Scion of Ikshvaku, Page 2

  ‘I know you don’t like hearing this, Dada,’ Lakshman persisted. ‘But I’m certain that he’s hatched a plot against—’

  ‘We’ll get to the bottom of it,’ reassured Ram, interrupting Lakshman. ‘But we first need allies. Jatayu is right. We need to find the local Malayaputra camp. At least they can be trusted to help us.’

  ‘I don’t know whom to trust anymore, Dada. Maybe the vulture-man is helping our enemies.’

  Jatayu was a Naga, a class of people born with deformities. Ram had come around to trusting Jatayu despite the fact that the Nagas were a hated, feared and ostracised people in the Sapt Sindhu, the Land of the Seven Rivers, which lay north of the Narmada River.

  Jatayu, like all Nagas, had been born with inevitable deformities. He had a hard and bony mouth that extended out of his face in a beak-like protrusion. His head was bare, but his face was covered with fine, downy hair. Although he was human, his appearance was like that of a vulture.

  ‘Sita trusts Jatayu,’ said Ram, as though that explained it all. ‘I trust Jatayu. And so will you.’

  Lakshman fell silent. And the brothers walked on.

  ‘But why do you think it’s irrational to think Bharat Dada could—’

  ‘Shhh,’ said Ram, holding his hand up to silence Lakshman. ‘Listen.’

  Lakshman strained his ears. A chill ran down his spine. Ram turned towards Lakshman with terror writ large on his face. They had both heard it. A forceful scream! It was Sita. The distance made faint her frantic struggle. But it was clearly Sita. She was calling out to her husband.

  Ram and Lakshman dropped the deer and dashed forward desperately. They were still some distance away from their temporary camp.

  Sita’s voice could be heard above the din of the disturbed birds.

  ‘… Raaam!’

  They were close enough now to hear the sounds of battle as metal clashed with metal.

  Ram screamed as he ran frantically through the forest. ‘Sitaaaa!’

  Lakshman drew his sword, ready for battle.

  ‘… Raaaam!’

  ‘Leave her alone!’ shouted Ram, cutting through the dense foliage, racing ahead.

  ‘… Raaam!’

  Ram gripped his bow tight. They were just a few minutes from their camp. ‘Sitaaa!’

  ‘… Raa…’

  Sita’s voice stopped mid-syllable. Trying not to imagine the worst, Ram kept running, his heart pounding desperately, his mind clouded with worry.

  They heard the loud whump, whump of rotor blades. It was a sound he clearly remembered from an earlier occasion. This was Raavan’s legendary Pushpak Vimaan, his flying vehicle.

  ‘Nooo!’ screamed Ram, wrenching his bow forward as he ran. Tears were streaming down his face.

  The brothers broke through to the clearing that was their temporary camp. It stood completely destroyed. There was blood everywhere.

  ‘Sitaaa!’

  Ram looked up and shot an arrow at the Pushpak Vimaan, which was rapidly ascending into the sky. It was a shot of impotent rage, for the flying vehicle was already soaring high above.

  ‘Sitaaa!’

  Lakshman frantically searched the camp. Bodies of dead soldiers were strewn all over. But there was no Sita.

  ‘Pri… nce… Ram…’

  Ram recognised that feeble voice. He rushed forward to find the bloodied and mutilated body of the Naga.

  ‘Jatayu!’

  The badly wounded Jatayu struggled to speak. ‘He’s…’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Raavan’s… kidnapped… her.’

  Ram looked up enraged at the speck moving rapidly away from them. He screamed in anger, ‘SITAAAA!’

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  Chapter 2

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  Thirty-three years earlier, Port of Karachapa, Western Sea, India

  ‘Lord Parshu Ram, be merciful,’ whispered Dashrath, the forty-year-old king of Kosala, the overlord kingdom of the Sapt Sindhu.

  The emperor of the Sapt Sindhu had marched right across his sprawling empire from Ayodhya, its capital, to finally arrive at the western coast. Some rebellious traders sorely needed a lesson in royal justice. The combative Dashrath had built on the powerful empire he had inherited from his father Aja. Rulers from various parts of India had either been deposed or made to pay tribute and accept his suzerainty, thus making Dashrath the Chakravarti Samrat, or the Universal Emperor.

