Foreign Invasion

Royal Palace, Chandragarh

A loud cry arose from the dimly lit room. It was one of the medical attendants who had screamed just now. The people surrounding the bed were busy trying to revive the person lying on the bed.

"As you can see, the queen has been throwing up blood for the past half hour now. If you don't give the antidote now, it will be too late," said Indrani in an urgent but subdued voice.

The prince looked at her and patted her shoulder, "At this time, you should be worrying about your family instead of your queen. I am afraid it's already too late for her. Don't tell me that you actually thought that I would give you the antidote ever. It was only a way for you to console yourself while you stabbed your best friend and your queen in the back."

With that, he left the room. Indrani's eyes flashed with venom seeing his receding back.

Himprayag

Gayatri was extremely upset on the way back from the lodge. She tried to supress it but in the end, she couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Are you so madly in love with him that you are willing to play such high stakes, forsaking everything that you have worked so hard to achieve? Do you know what would be the repercussions?" she finally asked Ahilya.

Ahilya was quiet for some time and it seemed that she didn't intend to explain her decision. Gayatri felt bile rising at the back of her throat.

"I think that my father was aware of my step-brother's association and planning with the Saptsindhu king from the beginning. That's why he was willing to let him go on the pretext of presenting a small proposal to all the countries. He has been biding his time till he hears back from Mithilesh post the success of their plan. So, I was never in the race to the throne. He nicely agreed to my proposal of association with Chandragarh to keep me appeased during this time. Do you not think that I should reciprocate and pay them back with the same coin?" her cold words jolted Gayatri.

Somewhere in Chandragarh

Chiranjeev tried to recall the route which he had memorised over and over again during the past month on behest of Prithvi guruji. While all five of them had been given the same maps to memorise, Prithvi had given a modified one to Chiranjeev which consisted of paths not drawn on the other map versions. This was the route which he was supposed to follow today to take the queen to safety.

Despite the presence of three women in the carriage, it was fairly quiet in there, with everyone lost in their own thoughts.

Bela turned her face to look at the queen and asked, "Are you uncomfortable? I apologise for not letting us take any break at this juncture. We are not aware of the enemy's penetration into the different regions of the queendom. I…"

Rani Samyukta raised her hand and interrupted Bela, "You don't have to apologise. I am well aware of the danger. How much longer is the way, though?"

Saraswati, who had travelled this route most frequently, said, "Should not be more than a few hours. The entrance to the tunnel starts before the border of Southern zilla. We will have to leave the carriage at that juncture. Post that, it is a walk of about 15-20 minutes before we reach the underground safehouse."

This tunnel and safehouse was the secret project which Prithvi had assigned to Saraswati some time back. She wondered if Prithvi had an inkling about a situation like this or was it a coincidence? Few hours ago, during her travel from the Gurukul to Prithvi's house, she had finally dared to ask him about Ramanujam. At his grim silence, she barely managed to hold back a sob.

Looking out of the carriage's window, she told herself to be firm and not think about anything else. This was not the time to grieve but avenge!

Royal Gardens, Capital, Chandragarh

When Prince Mithilesh returned to his seat, he immediately sought Prithvi's presence. Unsurprisingly, he saw the man's receding back. Never mind, it was too late for the spymaster to do anything. With the current ruler incapacitated, it was a matter of time before Chandragarh fell.

He looked up at the sky. By his estimation, it would have begun by now.

In the middle of the garden, the panel of judges were questioning the three contestants one by one but without the queen's presence, there was a weird atmosphere all around. This was the most important stage of the selection and the process couldn't be completed without the queen's participation.

Suddenly, Indrani came there and whispered something urgently to the event coordinator.

"Attention everyone! Due to critical national issues, the queen is unable to oversee the event today. As a result, the same has been postponed till further notice," the coordinator announced in the middle of Vaishali's presentation.

"Does your Suraksha Chakra chief thinks that he can stop it from happening? At this hour, the Saptsindhu warriors have attacked the Chandragarh border already. I hope that your army manages to get their act together in time and survive for at least a few hours of this surprise attack. Otherwise, it won't even act as target practice for the Saptsindhu soldiers," Prince Mithilesh's mocking words pierced a needle through Indrani's heart.

Irrespective of what happened in the future, she vowed that she will kill this guy with her own hands. He was the one who had cornered her and made her defect against her country.

Few kilometres away

The hundred men who had travelled in secret with Prince Mahendra from Saptsindhu were now standing in front of him and Sharada.

The prince looked at them and said, "It is time for us to fulfil the long standing ambition our forefathers. Victory and glory will be ours!"

A loud chorus greeted his words along with the sound of the conch. Prince Mahendra wanted the royal palace to be able to hear and wait for his arrival.