"Sacrifice is like tobacco. It is an addiction. When someone sacrifices something for you, you expect them to do it again, and again, and again. Over and over. You expect people around yourself to sacrifice something, and everything, until there is nothing left of them but empty shells, and you only have left yourself to sacrifice, sitting with all the riches and happinesses in the world but one."

Ravan wasn't going easy on them, and Ram knew that the very moment the soldiers charged out of the golden gates all over again. Sure, there wasn't a champion of the battlefield this time around, but that didn't mean Ravan had run out of them, or that he had given up. If Ram knew anything about the demon king, it was that he would never give up Sita willingly. It was much too late for that now. Even Ram, who saw the best in everyone, knew that. He clenched his eyes together and walked away.

-----O-----

Somewhere in the middle of everything and the start of nothing, the loud caw of an eagle interrupted a tense meeting with the generals. Ram lifted up the cloth of the tent and stepped outside, followed by Mainda, Rishabha, and Dwivida. (Lakshman was out fighting) Sugriv also stepped out. The giant brown bird, with its large, majestic wings approached ever nearer, flying over the vast Indian Ocean, and the generals just watched.

Dwivida put his arm out, being an experienced falconer himself, but the eagle flew over him and landed on Mainda's shoulder. Something dropped form its talons, and Mainda nimbly caught it before it touched the ground. Glancing around, he slowly unraveled the scroll, his beady eyes scanning over the paper before he set it down on the table grimly. Sugriv and Ram exchanged a look as Mainda exhaled.

"My father is sick," he murmured. "They fear he is going to die. He has not arranged his finances well. We do not know what will happen to the small amount of family money that we do have stored." The monkey rubbed his eyes as Aniya too walked out, having spotted the scroll from inside the hut, where she often told jokes and stories to keep the injured and Healers (and Jal) upbeat. She grabbed the scroll, and quickly read it.

"If it is such a terrible situation, Mainda, perhaps you should head back as soon as possible," Sugriv murmured reluctantly, but he nonetheless put a hand on the general's shoulder. "Your family needs you. Family is the most important thing. Perhaps we can still hold it up from this side of the camp." A loud screech, pained and tired sounding, interrupted Sugriv's words, and everyone except Ram, Mainda, Rishabha, and the eagle jumped.

So only Dwivida and Aniya then, which was weird, but that's okay. "Bad timing!" Sugriv roared, before turning back to his general. "Anyways, as I was saying, if your family needs you, Mainda, I shall grant you leave. It is your family finances after all. That is, if Prabhu Shri Ram is alright with it-" Sugriv turned around, and Ram nodded, his eyes empathetic.

Mainda stared at Sugriv as if all his hopes and dreams were crushed (which they probably were, but whatever). Aniya glanced at the scroll again, before looking up. "What if I go?" she asked. Everyone turned towards her, and she stood taller in the face of attention. "I know enough about finances to help dada. I'm also not contributing as much to the war effort as papa. Perhaps I should go instead. Papa wants to fight. What is the duty of a daughter but to fulfill her father's wishes?"

Mainda stared at Aniya as if all of his newly crushed dreams had been revived. (Aniya-the Dream Doctor. Call 1-800-DREAM-DOCTOR today for a quote! Only 100000 rupees!). Sugriv glanced between the two of them, before sighing. "If you have taken it up, Aniya beti, then sure." he paused. "Angad!" he called out, and Angad, in mere moments, had rushed in from the battlefield and stood by Sugriv's side. "Help Aniya with her packing, would you? She is returning to the mainland soon."

Angad glanced at Aniya, before clearing his throat. "Come on!" he squeaked in a manner that sounded cheerful enough to everyone, but had an underlying something in it which Aniya couldn't quite decipher or understand. Nonetheless, she followed him inside as he lifted up a large jute sack and started collecting the minimal things she had brought, scampering around and not looking her in the eyes. Aniya followed him with her own eyes, swallowing hard. "I shall miss you," she began. "Kishkindha will not be the same without the Yuvraj who always ends up at the wrong place at the wrong time!" She laughed feebly.

