The Cloud Of the Princess Part - 1 Chapter 14

Sembaruhi had to make a decision. It was pitch dark and her heart was beating faster than ever. ‘Should I stay here, and find out what this mysterious man is up to at this time of the night? Or should I go back and sleep with Imayaazh and others as before? This man was not the Poosari for sure. The Poosari had a hunch that was significantly observable. Moreover there was no way by which the Poosari could have climbed up the rock where this man was sitting now. ‘ .

She thought for a second without being able to decide on her next action.

‘Fortunately the man is not facing me and I could hide in these bushes if he turns back.

But from what the Poosari had said, there was nobody except him in this temple. So who would this man be? Does he know the Poosari? Does the Poosari know him? Are they involved in something together? But why would he play a flute at mid night. The music was not captivating either.

More than anything else, Sembaruthi was beginning to get afraid of the wild animals that she could hear moving beneath the bushes. She knew she could not control herself from shouting if some animal pounced upon her from beneath the bushes. And if that happened, this man on the rock will surely turn and look at her.
'I need to find out who this man is. He is facing the opposite side and i have to make him turn to my side. But i cannot reveal myself to him. That would be too dangerous. So I cannot just make a loud noise and make him turn. I have to do something’. She thought for a second or two. She bent down and made sure the bushes hid her completely. She looked around to find something. She picked up a stone which fit her palms and started to aim at something. After a second, she aimed at a distance and was ready to throw the stone with full force. Her idea was to hit the bark of a tree that was at a distance. The sound of the collision should make this mysterious man turn to his right and look at the tree. She knew she would not be able to fully see his face even then. But at least she should get a glimpse of how he looked like. And she was certainly confident that she could find out from seeing his eyes if he was the one whom she saw in Madiyamalai.

Though she was sure she will not get caught by throwing the stone, she was shivering from fear. Her hands had already become wet with the moisture. 'What if he does not hear the sound of the collision? He is playing the flute and there is every chance he might not hear it. That would be asking myself for danger' she thought. She decided to wait for the music to stop.

The pace of the tune suddenly accelerated. It was only for a few seconds. Sembaruthi felt her head swirling. The tune again slowed in pace. She had never heard a tune like this before. It was neither pleasant nor cacophonous . It gave a peculiar feeling that one normally gets when a sharp object runs over a metal block.

Sembaruthi was still waiting in the bush for the music to stop. Every second passed like a year. Drops of sweat began to bubble out of her temples. Her nervous system was now as tight as a vibrating sting with both ends fixed and could break down anytime.

The music stopped.

She knew she had to do it now.
She took aim once again, gathered all the force into her shoulders and threw the stone towards the bark of the tree.

It was a totally unexpected sound.
A man's cry in pain broke her eardrums.
Sembaruthi looked towards the tree in terror.
She was profusely sweating now.
She could not see anybody.
The cry of the man stopped as if the man had forced his own hands over his mouth to stop the noise.
After a second she turned swiftly towards the rock where the mysterious man with the flute was sitting.
She found empty space.
She was eaten up by fear.
'Who did the stone hit? Is there someone who is watching me in the dark? Are there more people around me in this deserted place? Where is this man who was sitting over the rock? Has he seen me? Is he moving towards me? Or has he jumped and run away to the other side?'
She started to shiver. Her eyes opened up to look deeper into the dark.
She decided it would be fatal to stay back in this place anymore. She had to run for her life and reach the Mandabam where the girls were sleeping. Without hesitation, she fell on her knees and crawled inside the bushes towards the Mandabam. She suddenly realized in fear that the sound she was making as she was crawling inside the bushes was exactly what she had heard a few minutes back and what she had assumed to be those that some wild animals were making. 'There is every possibility that there were men inside the bushes watching that mysterious man with the flute. But how many? And how many of them knew that I am hiding here?' The thought made her move faster inside the thorny bushes.

After a minute, she was inside the Mandabam. She made sure she locked the door as tightly as possible. Everybody was in deep sleep. The only torch that was burning on the top was throwing long shadows of her onto the walls. The atmosphere was as silent as death. She considered if she should wake the girls up. She decided against it. 'There is still a chance that nobody would have seen me. If that is the case, then waking up the girls would just be creating more problems. But in any case, let me be doubly alert. If in case something happens, let me shout and wake the girls up. I cannot sleep anymore tonight. Let me keep a watch on the window. Hope nothing happens' she tried to encourage herself.

Her heart beat had not slowed down yet. She did not lie down but sat on the floor below the torch carefully looking out of the window. She could only see the moon in the skies. The place outside was looking as if nothing had happened at all. She took the small knife she had and the very sight of it gave her some relaxation. It took half a minute or so before which she became normal. She began to think. A thousand questions hit her on the face.

