The Epic of Kautilya : Born To Be King

by Deepak Thomas

  Blood splattered Kautilya’s face as a sword burst through Chandra’s chest. The crowds cheered.

  Kautilya’s eyes widened as she looked along the serrated blade and the wrapped green hilt to the person who had killed her father.

  “Dhanush!” She gasped in horror.

  CHAPTER 20

  Death

  Kautilya could not believe what was unfolding. It had to be a twisted nightmare.

  Chandra screamed as he elbowed away Dhanush. Then Varun and Bali grabbed Chandra. He flung Varun onto the ground, knocking the latter’s sword out of his hand.

  He then used his injured arm to grab Bali’s free arm.

  “Bali, you dog,” Chandra panted, blood pouring out of his mouth. “Do you think you are stronger than your father?”

  He butted his head multiple times into Bali’s face. Once Chandra was done he let go of Bali’s arms and the prince collapsed onto the ground.

  Kautilya saw Varun reaching for his sword. He scrambled to grab it but couldn’t make it in time. Chandra grabbed Varun and lifted him up.

  “What were you thinking, son?” he asked, obviously in pain.

  “Watch out!” Kautilya screamed as Dhanush thrust a dagger into Chandra’s back. Chandra dropped Varun. He turned around and flung a fist at Dhanush. Dhanush ducked and thrust the dagger at Chandra’s belly.

  Chandra grabbed Dhanush’s right hand which held the dagger. With his other hand, he choked Dhanush and flung him to the ground.

  With his hand still on Dhanush’s throat, he asked, “Why this, Dhanush? How did it come to this?”

  Dhanush glanced at his dagger arm which was pinned down.

  “You do not need a dagger to kill me, Dhanush,” Chandra said. He choked as tears welled up in his eyes. “I will die of a broken heart.”

  Suddenly Dhanush’s left hand rose up and slid a second smaller dagger across Chandra’s throat. Blood sprayed out. Chandra grabbed his throat, trying to hold the blood in.

  Kautilya watched as Dhanush and Varun kept stabbing their fallen father whose blood had now formed a pool around him. The crowd cheered the princes on.

  “Stop!” Kautilya screamed and ran to Chandra’s aid. She pushed Dhanush away from his prone body.

  “Father...!” Kautilya murmured, but he was motionless.

  There was no denying it. Chandra was dead.

  Kautilya wailed in horror.

  She felt a hand on her shoulder.

  “Kautilya, stand up,” she heard Dhanush say. But she refused to budge.

  “Stand up, Kautilya,” Dhanush repeated, shaking her shoulder. Kautilya felt vengeful rage course through her body. Her grip tightened on the sword she had stolen from the guard. Quickly she turned and thrust the sword in the direction of Dhanush.

  Dhanush dodged and grabbed her sword arm. “Are you going to fight me, Kautilya?”

  “You killed the king!” Kautilya screamed trying to pull her sword free. She flung her free arm at Dhanush, who swatted it away.

  Dhanush kicked her down. He tried wresting the sword out of Kautilya’s hand but she hung onto it with all her might.

  He pulled up Kautilya by her arm. When he started prying her fingers open, she bit his hand.

  Dhanush laughed. “Why are you doing this, Kautilya?”

  “I am going to kill you,” Kautilya said. There was only one thought in her mind: revenge.

  “Kautilya, I did what had to be done. Listen to them.” Dhanush gestured at the cheering audience. “They wanted this. The king had committed sacrilege. There was no way they would forgive him.”

  “He did it to save me,” Kautilya said. “He did it protect his daughter.”

  “He did not save you, Kautilya. He put all of us in danger,” Dhanush said. “The Lohithas were just waiting for an opportunity like this to destroy our family. Do you think any of us would have been safe after what has happened?”

  “It was just a stupid ritual,” Kautilya said. “Is a ritual more important than your father?”

  “I was born of rituals, not of Chandra,” Dhanush said. “And so were you, so stop being stupid and put down the sword. You can marry Jay and live your life happily.”

  “Yes, Kautilya,” Varun joined the conversation. “Forget about Chandra. He was never our father. We were born of fire.”

