Part 2 - Chapter 3

"Don't you think we should take her to your house?" murmered Oli as he was squeezing some herbal leaves between his arms so that the medicating liquid fell over Sembaruthi's forehead. He continued "The ladies in your house, your mother and your sister , they can take care of this lady better than we ever could". He stopped for a second to look at Singarakannan - "What are you thinking about Singa? You seem disturbed"

"I am disturbed" - a monotonous voice of Singarakannan replied. He was sitting on a rock bench inside the meenavar-mandabam as heavy rains were making a huge noise outside. The rains seemed to stop now and then but every time they changed their minds and started pouring heavier than before.

"I am sure you are having a bad headache Singa. A lot of water would have gone inside your lungs. It was unnecessary for you to jump into the dangerous Amudhu especially with the wind and rain."

"Oli, that is what keeps disturbing me"

"which is what? the winds, the rains?"

"yes- the winds, the rains"

"What about them?"

"Oli, i have gone into the amudhu a hundred thousand times before today right from my childhood. I have battled winds and rains even in the middle of amudhu and still have successfully bought gold from the deep sea. It is unbelievable that i lose out today , that too on the shores... i can't believe this.. i will never be able to convince myself with a good explanation for why i gave up"

Oli smiled.
"The sea inside our minds sometimes generates waves infinitely bigger and powerful than the sea outside, Singa. And when that happens, you cannot but drown. What you need is some peaceful sleep , nothing else"

"You were right when you said that i am in confusion Oli.. i really am in a big confusion.. my mind was so confused that i for an instance thought that the lady here was none by the princess herself ... Look what danger has this confusion has put me in... i feel ashamed and irritated. Isn't there a solution to all this?"

"Confusion is the penultimate step of Clarity Singa... just relax and things will be alright"

"Hah, you are talking more like a friend than a philosopher there Oli... you were the one who said confusion is more dangerous than danger itself"

"Yes i did, and i still say so"

"You seem to contradict yourself"

"Well.. i can certainly explain how i don't contradict myself ... but before that can you please pass me on those leaf bunches... It is nothing but luck of this lady, whoever she is... that some traveler has left behind these herbal leaves... her shivering seems to have reduced significantly in the past two or three hours... but i still think we should call for more help.."

Singarakannan passed the leaf bunch as he asked,
"Whom do you think this lady is , Oli?"

"I don't know.. seems to be someone from the palace"

"Yes, even that's what i think... must be some powerful man's daughter"

"or wife"

"yes.. may be... or may be somebody from the king's elite dancers group "

"or may be one of princess Maithrey's thozhis"

Singa rose up in a flash.
"Oli... is that possible? Could that be a possibility? will this lady know the princess?"

"I was just making a guess" Oli smiled.

"Oh, if only, if only that was true.." Singa seemed lost in thought. After a few moments of silence, Oli asked -

"What would you do if it was true?"

"Well, then do you think i would have any problems entering the palace... i have a real reason to do so..."

"Of course you can... so assuming she knows the princess, you are very clear in what you will do... isn't that so?"

"yes... certainly"

"There is clarity for you my friend... do you at least now accept that confusion is the penultimate step of clarity?"

Singa did not seem amused at all as Oli would have expected. He instead raised his voice in opposition.
"Hah.. Oli,what a mean way to prove your theory! you have just assumed something that could never be true... what if it is not true? what if she does not even know the princess.. what is she not even from the palace...what if...what if she is say... from the other side of amudhu... anything..anything is possible .. there are thousands of possibility out of which you have stated one and have kindled my emotions... just to add strength to your philosophy... it has served nothing but adding more confusions... where is the clarity you talked about Oli? where is it? i don't seem to have it at all! Confusion is all i am left with"

"Calm down my friend... i did not mean to hurt you... think about this carefully... i said confusion is the penultimate step of clarity...i did not say clarity always follows confusion though! Your outburst suggests the same... you are confused.. only if you think about the situation properly and deeply in silence, would you ever get rid of it...i just hinted that this lady could help you get into the palace... it does not necessarily be true that she is the princess' thozhi.. but as long as she does not wake up, why can't you assume that she is so"

Singa was shocked for a second at Oli's response. He never expected such an idea to have originated in Oli's mind. He spoke as slowly and silently possible.
"Oli, if i understand you correctly...you are trying to say that..."

Oli interrupted.
"Singa, i am just asking you to give this woman a nice name and take her to the palace before anybody else finds out!"

At this point, the rains had stopped completely and the scent of soil was strong in the air. Singarakannan seemed excited at the idea that he ran for a second across the breadth and length of the meenavar mandabam for unknown reasons. He finally settled down on the rock bench where he had been sitting a while ago and started biting his lips. He thought deeply in silence for a few seconds as oli finished up his medication with leaves on Sembaruthi's forehead.

Finally after a few minutes of silence, Singarakannan broke it with a question.

"How do i take her to the palace? I can't take her on a horse... i can't take her on a Palakku either. How else can i carry her especially when she is sick and unconscious too?"

"I don't know ... " Oli replied instantaneously.

"This is not fair Oli.. you gave me the idea and now you are confusing me further"

" I would love to stay on and clear your confusions Singa, but unfortunately i cant..The rain seems to have stopped and i need to go now to meet a few like minded people inside the forest...don't worry about anything...but think about whatever you are doing very carefully... you have two options... take this lady to the palace or take her to your mother... in any case, make sure she gets alright... she looks so unnatural for a person in the kind of boat that she arrived in and that too without anybody to row her... i am sure once she wakes up, she will have a story to tell too"

"Oli, are you sure you want to leave right away"

"I came just because you asked me to come Singa... you know very well that people here don't like me... and now that the rain has stopped, they might come out of their huts and the more people i encounter, the more i may cause them irritation. I think it is better for me to leave now..."