‘Is this all a co-incidence? Or has someone been following me right from the beginning of the journey from Ponvilayur? No. It can’t be the case. The men in the dark would have still been there even if i had not gone. I was certainly not what they were looking for. It was the man with the flute whom they were looking for. Did I make a mistake by throwing the stone? May be the mysterious man was expecting somebody to come and may be they would have discussed something tonight. Did I spoil somebody’s plan? Should I have waited some more time and heard what they would have discussed? Does this somehow relate to what my husband told me? Nothing is clear except that I did a stupid thing by throwing the stone. What if somebody had seen me? Have I not put only myself but all these girls into deep trouble now? Was the Poosari hiding somewhere in the dark? Or … or…. Could it ever be like this? Was it the Poosari whom I hit with the stone? But if there was something important that the Poosari knew would happen here tonight, why did he allow us to stay here in the first place? The Poosari did not sound even a bit tensed when he spoke with us. No it can’t be the Poosari. The cry in pain was that of a young man. It was not the Poosari for sure. It was not the Poosari for sure. It was not the Poosari… It was not’

Sembaruthi drifted slowly into sleep without finding an answer to most of her questions.

The Cloud of the Princess Part - 1 Chapter 13

Sembaruthi, Imayaazh and three other maids sat in a circle near the sannidhi of Durga after worshiping the Goddess and coming round the temple thrice. The Poosari was not found in their vicinity. The Sevagars were standing as a group at the corner of the temple with their hands tied and they were awaiting orders from Sembaruthi to either withdraw to sleep after the long day that had tired them out or to carry out any other errand that still might remain.

The Sevagars normally had a tough life to live especially when they were asked to wait by their masters. The masters would normally gather around and discuss about the local politics of their villages or about profit and loss in their business or about the threatening war that could break out any moment. And when they discussed such important things, they got irritated even if they were disturbed by the slightest sound that a Sevagan standing at the corner made. And once they get irritated, the punishment that they gave the sevagars could be as harsh as one could imagine. So the sevagars would be very careful in such situations. Moreover they were not supposed to overhear what their masters speak. Though most of the talk would be unintelligible to them, they were not supposed to even hear a word of them and if it was found that they had heard something and leaked that outside, they could not even dream of living a day further. This was really a tough part. All the sevagars by natural instincts were completely loyal to their masters. But the problem was when you don’t speak in a group, you tend to listen. And more the mind tries not to listen to something, more it listens to it. The problem with all the masters was that they never cared to send the sevagars out once they get involved in a discussion. And the sevagars never left the place without being instructed to. So to tackle the situation, normally when the masters start to speak, each Sevagan would start to dream of something or someone. In most cases it was his lady love. Most of the sevagars were in their prime youth as the job demanded tremendous physical strength and prime youth is the time when the shrunk flowers of love start to blossom in the heart. Moreover as they had to be away from their dear ones for months, their thoughts in these situations naturally got filled with their lover’s beautiful face, those charming eyes, that curvy mouth, the sweet voice and what not. And that cloud of innocence mixed with purity, ruggedness and love would make them forget all that was happening in front of them. It would not be entirely wrong to say that they would not realize even if their master’s head was cut into pieces right in front of them and a part of it rolled down their legs. They would be lost in the wonderful land called dreams away from all the brutal realities of life and the only thing that would make them come out it was the loud clapping of the hands of their masters followed by the harsh sound ‘Sevaga’

The Sevagars who were waiting at the corner of the Durga temple did not get a chance to jump into dreams. Sembaruthi called the chief Sevagar to where she was sitting along with others and he came there running and bowed.

“Sevaga! I understand all of you must be very tired. But none of us have had our food yet. The Poosari said that he has food sufficient for the five of us. He has gone to his hut at the back of the temple to bring it for us. We shall happily eat that and sleep here tonight. But all six of you are very tired and won’t be able to carry the Pallakku tomorrow if you don’t eat and sleep properly tonight. The Poosari says that you need to go to the next village on the east to find food. It seems the village is a bit far from here but we cannot do anything else now. I want all of you to go and come back here before sun rise tomorrow morning. Don’t involve in fights with the drunken people on the streets. We can’t waste any time on that and shall have to start from here as early as possible.”

The Chief Sevagan seemed not very convinced about the idea. He hesitated for a second or two and his hesitation was clear from his expression change. Sembaruthi noticed it and said

“Sevaga! Don’t worry about us. Even I was a bit worried when I asked you to bring us to this temple. But with our Poosari here, I am certainly sure that even a speck of harm cannot be caused to us. I’ve known him for years from my childhood and I respect him as much as my father and I am sure he can guarantee our safety here.” She now turned towards the girls and continued the sentence. ”Sevaga , If you still think we may be attacked by somebody, you need not worry at all -as we will be certainly saved by this girl sitting here and the small knife she has with her. I don’t rely on the powerful army in Ponvilayur that your Dhalapadhi has been building for years awaiting war from places only god knows. But I rely more on Imayaazh’s knife. Which thief can attack us after seeing this gorgeous face that can bring men of highest esteem down to their feet? Won’t the thief put his weapon down, bow, kneel and beg Imayaazh so that she would turn and look at him once again with those magical eyes? What do you say girls? Am I not correct?”

