‘Don’t you have any shame?’ Daksha shouted at Kali. ‘Do penance for your past life sins quietly instead of creating bad blood between a loving father and his daughter! What lies have you told her about me?’
‘They haven’t said a word, father,’ said Sati. ‘But their existence says a lot about you.’
‘It’s not me. They exist because of your mother. Her past life sins have led to this. We never had Nagas in our family before her.’
Sati’s jaw fell. She was seeing the levels to which her father could stoop to for the first time.
Veerini was staring at Daksha, silent anger smouldering in her eyes.
‘This is not about past lives, father,’ said Sati. ‘It is about this life. You knew. Yet you didn’t tell me.’
‘I am your father. I have loved you all my life. I have fought the world for you. Will you trust me or some deformed animals?’
‘They are not deformed animals! They are my family!’
‘You want to make these people your family? People who lie to you? Who turn you against your own father?’
‘They never lied to me!’ shouted Sati. ‘You did.’
‘No, I did not!’
‘You said my son was still born.’
Daksha took a deep breath, looked up at the ceiling as though struggling to regain control and then glared at Sati. ‘Why don’t you understand? I lied for your own good! Do you know what your life would have been like if you had been declared a Naga’s mother?’
‘I would be with my son!’
‘What rubbish. What would you have done? Lived in Panchavati?’
‘Yes!’
‘You are my daughter!’ screamed Daksha. ‘I have always loved you more than anyone else. I would never have allowed you to suffer in Panchavati.’
‘It wasn’t your choice to make.’
An exasperated Daksha turned to Shiva. ‘Talk some sense into her, Lord Neelkanth!’
Shiva’s eyes were narrowed. He wanted to know how wide this web of deception spread. ‘Did you get Chandandhwaj killed, Your Highness?’
Daksha blanched. Fear was written all over his face. He looked sharply at Sati and then quickly back at Shiva.
Oh Lord! He did!
Sati was reeling, shocked into absolute silence. Kali and Ganesh did not seem surprised.
Daksha immediately regained control. He pointed a finger at Shiva, his body shaking. ‘You did this. You choreographed this!’
Shiva stayed quiet.
‘You have turned my daughter against me,’ screamed Daksha. ‘Maharishi Bhrigu was right. The evil Vasudevs control you.’
Shiva continued to stare at Daksha, as if actually seeing him for the first time.
Daksha was boiling. ‘What were you? A stupid tribal from a barbaric land. I made you the Neelkanth. I gave you power. I gave it to you so that you would bring the Chandravanshis under Meluhan control. So that I could establish peace in India. And you dare to use the power I bestowed upon you against me?’
Shiva remained passive, making Daksha spew even more venom.
‘I made you. And, I can destroy you!’
Daksha pulled his knife out and lunged forward.
Nandi jumped in front of Shiva, taking the blow on his shield. His Meluhan training didn’t allow him to draw his sword at his monarch. Kali and Ganesh, however, had no such compunctions, drawing their blades rapidly on Daksha. Ganesh jumped in front of Shiva even as Vidyunmali drew his sword. Mayashrenik, a loyal Meluhan who would have fought to the death for his King, was stunned into inaction. He was deeply devoted to Shiva. How could he draw his sword against the Neelkanth?
‘Calm down,’ said Shiva, raising his hand.
Vidyunmali still had his sword drawn. Daksha’s knife had fallen to the ground.
Shiva spoke once again. ‘Nandi, Ganesh, Kali, stand down. NOW!’
As Shiva’s warriors lowered their swords, Vidyunmali also sheathed his blade.
‘Your Highness,’ Shiva addressed Daksha.
Daksha’s eyes were glued on a teary-eyed Sati, who had her sword inches away from her father’s throat. His face exhibited the sense of betrayal and loss he felt. Sati was the only person he had ever truly loved.
‘Sati...’ whispered Shiva. ‘Please. Put it down. He’s not worth it.’
Sati’s sword inched closer.
Shiva stepped forward slowly. ‘Sati...’
Her hands were shaking slightly, rage driving her dangerously close to the edge.
Shiva touched her shoulder lightly. ‘Sati, put it down.’
