A boring chapter with the preparation for the upcoming war. Please forgive me for the delay as I have an important meeting on Friday. So I will be late again.
And thanks to our beloved _Historywriter_ for the lovely cover.
Magadh,
The crowd cheered Aditya's name. They went crazy after seeing Jarasandh's death as now their days of oppression were finished. Jarasandh's close confidants who were also part of his reign of terror were also arrested. Then Vishnugupt announced, 'All hail to Maharaj Aditya.'
Everyone, 'Hail to Maharaj Aditya.'
Karna raised his hand to stop them, then he said, 'All citizens of Magadh, I want to say something to you which is important for the future of Magadh, so please listen to my words carefully. Fist of all, I am not a Kshatriya....I am a Suta by gotra. I always hate the division that separates us from each other other and create a sense of superiority or inferiority in us. To attain knowledge I went to many places but no one accepted me. At last Bhagwan Parshurm and Brhammaguru Viswamitra accepted me as their student. Whatever I am today is because of them.' Then he bowed down in front of his Gurus and touched their feet. Both of the sages blessed him.
Then he again said, 'I don't know if you want a low born like me to be your king or not but I want to ask something to all of you. When Jarasandh tortured you, molested your mothers, daughters, wives, sister, then why did not you resist. I know it is not possible to resist alone but why did not you team up together and tried to save yourselves and others?'
One citizen said, 'Maharathi Aditya we are not as strong as you.'
Karna, 'Mahashay, to fight the tyrants one does not always need celestial weapons or super human strength. The main thing is your own confidence and will to help and fight for others. May Jarasandh had a special boon but his ministers, army chiefs were all normal human beings. Still you all stayed quite. You know why you could not do anything then but today you all became successful to fight with those evils. Because today you fought unitedly. An evil never sees Brhamins, Kshatriyas , Vaishyas or Shudras. For them, you all are the pawns with whom he can play. So if you want me to be the king of Magadh, then you have to stay united. In my kingdom, I will not tolerate any division in name of caste, race, colors or genders. Here everyone can pursue any profession they want.'
A Brahmin citizen said, 'But it is against the law of Vedas.'
Sage Viswamitra, 'Who said that? In Veda, it is clearly said that Varna shall be determined by talent, not by birth.'
Vishnugupt, 'Aditya, I don't care about the laws of Aryavart. All I know as Jarasandh is dead, other evil kings will definitely try to capture Magadh and subjugate us to slavery. We want our freedom so we want you to be our king. You understand the pain of poor, common people as you stayed with them, fought for them. So there will no one better than you to be our king.'
Every citizen cheered, 'Yes, we want you as our king. We are not interested in your Gotra. We just know you as our savior and we will follow you.'
Aditya, 'Okay, so first we need to arrange a court so that we can punish these wicked friends of Jarasandh and also we need to implement new Laws, recruit new soldiers and think about renovating our country so that everyone can get the basic amenities.'
Karna entered the royal palace with his Gurus, Vishnugupt, Hiranyadhanush, Eklavya, Vishvanu. First, he asked Vishnugupt to find some men who were honest, intelligent and hardworking to be the ministers. Both his Gurus insisted to have a small coronation ceremony so that he could sit on the throne. Karna asked his Gurus to rest for today and the next day they would have a small ceremony and then they would start with the court procedure. Karna was sure that soon other kingdoms would get the news of Jarasandh's death and would come to attack Magadh. So he asked his tribal soldiers to stay vigilant.
Next day,
A small ritual was organized to perform Karna's coronation. Both Parshuram and Viswamitra performed the rituals. Then Karna called his trusted acquaintances which had all honest citizens personally hand-picked by Vishnugupt, all trusted tribal chiefs and warriors in his sabha. Then he addressed everyone,
Karna, 'My respected elders and beloved citizens, as you all put your trust on me, I will try till my last breath to protect you and make Magadh a powerful and prosperous country of Aryavart where everyone can live harmoniously without any discrimination. Magadh has everything a prosperous kingdom needs, we have fertile lands, plenty of water bodies, mines, forests and talented men and women. Just we need a proper planning and strategy to develop infrastructure and arrange an army to protect ourselves. Vishnuguptji, you are going to be my chief minister and Vishvanu you will be the commander in chief of our army.'
Vishvanu, 'Thank you Maharaj, but right now we need to assemble the army as soon as possible as other kingdoms will think us vulnerable and try to attack.'
Vishnugupt, 'Yes, former Maharaj Jarasndh had accumulated a good amount of treasure in the royal vault. Other Kings will definitely try to loot that and they will again make us their slaves.'
Karna, 'No it will not happen as long I am alive.'
Viswamitra, 'Putra, you gave us our Gurudakshina by freeing Magadh. But now your real test begins. All kings of Aryavart will never accept a Suta as a king and they will try to defeat you. But if you can defeat the powerful kingdoms, then they will understand the strength of Magadh and stop the unnecessary attack.'
Karna, 'Yes Gurudev. I will definitely stop those kings. My gut feeling is saying that soon Hastinapur or Panchal will attack us. We need to make an alliance with Dwarka and now Mathura is a part of Magadh. In exchange to Mathura, we can ask for an alliance.'
