THE CURSE OF BRAHMA (56 page)

Sini Yadav was on the way back with his task force when they were met by a messenger from Bateshwar. The man was badly wounded and would not survive, even though Sini had ensured that he was given immediate medical aid. Sini read the urgent message from Surasena with incredulity. Surasena had been ambushed on the way back from Madhuvan and the small battalion escorting him had been decimated by Jarasandha’s outsized forces. Jarasandha had then proceeded to attack Bateshwar and taken the army there unawares. It had been an easy task; not only had the army not expected an attack, but the people who could have inspired the army to fight back—Vasudev and Sini Yadav—were both not there. And Surasena himself was in confinement and unable to do anything. Surasena also wrote that Jarasandha had boasted that Madhuvan was now under the command of Kansa who had taken his father Ugrasena captive. And that Vasudev and Devki were also incarcerated by the prince of Madhuvan, who was now the sovereign of the country.

Sini Yadav’s jaw clenched in anger as he read the bit about Vasudev being a prisoner. He cursed himself for not having gone to the wedding.

In his letter, Surasena specifically commanded Sini not to come to Bateshwar or go to Madhuvan as he would surely be taken prisoner or worse, be killed on sight. He was instructed to go to Hastinapur at once and meet Dhritarashtra with news of what had happened. Surasena was certain that Dhritarashtra may be able to help. His final instructions were that Sini should stay away till such time that either Hastinapur decided to assist them or till Surasena sent him a new communiqué. At the conclusion of the letter, Surasena had given him the name of the person he could stay with while he was in Hastinapur.

Sini read the name mentioned in the letter—Kripa Acharya.

ine months had elapsed since Kansa had taken over as king of Madhuvan and Jarasandha had added Bateshwar to Magadha’s list of conquests.

There had been a few murmurs when Kansa presented himself two days after Devki’s wedding and told the senior members of the royal court that Ugrasena had declared him king and gone on an indefinite pilgrimage. But Ugrasena’s letter signed in his own hand and carrying the royal seal had put all rumors to rest. Also, there were enough people who had seen Kansa return from Magadha and being cordially received by Ugrasena on the day of the wedding. Airawat’s absence too corroborated what the king had written in his letter. Kansa was crowned as the new king of Madhuvan and the court members enthusiastically pledged loyalty to their new sovereign.

Mandki was the only person convinced that something was terribly wrong. She knew Airawat would not have left without meeting her. They had decided to get married immediately after Vasudev and Devki’s wedding was consecrated. His sudden departure didn’t make sense and Mandki became increasingly concerned that something was wrong as the weeks went by without any news from Airawat.

And then everyone heard about Jarasandha’s conquest of Bateshwar. Mandki was horrified at the news. She wondered what had happened to Vasudev and Devki after Bateshwar fell into Jarasandha’s hands. The biggest surprise was that Kansa did nothing about it.
Why hasn’t he done anything to help Vasudev?
she thought.
How could Jarasandha dare to attack Bateshwar when he knows that Kansa’s sister is married to the prince of Bateshwar. And why doesn’t Kansa talk to Jarasandha about this? After all, Jarasandha’s sisters are married to him
.

Mandki started keeping a close watch on Kansa. She observed that he had systematically removed all those people from court who had been close to Ugrasena. It was done subtly and always with good reason, but it was too much of a coincidence to ignore. Gradually, the senior-most members of the court were all people that Kansa had personally handpicked. And then there were all the strange-looking people who suddenly began arriving at Madhuvan. They dressed like people of the city but they were clearly outsiders. Some of them did not even look like mortals, with their distorted faces and their misshapen bodies. The crime rate had increased in the kingdom but Kansa appeared to turn a blind eye to it all. It was as if he was either not bothered about what happened to Madhuvan or it was all being done with his consent. Mandki refused to believe that Kansa could participate in something like that. She remembered him risking his life for Devki on the Shiva hill.

But then why doesn’t he do anything?
she thought in frustration.

She continued to keep a tab on Kansa’s activities, including the people he met and the places he went to. With Devki and Airawat not being there, she had all the time in the world, and lately, it had become an obsession with Mandki to find an answer to all the strange events happening around her.

