by W. C. Jasper
Lord Yuvan was overwhelmingly proud of Satya’s presence of mind and incredible ability to handle pressure. Even under such a stressful situation, he had managed to organically deliver a piece of information that will further strengthen his position as a trusted ally in the long run and also help soothe current suspicions rising in Emperor Thon’s mind. And the best part being that the information he provided was essentially of no value. For even if it mattered which brother led which animals, neither of them would ever allow them to fight. They never used their animals in battle, for they were overly protective of them and wished to shield them from any form of danger.
Emperor Thon: “Ahh… Thank you, Satya. Your dutifulness is truly steadfast.”
The Emperor gently shook his head and brought himself back to his original conversation. He turned to Lord Yuvan and spoke with an empty expression, “What am I to make of this? I mean…” He turned to Satya, “If Boris really were caught, what scroll was the bird bringing back?”
Was he accusing them of lying to him? Was he genuinely only seeking advice? There were no tells whatsoever in his voice.
Satya and Lord Yuvan looked at each other with a question mark. Lord Yuvan quickly turned back to the Emperor and answered, “Four days should be enough for me to find out.”
Emperor Thon nodded as nonchalantly as ever, “As long as you treat me to your incomparable wine… I might even overlook grave mistakes…” He flashed his esoteric laugh, “Ha Ha Ha…” as Lord Yuvan and Satya did a perfect job of patronising him and joining in his laughter.
TWO WEEKS LATER
Lord Yuvan and Satya once again stood in Emperor Thon’s courts. Emperor Thon was studying some reports and munching on roasted almonds.
Lord Yuvan: “There was a delay in the delivery… given the logistical limitations due to Satya’s sister being under heavy observation now. But here’s the proof.” He dropped a disfigured dead body at Emperor Thon’s feet.
Emperor Thon looked on as Satya continued, “This is the man who was bought off by Lord Boris to deliver the message on his behalf. Even though he is imprisoned, he still has a lot of money. And he has people on the outside who are loyal to him - probably for the money he offers. And King Jeraash is misguided enough with his naive view of fairness and justice that he allows him his basic rights. So even from inside the prison, he was able to work through his employees outside. As it turns out; all these months, this one has been writing to you on behalf of Lord Boris. But Jared is not the righteous sort. He sees the world for what it truly is. He was spying on Lord Boris' activities himself and found this out. So, he was the one who intercepted the letters every time.”
Emperor Thon returned his eyes to the reports he was studying and spoke in his ever so mystic voice, “I prefer witnesses who can speak. Why is he dead?”
“Logistics, My Lord,” said Lord Yuvan in his ever so unapologetic and proud voice (proud, but not arrogant), “With only one spy left, who is already under close observation, our options are quite limited. Transporting him alive would have been almost impossible under the current circumstances.”
“Hmm…” nodded Emperor Thon and turned and flashed a kind smile at Lord Yuvan, “Thank you, Lord Yuvan. It is good to know that there are still some who can be trusted to get the job done.”
As Satya and Lord Yuvan were leaving the room, Lord Yuvan stopped, and his pupil followed suit. With his back facing Emperor Thon, Lord Yuvan spoke with a firm and slow voice, “My Lord.”
While he would not have done this for anyone else; this time, Emperor Thon took his eyes away from the reports and turned to him.
Lord Yuvan continued in a slow pace, “Our interests are aligned. And I am not the kind of man to stab someone in the back. I am no traitor. Which is the reason I do not afford this traitor - Boris his title of ‘Lord’. I am a man of principles. I am a man of pride. And so is my pupil. But the reason Satya affords Boris his title of respect is because he was the one who guided him to you… who provides him the means to avenge his parents. But make no mistake, we are men of pride and virtue. We are not here because we agree with your ways. We are here because our interests are aligned. And that makes us allies. We pledged you our allegiance in exchange for righteous vengeance. And so we still call you our Lord. We hold true to our allegiance to you. But I do not like being suspected and interrogated. I do not like questions on my character. And most of all… I do not like it when someone veils their interrogation behind cheeky comments and plays games with me instead of directly asking me what they wish to ask. Let’s not repeat this.”
