'They're making for the town of Umra. I have them now.'
Indra and his men had marched for two days and nights without rest and now the town of Umra was within sight. The men were exhausted and at the end of their tether. In the distance behind them they could see the dust cloud raised by the rapid approach of Hiranya's army. It was going to be touch and go. Just then, Timon arrived from his clandestine expedition into the town.
'The garrison has about a hundred men, but they do not seem very vigilant and will be vulnerable to a quick assault. The bridge has only a few guards to monitor passage.'
Indra turned to Soma.
'How many horses do we have?'
'A few more than twenty.'
'Pick twenty of the best men to ride with you and me. We will keep the garrison engaged while Atreya and Nala take care of the guards and lead the rest of the men across the bridge. Hurry!'
As Soma rushed to do his king's bidding, Indra turned to Timon.
'Hiranya and his men should be here by mid-day. Go with Atreya and Nala. I cannot ask any of the others to do this, but in case we are not at the bridge by noon, make sure you destroy it.'
Timon's eyes welled with emotion; he had served many masters in his time, but never one who always put himself on the frontline in battle. He grimly nodded his acceptance.
***
The garrison at Umra was a quiet border post that rarely saw any action. The hundred-odd men posted there were a ragtag bunch of rogues and scoundrels from the various legions of the Asura army. They were given to drinking, gambling and fighting each other to while away their long days of boredom.
It was one such dull evening within the walls. A bare-knuckle boxing match was in progress when Indra and his men killed the sentries and crashed through the gates. The Asuras quickly recovered from their initial shock at the surprise assault and went for their weapons. The Devas fought their way to the centre of the compound. Indra ordered them to adopt a defensive formation called the Lotus. Spears and shields on the outside, archers on the inside.
The enemy came at them from all directions. Indra could not help but admire the Asura strength and resilience. No matter how many fell to spear and arrow, they just kept on coming. Soon their superior numbers began to tell. Indra was forced to abandon the formation and let every man fight for himself. This was the style favoured by the enemy, and soon things started to go badly for Indra and his men. Then the situation worsened: they heard the roars of Hiranya's army as they entered the town. This gave heart to the garrison and they fought with renewed vigour.
Just then Indra heard a sound that was like the sweetest music to his ears. It was the hunting horn of Timon: the Devas had successfully made the crossing. Indra ordered his men to fall back to the bridge. It was almost noon.
Only five of them made it out of the garrison walls alive, and Indra was glad to see Soma among them. Outside the garrison they almost ran full tilt into the vanguard of Hiranya's army. They fought for their lives as they fell back through the narrow alleys of the town towards the bridge.
Hiranya spotted the handsome figure of Indra at the bridge, keeping the Asura frontline at bay. His black sword flashed in the sunlight and dispatched Asura after Asura into the river where bloodthirsty crocodiles awaited them. Hiranya screamed in frustration as the throng of his own men kept him away from his enemy.
The bridge was made of rope and wood and it was quite narrow--only three men standing abreast could cross it at a time. Indra had sent his companions across, giving Soma instructions to cut the ropes once he was on the other side.
Indra heard the call of the falcon above the din of battle; it was the signal for him to fall back. The enemy still poured onto the bridge causing it to lurch dangerously. Indra sheathed Kadaag, turned and ran for the sanctuary of the other bank. Just as the ropes creaked and parted way, Indra flung himself into the air. From the far bank, his anxious men watched in disbelief. Their king had to cover about forty feet to safety. Indra pumped his arms and legs in the air as he propelled himself across the chasm. For one brief moment he thought he had not made it; then he felt his friend's firm grip on his forearm as he hit the edge. Behind him, the Asuras on the bridge plunged into the river; into the waiting mouths of the giant crocodiles.
Soma, still holding on to Indra's arm, grinned and whispered in his friend's ear, 'There are limits, even if one is a god.'
12
They trudged for days, making slow progress as they hacked and slashed their way through the dense forest. After several days, they were confronted with a river, the waters of which were black, thick with silt and dead vegetation. Beyond the vast expanse of it, as far as the eye could see, was a marsh. Timon turned to Indra with a sigh.
'I do not know what lies beyond this river. I have been told that it is an endless wetland. It is the delta of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.'
Indra weighed his options carefully. What lay beyond the wetlands or how far they really stretched was anybody's guess. The forest of Aranya on the other hand, though dangerous, offered them plenty of food and water. He decided they would rest there that night, and then make their way north through the forest till he found a place where they could lay low for a while. He would then find a way to obtain some horses and rebuild his army.
Though the days in the forest had been hard enough, filled with venomous serpents and ferocious wild beasts at every turn, this one night proved to be even tougher. The men were attacked by countless mosquitoes and kept awake the whole night. Indra was forced to seek higher ground away from the river just to rid themselves of these pests.
Soon the mosquitoes proved a far greater threat than they had initially perceived. A fever broke out in the Deva camp, the likes of which their physicians had never seen before. The men woke up in the night with their skin burning. Even in the thick humidity of the forest, they shivered with chills that ran through their body. Their joints began to ache, and soon they became too weak to march any more. They camped on top of a hill well away from the river and reviewed the situation. Indra and Soma were amongst the few Devas who had not succumbed to the fever.
