Lawawi Girang couldn't dodge it anymore. The three-edged spear Uiung quickly stabbed his chest. "Aaahh...!"
"Uncle...!" shouted Kitri Boga when he saw Lawawi Girang collapse with his chest torn apart.
Kitri Boga was caught off guard, at that moment a heavy blow lodged in his back. The young man slumped down and kissed the grassy ground. Before he could stand up, three people in red robes threw ropes at him. Kitri Boga could no longer escape. Three mines quickly wrapped around his body. His beloved pure silver sword, fell on the ground at his feet.
The three robed people holding the rope, simultaneously jerked the rope. And like a wad of cotton in a sack, Kitri Boga's body lifted up, immediately stood up. The three people spun quickly around Kitri Boga, so that the ropes tightly wrapped around his body. Kitri Boga is really helpless now.
"Take him away. His Majesty will be pleased to receive this gift!" one of the red-robed ones ordered.
Three people immediately approached and carried Kitri Boga's body. The young man struggled trying to get free, but in vain. The bonds that shackled his entire body were so strong.
Feeling that there was no point in struggling, Kitri Boga remained silent and resigned. His eyes watched the path taken by the mob that took him. They headed for the rock wall that resembled a fortress.
Kitri Boga opened his eyes wide, because the large and sturdy stone wall shifted like a gate. Those red robes continued to step inside. And the stone wall closed again, emitting a roar like an earthquake. And the atmosphere around the battle just now became quiet. There was nothing left to see, except Lawawi Girang's corpse which lay with its chest torn and covered in blood.
***
That afternoon the sun was shining very hot. The rays were scorching hot, breaking through the iron spokes of the hollow stone walls, warming the small room. The room only contained a wooden cot located in the corner. On the cot, Kitri Boga lay unconscious. The sunlight warmed his face, making the young man shiver.
Kitri Boga slowly blinked her eyes. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the feeling of war that invaded his head. Kitri Boga immediately jolted awake and sat up.
"Oh! Where am I?" complained Kitri Boga softly.
Kitri Boga tried to remember what happened. His pair of eyes circulated looking at this small, stone-walled room.
There was only one tightly closed door and a small window with iron bars.
Slowly, Kitri Boga began to remember what had happened to him. Yes He
have arrived at the top of Arang Lawu Hill with Lawawi Girang. And they were attacked by ten people in red robes. Lawawi Girang was killed, and he was tied up and taken to their headquarters.
At that point, Kitri Boga didn't remember anything else. As soon as he was brought in, one of the people carrying him hit him on the back of the head. At that moment he fainted. And suddenly I was in this small room like a prison. Kitri Boga was shocked beyond belief, because all his weapons had been removed from his body.
"Ah, is this the Red Castle?" Kitri Boga wondered to himself.
Kitri Boga got up from the bed. His feet stepped closer to the only small window in this room. The window hole fits his head perfectly. Several people dressed in red were seen holding three-pronged spears at the ends, standing guard. Kitri Boga narrowed his eyes slightly when he saw that there was a kind of large cage containing young women.
Around him there were several people wearing red robes. Not far from there, there are several wooden stakes erected. Next to it is a large stone altar. Kitri Boga gasped as his eyes turned to the left. There was a pile of human skull bones piled up from inside a large hole. Again his eyes turned to the cage containing the young women, the altar, and several wooden stakes.
"What exactly is this place?" asked Kitri Boga in a whisper.
Kitri Boga turned around, leaning against the stone wall under the small window. His mind was spinning thinking about everything he had just seen. Various questions ran through his head, but none of them were answered. His eyes shifted to the door when he heard the sound of a chain and lock being opened. The iron door slowly opened with a loud noise.
Three red-robed people stepped in when the door was fully opened. Two more people just stood by the door. The three of them approached Kitri Boga, of which the two simultaneously stuck their spearheads into the young man's body.
"Come with us, and don't act too much!" said the person standing in front of Kitri Boga.
"Where to?" asked Kitri Boga.
"Don't ask too many questions, come along!" the person snapped as he turned around.
