The emperor looked majestic on the royal elephant. People seemed pleasantly surprised by his arrival. The surprise element and fact that he was returning after a long time got people considerably excited. They surrounded him and greeted him with loud cheers.
Marappa Bhupathi heard these greetings and rode away quietly.
Devasenan moved to the side of the road. His heart raced. He turned away,
determined not to look at the Emperor. As the elephant passed him, he wavered.
The Emperor was the sworn enemy of the Chozha clan, but it was hard to deny
that his fame as a warrior had spread far and wide. Devasenan’s gaze
involuntarily turned in his direction. The Emperor looked at him at the same
time. His roving eyes settled on the trader’s face for a moment. There was no
change in his facial expression, not even a twitch of the eyebrow. His gaze
moved on past the face.
The elephant moved on too. The trader heaved a sigh, having
escaped danger. His mind was unsettled. He was not happy at having met
Marappan. ‘He is the commander of the army now. It certainly looks as if his
treachery has been rewarded. Did he talk to me that way because he recognized
me? Was he truthful about the girl being the Emperor’s daughter? If she
was indeed the princess, why would she identify herself as someone else? Why
would she repeatedly invite me to the palace?’ Upon these thoughts, Vikraman
felt various dangers were closing in on him. Staying on in Mamallapuram would
be inviting trouble. Further, Marappan’s mysterious allusion to Queen Arulmozhi
had shaken him. He wanted to go to Uraiyur and see his mother before worrying
about anything else.
He had planned to purchase a horse and ride to Uraiyur. He
abandoned that plan. Trying to purchase a horse might attract attention. He
might get caught if he ran into Marappan again. It was a good thing that the
Emperor passed by at the right time - a narrow escape! He remembered that he
had shown his true feelings when Marappan brought up Queen Arulmozhi. Could
Marappan have suspected him, and said those things to confirm his identity?
What would Marappan have done if he had confirmed his identity? What was he
doing in Mamallapuram? ‘In any case, it would be good to leave right now,
go to Uraiyur and meet mother while Marappan is here. I might be able to
purchase a horse on the way’, he thought.
Upon these thoughts, Vikraman – let’s use his real name from now
on – headed to the choultry where he had been staying. He was checking his
surroundings on the way and hid when he heard hoof-beats. He gathered his bags,
and left with the dwarf, who carried the bags. He had not noticed that
the dwarf was talking to someone in sign language outside the lodge when he was
inside.
He left Mamallapuram about three hours before sunset. When he
passed the city gates and reached the royal highway, evening fell, and the
sunlight had turned golden.
Royal highways connected Mamallapuram to Kanchi, and Kanchi to
Uraiyur. The highway from Mamallapuram to Kanchi used to bustle with activity.
People would travel on horseback, elephants and in palanquins. The road was
interspersed with small hamlets along the way. The highway had temples,
monasteries, choultries, watering holes, schools and shops on either side.
Newcomers could be forgiven for thinking it was one big city all the way from
Mamallapuram to Kanchi.
There were minor roads branching off this highway. One such minor
road cut across forests and joined the Kanchi-Uraiyur highway just south of
Kanchi. The minor road served as a shortcut to many travelers, saving them about
five kilometers of travel. It was not a busy road, especially at night. There
was a risk of running into wild animals along the way. Further, there was a
notorious Badrakali temple along the way. It was rumored that Sakthars
and Kapaliks conducted human sacrifices in the temple, in defiance of
the emperor’s orders. Hence, even brave men hesitated to take that road
after sunset.
Vikraman was blissfully ignorant of this. He reached the minor
road, led by the dwarf. When the dwarf signaled to him that they should take
that road, he hesitated a bit. The desire to see his mother gave him courage to
take the shortcut. Another reason for his courage was the four men he saw at
the intersection of the royal highway and the minor road. They were talking but
started walking along the minor road briskly as Vikraman arrived. Vikraman
thought that they could prove to be good company if he could catch up with
them. He picked up speed, but the dwarf walked slower than usual, slowing him
down.
The forest seemed to get denser as they walked. The sun had fully set. However, the sky was clear. Stars shone brightly, helping them find their
way. There were some fireflies among the dark foliage. It appeared as if the
forest fairies were using their magical powers to put on a light show.
Vikraman, for all his bravery, got progressively nervous as time
passed. He could hear sounds of wild animals and the hooting of owls. He wanted
to ask the dwarf things like how long they had to walk through the wooded
region, and where they could stay. But darkness made conversation in sign
language impossible.
About three hours after sunset, Vikraman’s instincts warned him of
danger. He was reluctant to go on. He had already wondered if he should return
to the royal highway, but the idea seemed better and better as time passed. He
tapped the dwarf on his shoulders and stopped him.
He could hear hoof-beats at a distance. Vikraman was startled to
see that the dwarf appeared to listen to the sound as well. If he was
indeed deaf, how could he hear the faint hoof-beats?
Vikraman pulled out his sword. The well-oiled sword sparkled,
despite the darkness. He grabbed the dwarf by the hair, raised the sword and
asked, “If you were indeed deaf, how did you react to the hoof-beat? Speak the
truth or prepare to die.”
The dwarf cackled aloud. Vikraman’s blood seemed to congeal at the
terrible sound of the cackle. As he remained stupefied, the dwarf freed himself and moved
rapidly away. He cupped his hands around his mouth and made a long, eerie
sound. The sound was neither human, nor of animals. Any listeners may have been
forgiven for thinking it was the howl of a banshee.
Vikraman shuddered. He steeled himself and moved, having decided
to kill the dwarf. At that moment, four men emerged from one side of the path,
with swords in their hands. The sight of the swords put Vikraman at ease, and
gave him courage. The darkness, dense forest and the eerie noises made by the
dwarf had made him think he had slipped into some terrible haunted land. The
swords reassured him that whatever was happening was in the human realm. He
brandished his sword. The four men attacked, and he moved quickly. One of
them fell very early by his attack. Another man’s sword was knocked off by
impact, flew at the dwarf and hit him, who screamed and collapsed. The
other two now sensed that Vikraman was no ordinary swordsman. They started
fighting cautiously, staying outside his arms’ reach. They were looking over
their shoulders occasionally, suggesting that they were expecting someone. The
hoof-beats were getting closer. A horse and rider emerged. In star light,
Vikraman could see that the rider had his sword out. One of the men shouted,
“Master, please hurry!”.
Vikraman thought that his end was near. He was confident of
fighting the two men, but he was tiring. He was pessimistic of being able to
fight a third, fresh fighter.
Vikraman thought of his mother and regretted dying without seeing
her. He thought of the girl who had showed great kindness as she talked to him. He
also remembered the Emperor, riding the royal elephant. That angered him.
‘Murderers and Dacoits under the Pallava rule! Is this how Narasimha Varman
rules my Chozha country as well?’. He swung his sword, powered by rage. One of
the two men fell.
At the same time, the horseman slashed out. And the other man fell
dead.
Vikraman was astounded. Did the horseman make a mistake? He could
not have. Vikraman was wearing a shirt and the others were bare-chested.
It should have been easy for the horseman to tell him from others. ‘Does that
mean that the rider was not whom these men were expecting?’ thought Vikraman.
The horseman dismounted, and asked, “Sir, who are you, and why did
you travel alone in this dangerous path?’
Parthban Kanavu: The Tamil version of the novel is in the public domain. Copyright for the translation is reserved by the translator..
Art by Sujatha, unless otherwise credited.
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