Two Kings

by Neo B.

  It was a while before Dinul had realised what the weak point of the northerners was. They were strong men who seemed fearless, but there was one thing that they were afraid about. It was a chance incidence that had brought this weak point to Dinul’s knowledge. Once he was on one of his walks in the desolate lands when he saw a northerner being attacked by a big, white wolf. He had never seen a northerner afraid and he was surprised that this northerner seemed afraid. The northerners were always ready for a fight, but this one was trying to quietly walk away.

  Dinul felt contempt for the man, and was sure that he would not be able to survive in these lands if he was going to be afraid of a wolf. But then he saw that the man was not alone, but was with his wife and kid. The man first took his wife and the kid to a safe place, and then he returned to take on the wolf, but by that time the wolf had gone.

  Dinul realised that tough as the northerners, were they had a weak point. They were afraid for their family. As soon as he realised that, he decided to take advantage of the fact. He appealed to their sense of belonging for their children and family to win their loyalty. Dinul assured them safety and comfort for their families in the village he had set up, if they joined him and devoted their time to practicing their skills with the sword and the arrow.

  The northerners were strong and fearless, but they were not adept at using sword and the bow, but Dinul was a good master and he had quickly taught them how to use these weapons for maximum damage. Once the northerners got the hang of it, they became quick learners and soon their skills had surpassed the skills of any other army in the entire lands.

  Dinul was proud of his achievement.

  From his knowledge of the sciences that he had gained at the University of Agarpur, he had attempted some experiments in the north. He had even tried to teach the northerners, but after many failed attempts at trying to teach the northerners things about science, he had decided that it would take up too much time. He had decided to use them as assistants only, and overlook all the experiments himself.

  With the help of the northerners and under his guidance, he had created things that were not known to the world outside. Dinul was motivated to continue his work of discovering new weapons of destructions, and he had managed to achieve quite a lot in the desolation. No one could have imagined that such development could be carried out in the desolation of the mountains.

  The north was now ready to overflow into the south.

  22. The Preparation for War

  The preparations for war had begun. Each side was getting together the best army to vanquish the enemy. It would take months before the actual war, but skirmishes at the border areas had begun to erupt.

  The border posts had been strengthened by both sides and most of the skirmishes were harmless till now. During times of peace, Karkish had ensured that the borders were well protected and they had constructed enough posts across the borders to ensure that no one would even think about attempting an attack on Pataliputra.

  What worried Karkish was that he would have to engage with the armies of the five kingdoms at the same time. Though his army was capable, but without an able leader leading each group, it would be difficult to win the war.

  Karkish had called Agniputra to decide who would be leading the army in each of the battle.

  “You and I can lead the battle on two fronts, while we would need three other generals to lead the army on the other three fronts.” Karkish said.

  “With due respect, I would have to say that it would not be prudent to do that,” Agniputra replied.

  “What do you mean?” Karkish asked.

  “I mean that if you were fighting the battle on one front, the enemy could target that front, and try to capture you. If that happens the war is lost. We must be strategic and send out best leaders to the front, while we wait and see the turn of events in the war before we decide where we participate. I would like to be with you, my king, if you permit,” Agniputra said.

  Karkish was forced to admit that Agniputra made sense.

  “Do we have five such leaders who are faithful to us and can win the war for us?” asked Karkish. He realised that over the past few years he had not been paying enough attention to the army as a fighting unit. Had it not been for Agniputra’s determination, their army would have been in a sorry state now. He felt thankful to Agniputra and decided that he would keep him by his side during the war, for his fighting skills, and for his astute advice.

  “I have some men in my army, the so called secret one, who could lead the battle,” Agniputra said, “I have been training them for this day.”

  “But how do we pick the best ones?”

  “I already have, I have called them to meet you. They are waiting outside in the palace grounds. You can decide if they are fit for leading your army, my King.”

  Karkish knew if Agniputra had selected them, then they must be the best, but his stamp was necessary and the men would be motivated by his presence and he decided to go and meet them.

  In the palace grounds were five men who were standing proud and tall. They were all dressed alike in the fighting gear, and Karkish was impressed with what he saw. Agniputra seemed to have been training them well.

  Agniputra introduced them to the king: Ajaya, Dhartiputra, Angad, Daksha, and Jawahar.

  “You know that you have been selected for an important task,” Karkish addressed them.

  “Yes, my lord,” they all said in unison.

  “Are you ready to win this war for Pataliputra,” he asked again.

  “Yes!” they all shouted in unison, louder than last time.

  “Then, go and do it,” Karkish said.

  “I think you have chosen well, Agniputra,” Karkish said addressing Agniputra as they walked back into the palace. From the corner of his eye, Karkish could see that Agniputra was pleased at this commendation.