Returning his eyes to the reports, Emperor Thon answered, “Of course. You both are valued allies, Lord Yuvan. I meant no offence. I am quite fond of both of you.” There was no doubt that he was indeed fond of both of them in a way. And even though his voice expressed genuine appeasement, Lord Yuvan and Satya sensed great murkiness in the words he spoke next, “The last thing I want is for our alliance to be compromised.”
SHAR 3306
On the second day of the third week of the first month, King Jeraash called Prince Jared to his study room. King Jeraash was studying, referring to four humongous books when the Prince walked in. Prince Jared spoke as he walked in, “I doubt there will be anything you haven’t already studied. Whatever more information we need to gather before leaving for the mission, it’s not in any old book. If at all, it will be in any current news that we could get our hands on.”
“Never be sure of how much you already know,” said King Jeraash as he turned back to him. “You have brought it,” he continued, at which Prince Jared showed forth an attire of deep-green decorated with platinum work. It was a glorious attire that looked magnificent, royal, and worthy of being worn by the greatest warrior.
King Jeraash: “You still protest…”
Prince Jared replied with a downcast voice and withering face, “Yes, I do.”
King Jeraash continued to stare at him in silence, and after a few seconds Prince Jared continued with a downcast voice, “I know it is not… I mean… What if the reason Wardiela… *fast-paced head shaking* Perhaps the reason I attract all this misfortune is because of all the lives I’ve taken… But ever since Jeniah… Ever since she has come into my life, I feel like… With Jeniah’s help, I can rise above everything and leave all this behind.”
“And all these kills you speak of,” said King Jeraash, “how many of them were innocent lives?”
Prince Jared shook his head with a broken chuckle and responded, “You know that that is not what I mean… I am talking about the unjustified…” when King Jeraash interrupted him, “What do you say when people ask you about the incident at the tent?”
“You know that that is different! That incident isn’t even…” said the Prince when King Jeraash stood up and interrupted him once again with a slightly raised voice, “Is that not how you defend me? Do you not call it a justified kill? When the blame is on me, the kill becomes justified, but when the blame is on you, they become unjustified?”
Prince Jared stood silently, staring at the floor as King Jeraash continued after a pause, “I admit that I am the one who always rebukes you for your sinful kills. And we both know that I have good reason for it. But calling any of your kills unjustified is preposterous. Every single one of them deserved death.”
Prince Jared walked over to a nearby chair at a slow pace and took a seat with his head hung low.
King Jeraash: “I still detest your ways of taking human lives, and will admit that when you cross the line, no one is more hurt by it than me. And I will continue making sure you change your ways about taking human lives. But to insinuate that any of your kills were unjustified is an absolute lie, and I will not have it.”
King Jeraash walked over to him and knelt down in front of him. Holding the Prince’s knees and caressing them with his thumbs, he spoke, “The guilt and shame you carry weighs harder on me.” His voice was heavier than the gravity of a thousand Earths, “Because I am the one who has to watch my child writhe i
n the agony it causes. So I am asking you to stop this. For me. I am asking you to once again don your original warrior attire for my sake.”
King Jeraash continued to look up at the Prince’s eyes waiting for a response as he replied unwillingly after a few seconds, “Yes.”
As Prince Jared was leaving the room, King Jeraash pulled him, embraced him, and said, “Thank you. Just remember all the sacrifices we make, you, me, Maomi-ma, all of us… It defines us in a sense, it is the proof of what we value. There’s a reason that Satya and Lord Yuvan still wear the word ‘Tyaagam’ in our ancient script on their forehead. It reminds them who they are, because who they are is tied to what they value. Thank you for valuing me.”
King Jeraash drew away, patted the side of his head, kissed his forehead, and sent him off.
