With the first light of the day, monarchy was formally re-established in Chandranagar and King Chandravarman had been crowned once again. He professed eternal gratefulness and friendship towards King Bhumimitra, who, in turn, expressed his satisfaction that the untoward elements of the society had been crushed for good and that the restoration of the glorious kingdom of Chandranagar would serve as a warning to the upstart republicans in all corners of the world that their unnatural, selfish motives would never be fulfilled. There would always be brave kings and warriors in the world, destined by the gods and the nature, to maintain order and justness in the world. King Chandravarman was a shining of example of the tribe. The republicans couldn’t have chosen a more difficult enemy to strike at. All was well now. The anarchists were now annihilated and the stable world order would not be challenged again.

The words were phony, Bhumimitra knew that. As traditional rivals, Chandranagar and Raigarh professing eternal friendship was a hypocrisy only the world of politics could entertain and look the other way as it was being professed. Besides, the world order was never stable. In this case, even if the republican revolutionaries had held power only for a couple of weeks, they had managed to challenge a world order that had never been challenged before. In the past, the claimants to a throne may have fought endlessly over who would be a king, but nobody had ever questioned the need for a king. That psychological wall was broken now. Bhumimitra did not even want to think of all other jealousies, rivalries and claims the temporary fall of King Chandravarman had stroked. The political, administrative and military mess that this incident had created was unparalleled in his experience. But he had to think of all that. Cleaning up this mess required doing two things at the same time. One, an army must march forward and secure the eastern Frontiers of both Chandranagar and Raigargh, because the neighboring kingdoms were keen to grab a piece of pie given the weakness of Chandranagar in the face of the republican challenge. Two, King Chandravarman must stay in his capital to consolidate his hold on his kingdom once again. An unstable Chandranagar wasn’t good news for Raigarh and Bhumimitra was resolved to see through the complete restoration of his traditional rival’s sovereignty. So, he would march to the border at the head of the combined armies of the two kingdoms, while King Chandravarman would attend to the affairs at home.

Through the ceremony no mention was made of the “missing” princess. The idea of Chandrika’s betrothal to Bhumimitra, which had been proposed by Chandravarman while asking for Bhumimitra’s help in crushing the republicans, was not made public. Chandravarman was mad enough at her to want to behead her with the other republicans charged with treason. But Bhumimitra had managed to talk him out of it. Her presence in Chandranagar could spell trouble though. So, it was decided that she would go with Bhumimitra as a prisoner of war. And attempts would be made to turn her around and see if she would renounce her republicanism. Then the intended betrothal could still proceed.

—

The winter was just setting in, and riding felt pleasant. Bhumimitra hadn’t seen Chandrika since placing her under house arrest on that fateful evening. But her defiant, shining face as she sang “We still fought, and we will still fight” was invading his thoughts more often than he would have liked. The march was going to be exhausting. And he should be focused on planning the campaign ahead, interpreting the information messengers were bringing and strategizing the position of his army. Instead he was repeatedly being assaulted by the insane desire of crushing that defiant woman. Not in a war. But in an embrace. Could he make her see the light? Could she leave behind her revolutionary madness and wed him like she was supposed to?  She was a few meters behind him, being driven in a closed chariot. And he was maddeningly aware of her presence, even though he couldn’t see her.

A message was quietly brought up to him.

“Princess Chandrika requests your permission to ride for a while, Maharaj. She says she could use some fresh air.”

He should have refused. She was a prisoner whom he needed to bring to her senses. But before the logic of refusal formed in his head, he found himself saying, “Get her a mare from my stable and tell her that she is invited to ride beside me.”

The ministers and commanders riding around him looked at each other. Some smirked and others shook their heads. A few minutes later, the crowd around him parted to let her ride up to him.

“I thank you for the permission to ride and am honored to ride with you, Maharaj,” she said.

He cast a quick sideways glance at her and then immediately looked ahead. She was wearing green today. She was still bewitchingly beautiful and even that quick glance had made him draw a sharp breath. That she spoke with such calm and confidence only served to make his desires even more potent. What a great queen she would make. And what satisfaction it would bring to subdue her, in bed!

“Princess Chandrika. You need not be in a position where you need a permission to ride. You need not be a prisoner.”

“Are you converting to the republican cause, Maharaj?”

He intended to treat her with an angry glare, but when he turned towards her, he ended up responding to her mischievous smile with a somber one of his own.

“Do I have to remind you that the republican cause is treason? I wish you would stop harboring it.”

“That is not going to happen. You should just mete out the punishment due to a traitor to me and be done with it.”

“That is not going to happen.”

“Why?”

“I am not going to hand over a martyr on a plate to the republicans, around whom they can rally.”

“Is that what you told my father to convince him out of punishing me?”

“Yes.”

When he turned to her he found her smiling again. Much to his gratification, it seemed to be an appreciative smile.

“I am still a republican,” she said, “And I still prefer to be addressed as Devi Chandrika, and not Princess.”

That spoiled his mood. He shot her dagger eyes and spurred his horse to go faster, prompting everyone, including Chandrika, to follow suit.

—

To be continued