“Akka! I wonder if you can talk a single sentence without mentioning about the Dhalapadhi. Somehow or other you connect everything with him Akka. I am just not sure how you are going to overcome his absence for the next three days. I think we will have to send this Chief Sevagan Sivaraman to bring back the Dhalapadhi before sun rise tomorrow rather than going in search of food now.”

The Chief Sevagan looked for a second at Imayaazh. He then turned back towards Sembaruthi and said

“Rani… It is Dhalapadhi Maithreyanaar’s order that I must stay with you whenever you go out. I have already suffered once for not doing it and I don’t want to do the same mistake again. But more than my suffering, I would want you to be safe Rani.”

“Sevaga. I clearly remember that incident when a frightened bull had come racing towards me outside the temple in Ponvilayur. But it was no mistake of yours for not being there at the moment. I think the Dhalapadhi would have been angry with you for that. I apologize on his behalf. But this seems to be a deserted place Sevaga. And I don’t see a mad bull around either. So I am sure we girls are as safe as we would be in the palace. So please go and have some food so that you can be ready for tomorrow’s long journey.”

“I go by your word Rani”

The Sevagan bowed again and left the place. After a few seconds, all the Sevagars who were standing at the corner left the temple. The girls started to discuss something among them. In a few minutes, the Poosari came there carrying a few cloth covered bamboo baskets. As soon as seeing him finding it difficult to carry all the baskets, the girls stood up and rushed to him to get those baskets. The Poosari gave the baskets to them with a gentle smile. He said

“Sembaruthi, let us go to the small Mandabam outside the temple. It won’t be proper to have food inside the sannidhi”

“Sure Ayya. Let us go. Girls, let us go to the Mandabam.”

They went to the Mandabam which was more deserted than the temple itself. It was a small hall with a few paintings of Durga on the wall. All the paintings depicted the goddess in a blood thirsty mood with tongues out and all eight hands with weapons stretched out in eight different directions and it sent a slight lump down the throat of the girls on seeing it. The Poosari did not seem to look at the paintings. ‘He would have seen it numerous times and so it does not frighten him’ thought Sembaruthi. The only light source in the Mandabam was a dim torch that was kept at a corner at a height that was not directly reachable from the ground and the dim yellow light from it that was falling on the paintings made it even more frightening to look at. The girls were all silent for a few seconds on entering the Mandabam and they could hear the eerie sound of the cold wind that was blowing trough the window. Sembaruthi looked out of the Mandabam through the window. She could see at a distance the dark figures of the Sevagars walking towards the east as a group. Something about the atmosphere seemed strange to Sembaruthi but she could not guess what.

The Poosari spoke.

“Sembaruthi, Imayaazh and all of you. Please sit down girls. We need to talk about a hundred things. “

The girls sat down in a circle.

“Ayya… Why is this place so dimly lit? It is frightening me” said Imayaazh. Though it was Imayaazh who said it, the expression on all the girl’s faces suggested the same.

The Poosari laughed gently and said

“Imayaazh. How nice to hear your voice again. I am thankful to god to have met you all again. It takes me back into those days when I was in Aaraimedu. The best part of my life was spent in Aaraimedu. I got married there to my wife who is no more. My son Chandra was born there. And I was blessed by Oorasar Sethupadiyaar to take over the temple proceedings at Madiyamalai Arivamudhar temple. But today when I am counting my days, I am here in this deserted place which is so dimly lit. Nobody even comes here Imayaazh. Only the Passers-by and occasional people from the Kingdom come here. And even they come during the day. During nights, only me and the Durga devi stay here. Nobody else does. So there is no reason to be surprised why this Mandabam is dimly lit ,Imayaazh”

“But why did you then choose to serve this temple ayya? There are hundreds of temples in the Kingdom where you could have gone”

The Poosari sank in thought for a second. He spoke after a few second’s silence.

“There is a reason for it Imayaazh. I was so much attached to the Madiyamalai temple that I felt really bad when I broke my legs. I could not bear the feeling that I will not be able to serve the lord in the temple anymore. People around me suggested going to Ponvilayur and serving in the huge temples that Padmanabar had built thirty years back. But I did not want to be one among hundreds in those temples. I normally get attached to the god whom I serve Imayaazh. I searched for a temple where I alone could stay and serve the lord. After three months of search, I found this temple. This place has not been occupied by the common men for more than sixty years ever since the earth shook here during Mahendiran’s rule. So this temple which was built during his rule had suffered major damage and was permanently closed when people who stayed here relocated to different places around. I decided this would be the best place for me to spend the last days of my life and so immediately shifted here”

The girls seemed a bit relaxed now. One of the maids served the food to the girls and the poosari and they all started to enjoy the delicious food . Their talk slowly shifted to different topics concerning the Kingdom, the Dhalapadhi, the King, the Temple, their purpose of visit and many others. After sometime, the talk slowly shifted to Kumudhini. The Poosari said

“Oh… Kumudhini. Yes I remember her too. She is the daughter of Vaithiyar elanchezhiyanaar – isn’t she? I will be grateful to the Vaithiyar throughout my life. But for him I would have never recovered from the pain I had in my legs. He and his daughter were the one’s who took care of me when I had broken my legs. She was such a good girl, Kumudhini. I am very happy to hear that she has got married. Please do convey my best wishes to her when you girls meet her.”

