Chapter 9 - At War - 3

TriRajya Bindu

TriRajya Bindu, or the Tri-Kingdom Point, was where the borders of Magadha, Vatsa and Avanti Kingdoms met. From a terrain point of view, it was the ideal location for Magadha to plan an attack on Vatsa. But from a political point of view, it was suicide. One misstep, i.e inadvertently entering Avanti instead of Vatsa, would mean that Magadha would be at war with two Kingdoms instead of one. It wasn’t that King PriamRaja’s ambitions didn’t include conquest of Avanti, just not both Vatsa and Avanti at once.

However, for the Kingdoms of Vatsa and Avanti, joining hands now would be the ideal deterrent for PriamRaja’s ambitions. Situated around 50 km from Chunar, TriRaja Bindu was the ideal location for them to launch a rear attack.

****************

Kaushambi, Vatsa

King Mahendra of Vatsa and King Suryapratap of Avanti sat facing each other.

‘Are you sure?’, King Mahendra asked.

‘If Avanti officially joins in the war, there would be no going back.’

‘In the past, I already have paid a heavy price for my reluctance. This time, at least let me ensure the safety of my Kingdom.’, King Suryapratap replied.

The erstwhile king of Magadha, King Ashwapati had married King Suryapratap’s sister. The loss of his sister, nephews and brother-in-law was personal for him.

‘It’s not like I have a choice’, King Suryapratap added with a dry laugh.

The Kingdom of Avanti shared borders with Kalinga to its south, Magadha to its east and Vatsa to the north. PriamRaja already ruled over Kalinga and Magadha. If Vatsa also fell into his hands, Suryapratap would be virtually trapped with little hope of victory in a battle. And then, there was the guilt. His brother-in-law, King Ashwapati, had suggested that they launch a joint attack on Kalinga. Neither of their troops had fought a battle in several years, and individually, the odds of either of them defeating the battle-hardened soldiers of King PriamRaja were low. But the odds would have been greatly improved, had he joined in then. But fear prevented him. What if they lost? He wasn’t willing to lose his Kingdom, his status and his wealth. But now, the confrontation was inevitable. If Suryapratap didn’t join in now, it would probably be a matter of only months before PriamRaja’s hungry gaze fell on Avanti. With nothing to lose, he had finally found the courage to give it his all. And the best way was to ally with Vatsa, when the odds were in their favor.

The modalities of the alliance were worked out. Vatsa’s military would fight the battle, and the forces of Avanti would be on standby. Since their investment was higher, any gains in land and goods would belong solely to Vatsa. Time was of essence and they quickly concluded the deal. Even though he would have loved a share in the spoils of war, there wasn’t much room for negotiation for King Suryapratap and he didn’t have the courage to walk out of the deal.

‘Do you think we can trust him?’,King Mahendra asked Sumedh after King Suryapratap’s entourage had left.

‘He has already been driven to a corner. He can’t back down.’, Sumedh replied.

‘He is driven by fear, not courage - The fear of adversity. I suppose his fear is understandable. Adversity is romantic only in our imagination, especially if it is long term. Whether it is long term failure, poverty or illness, it is frustrating and usually, a lonely journey. Only those who are dependent on us or have a strong sense of duty toward us would remain by our side. Others complete their obligations with an enquiry or two. It requires the grace of God to receive the care of people who feel that service to humanity is service to God. And it is only such love that endures. But I doubt that King Suryapratap believes in this kind of love.’

‘I doubt that facing adversity will be an option. King PriamRaja has never spared any of the vanquished Kings.’, King Mahendra said dryly.

‘I hear that after capturing Magadha and executing King Ashwapati, King PriamRaja offered prayers and bathed in the holy Ganges. Did he think all his deeds would be purified with a dip in the Ganges?’, he added in a heated tone.

