Meanwhile, the army of Trigarta was already prepared.
Durjaya’s abduction was not merely an act of personal desire.
It was a signal for war.
Even as he carried Sulochana and Kumudvati away, the forces of Trigarta moved in two directions.
One division marched against Trigangeya.
Another advanced to surround Panchanada.
The war banners of Trigarta were decorated with black serpent designs.
Though Chaturaka’s magic had weakened, his plan still lived.
By humiliating the heirs of two kingdoms and forcing a marriage upon them, Trigarta intended to draw both realms into its political net.
But an unexpected sight awaited the invading army on the battlefield.
The Alchemy-Perfected Warriors.
At first, the soldiers of Trigarta saw them only as shadows.
Then as human shapes taller than trees.
Then the earth began to tremble.
One by one, they entered the battlefield—each nearly twenty feet tall, with shoulders that seemed capable of carrying mountains.
The clubs in their hands were no ordinary weapons.
They were massive arms forged from adamantine metal, suited to the strength of their bodies.
When they stepped forward, horses recoiled.
The sound of their breathing alone filled the hearts of soldiers with fear.
The warriors created by Gunasagara did not fight in anger.
They fought under discipline.
One stopped the enemy chariot division.
Another stood before the elephants and halted their charge.
Another tore down a black war banner.
The rest formed a living shield around the armies of Panchanada and Trigangeya.
The forces of Trigarta began to be driven back.
War spread like fire along the borders.
But the true centre of the conflict still lay within Trigarta itself.
---
That night, the wedding pavilion in the capital of Trigarta was decorated with terrifying splendour.
The sounds of war resounded outside.
Within, lamps, serpent banners, black flowers, and blood-red cloth filled the pavilion.
It was not prepared for an auspicious wedding.
It was a stage of coercion built for possession.
Durjaya had removed his armour and dressed as a groom.
Pride filled his eyes.
News that his forces were being defeated had not yet fully reached him.
Or perhaps it had, and he simply did not care.
“Tonight, the honour of two kingdoms will fall into my hands,” he told the priests.
On one side of the pavilion stood Kumudvati, bound.
There was no fear upon her face.
Only burning anger.
On the other side lay Sulochana, not yet fully conscious.
The antidote was working.
The remaining effect of Chaturika’s herb still left her body weak.
She remained in feminine form.
Yet now and then, the line of Sulochanudu’s will flashed upon her face.
Durjaya looked at them both and laughed.
“Kumudvati, princess of Panchanada. Sulochana, the hidden beauty of Trigangeya. Tonight, both of you will stand as queens of Durjaya.”
Kumudvati looked directly at him.
“Marriage is not the binding of hands. It is the consent of hearts. Your pavilion is nothing more than a prison.”
Durjaya approached in anger.
“Consent? Those who conquer kingdoms need not ask for consent.”
At those words, Sulochana’s eyes moved.
Slowly, she regained consciousness.
First, she saw the lamps of the pavilion.
Then the serpent banners.
Then Kumudvati in bonds.
Finally, Durjaya.
A soft but dangerous smile appeared upon her lips.
“Durjaya,” she said weakly, “your name means unconquerable. But your mind reveals only weakness.”
Durjaya turned towards her in surprise.
“You have awakened, Sulochana? Good. A bride should be conscious for her wedding.”
Sulochana looked into his eyes.
“Time is deciding whose bride I am.
“Not you.”
Durjaya’s face hardened.
“Priests! Begin the mantras!”
The sacred fire was lit in the pavilion.
Outside, the drums of war sounded closer.
Kumudvati looked towards Sulochana.
Sulochana looked towards Kumudvati.
Between their gazes arose a vow stronger than words.
And there the story stopped—
Outside, the footsteps of the Alchemy-Perfected Warriors shook the earth.
Inside, Durjaya’s forced marriage rites were about to begin.
Sulochana’s true form had not yet awakened.
But in her eyes burned the first fire before dawn.
---
Grandmother stopped the story there.
The needles in our hands had long since ceased moving.
Upon her cloth, she had now embroidered a pond, a fallen flower beside it, a black pavilion in the distance, and the marks of enormous footsteps outside.
“Grandmother!” my eldest sister asked anxiously. “You said Sulochana would become Sulochanudu after bathing. But Durjaya carried her away. What will happen now?”
Grandmother smiled slowly.
“Who said the hour of the vow must be completed only in water? Sometimes, when the pond is far away, a person must search for the water within.”
My younger sister asked,
“Will the Alchemy-Perfected Warriors rescue them?”
“The warriors can break the outer bonds. But only Sulochana’s will can break the bond within.”
I asked softly,
“Then will the wedding be stopped?”
Grandmother set aside the black thread and passed a red one through the needle.
“If it were not stopped, there would be no story, child. But to learn how it is stopped, you must watch the next pattern.”
End of Part Six (To Be Continued)
Discussion (0)