Week 13 Storytelling: Kumby's Plan

(Kumbhakarna from Smite Game Official Wiki)

As he slumbered the pounding of drums and the ringing of trumpets rolled through his unconscious mind.  Though he was cursed to slumber for half of the year, Kumby still absorbed the happenings around him. Kumby slumbered on but the pounding of drums grew steadily louder. He rolled over, covering his ears with his massive arms. However, his giant arms were not enough to drown out the sounds.

"Kumby! Wake up brother, I need you now!"  a distant voice called, cutting through the fog in his mind.

"Rav?" he muttered groggily.

The voice called again. Kumby's eyes opened slowly blinking away the sleep. He rubbed at them with the backs of his meaty hands.

"Kumby, brother, the kingdom is under attack. We are at war. I need you fighting beside me," Rav said, clapping his brother on his enormous shoulder.

Kumby, the giant, blinked again willing all of the grogginess out of his mind.

"What war? Lanka is under siege?" he asked in confusion.

"Yes, Rama, an exiled prince, and his army of monkeys and forest creatures bombard the city. I need your help, our people need your help," Rav pleaded, invoking a tone of pity in his voice.

"Brother, you are the king, why do they attack us? You surely know their reasoning," Kumby asked, sitting up from his huge bed and swinging his legs to the floor.

Rav hesitated before answering.

"Sita. The most beautiful woman I have ever seen. She was alone in the forest so I took her to be my wife. Rama...Rama is her husband," Rav finished, a slight hint of shame tinging his voice.

"YOU PUT OUR KINGDOM AT RISK BECAUSE YOU KIDNAPPED A MARRIED WOMAN!?" Kumby boomed, his voice shaking the walls and rattling dusk from the rafters.

"No, brother, I will not fight for you. I will not allow you to continue this war. You must return Sita to her husband. This is not right, Rav, and you know it," Kumby said more calmly than before. He could not support a war that was because of his brother's wrongful actions. Rav was his older brother but he would not follow him this time, not after what he has done.

Rav grew angry and shouted at his brother: "IF YOU DO NOT HELP US WE WILL BE DEFEATED. DO YOU WANT THE DEATH OF OUR PEOPLE ON YOUR HEAD!?"

"No, brother, their deaths will be on your head, not mine. You have stolen the wife of another man and now you are suffering the consequences. Did you not think he would come for her? Did you not think he would rescue you no matter the cost, even if that meant assembling an army of beasts? No, I say again, I will not fight for you. Return Sita,"  Kumby said exasperatedly, standing his ground. Although he was the younger brother Kumby possed wisdom and calm his brother, the king, did not have.

Rav stalked off shaking with anger. Kumby knew that Rav felt too strongly about Sita to think clearly. He also knew that he could do nothing to convince him. Now that he had been awakened from his forced slumber her would do something. Something to stop his brother.

Kumby left his giant chambers, stalking the palace grounds on legs the size of ancient tree trunks. The ground shook underfoot as he made his way toward the beautiful garden that served as Sita's prison. The Rakshasas hissed upon his approached, warning him not to come any closer. But Kumby roared in return and grasped the captain of Sita's Rakshasa guards in one of his massive hands drawing him up close to his face.

"You will not harm me and we both know it. I am of royal blood so you may not raise a hand to me, regardless of your orders," Kumby growled. He sat the captain of the guard back on his feet. The Raksasha motioned for his men to stand down.

Kumby approached a Raksashi who stood alone near the entrance to Sita's garden whispering through the screen. Kumby recognized her as he neared, it was Tri, his cousin.

"Cousin, what has your brother done?" she sighed as Kumby approached. Hugging one of the giant's shins for it was at her chest level.

"I am afraid he is not thinking clearly, Trijatha. He is blinded by this woman's beauty. But, with your help, I can bring this war to an end. We must free her and return her to Rama. He will surely return to the mainland and leave Lanka in peace if his wife is returned to him. What say you?" Kumby asked, leaning in close to whisper in his cousin's ear.

"I will help. Sita and I have become close friends. I believe my father will help as well. What is your plan wise cousin?" Tri said.

Kumby, leaning even closer, began to whisper his plan into her ear. And so, a plan was hatched to win Sita her freedom...

Author's Note: In this section of Sita's Ramayana, Ravana the demon king awakens his cursed brother, the giant Kumbhakarna. Kumbhakarna is cursed to sleep for six months out of the year but Ravana summons musicians to make a commotion until Kumbhakarna wakes up. When the giant wakes up he is told about the war being fought with Rama. Kumbhakarna tells his brother he does not agree with him taking Sita against her will because she is another man's wife. But he also cannot go against the wish of his older brother so he fights for him anyway. He is very hungry since he has been sleeping for months so he begins to devour the monkeys fighting for Rama. Eventually, Rama defeats Kumbhakarna by using the Brahma Astra. A weapon akin to a nuclear missile, if Rama were to miss his shot the whole world could be destroyed. But Rama's aim is true and the giant is defeated, crushing an entire legion of the Vanara when he falls.

I wanted to take the aspect of Kumbhakarna not agreeing with Ravana's war and run with it. I thought it would be interesting to tell the story from Kumbhakarna point of view and make him one of the rescuers instead of an ally of Sita's captor. I also shortened their names in the story because honestly, they're all a mouth full and really hard to type multiple times.

Bibliography: Sita's Ramayana by Samhita Arni & Moyna Chitrakar (2011). Print.