In the middle of this crisis, the guards came to him with the news that the slave Valli had escaped from the camp. Indra, who had just received word that his commander Atreya was in a serious condition, paid little heed to the news. In a little tent that served as a makeshift infirmary, the Deva physicians struggled to save their brave commander.
Indra went into the tent to see how his commander was doing and found that Atreya had wet his bed copiously. The physician Dhanavantri saw the dark stain spread across the sheet; the soldier's urine was black in colour. The physician looked at Indra and shook his head regretfully. Atreya looked into the eyes of his king and gripped his arm tightly. His face was gaunt and his body had wasted away. Indra could see the desperate plea in his eyes; this was not the way for a warrior to die. Finally Indra felt the grip on his wrist slacken as weakness and exhaustion overcame the warrior and he drifted off to sleep. The physician informed Indra that it was unlikely that Atreya would survive the night.
Indra walked away from the camp, lost in thought, troubled by his own helplessness and inability to save his friend. A rustle among the trees brought him back to reality--he realised that he had wandered a good way away from the camp. He reached for his dagger and saw that he was not carrying one. Whatever it was amongst those trees began to come closer. He braced himself, ready to thwart an attack or take evasive action, when Valli stepped into the clearing. In her hands she carried what looked to him like the dried bark of a tree. She held it out to him and, to his great surprise, spoke to him in his own tongue.
'Take this. It will cure the fever.'
***
The desperate physicians followed Valli's instructions and boiled the bark in spring water. The bitter mixture was administered to the sick men. Dhanavantri and his team of physicians did not trust the woman entirely, so only the hopeless cases were treated first. But their fears
were unfounded: by the next morning, the fever in many of the sick men had broken, and in two days, much to Indra's delight, Atreya was able to get up and walk around.
Valli's popularity now increased by leaps and bounds within the camp. She, on her part, was not at all comfortable with the excess attention, and started to cover herself with a white linen cloak. Indra caught himself staring at her on a couple of occasions. She was nothing like any of the women who usually appealed to him, yet there was something about her that was strangely fascinating. Over the next week, thanks to Valli's medicine, the death toll from the fever was kept under twenty. She had single-handedly saved the Deva army.
A lot of meat was required for the recuperating men, so Indra and Soma took on the responsibility of hunting. They went ahead alone so they were free to use their powers to travel across the treetops. The rest of the hunting expedition followed on the ground. There was plenty of game available, although it had scattered all across the forest since their arrival. The two men took this opportunity to explore the terrain. Indra decided to use the forest as his base for a while, till he could broker a deal with the Sumerian rebels for horses. Timon had already been dispatched for the task.
One day, in pursuit of a particularly swift stag, Indra was separated from his friend. He found himself alone in a previously unexplored part of the forest. As he retrieved his arrow from the body of the dead animal he realised that the chase had led him well away from the camp and he had no idea where he was. He slung the carcass of the deer over his shoulder and tried to retrace his steps back to camp.
He walked for a long while; the soma that coursed through his veins gave him plenty of endurance to bear the weight of the animal across the long distance. Soon he started to recognise signs that indicated he was close to the camp. He heard the sound of a waterfall and decided to quench his thirst. As he approached, he heard a beautiful female voice singing. Though he could not understand the words, the melody of it touched him. He dropped his burden and climbed a tree to take a closer look.
As he peered out of the canopy, he saw a waterfall that emptied itself into a deep, still rock pool. On one of the rocks, Valli basked in the sun. Her body, still wet from her dip in the pool, shone in the evening light. She spotted him then and beckoned him down. A sheepish Indra came down and stood before her, thoroughly embarrassed.
'I did not mean to intrude. But your song, I have never heard anything so beautiful.'
Valli turned on her side to face him. She made no move to cover her nudity.
'It is a song that my mother used to sing to me as a child. It is the only memory I have of her.'
Her eyes ran all over him. She had never felt this kind of desire towards anybody. He was the most beautiful man she had ever seen. Even as she stared at him, he averted his gaze. Indra could not understand his exact feelings for her. There was curiosity--she was unlike any woman he had ever known-- but it was more than that. He found it hard to keep his eyes off her. His throat had turned dry; he tried to make his voice sound normal as he spoke.
'How is it that you speak our tongue?'
'It was taught to me as part of my training in Harappa. Among other things.'
'Other things? What other things?'
She smiled as she stood up.
'You cannot expect a girl to reveal all her secrets at once. Come, let me show you.'
He went to her as if in a spell. She leapt off the rock into his arms and wrapped her long, shapely legs around him. He lost his balance and, laughing, they tumbled into the rock pool. The cold water did nothing to dim their passion as their bodies entwined and their mouths found each other. Night fell, but the two of them did not realise it as they made love under the light of a bright moon. When they finally tired, they lay naked on the rock and talked. They had so much to say to each other.