“Sure Ayya. She should be fortunate to receive your blessings.” said Sembaruthi.

Imayaazh who was really silent throughout the discussion suddenly burst out in laughter. Everybody stopped speaking and looked at her. She could not control her laughter. She said

“Ayya Poosari...Something seems to be strange. The only people who were present when akka rolled down from the top of Madiyamalai were you and the Dhalapadhi. Now following akka, you also have rolled down from the top. I am just wondering who the next victim is?”

Sembaruthi’s expression changed to indicate that she was not very enthusiastic about the joke. She turned her neck to some other side.The Poosari not noticing this continued

“Aah Imayaazh. Do you think the Dhalapadhi will ever lose his own balance and slip from the top of the hill? No way my child. That will never happen. Was he not the one who saved Sembaruthi when she fell down from the top? He should have been a strong man to stop a girl rolling down at that speed. Moreover I did not even know it was Sembaruthi who was falling from the top. I was coming down from the top after having completed the day's services to the lord when I heard a loud female voice. I assumed somebody had fallen down and immediately rushed down to see Sembaruthi rolling down into the Dhalapadhi’s hands. At first I even doubted the Dhalapadhi for having harmed her but then after a few seconds I realized that he was the one who had really saved her.”

Sembaruthi suddenly turned towards the Poosari and looked into his eyes. It was only for a second. She immediately turned away and started looking at where she was looking before. After this she did not participate much in the discussion that continued between the girls and the Poosari. Something had caused a problem to her and she was not able to come out of it.

After finishing the food, the Poosari showed the girls a place to sleep. Sembaruthi thanked the Poosari for the food and went to bed along with the other girls. The girls were also very tired and slowly started to drift into a peaceful night's sleep. But Sembaruthi was thinking about something for a long time. A number of things came rushing to her brain about the hill temple incident. She could not understand something. She tried shifting places in her bed but could not get over the incident. It was coming back again and again. She decided to stay calm and slowly recall whatever that happened on that day.

On the particular day the incident had happened, she had seen Kangeyan at a distance, wanted to escape from him finding out, grabbed the medicine from Kumudhini and climbed up the hill, heard the maduoli when she was halfway up, turned to see her friends walk away, decided to run back to the temple, saw the Poosari’s burning eyes in the flame torch’s light, fainted and fell down. This was what she assumed had happened.

But now she was sure there was something mysterious about the whole thing.

The Poosari had said that he had heard a girl shouting at the peak of her voice when he was coming downhill and rushed to see who it was when he found her rolling down the hill. If that was the case, then who was the one whom she saw on turning immediately to run towards the top of the hill? Those burning red eyes in the light of the flames haunted her till date. She was now sure it was not the Poosari. From what the Poosari said, he was no where in the picture when she fainted. So if it was the Poosari himself, there was no reason for him to lie that he was not near her. If it was not the Poosari, then the Poosari would have surely seen the light from the flame torch that the man was holding. But he never mentioned anything of that sort. So in either case the Poosari was lying. But why would the Poosari have to lie at all? What secrets does he keep with himself? Was the reason he gave for shifting to this deserted place the true reason? Who was the man who was holding the flame torch? Whose were those powerful and frightening eyes she had seen in the dark? Was it a man for sure? Or was it a woman whom the Poosari knew?

At this juncture a strange sound from outside the Mandabam was heard. Sembaruthi was shocked for a second on hearing it. She could not figure out properly where the sound was coming from. She could not even understand what sound it was. It seemed to be coming from a musical instrument but there was no particular tune to the song. She turned to see if anybody else was awake. All the girls were in deep sleep now. ‘Who could be playing an instrument in the middle of the night that too in no particular tone?’ She could not guess. ‘It may be the Poosari‘- Some voice from inside her heart told her. She was getting frightened every second. Though the tune was not proper, it was sort of mesmerizing. She had heard in stories about magical tunes that could render people inactive. Was the Poosari trying to do something? She could not decide if she should go out and check who it was or stay back and sleep the night off.The fact that she had sent the Sevagars away was even more disturbing to her. She decided to stay back and closed her eyes. The sound stopped.

Suddenly,Some strange instinct made her rise up and walk in slow steps.

It was frighteningly silent around her.

She came out of the Mandabham and it was pitch dark and shivering cold. The strange atmsphere made her heart beat faster every second. She carefully looked around in all directions. She could not find the Poosari anywhere.