  Each one was to lead the army to attack each kingdom. Agniputra was to stay in touch with each of the five commanders and guide the fate of the war. Over the past few weeks Karkish had begun to trust Agniputra implicitly with everything.

  “How long before we are ready for the war?” Karkish asked standing on the outer wall of the capital city as the armies began to march. The families of the soldiers had gathered to watch the soldiers march off. It was a sad sight, and Karkish hoped that he would be there to watch these soldiers return home triumphantly, at least most of them.

  “It is almost fifteen days march to each of the borders, and it would take a few days to set up camps and army lines. We will be ready for battle in about twenty days,” Agniputra replied.

  “Hmmm… we will win, right?” Karkish asked, as he watched the soldiers walk off.

  “There is not a doubt, but a lot of lives will be lost, on both sides,” Agniputra replied, a bit worried himself. Karkish was pleased to see that his commander in chief was not merely a war monger but was also a person concerned with the lives of the men he commanded.

  “By the way did our soldiers get the special arrows designed by Devavrata?” Karkish asked.

  “There wasn’t enough time, but the soldiers who have stayed back with us will get them soon.” replied Agniputra.

  There is still hope that we might prevent this war. We have twenty days to get to the bottom of the conspiracy to kill me. The soldier is recovered too. I am going to talk to him today. Maybe we do not have to go to war,” Karkish said hopefully. Agniputra was one of the few men who knew that the soldier was alive.

  Agniputra bowed, but his face showed that he was not so sure. They had spent considerable amount of effort and time in trying to locate the masked man who was tall and dark. Till now, all their efforts had been in vain, and all the spies had come back with empty hands.

  23. The soldier’s Tale

  The soldier was lying in bed and made a motion to stand up as the king entered the room. There was only one other man in the room. Karkish looked towards him and he nodded. The soldier would be able to talk.

  “You can
keep lying down,” the king said as he sat down next to the bed, “How are you feeling now?”

  “I am feeling better, my King, though I am sorry that I could not stop the attack on you,” the soldier replied. He seemed truly repentant.

  “It’s ok, young man. You did the best you could do. Tell me what happened,” the king asked.

  “We were eight soldiers hand-picked by Ajatshatru to serve as your body-guards. About two months ago a tall, dark man wearing some sort of a mask visited Ajatshatru. They had a long and loud discussion about something. At that time we thought nothing of it, as it was not something that had never happened in the past. Among other things Ajatshatru was known for his fiery temper. But then one day, he came to me and told me that he was in a dilemma. He told me that the man had told him that the King was not a good one, and that Pataliputra deserved a better king. I thought it was a joke. Being a part of the personal guard of the king, I told him that we should not have any doubts on our king. I told him we should have killed the man there and then for what he said was treason.”

  “What did he say to that?”

  “He said that it was his first thought as well, but then he showed him his face, and that is when the first doubts crept into my mind.”

  “He saw his face?”

  “He claimed he did… I would like to talk to you alone my lord, pointing at the man in the room,” the soldier said.

  “Leave us alone,” ordered Karkish.

  The man was not sure whether he should leave Karkish alone with the soldier. After all his compatriots had tried to kill the king, but the king asked him to leave again and the man bowed and left the two alone.

  “He said he looked just like you,” the soldier said.

  “How can that be?” Karkish said loudly, more to himself than to the soldier.

  “I asked him the same question, but Ajatshatru was a superstitious man, and the tall dark man seemed to know that. He played on his superstitions and told him that he was the true heir to the throne and you had somehow managed to usurp the throne from him,” said the soldier.

  “How did he convince the other soldiers to attack me?” the king asked.

  “It wasn’t hard to convince the others. Most of the soldiers were in awe of Ajatshatru. They would follow him into a fire if he ordered them to. I would too, but this order required killing the king and I would not listen to him. The morning of the attack, Ajatshatru came to me and asked me if I was with them or against them. I told them that I was never going to support a plan against the king. Before I knew it, he attacked me. I did not get any chance to defend myself, not even a chance to warn you. Maybe I should have come to you the day he told me about the doubts he was having,” said the soldier.

  “You did the best you could have. You had no reason to distrust him. Even we did not distrust him,” Karkish said, “What is your name?”

  “Vidyutputra, my lord,” the soldier replied.

  “Vidyutputra, did Ajatshatru tell you anything more about the man who was behind the attack?”

  “Not much, I think they never trusted me enough. He only told me that he looked like you and that is what convinced him that he should attack the king,” said Vidyutputra.

  “Ok, you take rest and get well soon. Maybe I will need you by my side soon. You have protected me once, you may have to do that again,” said Karkish smiling.

  “I am ready to be at your side whenever you wish me to be,” the soldier bowed.

