The Oath of The Vayuputras (5 page)

‘Are you telling me that the Meluhans have come to my land before?’

‘Yes. In secret.’

‘But how can such large consignments be hidden?’

‘You’ve seen the quantity of Somras powder required to feed an entire city for a year. Ten small pouches are all it takes. It is converted into the Somras drink at designated temples across Meluha when mixed with water and other ingredients.’

‘So even the waste amount is not huge?’

‘No, it isn’t. It’s a small quantity, making it easy to transport. But even that small quantity packs in a huge amount of poison.’

‘Hmmm... So this waste facility was set up in Tibet?’

‘Yes, it was established in a completely desolate area along the Tsangpo. The river flowed east, so it would go to relatively unpopulated lands away from India. Therefore, our land would not suffer from the harmful effects of the Somras.’

Shiva frowned. ‘But what about the lands farther ahead that the Tsangpo flowed into? The eastern lands that lie beyond Swadweep? What about the Tibetan land around Tsangpo itself? Wouldn’t they have suffered due to the toxic waste?’

‘They may have,’ said Brahaspati. ‘But that was considered acceptable collateral damage. The Meluhans kept track of the people living along the Tsangpo. There were no outbreaks of disease, no sudden deformities. The icy river waters seemed to be working at keeping the toxins inactive. The Vayuputra council was given these reports. Apparently, the council also sent scientists into the sparsely populated lands of Burma, which is to the east of Swadweep. It was believed the Tsangpo flowed into those lands and became the main Burmese river, the Irrawaddy. Once again, there was no evidence of a sudden rise in diseases. Hence it was concluded that we had found a way to rid ourselves of the Somras waste without harming anyone. When it was discovered that Tsangpo means “purifier” in the local Tibetan tongue, it was considered a sign, a divine message. A solution had been found. This came down to the scientists of Mount Mandar as received wisdom as well.’

‘What does this have to do with the Brangas?’

‘Well, you see, the upper regions of the Brahmaputra have never been mapped properly. It was simply assumed that the river comes from the east; because it flows west into Branga. The Nagas, with the help of Parshuram, finally mapped the upper course of the Brahmaputra. It falls at almost calamitous speeds from the giant heights of the Himalayas into the plains of Branga through gorges that are sheer walls almost two thousand metres high.’

‘Two thousand metres!’ gasped Shiva.

‘You can well imagine that it is almost impossible to navigate a river course such as the Brahmaputra’s. But Parshuram succeeded and led the Nagas along that path. Parshuram, of course, did not realise the significance of the discovery of the river’s course. Queen Kali and Lord Ganesh did.’

‘Did you go up the Brahmaputra as well?’ asked Shiva. ‘Where does the river come from? Is it connected to the Tsangpo in any way?’

Brahaspati smiled sadly. ‘It
is
the Tsangpo.’

‘What?’

‘The Tsangpo flows east only for the duration of its course in Tibet. At the eastern extremities of the Himalayas, it takes a sharp turn, almost reversing its flow. It then starts moving south-west and crashes through massive gorges before emerging near Branga as the Brahmaputra.’

‘By the Holy Lake,’ said Shiva. ‘The Brangas are being poisoned by the Somras waste.’

‘Exactly. The cold waters of the Tsangpo dilute the poisonous impact to a degree. However, as the river enters India in the form of the Brahmaputra, the rising temperature reactivates the dormant toxin in the water. Though the Branga children also suffer from the same body-wracking pain as the Nagas, they are free from deformities. Sadly, Branga also has a high incidence of cancer. Being highly populous, the number of deaths is simply unacceptable.’

Shiva began to connect the dots. ‘Divodas told me the Branga plague peaks during the summer every year. That is the time when ice melts faster in the Himalayas, making the poison flow out in larger quantities.’

‘Yes,’ said Brahaspati. ‘That is exactly what happens.’

‘Obviously, since both the Nagas and Brangas are being poisoned by the same malevolence, our medicines work on the Brangas as well,’ Kali spoke up. ‘So we send them our medicines to help ameliorate their suffering a little. Even though we told King Chandraketu how his kingdom was being poisoned, some Brangas prefer to believe that the plague strikes every year because of a curse that the Nagas have cast upon them. If only we were that powerful! But it appears that at least Chandraketu believes us. This is why he sends us men and gold regularly, to stealthily attack Somras manufacturing facilities, the root of all our problems.’