Shiva’s touch brought Sati back from the precipice. She lowered her sword a little. Her eyes narrowed, her breathing heavy, her body stiff.
Daksha continued to stare at Sati.
‘I am ashamed that your blood runs in my veins,’ said Sati.
Tears began to flow down Daksha’s face.
‘Get out,’ whispered Sati through gritted teeth.
Daksha was deathly still.
‘GET OUT!’
Veerini got a jolt from Sati’s loud voice. Her expression a mix of sadness and anger, she walked up to Daksha. ‘Move.’
Daksha stood paralysed, shocked at this turn of events.
‘Come on,’ Veerini repeated louder, pulling her husband by his arm. ‘Mayashrenik, Vidyunmali, let’s leave.’
The Empress of India dragged her husband out of the room.
Sati was shattered. She dropped her sword, tears streaming down her face. Ganesh rushed towards her. But Shiva caught her even as she fell.
Sati was sobbing uncontrollably as Shiva picked her up in his arms.
Chapter 22
Two Sides, Same Coin
‘So what are you thinking?’ asked Kali.
Ganesh and Kali were in the Naga queen’s quarters. After the drama that had unfolded earlier in the day, Shiva had carried Sati over to their room in Athithigva’s palace. Daksha, Veerini and their entourage had departed immediately for the Meluhan capital, Devagiri.
‘This was unexpected,’ said a pensive Ganesh with a slight smile.
Kali raised her eyes. ‘Sometimes your stoicism can be very irritating!’
Ganesh smiled. A rare broad smile from one floppy ear to the other, his extended teeth stretching further out.
‘Now that’s the face I want to see more of,’ said Kali. ‘You actually look cute.’
Ganesh’s face turned serious again. He raised a papyrus scroll. A message from Panchavati. ‘I would have been laughing, Mausi. But for this.’
‘What now?’ asked Kali, frowning.
‘It’s a failure.’
‘Again?’
‘Yes, again.’
‘But I thought...’
‘We thought wrong, Mausi.’
Kali cursed. Ganesh stared at his aunt. He could feel her frustration. A final solution was so close. Its success would have completed their victory. Now, there was every chance that everything they had done would be lost.
‘Do we try again?’ asked Kali.
‘I think we have to finally accept the truth, Mausi. This route is a dead end. We have no choice. The time has come to reveal the secret.’
‘Yes,’ said Kali. ‘The Neelkanth should know.’
‘The Neelkanth?’ asked Ganesh, surprised at how much had changed in such a short span.
Kali frowned.
‘You didn’t use his name. You said the Neelkanth. You believe the legend now?’
Kali smiled. ‘I don’t believe in legends. Never have, never will. But I believe in him.’
How different would my life have been if fate had blessed me with a man like Shiva. Maybe like didi, all the poison could have been sucked out of my life as well. Perhaps, even I would have found happiness and peace.
‘We have to show him the secret,’ said Ganesh, intruding into Kali’s thoughts.
‘Show him?!’
‘I don’t think it can be done here, right? He must see for himself.’
‘You want to take him to
Panchavati?’
‘Why not?’ asked Ganesh. ‘Don’t you trust him?’
‘Of course, I do. I would trust him with my life. But he doesn’t come alone. There are others who come with him. If we take them along, they will know how to get to Panchavati. This will weaken our defences.’
‘I think people like Parvateshwar and Bhagirath can be trusted, Mausi. I don’t think they will ever go against the Neelkanth. They would give their lives for him.’
‘If there is one thing I have learnt in life,’ said Kali, ‘it is that one should not spread one’s trust too thin. And, never take things for granted.’
Ganesh frowned. ‘If you doubt all his followers, then what about Parshuram? He already knows the way. You know his devotion to the Neelkanth.’
‘Remember, I had told you not to bring Parshuram to Panchavati. But you didn’t listen.’
‘So, now what, Mausi?’
‘We’ll take them through Branga. They will know how to get to Panchavati, but only from Chandraketu’s realm. They will never be able to reach us directly from their own kingdoms. The forests of Dandak would consume them if they were to even try! We can trust the Brangas to not let anyone pass without our permission. Even Parshuram doesn’t know any other way.’
