To be honest I intended to publish this chapter on Saturday because getting into top 10 on a Saturday would be incredibly beneficial for me but as always when it comes to Enchanted my self control levels are in the negatives, so here we go.
Brace yourself, this chapter will touch your hearts
Also please read and vote on the author's note as well, I wrote it with a lot of love ❤️
*** Veer ***
"Okay boys, you ready?" I asked my friends.
Apparently Sruthi somehow found and read the General's note but for some reason refuses to completely accept it as the truth, so we being the General's army decided to help him express his love.
Will he get angry? Yes
Will he chase us around the soldiers compound with a stick like he did the last time we sang this song? Yes
Are we still going to sing it? Yes, because worst case, we run to the King......No, we run to the Queen.
The King can get too hung up with the rules.
"She's coming," Pratap whispered and we all got into character.
Hasta raha noorani chehra....Kali zulfein rang sunehra.....
We sung in unison pretending to not notice her and Naina as they walked into the corridors.
"Wow Veer!" Sruthi said surprised, "I've heard this song before. Did you write it for Naina?"
"I wish," I said outloud and looked towards Naina who looked a little disappointed.
I would like to once again re-emphasize that loving a women form the Queen's cabinet is a terrible idea. They spend their days watching King Adinath express his love for his Queen and those standards are uncanny to match with.
What if I am not King Adinath? Nainu is still my Queen!
"But then Sruthi," I continued, "despite my best efforts, I couldn't find the right words to describe the beauty and grace of my god gifted angel."
Naina looked away and smiled.
Her smile steals my heart!
*Ahem*
Pratap cleared his throat to bring me back from my fantasy land.
"This song was actually written by the general," I said turning towards Sruthi.
"For whom?" she asked innocently.
Her innocence is going to be the death of me.
I can't be that explicit and still expect to survive and marry my general's sister.....
"Well," Naina replied on my behalf, "He only talks to four women, three of whom he considers sisters so....."
"He wrote it for me?" Sruthi asked surprised.
"Whom else would he write it for, my future bhabhi?" Naina chuckled and Sruthi visibly smiled at the new nickname.
My future wife is a chameleon.
Challenged me to make a 1000 paper birds in order to reveal our relationship to the general but then revealed her brother's relationship to Sruthi without a second thought.
He did not even make a single paper bird!!!!
UNFAIR!!!!
"Can you....can you sing me the full song?" Sruthi asked me with almost teary eyes and happy smiles.
"Of course Sruthi," I replied, "Let's meet during our break and...."
Our conversation was interrupted midway when we heard the sounds of rain.
"Tea for the Queen," Sruthi and Naina said in unison and ran away.
No Nainu....stay....I want to get lost in your eyes....
"Take charge brother," I commanded Pratap and followed them.
"Veeru, stay in your limits," Naina said as I playfully pulled the end of her chunni while she walked into the library with the tray.
"Or what?" I asked with a smile.
"Or the Queen will...." she paused when we saw the Queen and I immediately let go of Naina's chunni and we bowed in unison.
"Tea for you, your highness," Naina said and placed the tray on the table beside the Queen.
"What are you doing here, Veer?" the Queen asked me and I looked at Naina who was now standing beside the Queen.
Naina blew air on her fingers, flipped her hair, and looked at me with a smirk, like the cute demon she is.
"Your highness," I replied, "If I have your permission, I wanted to have a look at the books in the library and see if I could borrow some to have in our recreation room. I think it would be a good addition for my men."
"Of course Veer," the Queen replied, "Are you looking for any specific genre?"
"I think mythology and fiction would be good, your highness," I replied.
"Last row," the Queen pointed and I bowed once again and made my way to the last row, pulling Naina's braid as I walked past her and she turned back to hit me at the back of my head.
There is a reason I call her my cute demon!
"Naina, why does the tea taste different?" the Queen asked after a while, "Did you try a new method?"
"No, your highness," Sruthi replied, "We ran out of the usual tea leaves, so we had to use a different one. I spoke with the supply head, he said he will get it from the stock and give it to us by tomorrow."
"But..." the Queen hesitated, "Why get it from the stock? Usually we take our supply the day we recieve the trade from Agastya."
