Sati watched the sailors pull the gangway plank towards the rudimentary dock, preparing the ship for loading.

Krittika nudged her horse so it would trot up to Sati’s. ‘I wish Queen Kali had accompanied us, My Lady.’

Sati turned to Krittika. ‘I know. But she is a queen. She has many responsibilities in Panchavati.’

Further conversation was interrupted by the ship’s gangway plank landing on the dock with a loud thud.

Parvateshwar, Anandmayi, Bhagirath and Ayurvati were dining together in the late afternoon. They had just entered the first of five clearings on the Dandakaranya road from Panchavati. The road led to the hidden lagoon on the Madhumati in Branga. Accompanied by the convoy of sixteen hundred soldiers that had set out with Shiva more than a year ago, they were marching back to Kashi to await Shiva’s return.

Bhagirath looked at the five paths in wonder. Only one of these was correct while the others were decoys that would lead trespassers to their doom. ‘These Nagas are obsessive about security.’

Anandmayi looked up. ‘Can we blame them? Do not forget that it was this attitude that saved our lives when those ships attacked us on the Godavari.’

‘True,’ said Bhagirath. ‘The Nagas will no doubt prove to be good allies. Their loyalty to the Neelkanth isn’t suspect, though the reasons might well be. When the moment of truth is upon us, all will have to answer a simple question: Will they fight the world for the Neelkanth? I know I will.’

Anandmayi’s eyes flashed as she looked at Parvateshwar and then back at Bhagirath, chiding him. ‘Get back to your food, little brother.’

Parvateshwar looked at Anandmayi with a tortured expression. ‘I don’t think the Parmatma will be so unkind to me. He could not have made me wait for more than a century to find my living God, only to force me to choose between my country and him. I’m sure the Almighty will find a way to ensure that Meluha and the Lord Neelkanth are not on opposite sides.’

Parvateshwar’s sad smile told Anandmayi he himself did not believe that. She touched her husband’s shoulder gently.

Bhagirath played with his roti absent-mindedly. He was beginning to believe they could not count on Parvateshwar. That would be a huge loss for the Neelkanth’s army. Parvateshwar’s strategic abilities had the capacity to turn the tide in any war.

Ayurvati looked at Parvateshwar with sympathy. She could identify with his inner conflict. In her case though, a decision had emerged that sat comfortably in her heart. Her emperor had committed heinous acts which dishonoured Meluha. This was no longer the country she had loved and admired all her life. She knew in her heart that Lord Ram would not have condoned the immorality that Meluha had descended into, under Daksha’s watch. Her path was clear: in a fight between Meluha and Shiva, she would choose the Neelkanth. For he would set things right in Meluha as well.