She walked cautiously till the place where her Pallakku was lying.

The song was heard again behind her back.

She turned in fear.

She saw nothing.

She sensed some wild animal running inside the thorny bushes with a screeching sound.

The sound stopped again.

Everything was dark and silent.

Nothing moved.

She turned to her left.

She saw in the moonlight the back of a dark figure sitting on a rock with a flute in hand.

The sound started again!

The Cloud of the Princess Part - 1 Chapter 12

The first reaction on reaching the Durga temple was that it was not a very safe place to stay in. Especially because it was already dark and there was no male companion for the girls from the palace. Of course the Sevagars were there but they could not be relied upon. They must be very tired having carried the Pallakku for more than half a day now and it won’t even be minutes before they fall off asleep. It would be merciless to ask them to stay awake and guard the girls while they slept comfortably.

The initial plan that Maithreyan had suggested was to reach Chief Painter Chinnayar’s palace before it got dark, spend the night there and then start early the next morning and reach Araimedu before the sun set. Though the plan was good and workable, Sembaruthi had not liked it. Everything was right about the plan except the halt at the Chief Painter’s palace. Sembaruthi for some unknown reason had developed hatred towards the chief painter. And since Imayaazh had said it would take time for them to reach the painter’s palace, Sembaruthi immediately changed her plan. It was a boon in disguise for her and she grabbed it with both hands. If at all she wanted to attach a reason to dislike Chinnayar, she could succeed only with a childish reason. Three years earlier, when Sembaruthi had first come to Ponvilayur after having married Maithreyan, she was given a very warm welcome all across the palace. She was introduced to each and every minister and she was initially even frightened because she could not even remember all their names. But irrespective of who it was, she was praised for her beauty, especially her eyes had got a great deal of attention and more importantly everybody wished the couple a great married life. But when she was introduced to the Chief painter Chinnayar who was in his late sixties, he saw her up and down and said “You have got luck Devi… Hope it stays with you throughout your life. Let me wish all prosperity for the young couple”. Sembaruthi had hated those words. It looked to her as if the Painter was playing with words. If not for his expressions, she would not have thought so. It was a wry expression and it clearly sent the message across that he was totally disinterested over the wedding. But after that incident, she never had the chance to meet the Painter and talk even a few words to him. So she could not make out why he would be unhappy with the marriage at all.

Though she did not see the Painter after that, she heard a lot about him after a year of her marriage. He was planning to paint the best painting that had ever been painted and too of the King right in front of the throne. Everybody was talking about it in the palace and every time she heard someone mentioning about it, she purposefully diverted the topic. She was not particularly interested in this and was surprised when the King had actually shifted his palace for more than three months just because the painting was being done. She wondered how good the painting could be and when the piece of art was completed finally, she was also invited to the palace to take a look at it. She had gone along with Maithreyan to view the work and her first reaction was that it was a masterpiece. But immediately her mind changed and she felt it was just another painting. Nothing was wonderful about it. Just because the painting was done in two parts, one on the ceiling and another on the floor, it cannot become the best ever done. Moreover the colours used were not very impressive. There was a particular area in the painting where the colors were applied shabbily. She dared not to speak about it outside but a sense of satisfaction filled her heart just because she did not like the painting.

Was it pure human tendency of not liking somebody’s work because you don’t like the artist, which had made Sembaruthi hate the painting and find faults in it? Or was it her innate talent in painting which she had inherited from her father’s gene that had made her find faults in the painting? It will not be possible to decide because art is for the human mind to cherish and chew upon and the exact critic for an artist is himself and not anybody else. Every stroke made in a painting is because the artist wanted it that way and every word written in a poem is because the poet wanted it that way. It would do a world of good if the poet is satisfied with his poem and the painter with his painting rather than the poet wanting the painter to praise him and the painter the poet. Unfortunately enough, the human mind has only one single rule to follow and that is to follow none.

The Durga Devi temple was not very welcoming. It seemed deserted and there were very few torches burning now than what she had seen from a distance. Somebody should have put it off. Or even the cold wind that was blowing could have put it off. The Sevagar chief asked if he could go in and find out if somebody was there and Sembaruthi agreed. She along with her maids got down from the Palakku and was waiting outside the temple. It was already dark and the air was getting chiller. The girls covered themselves with their dress to avoid the cold, but the other Sevagars were standing without even covering their chests. It clearly showed that they were really tired and needed some rest and they were enjoying the cold air that was blowing over their faces.

After few minutes of waiting, Sembaruthi saw two figures coming out of the temple. It was dark on this side of the temple where they were waiting and it was difficult to spot immediately who were coming. Sembaruthi realized immediately that the man coming in front was the Chief Sevagar. She could easily figure that out with the way he was walking. There was a second figure that followed the Chief Sevagar and it was walking in a pretty slow pace. Sembaruthi could somehow sense that she knew this slow moving dark figure. The outline of the body, the hunch and the pace of the walk were all very familiar. As the two men approached near the girls and when they came under the torches light, Imayaazh immediately spoke in excitement.

