Rumours ran rife in the city. Some whispered that the enemy army stationed south of Devagiri was led by the Neelkanth himself. Others swore they saw the Neelkanth on the warships that had sailed past. However, they couldn’t hazard a guess as to where Lord Shiva was headed in such a hurry. Facts had also found their way in, from other cities: that except for Mrittikavati, this mammoth army had not engaged in battle with any other Meluhan city while sailing up the Saraswati. They had not looted any city or plundered any village, nor had they committed any acts of wanton destruction, but had marched through Meluha with almost hermit-like restraint.

Some were beginning to believe that perhaps the purported gossip they had heard was in fact true; the Neelkanth was not against Meluha, but only the Somras. That the proclamation they had read many months ago was actually from their Lord and not a lie as their emperor had stated. That may be the Neelkanth’s army waited at the banks of the Saraswati without attacking, because the Lord himself was negotiating possible terms of surrender with the emperor.

But there were also others, still loyal to Meluha, who refused to believe that their government could have lied. They had good reason to believe that the armies of Shiva comprised the Chandravanshis and the Nagas. That the Naga queen herself was a senior commander in the Neelkanth’s army and the Neelkanth had been misled by the evil combination of the Chandravanshis and Nagas. They were willing to lay down their lives for Meluha. What they didn’t understand was why their army was not engaging in battle as yet.

‘Are you sure, General?’ asked Bhrigu.

Parvateshwar was in Bhrigu’s chamber in the Devagiri royal palace.

‘Yes. It is a gamble, but we have to take it. If we wait too long, the Lord will lead Ganesh’s army from the Yamuna to Devagiri. Combined with Sati’s army, they will then have a vast numerical advantage and it will be impossible for us to win. Right now, our opponents are only Sati’s soldiers who have garrisoned themselves close to the river. They are obviously not looking for a fight. I plan to draw them out and then try to cause some chaos amongst their elephants. If it works, their elephants may just charge back into their own army. They would have no room to retreat, with the river right behind them. If everything goes according to plan, we may just win the day.’

‘Isn’t Sati your god-daughter?’ asked Bhrigu, looking deeply into Parvateshwar’s eyes.

Parvateshwar held his breath. ‘At this point of time, she is only an enemy of Meluha to me.’

Bhrigu continued to peer into his eyes, increasingly satisfied with what he read. ‘If you are convinced, General, then so am I. In the name of Lord Ram, attack.’