At a short distance from the road on which the Neelkanth’s caravan travelled, a small band
of about forty men trudged silently along the Beas. One in two men of the platoon carried a
small coracle on his head. It was typical of this region. The locals made small and light boats
made of bamboo, cane and rope, portable enough to be carried by a single man on his head.
Each boat could ferry two people with relative safety and speed. At the head of the platoon
was a young man with a proud battle scar adorning his face, his head crowned with a brown
turban. A little ahead of him walked a hooded figure. With his head bowed, his eyes scrunched,
he took slow methodical steps, his mind lost in unfathomable thoughts. His breathing was hard.
He brought his hand up languidly to rub his masked forehead. There was a leather bracelet on
his right wrist with the serpent Aum symbol embroidered on it.
‘Vishwadyumna,’ said the hooded figure. ‘We will enter the river from here. Whenever we
come close to populated areas, we will move away from the river to avoid detection. We have
to reach Karachapa within two months.’
‘Karachapa, my Lord?’ asked Vishwadyumna surprised. ‘I was under the impression that we
were to have a secret audience with the Queen outside Lothal.’
‘No,’ answered the hooded figure. We will meet her outside Karachapa.’
‘Yes, my Lord,’ answered Vishwadyumna, as he looked back in the direction of the road to
Kotdwaar. He knew that his Lord would have dearly liked to make one more attempt to kidnap
the princess. He also knew that it was foolhardy to endeavour to do so considering the strength
of the force accompanying the caravan. In any case, they were behind schedule for their main
mission. They had to meet the Queen urgently.
Turning towards one of his soldiers, Vishwadyumna ordered, ‘Sriktaa, place your coracle in
the river and give me your oar. I will row the Lord through this part of the journey’
Sriktaa immediately did as instructed. Vishwadyumna and the hooded figure were the first of
the platoon to enter the river. Vishwadyumna had already started rowing as his men started
placing their boats into the waters. At a distance further down the river, the hooded figure saw
two women lounging carelessly on a boat. One of the women was sloppily splashing water
from the side of the boat on to her friend who was making a hopeless attempt to avoid getting
wet. Their childish game caused their boat to sway dangerously from side to side. The hooded
figure saw that the women had not detected a crocodile that had entered the river from the
opposite bank. Having spied what must have looked like an appetising meal, the crocodile was
swimming swiftly towards the women’s boat.
‘Look behind you!’ shouted the hooded figure to the women, as he motioned to
Vishwadyumna to row rapidly in their direction.
The women could not hear him from the distance. What they did see, however, was two
men were rowing towards them. They could see one of them was almost a giant covered from
head to toe in a strange robe, his face covered with a mask. This man was making frantic
gestures. Behind the duo were a large number of soldiers swiftly pushing their boats on to the
river. That was all the warning the women needed. Thinking that the men were coming towards
them with evil intent, the women put all their effort behind the oar and started hastily rowing
away from the hooded figure’s boat. Into the path of the crocodile.
‘No!’ shouted the hooded figure.
He grabbed the oar from Vishwadyumna, using his powerful arms to row rapidly. He was
shortening the distance between them and the women. But not fast enough. The crocodile
singke
(singke)
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