Nusantara Throne - Senandung Kebangkitan
Nirmala

In a magnificent and sturdy palace room. A ladyboy's head responded to Nirmala's shiny bronze hair affectionately. No pride could be painted by him every time he stroked a hair as smooth as that silk thread. The bronze color of Nirmala's hair is a sacred color, only she is the only daughter of descendants of King Mahardhika of the Nusantara Kingdom who inherited the color of her father's hair. While his sister named Sri Sekar, black hair as dark as night like his mother, Queen Ken Dara. Stories about the genealogy of Mahardhika descendants have been widespread throughout the country as the ruling kingdom of the holder of the Nusantara Throne in the Land of Emeralds.

            “The Princess's hair is always beautiful. I believe in this harvest season, every prince in the country will be willing to shed blood to marry the Princess.”

            “Ihsya,” Nirmala said the name of the leader's lady-in-waiting. Although he was uncomfortable, Nirmala still smiled kindly. “I've heard compliments since I was as high as my mother's hip. Treat me like your son, not the son of an unnamed god.”

            Ihsya looked down regretfully, she was stunned by Nirmala's humility. As the eldest daughter, Nirmala had grown up and was beautiful. Nirmala was seventeen years old, but her attitude had already shown the qualities of being the king's honorable and wise daughter.

            Nirmala did not want to respond to Ihsha's admiration. Ihsya has been taking care of her since she was a child, she considers Ihsya as a second mother when the queen is too busy taking care of political affairs with her father. Ihsha who taught Nirmala adab-civilized the king's daughter, spoke with courtesy, dressed with honor and danced the king's daughter's dance. However, Nirmala wanted to be considered an equal, not as a holy princess or a revered princess.

            Ihsya smiled, she brushed the oil believed to be a spice-based fragrance and dried jasmine mixture onto Nirmala's shoulders and neck. “The event is almost started, father and mother must have been waiting in the arena champion. It is better that the Princess appears as beautiful as the goddess of kahyangan and sewangi seven flower gardens.”

            Arena jawara thought Nirmala. He remembered today his name as the rightful heir of the Nusantara Throne. Maybe he didn't really want it today. Nirmala will force her body to sit among the shade palanquin of red brick-clad colored silk cloth with the king, queen and her sister. He was not ready to witness the bloodshed between champions from all over the country just to let himself become a matchmaking tool in the name of the kingdom.

            Nirmala was old enough to know that this day of naming was nothing but a reward for the strongest knights and warriors to be her future husband.

“Ihsya, wait outside, I'm too nervous for an event as important as this,” he said lying.

After Ihsha nodded and left, Nirmala turned to the window grimly. He looked at the countryside surrounding his palace. The houses stood like a light brown box with a small conical roof, white smoke soaring into the blue sky blending in with white clouds. Square towers are arranged to stand towering, made of red bricks. Through the corner of his eyes Nirmala could see the guardians who were busy pacing back and forth while grasping the bow.

For a moment he smiled looking at the hustle and bustle of people outside the walls of his palace. Tumultuous and loud they talked to each other. Nirmala could hear the cries of the homeless children playing outside the walls. For a moment he wished he could be outside the palace walls with the children, running around, shouting singing village chants, getting dirty and free.

As for now, he was standing within a majestic and sturdy palace with thousands of mighty warriors as strong as his father. His body was wrapped in cloth full of jewelery and silk trinkets with an elaborate banner symbol on his waist shawl, the fragrance of his skin pierced through a field of flowers, and he could walk like a noble princess, but Nirmala did not feel free, only lonely and hated.

In a much longer range of view. Nirmala looked at the expanse of green hills, and the flowing river. The clouds swarm white over the land without a name. He looked up and asked the sky. Can he go there? Riding and enjoying the fragrance of the original roses from the wildlands, he was tired of the fragrant oil fragrance in the palace.

Ihsha told me about it when Nirmala was a child. The area outside the palace was cruel. Previous kings shed blood to usurp the throne hundreds of years ago. Before finally his father became the winner and closed the crisis fifteen years ago. Mahardhika makes them have to bend their knees and declare loyalty. However, not with the dissident, the tiger demon king, Dotulong.

Although the head of King Dotulong was already beheaded by his father, the descendants of King Dotulong are said to still be in hiding and ascetic to restore the purity of inner knowledge, waiting for revenge.

