the immortal of maluha

‘Really? Where does it come from? Do enlighten me.’
Daksha motioned towards Shiva and said, ‘Look who sits with us.’
Dilipa turned to Daksha’s right and asked incredulously, ‘Who’s he? What in Lord Indra’s
name is so special about him?’
Shiva squirmed, feeling increasingly uncomfortable.
Daksha spoke a little louder. ‘Look at his throat, Oh king of the Chandravanshis.’
Dilipa looked again with the same arrogance towards Shiva. Despite the dried smattering of
blood and gore, the blue throat blazed. Suddenly, Dilipa’s haughty smile disappeared. He
looked shocked. He tried to say something, but he was at a loss of words.
‘Yes, oh corrupt Chandravanshi,’ scoffed Daksha, moving his hands for dramatic effect. ‘We
have the Neelkanth.’
Dilipa’s eyes had the dazed look of a child who had just discovered that the hand that
brutally knifed his back belonged to his beloved father. Shiva’s heart was disturbed with
increased apprehension. This was not the way this meeting was supposed to occur.
Daksha continued his hectoring. ‘The Neelkanth has sworn to destroy the evil Chandravanshi
way of life. You HAVE to listen.’
A bewildered Dilipa stared at Shiva for what seemed like an eternity. At long last, he
recovered enough to softly whisper, ‘Whatever you say.’
Before Daksha could bluster further, Dilipa turned and staggered towards the tent curtain.
At the exit, he turned around to look at Shiva once again. Shiva swore that he could see a few
tears in those proud, haughty eyes.
As soon as Dilipa left the tent, Daksha got up and hugged Shiva, lightly, so as to not hurt the
Neelkanth. ‘My Lord, did you see the look on his face. It was precious!’
Turning towards Parvateshwar, he continued, ‘Parvateshwar, Dilipa is broken. You will have
no trouble controlling the Swadweepans and bringing them around to our way of life. We will go
down in history as the men who found a permanent solution to this problem!’
Shiva wasn’t paying attention. His troubled heart desperately searched for answers. How
could a struggle that appeared so righteous, just a few hours back, now suddenly appear
wrong? He turned towards Sati, forlorn. She gently touched his shoulder.
‘What are you thinking, my Lord?’ asked Daksha, intruding into Shiva’s troubled thoughts.
Shiva just shook his head.
‘I just asked if you would like to travel in Dilipa’s carriage to Ayodhya?’ asked Daksha. ‘You
deserve the honour, my Lord. You have led us to this glorious day’
This conversation did not appear important to Shiva at this point. He did not have the energy
to think of an answer. He just nodded in an absentminded manner.
‘Wonderful. I’ll make all the arrangements,’ said Daksha. Turning towards his aide, he
continued, ‘Send Ayurvati in to immediately dress the Lord’s wounds. We need to leave by
tomorrow morning to make sure that we have control over Ayodhya, before chaos reigns in the
aftermath of Dilipa’s defeat.’
With a namaste towards Shiva, Daksha turned to leave. ‘Parvateshwar, aren’t you coming?’
Parvateshwar gazed at Shiva, his face creased with concern.
‘Parvateshwar?’ repeated Daksha.
Taking a quick look at Sati, Parvateshwar turned to leave. Sati moved forward, holding
Shiva’s face gently. Shiva’s eyes seemed to droop with the heavy weight of tiredness. Ayurvati
lifted the curtain carefully. ‘How are you, my Lord?’