Chapter Fourteen
The Sending
On the final day of the first month of SHAR 3306, the party set out on its mission to Devaar and Ketaar. As they passed through the city, heading eastwards on their horses, the lion and wolves followed them like a security force. People throughout the city sang praises of the party and Thaymas felt quite awkward riding in the company of such great people. Akini, on the other hand, rode on her horse, quite at ease, enjoying some of Prince Jared’s chips. Princess Jeniah was also travelling with them so that she could see off her father at the border and then return home with Kareema. Princess Jeniah, quite expectedly, sat on her father’s shoulders as he rode on his majestic black horse, Kirua.
Every warrior wore their official warrior attire that was designed particularly to suit their personality and fighting style. The elite Jerudian warriors usually preferred unarmoured attires because their speed was far more valuable to them than the protection that armours provided. While it was uncommon for warriors to give much care to what their attire looked like; General Thayman, General Hana, Prince Jared, and Akini were well known exceptions to this. Prince Jared and General Hana, especially, were known to be serious divas when it came to the appearance of their clothes and weaponry. Everyone embarking on the mission wore these official warrior outfits when they set off from the Royal Palace. King Jeraash wore scarlet red with white and gold, General Hana wore crimson red with white and gold, General Thayman and Prince Thaymas wore black with gold, Akini wore an orange and black attire with a little white, and Queen Maomi and Prince Jared wore green with platinum artwork (with Queen Maomi’s attire being of a little deeper shade of green).
Prince Jared believed he had attracted misfortune on account of what he called “unrighteous kills” and he held to a belief that his original warrior’s attire was now tainted with their blood and carried the misfortune and weight of those sins. Ever since the age of two, it had become quite obvious that Princess Jeniah’s favourite colour was blue. So he had fashioned a new blue warrior’s attire for himself and dawned the new colour ever since. But now, on his brother’s request, he donned his original green attire again.
There were huge cries of praises as the party set out from the Royal Palace. Various chants could be heard:
“The Lion of Jerudia rides away to faraway lands, to establish righteousness, to establish peace!”
“Our glorious Queen rides away, we will yearn for her beauty and grace, kindness and strength, wisdom and greatness. How blessed is the land that will house her even for a day!”
“The Wolf of Jerudia rides like green lightning, forever on his brother’s side, as his mighty right arm of power!”
“The Dragon of Jerudia rides away with his son. His tales of fearsome feats will forever be remembered in all the lands as they tremble at the mention of his name.”
The party passed the city, enduring unending and exhausting songs of praise and well-wishing and blessings. The others endured, while Akini… quite enjoyed it. Once they reached the end of the city, they switched from horses to horse carriages. Riding on horses for such a long journey would not have been a sensible choice for people heading on such a dangerous mission. However, while they were inside Jerudia, horses and horse carriages made perfect sense. They travelled on horse carriages for the most part and switched to horses only for passing through areas of wilderness that had problematic paths.
Prince Jared and Princess Jeniah, however, rode on horses for a vast part of the way. For the Prince and Princess suffered a shared challenge of motion sickness. A condition passed down to the Prince from his mother. King Jeraash, however, did not inherit this illness from his mother. While motion sickness cannot really be equated to the usual illnesses, diseases, and disorders; it too, was extremely rare in the days of SHAR. Yet, there was one more person in the mission party who suffered from the condition - Akini. But she chose to get through it by using a technique suggested to her by King Jeraash. She was told by the King that as long as one’s eyes remain closed, motion sickness is manageable. And so she rested her eyes inside the carriage.
Each and every spot where they were meant to switch rides was planned to perfection. The wilderness areas with varying landscapes were crossed at moderate speed, slowing down only at a few spots where they wished to enjoy the scenery. Everyone in the company was familiar with most of these places, as the Royal Family made it their business to intentionally visit each and every corner of the Kingdom regularly. This practice was to personally ensure that every part of the Kingdom is operating in proper order and justice. Jerudia had only two big cities - the capital city of Radaa in the centre of the Kingdom, and Clover city on the south-eastern end that served as the hub for exports and imports to and from Devaar and Ketaar. On their journey east, they passed a few towns and travelled at a varying pace, stopping at a few spots to indulge in courtesy visits. They finally arrived at Numaj village at the extreme eastern end of the Kingdom during the twelfth hour of the tenth day of their journey.