Recalling that story Nirmala shuddered in horror. Is it true out there as scary as Ihsya's story. Is the tiger man really a true story? Nirmala never believed the story of my love legend. As far as his eyes could see, only the green plains as beautiful as gems stretched out indefinitely, and waves of hills loomed like rows of canine teeth.

A slow knocking was heard at the door.

“I'm ready Ihsya,” said Nirmala, getting lazy from the window.

However, what he saw outside the room was not Ihsya, but Mpu Lodrok, his father's adviser. Mpu Lodrok small and old. He had a white beard with eyes as sharp as a ferret. His back was already bent on a cradle with a copper-colored ulin wooden stick. His face was filled with black spots and wrinkles.

Nirmala does not like Mpu Lodrok. Often Nirmala's efforts to get out of the palace failed by her father's assertiveness due to the incitement of the adviser. Mpu Lodrok insisted on convincing the king to keep Nirmala inside the palace without ever seeing his people. As the princess's safety was threatened, Mpu Lodrok's words flashed in his mind.

Mpu Londrok approached Nirmala with a half-stroke step of the stick, behind him followed by Ihsya who stepped down.

“This is the first time the Princess will meet the champions,” Mpu Lodrok surrounds the body of the nirmala and ends on her face, she observes every detail of the folds of Nirmala's scarf, the bun ties and the fragrance of her body. “You have stood up as if the god is ready to pick you up, your smile accentuates the shade in your eyes, the champions will be willing to die for you.”

Rela died for me, what kind of princess would accept naming and matchmaking on the death of a man, Nirmala thought grievously.

“Walk with your ladies and meet the champions,” said Mpu Lodrok as he retreated back to Nirmala, and the ladies came flocking. Ihsha greeted Nirmala's arm, leading her on her way to the palace hall.

He walked down the brick steps that had been rubbed as smooth as marble to the hall. The soldiers lined up like rows of mighty statues. Each soldier half-kneeled as Nirmala passed a pair of soldiers at each step. Produces regular sound. Nirmala heard a boisterous sound from the roar. They all must have gathered in the main courtyard of the palace, he thought starting to get nervous.

Nirmala was sad, why did the father only allow the nobles and royal soldiers who attended the fighting area in the courtyard. She wanted her people to enliven her, to see herself as the complete daughter of the king. Nirmala wanted to appear and meet his people who lived behind the palace walls, not the nobles who were used to enjoying the luxury that was quite boring for him.

Nirmala passed by the ladies and the slaves, and she came to the palace courtyard with bricks. The courtyard was crowded with hanging ornaments from vines. The brownish-skinned men strolled among the leaves towards the fighting arena at the end of the pillar path. Most of them bare-chested, muscular, bulging muscles show sturdy fibers behind the copper-colored skin of the champions. Their heads are mostly bare and partly in braids coiled up to the back.

The soldiers of the noble family guards wore kawacas and scarves with their respective banners. The tough men rarely took their eyes off Nirmala, as if the look in her eyes froze at the beauty of the graceful bronze-haired princess, the eldest child of the ruling king, King Mahardhika.

Nirmala was getting nervous, Mpu Lodrok then whispered behind her, “Master Princess looks shaky, I can imagine how much they want to fuck the princess of the king, although probably many of them will die here.”

“After this naming is done, let me confine myself, I hate blood,” replied Nirmala. He wanted to run into hiding, but Mpu Lodrok and the soldiers were watching. When Nirmala entered the arena, she felt uncomfortable.

On the West side of the arena, his father sat with his mother. The king's family on the roof with a seven-color cloth embroidered with the best silk material. Dayang-dayang unceasingly around bring a lot of dishes scented pungent and arak made from nira.

His sister Sri Sekar, sat next to his mother. Sri Sekar never changed, she was the only princess who was sturdy like a soldier, her appearance was like a man, flat-chested and short-haired.

 Nirmala looked at her father from a distance. His face was loud and ruthless, there was a feeling of anger harbored due to Nirmala's delay in attending. Nirmala knew her father could not wait to begin the bloodshed between the mighty men from all over the country.

Nirmala actually wanted to cry. Nirmala turned around and saw Mpu Lodrok busy smiling and bowing, accompanying the ward to their seats. Nirmala brushed off the tears that almost dripped from her cheeks with the back of her finger.

“It's okay Mr. Princess, everything will be fine,” Ihsya feel pity, although from the tone of Ihsya's voice, Nirmala knows they both don't want to be there.

Nirmala tried to smile, and walked upright, walking through the crowd towards her empty seat next to the father.

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