‘It is hard to understand the workings of a dark and twisted mind. I can search for logic when the quest is virtuous like seeking justice or overcoming evil. But when the driving force is greed, vengeance or malice, I stay away. For, if I try to understand such people, I fear that I will be consumed by their darkness.’,Sumedh replied.

****************

5 days later, Chunar, Border of Magadha

Deependra watched as the ferries were loaded with military supplies. Tonight, 1000 soldiers would go across the Ganges river to Vatsa and attack. Since this was a surprise attack, there would hardly be any troops from Vatsa to defend. By morning, 2 of the border villages of Vatsa would be conquered. The large boats used for trade had been repurposed for transporting horses. They would set out in the morning. Everything was in place now and Deependra smiled to himself. Things were going well for him. He had even caught the attention of the Crown Prince and was sure that great opportunities lay ahead. How about the position of Gopa for a start, he thought with a chuckle.

The sound of footsteps behind him broke into his musings. He looked around. The soldiers had begun to assemble at the riverfront. Food packets were handed out and they began to eat and engage in a light hearted banter. This was going to be an easy night, they knew, and none of them were worried.

‘Soldiers, Attention!’, Durmukha commanded.

There was a scramble as the soldiers tidied up the remains and ran to join the line-up.

Crown Prince, Vishvajit will be addressing us.’

Crown Prince Vishvajit stepped forward.

‘My brave soldiers’, he began.

‘We are all battle hardened men. Tonight should not pose a problem to any of us, but we cannot let our guard down. Our advantage lies in the fact that we will catch them by surprise. Hence, time will be of essence. We must move fast and conquer before the enemy has time to get their act together.

2 villages must be conquered tonight and once reinforcements join you in the morning, we must advance at a steady pace till we reach their Capital, Kaushambi.’

‘Any questions?’, Durmukha asked.

‘Any restrictions on collecting the spoils of war?’, a soldier asked with a cheeky grin.

There was a round of laughter.

‘Now, Now … my men.’, the Crown Prince admonished with a wink.

‘Plunder away, but leave some for your brothers who join in the morning.’

There was another round of laughter.

****************

Defence Headquarters, Vatsa

Sumedh entered Vikarna’s office with a grave air. They had received definite intelligence that the attack would begin tonight. Vatsa had the upper hand, he knew, but still his heart was heavy. War was never a good option. Lives would be lost and destruction of property would be inevitable.

‘Ahh.. Sumedhji.’,Vikarna began to rise.

‘No, please. Let us skip the formalities’, Sumedh said.

‘Yes, yes, shall we go over the plan again?’, Vikarna asked.

Sumedh sat down and they pored over a map of Vatsa’s borders that was spread on the table.

‘This, here,is Chunar.’, Vikarna pointed on the map.

‘The attack will begin here… Hard to say which village they will attack first. We have evacuated 5-6 villages - the 2 villages directly opposite to Chunar and then a few around them.’, Vikarna said.

Sumedh was thoughtful.

‘Hmm.. Deserted villages. Will they not realize it is a trap?’, Sumedh asked.

‘Yes, yes, we thought of that’, Vikarna said.

‘A few soldiers in plain clothes will be stationed in some prominent places. We are also lighting the lamps in some of the houses.’

‘Good thinking.’, Sumedh said.

Vikarna smiled with self-satisfaction.

‘Once our river patrols ensure that all their soldiers are onshore, we will ambush them’, he continued.

‘Hard to say how many batches of soldiers will be sent tonight though.’

‘If I were in their place, I wouldn’t send out the next batch of soldiers, until the first batch signalled a go ahead’, Sumedh said.

‘Ahh.. yes, yes,’Vikarna said and became thoughtful.

‘Lets see.. Perhaps we can keep their troop leader alive, at least until we find out what their signal is. Then our soldiers can signal to them to send across the next batch.

Yes, yes. This is good. The more the number of troops we ambush, the lesser the work later on.’

‘TriRajya Bindu. What of TriRajya Bindu?’, Sumedh asked.

