Shiva looked straight into Parshuram’s eyes, his heart heavy. He could feel the Brahmin’s intense pain. He knew that Lord Ram would have probably acted as the Vasudevs had. The great Suryavanshi would have wanted the criminals to be punished but only after a fair trial. However, he also knew that if anyone had dared to do this to his own family, he would have burnt down their entire world. ‘No. You didn’t do anything wrong. What you did was in accordance with justice.’

Parshuram sighed as a dam burst.

What I did was just.

Shiva held Parshuram’s shoulder. Parshuram covered his eyes with his hand, sniffing. At long last he shook his head slightly and looked up. ‘The Branga king sent bands of Kshatriyas to arrest me. To apparently bring me to justice for annihilating his most important vassals. Twenty–one times they sent brigades to catch me. And twenty–one times I beat them. Finally they stopped.’

‘But how did you fight the Brangas alone?’ asked Veerbhadra.

‘I wasn’t alone. Some angels knew of the injustice I had suffered. They brought me to this haven, introduced me to the few unfortunate, ostracised brigands who lived here. I could build my own army. They gave me medicines so that I could survive despite the unclean waters here and food till I had established my people in the forests. They gave me weapons to fight the Brangas. And all this without any expectations from me. The battles with Brangaridai were also brought to an end because they finally threatened the Branga king. And King Chandraketu could not refuse them. They are the best people amongst us all. Angels who fight for the oppressed.’

Shiva frowned. ‘Who?’

‘The Nagas,’ replied Parshuram.

‘What?!’

‘Yes, My Lord. That is why you are looking for them, right? If you want to find Evil, you must make the Good your ally, right?’

‘What are you talking about?’

‘They never kill innocents. They fight for justice, despite the injustices they endure. They help the oppressed whenever and wherever they can. They truly are the best amongst us all.’

Shiva stared hard at Parshuram, not saying a word. Completely staggered.

‘You are looking for their secret, aren’t you?’ asked Parshuram.

‘What secret?’

‘I don’t know. But I have heard that the secret of the Nagas has a deep connection to Evil. Isn’t that why you are searching for them?’

Shiva didn’t answer. He was looking into the horizon, deep in thought.

It had been two weeks since the battle with the liger’s pride. All the injured soldiers were well on the path to recovery. But Ganesh’s wounded leg had still not completely healed.

Sati had been supervising the building of some defences at the Icchawar village perimeter as a precaution against future animal attacks. She returned to the camp to see Kali changing the dressing on Ganesh’s wound.

Both Kali and Ganesh, perhaps encouraged by Sati’s complete acceptance of their appearance, had not worn their masks for the last two weeks. The Chandravanshi soldiers, however, still averted their eyes in dread when they saw them.

Kali had just finished applying the neem bandage. She patted Ganesh on his head and rose to walk towards the fire at one corner of the clearing. Sati saw the gesture and smiled. She turned to instruct Kaavas to carry on with his work and walked up to Kali.

‘How is his wound?’

‘It’ll take another week, didi. The healing process has slowed down since last week.’

Sati grimaced, unhappy. ‘The poor child lost a lot of blood and flesh.’

‘Don’t worry,’ said Kali. ‘He is very strong. He will recover.’

Sati smiled. Kali threw the bandage into the fire. The paste on the bandage, having drawn out much of the infection, burned a deep blue.

Sati looked up at Kali, took a deep breath and asked what had been troubling her since they had met. ‘Why?’

Kali frowned.

‘You are good people. I’ve seen the way you treat Ganesh and your men. You are tough, but fair. Then why did you do all those terrible things?’

Kali held her breath. She looked up at the sky and shook her head. ‘Think again, didi. We have not done anything wrong.’

‘Kali, you and Ganesh may not have personally done anything wrong. But your people committed grave crimes. They killed innocents.’

‘My people work according to my orders, didi. If you want to blame them, then you cannot absolve me. Think once again. No innocents were killed in our attacks.’

‘I’m sorry Kali, but that is not true. You attacked non-combatants. I have been thinking for some time. I agree that the Nagas are treated unfairly. The way Meluha treats Naga babies is unjust. But that doesn’t mean every Meluhan, even if he personally hasn’t done anything to hurt you, is your enemy.’

‘Didi, you think we would attack people just because they were a part of a system which humiliated and wounded us? That is wrong. We never attacked anyone who hasn’t directly harmed us.’

‘You did. Your people attacked temples. They attacked innocents. They killed vulnerable Brahmins.’

‘No. In every attack, we would let all the people except the temple Brahmins leave. Everyone. No innocents were killed. Ever.’

‘But you did kill temple Brahmins. They’re not warriors. They’re innocent.’

‘I disagree.’

‘Why?’

‘Because they directly hurt our people.’

‘What? How? What wrong did the temple Brahmins do to you?’

‘I’ll tell you.’

Shiva’s caravan of ships was anchored at Vaishali, a pretty city on the Ganga river and an immediate neighbour of Branga. It had been three weeks since Shiva had allied with Parshuram. Vaishali had a massive Vishnu temple dedicated to the legendary fish god, Lord Matsya. Shiva was deeply disturbed by what Parshuram had said about the Nagas. He wanted to speak with a Vasudev, one who was other than the ostracised Vasudev Brahmin-Kshatriya on board. Time and space had dimmed his anger towards the tribe.

The temple was very close to the city’s harbour. A massive crowd, including the King, had been waiting to receive him, but Shiva had requested that he be allowed to meet them later. He headed straight for the Matsya temple. It was a little taller than seventy metres, comfortably above the minimum height needed for the Vasudevs to transmit radio waves.

The temple was on the banks of the Ganga. Usually temples would have had most of the space outside dedicated to landscaped gardens or grand enclosures. This temple was different. The land outside was dominated by intricate water bodies. Water from the Ganga had been routed into a system of elaborate canals around the main temple. And these canals made some of the most ethereal designs that Shiva had ever seen. It formed a map of ancient India at a time when sea-levels were a lot lower. It told the story of Lord Manu and how he had led his band of followers out of his devastated homeland, the Sangamtamil. Despite his urgency to meet the Vasudevs, Shiva held back, enthralled by the breathtaking designs. At long last, he tore his eyes away and walked up the steps to the main temple. Crowds hung outside, waiting quietly in accordance with their Neelkanth’s request.

Shiva looked at the sanctum sanctorum at the far corner of the temple. It was far bigger than in any other temple he had seen so far. Probably to accommodate the enormous statue of its reigning God. On a raised platform lay Lord Matsya, a giant fish, who had helped bring Manu and his band of refugees from Sangamtamil to safety. Manu, the founder of the Vedic civilisation, had made it clear in his guidelines to his descendants that Lord Matsya must always be respected and worshipped as the first Lord Vishnu. If any of them were alive, it was due to the benefaction of the great Lord Matsya.