Several months after the battle at the temple, Princess Anika once again traveled beyond the royal capital.
This time she journeyed to a sacred forest shrine hidden deep among ancient sal trees. As always, her towering bodyguard Deviya accompanied her.
The forest was peaceful.
Birds sang among the branches, and sunlight filtered through the leaves in golden beams.
The princess and her attendants arrived safely at the shrine and began their prayers.
Suddenly, frightened deer burst from the trees.
Then came a deep roar.
The ground seemed to shake.
From the forest emerged a gigantic bear unlike any creature the villagers had ever seen. Standing on its hind legs, it towered over ordinary men. Its dark fur was scarred from countless battles, and its claws were as long as daggers.
The attendants panicked.
"Protect the princess!" they shouted.
The soldiers reached for their weapons, but many stepped back in fear as the enormous beast charged toward the shrine.
Princess Anika froze.
The bear was moving too fast.
But Deviya stepped forward.
The giant warrior woman calmly placed herself between the beast and the princess.
"No one moves," she ordered.
The attendants stared in disbelief.
The bear roared again and rushed toward her.
The massive animal lunged with terrifying force.
At the last instant Deviya sidestepped and caught one of its forelegs with both hands.
The impact drove her backward across the stone courtyard.
Dust exploded beneath her feet.
Yet she did not fall.
Using all her strength, Deviya twisted and redirected the charging animal away from the princess.
The bear crashed into a stone pillar, shattering part of it.
Enraged, the beast rose onto its hind legs and swung its huge paws.
Deviya blocked the strikes with her forearms.
The force echoed through the shrine.
The attendants could scarcely believe what they were seeing.
Woman and beast seemed evenly matched.
The bear attacked again.
This time Deviya seized the creature around its chest and locked her arms together.
Muscles tightened across her shoulders and back.
The giant bear struggled fiercely.
For several moments neither moved.
Then, inch by inch, Deviya began lifting.
The beast's paws left the ground.
The attendants gasped.
With a mighty shout, Deviya hoisted the enormous bear and carried it several steps away from the shrine.
Realizing the animal was frightened and protecting its territory rather than hunting, she avoided harming it.
Instead, she released the bear near the edge of the forest.
The exhausted creature landed, stared at the towering warrior for a moment, and then retreated into the trees.
Silence fell.
The princess slowly approached.
"You could have killed it."
Deviya nodded.
"But it was only defending its home."
The priests, soldiers, and villagers gathered around in amazement.
Once again, Deviya had protected the princess single-handedly.
And from that day onward, stories spread throughout the kingdom of the mighty guardian who had stood between a princess and a giant bear—and won without taking a life.
The bards called her The Mountain of the Kingdom, a warrior whose strength was matched only by her wisdom.
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