Chapter 5:https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/post/130017705
Here is the update. Hope you guys enjoy it. Special thanks to Niki, Ramsha, Shelly, Gargi, Crazyforsarun and Imashkara for continued inspiration.
Chapter 6: The Mole
It was midnight in
the palace of Patliputra. Rajkumar...no Yuvraj Sushim was still awake. But
inebriated and dizzy.
Sushim was fostering a fondness for Madira. It was a great way to numb his pain
and satiate his rage. Pain of being overlooked by his father. And rage towards
his younger brother. Ashok.
Ashok the Tuchprani. His prodigious brother has been a thorn by his side the
second he showed up. But thankfully that thorn will drown in the seas in just a
few days. Information from an unexpected source in form of Amatya Rakshas has
been beneficial for him. He did not share it with his Mahamatya yet. After all
he had promised his new ally not to.
As long as that Tuchprani was out of his way he was happy.
Which is why he was celebrating. He would have preferred to have some dancing
girls around him. But with the Samrat around he will just have to content
himself with Madira.
He recently took a sabbatical from his elixir. Because of what happened that
night.
He was also drunk that night. Torturing that Rajdrohi was so enjoyable. And
when Ashok showed up he had expected that he could hold his own long enough for
the guards to arrest Ashok on the charges of attacking him. Later in the court he could accuse Ashok and Ahankara of trying to
elope. Ahankara's spirit or whatever was left of it will be crushed as he will make her watch Ashok executed for his alleged actions as Agradhoot. Killing two birds in one stone. But the birds nearly killed him
instead.
Hazy details still haunted him. Sushim had to admit that Ashok had surpassed
him as a warrior. In a head-on fight he could no longer best his Anuj.
In such a short time that Tuchprani accomplished so much. It made his blood
boil.
Sushim took another sip from the goblet. Sushim had a hard time keeping his
cool whenever he thought of Ashok. And if there was anyone else that infuriated
him more it was Ahankara. That putri of the Rajdrohi. She was as good as a Rajdrohi in his eyes.
Sushim smashed the goblet on the floor when memories of what happened the day
after Ashok left came back.
Sushim had gone to toy with the Rajdrohi since he was feeling bored. And
without Ashok he assumed it would be an easy task.
"You cannot go any further Rajkumar."
"What is the meaning of this?!" Sushim growled at the guard.
"I am sorry Rajkumar," The guard replied. "You are not allowed in this zone
until Rajkumari Ahankara's new residence is completed."
"By whose orders?!" Sushim knew the answer as soon as he asked it.
"Samrat Bindusar. He himself said that unless I hear it from him personally I
cannot to allow to go into this zone."
Sushim clenched his fists. He felt like
hitting the guard.
"What's the matter Yuvraj?"
He turned to see it was Vasunandan and Subhao. Sushim rolled his eyes.
"Is everything okay Rajan?" Subhao squeaked in an eerie imitation of Khalnatak.
It made Sushim's rage spike even more.
"An insubordination of the Rajan's wishes?" Vasunandan joined in. "Shall I call
Mahamatya to-" Sushim grabbed Vasunandan's neck in a vice grip. The guards and
Subhao immediately grabbed his arm and tried to wrest Vasunandan free. It was
to no avail. Sushim then saw his mother walking through the corridor. Sushim
threw Vasunandan and pushed away the guards. He gave a gasping Vasunandan a murderous
glare and then stormed away.
Sushim sat on his chair trying to calm himself. He remembered his mother's words.
He should not be wasting in his energy on such trivial matters.
But what was there he could do? He felt caged in the palace. There was nothing
worthwhile that he could do. Not while his father was around. He had gotten
used to the freedom he had when he was Prabhari Raja.
And now suddenly he was treated like a criminal in his own palace. Sushim
smashed his fist on the armrest.
He heard a commotion outside his room. In his drunken state he swayed towards
the door. He saw guards running around the palace.
Not another attack. God how many times has it been this year?
