by Neo B.
17. The Coming War
Karkish was wondering whether it was a good time to launch an attack on the five kingdoms. He knew that under Agniputra his army was strong enough to take on all the five kingdoms at once. His scientists had also devised weapons that would prove too strong for the armies of the five kingdoms. But he knew that such an attack would mean the death of many thousand innocent soldiers and he did not want that. For no fault of theirs, they would have to sacrifice their lives. It was not fair and Karkish wanted to be as fair as he could.
But not preparing for an attack was cowardly and foolhardy. The news that he had heard from various quarters was disturbing. Since the time, Vidur had told him that the five kingdoms had supported the attack on the king, he had been furious. Vidur had now told him that Dinul was waiting for a reply from the kings. It would be foolish to wait for the kings to attack them. Preparations for war had to be made.
In all his years of rule, he had been nothing but kind to the five kingdoms. Whenever there had been a famine in their kingdoms, he had supplied them with rations of food at no cost. The waters from the rivers in Pataliputra were extended to the five kingdoms as well. Was it time to teach the five kings a lesson in humility, Karkish wondered!
Karkish had called a meeting of his ministers to prepare for the attack.
Once again, all the ministers and Karkish were sitting in the chamber of the inner council.
“We have been at peace with the five kingdoms for years, but they have helped the enemy against Pataliputra. I think we need to teach them a lesson,” Karkish began.
“Starting a war is never a good idea,” Manu said, “it will mean the loss of lives and the loss of valuable resources.”
Akshaya nodded in agreement. He was worried about the food production in the kingdom.
“We do not know who the real enemy is, my lord,” Vidur intervened, “but he wants a war, and by attacking the five kingdoms we will be playing according to his rules.”
“I have thought about all these things, but sitting back does not eliminate the threat. Not only will it make me look bad to the other kingdoms, but my own people will think of me as weak, and anyone can attack a weak kingdom,” said Karkish.
“I agree then that war is the only option,” Agniputra said.
“I am not saying that we will wage a war against the five kingdoms, but I think we must ready ourselves for it. In the meanwhile we will keep looking for the real enemy, but we must keep our army ready for the attack,” said Karkish decisively.
“I have not called this meeting to decide whether we are going to attack the five kingdoms, but to decide how we are going to do that, and whether we are going to make the first move. The spies I sent out have told me that the five kingdoms have started making similar preparations for the war, and their armies are on the move,” Karkish replied.
Agniputra had already known this, but the other ministers were surprised.
“Devavrata, how long before you can produce the weapons you demonstrated in the last games on a large scale?”
“We can start doing it now. In a week’s time we can have enough of the bursting arrows for the whole army,” replied Devavrata.
“Then ask your men to start work on it, I want all of my archers to have those arrows before they move out. Let everyone know in the kingdom that war is coming. All our border posts should be strengthened. Identify locations where we can take on the armies. If it is war they want, then it is war they shall get.”
All the ministers rose with the king and prepared to leave.
18. The Council of the Five Kings
The five kings had come for a meeting, and they were troubled. Before they had time to decide whether they would support a full scale war against Karkish, as Dinul wanted, they had received a message from Pataliputra. The messenger from Pataliputra had reached each of them with the following message
“It has come to my notice that you have been plotting against the kingdom of Pataliputra. It is with deep regret that I came to know of the news, because I have always harboured nothing but goodwill towards your kingdom and the people. However, your recent activities have forced my hand, and if you do not surrender your armies to me in the next fortnight, I will be forced to attack your kingdom.”
“What are we going to do about this?” Govinda asked.
“There is only one thing to do. When we chose to support Dinul in his endeavours, we knew the risk we were taking. It would not suit us to surrender our armies to the king like that. We must take a stand. The might of the Pataliputra army may be great, but if we stand united, we may still defeat him,” Devendra said.
Devendra was known to be an aggressive king and the others knew that he would as gladly attack them as he was talking about attacking Pataliputra, but in the light of the current situation they were inclined to agree with him.
“What if we do surrender before Karkish, and join him against Dinul?” Kanaka asked, who had been suspicious of Dinul from the very start.
“Never!” Devendra said, “What will the world think of us if we do that. As kings, it is our duty and responsibility to face the threat that threatens our kingdoms. If this war does happen, it is going to be the greatest war that history has seen in quite a while. How do you want to be remembered?”
“But we did go against Karkish, and he is right in being angry with us,” Kanaka said.
Samvrata and Mahendra had been sitting quietly all this time.
“Let’s put it to a vote, and if we can come to a consensus we will stand by our decision, otherwise each one of us can take a stand as we deem fit. This is not a time for fighting among ourselves. The enemy, whether we like it or not, is standing at our doors,” Samvrata, who had been quiet all this while, suddenly broke his silence.
“We can vote later, but before we vote we should discuss the merits of each option that is present before us,” Govinda said reasonably, “Mahendra, you have been quiet. What do you think?”