Ganesh nodded. ‘That is a good idea.’
‘Thank the Lord, I didn’t do anything rash that I would have regretted later,’ said Sati.
Shiva was sitting on a long chair in the balcony of their chambers. Sati was on his lap, her head leaning against his muscular chest, her eyes swollen red. From the heights of the Kashi palace, the Sacred Avenue and the Vishwanath temple were clearly visible. Beyond them flowed the mighty Ganga.
‘Your anger was justified, my darling.’
Sati looked up at her husband, breathing slowly. ‘Aren’t you angry? He actually tried to kill you.’
Shiva stared into his wife’s eyes as he ran his hand across her face. ‘My anger towards your father is because of what he did to you, not what he tried to do to me.’
‘But how dare Vidyunmali draw his sword upon you?’ whispered Sati. ‘Thank God, Ganesh...’
Sati stopped, afraid that her taking Ganesh’s name would ruin this moment.
Shiva gave her a gentle squeeze. ‘He’s your son.’
Sati kept quiet, body stiff, feeling the intense pain that Shiva felt at Brahaspati’s loss.
Shiva held Sati’s face and looked straight into her eyes. ‘No matter how hard I try, I cannot hate a part of your soul.’
Sati sighed as fresh tears escaped silently from her eyes. She held Shiva tight. Shiva did not want to spoil the moment as he held onto his wife. One thing continued to puzzle him. Who’s Bhrigu?
‘The Emperor had got Chandandhwaj killed?’ asked a shocked Parvateshwar.
‘Yes, General,’ said Veerbhadra.
Parvateshwar, numb with shock, looked at Anandmayi and Bhagirath. Then back at Veerbhadra. ‘Where is His Highness now?’
‘He’s on his way back to Meluha, My Lord,’ said Veerbhadra.
Parvateshwar held his head. His Emperor had brought dishonour to Meluha, his motherland. He couldn’t even imagine the pain this revelation must have caused to the woman he had always looked upon as the daughter he had never had. ‘Where is Sati?’
‘She’s with Shiva, My Lord.’
Anandmayi looked at Parvateshwar with a smile. At least some good had come out of this sordid episode.
The Meluhan royal ship cruised slowly up the Ganga, four ships sailing around it in the standard Suryavanshi defensive naval protocol. Daksha’s entourage was on its way home, a day away from Kashi.
Mayashrenik was in the lead boat, maintaining a steady pace. He was still shaken by the incidents at Kashi. He hoped his Emperor Daksha and the Neelkanth would reconcile their differences. He wished to avoid the terrible fate of having to choose between his loyalty to his country and his devotion to his God.
Vidyunmali was in-charge of security on Daksha’s ship. He wanted to safeguard against any assassination attempt upon his Emperor by the followers of the Neelkanth. Even though it seemed unlikely, he wanted to take all the possible precautions.
Veerini sat in the royal chambers of the central ship, next to a window, watching the Ganga lap against the ship. She sensed that she had lost all her children now. She turned in anger towards her husband.
Daksha was lying on the bed, eyes forlorn, a lost look on his face. It wasn’t the first time he had faced and been overpowered by such terrible circumstances.
Veerini shook her head and turned to look out again.
If only he had listened to me.
Veerini remembered that incident so clearly it was as if it had happened just yesterday. Almost every day, she wondered how her life would have been if things had turned out differently.
It had happened more than a hundred years ago. Sati had just returned from the Maika gurukul, a headstrong, idealistic girl of sixteen. In keeping with her character, she had jumped in to save an immigrant woman from a vicious pack of wild dogs. Parvateshwar and Daksha had rushed in to her rescue. While they had managed to push back the dogs, Daksha had been seriously injured.
Veerini had accompanied Daksha to the ayuralay where the doctors could examine her husband. The most worrying injury was on his left leg, where a dog had ripped out some flesh, cutting through a major blood vessel. The loss of blood had made Daksha lose consciousness.
When he had opened his eyes after a few hours, Daksha’s first thought was of his young daughter. ‘Sati?’
‘She’s with Parvateshwar,’ said Veerini, as she came closer to her husband and held his hand. ‘Don’t worry about her.’
