Warrior Princess; Her Quest to the throne

Mriga nodded and they bent down on all fours to grip the ropes which were running on the side of the bridge with their hands. Swinging their bodies down, they hung below the bridge now, holding the rope which despite its grungy appearance was solid. In fact, this was the only component of the bridge which didn't look weak or dilapidated which is why Mriga had got this idea before the bully started showing her antics.     

Slowly but surely, the two of them moved ahead, their bodies perpendicular to the bridge. Mriga's arms were already feeling the strain of her whole body's weight on them, not to mention the sheer height at which they were operating. The bicep muscles were bunching up and the hurt on her wrists and hands wasn't helping the matter either.     

"No, no, Mriga. Don't look down. You have wasted enough time. We need to finish this before most others do," she told herself repeatedly.     

Mriga had stopped Abhirath from talking about the wounds on her hand because she had spotted similar ones on other participants when she came out of the tunnel. A couple of them had it on their faces instead, making it easier for her to register the shape and size. The striking thing was that they all seemed to be made from the same type of 'weapon'. While in the tunnel, it was possible that she had accidentally hit a rock or an obstruction but for it to vanish the next moment, was extremely suspicious. Seeing it on other people, she was nearly sure that this was a mean trick from one of the participants instead of an obstruction arranged by the organisers. But there was no point wasting time in looking for the perpetrator right now. That's why she didn't want Abhirath to examine it closely.     

The people who were struggling above on the bridge saw the two of them make steady progress and decided to follow suit. Vindhya's partner who had been stuck till now also leapt down after catching the rope.     

Reaching the end of the ropeway, Mriga took a deep breath and jumped into the lake. She didn't turn around but knew that Abhirath was right behind her.     

By the time they arrived at the other side of the lake, they were not only tired but also hungry and thirsty. But that was probably ranked much lower on their list of urgency for now.     

It was cold and swimming in the icy lake hadn't helped the situation. Squeezing the water out of her lavender muslin kurta, Mriga simultaneously blew air out of her lips to push the hair back which was now on her face, but the tendrils were stuck to her cheeks like leeches.     

Abhirath had been keeping an eye on her well-being since they came out of the water.     

Out of the blue, his fingers reached out and tucked the hair behind the ears on both sides before he flicked her nose and said, "You resemble a cat who died and came back to life."     

The blush which had been creeping on her face just a second ago because of his intimate action turned into irritation as she swatted his hand away.     

"well, that is at least better than looking like a cross between a land animal and a sea animal," she was referring to the algae which was stuck to his clothes from the lake and his bushy hair which was sticking up like a porcupine.     

"Stop wasting time," he said in annoyance but Mriga simply snorted and walked past him to the enclosure which was covered with animal skin on all sides and had a thick flap at the entrance.     

Abhirath forestalled Mriga as she was about to move the flap. He put his ear to it first and closed his eyes.     

After a few seconds, he moved away and looked into Mriga's enquiring eyes. Many people who had crossed the lake by now had stopped just short of this pair. They were waiting for them to make the next move. But neither Mriga nor Abhirath were paying attention to them.     

"There seems to be some sort of buzzing sound but I can't seem to figure out anything else," he whispered.     

Mriga nodded and took a step back.     

"Give me a minute to think," with that she was lost in her thought.     

The people who had been expecting these two to go ahead became impatient and walked past them. Even Vindhya had hung back but now she pulled her partner and forged ahead.     

While Mriga did the opposite!     

"Uh, why are we going back to the lake?" Abhirath asked in surprise.     

"Because I am feeling left out. Why should you be the only one covered in slime?" with that cryptic answer, she pulled him into the water again.     

Abhirath yelped at the sudden push but before he could chastise her, she said, "We need to find enough algae to cover our exposed limbs," and then she dived inside.     

She surfaced after a few moments with the slimy thing in her hands. Scooping it carefully, she swam out and covered her face, neck and hands with it while waiting for Abhirath.     

"The only creatures which can cause a loud buzzing are the bees. I don't know which kind of them are inside but the toxins in these algae are enough to keep them from harming us. Not to mention, putting algae on one's face is good for the skin," Mriga offered the last bit as a cheeky explanation before running towards the covered den.     

Abhirath smiled and lengthened his strides but they both stopped as soon as they entered the enclosure. Though they were prepared for the unexpected, they wanted to take stock from a distance before going into it headlong. It was designed like a dome and smelled of leather and vegetation. But the real challenge was what laid ahead of them!