Viswamitra, 'Good plan. We have three superpowers in Aryavart now. Hastinapur, both northern and southern Panchal and Dwarka. If we get Dwarka then it will be easy for you. But Karna I have a request, once you defeat Hastinapur and Panchal, I want to be the Kulguru of Magadha royal family.'
Karna, 'Gurudev, it will be an honor to us. Your presence and blessings are our strength.'
Parshuram, 'Putra, if Hastinapur attacks, you have to defeat Bheesm. I want to see his defeat.'
Karna, 'Gurudev, your wish is my command.'
Karna and Vishnugupt then appointed various other men in their proper position. Eklavya was appointed as Karna's bodyguard and chief assistant. Then he with the help of Vishnugupt started rebuilding the infrastructure like houses, hospitals, schools. The only proper thing they had was the army barrack. Though many soldiers were cruel like Jarasandh and were killed or punished but most of them still had their humanity left. So they joined Karna and together with the tribals they started to train together. Karna implemented basic education to all as well as in women. He also encouraged tye women to have the basic weapons and combat training. Karna also punished all the corrupt ministers. During the trial Mantri Tathacharya said, 'You cannot give me the death penalty, I am a Brahmin. Killing a Brahmin is a grave sin.'
Karna smiled, 'You are right Tathacharyaji. I am not going to give you the death penalty.'
Tathacharya smirked thinking that the new king was scared of the sin of Brahmin Hatya and he would be spared. He thought that Karna would give him exile (a common punishment for Brahmin criminals) and he would leave and go to Hastinapur and would give all necessary information against Magadh so that they could attack. But little did he know that what stored for him.
Karna, 'Eklavya take this man out and cut all his limbs. Then ask the Royal doctor to treat him properly so that he remains alive. Then chain him in front of the market so that everyone can see him. Order all the citizens that whenever they pass the road, they shall spit on his face and kick him. But don't worry Tathacharyaji, we will not let you die. You will get royal meals every day. If you get sick, you will get the royal treatment. We will keep you alive so that everyone can see, what will happen to a Brahmin who molested innocent girls and tortured the citizens. '
Everyone present in the sabha was shocked to hear such a cruel punishment. They realized how dangerous could their Maharaj be if he wanted to. Tathacharya paled hearing his punishment. he begged Karna but the guards dragged him outside. Karna ordered the same punishment for the Senapati as well.
A week later,
Entire Magadha was slowly rebuilding. In the morning Karna was busy with the court then he a hawk came to deliver a letter. Karna took the letter which was written in codes and after deciphering it, he said, 'Hastinapur is preparing to attack Magadha. My spy from HP sent us the news.'
The court was agitated but they maintained their cool as they knew they had to think logically. Karna said, 'Look I know the army of HP is greater than us but with our tribal friends' help we have more soldiers. HP always recruited Kshatriyas so those armies are not familiar with Guerilla warfare. Our biggest advantage is our location. Magadha is surrounded by forests, rivers and mountains. So if we use the terrain properly then we will have the upper hand. Vishvanu, Eklavya and all other chiefs, we need your people to create booby traps in the forests. Another possibility is an attack from the Ganga river by boat. Our Kaivarta tribal friend will help us. They are the best boatman and they knew water bodies well. Kaivartha chief Shivdatta, you will protect us from the waterside. For mountains, we have our Gond tribe friends who are best in using the uphills and tunnels and stealthily killing the opponents. Atavik chief Gajraj, we need your elephants. You are the best elephant tamers. Use the elephants to kill the soldiers in the forest. Now, all get ready. If we can use the strategies, then we can easily defeat HP army.'
Vishnugupt, 'My hunch says that they will not send the Maharathis or their Rajkumars, at least not the Pandavs Rajkumars. My spies informed me that they are great warriors and they themselves defeated Drupad. So HP will not send them thinking that we are weaker.'
Karna, 'Yes, I know that they are really great, at least Arjun is really a great archer but not the best as Dronacharya claims. In fact Rajkumar Duryodhana has the ability to defeat the other four. But what I know they all are arrogant and their overconfidence is going to be their downfall.'
Vishvanu, 'How do you know about them?'
Karna, 'Because I went to that kalapradarshan of the Rajkumars in disguise. A year back when all the princes returned from the Gurukul, a Kalapradarshan was arranged and there I saw their strengths and weaknesses.'
One minister asked, 'But Maharaj, they are Devputras. Can we defeat the Devputras? And even if we can defeat the Rajkumars, Hastinapur has Bheesm, Dronacharya, Kripacharya. How can we defeat them all together?'
Karna said, 'Mantri Ji, leave that to me. As I promised, I will protect Magadha till my last breath.'
Another minister asked, 'Maharaj, this kind of stealth attack is not a code of Dharmyudh. It will be Adharm if we use Gerrila attack.'
Karna, 'Mantriji, war itself is an adhram. As war brings us nothing but loss, pain and separation. But it is a necessary evil as without fighting a war today, we cannot protect our land from others. So to protect my country's honor and my people's dignity I am ready to do any Adharm as for me humanity is the biggest war. And remember everyone, war has only one rule and that is winning. So to win, anything and everything is fair.'
