Shiva felt his blue throat and smiled sadly. ‘It may appear that the Somras has my throat. But in actual fact, it has all of Meluha by the throat! And it is squeezing the life out of you slowly, so slowly, that you don’t even realise it. And by the time you do, it will be too late. All of Meluha, all of India, will be destroyed!’

The citizens of Mrittikavati continued to be engrossed in his speech.

‘I did try to stop this peacefully. I sent out a notice to every city, in every kingdom, all across this fair land of our India. But in Meluha, my message was replaced by another put up by your Emperor, stating that it wasn’t I who banned the Somras, but some fraud Neelkanth.’

Nandi could sense the tide turning.

‘Your Emperor lied to you!’

There was pin-drop silence.

‘Emperor Daksha occupies the position that was Lord Ram’s more than a thousand years ago. He represents the legacy of the great seventh Vishnu. He is supposed to be your Protector. And he lied to you.’

Parshuram looked at Shiva with reverence. He had swayed the Meluhans firmly to his side.

‘As if that wasn’t enough, he sent his army to drive a wedge between you and me. But I know that nothing can tear us apart; I know that you will listen to me. For I am fighting for Meluha. I am fighting for the future of your children!’

A collective wave of understanding swept through the crowd; the Neelkanth was fighting for them, not against them.

‘You have heard myths about the tribe of Vasudev, left behind by our great lord, Shri Ram. Well, the legendary tribe does exist, the ones who carry the legacy of Lord Ram. And they are with me, sharing my mission. They also want to save India from the Somras.’

Almost every Meluhan was familiar with the fable of the Vasudevs, the tribe of Lord Ram himself. Now knowing that they not only existed in flesh and blood, but were with the Neelkanth as well, drove the issue beyond debate in their minds.

‘I am going to save Meluha! I’m going to stop the Somras!’ roared Shiva. ‘Who is with me?’

‘I am!’ screamed Nandi.

‘I am!’ shouted every citizen of Mrittikavati.

‘I love Meluha more than the Somras,’ said Shiva, ‘so I put up a proclamation banning the Somras. Your Emperor loves the Somras more than Meluha, so he decided to oppose me. Whose side are you on? Meluha or the Somras?’

‘Meluha!’

‘Then what do we do with the army that fights for your Emperor; that fights for the Somras?’

‘Kill them!’

‘Kill them?’

‘Yes!’

‘No!’ shouted Shiva.

The people fell silent, dumbfounded.

‘Your army was only following orders. They have surrendered. It would be against the principles of Lord Ram to kill prisoners of war. So once again, what should we do with them?’

The audience remained quiet.