23) Swords!

Song dedicated to this chapter- Unstoppable!

***

"Are you serious Avi. Because I think you are joking." The Queen of Jaipur asked her daughter with a serious look adoring her beautiful face.

"Maa I swear, I know it's hard to believe, even I wouldn't have believed this if I had not seen it with my own eyes. " Manavi said while taking her mother's right hand into her own.

"Ok, tell me clearly from the starting, without missing any of the details. Because if you are telling the truth than maybe there is a hope left." Rani Sa's eyes turned soft with hope.

"Ok, so you know the day we visited Hawa Mahal, that day Rehmaat and Dada had conversation for whopping 40 mins and you know about what?" Manavi asked while making her mother open her mouth in shock.

"40 minutes? My Ansh was talking to a person moreover a female for 40 mins. Are you sure you are not exaggerating it Avi?" The Queen was still not convinced.

"Maa even I was shocked but it's the truth. And do you even know what they both were talking about? Guns, yes you heard it right both were casually discussing that while practicing shooting which type of guns give best results and you know maa I realised than that they both are so different yet so alike!" Manavi said while raising her hands in air in an unbelievable manner.

"And Maa Dada is always so comfortable around Rehmaat. Just like he is around us, true most of the times it's Rehmaat who is doing the talking job but atleast He gives her small replies otherwise even most of his buisness associates get replies in his action as his motto of 'Action speak louder'." Manavi told in Awe.

"And the way he was looking at Rehmaat today and the way he complimented her, I saw raw appreciation in his eyes. It was like something geniune." Manavi's eyes were now shinning with Awe.

"I... I don't know what to say Avi. It's like, this girl really has some superpower or something. Atleast my Ansh will get a genuine friend. Someone who can make him live his life a little. Since he was a kid he was a quite child and I know he will need someone to fill his life with colours of laughter and chatters otherwise this silence will become suffocating for him." The Queen poured her heart infront of her daughter.

"But a friend can't live with a person forever Maa , and you know this very well. So why a friend and why not a.." Manavi's words halted as she spotted her father standing at the room's door.

"And why not a what... Why don't you complete your sentence Avi. Ok if you can't than I will. Why not a life Partner right!" The king had a look of disappointment on his face as he said the unsaid words of his daughter.

While Manavi looked down in shame.

"For me, Rehmaat has become part of my family already as I have accepted her as my daughter the day she saved my daughter. And I don't discriminate among my children. Just like you, Rehmaat and Shivansh will have choice if they both want something more than friendship than it will be me to support them first. I promise I will fight the Rajputi Samaj for them as it will be an inter religion marriage. I will convince Rehmaat's family too. But if even one of them does not want something like this than I won't let a mother and a sister's selfishness for there own Son or a brother's happiness ruin my other daughters life. Had I made myself clear." The king truly gave an Aura of roaring lion while speaking the facts.

"Ok Baba Sa." Manavi muttered

"I support you tok Vikram. I won't let anything bad happen to my Ansh as well as Rehmaat." The Queen said while placing her hand on her King's shoulder.

"I hope so Diya, I hope your blind love for your son won't do something bad to Rehmaat." He thought in his mind.

*****

A man with bare upper body and a sword! In his hands was practicing sword fighting. His forehead glistening with sweat and the only sound echoing in the room filled with different type of ancient  Indian weapons was of that man's sword cutting through the air.

But suddenly the voice of someone's footsteps became more clear and another voice echoed in the room.

"Why have you called me here and these ancient weapons why are they even in this palace." A female voice questioned.

"Come on Rehmaat, come in first I'll tell you, Come on in." That man gestured Rehmaat to come in.

" That day you told me about how you practice gatka because these type of things fascinated you right! So how about a duel." The man smirked.

"And this room was made for the training of royals and oath carries. Even though today modern weapons has outnumbered the strength of these ancient weapons but still the type of discipline, muscle coordination and body power use these weapons teach us are way more advanced than modern weaponary hence we are taught both." That man answered her previous question

"See I don't want to be disrespectful or something but Gatka isn’t just about the art of fighting, Gatka may have born with the need to fight oppression but today it resonates more with the broader quest of fighting the demons within us as much as outside. In consequence, the fight is still for peace." Her eyes were twinkling while she talked about her favourite of all times. Gatka! (Gatka is a type of Martial arts practiced by sikh community.)

