‘I don’t have a problem with the Meluhans choosing to attack, Governor Chenardhwaj,’ said Chandraketu, the King of Branga. ‘What is worrying is that they chose to attack Panchavati and call a peace conference at the same time. That sounds fishy to me.’

‘I agree,’ said Bhagirath. ‘Maybe it is a ruse to draw us out of the city with the call for a peace conference and then attack us. Without the protective defences of the Lothal fort, we may well be beaten by the Meluhans.’

‘Prince Bhagirath,’ said Brahaspati, ‘we’ve also received word that the Meluhan army has still not marched out of Karachapa. If their plan was to trick us out of Lothal, why wouldn’t they mobilise their army at the same time?’

Chandraketu nodded. ‘That is confusing.’

‘Maybe there are divisions within Meluha,’ suggested Brahaspati. ‘Maybe some people want peace while others want war?’

‘We cannot trust this initiative blindly,’ said Sati. ‘But we cannot ignore it either. If there’s a possibility that the Somras can be stopped without any more killing, it is worth grabbing, right?’

‘But the message is for Lord Shiva,’ said Bhagirath. ‘Shouldn’t we await his return?’

Sati shook her head. ‘That may take months. We don’t even know if he has succeeded in convincing the Vayuputras. What if he hasn’t? We would then be in a very weak position to negotiate a ban on the Somras. It’s a stalemate right now. Even the Meluhans know that. Who knows, we might be able to negotiate good terms at the conference.’

‘We could,’ said Chandraketu. ‘Or we might just march straight into a trap and have our entire army destroyed.’

Sati knew that this was a difficult decision. It couldn’t be made in a hurry.

‘I need to think about this some more,’ she said, ending the discussion.

Sati walked into the heavily guarded room. The visitor from Devagiri, who had carried Kanakhala’s message, had been detained in a comfortable section of the Lothal governor’s office. While the messenger had been treated well, the windows of his room had been boarded up and the doors kept locked at all times, as abundant caution. He had been blindfolded while being allowed into the city and was led straight to this room. His men had been made to wait outside the city. Sati did not want the peace envoy to take note of the defensive arrangements within the city.

‘Your Highness,’ said the Meluhan as he rose and saluted Sati. She was still the Princess of Meluha for him.

‘Brigadier Mayashrenik,’ said Sati with a formal Namaste. She had always thought well of the Arishtanemi brigadier.

Mayashrenik looked towards the door with a frown. ‘Isn’t the Neelkanth joining us?’