Bubbles - A Princess Story Contd.

Irenia, it was called. A country known for peace, prosperity and immense wealth, of great emperors, beautiful and picturesque locations and great traditions and culture. This was a country blessed with abundant natural resources, a country where “Love Thy Neighbour” was a law. It was self sufficient, had a huge Army (on holiday for 4 months a year) and now it had the Great Monkey and his Princess Bubbles.

Although it never crossed boundaries or invaded ever, in its 150 year long history, it was the envy of all its neighbours. No one ever had really felt threatened or complained of Irenia. It did more than its share for its neighbours and never for once let them know its might. Nothing or no one could have possibly predicted what was in store for Irenia and its people in the months to come.

Damien – The Villain
Herculean physique, a white face mask hiding many a battle scar, long hair, a maroon robe flowing over his broad shoulders right down to his waist, four arms and three legs, he was a ghost inside a man(or whatever he was) and yet he never gave the impression of being a tyrant. He was Damien, a local warlord who was one of the Generals of the Monkey’s army.

He was wicked, cunning and smart. He was much too ambitious and power hungry. There was a lot spoken about him amongst the other Generals and he enjoyed this attention. Enemies feared his might and friends chose their words carefully for him. He had built a strong band of soldiers who were loyal to him and fought by his side.

Damien had become a great warrior and an even greater General. His might and power was next only to the king. He chose his men carefully because he had to be sure that they shared his Dream, the one thing that he wanted more than anything else in this world – The Crown of Irenia. He thought through his plan several times and focused on the minutest of details. He knew failure was not an option. He would strike when the entire country and more so the Monkey would expect it the least. Everything he needed was in place now. It was a question of when and not how he was going to do this.

Carefully and thoughtfully he put into effect his plan of deceit and betrayal and when the time was right he declared war on Irenia. The Monkey was struck by a bolt of lightning and his tail was stiff as a stick. He knew something was wrong. In one night’s time, Damien destroyed everything that Irenia stood for – peace, beauty, prosperity and Love. He murdered people who resisted and enslaved the timid and the fickle minded. In no time he occupied every little corner of Irenia. It was now time to hit the nail in the coffin, the final blow. He was one fortress away from becoming King of Irenia and one step closer to becoming the Emperor of the World.

As news of this betrayal reached the Monkey (His tail back to its usual twisted self), it was already too late. His armies were destroyed and his best Generals were slain by Damien. A band of a 1000 soldiers guarding the fortress was all he had to fight Damien and defeat him. He needed his Princess Bubbles now more than ever. Together they had to restore the one thing that was Irenia’s mascot – Love. They handed out armour to every man, woman and child who was able and devised a strategy that would help them see through, these dark times.

They did not have many options. Most of their army made love better than they fought. They used blades for nothing more than cutting vegetables and occasionally to slaughter cows, buffaloes, pigs and goats for meat. The fortress was their first and only line of defense and that was their best bet for defeating Damien and restoring peace. The only way to enter the fortress was by crossing the “Pond of a Thousand Mean Lobsters” before entering the Gates of Heaven, the main gates to the fortress.

Damien’s army was now forced to fight through a narrow corridor. Numbers did not matter now, skill was more important. A bloody battle ensued. Damien’s army had both skill and numbers on their side. The Monkey’s army on the other hand stood no chance. One by one they all started falling like the nine pins in a Bowling alley. The Gates of Heaven soon became the Corridors of Death. There were heavy casualties on both sides. While Damien’s army inflicted pain on the Monkey’s, the Thousand Mean Lobsters feasted on Damien’s army.

The Monkey and Princess Bubbles fought hard and fought courageously. Damien’s army was slowly but steadily gaining control over the Gates of Heaven. The Monkey and his army was now being pushed deeper and deeper inside the fortress. They were being forced to retreat to a more defendable position. Things were looking gloomy for the people of Irenia. The Monkey knew it was not long before his defenses would fall. He looked frantically for Princess Bubbles but she was nowhere to be found. With his heart in his month, worried that he might have lost his princess, he battled on killing everyone of Damien’s demented army that stood in his way.

The Monkey and his Imperial Guard of 100 soldiers were all that was left of his army. The rest were dead, wounded or in most cases fled. They got pushed into a small room in a small corner of the fortress. There was not much time left now and there was still no sign of Princess Bubbles. The Great King, The Monkey, the architect of modern day Irenia was about to fall to a tyrant, a traitor, to Damien. And then….

To be continued....