  24. Growing Up

  When Dinul was eight years old, he had lost the last vestiges of his disease and was as fit as any normal boy. If anything, he was more aggressive and stronger than the other kids of his age. His childhood had been spent with the gypsy tribes. They were a master of many talents, and Dinul had learnt many tricks from them.

  None of the people in the gypsy tribe knew who he was. They only knew that eight years ago one of the families in the tribe had come back from a trip along with a baby with them. The couple had been trying to have a baby for many years and they had not been able to have one. The leader of the tribe had asked them a lot of questions about the baby, but he had got no replies from the family.

  The leader of the tribe had finally allowed the young couple to keep the baby after they had promised that the baby was not stolen and had come to their way by pure chance. If there was any trouble because of the baby, they had agreed to give him up. Over the years the family had tried to do their best to keep him happy, but he never seemed satisfied. It was soon evident that the baby was not easy to satisfy. He always wanted more of everything. Whatever the couple tried, they were never able to satisfy him. The tent of the gypsies was just too small for him.

  As a child, because of his disease, the other children did not play with him. Even their parents thought that Dinul was affected by some peculiar supernatural disease, and that it was best for their children to stay away from him. Dinul did not seem to mind the absence of company of children. He was growing faster than the other children and staying away from the other children helped him focus on his own self.

  There were not a lot of books to be read among the tribal people, and education was minimal but Dinul insisted that his parents bought him books so that he could learn about the world around him. The books were not easy to come by and sometimes they had to go a long way to get the books Dinul wanted. The other members of their tribe made fun of the family when they tried so hard to please their son.

  “They will do anything to please him, but he will never be pleased. He thinks he is the son of a king.” They would say.

  “He may not be the son of a king, but he is a prince,” the parents would say proudly.

  As Dinul grew in age, he began to spend a lot of time in working on his physical strength, and he began to practice various types of arts of war. The gypsy tribe was a strong tribe and they were masters of various arts. Dinul was easily the strongest man in the gypsy tribe, and he had mastered all the arts known to the people of the tribe. The arts were of different kinds - both physical and mental. By the age of 16, he had begun to harbour ambitions of leading the tribe.

  One day he had gone to the leader of the tribe and asked him, “Why are you the leader of the tribe?”

  The leader treated the question as he would have treated a question from a child.

  “Because I am one of the older people in the tribe who knows about the traditions of the tribe and who can help the tribe in difficult situations,” the leader had replied.

  “What good are traditions if they don’t help you and your people lead a better life?” asked Dinul.

  “We are leading a better life,” the leader replied.

  “We lead a nomadic life, travelling from one place to another, with little or no education for our kids, and never sure where the next meal will come from. Is that what you call a better life?”

  “How old are you, child? What do you know about a better life? What do you know about life at all?” The leader was irritated now.

  “I know that the kind of life we are leading is one of the worst kinds. I request you to settle down in a nice place and build a better community for our people,” Dinul said.

  The leader realised that this young child was serious, and it would not bode well for him to take him lightly. He had been the leader of the tribe for many years now and the question of settling down at one place had often been debated in the community and it was decided that it was against the tradition of their people and should not be followed. But this child did not seem like any of the other tribesmen who had suggested settling down before. He seemed more adamant than others.

  “Why would you want to settle down at one place?” the leader asked.

  “We can find a good place, where there will be land to till, and we can build products and form a society so that our children are better educated and do not have to face the hardships of nature and fate,” Dinul replied.

  The leader decided that there was no point discussing this with Dinul as, Dinul’s
mind was already made up.

  “We will call a meeting of the elders tomorrow and discuss this,” the elder said.

  Dinul had wanted just that. He had wanted to be in the presence of all the elders of the tribe at one place. He had built a strong argument in favour of settling down and he planned to present it before the elders. He was sure that once the elders had heard him out, they would support him and choose him as the next leader of the tribe.

  Dinul was very sure of his plan and he felt confident about the future. What Dinul had not read in books was that experience was the biggest teacher in life and the leader had much more experience in this field. He had some other plans for tomorrow.

  He had called a meeting of the elders right after Dinul had left his tent. He informed them of what had just happened. All the elders were unanimous in the view that Dinul should be excommunicated as he was going against the traditions of the tribe. He would only be allowed to stay if he apologised in front of the entire tribe and promised to never repeat the words again. This is the option the elders had given to anyone who had decided to break the traditions.

  The next day when Dinul arrived for the meeting, he found all the elders already seated. As soon as the leader of the tribe started speaking, Dinul understood what had passed. He was asked to leave the tribe or apologise in front of the tribe.

  Dinul was a young, strong-headed man and he lunged at the leader for lying to him. Most of the elders had expected that and there were men who stepped out of the shadows to stop him. Strong as he was, it was not possible for him to stand against the strength of eight able-bodied men. They were easily able to overpower him and throw him out of the tent. He could hear laughter in the tent he had been thrown out of.