Valli told him about the land of her birth under the shelter of the mighty Vindhya Mountains. She had been the daughter of the queen of the Vahini, a tribe of women warriors. The women of her tribe were greatly prized as priestesses in the great city of Harappa. It was believed that they carried the spirit of Raksha in them. Raksha was the mother goddess, the presiding deity of the Harappa.
Slave traders had captured her in a raid on her village just a year before her first moon. She was taken into the temple where she was trained to serve the goddess. She told Indra of Harappa's unparalleled wealth and power. How people from all over the world travelled there for trade and to marvel at the city's riches and beauty. Indra listened and found that it distracted him momentarily from his troubles. When she finished her tale, they continued to make love until the first light of the morning sun began to filter in through the canopy.
Indra arrived at the camp the next morning with an enormous appetite. He had to endure a few jibes from Soma. While he had been occupied, scavengers had taken his deer in the night and it was the first time he had returned from a hunt empty-handed. But he did not care; at least his secret was safe.
Over the next few weeks, the two lovers met in secret whenever Indra could slip away from his duties. The denizens of the forest were mute witnesses to their amorous escapades. They talked for long hours and shared each other's dreams and aspirations. Indra was amazed at Valli's erudition and skill. She was a healer with an astounding knowledge of herbs and potions, a linguist, an expert in political affairs and a fabulous lover. His curiosity was piqued: how had a woman so young acquired so much knowledge?
Valli told him about how she along with the most promising girls from among the initiates was handpicked by Anga, high priestess of Harappa, to join her personal order. These girls were trained in various disciplines with particular attention given to the art of pleasing men. Some of these women then found a place in the hearts and homes of the rich and powerful nobility of Harappa, sometimes as wives or more often as concubines. The most beautiful and talented, like Valli, were sent to grace the courts of other powerful rulers of the known world.
These women, whose loyalties lay only with Anga and the goddess, passed on vital information and state secrets to their mistress and enabled the high priestess to become one of the most powerful people in the world. Indra was amazed to hear her story.
'If this Anga is as powerful as you say she is, why did you betray her secret?'
'I already betrayed her when I saw you for the first time.'
She saw his confused look and smiled. Tears welled up in her beautiful dark eyes.
'While we can readily give our bodies to our male masters, it is forbidden for us to love anyone save the Divine Mother. I betrayed my mistress the moment I gave my heart to you.'
Indra felt his heart swell with love for her as he gathered her in a tight embrace.
***
Indra's idyllic existence was shattered when, one day, fifteen men from a Deva hunting party did not return. They had last been seen near the wetlands, about a couple of days' march north of the camp. Ordering the rest of the hunting party to keep the situation a secret so the rest of the men would not be alarmed, Indra and Soma left to investigate the mystery.
They were able to pick up the trail of the missing hunters quite easily as the soft ground near the wetlands left tracks even a blind man could follow. Then suddenly, in a grove of tall trees, the tracks abruptly vanished. The two warriors searched the ground ahead for any sign of their comrades, but there were none. They were puzzled; it was as if the men had vanished into thin air.
Indra scanned the canopy above: the dark green foliage was thick and impenetrable. Somehow, he could not shake off the feeling that they were being observed. He communicated telepathically with Soma and asked him to be alert. No sooner had Soma nodded his understanding than two nooses fell from the canopy above and tightened around their arms and chests. The ropes were made of plant fibre and were strong, but they would have presented no problem to the divine strength of the two warriors. Indra cautioned Soma to not resist capture though; if it was possible, he wished to get to the bottom of the mystery wi
thout the use of violence.
As they were dragged up into the trees, they saw that the treetops were filled with archers ready to discharge their arrows into the two prisoners. The men were dressed in green and brown, perfectly camouflaged in their environment. They looked fierce with their hawk-like eyes, long dark hair and beards.
One of them, a handsome young man, stepped forward. An arrow was still notched to his bow ready to pierce their hearts if they showed any sign of resistance. Indra felt that there was something vaguely familiar about him. Like the rest of his men, he wore leather armour, not unlike the ones favoured by the Devas.
'Who are you? How dare you trespass on our lands?'
Indra and his men had long traded their armour for robes worn by the Sumerian peasants. Indra decided it would be unwise to reveal his true identity.
'I am Asgar of Ur. We were defeated and chased out of our homes by Sargon's forces and compelled to take refuge in the forests of Aranya. Fifteen of my men are lost somewhere in these lands--we came to find them.'
Their young captor studied them for a while. When he spoke, his tone was distinctly softer.
'If what you say is true, then you have nothing to fear from us.'
He turned to his men.
'Take them to their comrades. We will let my father decide their fate.'
Black hoods were pulled over the heads of the two Deva warriors and to their amazement they were led along a path built into the forest canopy by inter-woven branches high above the forest floor. When their hoods were removed, Indra and Soma found themselves in a wooden cage, which was then lowered down below the canopy. Around them they saw their lost comrades suspended in similar cages. Below them the forest floor was a wet bog filled with crocodiles, giant monitor lizards and venomous snakes.
Soma had run out of patience by now. He reached into his pouch and pulled out two vials of soma.
Rajiv Menon -- ThunderGod Page 25