  Kautilya felt helplessness seep through her body. In one fell swoop, she had lost her father and as good as lost her brothers. She broke down sobbing. Her life had collapsed around her.

  When she felt a hand on her shoulder she knew instinctively it was Dhanush.

  Kautilya wrapped her arms around him and cried.

  “You have to be strong, Kautilya,” Dhanush said. “We all have to make tough decisions from time to time. Accept me as your king.”

  Kautilya let her arms slide up onto Dhanush’s neck and wrapped them around it as tight as she could.

  “Kautilya,” Dhanush said, “what are you doing?”

  Kautilya would not let go. She would choke him to death.

  Suddenly the wind was knocked out of her as Dhanush’s fist speared her belly. But Kautilya was used to beatings. She held tight until a sharp pain in her shoulder forced her to let go.

  She fell backwards and realised Dhanush had stabbed her with the dagger he had used to kill Chandra.

  He brandished it menacingly. “What is your decision, Kautilya? Are you going to accept me as your true king or are you going to die just like Chandra?”

  Kautilya looked at Dhanush’s face, twisted with malice. She wondered how she could have ever loved that creature.

  “I choose to die,” Kautilya said. “But I am going to kill you and every last one of the Raptors before I do.”

  CHAPTER 21

  Siblings Fight

  Dhanush stood still with his feet firmly planted. He would not attack until Kautilya did.

  “Kautilya,” Dhanush said, “why are you doing this to yourself? You cannot win against even one of us, let alone all five.”

  Kautilya blocked out Dhanush’s words. Her focus had to be on his feet. But they did not move.

  “This is pathetic,” Dhanush said and began to turn. Kautilya saw the opportunity and lunged at him.

  He merely stepped away and she went sprawling on the ground.

  “Kautilya,” Dhanush said, “I taught you to fight. Do you think you can beat me? Surely you’re not serious.”

  Kautilya lifted herself up. As she got to her feet she saw that all her brothers had formed a circle around her and their father’s body. Kautilya looked down at her hands and knees which were now covered with blood. She looked up at her brothers who were watching her with a mixture of sympathy and annoyance.

  “Give up, Kautilya,” Varun said. “There’s no way you’re going to beat Dhanush.”

  Kautilya turned to face her eldest brother. He was still calmly standing in the same place. There was no indication of what he might be planning.

  Kautilya realised he just wanted her to attack, and would keep dodging until he found an opening to stab her.

  “Kill her,” the crowd chanted. “Kill the parrot.”

  “See, Kautilya,” Dhanush said, “even the crowd is getting angry with you. Just give up.”

  Kautilya stood up and ran towards the fallen lion. She had only one chance.

  “Sameer!” Dhanush cried. “Don’t let her get to the spear.”

  Suddenly Kautilya was lifted and then dropped to the ground. When she recovered her sense of direction Dhanush and Sameer were standing over her. Sameer pulled her up and put her in an armlock. Dhanush then brought the dagger close to Kautilya’s throat.

  The crowd cheered. “Kill her! Kill her!”

  “They want me to kill you. And you want me to kill you too, don’t you Kautilya?” Dhanush whispered into her ear. “You know you ca
n never defeat us. So you want a moral victory. You want to die trying so that you can become a hero. I will not let that happen, Kautilya.”

  Dhanush pushed her onto the ground. He turned to the crowd. “For your sake, people of Bharat, I have forfeited my next birth. I committed the sin of patricide, but I would commit it a thousand times over for my people.”

  The crowd cheered. “Hail Dhanush! Hail the Raptors! Hail war!”

  Kautilya saw the Purogata lying next to her father’s body.

  “My sister is just a fool,” Dhanush continued, his tone changing from rousing to mournful. “She does not know what she is doing. I have protected her since she was a child. I cannot kill her. How can one kill his own sister?”

  He turned to Kautilya. “Sister, let go of your hate. Take up your duty. Become a woman worthy of being a warrior.” He offered his hand to Kautilya.