Kitri Boga was forced to obey, because one of them pushed him with the pressure of a spear. Kitri Boga tried to see the faces of the people in red robes who were leading her, but only a black shape was visible. His entire head was covered with a red cloth that was disguised as a long robe covering his entire body.
They took Kitri Boga through a long and winding corridor. This hallway is like a cave, with several torches for lighting attached to the walls at a certain distance. They continued walking down the hall. There are several doors on the left and right of the hallway, guarded by two people wearing red robes at each door. Kitri Boga was sure that the doors were the doors to a prison room like the one he was in earlier.
The three people in red robes carried Kitri Boga outside. The young man continued to be led towards several wooden stakes that he had seen earlier from the detention room. Kitri Boga is tied to one of the posts. The young man looked at the cage containing several young women. The women looked listless without enthusiasm for life.
"Wait! What do you mean by bringing me here?" Kitri Boga stopped when the person leading him was about to pass.
"I told you, shut up! Huh!" thump!
"Hugh!"
Kitri Boga ducked slightly when the person's fist entered his stomach. Suddenly his stomach felt nauseous. His eyes became dim, and his vision was blurry. The red-robed people continued to walk away, leaving him alone tied to a pole.
"Uh! Damn," snorted Kitri Boga. "Brother Kandara Jaya must have been anxiously waiting for me. Hopefully he will really come here."
Kitri Boga's face started to sweat, the sunlight was so hot it was right above her head. The soles of his feet began to feel hot as if they were on burning coals. The surrounding area consists of a stretch of sand and gravel, so the air around it is very hot. Kitri Boga closed her eyes. He meditated trying to channel the pure air, resisting the heat of the sun which was so blazing and hot.
"Heeeh, how long will I be here...?"
***
The day went by slowly. Kandara Jaya was sure that Rangga and Pandan Wangi were not from the Puri Merah gang. In fact, he did not hesitate to give further information about the Puri Merah group, which is said to nest at the top of Arang Lawu Hill. Rangga himself explained that he and Pandan Wangi were on this hill because they were following horse hooves.
"So, the trail disappeared over the edge of the cliff?" asked Kandara Jaya, who was still keeping his true identity a secret.
"That's right. I tried to follow the trail, but somehow I got lost here," said Rangga.
"It must have been the Puri Merah people who destroyed the village," muttered Kandara Jaya.
"I don't know for sure who did it. What is clear is that the situation in the village was very sad. All the residents were killed, no one was alive," Pandan Wangi continued.
"They are cruel people. I have been trying to destroy them for a long time," said Kandara Jaya again.
They continued to talk and exchange ideas as they walked. Without realizing it, they had reached the edge of a large and deep ravine. Kandara Jaya inspected the ravine. He was stunned to find that the yano tendrils continued and broke in the middle. He was reminded of Kitri Boga and Lawawi Girang,
Around the edge of this ravine there are many horse hooves. So clearly written on the wet grass. The trail disappeared and stopped here. It seemed impossible for the horses to go down the ravine! which is very steep and deep. This is what you think! Ranga.
Pandan Wangi secretly checked around the edge of the cliff, following the many horse hooves. The girl looked all the way to a tall, dense bush. Here the horse's footprints also disappeared. With a stick, Pandan Wangi opened the bushes. His eyes widened, because behind the bush there was a cavity. It looks like the mouth of a cave.
"Brother...!" Pandan Wangi shouted "What's wrong?" Rangga asked, immediately jumping up
come over.
"There is a cave," said Pandan Wangi as he continued to push aside the dry bushes that seemed to be deliberately covering the mouth of the cave. Kandara Jaya also immediately approached and examined the condition of the cave mouth which was now wide open.
"I'll check for a moment," said Rangga as he stepped into the cave.
Rangga walked slowly with an alert attitude. The situation in this cave is not too dark because there is still a little light coming in. At the bottom of this elongated cave there are many horse footprints. Rangga continued walking along this long cave corridor. And he was stunned when he saw many horses gathered in a wide and bright room.
