Page 36 of The Prince Without Sorrow

Chapter Thirty-Five

Shakti

A WEEK AFTER S HAKTI’S LAST DREAM INVASION, H ARINI returned to the palace.

Shakti had never been so happy to see another mayakari in her life. Being surrounded by those who weren’t, save for Ruchira who often inquired after her sanity whenever they met, had left her permanently on guard. There was a blessed relief in letting her walls down.

Both had acquired the same day of rest, and so Harini had elected to take them to the Marble Stupa that lay east of the Golden City, separated by the river that began as nothing but a stream from the misty points of the Mountain of Rebirth. Popular during the summer season, it attracted the masses like flies towards fruit. Early in the morning, it was utterly still, devoid of people.

Shakti was mesmerized by the quiet, the soft crunching of sand under her feet as she circled the white pagoda, and the fragrant incense sticks that permeated the air. Here was an ode to times past, when humans placed the heavy mantle of omniscient gods onto Great Spirits. They lived for hundreds, sometimes thousands of years after all, with much longer lifespans than humans, which made them divine. Once the mayakari had claimed the nature spirits to be yet another cog in the wheel of samsara, nature spirit worship had dwindled. Yet, the people still held a fondness for them, a deep-seated respect born from centuries of misguided prayer. Blessings and offerings in the form of flowers were often piled high into hollowed-out alcoves. Freshly picked lotuses and frangipanis with their iridescent petals sat atop the wilted mounds placed the day before, the stench of death and beauty intermingling in a glorious dance.

The stupas were an ode to peace. It made her feel safe.

A miniaturized version of this stupa existed in the grounds of the Maurya palace, but theirs was too stark, too sanitized, too sterile. Among the trees and the mountain looming above like a giant, the marble pagoda was sequestered in its own world.

‘Were the mayakari receptive to Prince Ashoka?’ Shakti whispered in Harini’s ear as they took a leisurely stroll around the structure.

‘Not initially,’ Harini admitted. Nestled in her and Shakti’s hands were frangipanis and freshly picked white lotuses they’d bought from a flower market in the city. They’d scattered water droplets over the petals to keep them fresh. ‘He found one by accident and failed to convince her. It was only after he took me to the razed lands that we found members of the resistance. Having me there did help him. So did mentioning your friend – she’s their leader , by the way. Thank you kindly for letting us know in advance.’

That information, even Shakti hadn’t known. After all, Nayani hadn’t divulged much about her time in Taksila. Ignoring Harini’s sarcasm, she let out a contented hum as they turned towards an alcove hollowed into the pagoda. Sand turned to cold stone as they stepped onto the dais. The alcove’s interior was carved with images of minor and Great Spirits, the latter of whom were depicted as leopards. ‘I hope they’re able to find a solution,’ she remarked. ‘The prince seemed quite determined.’

Placing their flowers onto the base of the alcove, both stood in silence for a moment.

‘He seems more level-headed than his siblings,’ Harini responded after a beat. ‘Emperor Arush and his sudden fixation on the Frozen Lands. Princess Aarya’s madness . What on earth happened while I was gone?’

I happened , Shakti thought, but said nothing. Instead, she said, ‘Two children in grief and one uncaring. That’s what I think.’

Looking mystified, Harini stepped away from the dais. ‘Such bouts of insanity from simple grief?’ she mused. ‘Well, I suppose it’s not impossible.’

Bouts of insanity. After Shakti had drowned Princess Aarya in the dreamworld, she’d once again woken up in hysteria. This time, however, she hadn’t cut herself. Instead, she’d caused a commotion in her chambers by toppling over her books and proceeding to beat herself over the head with them. From what Shakti had heard the next morning, the princess had also tried to submerge herself in a washbasin, refusing to come up for air until staff forcefully pulled her away, kicking and screaming Adil’s name.

Shakti couldn’t tell if her command to cease the hunt for the Ghost Queen had been obeyed. Princess Aarya had spoken no more of it since, but it had only been a short amount of time.

Safe to assume it worked , she told herself. The invasions haven’t let me down before.

‘They do seem somewhat... unsuited to lead,’ Shakti replied to the mayakari’s remark. ‘Volatile. The young prince seems more viable in comparison.’

Harini didn’t even blink at her overt treason. ‘Yes and no,’ she said. ‘Prince Ashoka is idealistic, but he stumbles.’

Shakti imagined a young man staring out into the ocean, the sky pitch-black, figure only visible from the light of a full moon. ‘What do you mean?’ she asked.

In response, Harini cast her gaze to the sky, troubled. ‘Your friend asked him one favour – to ban mayakari killings in Taksila. Anyone with half a brain knows that the only way that will happen is to depose the governor. And at this point, the only way to depose him...’

‘Is to kill him,’ Shakti finished. Ah, that was the problem. Of course, the prince would refuse to entertain such a thought.