  Kautilya stared right at Dhanush. The cunning and ruthlessness that made Dhanush so good at war were clear as day. Kautilya felt like a fool for not seeing through him until now.

  “What is your choice, Kautilya?” Dhanush asked.

  “Agnyastra,” Kautilya said, flinging an earring at him.

  Dhanush leapt away in time but the explosion disoriented all the Raptors.

  Kautilya took the opportunity to sprint to the lion. Sameer got back up and ran at her but she was ready.

  “Kadgāstra!” she cried, and threw her nose-ring at him. It turned into a lethal disc and Sameer fell backwards in his attempt to dodge it.

  Kautilya picked up the Purogata and charged at Dhanush. Channelling her father’s spirit she swung the sword at him.

  Yet the Purogata stopped in mid-air in front of him. Kautilya could not believe it.

  The sword had chosen Dhanush to be the new king!

  He snatched the Purogata out of her hands, then shook his head. “I offered you a chance, Sister, and you did not take it.”

  He walked up to Kautilya and placed the blade of the Purogata on her shoulder.

  “Kneel before your king,” Dhanush said.

  Kautilya refused to budge.

  Slowly and painfully the blade started digging into her skin.

  “Kneel before your king,” Dhanush ordered.

  “Never,” Kautilya said. The blade sliced into her tendons. Kautilya screamed in agony.

  “I said kneel before your king.”

  Kautilya could not take the pain any longer. She collapsed onto her knees.

  The crowds cheered.

  Dhanush raised his hand and summoned the guards. “Take her away and lock her up.”

  Kautilya was put on the ground and chained up like an animal. Then a guard pulled her up onto his shoulder and began to carry her away.

  Dhanush then turned to address the crowd again.

  “The Raptors will no longer identify with the family of King Chandra who committed such sacrilege. We will no longer be the Shveta clan. From today we will wear black, and we will be the Shyamas!”

  The crowds cheered. “Hail the Shyamas! Hail King Dhanush! Hail war!”

  Their chants were the last thing Kautilya heard before being taken away to prison.

  CHAPTER 22

  The Hard Prison Cell

  Kautilya was unceremoniously shoved into her cell.

  “Stay there until you develop some sense,” the prison guard said.

  After being taken out of the arena, Kautilya had been brought to the central prison. This was where they kept their worst criminals: murderers, rapists and worst of all ... rebels.

  She had been stripped naked, doused in cold water and given tattered robes to wear. Once that was done she was dragged to her cell.

  “You think you own the place,” the guard continued, “but let me tell you, you’re not a princess any more. You are my prisoner and in here you are nothing more than a worm. Obey my orders and you get food. Disobey and...” He spat on the ground. Then he slammed the prison door shut.

  Kautilya scanned the room. The walls and floors were cold stone. She knew they were enchanted to protect against any astra attacks. There was a small window in the cell, through which she could see the statue of the crouching lioness that her father had decided would be the emblem of Bharat. Not any more. Dhanush would see to that. He would clear away all traces of Chandra’s legacy in order to reinforce his own.

  Did he really do it to protect the nation from civil war? Chandra had certainly been antagonising all the noble families. And the priest class would not forgive his meddling in the swayamvar. But to murder him...

  “Greetings,” said a voice.

  Kautilya turned to see her cellmate. An ape. That explained the weird smell.

  The ape lumbered up. She was young; in ape years she would have been Kautilya’s age. She raised her fist in the traditional greeting gesture of her kind.

  Kautilya did not respond. An ape was hardly good company.

  “I will be your cellmate for the rest of your stay,” the ape said. “My name is...”

  “I need to rest,” Kautilya said to the ape, too exhausted and preoccupied to pay her more attention. She found her bedroll and lay down on it. Due either to the exhaustion of all that had transpired or the loss of purpose in her life, she immediately went to sleep.

  ***

  Kautilya woke up a few hours later. The ape was sitting on her bedroll staring into the distance.

  “Hey,” Kautilya said.

  The ape was startled. “Have you been awake a long time?”

  Kautilya shook her head.

  The ape continued to stare into the distance in silence.

