The Palace Ruins
Adityan walked swiftly along the compound wall, increasing the distance between himself and the queen’s palace. He was getting fed up with the whole lot of them, except for the princess. It looked as if Chamundeswari was like an innocent deer caught amidst a herd of predators of the worst kind.
And the noose was ever tightening as the time got closer to the coronation. He wondered what they planned to do with the pseudo prince. Why had the man been brought into the picture? They obviously had a plan and for all he knew, they were all involved in it together.
He stopped in his tracks to turn around with a smile when he heard the soft growl of greeting. Manu came racing towards him, favouring his injured paw just a little bit; to stop and place his front paws on Adityan’s shoulders, butting his head on the man’s chin.
Laughing, Adityan hugged the tiger, running a hand down his throat gently, delighted when he heard Manu’s deep throated purrs. “I see that you are well, my friend.” Lifting the tiger’s right paw that was on his left shoulder, he gently rubbed over the cloth bandage. “I do not think it hurts all that much. You were racing just now.” He laughed as he reached for the other paw and placed them both on the ground. “You are heavy, Manu.”
Manu butted his head against Adityan’s leg, before rubbing his sides against both his legs in turn, making the man laugh all the more. “Take care, Manu. I might fall down,” he said. Not that Manu heeded his words, continuing to rub himself against Adityan’s legs.
“What is happening here? Should I be feeling jealous?” asked Chamundeswari, walking forward to stand next to them. She had followed Manu at a fast walk, knowing fully well that her tiger would lead her to the man she loved. She felt her heart overflowing with love when she saw the two of them together. It looked like Manu had accepted Adityan even before she had done so.
Adityan lifted his head to look at the princess. Her breasts were heaving as she took deep breaths, having walked at a fast pace following Manu. It was with an effort that he lifted his gaze up to meet her golden one. “I am glad Manu helped you escape from the dining hall,” he said, giving her a broad smile.
“Oh yes! And thank you for sending him to me. But wait, tell me something, Aditya! You must know all the members of the Chozha royal family. Why do I get the feeling that this Prince Vijayendra Chozhan is as false as they come? As far as I know—from what I have heard people say—the Chozha prince is a truly great warrior; extremely wise and treats all citizens with respect. Even the women think highly of him. Did you notice something today? The way that rogue was eyeing not just me, but the queen as well?” She paused, her eyes spitting fire as she looked up at Adityan’s face. “And another thing: he appears a little too fond of liquor.”
Thrilled to the hear her praise of the real Chozha prince which was himself; as well as amazed by her intelligence at realising that the man who was visiting Kongunadu just now seemed a fake, Adityan gave her an appreciative smile. “Is there somewhere private where we can talk without being interrupted?” he asked her when he noticed a couple of guards walking in their direction.
“Yes! We will go to the palace ruins. No one will come there.” She turned direction to walk left, snapping her fingers at Manu to follow her.
“Palace ruins? I do not understand.”
“You were probably too young to have heard the news of what happened here thirteen years ago. Come along with me and I will tell you all about it. It is not very far from here.” They walked for a few minutes before they came across a small gate set in the middle of the compound wall surrounding Naganandini’s palace. Pulling the iron bolt free, the princess stepped inside, followed by a silent Adityan and Manu.
Adityan’s gaze went wide when he saw the blackened area which was home to the ruins of some building. The place was uneven, with a lot of blackened objects and mostly broken-down walls, giving it the appearance of an abandoned town. There were not even rats running around, which was surprising considering the fact that the rodents tended to take over every area where people did not live for even a day or two. But then, there was no food available and that could be the reason for their absence. There were a couple of trees that seemed to have survived what must have been a terrible fire, their gnarled roots half risen from the soil. Everything had a coat of black ash, he realised. That is what it was, ash; which is the only thing that is left over from a fire. “What is this place?” he asked, his voice a shocked whisper.
“This used to be my mother, Queen Srivalli’s, palace,” said Chamundeswari, her voice held together with a great effort. Every time she visited the ruins, she tended to break down in tears. And visit the place she did, not keen to forget the way her parents had died. NO, not died. They had been murdered.