‘It’s as if Prince Ashoka is standing on the edge of a cliff,’ Harini said thoughtfully. ‘Some semblance of cautiousness ties him to the ground. In this case, he needs to fall, but he won’t, and it is no one’s fault but his own.’

The following day, Shakti followed behind Princess Aarya as she attended an audience with Emperor Arush.

‘You just missed Rahil, sister,’ Arush said as they walked into the throne room. Soldiers surrounded the perimeter, expressions blank. When Princess Aarya shot him an inquisitive glance, he added, ‘Arrived last night, spoke with myself and mother, and took a serpent to Taksila.’

Clicking her tongue, the princess shook her head, almost bemused. ‘Straight to Ashoka,’ she said. ‘I wonder how long those two could possibly stay apart.’

Already looking uninterested, Arush shrugged. ‘It’s more a matter of how long it will take for them to return to each other again,’ he replied. ‘Perhaps Rahil’s absence is causing our little brother to make rash decisions.’

Shakti could almost pinpoint the moment that Princess Aarya’s hackles were raised at the mention of Prince Ashoka. ‘Rash decisions such as...?’ she inquired pointedly.

‘Kosala informed me some time ago that Ashoka attempted to halt ironwood procurement,’ Arush began, ‘but not to worry, sister. He put a stop to it immediately.’

In a very un-Aarya-like manner, the princess wandered towards the steps of the throne and sat there, her back to her brother, the soft blue pallu cascading down her right arm. Quietly, Shakti made herself scarce by standing off to the side, watching their exchange.

‘Ashoka knows that is a foolhardy choice,’ Aarya said, scowling. ‘What is he up to?’

Arush chuckled. ‘Why must you always assume he has an ulterior motive,’ he replied. ‘Ashoka cannot fix Taksila. He will lose our bet, sister. Or have your bouts of insanity resulted in a distinct lack of judgement?’

‘Nightmares are a relatively common occurrence, brother,’ Aarya replied, nary an emotion across her haughty face.

The emperor turned away from his sister and focused on Shakti. She hated when he did, rather preferring to be like a minor spirit observing its surroundings, undisturbed. ‘Would you call my sister’s affliction bad dreams?’ he asked.

In her periphery, she saw the princess open her mouth and beat her to it. ‘I would, emperor,’ Shakti replied carefully. ‘Madness it is not.’

‘ Ha. It seems you’ve found yourself a loyal dog, sister,’ Arush replied. ‘Perhaps she will entertain your journey to the deadlands.’

Shakti observed the princess’s reaction at the mention of deadlands. Though she was loath to admit it, part of her was too timid to simply ask Aarya about it to see if her command had worked. The other part was pure paranoia.

‘Fortunately for you, brother, I have decided to let that go,’ Aarya replied coolly. ‘I was chasing an imaginary tail.’

It worked . A wave of relief washed over Shakti.

The princess’s answer seemed to satisfy not only her but also the emperor, as he relaxed and began to wax poetic about the recent arrival of Taksilan soldiers into the Golden City. There were still some remaining under Prince Ashoka’s control, but most had been redeployed. There were reports that the queen of Kalinga and the crown prince of the Ridi Kingdom were meeting on their own, the reason for conferring undisclosed, a statement that Arush didn’t appear too bothered about, but Aarya was. It led to an argument about strengthening better ties with the latter’s new monarch.

When the siblings’ conversation finally ended, and they exited the throne room, the princess stopped and latched onto Shakti’s wrist, gripping hard enough for it to hurt.

‘Do not be so reactive,’ Aarya snapped.

Wincing at the pressure, Shakti tried to tug back her hand. ‘Princess?’

‘Arush seeks to goad, and you fell for it,’ the princess replied. ‘Soldiers have their loyalties, I’m sure, but see to it that you do not so overtly side with me over the emperor . Don’t be so foolish, Shakti.’

Shakti wanted to snap, I favour neither of you. I simply thought I was doing what I had to.

‘What would you have me say then?’ she blurted out in frustration before realizing her mistake, adding, ‘princess,’ to avoid a mercurial response.

Aarya didn’t respond. She stared at Shakti impassively, and for long enough that she began to feel uncomfortable. ‘You’re uncouth,’ she replied. ‘Were manners not taught in your household?’

Calm yourself, little bird.

Clenching her jaw hard enough to fracture, Shakti nodded. ‘My apologies, princess.’

‘I’m unsurprised,’ Aarya said slowly. ‘From memory, Mathura’s native language did not have a distinction between polite and informal speech as we do, no?’

Fuck . She didn’t know the answer. Scrambling for an inconspicuous response, Shakti managed to stutter, ‘No, princess,’ hating the insecurity in her voice. Spirits, she should’ve sounded more confident.

‘Hmm.’ Shakti couldn’t never unsee it: Adil’s scrutinizing eyes behind the princess. Searching. Looting. Trying to swoop in and steal something precious. ‘In the future, Shakti, you will use your sword, not your words.’