Samyukta Part 11- Gadhwar – Coup exposed!

OSR Samyukta Part 11 - Gadhwar – Coup exposed!

Palace of Niphaud – Garden below the guest bedroom window

The bundle drops on the soft base echoing a muffled clank. Instantaneously, the light of a lantern is spotted at a distance followed by a guard's voice "Who is it? Who is it?" He prods his sword around the dim shrubs, wildly searching for the origin of the noise.

Suddenly, a dark silhouette springs up behind him and shouts "Arghhhhh…..Look at what I have got…" The guard swiftly jumps around, startled by the gruff holler behind him.

Seeing a tall fellow soldier haughtily showing off a new gleaming shield in his hand, the edgy man exhales deeply in relief "It was you… why do you always create a ruckus…"

The tall guard interrupts his complaints by posing in different combat stands with the gargantuan shield and uttering war cries. Seeing no response, he speaks up "Stop being so grumpy…Maharaj has ordered for new shields... they look brilliant…come on…I'll show you…"

The disinterested man starts walking away "No I have to complete my duty! I can't…"

Tired of his cranky attitude, the excited guard grabs his associate by his arm and forcefully whisks him away, to show him the new stock of arsenal.

The gladdened Veer and Dharam silently snicker and proceed with their mission.

Palace of Niphaud - Siya's bedroom

Seated on the floor and propped against the wall below her window, Siya smiles lifelessly as she moves away a lock of her tangled tresses from her swollen eyes, smudged with kohl. Distraught, she watches through the dim light, as Nanda separates the pieces of jewellery from bits of glass and broken lanterns; angrily strewn all around the room. She deliriously crosses her empty wrists around her bare neck to shield herself from the chilly winds and starts playing with the small fire of a glowing candle "Nanda… I told you… don't put it all away… I need it…I have to run away from home… mother is never going to talk to me now… and I will never agree to marrying Rajkumar Dharam … so… the only option is that I run away from my home… from my father… which I cant do… so I will have to die…if I die…will you cry too…."

Fed up, Nanda walks up to her friend and shakes her vigorously "Stop it Siya… you will become unwell… stop it…stop … I have to leave now or my family will be very worried…" looking at the spiritless persona of her ever-lively princess, Nanda weeps desperately "How can I leave you like this…don't speak like this Siya…your mother will talk to you once the guests leave tomorrow. Maharaj will never allow this injustice …"

She abruptly stops, to peek through the window, as her attention is caught by a faint movement in the garden. Shocked, she stands up and leans out of the window "Oh my God… thieves… no…not thieves… that can't be… no…is that R…Rajkumar…."

Siya dismisses her friend's murmurs "Stop it Nanda…. Stop trying to distract me…"

Nanda pulls the princess up firmly and pushes her towards the window. Expressions of alarm finally begin to overcome Siya's blank visage, as she notices the three royals, many yards away. Observing their attempts to climb the palace compound wall, Siya stammers "Rajkumar D… Dharam...Veer…Balram ji…why are they behaving like thieves…with that heavy bundle…at this time of the night…this seems very sinister..."

Nanda shrieks "Siya! Something just fell from the bundle…something shiny…was it a"

Siya adds "it was a knife…" she stares at Nanda for many moments till she has a flash of realization "knife… oh God! Their trips to the b…blacksmiths…did they order … did they order w…weapons..."

Siya begins to recollect the incidents from the past few days "No wonder Rajkumar Dharam was not interested…in meeting me…in talking to me… in this proposal…How vile! They were actually using the pretext of a proposal to the princess of Niphaud for their devious plans. Are they planning something against…"

Exasperated, Nanda starts concocting her own theories "Are they planning an attack on Niphaud … we should wake up Maharaj … what if Niphaud is in trouble… in war…"

Siya "No! Nanda! I will not allow anything to happen to Niphaud…I don't care what happens to me…however…we can't raise an alarm without being sure… we need to know what is going on for certain, as this concerns the safety of two kingdoms…"

She drags her reluctant friend and exits her room, to investigate the matter further.