‘I screamed at her. I didn’t mean to.’
‘I know. She was only doing her duty. She did the right thing, trying to protect that woman. I’ll tell her that...’
‘No. No. I still think she shouldn’t have risked her life for that woman. I didn’t mean to scream at her, that’s all.’
Veerini’s eyes narrowed to slits. Her husband couldn’t be any less Suryavanshi. She was about to say something when the door opened and Brahmanayak walked in.
Brahmanayak, Daksha’s father and ruler of Meluha, was a tall, imposing figure. Long black hair, a well manicured beard, a practically hairless body, a sober crown and understated white clothes could not camouflage the indomitable spirit of the man. He set impossible standards for all those around him with his own great deeds. He was not just respected, but also feared in all of Meluha. Obsessive about the honour and respect that his empire should garner, his son’s lack of courage and character was a source of anger and dismay for him.
Veerini immediately arose and stepped back quietly. Brahmanayak never spoke to her unless to give orders. Behind Brahmanayak was the kindly doctor who had stitched up Daksha’s leg after the severe mauling it had received.
Brahmanayak, in a matter of fact manner, lifted the sheet to look at his son’s leg. There was a bandage of neem leaves tied around it.
The doctor smiled genially. ‘Your Highness, your son will be back on his feet in a week or two. I have been very careful. The scars will be minimal.’
Daksha looked for a brief instant at his father. Then, with his chest puffed up, he whispered, ‘No doctor. Scars are the pride of any Kshatriya.’
Brahmanayak snorted. ‘What would you know about being a Kshatriya?’
Daksha fell silent. Veerini began seething with anger.
‘You let some dogs do this to you?’ asked Brahmanayak, contemptuously. ‘I am the laughing stock of Meluha. Perhaps even the world. My son cannot even kill a dog all by himself.’
Daksha kept staring at his father.
To prevent a further escalation of hostility and to safeguard the patient’s mental health, the doctor cut in, ‘Your Highness, I need to discuss something with you. May we talk outside?’
Brahmanayak nodded. ‘I haven’t finished,’ he said, turning to Daksha, before walking out of the chamber.
> A livid Veerini stepped up to her husband, who was crying now. ‘How long are you going to tolerate this?’
Daksha suddenly turned ferocious. ‘He’s my father! Speak of him with respect.’
‘He does not care about you, Daksha,’ said Veerini. ‘All that he cares about is his legacy. You don’t even want to be King. So what are we doing here?’
‘My duty. I have to stay by his side. I am his son.’
‘He doesn’t think so. You are only someone who would carry forward his name, his legacy. That’s all.’
Daksha fell silent.
‘He has forced you to give up one daughter. How much more are you going to sacrifice?’
‘She’s not my daughter!’
‘She is! Kali is as much your flesh and blood as Sati is.’
‘I am not discussing this again.’
‘You have thought about it so many times. For once, have the courage to follow through.’
‘What will we do in Panchavati?’
‘Doesn’t matter. What matters is what we’ll be.’
Daksha shook his head. ‘And what do you think we’ll be?’
‘We’ll be happy!’
‘But I cannot leave Sati behind.’
‘Who’s asking you to leave her behind? All I want is to unite my family.’
‘What?! Why should Sati live in Panchavati? She’s not a Naga. You and I have past life sins that have to be atoned, sins for which we have been punished. Why should she be punished?’
‘The real punishment is the separation from her sister. The real punishment is to see her father being humiliated every day.’
Daksha remained silent, wavering.
‘Daksha, trust me,’ said Veerini. ‘We’ll be happy in Panchavati. If there was any other place where we could live with both Kali and Sati, I’d suggest that. But there isn’t.’
Daksha breathed deeply. ‘But how...’
‘You leave that to me. I’ll make the arrangements. Just say yes. Your father is leaving tomorrow for Karachapa. You are not so badly injured that you can’t travel. We’ll be in Panchavati before he knows you’re gone.’
Daksha stared at Veerini. ‘But...’
‘Trust me. Please trust me. It will be for all our good. I know you love me. I know you love your daughters. I know you don’t care about anything else. Just trust me.’