Jambavan tutted. “Come all this way without doing your research? You should know better than that, child.”
Aru swallowed back a retort by taking a sip of her hot chocolate. Meh. Brynne’s was way better.
“It’s my claim to fame, obviously,” said Jambavan. “Lord Krishna came here seeking the Syamantaka Gem. He had suggested that a nobleman named Satyajit relinquish it to their king so its wealth could be shared with the people of Dwarka. But Satyajit refused out of greed and selfishness.” The bear shook his great head. “Mankind is stubborn. You can lead them to a pool of righteousness and they will still prefer their poisoned wells. After a while, all that is lovely and bright tarnishes beneath their gaze….”
As he said this, Jambavan stared into the fire. For all his might, he looked old and tired. Silver streaked his broad chest and long muzzle. Scars that Aru hadn’t noticed until now roped his haunches with thick, pale stripes.
“The jewel had been a gift, you see,” continued the bear. “From the sun god, Lord Surya, to Satyajit. Whosoever possessed the gem was promised riches and freedom from sickness, and when Satyajit wore it, people mistook him for the sun god himself.”
Aru could see the story unfurling in the flames. A middle-aged nobleman donning a necklace of illustrious light. The way his smile turned from shy…to smug.
“Satyajit lent the jewel to his brother, Prasena, who wore it as if it were nothing more than an ornament.”
The images churned, and Aru saw a different man hunting in the forest. He was surrounded by such a light that even the animals were momentarily transfixed by its brightness. Suddenly, a lean, furred body leaped out of the brush….
“He was killed, of course, as foolish men should be,” huffed Jambavan. “The lion made off with the jewel, and that was how I came to obtain it.”
The flames flashed, revealing a tussle between the massive Jambavan and the muscular lion. Aru looked away when Jambavan’s claws took hold of the feline’s jaws.
“By that time, Satyajit had accused Lord Krishna of having killed Prasena to get the Syamantaka Gem. To clear his name, Lord Krishna sought me out. I care naught for the jewels of men, and I had given it to one of my children to play with,” said Jambavan airily.
Sure enough, the flames showed a small bear cub knocking around the huge jewel. Behind him, a figure that could only be Lord Krishna appeared. He was wearing a small crown with a peacock feather tucked into the ornate metalwork.
“I am the strongest living entity,” said Jambavan. “If anyone wished to take anything from me, they had to prove themselves worthy of my belongings.”
The images shifted, revealing a clearing before the cave. Lord Krishna had removed his peacock crown. Jambavan wore a dhoti around his hips and legs. With a furious roar, he charged at the god, who smiled mischievously in return. A crowd gathered to watch them. The opponents’ heels dug great trenches into the ground while the sun and moon spiraled above them.
“After twenty-eight days I conceded and gave him the jewel,” said Jambavan. “As a sign of goodwill, I even offered him my own daughter, Jambavati, as a wife!”
In the flames, Aru watched as a tall lady bear draped in silk and wearing a crown of flowers took Lord Krishna’s hand in her paw. He looked at her lovingly, and slowly she was engulfed in light. When the light receded, a beautiful woman stood before him. Her hair was the same color as the bear’s fur, and when she smiled, her teeth were a little more pointed than a regular human’s. Lord Krishna beamed at her all the same and hung a garland of flowers around her neck.
“When Lord Krishna passed from the material world, a piece of the Syamantaka Gem was returned to me,” said Jambavan. “Many have come looking for it, but none deserve it. Humans are simply not fit for such a treasure, and yet they all believe otherwise. Why, every warrior who has stepped foot in my cave hoped that by defeating me they would wrest it from my possession!”
“Wouldyou give the jewel to someone who beat you in combat?” asked Brynne.
Jambavan only laughed. “It is impossible. No one but Lord Krishna was strong enough to make me forfeit my treasure. Which is just as well. The world is at its end…I can feel it.” He paused, stretching a paw toward the fire. “No one, not even myself, is strong enough to stop change.”
“Maybe that’s not true,” said Aru.
Jambavan arched the tuft of white fur above his eyes. “Pardon?”
“We’re not interns,” said Aiden, rising from the couch. Rudy joined him, looking only too happy to leap off the skins-of-my-enemies cushion.
“We are the reincarnations of the Pandavas,” said Mini, raising her chin. “We’re demigods.”
“Things in the Otherworld arebad, King Jambavan,” said Aru. “Right now, the Sleeper and—” Her voice caught. She couldn’t bring herself to say Kara’s name, and the wordsmy sisterhad almost snuck up on her. “And his, um,accompliceare making their way through the labyrinth to find the nectar of immortality and end Time. We can’t stop them without that last piece of the Sun Jewel.”
“If you give it to us, we can change all this,” said Brynne. “We can prevent the end of the world.”
Jambavan stared up at them, his rheumy eyes aglow. Slowly, he set down his hot chocolate and stood. Before, the king of the bears had walked with a stoop, but now he stretched to his full height. He towered over the fireplace, rising to almost twenty feet.
“Oh, children, you are operating under a misconception,” said Jambavan in his low, gravelly voice. “You see, I’m quite ready for the world to end.”
“What?” asked Aru, nearly dropping her mug of hot chocolate.
Jambavan smiled, and the sight raised the hairs on the back of her neck. Slowly, the bear king steepled his claws.
“But we’re…we’re the Pandavas,” repeated Mini, confused. “We can change—”