“I was four years old when my life took a major turn for the worse…”
Azhagapuri, 1013 CE
Little Chamundeswari jumped down from the horse cart, running towards her home. “Amma! Amma! Where are you?” she called out loudly in her childish voice as she ran across the ground, not realising that the palace that had been her home; the same one from which she had left to go hunting with Vishnurayan and Anagha only two days ago; was not there anymore.
She stopped in her tracks, staring at the smoking area that had turned black. Where was the palace? Her home? The princess rubbed her eyes with her little hands and looked again. But the scene did not change. There was smoke coming from different areas while immense heat wafted off the burnt down ruins.
Turning her shocked and confused gaze to Vishnurayan, she asked, “Where is Amma, Vishnu? What happened to the palace?”
Tears ran down the loyal servant’s cheeks as he looked down at the little girl. How was he going to explain to her that she had no place to call home anymore? Nor did she have parents?
Anagha stepped down from the cart as well, placing the tiger cub in the basket and closing it with a lid. She was crying silently. What was going to happen to the princess? Or even the people of Kongunadu, with both the just king and the most compassionate queen gone? Everyone was aware of how arrogant the king’s second wife, Queen Naganandini, was. As for her brother, the man was the biggest villain one could have the misfortune to come across. One day, at the market place, Anagha had had the shock of her life when she saw Marthanda Bhupathi slapping a shopkeeper repeatedly even as he shouted at him at the top of his voice. And why was that? Because the man had run out of liquor in his shop.
Just now, the maidservant shuddered as she wondered what was going to happen to the little princess. Who was going to take care of her? How was she going to remain safe?
Vishnurayan bent down to lift Chamundeswari in his arms, pressing her face into the crook of his shoulder, keen to stop her from being traumatised by the horrible sight in front of them. He, a fully grown-up man, was on the verge of becoming sick on seeing the still smoking and broken-down structure which used to be the opulent residence of the royal queen. Not even for a minute did the loyal servant imagine that it had been an accident.
After all, had he not heard Naganandini and Marthanda Bhupathi discussing their plan only three days ago? Hearing the word ‘calf’, he had taken Queen Srivalli’s permission to keep Princess Chamundeswari safe. But it looked like it had not been only the child’s life that had been in danger, but her parents’ lives as well.
Chamundeswari moved away from Vishnurayan, turning her head to look at the burned down palace. “Where is Amma?” she asked, her small hand opened like a flower in bloom when she questioned the servant.
“Both your Amma and Appa have gone to Siva Perumaan, my child!” Vishnurayan wanted to scream and beat his chest in agony. But all he could do was croak the words at the little princess, his throat choking with grief.
“When will they come back?” The princess imagined that her parents had gone on a trip, just as she had gone away with Vishnurayan and his wife Anagha.
What was he to tell her? A small child? How could he explain death to Princess Chamundeswari? Let alone the fact that the king and queen had been murdered; burnt alive in their own home.
He shook his head defeatedly, unable to stop crying. Placing Chamundeswari down, he wiped his face with the towel from around his waist. “They will not be back, my princess. They have gone to God.”
“Why?” asked the little girl, unable to understand. Her innocent expression tore at Vishnurayan’s heart.
“That is because God wanted them to be with him.”
“Oh!” The little mouth opened in surprise. “But what if I want them to be with me?”
“You are a brave little princess, who will grow up to become the courageous queen of Kongunadu.” I will ensure it happens even if I die in the process, swore Vishnurayan to himself. “But God is not so brave. He wanted Amma and Appa to take care of him. That is why they have gone to him.”
“Is God a little baby? Smaller than me?” asked the princess.
Having no reply to that, Vishnurayan went down on his knees, throwing his arms around her and howling his heart out.
Anagha placed her hand on her husband’s shoulder, silent tears pouring down her cheeks as she looked at the orphaned princess. What were they going to do?
But Chamundeswari had more questions. “What happened to the palace?”