Numaj was the birth land of Queen Maomi and Akini. They were extremely excited to meet their family and old friends. Akini’s parents were invited to live at Queen Maomi’s aunt’s house for a week’s time. This was so that when the party arrived at Numaj, they could be served a feast, and her house was the right size for it. Queen Maomi’s aunt’s name was Lady Vallarasi Deven, and she was the most prominent businesswoman in the village and owned many successful businesses. Consequentially, she was a very rich and influential woman. Her house was huge - far bigger than what she needed for herself, her husband, and her three sons. Her influence and status in the society transcended even her success as a businesswoman.
She and her husband, Lord Raghu Varan, were adored by everyone for their unmatched charity work. Poverty was almost non-existent in Jerudia thanks to King Jahous’ tireless efforts for creating a government that helped everyone stay self-reliant without merely giving handouts. King Jahous’ efforts were perfected by his elder son, King Jeraash whose intellect and wisdom were astounding. Jerudia’s government collaborated with wealthy and powerful people with means such as Lord Raghu and Lady Vallarasi to help the poor and destitute people of the land (although such people were extremely rare). The poor and destitute were taken in by people such as the Varan-Deven household and provided for temporarily until they were given a way to earn their own livelihood and stand on their own feet. Once they were back on their feet, they were made to pay back for the time they were provided for, so that it reinforced good values and also ensured that there was true justice. It was also in accordance with Jerudia’s holy scriptures that commanded that he who does not work, ought not to eat. Every person who partnered with the government in these efforts were personally known by the King, and only those whom he himself trusted were allowed to participate in this initiative so that wrongdoing of any kind and abuse of influence and power may be avoided. Lord Raghu and Lady Vallarasi were particularly adored by the community for their efforts that went beyond their commitment to the government of Jerudia; for the nobility in their hearts could be seen in the personal care and affection that they showed for everyone in the community.
As the party arrived at the m
ain gate of the house, there was a great uproar with the people from the entire village following them wherever they went. They entered through the main gate to find Lady Vallarasi running out of the house to welcome them. She was 5 feet 7 inches tall with grey hair, 107 years old, and always dressed in rich garments that looked very sober.
Any normal person would have first bowed to the King and greeted him first, but this was no normal person. She ran straight to Queen Maomi hurriedly and embraced her tightly. She kissed her profusely all over her face, caressed her head, and spoke with an urgent pace, “It’s been months! I have to get back to the food.” She kissed her on the forehead once again tightly and proceeded to greet the King at an urgent pace. She bowed to him as the King held her shoulders and stopped her and he himself bowed, saying, “I might be a king, but you are still my mother-in-law and my elder.” She patted his cheeks as if petting a child and responded, “What a sweet man our King is,” and ran back into the house in a hurry. Although King Jeraash was a very humble man, not many people would have dared to behave with the King in such casual fashion. King Jeraash chuckled in embarrassment and a weird flavour of joy.
As she ran back into the house, her husband came running out to greet them. Lord Raghu was almost 6 feet 3 inches in height and built quite slender with gorgeous hair even at the age of 112. His body seemed to age slower than the average human and his handsomeness seemed to have forgotten to age altogether. He had an incredibly powerful charm and humble and peaceful dark-brown eyes. He bowed and said, “My King, My Queen! Welcome to our house,” and kissed Queen Maomi on her cheeks and embraced her tightly. He held her head and looking into her eyes, said, “The most beautiful sight for a father’s eyes,” as his eyes welled up. Queen Maomi took his hands and kissed them, “The most welcoming hands for a daughter.” He then proceeded to embrace and kiss the King.