  ‘Yes, My Lord,’ said Mrigasya, the general of Dashrath’s army. ‘This is not the only village that has been laid to waste. The enemy has destroyed all the villages in a fifty-kilometre radius from where we stand. The wells have been poisoned with the carcasses of dead animals. Crops have been burned down ruthlessly. The entire countryside has been ravaged.’

  ‘Scorched earth policy…’ said Ashwapati, the king of Kekaya, a loyal ally of Dashrath, and the father of the emperor’s second and favourite wife, Kaikeyi.

  ‘Yes,’ said another king. ‘We cannot feed our army of five hundred thousand soldiers here. Our supply lines are already stretched.’

  ‘How the hell did that barbarian trader Kubaer acquire the intellect for military strategy?’ asked Dashrath.

  Dashrath could scarcely conceal his Kshatriyan disdain for the trading class, the Vaishyas. For the Sapt Sindhu royalty, wealth was the conqueror’s right when acquired as the spoils of war, but inappropriate when earned through mere profiteering. The Vaishyas’ ‘lack of class’ invited scorn. They were subjected to heavy regulation and a draconian system of licences and controls. The children of the Sapt Sindhu aristocracy were encouraged to become warriors or intellectuals, not traders. Resultantly, the trading class in these kingdoms was depleted over the years. With not enough money pouring in from wars, the royal coffers quickly emptied.

  Ever sensing an opportunity to profit, Kubaer, the trader king of the island of Lanka, offered his services and expertise to carry out trading activities for all the Sapt Sindhu kingdoms. The then king of Ayodhya, Aja, granted the monopoly to Kubaer in return for a huge annual compensation, which was then distributed to each subordinate kingdom within the Sapt Sindhu Empire. Ayodhya’s power soared for it became the source of funds for other kingdoms within the empire. And yet, they could continue to hold on to their old contempt towards trade. Recently, however, Kubaer had unilaterally reduced the commissions that Dashrath rightfully believed were Ayodhya’s due. This impertinence of a mere trader certainly deserved punishment. Dashrath directed his vassal kings to merge their troops with his own, and led them to Karachapa to remind Kubaer of his place in the power hierarchy.

  ‘Apparently, My Lord,’ said Mrigasya, ‘it is not Kubaer who is calling the shots.’

  ‘Then who is?’ asked Dashrath.

  ‘We do not know much about him. I have heard that he is no more than thirty years of age. He joined Kubaer some years ago as the head of his trading security force. Over time, he recruited more people and transformed the unit into a proper army. I believe he is the one who convinced Kubaer to rebel against us.’

  ‘I’m not surprised,’ said Ashwapati. ‘I can’t imagine that obese and indolent Kubaer having the nerve to challenge the power of the Sapt Sindhu!’

  ‘Who is this man?’ asked Dashrath. ‘Where is he from?’

  ‘We really don’t know much about him, My Lord,’ said Mrigasya.

  ‘Do you at least know his name?’

  ‘Yes, we do. His name is Raavan.’

  Nilanjana, the royal physician, rushed down the hallway of the palace of Ayodhya. She had received an urgent summons late in the evening from the personal staff of Queen Kaushalya, the first wife of King Dashrath.

  The gentle and restrained Kaushalya, the daughter of the king of South Kosala, had been married to Dashrath for more than fifteen years now. Her inability to provide the emperor with an heir had been a source of constant dismay to her. Frustrated by the absence of a successor, Dashrath had finally married Kaikeyi, the tall, fair and statuesque princess of the powerful
western Indian kingdom of Kekaya, which was ruled by his close ally Ashwapati. That too was of no avail. He finally married Sumitra, the steely but unobtrusive princess of the holy city of Kashi, the city that housed the spirit of Lord Rudra and was famous for non-violence. Even so, the great Emperor Dashrath remained without an heir.

  No wonder then that when Kaushalya finally became pregnant, it was an occasion marked by both joy and trepidation. The queen was understandably desperate to ensure that the child was delivered safely. Her entire staff, most of whom were loyal retainers from her father’s household, understood the political implications of the birth of an heir. Abundant caution was the norm. This was not the first time that Nilanjana had been summoned, many a times over frivolous reasons and false alarms. However, since the doctor too was from Queen Kaushalya’s parental home, her loyalty forbade any overt signs of irritability.

