The Oath of The Vayuputras (40 page)
‘Also, Your Highness, while it is not unethical to attack an unprepared enemy, there are some codes that just cannot be broken, even in times of war, like killing a peace ambassador or even a messenger.’
‘Of course, My Lord,’ said a distracted Daksha. His mind, in fact, was already working on refining his plan.
‘Are you listening, Your Highness?’ asked an irritated Bhrigu.
A chastened Daksha looked up immediately. ‘Of course I am, My Lord.’
Bhrigu sighed and waved his hand, dismissing him from his chamber.
Parvateshwar strode into his house and nodded towards the attendant even as he ran up the steps that skirted the central courtyard. As he approached the first floor, he seemed to remember something and stepped back towards the landing overlooking the central courtyard.
‘Rati!’
‘Yes, My Lord?’ answered the attendant.
‘Isn’t it the day of the week when Lady Anandmayi bathes in milk and rose petals?’ asked Parvateshwar.
‘Yes, My Lord. Warm water on all days of the week except the day of the Sun, when she bathes in milk and rose petals.’
Parvateshwar smiled. ‘So, is it ready?’
Rati smiled indulgently. She had served Parvateshwar her entire life, but had never seen her master smile as much as he had in the last few days, since he had returned with the new mistress. ‘It’ll be ready any moment now, My Lord.’
‘Be sure to inform the lady as soon as it’s ready.’
‘Yes, My Lord.’
Parvateshwar turned and ran up the remaining two flights of stairs, before reaching his private chamber on top. He found Anandmayi relaxing in the balcony on a comfortable chair, as she observed the goings-on in the street below. A cloth canopy screened out the evening sun. She turned around as she heard Parvateshwar rush in.
‘What’s the hurry?’ asked a smiling Anandmayi.
Parvateshwar stopped, smiling broadly. ‘I just wanted to know how you’re doing.’
Anandmayi smiled and beckoned Parvateshwar. The Meluhan general walked over and sat down beside her on the armrest. Anandmayi rested her head on his arm as she continued to study the street below. The markets were still open, but unlike the loud and garrulous Chandravanshis, the citizens of Devagiri were achingly polite. The road, the houses, the people, everything reflected the prized Suryavanshi values of sobriety, dignity and uniformity.
‘What do you think of our capital?’ asked Parvateshwar. ‘Isn’t it astonishingly well-planned and orderly?’
Anandmayi looked at Parvateshwar with an indulgent smile playing on her lips. ‘It’s heartbreakingly lacklustre and colourless.’
Parvateshwar laughed. ‘You’re more than enough to add colour to this city!’
Anandmayi placed her hand on Parvateshwar’s as she remarked, ‘So, this is the land where I will die...’
Parvateshwar turned his hand around and held hers, in reply.
‘Any news?’ asked Anandmayi. ‘Has the Lord entered the territory of Meluha?’
‘No reports as yet,’ said Parvateshwar. ‘But what is truly worrying is the absence of bird couriers from Ayodhya.’
Anandmayi’s visage transformed as she straightened up with concern. ‘Has Ayodhya been conquered?’
‘I don’t know, darling. But I don’t think the Lord has enough men to conquer Ayodhya. The city has seven concentric walls, albeit badly designed. That is formidable defence, even if the soldiers are ill-trained.’
Anandmayi narrowed her eyes in irritation. ‘They are poorly led, Parvateshwar, but the soldiers are brave men. My country’s generals may be idiots, but the commoners will fight hard for their homeland.’
‘This reinforces my argument that the Lord Neelkanth couldn’t have conquered Ayodhya with just the one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers of Branga and Vaishali.’
‘So what do you think has happened?’
‘Clearly, Meluhan interests are not being served in Ayodhya. One possibility is that your father, King Dilipa, has aligned with the Neelkanth.’
‘Impossible. My father is too much in love with himself. He’s getting medicines from Lord Bhrigu which is keeping him alive. He will not risk that for anything.’
‘The people of Ayodhya may have rebelled against their King and thrown in their lot with the Neelkanth.’
‘Hmmm... That’s possible. My people are certainly more devoted to the Neelkanth than to my father.’
‘And if the Neelkanth has Ayodhya under control, he will quickly turn his attention to his main objective: Meluha.’
‘He aims to destroy the Somras, Parva. He will not indulge in wanton destruction. Why would he do that? It would turn your people against him. He will only go for the Somras.’
Parvateshwar’s eyes flashed open. ‘Of course! He will target the secret Somras manufacturing facility and its scientists. That would end the supply of the Somras. People will have no choice but to learn to live without it.’
‘There you are. That’s his target. Where
is
this secret Somras manufacturing facility?’
‘I don’t know. But I will find out.’
‘Yes, you should.’
‘In any case,’ said Parvateshwar. ‘I’ve told Kanakhala not to send any more messages to Ayodhya. We could just be passing on information to the enemy.’