The top of the room had a big hole like the crater of a very large mountain. There's no one here. It's hard to count how many horses there are in this room. Ranga rolled her eyes. All walls are made of rough stones formed by nature. It seemed like this was the only hallway that existed.
Rangga immediately returned to meet Pandan Wangi and Kandara Jaya who were waiting outside. The Rajawali Sakti warrior stepped quickly, so that it wasn't long before he was at the mouth of this cave.
"How?" asked Kandara Jaya impatiently.
"There's no one inside. This cave is a dead end," said Rangga.
"Dead end...?!" Pandan Wangi didn't seem to believe it.
"Yes, dead end. This cave is where the horses are kept."
"What...?!" Kandara Jaya was surprised
"There are dozens of horses in there, but no one can be seen," Rangga explained again.
"Impossible! Then where did those people go?" Kandara Jaya grumbled.
Rangga didn't answer. His eyes stared straight at the ground. Indeed, there are only horse hooves. But.... Suddenly he gasped, and immediately squatted down. His hands fumbled around the grass. Rangga continued to follow thin human footprints that alternated with horse footprints. It's very thin, so it's hard to see if you're not really careful.
The Sacred Eagle Warrior stopped when he arrived at the edge of a large and deep abyss. Again he took a deep, long breath. All traces seem to be cut off at the edge of this ravine. Slowly the Sacred Eagle Warrior stood up. Pandan Wangi and Kandara Jaya were already beside him.
"You ever clashed with them?" asked Rangga without taking his eyes off the top of the hill which was shrouded in thick fog.
"Once, several times," said Kandara Jaya. "What do you think?" Rangga asked again. "The level of their intelligence is indeed very high. But not all of them. There are also those who are not bad, even those who are low," explained Kandara Jaya.
"Approximately, how many people have high enough intelligence?"
"I don't know for sure. But the one wearing the red robe, I think the one with quite high intelligence. The exact number I don't know." "Hm..." He mumbled incoherently.
The Rajawali Sakti warrior turned his gaze to Pandan Wangi who was standing to his left. Then his gaze returned to the other side of the ravine.
"You can jump over this cliff, Pandan?" asked Ranga.
"Maybe," said Pandan Wangi hesitantly. "Try doing it!"
"What...?! Crazy! You want to make me a guinea pig, huh?" Pandan Wangi grumbled angrily.
"I just want to know. That way, we can measure the level of intelligence they have," Rangga's voice sounded calm. "Let me!" argued Kandara Jaya. "Don't!" prevent Rangga. "Why? Me or your sister are the same!" "Sorry, it's not that I don't believe in your abilities. But it's better to let Pandan Wangi try first."
Pandan Wangi remained silent. He didn't want to argue with this Sacred Eagle Warrior. She had been with Rangga for a long time, so she already knew all about his character and actions. Indeed, sometimes Rangga's actions and thoughts are very difficult to understand. But Pandan Wangi was sure that everything Rangga had said had of course also thought about the consequences. The young swordsman couldn't let Pandan Wangi get hurt.
Without saying much more, Pandan Wangi immediately screamed loudly, and his body soared high into the air.
Several somersaults in the air to increase the swing of the jump, but Pandan Wangi had not yet made it across. The girl's body felt like it was sinking downwards.
"Hey..!" suddenly Rangga jerked his hand towards Pandan Wangi's body which was ready to be crushed at the bottom of the ravine.
From the palm of the Sacred Eagle Warrior's palm, a bluish-white beam of light rushed across the abyss. Meanwhile, Pandan Wangi's body continued to decay profusely as if being sucked in by the mouth of the abyss.
"Brother...!" Pandan Wangi screamed in horror.
"Hiya...! Hiyaaa...!" Rangga added strength in his attempt to launch the light to reach Pandan Wangi's body.
But the tip of the white light did not reach Pandan Wangi's body which continued to sink deeper and deeper into the thick foggy abyss. A shriek resounded and echoed from the abyss.
"Pandaaan...!" Rangga shouted loudly.
Pandan Wangi's high-pitched screams disappeared when his body was swallowed up by the mist that covered the inside of the ravine. Rangga shouted for Pandan Wangi. Meanwhile, the girl's body had disappeared into the abyss.