  This time, though, it appeared to be the real thing. The queen had gone into labour.

  Even as she ran, Nilanjana’s lips fervently appealed to Lord Parshu Ram for a smooth delivery, and yes, a male child.

  ‘I order you to restore our commission to the very fair nine-tenths of your profits and, in return, I assure you I will let you live,’ growled Dashrath.

  In keeping with the rules of engagement, Dashrath had sent a messenger in advance to Kubaer for a negotiated settlement as a last resort. The adversaries had decided to meet in person on neutral ground. The chosen site was a beach midway between Dashrath’s military camp and the Karachapa fort. Dashrath was accompanied by Ashwapati, Mrigasya, and a bodyguard platoon of twenty soldiers. Kubaer had arrived along with his army’s general, Raavan, and twenty bodyguards.

  The Sapt Sindhu warriors could scarcely conceal their contempt as the obese Kubaer had waddled laboriously into the tent. A round, cherubic face with thinning hair was balanced on the humongous body of the seventy-year-old fabulously wealthy trader from Lanka. His smooth complexion and fair skin belied his age. He wore a bright green dhoti and pink angvastram and was bedecked with extravagant jewellery. A life of excess which, when added to his girth and effeminate manner, summed up in the mind of Dashrath what Kubaer was: the classic effete Vaishya.

  Dashrath restrained his thoughts as they struggled to escape through words. Does this ridiculous peacock actually think he can take me on?!

  ‘Your Highness…’ said Kubaer nervously, ‘I think it might be a little difficult to keep the commissions fixed at that level. Our costs have gone up and the trading margins are not what they—’

  ‘Don’t try your disgusting negotiating tactics with me!’ barked Dashrath as he banged his hand on the table for effect. ‘I am not a trader! I am an emperor! Civilised people understand the difference.’

  It had not escaped Dashrath’s notice that Kubaer seemed ill at ease. Perhaps the trader had not intended for events to reach this stage. The massive troop movement to Karachapa had evidently unnerved him. Dashrath presumed that a few harsh words would effectively dissuade Kubaer from persisting with his foolhardy quest. After which, to be fair, he had decided that he would let Kubaer keep an extra two percent. Dashrath understood that, sometimes, a little magnanimity quelled discontent.

  Dashrath leaned forward as he lowered his voice to a menacing whisper. ‘I can be merciful. I can forgive mistakes. But you really need to stop this nonsense and do as I say.’

  With a nervous gulp, Kubaer glanced at the impassive Raavan who sat to his right. Even sitting, Raavan’s great height and rippling musculature was intimidating. His battle-worn, swarthy skin was pock-marked, probably by a childhood disease. A thick beard valiantly attempted to cover his ugly marks while a handlebar moustache set off his menacing features. His attire was unremarkable though, consisting of a white dhoti and a cream angvastram. His headgear was singular, with two threatening six-inch-long horns reaching out from the top on either side.

  Kubaer helplessly turned back to Dashrath as his general remained deathly still. ‘But Your Highness, we are facing many problems and our invested capital is—’

  ‘You are trying my patience now, Kubaer!’ growled Dashrath as he ignored Raavan and focused his attention on the chief trader. ‘You are irritating the emperor of the Sapt Sindhu!’

  ‘But My Lord…’

  ‘Look, if you do not continue to pay our rightful commissions, believe me you will all be dead by this time tomorrow. I will first defeat your miserable army, then travel all the way to that cursed island of yours and burn your city to the ground.’

  ‘But there are problems with our ships and labour costs have—’

  ‘I don’t care about your problems!’ shouted Dashrath, his legendary temper at boiling point now.

  ‘You will, after tomorrow,’ said Raavan softly.

  Dashrath swung sharply towards Raavan, riled that Kubaer’s deputy had had the audacity to interrupt the conversation. ‘How dare you speak out of—’

  ‘How dare you, Dashrath?’ asked Raavan, an octave higher this time.

  Dashrath, Ashwapati and Mrigasya sat in stunned silence, shocked that the mere head of a protection force had had the temerity to address the emperor of the Sapt Sindhu by his name.

  ‘How dare you imagine that you can even come close to defeating an army that I lead?’ asked Raavan with an eerie sense of calm.