Enroute Gadhwar

Bhalla yawns aloud and resumes professing about their secret mission "I am invincible at covert missions…what an escape I made at Niphaud…no one caught sight of me…"

Veer pats a mosquito on his back "Bhalla… why don't you go to sleep now? You have been yawning and dozing off ever since we started…"

Annoyed, Bhalla looks away "I am not sleepy…just mind your own business…."

Veer laughs to himself and then turns to his brother for a reaction.

Deep in thought; Dharam whips the reigns of the horses, not noticing Veer's nudges.

Veer asks him "What happened, Dharam? You have not spoken much, ever since we started?"

Dharam replies slowly "Oh! Veer…it's just that I am troubled about everything happening at Aryanagar…troubled by Dhruv's statements…and what he said about Agni…Jai chacha..."

Veer rolls his eyes and replies "Stop! Stop worrying about Aryanagar…we will tackle everything one by one, together" he then puts on a serious tone "Start worrying about issues that…you … alone… only…you…can… sort out…I…I…mean… like… Rajkumari…S…S…"

Looking at his mischievous advice in reply to a serious query, Dharam darts forward to hit him, while Veer ducks down, begging for forgiveness. Bhalla enjoys a hearty laugh at their pranks.

The lack of a map takes them through a long tedious night journey, before the fatigued princes reach the intimidating stretch of the narrow pass of Niphaud. Veer and Dharam exchange the responsibility for the reigns silently, while Bhalla sleeps blissfully unaware of the perilous journey they were undertaking. Veer levers the jute reigns of the horses and skillfully steers the cart, while Dharam warns Veer of any dangerous obstructions. Combined, they maneuver their way through the risky length of the pass slowly, till they spot the first signs of new land. Riding through a short expanse of barren ground, Veer and Dharam observe the grey sights of the kingdom of Gadhwar unfolding before them.

After a while, they come face to face, with barricades guarded by unwelcoming soldiers in a military camp. The soldiers harshly order them to descend their cart in order to make a thorough search of their wares. The three boys alight from their carts, while the soldiers begin to ransack their belongings to ensure they did not find anything untoward. Looking at their bundle of weapons, the soldiers demand an explanation for the purpose of their untimely visit. Veer and Dharam introduce themselves to the unconvinced soldiers and then display their weapons to request an audience with the commander-in-chief. However, despite repeated efforts from the forlorn princes, the arrogant soldiers don't permit them entry into Gadhwar.

Out of desperation, Veer finally tests his luck by blurting out baseless claims to the dubious soldiers "but...the commander-in-chief knows us personally…he knows we're coming…he is expecting us!"

The Soldiers exclaim in unison "What!"

Dharam exclaims "What!"

Bhalla exclaims "What!"

While Dharam and Bhalla become astonished by Veer's lies, the soldiers straighten themselves and address Veer meekly "My! W...why didn't you say so? He generally visits our posting before daybreak…when he arrives, I will let him know you've arrived. You may wait at the village nearby till then..."

The soldiers let them through and then lead them into a murky village, housing only a handful of destitute residents. As they place their heavy belongings on the ground to rest under the dark shadow of a large tree, Dharam grumbles to himself; troubled by Veer's fearless false stories.

Aryanagar – Inside a humble dwelling

Within the rustic walls of a modest hut, a homely woman sits by the flickering light of a candle and excitedly wipes a crude bamboo idol of an infantile Lord Krishna. Not a trace of the day's hard work evident on her face, she hums sweetly "I worshipped you all these years. Now finally, I am handing you over to queen Nivritti. Please protect my son…"

Listening to the unceasing enthusiasm in her voice; Sakshi grins as she rubs medicine over the swollen ankles of her mother and tells her "Prayer festival… prayer festival… that is all you have been talking about…" she adds doubtfully "What difference does it make, if you pray to the idol here? You have been doing so all these years…why do you have to give it to the queen? What if she doesn't even care for it? What if she finds out the truth?"

The caring mother refutes her "Don't worry! I wouldn't tell her the truth! You know that it is customary for the idol to be worshipped at home…to protect the child. Veer was at the Gurukul so long, but now he stays at the palace; so it should be kept there! The festival is an apt occasion to hand it to the queen..." she smiles to herself, thinking about the opportunity of watching her son at close quarters "…and I wonder if I would be able to meet Veer...even for a moment..."

