Rajan was a man of blood and gore, and his men would be no different.

Tension permeated in the hall. Arundhati cleared her throat. "Who is she going to marry then?"

Rudra took his time with a pause, watching them deluging in anticipation. He smirked. "My commander-in-chief and second-in-command, and if you will, the second strongest man in the world- he is my dear friend and blood brother, and your future spouse, Ishvara. His name is Aryamna."

****

When not the Rajan of Aryavarta, Rudra was a creature of the night.

Once, he was a lone wolf, manoeuvering the intricate forest of life all alone. Then, he was welcomed by a pack of his kind, and soon he climbed the ladder to be their Alpha.

He wasn't born a true wolf. He wasn't born privileged. He was cursed to be beastly and he knew how to turn it into a blessing.

Moonbeams bounced off his snowy white fur, reflecting towards every hidden corner of the jungle. His wolf walked with a swinging stride akin to a graceful dancer. He took time with each step, patiently tuning his gait with the serenading wind. What to mere humans was just the whooshing breeze was music to his keen ears. Nature sang for him whenever he came to the Valley of Saints, the abode of werewolves situated in Yavana.

Out from the mesh of bushes and twigs he came, his webbed paws leaving a long trail behind. Silvery haired men, standing tall and proud, bowed upon their Alpha's arrival and cleared the path for him. He crossed the bonfire and hopped on the throne prepared for him. Behind the throne stood his loyal Beta and commander-in-chief, Senapati Aryamna.

"Greatness to the Lord of the Pack, the Favourite of the Moon, Alpha Rudra Arumugam." All the men, including the Senapati, kept their spears down and knelt in reverence.

When the clouds hid the moon behind, Rudra howled. His muscles twinged and he grunted. Slowly, the fur gave away to reveal fair skin. The muzzle vanished to form a nose and paws turned into calloused palms of a warrior. A spiral ring of light surrounded him as he transformed back to his human form.

"Rise," Rudra said. An owl's high-pitched shriek cut through the quietude. "I hope all is well."

A werewolf from the pack spoke, "All is well. We are keeping in touch with our spies across the kingdoms. Any suspicious activity will be reported immediately."

"Great, so I don't have anything to worry about at present. Which means I can come to the point."

"We are eager to know what disturbs the Alpha. We will help in every way possible."

"It's not often that I get to come here," Rudra said while scratching his chin thoughtfully. "I have a kingdom to look after. But I have two announcements to make. Number one, I need more werewolves to come to the palace. As usual, they will remain under disguise."

"Is everything alright?"

"It is, it is. But something eventful is going to happen soon."

Aryamna raised a brow. "Rudra, what is it that I don't know?"

"There are many a things which you keep secret from me. Why can't I keep some from you? Yes, we are going to have a grand celebration in the palace. And I want high security, so that no foe may succeed even if they attack."

"What is this occasion?"

"Your marriage, Aryamna."

The Senapati scoffed. "The Alpha shouldn't joke when a serious discussion is going on. This isn't–"

"I don't joke, Aryamna, at least not when I have called for an urgent meeting."

Hushed whispers escalated the tensity. Aryamna's hands were shaking and he dropped to the ground at the feet of Rudra. "Wha-what do you mean?"

"I mean, you are going to marry. It's as simple as that."

Aryamna gritted his teeth. "Rudra, you know I am sworn to celibacy."

"You must break it."

"But–"

"One cannot violate the orders of the Alpha if they want to be in the pack, especially if they are unexpectedly different to our race," a werewolf coldly stated. "The Beta must know this well. And if the Alpha has made such a decision, he must have a solid reason."

Aryamna clenched his fist and stood up, sealing his lips with silence for the rest of the meeting. Had this been in the palace and he was alone with Rudra, he could have thrown a tantrum, but here in the pack, hierarchy mattered more than his life.

"The second announcement is, I need some good trainers for, err, training."

"Training, whom?"

Rudra struggled to come up with the words. He massaged the bridge of his nose, a nagging pain erupting between his brows. "I-I have kept a bodyguard."

Gasps. That was all he heard.

"When the pack has so many trained werewolves, why did you need to-"

"You guys were telling that you cannot question an Alpha's decison," Aryamna retorted. "A wizarding contest was held where all of the so-called werewolves were defeated by a simple mage."

When the pack looked at Rudra for an answer, he nodded. "Yes, that's true. I know it's difficult to defeat us even when we are in our human form, but she did."

"She?" A collective shock rippled across the pack.

"Yes, she," Rudra said with a sigh. "I am surprised too. But it's a she. And I need to train her better. So send me the best ones you have among yourself."

"And who is this girl?" a werewolf asked.

Rudra closed his eyes, recalling her every move bombarding shots of magic in the arena. Bruised, but undefeated. Fragile, but unbroken. "Indumala, the adopted daughter of Aryamna."