  Dashrath stood up angrily and his chair went flying back with a loud clutter. He thrust his finger in Raavan’s direction. ‘I’ll be looking for you on the battlefield tomorrow, you upstart!’

  Slowly and menacingly, Raavan rose from his chair, all the while his closed right fist covering a pendant that hung from a gold chain around his neck. As Raavan’s fist unclenched, Dashrath was horrified by what he saw. The pendant was actually the bones of two human fingers — the phalanges of which were carefully fastened with gold links. Clenching this macabre souvenir again, Raavan appeared to derive enormous power from it.

  Dashrath stared in disbelief. He had heard of demons that drank blood and wine from the skulls of their enemies and even kept their body parts as trophies. But here was a warrior who wore the relics of his enemy! Who is this monster?

  ‘I assure you, I’ll be waiting,’ said Raavan, with a hint of wry humour lacing his voice, as he watched Dashrath gape at him with horror. ‘I look forward to drinking your blood.’

  Raavan turned around and strode out of the tent. Kubaer hurriedly wobbled out behind him, followed by the Lankan bodyguards.

  Dashrath’s anger bubbled over. ‘Tomorrow we annihilate these scum. But no one will touch that man,’ he growled pointing towards the retreating figure of Raavan. ‘He will be killed by me! Only me!’

  Dashrath was bristling with fury even as the day drew to a close. ‘I will personally chop up his body and throw it to the dogs!’ he shouted.

  Kaikeyi sat impassively as her seething husband paced up and down the royal tent of the Ayodhya camp. She always accompanied him on his military campaigns.

  ‘How dare he speak to me like that?’

  Kaikeyi scrutinised Dashrath languidly. He was tall, dark and handsome, the quintessential Kshatriya. A well-manicured moustache only added to his attractiveness. Though muscular and strong, age had begun to take its toll on his well-built physique. Stray streaks of white in his hair were accompanied by a faint hint of a sag in the muscles. Even the Somras, the mysterious anti-ageing drink reserved for the royals by their sages, had not been able to adequately counter a lifetime of ceaseless warring and hard drinking.

  ‘I am the emperor of the Sapt Sindhu!’ shouted Dashrath, striking his chest with unconcealed rage. ‘How dare he?’

  Even though alone with her husband, Kaikeyi maintained the demure demeanour normally reserved for her public interactions with him. She had never seen him so angry.

  ‘My love,’ said Kaikeyi, ‘save the anger for tomorrow. Have your dinner. You will need your strength for the battle that lies ahead.’

  ‘Does that outcaste mercenary even have a clue as to who he has challenged? I have n
ever lost a battle in my life!’ Dashrath continued as though Kaikeyi hadn’t spoken.

  ‘And you will win tomorrow as well.’

  Dashrath turned towards Kaikeyi. ‘Yes, I will win tomorrow. Then I will cut him to pieces and feed his corpse to mongrel dogs and gutter pigs!’

  ‘Of course you will, my love. You have determined that already.’

  Dashrath snorted angrily and turned around, ready to storm out of the tent. But Kaikeyi could no longer contain herself.

  ‘Dashrath!’ she said harshly.

  Dashrath stopped in his tracks. His favourite wife used that tone with him only when necessary. Kaikeyi walked up to him, held his hand and led him to the dinner table. She held his shoulders and roughly pushed him into the chair. Then she tore a piece of the roti, scooped up some vegetables and meat with it, and offered it to him. ‘You cannot defeat that demon tomorrow if you don’t eat and sleep tonight,’ she barely whispered.

  Dashrath opened his mouth. Kaikeyi stuffed the morsel of food into it.

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  Chapter 3

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  Lying in her bed, Queen Kaushalya of Ayodhya appeared frail and worn. All of forty, her prematurely grey hair seemed incongruous against her dark, still gleaming skin. Though short in stature, she’d once been strong. In a culture that valued women for their ability to produce heirs, being childless had broken her spirit. Despite being the senior-most wife, King Dashrath acknowledged her only on ceremonial occasions. At most other times, she was relegated to obscurity, a fact that ate away at her. All she desired was a fraction of the time and attention that Dashrath lavished on his favourite wife, Kaikeyi.