Gadhwar – Village near military camp, at the outskirts

Driven by thirst; Veer stands up, stretches himself and hunts around briefly for a source of water. He approaches a lady drawing water from the water well, a short distance away and requests her "May I have some water please? I am parched…" on receiving no response, he tries to make pleasant conversation with her "It is only past midnight…you are up very early…"

The lady begins walking away, as she gives him a curt reply "Fetch your water by yourself..."

Momentarily taken aback by her rudeness, Veer goes ahead and starts drawing the water till he feels an unexpected extra helping tow on the ropes. Looking at the familiar face housing a warm smile, Veer complains "Dharam…the people here are so inhospitable!"

Dharam pours the water into Veer's hands "Veer, every kingdom is different… different people….different circumstances…attitudes…we need to learn to accept that…"

Suddenly, distracted by the sounds of sharp voices, they turn around to see a group of angry soldiers rapidly coming towards them. As the ghastly group advance ahead, the alarmed Dharam and Veer watch an enormous brute sporting powerful metallic armour, step forward from the dwarfed soldiers around him.

Stopping in front of the shocked princes, the commander roars "These soldiers told me that I was expecting you…I don't know you! Why did you lie? Where are you from?"

Frowning at an anxious Bhalla and Dharam; Veer stutters, trying to think of something to say "Oh!... we are weapon merchants…we bring w…weapons…t…that…" gazing at the commander's chunky armour, he pretends "weapons that would be capable of even cutting through your armour…"

The group slowly breaks out into intimidating sniggers, while the irritated Dharam closes his eyes and hopes that Veer would not commit to any more exaggerated claims.

The commander seizes a startled Dharam by the neck "Do you know that liars are not welcome here? Especially those that dare to lie to the commander…you better prepare to die…"

His pride defied, Dharam glares at the commander and then removes each finger from his neck rebelliously, while the tall man stands stupefied by Dharam's strength. Weighing the possibility of a violent outbreak, Veer eyes the bundle and then immediately darts towards it, to pick up a handful of weapons. He walks back towards the group and wasting no time, aims the knife into a small crevice of a distant tree. He swiftly hands a knife to the commander, to distract him from his outburst at Dharam. Subtly awed by Veer's adept skills with the knives, he slowly examines the sleek blade. In a flash, the commander contests his skills by hurling the weapon at the tree.

Falling slightly short of Veers's perfect aim at the crevice; he gets enraged and tries the variety of knives in Veer's hand; one after another. After he fails to match his target at all instances, Veer eventually waves his empty hands and then indicates with his eyes, asking the commander to fetch the knives back. Shocked by Veer's intimidations, he takes a few moments to overcome his ego; before following his instructions. As predicted; the well-housed strong blades only loosen with great force, purging out small chunks of the tree trunk with them; leaving the soldiers and their commander marveling at the quality of the weapons.

Taking mighty strides back to his tent, the commander speaks up "Do you have a written contract? I would like to seal it… I need these weapons as quickly as possible…in a week…"

Watching the commander disappearing into his tent, Dharam whispers to Veer "The knife trick was very impressive! Where did you learn it?"

Thinking of his encounter with the veiled girl at the blacksmiths, Veer proudly beams in reply "Oh Dharam…that…you see… well… that is just me…"

Gadhwar - The military tent at the border

After the three royals enter the tent, Dharam gives the commander a scroll and attempts to converse with him "We will aim to please you Senapati… but…may I ask…w…why do you need them in a week?"

Receiving the scroll from Dharam, the Commander replies tersely "Oh we are marching south…" aware of the fact that he spoke too soon, he pauses; and gets back to laying out the specifics of the contract.

In an attempt to gain more information, Dharam prods him hesitantly "South? You mean Aryanagar?"

The commander looks at the inquisitive Dharam and smiles quietly, in approval. Listening to the very fact that they dreaded most being proven true; Dharam stands speechless, while Veer strives to mask his horror and silently challenges the commander "Gadhwar is a relatively small kingdom… it is very brave of you to openly declare war on Aryanagar…"

The commander laughs in reply, as he hands Veer the sealed scroll "Openly? We are not fools..."

Appalled by the increasingly disturbing facts provided by the commander, Dharam enquires with a choked voice "Not openly declaring war? You mean…you have inside help…you have help from the Aryanagar army?"