‘Yes, yes…’, Vikarna said with a wide smile.

‘A signal fire will be lit at our watch tower, once the ambush is complete. We have stationed watch guards every 500m until the TriRajya Bindu. So once the first signal fire is lit and the guard next in line sees it, he will light his signal fire, and then the next guard will see it…’

‘A relay fire. That’s good. That’s good.’. Sumedh said.

Vikarna was pleased with the compliment. He and his commanders had gone through several options. A messenger carrying the news of the attack would delay the rear attack by at least a day. They needed something quicker. With the rainy season over and winter yet to set in, the skies were clear to create a clear line of vision. The weather was also dry enough for using fire as a signal.

‘The horses , chariots and elephants have begun their march to the border. By nightfall they should all be in position.’, Vikarna said.

‘How many days to their Base camp, once we begin the attack at TriRajya Bindu?’, Sumedh asked.

‘Covering 50 km for an army, would require at least 2 days during a regular march. But since this is an attack , the pace will be slower. Perhaps, 4 or 5 days then.’,Vikarna replied.

‘I suppose, within a day and a half Prince Vishvajit will become aware of his predicament’, Sumedh said.

‘Yes, but even if he asks for reinforcements, they will take time. We expect that he would split his troops into two. Based on our intelligence, they have around 10,000 soldiers at base camp. He probably would send half of them to curb the rear attack. But since they hadn’t planned an attack on dry land, they brought very few elephants with them. We should have an upper hand there’, Vikarna said.

‘Good, Good..’, Sumedh said.

‘Chief … The signal fire has been lit !’, a soldier hurried over with the news.

‘I will leave you to it then’, Sumedh said as he stood up and turned to leave.

‘Yes, yes…’

‘Oh and what about Atriji?’, Sumedh turned around and asked.

‘He is safe. We have ensured his absence from the base camp.’, Vikarna replied with a grin.

‘That’s a relief’, Sumedh said with a smile.

‘Good luck then’, he added on his way out.

Bahu observed Sumedh’s worried expression as they exited the Defence headquarters. It was one of those times when his master was lost in deep contemplation. He watched Sumedh enter the carriage, almost missing the step.

‘Back to the Capital, Sir?’, he asked.

‘Yes.’, Sumedh replied absentmindedly and leaned back.

‘We are here Sir’, Bahu said, as he stopped the carriage.

Sumedh looked up. Bahu had brought him to the Temple. Indeed, it was time for prayer. He patted Bahu’s shoulder in gratitude as he exited the carriage.

It was midnight and the Temple was closed. It was also what Sumedh preferred. He had always felt a reluctance toward observing rituals. It somehow lessened the deep feeling and connection that he felt with the divine. His relationship with God was personal, yes, but it was also private. He guarded it and avoided discussing it casually, lest he lose some of the closeness. As was his habit, he sat on the stone bench under the Pipal tree and made a silent prayer.

‘Oh God, guide us through this trial. Guide our steps so that we may choose virtue in our reason, will, and action.’

It was a small prayer, but it was made with deep feeling and reverence.

Sumedh didn’t doubt the outcome, for their military might was superior and their preparations were thorough. He just wondered at God’s plan for them.

‘I don’t doubt that you want the best for us, but I do wonder just how painful this best is going to be’, he murmured , reproaching God just as a child would reproach his parents.

As his thoughts began to calm down, he realized that it was time to plan for the aftermath.Vatsa had no wish to continue the war until the whole of Magadha was conquered. This battle was a deterrent, to buy peace for a while, until a more lasting solution was found. The treaty they signed would have to be compelling, and the stakes would need to be high, it was the only way to keep PriamRaja’s ambitions at bay. He missed Atriji, Atriji’s astute mind and keen understanding of human behavior would have been a godsend at this time.

Wait a minute, that was it, Sumedh realized and a smile lit up his face.

They would bring Atriji to the negotiating table, Sumedh decided and jumped up with enthusiasm.