‘Evil should never be fought with subterfuge, Kali,’ said Shiva. ‘It must be attacked openly.’

Kali was about to retort but Shiva had turned back to Brahaspati.

‘Why didn’t you say something? Raise the issue in Meluha or with the Vayuputras?’

‘I did,’ said Brahaspati. ‘I took up the matter with Emperor Daksha. But he doesn’t really understand scientific things or involve himself with technical details. He turned to the one intellectual he trusts, the venerable
royal priest
,
Raj guru
Bhrigu. Lord Bhrigu seemed genuinely interested and took me to the Vayuputra council so I could present my case before them, but they were not at all supportive. This was where the issue was effectively killed. Nobody was willing to believe me about the source of the Brahmaputra. They also laughed when they heard that I was ostensibly listening to the Nagas. According to them, the Nagas were now ruled by an extremist harridan whose frustration with her own karma made everyone else the object of her ire.’

‘I’ll take that as a compliment!’ said Kali.

Shiva smiled at Kali before turning back to Brahaspati. ‘But how did the Vayuputras rationalise what’s happening in Branga?’

‘According to them,’ said Brahaspati, ‘the Brangas were a rich but uncivilised lot, with strange eating habits and disgusting customs. So the plague could have been caused by their bad practices and karma rather than the Somras. Remember, there is little sympathy for the Brangas amongst the Vayuputras because it is well known that they drink the blood of peacocks, a bird that is held holy by any follower of Lord Rudra.’

‘And you gave up?’ retorted Shiva. ‘Shouldn’t you have pressed on? Emperor Daksha is weak and can be easily influenced. He could have brought about changes in Meluha. The Vayuputra council does not govern your country.’

‘Well, there was a good reason for me to not persist with the argument.’

‘What reason?’

‘Tara, the woman I intended to marry, suddenly went missing,’ continued Brahaspati. ‘The last time I saw her, she was in Pariha. On returning to Meluha I received a letter from her telling me that she was disappointed with my tirades against the Somras. I asked Lord Bhrigu to check with his friends in Pariha. I was told that she had just disappeared.’

Shiva frowned.

‘I know it sounds lame,’ said Brahaspati. ‘But somewhere deep within, I do believe Tara was taken hostage. It was a message for me. Keep quiet or else...’

‘And you gave up?’ Shiva repeated. ‘Why would you do that if you believed you were right?’

‘I didn’t,’ continued Brahaspati defensively. ‘But by then I was losing credibility amongst the senior scientists of other realms. Had I made the issue any bigger within Meluha, I would have lost what little standing I have amongst the Suryavanshis as well. I would have lost my ability to do anything at all. Though I knew I had to do something, I also realised that the strategy of open lobbying and debate had become counter-productive. There were too many vested interests tied into the Somras. Only the Vayuputra council could have had the moral strength to stop it openly, through the institution of the Neelkanth. But they refused to believe that the Somras had turned evil.’

‘What happened thereafter?’ asked Shiva.

‘I opted for silence,’ said Brahaspati. ‘At least on the surface. But I had to do something. Maharishi Bhrigu was convinced there was nothing to fear from the Somras waste. So the manufacturing of Somras continued at the same frantic pace. The Saraswati kept getting prodigiously consumed. Somras waste was being generated in huge quantities. Since the empire now believed that cold, fresh water had worked in disposing of the toxic waste, new plans were being drawn up to use other rivers. This time the idea was to use the upper reaches of either the Indus or the Ganga.’

‘Lord Ram, be merciful,’ whispered Shiva.

‘Millions of lives would have been at risk. We were going to unleash toxic waste right through the heart of India. Almost as a message from the
Parmatma
, the
ultimate soul
, I was approached by Lord Ganesh around this time. He had formulated a plan, and I must admit his words made eminent sense. There could be only one possible solution. The destruction of Mount Mandar. Without Mount Mandar, there would be no Somras. And with the Somras gone, all these problems would disappear too.’

