Week 11 Story: Finish What You Start

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Once upon a time a small horse appeared at the door step of a royal palace that belonged to the king of Benares. The horse was magnificent with its deep black color and its outlined muscles. The silky black hair of the horse was compared to the king's night robe, which was worth thousands of pieces. The king figured it was a gift from nearby civilians who couldn't take care of such a glorious horse. And as expected, the king of Benares took in the horse as his own and raised it lavishly. The horse was fed apples that were specifically grown for the royal family of the king and those he chose to feed as well. The horse was better nourished than seventy-five percent of India's nation at the time. The horse was also fed superb three year old rice out of a diamond rimmed bowl that was worth more than all of the king's servants homes combined. The stall of the horse was decorated with crimson curtains and covered with a canopy full of stars made of gold. The three walls of the stall were infiltrated with a variety of flowers that nearby civilians would gift the horse during their visit to witness the glorious Destrier themselves. And of course, this magnificent creature couldn't hold an unpleasant stench, thus the king of Benares commanded the burning of oils at all times within the stall. The king of Benares raised his Destrier to complement his royal lifestyle. 

The grand and luxurious lifestyle of the king of Benares made other kings envious over his kingdom. As seven kings passed through Benares, they sent the king a letter that said, "relieve your royal position to us and live happily under our sovereignty or prepare for battle." The king of Benares debated on his next action. He held a meeting with ministers of the kingdom for advice and recommendations.  The ministers instructed the king of Benares to not battle himself, but rather send a knight to fight the kings. If the knight is killed by the opposing kinds then extra measures would be taken. 

The king of Benares scouted for the perfect knight and easily brought him in for the contract. The knight was more than confident in defeating the seven kings, but he gave the king of Benares one condition. The knight told the king, "I have one condition in protecting the royalty behind your kingdom. I must be accompanied by your royal Destrier. With it, I would not only keep your power safe and eliminate the opposing kings, but I could eliminate every king in India!" The king didn't hesitate in granting the knight his request. The horse and knight were fitted for battle and off they went. 

The knight and the horse eliminated the first six kings. They broke down the king's camp one by one and held each king prisoner at the palace of the kingdom. As the sixth captured king was brought back to the palace, the knight noticed that the Destrier's front right arm was wounded badly. Blood gushed through the wound like an open faucet. The knight lied the horse down in front of the palace's gate and began to place a mail on another horse to finish the job. The hurt Destrier noticed the knight fitting the other horse and said, "I am the only horse capable of defeating the last king. No other horse in the East hemisphere would have the ability to accomplish what we've executed. If you battle with another horse then all of our work will be ruined because he will lose. The king of Benares will be removed from his kingdom and the mission will be failed. We must finish what we started."

The knight helped the mighty Destrier to its feet and fitted him for battle, once again. The Destrier showed true grit and perseverance through the first six camps and he had it in him to capture the last. The knight and horse were able to bring the last of the seven kings to the gate of the palace. The king was waiting for the arrival of the brave knight and his royal Destrier. As the horse finally finished its mission and the knight was removing its armor and mail, the Destrier began to breathe heavily.

The horse told the king of Benares, "Master, make the seven kings comply to an oath of peace for their defeat and let them live freely. Let the knight enjoy the glory and recognition we have attributed to your kingdom. Rule your kingdom with integrity and equity and live happily." Moments after, the Destrier's breathing slowed down until there was none. The horse passed away in the arms of the king next to a heartbroken knight. 

The mighty remains of the horse were buried with honor and great respect. The seven kings were allowed to walk freely with no turning around and the king ruled over Benares with integrity and equity. 

The image above shows a Destrier resembling the king of Benares' horse. 

Author's Note: The story of The Horse That Held Out To The End was extremely heroic to me. In the original story, Buddha was reincarnated as the king of Benares' horse, which was gifted to him in my story. I added the gifting of the horse to the king just as extra personality to the horse. In the original story, it is stated that the Destrier simply became the king's, but with no background of where it came from. The way the horse was raised by the king was kept the same. In both the original and my retold version of the story, the horse is raised with the lavish lifestyle that the king experiences. I attempted to emphasize exactly that. This horse wasn't a typical Destrier, but it was special. I imagine it is because it is Buddha in the form of a knight's horse. The horse was depicted to be brave and strong in my retold story, just like the original source. This was shown by having the king's Destrier continue battle regardless of its wound. Everything of the original story was kept the same, but I added a few details about the upbringing of the Destrier. The ending of both stories, the original and my retold version, both ended with words of wisdom from the Destrier to the king and with the passing away of the horse itself. 

Bibliography: "The Horse That Held Out to the End" from Eastern Stories and Legends by Marie L. Shedlock.