The ministers trusted Karna but still, they were scared. The tales of HP warriors valor were famous in Aryavart. They saw Karna fought with Jarasandh but how could he protect Magadha when they would use Divyastras? But still, they did not want to go under Hastinapur. Hastinapur was famous for its strict social hierarchy. The condition of the common people was very bad there. After winning Magadha, Hastinapur would treat them as second-class citizens as they did with Gandhar and they were sure about that. So they also decided to fight till their last.
Next days,
Karna was doing his Suryapuja when Bhagwan Parshuram came there.
Parshuram, 'Karna, now your journey has begun as a ruler. You are going to be the breaker of chains and defeating HP is your first step. Till now very few only knows about your knowledge of tridev astras and the divine Kavach. So their ignorance will definitely give you upper hands. But Karna, HP's army is huge. They also have Northern Panchal with them. So you cannot defeat them completely now. But what you can do that to show them your valor so that they will think ten times before attacking you again.'
Karna, 'Gurudev, I have a perfect strategy for that. But this time Bheesm will not be spared. I know he has Icchamrityu so I cannot kill him, but I will do something that will be a thousand times worse than death. I can make his condition worse than what happened to that wretched Mantri Tathacharya.'
Parshuram smiled sadly, he thought, 'Sorry Karna but you have to wait for that for some more time. Bheesm's time still has not come. But yes, from now Bheesm's downfall is going to start.'
Karna and all his allies prepared themselves. Karna talked to all Tribals who lived near Magadha to join his kingdom. As they knew Aditya, they agreed and now they all were ready to fight for their freedom. As Karna expected, Hastinapur thought that it would be easy to defeat a kingdom which condition was so poor. Till now they could not do anything because of Jarasandh and his army but now Jarasandh was dead. So there must be civil war. Though they heard that now they had a king who was a Suta. So they did not trust it as Sutas were weak and even if they had a Suta king, he could be easily defeated. So only hundred Kauravas, Aswatthama and their army came to win Magadha. This was a perfect opportunity for the Kauravas to regain their respect back after their defeat in Panchal.
They crossed the western border through the forest. But inside the forest the tribals were ready with their booby traps and stealth attacks. Many soldiers died because of the traps. They fell of the holes in the ground covered with leaves, sudden arrows came from the forest which killed their soldiers but the HP army could not locate the enemy because of the thick forest. Once the tribals broke the bee hives and Hastinapur army was attacked by bees. Somehow the Rajkumars protected themselves but many of the soldiers died. The Rajkumars and Aswatthama reached to a clearer part of the forest where they saw a group of Nishad soldiers were waiting for them. Their Senapati was a tall man but his entire body was covered with black clothes. The Kuru princes along with Aswatthama ordered their remaining army to attack. The HP army tried to fight but they were defeated badly as they were tired and the Nishad army was trained by Karna himself. Aswatthama fought with the Senapati but he realized that his opponent was a great warrior. Aswatthama released many Divyasrtras but the man countered everything. Then the man released 'Parshwapastra' which Hypnotizes him and he slept.
When Aswatthama became conscious again, he found himself and other Kuru princes inside a big room that looked like a dungeon. A huge iron door was the only way to go out of the room and it was also locked. He asked Duryodhana, 'Mitra, where are we? How did we come here?'
Duryodhana, 'After you fainted, that man fought with me. He is really a great warrior like Arjun. He countered all my strikes and bound me with Naagpash. Infact all the soldiers also have some knowledge of Divyastras. They also used 'Tashtra', 'Naagpash' etc. I must say we underestimated Magadha.'
Dusshasshan, 'Now the Pandavas will come again and will take credit of our rescue.'
Sudenly the door of the dungeon opened and there entered two men. One was the same Senapati in black but this time his face was not covered and seeing him Aswatthama screamed, 'You...so you defeated me?'
The senapati aka Eklavya smiled, 'Hello Aswatthama, nice to meet you. So sad, now Dronputra was defeated by a mere Nishad. Your father must be very disappointed?'
Both Aswatthama and Duryodhana were shocked. Last time when they met Eklavya he was a polite, soft spokesperson. They could not think that the same Aswatthama could taunt them like that.
Duryodhana, 'So you want revenge from my Mitra for his Father's misdeeds?'
Another person also stood there and he was covered with a white cloth. His face was also covered so they could not see him. He said, 'So what do you expect Rajkumar, all lower class people will always remain meek and helpless so that you so-called Upper-class royalties can torture them, treat them like dirts under your shoes? No, my prince, the time has changed. Now it is time for us to take back what we are deprived of till now. '
Vikarna, 'What will you do to us?'
The mysterious man said, 'Nothing, you are all prisoners of war and we always treat the POWs properly. But if you misbehave then we will forget our rules and show you your true places. So now just keep quiet. I am sending food, eat it and sleep.'
Duryodhana screamed, 'You cannot keep us here for long you scum. Hastinapur has great Maharathis like our Pitamaha and Guru Drona. They will come and your kingdom will be destroyed.'
That man turned to Duryodhana and just said, 'I know and I am waiting for him.'