Shiva cast a quick look towards Sati.

‘Whatever little doubts I may have had,’ said Brahaspati, ‘disappeared when I was confronted with a new scenario. When it happened, I knew in my heart that it was time for the destruction of Evil.’

‘What new scenario?’ asked Shiva.

‘You appeared on the scene,’ answered Brahaspati. ‘Even without the Vayuputra council’s permission, perhaps even without their knowledge... The Neelkanth appeared. It was the final sign for me: the time to destroy Evil was upon us.’

Vishwadyumna quickly gave hand signals to his Branga soldiers. The hunting party went down on their knees.

Kartik, who was right behind Vishwadyumna, whistled softly as his eyes lit up. ‘Magnificent!’

Vishwadyumna turned towards Kartik. While most of Shiva’s convoy was settling itself into the visitor’s camp outside Panchavati, a few hunting parties had been sent out to gather meat for the large entourage. Kartik, having proved himself as an accomplished hunter throughout the journey to Panchavati, was the natural leader of one of the groups. Vishwadyumna had accompanied the son of the Neelkanth. He intensely admired the fierce warrior skills of Kartik.

‘It’s a rhinoceros, My Lord,’ said Vishwadyumna softly.

The rhinoceros was a massive animal, nearly four metres in length. It had bumpy brownish skin that hung over its body in multiple layers, suggestive of tough armour. Its most distinctive feature was its nasal horn, which stuck out like a fearsome offensive weapon, to a height of nearly fifty centimetres.

‘I know,’ whispered Kartik. ‘They live around Kashi as well. They’re nearly as big as a small elephant. These beasts have terrible eyesight, but they have a fantastic sense of smell and hearing.’

Vishwadyumna nodded at Kartik, impressed. ‘What do you propose, My Lord?’

The rhinoceros was a tricky beast to hunt. They were quiet animals who kept to themselves, but if threatened, they could charge wildly. Few could survive a direct blow from their massive body and terrifying horn.

Kartik reached over his shoulder and drew out the two swords sheathed on his back. In his left hand was a short twin-blade, like the one his elder brother Ganesh favoured. In his right was a heavier one with a curved blade which was certainly not appropriate for thrusting. This weapon was perfect for swinging and slashing – a style of fighting Kartik excelled at.

Kartik spoke softly, ‘Fire arrows at its back. Make as much noise as you can. I want you to drive it forward.’

Vishwadyumna’s eyes filled with terror. ‘That is not wise, My Lord.’

‘This animal is huge. Too many soldiers charging in will cramp us. All it would need to do is swing its mighty horn and it would cause several casualties.’

‘But we can fire arrows to kill it from a distance.’

Kartik raised his eyebrows. ‘Vishwadyumna, you should know better. Do you really think our arrows can actually penetrate deep enough to cause serious damage? It’s not the arrows but the noise that you will create, which will make it charge.’

Vishwadyumna continued to stare, still unsure.

‘Also, it is standing upwind and your positioning behind it would be perfect. Along with the noise, the stench of your soldiers will also drive the animal forward. It’s a good thing they haven’t bathed in two days,’ said Kartik, without any hint of a smile at the joke.

Like all warriors, Vishwadyumna admired humour in the face of danger. But he checked his smile, not sure if Kartik was joking. ‘What will you do, My Lord?’

Kartik whispered, ‘I’ll kill the beast.’

Saying this, Kartik slowly edged forward. Right on to the path that the bull would charge on, when attacked by Vishwadyumna’s soldiers. The soldiers meanwhile, moved upwind, behind the rhinoceros. Having reached his position, Kartik whistled softly.

‘NOW!’ shouted Vishwadyumna.

A volley of arrows attacked the animal as the soldiers began to scream loudly. The rhinoceros raised its head, ears twitching as the arrows bounced harmlessly off its skin. As the soldiers drew closer, some of the missiles managed to penetrate enough to agitate the beast. The animal snorted mightily and stomped the dirt, radiating strength and power as light gleamed off its tiny black eyes. It lowered its head and charged, its feet thundering against the ground.