I paused my work when I heard that statement and focussed on their conversation.
"Do you think the trade between the two kingdoms has been affected?" the Queen asked with slight hesitation.
"Your highness, I think you are thinking too much," Naina replied, "Sometimes the supply does get delayed. It could very well be a conincidence."
"No Naina, it is not just this," the Queen said and showed the papers infront of her, "These are the direct letters from the King and none of them were written by him and all they say is that they are safe and are returning soon."
"But your highness," Sruthi responded, "If it says they are safe and...."
"If they are safe, why wouldn't he send a personal letter to his wife after abandoning her over night without giving any information," the Queen asked and the girls fell silent.
"Forgot Adi," the Queen added, "Given how much the general cares for me, atleast he should be writing a letter stating that I have nothing to worry about."
I got to thinking.
Is Vishnu sir right????
"There are only two possibilties," the Queen said, "Either they are safe, in which case they would've written to me or they are not, in which case something terrible is happening at the North borders and somehow the crown is not aware of it."
"You highness, I still think....."
"Your highness," I interrupted their conversation and the Queen turned towards me.
"I apologize for interrupting the conversation," I continued, "but Vishu sir said he wants to talk to you in private and wishes to keep it unofficial and off records."
"About what?" the Queen asked.
"I don't know your highness," I shook my head, "And as an acting security incharge I am not supossed to allow that. That is both against my job values and is a betrayal of the trust the general has on me." "But..." I hesitated, "given the current discussions, if you think it would be benefical, I will take the risk and arrange that meeting in the palace temple tonight. I think he might have some of the answers that you are looking for."
The Queen looked surprised and terrified at the same time and so did the rest of the Queen's cabinet.
After all, my words just re-emphasized the Queen's dreaded theory.
Yet I think this is necessary.
"I wish to meet him," the Queen replied.
"Certainly, your highness," I nodded.
*** Nanda ***
"Here have this umbrella," I gave the soldier in attempts to protect my men from the hot sun.
"I don't need it sir," he replied with a smile, "I can withstand a little heat."
"Appreciate that," I stated, "but just because you can doesn't mean you should." "Take it," I commanded.
"They won't be able to hold the umbrellas for long, Nanda," I heard Verma's voice on the other end.
"What else can I do, Verma?" I said honestly almost forgetting that he is not my friend anymore, "Am doing the best in my power."
"If you are okay with it, we can plant poles on either sides put a cloth over it and make a long roof across the borders for all our soldiers," he suggested.
"Sounds good," I replied, "Promise to not kill me if I step inside?"
"Promise of the little..."
"Finger," Verma and I completed in unison and smiled as we remembered our childhood.
*** Verma ***
"Are you...are you happy with war, Verma?" Nanda asked as we tied the rope around the pole together.
I weakly smiled.
"When has war ever brought happiness, Nanda?" I replied.
"Then why fight it?" Nanda asked and I fell silent. "Verma you have the power to stop this," he continued, "Those six kingdoms and their soldiers would never dare to raise a sword against the Nine Kingdoms, if they don't have your support."
"Come to our side, my friend," he continued, "We need neither your land nor your power. I will speak to the King. I will make you the King of those six kingdoms. We can live in peace and harmony like before."
"Will the King spare my father?" I asked.
"Verma, you can't expect the Nine Kingdoms to spare a man who betrayed us and went behind our back to wage a war," he said trying to be as respectful as he could be.
"Then Nanda, how can you expect me to put my mother's sindhoor and her happiness on the line in exchange for power?" I replied and Nanda fell silent.
"War is inevitable, my friend," I added and continued to work on the thread.
*** Veer ***
"What do you want to talk about sir?" the Queen asked without revealing any of her previous assumptions.
"You highness, I think someone is betraying the King at N1," Vishnu sir replied.
"What the hell is N1?" I asked letting my intrusive thoughts win.
"You don't know that Veer?" Vishnu sir asked genuinely confused.
How the hell am I supossed to know random made up terms.
By the looks of it even Naina and Sruthi don't know what the hell he is talking about....
The bloodly entitlement!
There is a reason we hate the intellectuals.