Having said this, Oli tied his long hair as a plait and took a wooden block to cover his head and went out of the Mandaba.

Singarakannan looked around inside the Mandabam. After a few seconds, he looked outside the mandabam and stared at Amudhu for a minute or two..
'Oli has gone too... what should i do now? Should i take this lady to my mother? isn't there a better way out? There seemed to something in what Oli said right now... what was it?'
Suddenly,something sparked in Singa's brain and he got excited.
' Boat! The boat ! Hah! I should take her with me in a boat .. yes.. there is nobody in amudhu right now... i can row till the capital along the sea ..that will take me atleast a day's time.. that is i will have to row the whole of tonight and i will reach there by tomorrow before the sun goes right above the head... and then.... and then what? I will still need to cover atleast half a day's travel by walk to the palace. But before that won't this lady get up? What if she starts screaming ? How will i convince her of what i intend to do? Or what will i do even if she doesn't get up.. how i can take her to the palace? Well, i just need to convince people that i found her on the sea and want to leave her in the palace.. oh my god... why don't i have some good imagination... i just need to cook up a good story that people would believe... aah..i don't have time left..the rain has stopped.. fishermen might start coming out of their houses... i need to go before anybody comes to this mandabam... i will have a full day's time while rowing... i shall rack my brains then to come up with a story... Maithrey... it is for you that i am doing all this... this may be a sin, but i don't care... when i meet you, i will tell you what a pair of beautiful eyes can do to a man... and then i will kneel down and ask for your hand! God, this is a great chance.. and i need you to help me with it '

Singarakannan started lifting Sembaruthi as slowly as possible making sure she is not hurt by any means. Once he had over his arms, he turned back to move out of the Mandabam when he got the shock of his life! Someone was standing right in front and staring straight at him. It took a few seconds for Singarakannan to realise that it was the local old man Nesaiaa. Nesaiaa has once served the king's army but now was so old that he has almost lost his eyesight

"Who is it?" whispered Nesaiaa with a trembling voice

Singarakannan just moved a few steps away from the sight of him and replied.
"Thaatha ,it is me Singa,... i came here because it was raining heavily.. and i ... i am leaving now thatha"

Nesaiaa spoke slowly and shiveringly.
"Ahh..Singa, i just now met your father on the way... he seemed worried.. he was looking for you my child..and he has every reason to especially in this state of affairs. And... is it that i am seeing you carrying someone my child... my eyesight has become very bad these days.. it has become so bad that it feels to me that you are carrying a woman" And Nesaiaa laughed with in between coughs.

Singa felt embarrassed. He had to finish this conversation quickly and get out.
"Ah, yes thatha... your eyesight has indeed become poor... this is not a woman .. it is a man"

"Who is it?"

"aah... it is a man thatha... someone you may not know"

"Who?"
Singa thought for a second.
"Hah.. in fact you might know him"

"you haven't told the name yet my boy"

"Oli! its Oli thatha.. he just drowned in the waves... i saved him, and did some immediate medication and am taking him back now "

"Oh, Oli..that young man who was idiotic enough to say that there was no god in front of all religious people...
you better stop roaming with him... your father would be even more worried ... especially after what happened in the morning"

Singarakannan was almost near the door of the Mandabam ready to rush out when he stopped for a moment and turned back.

"Why, what happened in the morning?"

Nesaiaa shook his head .
"What do you mean my son... don't you know the news?"

Standing up still with Sembaruthi over his arms started paining for Singarakannan.

"I haven't heard of any news from the morning thatha... can you please let me know quickly what has happened... is someone in trouble?"

At this moment, a huge sound echoed all around the Mandabam . It lasted for atleast half a minute and nobody moved from their places where they were standing... The sound that came from a distance stopped and it was immediately followed by a series of even more heavier sound of hammer blows over metal sheets.

Singarakannan had no idea what was happening. He looked at Nesaiaa to see if he was going to talk something.

Nesaiaa spoke with a raised voice .

"There is it my boy... there it is... the answer to your question... i am a old man now.. but i have been waiting to hear this sound all through my life.. and now it is here...finally after all the speculation and discussions that would have happened in the morning... i can proudly die any moment from now on... this sound will make the bloods of all young men in the country boil.. this sound will make everybody rise and rush ... this sound will determine everything... hah...if only i could be young and energetic like you..."

Singarakannan interrupted.
"Thatha, stop! what are you talking about...what is happening?"

Nesaiaa replied in a bold voice.

"War has begun my son, War! Eezhendirar has declared war against our enemy pavazhanadu! Blood will flow in amudhu in the next few months no doubt, but we will emerge successful"

Singarakannan was shocked. This was the first time a war was happening in ages in Eezham. He took a few seconds to gather himself. He then asked in a trembling voice,

"What is the reason for this sudden war thatha? There seemed to be no indication of any war till yesterday, not even talks of any immediate announcements"

"Aah... that is the worst part my son....both the kingdoms were preparing for war always... but this time, our enemies have gone a bit too far..."

"Like how?"

Singarakannan even before listening to the response decided that he will rush to the boat irrespective of what was going to come. He had no time left and
just had to run as soon as the reply comes. Nesaiaa breathed in for a second. It seemed he was gathering strength to give a reply. He finally spoke as loud and clear as he could.
"Unimaginable reason Singa... just unimaginable reason for a blood filled war like this to begin..... Pavazhanadu's king Kunjidhapadhanaar has managed to do the worst thing that a king has ever done in history... he will repent for his fault very soon.... he has to.. i am sure we will win the was and once that happens, his head won't stay over his neck - especially after he dared to kidnap Eezhendirar's queen using his lady spies"!

And Singarakannan took off from the place with Sembaruthi over his arms!