Angad glanced up at her once, before quickly looking down again. "And it'll not be the same without your lame jokes!" he declared, and Aniya smacked him so loudly, with a huff, though they both smiled at the end.

-----O-----

And Ram knew that he was right about Ravan not going easy on them, the moment that the doors of Lanka opened for the second time in a single day. Angad noticed it first, pointing, eyes widening. Soon, the golden sparkle of the doors caught everyone's eye, from monkeys to rakshasas. Many dropped their weapons, eyes caught by the two rakshasas galloping out, appeased by the attention they got.

Soon, one stopped his horse, and the other stopped behind him. Chests heaving from effort, sweat beading their golden necks, jewels lining their chests and necks, up to their crowns, it was impossible for them not to be the center of attention, forget to get none at all. Much like their father, Kumbhakaran, Kumbha and Nikumbha commanded attention, leaving everyone's conscience at their mercy.

Sugriv swallowed hard, and beside him, Hanuman stretched his arm, his eyes never leaving the two powers as they ran through the army on their horses, spears reaching further down than anything, collecting monkeys like Pokemons. Ram wrapped a dark hand around the grip of his bow, and next to him, Lakshman cracked his knuckles, flexing his hands. Angad exhaled, pacing back and forth. It was two against so many, but these two were worth more, it seemed, than six of Ravan's sons. And that was something to worry about.

-----O-----

Kumbha was a magnificent fighter, relying on nothing but his weapons and wit to fight, with a build similar to his uncle, tall and lean (the potbelly is out of the picture, it seems). Some compared his style to the late general Prahast's. And Prahast was dead. Perhaps this was something to be thankful about, but to the monkeys who surrounded the demon's horse, and were soon killed, either trampled or personally impaled, it didn't matter. Prahast was not Kumbha. They were different.

But the vanar army was confident. Hadn't their lords and generals defeated so many before? Who were these sons of Kumbhakaran compared to Ravan himself, whom Ram had defeated so easily just days ago? Angad grasped his mace and ran off before having to be told by Sugriv, who was surrounded by rakshasas, bruising them with his own club, throwing them straight onto the swords of other rakshasas.

As the crown prince ran, he slowed down enough just to pick up a large boulder upon the ground, which was already plenty smeared by the blood of other demons (the vanars believed in reducing, reusing, and recycling). Placing it upon his strong back, Angad continued to run, kicking up dust, seemingly not even affected by the heavy cargo on his back. As his pathway cleared, many demons tried to attack him, thinking that the crown prince was affected by the heavy rock on his spine. Angad brushed them all aside with one wave of his hand.

The three demons, ordered by Ravan to lead the legions in the absence of Kumbha and Nikumbha, stood close to each other, galloping in circles on their horses, kicking up dust, and throwing their spears far and wide. With one great leap, a scream escaped Angad's mouth. "Jai Shri Ram!" The chant echoed as all three of them were crushed by the immense boulder, which bounced back in the air, and was quickly caught by Hanuman, who rolled it towards Rishabha, who used it to kill another demon, who was about to stab him.

As Kumbha and Nikumbha looked around, Sugriv sent ten rakshasas flying, Hanuman ripped one apart with his bare hands, Rishabha leapt into the air, seemingly having taken flight with his invisible wings and smashed through the armor of another opponent. Angad seemed intent on kicking demons off their horses and then ripping their hearts out of their bodies. Mainda smashed two heads against each other, waving around the crushed skulls. Dwivida lifted another struggling demon into the air and down onto a waiting sword.

Kumbha roared with malicious intent greater than all the vanars surrounding himself. The crowd parted in front of him to reveal a bristling Angad, who rolled his shoulders, patting his biceps provokingly. Kumbha lifted his bow, his immense silver bow, and shot arrows towards the crown prince, who bounced this way and that, dodging them all. Angad did not get hurt, not even once, but the trouble was, he couldn't get closer to Kumbha's chariot either.

Kumbha did not have a refilling quiver, and as he leaned down to refill it as the last few arrows still flew through the air, Dwivida and Mainda rushed to Angad's side. Anagd glanced at them gratefully. "We have come to help you, Yuvraj." Mainda murmured. "What use are we but to help Prabhu Shri Ram? Three against one on a chariot is plenty fair." Dwivida, a vanar of few words, nodded along. Kumbha's eyes flashed red as he lifted his bow again.