"I'll explain," the Queen said noticing the rising tension and started drawing on a piece of paper.
"This is the capital," she said writing in the middle of the paper, "And this is the north borders," she said drawing a long line and marking it with a N." "It is the farthest from the capital and is a 7 segment zone which means it takes 7 days to travel from the capital to the North border and when the King or our men travel to the borders, they make a stop every night at one of the segments. The intellectuals call them N1, N2, N3, N4, N5, N6 and the soldiers call them drop points."
"Oh," Sruthi and Naina added and I had an unsaid appreciation of the Queen for explaining from the beginning in order to make them understand as well.
"So...your highness," Sruthi asked looking at the completed diagram, "Does that mean travelling South or East or West would take only 4 days?"
"From the capital, yes," the Queen answered.
"And it takes 4 days to reach North East or North West from the North borders?" Naina asked.
My wife is smart!
"Yes, correct," the Queen replied.
"So beta," Vishnu sir added looking at Sruthi and Naina, "If the King sends a message from the North borders, it would make a stop at each of these segments and exchange hands. So the soldier from N7 would give the note at N6 and go back to N7 to send the message to the King. The soldier from N6 would give the note to N5 and go back to send a message to the governor at N6, who would then send a soldier to convey the message to the King and the two way chain continues."
"So does that mean..." Sruthi asked, "A note from the King would take 7 days to reach us?"
"Not necessarily beta," Vishnu sir explained patiently.
He is the true chameleon!
"Unlike humans," he continued, "Letters don't need rest, so we can expect them to reach us in 5 days."
"So what I am concerned about is, your highness," he said turning back to the Queen, "I got a letter from my cousin today. He lives in N2 and has mentioned that the King has declared emergency war and a potential trade freeze warning."
The Queen's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing those words and my heart skipped a beat.
A WAR!!!
WHY WASN'T THE ACTING KING MADE AWARE OF THIS???
"The fact that N2 has publicly declared an emergency and sent their soldiers to assist the King means that they probably are not the ones who are being traitors," the intellectual continued, "I suspect either the governor or some authority from N1 has been betraying the crown. I am trying to convey this to the Finance minister but he's been occupied with the budget planning and although I am sure he intends good....."
"I don't think he intends good, sir," the Queen interrupted with tears in her eyes as her heart tried to process what happened. "These are the..." her voice shivered and hesitated as she spoke "the letters from the King and none of them are written by him." "These are the recent trade reports," she said showing the intellectual another file, "The Minister of trade has clearly pointed an anomoly on the North trade and raised it to the acting King who acknowledged it but took no action what so ever."
"This wasn't discussed in the parliment, was it sir?" she asked Vishnu sir just to confirm.
"No...no," your highness, "he shook his head, "The..." he hesitated, "the finance minister....is...a traitor?"
"We need to confirm that, sir," the Queen hesitated, "Find out if N1 has declared an emergency."
"Well, it would take a whole day to travel there your highness," Vishnu sir replied, "What if it's too late."
"No sir, not really," I oppossed, "There is a shortcut through the jungle. We could go there in 2 hours. If I leave now, I'll be back my sunrise."
"No Veeru," Naina said worried, "That's dangerous."
"Trust me Nainu," I assured, "I am capable."
"But Veeru..."
"Nation before self, meri Jaan," I replied and Naina fell silent.
"I am sorry," I apologized and turned towards the Queen, "I will be back by sunrise your highness," I said and bowed making my way out.
*** Sruthi ***
"Your highness, are you sure you don't want to sleep?" I asked the Queen as she sat infront of the Devi maa looking into the godesses's eyes with hope and desperation. Every tear drop of her eyes begging her mother to prove her assumptions false, praying to bring back the man she loved... to keep him safe.
'My only blessing' are the words she used to describe the King. The man who changed her life the moment he stepped in, the man whose name is engraved in every ounce of her existence, the man who cherished her every word and honoured her every action....and with him is my man....the man I loved, the man who wrote songs for me, who wrote letters for me and who is supossed to be my husband once he comes back yet is stuck amongst war and death due to a cruel game played by fate.