“Akka… can you see who is coming behind the Sevagan? Is it not our old poosari of Araimedu? Or are my eyes cheating me?”

“Imayaazh… Don’t you worry! You are not that old to be cheated by your own eyes. Even I think it is our poosari of Arivamudhar temple. But I am not sure why he is here now? And that too at this time of the night.”

“Akka… I think he is now staying here in this temple. I remember hearing from someone that he lived no more at Araimedu. But I did not know where he left to and why he left. I guess this must have been the temple where he has shifted to”

“Let us not jump into conclusions Imayaazh… The poosari is here. Let us ask him and get it clarified”

It was indeed the old poosari who along with Maithreyan had saved and brought Sembaruthi back to her home when she had rolled down from the hill.

He seemed older and worse than how he had looked then. His hunch had pushed him more towards the ground and his face had shrunk and appeared with more lines of flesh that had loosened with age and probably worry. The old man did not seem to have realized who had come. He put his hand over his forehead to avoid the light from the torch falling directly into his eyes and said in a characteristic old man’s voice

“The sevagan says that somebody from the King’s palace has come to this small temple. I am really sorry. My eyesight has become very poor and I can’t see you clearly. May I know who has come to this god’s place? ”

Sembaruthi felt sorry for the poosari. The poosari that she knew and could remember was the one who had advised her number of times to go back to home before the Madhuoli broke. She could not have even imagined seeing him like this three years ago. '
Time' is the worst weapon to play with- especially after you see grandchildren - she told herself.

She spoke in a soft voice

“Ayya… Yes, we are somebody from the King’s palace. But I don’t wish to introduce myself to you like that. I know you better than anybody in the King's palace at Ponvilayur. Ayya...Do you remember painter Araivazhagar of Araimedu. I am his only daughter Sembaruthi. Ayya do you remember me ?”

The old man made a few quick moves of his neck. He seemed excited. “Sembaruthi! Is that really you? Oh Sembaruthi…How wonderful to meet you again after so many years. How are you my child? How are your parents? How is Dhalapadhi Maithreyanaar? It is god’s grace that I have met you again before this old man’s soul passes away”

Sembaruthi cut in “No need to speak so ayya… Lord Arivamudhar will not let you down. And all our prayers are always with you. Your service is needed for this Kingdom for many more years to come ayya”

“Aah… that is what I am afraid of Semabaruthi… The lord will never be kind to me anymore. If I remember correctly, it was after a few months of your marriage when I skid down and broke my legs while climbing up Madiyamalai. Since then my legs have are almost disabled and I can no more walk properly, let alone climbing Madiyamalai. I wanted to spend the last days of my life in the Lord’s sannidhi but he seems to have different plans for this old man. I was forced to make my son takeover the temple proceedings in the Madiyamalai temple. And instead of staying bed ridden and dying without a use to anybody,I thought i shoule continue what i was doing but may be in a different place. So i came here last year to spend my final days. It is none but Durga Devi who sits in this temple whose grace is holding my life still”

Sembaruthi was really moved by the poosari’s story. A drop of tear flowed down her cheeks. But the old poosari could not even see it clearly. Sembaruthi did not know how to respond. There was a moment’s silence and it was embarrassing for her. But fortunately for her,the poosari himself spoke.

“Sembaruthi… I am really sorry to have made you stand here for so long. Please do come inside my child. We have hundred things to speak.”

After saying that he turned towards the temple and started to walk slowly. As he walked he spoke without looking back at the girls who had started following him slowly

“Sembaruthi… How wonderful it was when I was in Araimedu! Especially with all you young girls doing all sort of mischief and pranks. More than you, I miss all those days my child. And I even heard that that one of your friends, the girl with the big mouth …I forgot her name… I heard that she is also with you… Has she not come here now? Oh… Now I remember… was it not Imayaazh? Yes it was Imayaazh.She was such a sweet torture for me when I was in Araimedu…Has she got married yet? Her husband must be a poor man to have married a girl with such a big mouth” And He laughed to himself after saying that. It seemed the old man was laughing his heart out after a number of years.

A known female voice cut in.

“Ayya Poosari…. The torture has not ended yet. And neither has it got married. It will continue to torture till your soul stays in Pavazhanaadu … Don’t expect anything less than what you got in Araimedu. And the torture is now right behind your back...”

Of course! It was Imayaazh.

The Cloud of the Princess Part 1 Chapter 11

King Kunjidhapadhanaar was seen with a bit of concern on his face as he asked the question to Dhalapadhi Maithreyan.

“Do you really think Pavazhanadu is safe from the outer world at all?”

After a few minutes of silence in the room, Dhalapadhi Maithreyan who was now seen sitting in front of the King’s throne said in a pretty low voice

“I am not sure my lord… But I have made arrangements to find out”

The King’s expression became a bit relaxed. He seemed excited.