‘If Ayodhya is already in their control, and they leave now, they could be in Meluha quite soon.’
‘Yes, it could be as early as six months. Also, along with Ayodhya, the Lord would have a massive army.’
‘Redouble your preparations.’
‘Hmmm... I’ll also order Vidyunmali to leave for Lothal with twenty thousand soldiers.’
‘Lothal? Just because they didn’t send you their monthly report? Isn’t that a bit of an over-reaction?’
‘I don’t have a good feeling about them,’ said Parvateshwar, slowly shaking his head. ‘They didn’t respond to my bird courier.’
‘Can you afford to send twenty thousand soldiers away based on a mere hunch?’
‘Lothal is not too far away. Also, it’s a border town. It is the closest Meluhan city from Panchavati. It may not be such a bad idea to reinforce it.’
The exhausted scout stumbled into the military tent, barely able to conceal his anxiety. Shiva jerked his head up from the map he’d been poring over, as the soldier managed a hasty salute. ‘What?’
Shot like an arrow, Shiva’s voice made Kali, Sati, Gopal and Chenardhwaj look up too, worry creasing their faces. Shiva’s army had marched in quickly from Lothal and was just a day away from Mrittikavati.
‘My Lord, I have bad news.’
‘Give me the facts. Don’t jump to conclusions.’
‘Mrittikavati is much better defended now than it had been earlier. Brigadier Vidyunmali sailed into the city a few days back. Apparently, he was on his way to Lothal to strengthen Meluha’s defences at the border. Clearly, Emperor Daksha has no idea as yet that Lothal has pledged loyalty to you, My Lord.’
‘How many men does Vidyunmali have?’ asked Chenardhwaj.
‘Around twenty thousand, My Lord. Added to which are the five thousand soldiers already stationed at Mrittikavati.’
‘We’re still at a substantial advantage in terms of numbers, My Lord,’ said Chenardhwaj. ‘But Mrittikavati’s defences can make even twenty-five thousand men seem like a lot.’
Shiva shook his head. ‘I don’t think that should be a problem. It doesn’t matter how many soldiers they have. We just want to commandeer their ships, not conquer their city. If Vidyunmali has sailed with twenty thousand soldiers, his transport ships would also be in the Mrittikavati port, right? So there are even more ships for us to capture.’
Kali smiled. ‘That’s true!’
‘Prepare to march to Mrittikavati,’ said Shiva. ‘We attack in two days.’
Shiva could see the panic-stricken people rush back into the city as the warning conches were blown repeatedly from the ramparts of Mrittikavati. The unexpected appearance of a massive enemy force had shocked the Meluhans.
Atop his horse at a vantage point on the hill, Shiva could clearly see the city of Mrittikavati and its port. Like most Meluhan cities, it had also been built on a massive platform a kilometre away from the Saraswati, as a protection against floods. But it was the port, obviously built on the banks of the great river, which fascinated Shiva.
The circular harbour was massive, with the waters of the Saraswati going into it through a narrow opening. A semi-circular dock was separated by a pool of water from the outer ring of the port. A dome-covered inner dock protected the various repair yards. Ships were anchored along the outer side of the inner dock and the inner side of the outer pier. This ingenious design could hold nearly fifty ships in a relatively small space. The expanse of water between the two parallel circles of ships allowed for free movement of the vessels. The ships could move fairly quickly within the harbour in a single file. Being relatively small, the harbour gate afforded the entry or exit of only one ship at a time. But considering that ships could tail each other in the circular channel within the port, the narrow gate did not affect the speed at which the ships could enter or leave the port. However, it did allow for effective defence against enemy ships. The gate was shut and Shiva could see the numerous points across the harbour walls from where a defence could be mounted.
Shiva smiled.
Typically foolproof Meluhan planning.
Kali leaned across to Shiva. ‘The fortified pathway between the city and the port may be a weakness.’
‘Yes,’ said Sati. ‘Let’s attack from there. If we succeed in making them feel vulnerable, they will be forced to shut the gates of the city that lead to this pathway, and pull their soldiers within. The city and the port are not next to each other, which means they will have to sacrifice one or the other if the pathway walls are breached. I would imagine they would compromise and give up the port.’
Shiva looked at Sati. ‘Vidyunmali is aggressive. He doesn’t like to make compromises. Once he realises that we are after their ships and not the city itself, he may take a gamble. He may choose to step out of the city and mount a rearguard assault on our attacking forces. That may appear like a sensible choice to him. He may think that he can rout us on the pathway, thus saving both the port and the city. I hope he makes that mistake.’
Shiva rode up and down the line of his all-inclusive army, consisting of Brangas, Vasudevs, Nagas and some Suryavanshis from Lothal. Sati and Kali were on horseback, leading their sections of the army. The soldiers were ready but knew that the Meluhans were well fortified.