‘Lord Bhrigu, this sounds peculiar to you because you haven’t met Lord Shiva. His companions don’t follow him out of fear. They do so because he is the most inspiring presence in their lives. My fate has put me in a position where I am being forced to oppose him. It’s breaking my heart. I need his blessings and his permission to give me the strength to do what I have to do.’

Bhrigu’s slow nod revealed a glimpse of grudging respect. ‘The Neelkanth must be a special man to inspire such loyalty.’

‘He is not just a special man, Maharishiji. He is a living God.’

Chapter 16: Secrets Revealed

Chapter 16

Secrets Revealed

‘I think we’ve achieved what we came here for,’ said Sati.

Gopal, Sati and Shiva had retired to their chambers in Surapadman’s palace. As a mark of goodwill, Surapadman had persuaded them to stay on for a few days and allow him to ready a few weapons for Shiva’s army.

‘Yes, I agree,’ said Gopal. ‘Surapadman’s offer of weapons, though token in nature, is symbolic of his having allied with us.’

‘Not one other person from the Magadhan court has visited us though,’ said Shiva. ‘I hope that King Mahendra doesn’t prevail upon Surapadman to do something unwise.’

‘Do you think he may prevent our ships from passing through to Ayodhya?’ asked Gopal.

‘I can’t be sure,’ said Shiva. ‘It’s most likely he will cooperate, but it depends on how his father reacts.’

‘Let’s hope for the best,’ said Sati.

‘What about my proclamation, Panditji?’

‘It will be ready and distributed in a few weeks from now,’ said Gopal. ‘Vasudev pandits from across the country will give us constant updates as to the reaction of the people as well as the nobility.’

‘But what if the Vasudev pandits are discovered?’

‘No, they won’t. The royals may know that the Vasudev tribe has allied with the Neelkanth, but they will never know the identity of the Vasudevs within their kingdoms.’

Shiva let out a long-drawn breath. ‘And so it shall begin.’

Bhagirath arrived in Kashi late in the evening and proceeded directly to the palace. On reaching there, he was informed that Shiva had gone to Magadh to explore an alliance with Surapadman. Bhagirath, therefore, met Ganesh and Kartik to share his news with them.

‘The Ayodhyans seem to have a back-up plan,’ said Bhagirath. ‘They expect Magadh to block their ships from carrying their soldiers onwards up the Ganga and towards Meluha. Hence, they intend to cut through the forests and have their army move north-west, right up to Dharmakhet. From there, they can cross the Ganga and then use the newly-built road to march to Meluha.’

‘That’s logical,’ said Ganesh. ‘But it will be slow. It will be many months before they can cut through the dense forests and reach Meluha. The war may actually be over by that time.’

Bhagirath agreed. ‘True.’