“Arrangements… even before we discussed the situation… You are a gift to me from the gods Maithreya… You are undoubtedly a gift… So tell me… what are the arrangements that you have made?”

“I am just doing what a Dhalapadhi must be doing my lord… and I am afraid if I am really doing it the right way or not” – The voice had a tinge of worry in it.

“Aah… Worry…. To the mastermind Maithreyan?? I am really surprised. “

“Well… Ayya… With the way things have developed in the last few months, I should say it is not really favorable for the Kingdom. A number of complex political changes are expected to happen anytime in the next month or so and depending on what will happen, we might have different problems to tackle… And I am really worried because I am just not able to guess what will cause what now... “

The King thought for a minute and then spoke.

“I can understand your situation Maithreya… And this mysterious message we have received just adds to the confusion… I sometime even get the feeling that people around me are acting strangely for a few months now… I can also sense some big disaster to break out anytime… I unfortunately have no option but to wait for it to happen…. “. The king paused here and after a second or two spoke in an aggressive tone as if he had realized something suddenly.

” Warriors are men who kill their enemies by slashing the sword on the face…and take pride in the blood that spills out from the enemies neck and mouth as he falls down dead… I am a warrior! I can fight anybody face to face… but as a king I just can’t be a warrior alone… I need to act as a manipulator. I must pull people’s legs and get things done. I must attack men from behind when they least expect it and kill them psychologically...Personally I hate this Maithreya… I wonder how I was born in the bloodline of Thiru Aadhirayar, the most cunning manipulator that the world knows of… I just do all these sins because it concerns the welfare of the people. That is my only solace.”

“And that is exactly why a King needs the Dhalapadhis and Mudanmandiris my lord. Haven’t you heard and read poems and verses that say Thiru Aadhirayar himself depended a lot on his favorite Mudanmandiri Kesavanaar to tackle difficult problems”

“True Maithreya… I think even I should leave all the political problems to you and the Mudanmandiri and go to the top of Asuragiri and live the pure life of a sage…How wonderful would that be… to get up before the sun rises, to have a cold shivering bath in Amudhu, to meditate for hours together, to eat fruits right from the trees, to think always of god and be peaceful for eternity”

“Ayya… I think that is not going to happen any time now and I think the people of Pavazhanaadu are not going to let you do it that easily…I feel we have something important to discuss now and we better do it right away”

The King who had lost himself in thought got out of it and spoke as if he was in a hurry.

“You are right Maithreya… let us discuss about the message that I received… what do you think it tries to convey? And more importantly whom do you think would have sent it?”

Maithreyan adjusted his position in the chair. He cleared his throat and spoke.

“It is not very easy to answer the questions you are asking my lord… especially because the message doesn’t have much to say except that it warns of an upcoming disaster in the Kingdom from the outside world. Moreover the way it reached us is really interesting. The message has been given to one of our soldiers who receive written pleas from common people every alternate povurnami day, screens it based on importance and forwards it to his higher official. The official does similar screening and passes on to his higher official. Only the messages that pass more than ten such levels of screening and those that are really important reach you. The others of course are forwarded to the concerned authorities for immediate action. We normally don’t expect people to put down their names in the pleas unless they are specific to individuals. This practice is being followed for over three years now and I have not even heard of a single occasion where the pleas have been written just for fun. The common people don’t misuse it because of the efficiency with which our authorities investigate the problems of the people and get it solved immediately. Another valid reason that I could think of is that, most of the common man does not know to write. He would want someone else to write a plea for him. So I really doubt if it is a common man who has written this message. Because he might not even be sure that it would reach you. The underlying system in place is transparent from him. He only knows that a soldier collects his pleas periodically and somehow it gets translated into actions. Of course if he needs to meet you, he always can do it by giving the right reasons to the officials. Moreover you travel across the kingdom and meet the common people very often. So nobody would want to convey such an important message in such a manner”

“So you are sure this message is something we need to worry about.”

“Exactly my lord… but the problem is the target at which we must be worried about”

“What are the possibilities?”

“Many.”

“Like?”

“Let me list them down for you. The first and foremost target we must be worried about is King Eezhendiran who rules Eezham. It was more than a century before, when King Sugumaran and his twin brother Eezhendiran fought among themselves and tore Pavazhanadu into two parts. The Eezhendiran of today is the seventh generation of the Eezhendiran who split the Kingdom. The other side of Amudhu has always been a problem for us. Though we have somehow managed to have trade relations with sailors traveling from Eezham to Pavazhanadu and Pavazhanadu to Eezham, we have never have had good solid relations with them. The sailors always live in fear and terror for they never know when a war can break out between the two Kingdoms. And from what I hear from my spies, Eezham is silently preparing a war against us. I use the word ‘silent’ because this preparation has been going on for more than five years now and the preparation is almost over. They can attack us anytime this year and though we are preparing too, it is going to be tough for us to stop them if they attack us right today.”