  Maybe apes were slow in thought like Akrama had taught.

  “Are you still awake?” the ape asked her.

  “Of course I am,” Kautilya said.

  At that moment, a guard unlocked the gate to their cell.

  “It’s time for our meals,” the ape said, standing up. “Let’s go.”

  The ape slowly lumbered down the prison hall and Kautilya followed her. She wondered whether she would become slow too in time. Was it something the prison did to a person or was it something that was peculiar to apes?

  Suddenly two inmates rushed past Kautilya and the ape. One of them shoved the ape aside and her knees buckled. Kautilya grabbed her before she fell.

  “Watch it, you blind ape,” the inmate said and walked off.

  That is when Kautilya noticed the ape’s grey, empty irises.

  “I’m sorry,” the ape said. “I have a bit of trouble navigating.”

  “It’s all right,” Kautilya said. “I’ll help you.” She pulled the ape to her feet. “What was your name?”

  “Renuka,” the ape said.

  “I am Kautilya,” Kautilya said.

  “I’m glad to meet you, Kautilya,” Renuka said.

  CHAPTER 23

  Masked Men and Rebellions

  Kautilya and Renuka walked arm-in-arm to the dining hall. It was filled with unsavoury-looking inmates, some of whom eyed Kautilya. But she had enough skills to take care of herself.

  However, one particular person fascinated her, a man with jet-black skin whose face was covered with a wooden mask. He seemed to be giving a lecture, surrounded by rapt listeners.

  Kautilya and Renuka took the bowls of gruel that were thrust at them and sat on the floor. From where they sat, they could listen in to the masked man.

  “Who’s the man in the wooden mask?” Kautilya asked Renuka.

  “It’s Yama the Undying,” Renuka said. “His warriors support the war that the apes of Dandaka are waging against their human oppressors.”

  “Their mutiny,” Kautilya corrected her.

  Yama overheard Kautilya. “Do not colour others’ worldview with your opinion, milady,” he said. “Especially if the other person is the daughter of the Lord Ch
ief.”

  Kautilya looked up. Yama and his cohort were staring at her.

  “I state my opinion,” Kautilya said. “I do not care if people agree.”

  “Fine,” Yama said. “If wanting freedom in your own nation is mutiny then the apes are mutineers.”

  “Freedom?” Kautilya said. “Is that the fantasy you’re using to corrupt the apes? Freedom to do what?”

  “To shape one’s own destiny,” Yama said.

  Kautilya looked at the scar on her palm, the one that Dhanush had made so long ago. “No one can shape their own destiny,” she said. “We are all slaves to fate’s will. If you think replacing a human ruler with an ape ruler will grant any of the common ape folk freedom then you are a fool. The only thing you have done is destroy the peace of the Dandaka forests.”

  “We only destroy our oppressors,” Yama said.

  “Did those oppressors live in the ape huts I saw burning when I was out there in Dandaka?” Kautilya asked, “Are the oppressors those younglings I saw lying dead on the battlefield? Those mother apes I saw weeping over them?”

  “The humans burned those huts, they killed those younglings,” Yama said. “We fight to avenge them and to prevent this from happening again.”

  “Well, this was not happening until you came along,” Kautilya said. “The apes lived in peace. They lived in joy, content with their lot. Your swill of revolution and freedom cost them their lives. The humans may have wielded the swords but you are the ones that caused the swords to kill.”

  “Freedom is a prize worth the sacrifice of peace,” Yama said.

  “Nothing is worth the sacrifice of peace,” Kautilya said. “You are a manipulator of nations. You will bring their demise. If the humans are oppressors, then you are a deceiver.”

  Yama breathed in deeply.

  “Humans live in Dandaka too,” Kautilya said. “We built towns and cut roads. Our sweat has fallen on that land.”

  Yama scoffed. “You built towns on razed ape villages. You cut roads through sacred mangrove swamps. And what use do apes have for roads?

  “We brought them civilisation,” Kautilya said. “Before we arrived Kishkinda was a bunch of ruins. Freedom is worthless. Life is the only thing worth fighting for. And fighting leads to its loss.”