“It was burned by a fire, princess.” Seeing the state her husband was in, Anagha replied in his stead.
“OH!” This time the princess’s mouth fell open even as her eyes went wide as she turned to look at the blackened area with the walls broken down to the very foundation in most places. “A fire?”
“Yes.”
“Where will I live now? Will you take me to your house, Vishnu?” asked the princess pathetically, tears forming in her eyes.
Just as Vishnurayan wondered how to respond to the princess, Senapati Pandiyan arrived there with a number of guards. “Princess Chamundeswari, I am here to take you to the palace.”
Chamundeswari lifted her head to stare up at the tall man, instinctively moving closer to Vishnurayan as she realised that she neither liked Pandiyan nor the stern expression on his face. “I will not go with you,” she said in a clear, bell like tone.
“If you do not go with me, I will…”
Vishnurayan stood up to bring both his hands together in a pleading gesture. “My Lord! Please forgive me. But the princess is suffering from a deep trauma, having not only lost both her parents, but her home as well. Allow me to bring her over to the palace.”
Pandiyan tilted back his head to look down his nose at the servant, or at least tried to. But the other man was taller than the Senapati who was barely a couple of inches short of seven feet. What irritated him more than everything was the fact that he was not even aware of the servant’s name. “And who are you?” he demanded to know.
“My name is Vishnurayan, My Lord! I am a palace servant.”
“With whose permission did you take the princess out of the fortress? Do you know you can be hung for the crime?”
Vishnurayan bit his lip and stood his ground. “I am not guilty of any crime, My Lord! It was Queen Srivalli who suggested that I take the princess out hunting in the forest. And my wife here accompanied us.”
“Hunting? Are you mad? What does a little girl know about hunting?”
“I know how to shoot an arrow,” piped in a little voice as the princess spoke up to the man who was shouting at Vishnurayan. And Chamundeswari, for all that she was young, did not like it one little bit.
“Do you?” Pandiyan glared down at the princess. This was the calf that should have perished along with the king and queen. Marthanda Bhupathi was truly an idiot. While his sister was worse. If it had been left to him, the Senapati would have dealt with the situation in a much better manner. What were they going to do with this princess who was still alive? It would be sheer stupidity to try to kill her now. As it is, the people were suspecting the brother-sister duo with the commander-in-chief of the army not far behind on the list of suspects.
“Yes! And that is why Amma told Vishnu to take me hunting to the Pachamalai Forest.”
“But your Amma is not there anymore. She…”
“I know. My Amma and Appa have both gone to Siva Perumaan,” said the princess, turning her head to look at Vishnurayan as if to confirm that she was right. That her chin trembled briefly did not stop the little girl from fixing her firm gaze on the man who was trying to intimidate her.
Pandiyan’s jaw dropped in amazement as he stared at the courageous little girl. For a moment, he could not help admiring her despite what he was—a traitor of the royal family. “Now you will be living in the main palace with Queen Naganandini.”
“I do not want to live with Chinnamma. I want to live with Vishnu and Anagha.”
“I am afraid that will not be possible. You are the princess of Kongunadu and they are servants. You cannot live with them in their hut.”
“But… but…” Her lips trembling, Chamundeswari’s face crumpled and she began to cry loudly, as she suddenly realised that she had no family left, except for her stepmother whom her own mother, Srivalli, had deeply disliked.
Vishnurayan went down on his knees once again. “It is alright, my princess. Chinnamma will take care of you. She will love you like her own daughter.” He knew for a fact that he was making false promises; promises that he knew only too well that Naganandini would never live up to. But what else could he do under the circumstances? If only he had known what had happened before they returned to Azhagapuri, he might have taken the princess and gone underground. But it was too late for that now. “Come now, let us go to the palace.”
Pandiyan glared at both the princess and Vishnurayan as if it was all their fault before ordering, “Take the princess to the main palace, right now.”
Left with no choice, Vishnurayan and Anagha followed the commander-in-chief’s order; carrying both the princess and the little tiger cub to Queen Naganandini’s palace.