He went towards his bed to get his sword. But his fatigue and his drunkenness overtook
his senses and he lost consciousness.
On the outskirts of Patliputra the sun was rising. Radhagupt made it back to the cave after seeing off Senapati
Rudra. He managed to evade the guards without too much trouble. He entered the
now empty sanctum and layed out a mat. The palace knows that he had
gone out of town to do Puja for Chanakya. He was going to return tomorrow.
It has been a fruitful night. Radhagupt smiled. He managed to give the specific
directions as to where Senapati Rudra will find Ashok if he starts tomorrow.
His letter to another Khurasani Sardar had also reached successfully. He had
yet to receive a reply.
Radhagupt sat down and leaned on the smooth surface of the cave walls.
Radhagupt furrowed his eyebrow. All this effort
that he put has only managed to negate most of the odds of Ashok being killed. Ashok's life was still at threat. He had exhausted every measure possible to protect Ashok. But there were elements that were out of his control. And there were scenarios he couldn't predict. He wasn't Acharya Chanakya. He couldn't plot out a flawless plan. Not because he didn't have faith in his intellect. He just did not have the weight of authority that Acharya Chanakya had in the Magadh court. To plot a flawless plan he needed to control all the pieces of the puzzle. And a key piece was already controlled by someone else.
The Senapati that the Mahamatya chose was Subhao's father.
Unlike Subhao who had warmed up to Ashok, Subhao's father remained a staunch
supporter of Rajkumar Sushim. It was difficult to say what instructions the
Mahamatya had given to him.
Sudheshan was a crafty man. He would have been a good choice if Rajkumar Sushim
had gone as originally planned. But with Ashok going instead it was hard to say how
it was going to pan out.
Right now Radhagupt couldn't know what was going to happen. All he could do is
hope for the best.
He closed his eyes to take a short rest. Only rest was hard to come by as
nightmarish images clouded his mind.
Meanwhile in the forest of Assandh not far from the city.
The Magadh Army was encamped around a lake. In the royal tent Ashok was meeting with his Senapati and Senanayaks. They were standing around the map.
"Rajkumar I thought we were going by the sea route." A Senanayak asked. He was
rugged in appearance and lean in build. He had a scar on his left cheek.
"Who told you that we were going to go by the Samudri Marg?" Ashok asked with
an arched eyebrow.
"Samrat Bindusar told me." He replied coolly.
"Really?" Ashok decided to let that lie slide for now. "Never mind. We are
sticking to the original plan." Ashok replied.
"Why?" He persisted. Ashok frowned. Ever since the journey started Sudheshan
has been trying to undermine his command. Trying to drive a wedge between him
and the soldiers.
"Because the enemy has found out that we were going to go by sea." Ashok
snapped.
Sudheshan grumbled but he didn't ask any more questions. The rest of the
Senanayak looked at one another uncomfortably.
"From what our scouts have managed to gather." Ashok continued ignoring
Sudheshan. "Keechak has established several outposts all around Sindh. From
where they conduct regular raids. We need to destroy all of them before we
proceed. Otherwise they may cut off our supplies."
The Senanayaks nodded. One them confidently said. "Since they are raiding parties it should not be too
much of a problem."
"Should not be." Ashok replied with a smile. "You guys have been dealing with
these kind of raiders before I was born." Ashok joked.
The Senanayaks chuckled. Sudheshan continued scowling.
"Rajkumar Ashok. What is the plan though? Are we going to march into Taxilla?
Or do we have to conduct a siege?"
Ashok folded his arms and stroked his chin. "According to Pitaji's instructions
we are supposed to march to Taxilla, take control of the city and arrest Keechak.
However." Ashok paused. His eyes drifted towards the Yunani region on the map.
He remembered Acharya Radhagupt's words.
"It is difficult to say how strong Keechak's Army is." Ashok replied.
"So what is the plan?" Sudheshan snapped. Ashok glared at him.
"I am getting there." Ashok said through gritted teeth. He turned to the
Senanayaks.