The commander nods his head reluctantly and answers "Not only the army..." he suddenly stops, perceiving that he was probably giving the merchants more information than necessary and orders them "That is enough...you may leave now...I will be waiting for the order...thank you..."

As the soldiers begin to lead them outside, Veer continues goading the commander; hoping to extract as much information as possible "Commander, you seem to have meticulously planned everything… when you meant inside help…did you meant the palace…we know the royal family of Aryanagar well…we can provide you with any information you need…"

The commander stares at Veer and inquires doubtfully "How do you know so much?"

Veer replies with a frown "We are weapon merchants… we keep an eye on all military secrets…"

The indecisive commander asks him slowly "What do you know about Rajkumar Agnivardhan and his father Jaivardhan? It was their idea…they promised to help us…"

The princes stand dumbstruck; seething in rage as the all the information that they had unearthed so far started gaining clarity. Gradually realizing how their uncle was teaming up with a rival kingdom to overthrow the current regime in Aryanagar, Veer responds numbly "We realized they had their eye on the throne… but didn't know that they would go to war against their own family…you trust such rogues, commander?"

Finally tired of their nagging questions, the commander dictates his soldiers to escort them out, while the distressed and drained brothers don't put up any resistance to the uncouth men and step out silently themselves.

Enroute Niphaud – The ride back

Bhalla clings his quivering hands tightly around the beams of the cart, as they approach the steep pass at breakneck speed. When the edge of the cart passes dangerously close to a protruding rock, Veer gasps in fear. Surveying the escalating risk, Bhalla again implores Veer to comfort the anguish and the unusual behaviour of their generally calm prince.

Ducking to avoid a branch, Veer tries reasoning repeatedly "Dharam…how much ever you tug on the reigns…the horses can only ride so fast…Please… I beg you…please give me the reigns... you are very upset Dharam… you are driving very hazardously…"

Aggrieved, Dharam yells back "We need to get to Aryanagar…to protect father… mother… Aryanagar…from Jai chacha and Agni…they are planning a war against us…"

Veer again tries to take the reigns forcibly, but Dharam refuses to give in. Blinded by the torment of betrayal and the worry for his kingdom, he unwittingly shoves Veer aside. Nudged forcefully by Dharam; Veer looses his foothold and desperately tries to hold on to the edges, but the speed of the cart shuffles his balance and the prince is hurled outside the cart. Clenching on to the wooden beams; Veer lets out a piercing scream, as he is dragged brutally by the swift conveyance. Rudely awakened from his trance, Dharam instantaneously passes the reigns over to Bhalla and lunges forward. Petrified for his brother's safety, the desperate Dharam grabs Veer's arms with all his might and grits his teeth as he pulls his brother up, inch by inch. With immense exertion, Dharam heaves Veer onto the moving cart; which is eventually restrained to a slow trot by the shaken Bhalla.

Catching up on his breath, Veer notices Dharam's guilty face and pacifies him "I am all right…I am fine…don't worry…we will start for Aryanagar as soon as we get back to Niphaud…."

After a few tense moments, Dharam quivers in remorse "Oh God…forgive me…what… if something had happened…to y…you Veer…I don't know what came over me…I couldn't accept the fact that Aryanagar was in danger from my own cousin…my own family…"

Veer places his hand around Dharam and replies supportively "Kauravas and Pandavas were also cousins Dharam! Different places...different people….different attitudes…remember? We should learn to accept that…"

Moved by Veer's counsel, Dharam reconciles himself with a pledge "Yes…Veer… I should learn to accept it...I will accept it...we will defeat their purpose...we will show the Aryanagar assembly"

Veer interrupts him "No! Don't talk to the assembly! I don't trust them now…" trying to uplift his brother, he hits Dharam's chirpily "we both are strong warriors with a strong army…we will prepare for war strategically…the only way anyone could ever defeat Aryanagar, is if Dharam and Veer were not together… and that day would never come!"

Bhalla adds sulkily "What about me? You never include me…"

With an innocent expression, Veer corrects himself "Oh yes and Balaram too…"

Amazed by his brother's affection and wise support, Dharam hugs Veer proudly.

Ciao till next Saturday 😳