"Oh! Pandan...," groaned Rangga, then fell limply to his knees
***
"Rangga..." Kandara Jaya held the shoulder of Rangga who was kneeling on the edge of the abyss.
Slowly the head of the Sacred Eagle Warrior turned to look at Kandara Jaya. Then his gaze returned to the abyss in front of him. The situation inside the ravine remained dark and foggy. There was no more sound there.
"I'm sorry, Pandan. I didn't mean to harm you," groaned Rangga softly.
"Rangga...," Kandara Jaya's voice was heard softly.
"No! He can't die! I..., I love him. I love Pandan Wangi. Noooo...!" Rangga became hysterical.
Kandara Jaya is confused by Rangga's hysterical attitude. He didn't understand the meaning of Rangga's words. He thought that Pandan Wangi was really Rangga's younger brother. But the words that came out of Rangga's mouth... It seemed that Pandan Wangi was a lover who was very loved.
"Listen to me, Pandan! Listen. I love you, Pandan. I love you...!" Rangga's voice was so loud, that it echoed in all directions.
"Rangga..., calm down. Rangga," Kandara Jaya
trying to calm Hari Rangga who was being whipped with regret, for having asked Pandan Wangi to jump over this abyss.
Rangga stood up straight. Two teary eyeballs appeared, staring straight at the top of Bukit Arang Lawu. Slowly he looked down into the dark abyss covered in mist. The Sacred Eagle warrior let out a long sigh feeling a pat on the shoulder.
"I feel what you are feeling, right now," Kandara Jaya said with concern.
"Yeah...," Rangga let out a long sigh. I don't feel like saying anything else.
"You've tried to help him. It's not your fault alone, Rangga," returned Kandara Jaya trying to calm the Rajawali Sakti Warrior's day.
For a long time Rangga lamented and regretted the incident.... Rangga raised his head when suddenly he heard a very soft voice. Looking across the ravine, stood about ten people in red robes with three-pointed spears. Kandara Jaya was also surprised when he saw the crowd standing across the ravine.
What surprised Rangga was the presence of a woman wearing a blue tight dress being held by both hands by two of the crowd. Her long, wavy black hair fell loosely covering her face. His body shape and clothes are very similar to Pandan Wangi.
"Pandan...," sighed Rangga softly. 'Pandan...! Is that you?" shouted Rangga accompanied by internal exertion.
"Ha ha ha...!" one of the red-robed ones laughed out loud.
"He will be an offering to our nation's god of immortality!" a reverberating sound was heard.
Kandara Jaya looked around looking for the source of the sound. Meanwhile, Rangga kept looking straight across the abyss. It seemed like he was confirming that the limp woman was Pandan Wangi.
"Make that offering to the Great God of Eternity!" There was another big sound echoing.
"Bro..., help...!" a woman's voice was heard screaming.
Simultaneously, the two people who were holding the woman, stepped forward a few steps. Then he threw her into a wide and deep abyss. The shrill scream sounded increasingly weak, along with the sliding of the woman's body swallowed by the belly of the abyss.
"Pandan...," sighed Rangga softly. The woman's voice is very similar to Pandan Wangi.
"Ha ha ha...!" booming laughter was heard.
"Barbaric! Cruel, I'll kill you!" Rangga growled. After growling several times, Swordsman
The Magic Eagle soared high into the air
crossing a very wide and deep ravine. Kandara Jaya couldn't stop it anymore. Rangga moves so fast and now somersaults in the air.
When Rangga's position was in the middle of a ravine, the ten red-robed men immediately jerked their hands quickly. Hundreds of small red objects slid swiftly towards Rangga.
"Watch out, secret weapon...!" Kandara Jaya shouted warningly.
"Hiyaaa...!" Rangga shouted loudly. His body spun rapidly in the air, dodging the red shurikens raining down on him. The shurikens resemble small balls, plummeting down into the abyss before reaching the other side. No one managed to touch Rangga's body, which continued to bounce towards the edge of the cliff on the other side.