"ARGH!" he shouted, releasing three arrows at once. The three generals dodged them. This round, however, Kumbha was a little more accurate. He lifted up an arrow flashing faintly with dim green light. He strung it on his bow, and pointed it towards Angad, who dodged it. But the wind blew it towards an unsuspecting Dwivida, who was promptly pierced in the upper chest by it. He stumbled, for a moment, glancing at the arrow before falling.

Dwivida glanced at Angad, and in that moment, Kumbha selected his next arrow, quite similar to the previous, except this time, it was a light red, flashing with light power. Right as Dwivida looked back, the arrow rushed towards him. It was made for his stomach, to run right through his intestines, but Dwivida squatted, and it ran through his shoulders, piercing a nearby tree. The arrow left behind an open, gaping wound.

Before Dwivida fully fell, fainting, Messenger Healers quickly rushed to the scene, dragging the two fainted vanars away before their wounds could be infected by the rocky dirt and dust. Only Angad remained, springing towards Kumbha. The rakshasas raised his hands as if to protect himself, eyes widening, but in the last moment, remembered of the spears he kept. He glanced at Angad, his mouth curving into a smile, fangs poking out as if to say (AHOLAAAAAAAA Amigos! Welcome to Hawaii-lah! Do the boogie with me! Oh wait, this is Kumbhas mouth). The shafts of sleep raced towards Angad, who was promptly hit, and fell down, right in front of the hooves of Kumbha's horse.

The rakshas smirked, ready to trample the crown prince, when he was swept by a crowd of vanars, wide-eyed and surprised. Kumbha's smile vanished. Ah, how he wished he could hear the scream of the crown prince of the vanars as he was crushed underneath his horse's hooves. It would be a good end to something as filthy and disgusting as a monkey. He sighed angrily.

From the tents, Jambavan left his healing for once, grasping a clubas his fur stood up vertically in anger. His fangs and claws glistened in the sunlight, and he ran towards Kumbha, who, noticing the Bear King, began his steady onslaught of arrows. Jambavan, nimble but not quite as much as Angad, survived the first few seconds, but was eventually shot down by an arrow to the lower leg. Kumbha was about to crush him with a rock when he too was lifted up. Shaking his head, Kumbha growled. "Fate, why must you steal such an opportunity from me? God help me, next time another one faints, I should hear his screams."

The clouds parted ever so slightly as Lord Indra, King of the Gods, as well as everyone else, who had been watching the battle eagerly from the Heavens, shrunk back. "Uh, no." he said, his voice sounding as if he had just seen a dead and gutted mouse lying on his porch. He blanched. "How about, we get to hear your screams, hmm?"

Goddess Saraswati rubbed her temples, shaking her head. "These demons do not apply their wit. I do not understand, for the war would have gone so much better if they had just put their mind to some use for once. For example, how about not starting it in the first place against a Lord Vishnu incarnate, and just, I don't know, returning poor Sita to her rightful husband? That would have been nice. But I suppose Ravan does need to die." she turned away. "Call me when someone acts smart."

Narad, who had been visiting the heavens for some time, popped a kernel of popcorn into his mouth, catching it as it flew into the air. "Oh look!" he cried excitedly. "I can sense a fight coming on!"

Kumbha turned around on his horse and made to gallop away when a rain of pebbles hit his back. He whirled around, eyes as wide as saucers as he turned back. Someone had pushed through the fighting crowd of monkeys and rakshasas. Someone stronger than Mainda, Dwivida, Rishabha, Angad, and Jambavan, and any challenger that Kumbha had ever faced before. A warrior greater than any nephew of Ravan had ever faced. Sugriv, son of Surya, faced him, his mouth curled up into a snarl.

A/N-This was supposed to be published yesterday! I checked, and there were no comments or votes, and I was kinda sad, but I figured you all must be busy or something! So I went to check the chapter, and there was NO chapter! Sorry! I thought I published it! Honestly! Ugh.