295 Package Deal

Himprayag-Saptsindhu border

Abhirath studied the princess covertly while she read the stamped document sent by the queen. It had been changed and worded clearly to leave no space for ambiguity.

"Since you are here, Minister, you might as well have a look at it and tell me if all reads well in this," she addressed Rudradev who was sitting atop a horse, with a cloak covering most of his features.

With the usual smirk on his face, he took the offered scroll from her hand and studied it carefully.

"It reads fair, as expected of Chandragarh. I will take this back safely with me. I wish you all a safe journey. Remember that you don't have too much time," with that last line aimed at Princess Ahilya, he spurred his horse on.

Abhirath extended his hand towards Ahilya and asked her, "Can you give me the map which my guruji left with you? I am trained at reading them and have been tasked to take you to the intended destination with its help. Ahilya and her few generals who had accompanied her, looked at the young lad who looked neither arrogant nor cowed down in front of them.

Two hours later

Abhirath was marvelling over the skills of his young teacher who had drawn such a detailed path to the secret valley. Since the troop consisted of seasoned travellers, even the treacherous hilly area laden with snow couldn't hold them back from making a fast progress. They had covered a three hour journey in 2/3rd of its time.

Not long after, an eagle came and descended on Abhirath's shoulder. He smiled and petted the fierce and intelligent looking bird. It was here to guide them into the interiors.

"It's time to leave the horses here. Rest of the journey would be covered on foot," he told everyone.

An hour later

Shaurya accepted the greetings from Abhirath with a straight face. They knew that now was not the time for reminiscing. With a polite nod, Shaurya gestured to Ahilya to come forward and pay respect to the tribal chief. In this place, the identity of the princess was insignificant. What mattered was sincerity and intent. Thankfully, she didn't create any fuss and copied his gestures to greet the old person sitting there.

"They have agreed to camouflage our presence and take us to the capital with them. Fortunately, due to winters, you can afford to cover your faces under the guise of woollen masks and the Hiprayag facial features won't be prominently visible. The procession carrying goods will leave from here in the next hour. We will go and wait in the brothel for night to fall for the next part of our plan," he explained to Ahilya and the others.

In the light of the unexpected attack, Prithvi had come up with a change in the original proposal between the two countries. Now, he ruthlessly hoped that Chandragarh and Himprayag would take over Saptsindhu and divide the resources equally. At this time, a large part of the Saptsindhu army was deployed at the border against Chandragarh and the strongest royal guards had gone with Prince Mahendra to the capital of Chandragarh. The aged monarch of Saptsindhu, King Amrendra was holed up in the palace with a weakened force.

Tonight, Shaurya intended to invade the Saptsindhu palace with Ahilya and her fiercest warriors. If the monarch died, the kingdom of Saptsindhu would fall into the hands of the invaders.

On the other hand, Prithvi and his team would try and eliminate the two princes as soon as possible.

Royal Palace, Chandragarh

"Since the matters have been dealt with successfully, I am here to ask the prince for his benevolence and fulfil his promise of marrying my sister and making her your queen," Vidyut said with his standard smile in place.

The prince's brows came together in displeasure as he looked at the man in front of him.

"You do seem to be in a tearing hurry! I haven't even held the crowning ceremony yet and here you are playing the marriage harp," said Prince Mahendra with irritation tingling his words.

Vidyut was unperturbed by the hostile tone of the prince.

He continued to maintain his pleasant demeanour and replied, "It is not my sister or I who are in a hurry. In fact, she remains unaware of this plan till now. I was only thinking about YOUR sister, who has just entered the second month of her pregnancy. I am not sure till how long can we hide this from everyone. Holding two weddings simultaneously, had been our original deal, as soon as we took over Chandragarh?"

A clear grinding noise could be heard from the Prince's teeth. He dropped all pretence of civility and held Vidyut by his neck.

"How dare you sully my sister?" he roared and punched him on the face.

Vidyut waited for the prince to calm down on his own. Ignoring the vicious throbbing on his cheek, he moved his jaw to check if it remained in place.

He had held onto this ace till the last minute since he fully expected the prince to renege on the deal between them. Six months ago, when the Saptsindhu prince was scouting for traitors in Chandragarh, he had been approached by Vidyut. The guy was ruthless, ambitious and without any scruples. He strongly held the belief that Chandragarh would benefit if it went back to its patriarchal roots. A country governed by a king was a much better place! He was a part of a secret society in Chandragarh who believed the same and had been looking for an opportunity to overturn the current system, for the past many years.

Vidyut was the one who had arranged an alliance between the prince and Sharada, who also belonged to the same belief system. He was also the one to convince the gay partner of Prithvi to betray him. In return, the prince of Saptsindhu had promised to marry his sister and make her the queen of the combined region. He had also agreed to a matrimony alliance between his unmarried sister, Avantika and appoint Vidyut as the ministerial head for the entire Chandragarh region.