All the kings were on a first name basis with each other. There had not been a major war since the time of Dhumarketu and most kingdoms were busy consolidating their kingdoms after Dhumarketu had taken over most of the lands.
“I think we don’t have many options, we have to stand up and fight. If we give up, we will be losing the control of our kingdoms, and someone will kill us and ascend the throne. History will remember us as the kings who surrendered after attempting a dastardly plan to overthrow the king of the mighty Pataliputra. We had committed ourselves to the cause the day we decided to support Dinul,” Mahendra replied.
Mahendra’s reply was met with silence. They all knew that what Mahendra had said was true. They had no option but to fight. Even Kanaka, who had proposed the surrender, knew that surrender was not an option. If he appeared weak now, then one of the other four kings might try to usurp his kingdom. It was a time to show strength – individually and as a group. The five kingdoms must unite in a bid to defeat Karkish.
A reply was quickly drafted and sent to Karkish informing him that surrender was not an option, and that if Karkish chose to bring his army to their doors, he would be met with a strong resistance.
It read:
“Though we have been at peace for a long time, yet no king can surrender his kingdom without a fight. It is the moral responsibility and duty of the king to lay down his life for the protection of his kingdom. If you decide to attack us, we will meet you with equal force.”
The five kings then decided that it would be better to attack Karkish before he got a chance to attack them. Speed and surprise could be their strength. They sent a message to Dinul informing him of their intention to go to war with Pataliputra. They decided to go back to their kingdoms and prepare for war. This would be a war that would go down in the history of the world as a defining moment, so every king was prepared to risk everything for the war.
19. The Seer’s revelation
One day, as Karkish was sitting in his room brooding about the coming war, the he
rald announced that Udaybhan had come to see the King. The king was surprised to hear of his arrival, but he was glad and hoped he had come with some answers. Karkish asked the soldier to bring him straight to his private chamber.
“Welcome, my friend,” Karkish said. Their last meeting had reminded both about their friendship and they were happy to see each other again. Udaybhan was not sure what the protocol was to greet a king in his room, so he bowed low and saluted the king.
Karkish laughed, and went ahead and hugged the surprised Udaybhan.
“What brings you here?” Karkish said.
“I have come here representing the council of the seers. They sent me because they came to know of our friendship. After you left, there was another meeting of the seers and in that meeting good sense prevailed, and the council decided not to support the masked man and the five kings in their efforts,” Udaybhan said.
Karkish was sure that Udaybhan had played a major role in changing the council’s mind.
“But it is too late. The five kings have turned against me and they are ready for a war with Pataliputra,” Karkish said.
“We saw that the war was coming, and thus the seers had sent me to warn you that you need to be very careful. There are dark clouds hovering over Pataliputra’s future. The seers have foreseen that you will be put in grave danger and the only hope you have will be your courage and your strength. You can survive this if you trust your heart and do what you believe,” Udaybhan said.
“This is the one reason I don’t believe in the power of the seers,” joked Karkish, “you say one thing, and then the just opposite- both at the same time. How can that be?”
“That is our fate. What we see is just a possibility, and it is how people act that determines their future,” Udaybhan said, throwing his hands up in the air.
“Thanks for the warning,” Karkish smiled.
“There is one more thing that I have come to see you about. In fact, that is the reason I readily agreed to come and see you when the council suggested. I made some enquiries about the attack on you, and one of the seers told me that a few years ago, a young man had come to him to know about his future. The seer had only seen darkness in his future, but there was one thing that he still remembered about that man. He looked just like you,” Udaybhan said.
“What?” Karkish said incredulously.
“I know it sounds hard to believe, but that is what he said. He told me that at that time he could not understand the significance of the similarity but now he does. He is somehow related to you and now he wants his revenge for not getting his chance to be the king,” continued Udaybhan.
“It is actually not hard to believe at all, because I heard rumours that the man behind the attack on me had features just like me,” said Karkish.
It was Udaybhan’s turn to be surprised.
“So you knew that someone looking like you was behind the attack?” said Udaybhan.
“To be honest I wasn’t sure till now, but now that you are saying the same thing, I have to believe it. It is too big of a coincidence,” replied Karkish.
Udaybhan agreed. “Who do you think he is?”
Karkish shrugged his soldiers. “You are the seer, you tell me.”
“I have given it a lot of thought and the age of the man as the seer told me matches yours and I think he is your brother,” said Udaybhan.
“That is what I think too. Well, we are at least one step closer to our enemy. Let’s see where that takes us. In the meanwhile please allow me to reciprocate the hospitality you extended me. Join me for dinner.”
20. Brothers Indeed
After Udaybhan left, Karkish’s heart was fixed upon the single thought of finding out who the man with his face was. In his heart, he felt sure that he was his brother, but he did not allow himself to think this thought for long. Udaybhan had said that he felt that the man with his face must be his brother, but Karkish wanted to be sure before he believed it.
Karkish remembered his father telling him the story about the dai who had helped in giving birth to him, and the large reward he had given him. His father had often said that he regretted that she had not stayed back, or he would have given her an even grander gift, for she had been the bearer of the best news he had ever heard.
