The Sky was a purple blue. It was twilight. There was no wind. Everything was silent other than the footsteps of the soldiers in the palace. Mohana couldn’t wait anymore. She was getting restless. It was now or never. The first step of the plan was to delay the arrival of the Mahishmathi army. Mohana’s group had postponed Shivu’s arrival by making sure that the paths through the mountains were filled with rocks and tree trunks. They had been working on the same since days. The next job was to remove bulk of the Kuntala army from the Palace. A few burned houses in the village did the job. Kuntala’s army was very helpful to the people. No matter whatever the threat is they would run for their people’s aid. What Mohana intended to do that night would have been easier if the security of Queen Avantika was not that strong. Guards went rounds within and outside the palace all the time. Avantika was always surrounded by either the Mahismathi soldiers or Kuntala soldiers. And she never let the child out of her sight. When she was not there her sister in law Shikha, the queen of Kuntala stayed with the child. But today both of them will be forced to leave the child with Mohana because they were both warriors and Mohana was just a weak maid.

Avantika was restless. What she was hearing since the last two days strained her. It has been eight days since the child-birth and Shivu should have been in Kuntala at least by yesterday, but he hadn’t arrived. Avanti felt as though something was wrong. And then she heard about the fire in the village. Shikha had sent bulk of the army to help the villagers. Saran had left for the mountain pass in order to check on Shivu that following morning and will not return for a few days. Avanti was not scared of being alone. She had ruled Kuntala and also took care of Mahishmathi in Shivu’s absence. But today she was weak and she didn’t know if she could fight a battle if need be. But Shikha was there with her and that reminded her of the days they spend together in the caves. Shikha was the only friend Avanti had and when Saran decided to marry Shikha, Avanti was happy. Shikha deserved to be a queen; she was soft-hearted and knew when and where to stop. She had excellent judgement and that helped Avanti many times. Now the presence of Shikha gave her strength. Avanti got up from her bed and walked to the cradle where her child was sleeping. The child was not named yet. Avanti was waiting for Shivu’s arrival for naming their child. It might be either Sivagami after Shivu’s grandmother or Neelambari after Avanti’s mother.

Avanti was trying to pick up the child when she heard the bell ringing in the tower. It was a signal for impending danger. The last time the bell rang, Kuntala was being invaded by the Mahishmathi army. Avanti was an infant at that time. Her heart started to beat faster. Avanti knew that her palace and her child were in danger and she would give her life to protect them. Avanti walked fast to the bedside and took her sword. At that time Shikha and Mohana ran in to the room.

Shikha: Invaders, Avanti, all wearing black, can’t comprehend who they are or what they want.

Avanti was not sure of anything at that time but the only thing she knew was her palace was under attack and she had to fight and she also has to safeguard her child.

Avanti took her sword from the scabbard, Shikha was astonished.

Shikha: Avanti, you can’t fight in this condition, you have to take rest, you have just gone through child-birth eight days back and if you stress your body, you will bleed.

Avanti: Shikha, I am a warrior and a warrior is born to bleed.

Avanti lifted her child out of the cradle and gave her to Mohana.

Avanti: you know about the secret chamber inside this room, hide in it and don’t come out; I will come and get you, no matter how long it takes, I will come. Avanti walked slowly when Shikha ran fast. It was time for Avanti’s sword to have a blood bath.

Mohana was finally left alone with the child. She was waiting outside Avanti’s chamber for the bell to ring. She was prepared. She knew Avanti would go to defend the palace and she was ready before any other maid would take her place. Mohana didn’t lose time, she applied the sleep inducing medicine on the child’s mouth, she couldn’t risk the child waking up and making any noise, and then she covered the child with her saree. The doors to the room were closed and she had to use the windows to escape. The room seemed to be in the first floor if you escape through the windows and on ground floor if walked through the doors. The Kuntala Palace had a strange architecture, she thought. Mohana used the rope made of clothes she had hidden behind the wardrobe. She tied the child to her body with clothes and slowly climbed down. When she reached the ground she started to move fast.

Viswa was fighting the intruders; he was also in charge of looking after the room where the queen’s child was kept. He had cut down one of the intruders and that is when he saw a women walking as though she was hiding something. He went close to her and he found that it was Mohana and she was hiding something and to his surprise it was the princess. Viswa asked her to stop but she started to move to the other direction.

Mohana knew she was in trouble when she saw Viswa, but she had suffered so much to put this plan to work. She saw Viswa moving his sword towards her and she swiftly ducked. She then attacked him with her leg and made him fall to his back, before he touched the ground, she held him with one hand and took a knife from her cloth and cut his throat. Blood flew out of the cut and Mohana moved out of its way. You can afford to be timid maids in your home but in the land of your enemy you have to learn how to cut throats. Mohana walked and ran and once she found the horse that was waiting for her, she signalled the soldiers of Sarayuha and rode out of the Palace.

Avanti heard chirping of birds, it started from the palace gates and then reached the hall. She knew it was not the time for birds to chirp and then all the intruders retreated, she knew something was wrong. Avanti was standing at the way to the entrance of the hall which held her child. She had cut down many intruders who tried to go in to the hall. She couldn’t move much as her body was paining and she knew the bleeding had started and if she survived the day it would bleed for the next 21 days and that is what the physician had said before. A warrior is no stranger to blood or death and Avanti was a warrior and more than that she was a mother. She can afford to bleed but she had to stay alive for her child’s safety. Avanti walked to her chamber and opened the door. Avanti felt as though her whole body has gone in to a black hole and the physical pain was unbearable. When she unlocked the door from the outside she was surprised to see that the door was not locked from the inside. She called for Mohana and no one answered. She went to the secret chamber and it was locked from the outside. Avanti couldn’t breathe for some time. Her eyes teared up. Avanti painfully realized that she had trusted the wrong person.

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

Jayara looked at the mirror. She has become older. But there is a beauty in becoming old. You get mature, you cry less, you heart would seldom break. There was beauty in what she had accomplished that day as well. Jaya heard everything that Mohana had said. How they had worked out the plan to bring the child to Sarayuha. Jaya could have brought the child here without the battle, with less blood shed but there is something she loved about making a person fight till the last breath and when they think they are winning just snatch what they hold dear right away from their hands. Jaya wished if she could see Avanti’s face at that time, the pain on a mother’s face when she loses her child. The pain Jaya had felt ten years before. Avanti is warrior and Jayara was a timid princess, she wanted to know if a warrior’s face would look the same as a weak girl once she sees her child’s lifeless body.

Jaya took her knife from the scabbard and walked out of her room. Jaya entered the room where Mohana had kept the child. She opened the door and found the child on the bed. It was awake. Jaya lifted the knife and went near the bundle and she looked at the child, one last look to see how Avantika’s child was different from her own still-born. And the child was looking straight into her eyes, it was not crying or smiling, it was simply looking at her and Jaya felt as though her body had become weak. The knife fell from her hands and she sat next to the bed.

A war does not end when one kingdom wins over the other, a war ends when both the sides attain peace, Jaya didn’t know if Sarayuha would ever make peace with Mahishmathi. But in the battle between who she was and who she has become, which had been fought for the last ten years, Jaya had finally attained peace.

Amrutha