Maithreyan gave a pause and continued.

“Eezham is a known evil. It is a problem that lies right in front of our eyes. It is a battle of power and pain, of swords and blood – face to face, chest to chest. So even they are to attack us, we will get the information at least a day before. So there is no reason I can think of this message relating to Eezham though we may not throw the issue away just like that. There are more problems that are inside the Kingdom than outside. Let me list them too.

We have hundred and thirty Oorarasars in our Kingdom, with hundred and twenty of them controlling not more than ten villages. The remaining ten are the powerful

Oorarasars - controlling from ten to fifty villages. The Oorarasar of Araimedu and the surrounding villages is Sethupadhiyaar- a man of iron heart. As you know, he removed all the men from his army a few years back because they had succumbed to alcohol addiction. It was a bold move and all of us, here in Ponvilayur praised him for it. But in a few weeks after the incident, the group of soldiers who were thrown out started to get together in nights and planned a secret operation. Their aim was to join hands, become powerful, attack Sethupadhiyaar when he least expected it and claim the post of Oorarasar. When I first heard about this plan from my spies, I laughed at it. This as because, even if they get successful in throwing Sethupadhiyaar out of the post, the army from Ponvilayur would attack them and crush them into emptiness. But as time went by, I heard shocking news from my spies which made to revisit my opinion on this secret group. The secret group had actually started to convince soldiers of other armies under other Oorasars to join them in their mission so that they can throw away all the ten powerful Oorarasars at the same time and combine all the villages under them. Now that meant trouble. I least expected this from them. But the problem we had was that the group was meticulously organized and it was even difficult for us to spy on and find out who was the leader of the group. It took us more than a year to find out a few big names in the group. I initially planned to have all these people arrested immediately but then went against it. It was a wrong idea because if I did not give proper reasons to arrest them, it would result in several problems from other Oorasars who are not very much in our side. They are always looking for a chance to protest against us and I did not want to make a silly move. I waited for a while before I got an idea. You had ordered us to arrest people throughout the Kingdom who drank alcohol in the day time. I used this as an opportunity to arrest some of the big names of the secret group and throw them into the underground prison here in the palace. The fact that these people were already been thrown out of the army for consuming alcohol helped a lot to make others believe that they were arrested for the same reason again. “

The King was floating in surprise.

“Maithreya… I never knew that such a group existed at all. Why did you not mention it to me before?”

“Ayya… initially I thought the group could not do much at all. But later when I found they might turn dangerous, I arrested them before they grew in size. So I was under the impression that the group was destroyed forever. So I did not have to tell you about them. But with this message, I am just thinking if it might have been from this group which has become very powerful without out knowledge.”

The King spoke in a frustrated tone.

“Better late than never. We need to watch them more carefully Dhalapadhi. Make arrangements for that. And tell me who others can are the suspects. And what other things am I unaware of”

“Ayya… Forgive me for not having informed you about the group. And it was not hidden from you purposefully. Time and situation made me not to inform you about it. Hope you understand my lord”

“Yes I can… Tell me about the other possibilities Maithreya”

“There is one other possibility ayya. I have informed you this before and even warned you several times. Let me just re-iterate it again.

It is the powerful alcohol merchants who may have joined hands together against us my lord. There is every reason for us to believe that they might go against us. Though we have announced to give gold and silver to them to stop selling alcohol, I can see nobody really satisfied my lord. We have discussed over this a number of times and we have not yet come to a conclusion. But one strange thought arises in my mind now. Since a considerable part of the alcohol is brought to Pavazhanaadu from Eezham via Amudhu, there is a slim possibility that the alcohol merchants might have agreed upon something with Eezhendiran though I have no idea what. “

The king thought for a while.

“May be you are right Maithreya. Even I have the same doubts. There are a hundred things we must think of before proceeding. And we must make sure we must pick the right one among the hundred and attack” The king closed his eyes and looked towards the ceiling. Things started to sink in slowly.

There was silence in the room for a considerable period of time. After a while, a slightly shivering voice of Maithreyan broke the silence.

“Ayya…”

The King opened his eyes and looked at Maitreyan.

“Yes Maithreya … tell me… You sound different suddenly? What is up?”

“There is one more possibility that we have not thought of at all”

Maithreyan’s expression changed suddenly. His eyes had widened and he looked a bit afraid.

“Oh… What is that?”

“If that is true, then it could be the worst thing that could happen to Pavazhanaadu”

“Please tell me what it is Maithreya… You are making my blood boil”

Maithreyan measured every word he spoke. And as he spoke, the Kings expression changed slowly to resemble the fear of pain and death of a goat about to be slashed into two pieces.

“Whatever we have discussed so far are just problems on the south of Asuragiri. But we may never know if someone from the unknown mysterious land on the other side of Asuragiri has sent this message to mark our end. And if that is the case, then we are absolutely naked to the solutions my lord”