Karkish had to find the dai, and she could tell him the answer. Karkish wanted to know if his mother had given birth to twins and if anyone could tell him that, it was the dai.
He could not send out any spies looking for her, as he would have to tell them the reason for doing it. So he had requested Udaybhan to make the enquiries for him. Being a seer, it would be easy for him to make the enquiries that were needed and maybe he could find her.
A few days after Udaybhan had visited Karkish, he came back again to see the king, but this time he had come in secret, and he sent a message to the king to ask his guards to let two people into the palace late at night.
As soon as Karkish read the message, he was thrilled. If Udaybhan was coming with someone it had to be the dai that had given birth to him. He gave the necessary orders to one of his trusted guard. He was to smuggle in two people at night without letting people find out who they were.
At night, the guard brought in two people, and quietly left the room. Shakuntala was sleeping in the adjoining room. Karkish had told her that Udaybhan was coming in with some important news, and she had not asked any more.
As soon as Udaybhan entered, he introduced an old lady to Karkish.
“This is the dai,”
“How big you have grown…” the dai said in amazement.
For all his excitement, curiosity, and a little anger Karkish could not suppress a smile.
“I have a question to ask you…. Did my mother give birth to twins?” Karkish asked matter-of-factly.
The dai stepped back in shock… “How did you know?”
The dai’s expression was a giveaway. She did not even try to deny it.
“Why did you not tell the king about it? Why did you give him away?” asked an angry Karkish.
“Because he was a monster. I could not tell the king that the second baby was a monster. I did not want to hurt it, but I had no choice.” The dai seemed genuinely remorseful.
“A monster? What was wrong with him?”
“He had some strange, pink growth all over his body?”
“What did you do with him?” Karkish asked, not knowing what to think of this old woman.
“I gave him to a gypsy tribe that was passing the city at the time. I made sure they were nice people and would treat the baby with love and care.”
“Where can we find those gypsies?”
“I don’t know there are many gypsy tribes that never stay at one place. It was one of those tribes that I handed over the baby to,” the dai said.
“Ok you can go now.”
Udaybhan had said nothing during the whole time. He bowed quietly and followed the woman out of the room.
The dai’s visit had not been of great help. Karkish had hoped that the dai would be able to provide some clue as to the whereabouts of Dinul and if she could do that, maybe he could talk to Dinul and avoid the war. If they were brothers indeed, they could live like brothers. The dai had only confirmed what Udaybhan and he had guessed. Dinul was indeed Karkish’s brother.
21. Dinul’s Lair
After the fateful visit to Vidur, Dinul was neither in Pataliputra, nor in any of the five kingdoms. He was now in a remote village, if it could be called so, north of Pataliputra. In fact, he had spent most of his recent life in the remote areas north of Pataliputra. The climate was harsh, and the sustenance was low, but he was used to it. He had lived a few years of his life here.
If the first attack had worked, things would have been simpler. All he had to do was sit on the throne and that would have been easy with the help of the five kings, but now things would not be that easy. Karkish was warned now and he would do everything with extreme caution. A full scale war was the only option now and a war against t
he might of Pataliputra could only be won if Dinul combined his trickery and his warfare with the armies of the five kings. The incident with Vidur had made him even more cautious. He decided not to trust anyone in Pataliputra.
It was time, he thought, that the attack was carried out from the outside. The five kings were ready for attack, and with Dinul’s help they would be able to win the war.
Kairav, his faithful servant, interfered with his thought process, “Will you be here long this time?”
“I don’t plan to,” Dinul replied. Kairav was one of the few people who had seen Dinul without a hood and without the mask, but all of these people were northerners who had never been out of the northlands.
“You seem troubled,” Kairav asked.
“I am. Some of my plans have failed, and it seems that no one will listen to me anymore, I need to visit the five kingdoms once again,” Dinul replied, “… and I think I will need our little army after all.”
Over the years, Dinul had got together an army of northerners. The northerners were tough men who lived in the wild. Dinul had organised them into a unit, with a single aim: hatred for the southerners. The northerners never cared for much, and lived from day to day, enjoying their lives.
Dinul had taught them to fight, and taught them to organize themselves into a better unit. They were only a small band, but they were fierce with no respect for life, and no sympathy for anyone. They were loyal to Dinul to the extreme, and were willing to lay down their lives for him. He was the leader of the pack of these wolves.
It had not been easy for Dinul to win their loyalty. Dinul had fought many a bloody battle against some of them, and, then, for some of them. It was now a band of soldiers who were fiercely loyal to him. Over the years he had also tried to attract some of the dishonest soldiers and people from the various kingdoms and tried to induct them to his village. But those efforts had been futile. The men from the south did not find it easy to survive in the harsh conditions of the north. The northerners did not make friends with them easily and more often than not, they fought among themselves and the southerners invariably lost. These fights and troubles were too much of a pain, and Dinul had stopped trying to introduce men from the southern lands into his army.