When Princess Ratri regained consciousness, she found herself chained. Several soldiers stood before her holding spears.
Princess Ratri shouted at them,
"Hey! Who are you all? And why have you bound me like this?"
But none of the soldiers answered her question. After a while, she fainted again.
When she woke up the next time, she found herself in a deserted forest where she could not see anyone far and wide. After walking some distance in the forest, she noticed a young man lying there in a wounded condition. She went near him and asked,
"Listen, young man, who are you? And who injured you?
And what place is this?"
The young man, groaning in pain, replied,
"First tell me who you are and how you came here."
"I am Princess Ratri of Takshak Lok. I had gone to Shauhdr Lok to obtain the Blue Gem. But I do not know how I ended up here. Now tell me, who are you?"
"My name is Mani. I am a resident of Shauhdr Lok, and this place is the prison of Shauhdr Lok. The criminals of our world are brought here."
"I see now," he continued.
"You came here to obtain the Blue Gem of Shauhdr Lok so that you could attack our world and conquer it. Because of that, the guards captured you and threw you into this strange forest."
"Strange forest? But this place seems completely free. How are we prisoners here?"
"Princess, whoever enters this place can never leave it again. Because of that, they remain trapped here for their entire life and eventually die here.
I myself have been trapped here for many years and have been trying to escape, but every time I fail. This forest has neither a beginning nor an end."
Princess Ratri smiled.
"If this place has no beginning, then how did we reach here? And anything that has a beginning must surely have an end somewhere.
You may sit here and wait for your death. I am leaving."
"Wait, Princess! Please take me with you. I have been trying to escape from here alone for years. Today, after so long, I have finally seen another human being. Please let me come with you."
"There is no need. Find your own path."
"Princess, I have been searching alone for years but have not succeeded. At least I know many paths of this forest. I might be able to help you."
"Fine. Come along."
Princess Ratri began walking with Mani and tried every possible way to escape from the forest. But every time it seemed that they were about to get out, they would get lost again in the labyrinth of the forest. This continued for a long time, and a full two years passed while they wandered in that forest.
One day, when Princess Ratri stopped near a waterfall to drink water, she saw her reflection in the water—but she could not see Mani's reflection.
At that moment she understood why she had not been able to escape the forest.
She turned to Mani and said,
"So now I understand why we have not been able to escape for so long. Because of you. Whoever comes here ends up dying here, because you control their minds and destroy their ability to think. And if they ever choose the right path, you confuse them and change their direction."
Saying this, she immediately drew her sword from its sheath and cut off his head.
The moment his head fell, the forest disappeared, and Princess Ratri returned to the same prison. The soldiers who had come with her were also imprisoned there.
After some time, King Chandrabhan arrived and said to Princess Ratri,
"I am astonished that you managed to escape from there. Until today, whoever has entered the Strange Forest has never returned. I wish I could reward you for this, but you are a criminal who came to conquer our world."
"No, Maharaj. We are not invaders. We came only to obtain the Blue Gem. My father is suffering from the Charuk disease, and the protective shield of my world has weakened. That is why we need the Blue Gems of all seven worlds. We have no interest in conquering any world."
"How can we believe that what you are saying is true?"
"Then don't believe it."
Saying this, she began releasing a powerful flow of energy from her body. Within moments, the entire place filled with intense light, and everyone began to burn from its brilliance. Princess Ratri broke free.
After freeing herself, she also released all her soldiers.
King Chandrabhan became her captive and was forced to hand over the Blue Gem of his world to Princess Ratri.
Taking the gem, Princess Ratri returned to her world with the help of the device given by Guru Rambh.
After reaching the palace, she handed the gem to her father and then went to her mother's chamber.
After two years, Queen Takshika was overjoyed to see her daughter again.
"My child, where were you? You said you would return soon, but it took you two whole years!"
"Oh mother, I was a guest in Shauhdr Lok all this time. What could I do? They just wouldn't let me leave. It was very difficult to come back!"
"Don't act as if I don't know the truth. They did not treat you as a guest—they kept you as a prisoner. If you go to someone's world to take their Blue Gem, they are hardly going to welcome you."
"So you already know everything, mother?"
"Of course I do."
And saying this, both of them burst into loud laughter.