"Don't worry beta," Vishnu sir who also stayed awake with us said upon noticing my fear, "Agastya is way smaller than the Nine Kingdoms. Our army could easily defeat theirs even if they do not get help from the capital."
Meanwhile we heard footsteps and the Queen immediately rushed towards the door to recieve Veer. Naina also ran outside to assure that her lover is safe and we followed.
"What happened Veer?" the Queen asked worried.
"Your highness....actually..." Veer hesitated.
"Veer my heart is refusing to beat until I get an answer," the Queen said with tears in her eyes, "Please tell me everything is alright."
Veer simply looked down unable to witness the pain in the Queen's eyes and gave her a letter.
Tears rolled down the Queen's eyes as they navigated across the lines in the paper. Her hands struggled as they desperately tried to hold the weight of the thin paper, or perhaps the words it conveyed. Her lips shivered as she tried to read the contents and her shoulders moved up and down rapidly demonstrating the turmoil of her heart and the fastness of her breaths as she tried to contemplate the fate of her husband, her white knight, and the Nine Kingdoms.
"Agastya has raised a war, sir," Veer almost whispered turning towards Vishnu sir, "And they were not alone. All our North neighbours are with them and there is a trade freeze from every single one of them."
"What?" I whispered surprised.
"Our men already fought a war," Veer continued, "and despite having a quater of their man power, we were able to win using our stratergy but in the King's own words, this is a one time possibility and we need all our active soldiers at the North borders effective immediately and also declare a national emergency."
"The Governor at N1 has already declared an emergency, sir," he added, "He has also conveyed the information. There are enough proofs suggesting that.The Finance minister has been sending fake letters to the Queen."
"The crown has been betrayed," he concluded, those mere words sending shivers down my spine.
I immediately looked at the Queen.
The man she loves is in danger!
The man she believed in has betrayed her!
The country she loves is in a state of emergecy!
The Queen is too pure to be experiencing this trauma.
"Your highness, let us raise this in the parliment," Vishnu sir suggested, "The Finance minister will fight back for sure but if we...."
"Do we really time for debates sir?" the Queen asked with no emotion except for the pain in her eyes that have now turned red due to tears.
"We don't, your highness," Vishnu sir replied, "But we cannot go and...." he paused talking when the Queen simply walked away and placed the letter at Devi ma's feet and kneeled down.
"A good man is being betrayed amma," she said with tears in her eyes. "Evil people's presence is making the throne inauspicious," she added, "The dharma I believe in is on the verge of extinction."
She took a deep breath.
"And I am finding it difficult to control my fury," she continued with fierceness in her eyes making my heart tremble.
Those red eyes now radiating rage instead of pain.
I've never seen the Queen this angry, not even while she was confronting Meihu
"If I am going down the right path, place your hand on my head and bless me as the mother of the universe," she continued, "And if I am going down the wrong path, be my mother, hold my hand, and stop me."
Why are the Queen's words so intimidating?
She used to be full of compassion and innocence?
"Because amma," the Queen added, "If you let me have my way, with the strength I derive from you I will destroy anything and everything I consider evil and only divine power would be able to stop me."
The entire temple fell silent and I looked at Vishnu sir and Veer to confirm that I am not the only one who is intimidated.
The fear and admiration in their eyes assured me that I am not.
The Queen took the Kunkum at the Devi ma's feet and placed it inbetween her eyebrows.
"Jai Bhavani," she whispered after touching the Queen's feet and placing her hand to her heart and turned back.
"Let's go, sir," she told Vishnu sir as she walked away while the rays of the rising sun shined behind her almost as if Surya Dev decided to send a message from the Devi ma herself.
The Queen's reign shall begin!
This has to be one of my favorite chapters and I will certainly come back to it whenever I feel low. Hope it is the same for you and please do come back so that I can stay in top 10 for longer lol and I also want to share this beautiful piece of music that has inspired me and gave me strength and power to write the scenes involving Devi ma
Target for next chapter: 1.4K votes and 650 comments
Next update: 16 March if the target is reached, 23rd March if it isn't
Question of the day: How are your exams going on?
Also I know that some of the discussions in this chapter can be confusing, so if you have any questions ask in my conversation board. This also applies to any other questions regarding the book. More often than not, comments get lost ❤️