Then one day, she saw Kansa ride away from the palace. Mandki rode at a distance, careful not to let her presence be known. Kansa did not seem to be headed in any particular direction. His path kept meandering and it looked like he was simply out for a ride. Just when she was about to give up and turn back towards the city, she saw Kansa give a furtive look over his shoulder. Satisfied that he was not being followed, he took a sharp turn and rode at a gallop. Mandki followed as fast as she could. The zig-zag route continued for a while. As she took a particularly sharp bend, she realized she had lost him. She rode along the road and came to a beautiful palace built beside a lake. She recognized it as the palace Kansa had built for his sister. Her sharp eyes perceived the fresh hoof marks on the ground and Mandki realized that Kansa had entered the palace compound.

She stayed on her horse, lost in thought. And then making up her mind, she started the horse at a trot entering the palace gates. She had a feeling that the answer to all her questions lay within the walls of the palace.

Kansa sat perched on the tree as he waited for the person following him to enter the palace gates. He had been aware that he was being stalked for many days now. He had seen the same person showing up wherever he went and it was too much of a coincidence to ignore. Kansa did not believe in coincidences. But he had been unable to make out the features of the person because the stalker’s face was always covered by a cloak. He had noticed the same stalker trailing him today. To make sure that the rider was actually following him, he had taken several meandering paths. The stalker had stuck with him all through. There was no doubt now in Kansa’s mind that he was being followed. He wanted to know who this person was.

As the horse came through the gates, Kansa took a deep breath and jumped from the tree, pouncing on the rider. Both Kansa and the stalker fell to the ground with a jarring thud. In one swift move, Kansa was astride the stalker and he viciously pulled off the cloak covering his pursuer’s face.

‘Mandki!’ he gasped. ‘Why have you been following me?’ he demanded.

Mandki winced in pain. The fall had badly shaken her and as she looked into Kansa’s eyes, she felt inexplicably lost in the strange power she saw blazing there.

‘I…I wanted to know what was in the palace,’ she stammered.

Kansa looked at her quietly and she felt the cold finger of death rest on her soul as she stared into his cold eyes.

‘You have all your life to find out what is within the palace, my dear,’ he whispered menacingly.

Mandki looked at him, her face reflecting her confusion.

Kansa laughed harshly. ‘Devki has been pining for someone to talk to. Who could be better than her childhood friend to keep her company?’

Mandki stared at him, horrified at the implication of his words.

The fear she had been feeling in his presence transformed into a frenzy of terror as she saw the pisaca and the bonara approach from a distance. She screamed in terror, and then darkness engulfed her as she lost consciousness.

Mandki got up with a start. There was total darkness. She had had a terrible nightmare. She had dreamed that two of the assassins she had seen on the Shiva hill were coming to kill her and Kansa was smiling at her, even as they approached. She shivered at the memory of the pisaca’s quivering tentacles and the bonara’s razor sharp talons.

She became aware of the bed she was lying on. It didn’t feel like her own. She looked around her and as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she realized with a tremor that she was lying in a strange room. She screamed in terror in the same instant that she realized it hadn’t been a nightmare. It had all been real—Kansa’s blazing green eyes boring into her, the two assassins coming towards her and then…total darkness.

An urgent knock on her door made her scramble up from the bed. She frantically looked for a place to hide herself. The door opened and someone entered her room, holding a candle. Mandki trembled in fear hoping for a quick death. She didn’t want the assassins ravaging and torturing her.

‘Mandki!’ the face behind the candle whispered softly. Mandki knew the voice. Even as her dazed mind recalled what Kansa had said to her before she fainted, the face behind the candle became visible. Mandki gasped in relief and rushed into the arms of the person holding the candle.

Devki got Mandki up to date with all that had happened since her wedding night. She was not overtly surprised when Mandki told her about Jarasandha’s conquest of Bateshwar. She had known that would happen after Kansa had held Vasudev and her hostage. If Bateshwar hadn’t been conquered, their army would certainly have created a problem for Kansa when Vasudev failed to return to his country.