"We are going to cut off the trade routes to the city and attempt to force a surrender."
Ashok said summing up the plan that Acharya Radhagupt outlined.
"Won't the inhabitants suffer even more?" a Senanayak spoke. "Keechak might oppress them even more by increasing taxes."
"If we conduct a siege then he will use the civilians as shields." Ashok
replied. "Keechak only cares about the wealth that traders take there because he needs it to fund his mercenaries. We will have
the traders conduct the businesses in our captured outposts. Additionally we are going
to conduct raids of our own. Frequent enough that Keechak starts sending
out his armies. If the raids are effective enough Keechak might lead his army
himself to fight a decisive battle."
"So basically we are flushing Keechak out like a rat?" A Senanayak asked
excitedly.
"Pretty much." Ashok said confidently. The Senanayak smiled, impressed with the
plan.
"But." Sudheshan interrupted. "Can we win when Keechak does decide to come
out?"
Ashok looked at Sudheshan coldly.
"I have faith in my Sena." Ashok replied. "Maybe you should too."
"I do have faith in them." Sudheshan sneered. "I just don't have faith in an
individual who has been a Prince for only a few days."
Ashok clenched his fist. He walked up to Sudheshan meeting his gaze with ferocity.
"I know you don't accept me as a Rajkumar Sudheshan ji." Ashok said quietly. "I
don't expect you to. I don't need you to. I am not here just because I am a
Prince. I am the Maha Yoddha of Magadh. And I have been chosen by Samrat Bindusar to
lead you. If you cannot respect me, at least respect the
orders of our Samrat. That is all I expect from you."
The rest of the Senanayak looked at one another and nodded.
"We like your plan Rajkumar Ashok." One of the elderly Senanayaks spoke. "It is
well thought out and entails less risk."
Sudheshan looked livid.Ashok turned towards them and smiled. Shreh should be given to Acharya Radhagupt.
"Rajkumar Ashok!" A guard suddenly burst into the tent. "The city of
Assandh is being attacked." Ashok clenched his fists. He has reached all way here. Has he become this powerful?
Ashok turned to
his Senanayak and he said in a firm voice.
"Prepare the Sena. We are moving out."
"Senanayak Aadarsh." Ashok turned to his cavalry commander. He was a tall burly
man. He wore heavy armor and carried a broad sword. Of all the Senanayaks,
Aadarsh has been the most obedient. "I will be leading with you. The Magadh
cavalry should be there as soon as possible to minimize the casualties."
Aadarsh quietly bowed and left. Ashok turned to address the commanders of the
heavy chariot and infantry divisions. "The rest of you march after all of you
mobilize. We will camp at Assandh tonight after we drive off the raiders."
"Yes Rajkumar." The Senanayaks said together with a bow.
Ashok then walked to his royal chest. He drew out his grandfather's sword and
fastened it around his back. Without another word Ashok then dashed out of the
tent. The servants bowed as he went out. Sudheshan stood quietly as the
Senanayak followed Rajkumar Ashok.
"I need to let Amatya Khalnatak know." Sudheshan muttered. "The ambush should
proceed as planned."
Sudheshan walked out of the tent. When Yuvraj Sushim told him last night that
they were going by the Samudri Marg he was naturally surprised. And impressed.
It was a bold plan. He didn't realize that the rag Prince was capable of such.
He wanted to tell Amatya Khalnatak but he didn't do so on the Yuvraj's request.
And now he was glad he didn't. If Ashok was going to proceed by the usual plan.
Then they will too.
It's a shame. We will lose so many experienced Yoddha. But small price to pay
for the future of Yuvraj Sushim. And of course his Private Army will be getting
some much needed practice.
The sky was
cloudy. Looks like it was going to rain.
Suddheshan
smirked.
So that's why you insisted on the chariots
Mahamatya.
Leave your thoughts below. Next update will be up by Monday.
Chapter 7:https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/post/130222503
Edited by babur1527 - 7 years ago
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