"Wait a min. I have never practiced it under a roof. You can call it a superstition but my Gatka Guru always told me to practice it under open sky as it is a symbol of freedom and freedom is meant under sky and not behind closed doors and roofs." Rehmaat explained. (Gatka Guru- gatka teacher)

"Ok than let's go outside,the terrace is vast and wide." The man said as he stretched his arms by supporting the weight lifter.

"Ooh and Veere I am going to call Pushpa as I want her to witness it. Ok" Rehmaat asked him with a mischievous smile lingering on her face as the man is none other than her newly made brother.

"Choose your sword wisely." Shakti told her.

"We don't choose a sword, the sword choose's us Veere." A special, different type of glow was what her face was adorned with.

***

"Maa, Baba Rehmaat is calling me upstairs on the open terrace. She said she is going to show a talent of hers. She just messaged me,why don't you both join me." Manavi asked her parents as she read her friend's message and an instant smile bloomed on her face.

"Well than what are we waiting for let's go and see what talent she is talking about." With that the three Royals went towards the open terrace.

"Ok so which type of sword handle will you feel comfortable with. We have options as this is a friendly practice match we won't use pure iron swords. It is going to be practice swords which are heavy but don't have sharpness ok. And who ever makes the opponents sword fall out of there hands first will be the winner." Shakti was explaining the basics used for this fight.

"I'll choose this one." She choosed her sword.

"Are you sure, I mean this one is much difficult to handle. I have been training with real swords for years, so I am experienced and that is already my advantage to win so you choosing the difficult handle that you won't be able to use perkily will only increase my chances of winning." Shakti asked her.

"I told you Veere it's the sword who choose us. And trust me I never learned to lose. Let's see who wins." And a challenge commenced between both.

As both got hold of there swords first thing both did was put the sword on there forhead and than on there lips. Paying there respect to the weapon.

Till than the Royals arrived there too. And all were shocked to see Rehmaat with a sword in the posture to fight. They never imagined that a girl from new generation will know to even hold the sword let alone fight.

And the swords were clicking.

Rehmaat's advantage was her flexibility while Shakti's experience was becoming an obstacle for Rehmaat to show her flexibility.

As Shakti's sword was about to make contact with her legs she jumped but her balance loosed and her sword nearly fell out of her hands. Before Shakti could give his final blow to win the game the loud voice boomed there.

"Shakti!" Shivansh Singh Raghuvanshi's loud voice was enough to pull everyone's focus towards him.

And taking advantage of Shakti's distraction Rehmaat gave the final blow and as Shakti's grip on the sword was loose because of distraction thus a strong blow from her was more than enough to make the sword fall from his hands and thus Rehmaat won.

"Yay, thankyou Mr.Singh. I won." Rehmaat squealed and went towards Hukum who was standing near the entrance.

"I lost because of you Hukum." Shakti scowled.

While Hukum just shrugged and raised his eyebrow making Shakti mum in seconds.

While the Royals were the silent spectators of everything.

"Thankyou Mr Singh. I won." Saying this Rehmaat was about to pat his shoulder but he took steps away before she could touch him.

Witnessing this the Queen of Jaipur hesitated a bit thinking that this action of her son might have hurt Rehmaat as she was just genuinely thanking him.

But instead of getting upset or awkward Rehmaat just passed a huge smile and made a fist out of her hand and offered Hukum a fist bump.

After a second or two of hesitation he gave in with a small smile and both did a fist bump.

(Picture Refrence)

And after watching the interaction Manavi gave her parents a ' I told you look'. While her mother had a new Hope to give her heart.

"Warrior girl you indeed are a warrior.  Avi told me how you even know shooting and have a knowledge of guns and now the sword fighting too. How do you know about this stuff?" The king of Jaipur asked.

And after sensing his presence once again the crown prince of Jaipur pulled an expressionless face.

"Is it a Punjabi thing like they show in movies?" This time Shakti asked as he too was genuinely interested.

"Nah, not all Punjabi's are like this. It's just that I am special." Rehmaat joked giggling.

" But no on the serious note, It's just that my and my partner's stubbornness to try the dangerous things has lead me somewhere in my life where I love learning dangerous things sometimes to geniunely learn things and sometimes to push my limits to the extent." Rehmaat explained once again leaving the Royals stunned.

While no one noticed Manavi's tensed figure who slipped from the group to attend a phone call a while ago.

"Who is that?" The person whom Manavi was talking to asked after listening to Rehmaat.

"Oh that, that is Rehmaat the girl who saved me. Ok I gotta go I'll talk to you later." Saying this she cut the call.

While the person whom she was speaking to muttered 'Rehmaat.'

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#Rehansh Forever 💕💕💕