Mahina, capital city of Durja

Mahina was a city no one has ever spoke about in Sikva. No one has ever been to Mahina nor talked about, even if they did, it was about the cruelty the kingdom had done to the people of Kavish. Despite all the gruesome image given on people of Mahina, Ramani found them to be just fine, minding their own business, not bothered about anyone neither the new nor their own people. She watched as a middle-aged woman dragging her young son away from helping a man who had slipped his leg and fall. While on another episode, she caught a man stealing from a barely well earning old couple selling fruits.

Those were incidents she saw on her way to the city. Ramani, Arunya, a guard Nakshathra had sent with them, Dharani, the captain and his assistant were told to leave for Mahina and wait for them there. With no Nakshathra, they had a liberty to move in an open chariot giving them an opportunity to get a glimpse of the forbidden city. As they rode into the city, Ramani stared in awe at the whitewashed palace standing tall and wide as a backdrop to the many short but large sandstone buildings in the city. Coffeehouses and taverns were widely spread in the city while temples were seen one in every four directions. Bells from the shrines echoed. The streets were of baked blay bricks arranged in the similar fashion of a wall. Neat and simple.

The chariot rode them deeper into the city. Various smell from the manufacturing houses along the way filled the air; mostly of charcoal smoke. The most talked about landmark, the tree with vivid purple flowers, the Dhumra Droni tree came into view as they crossed a building with several sentinels at the front. A flute player sat in the shadow of the tree playing a melody of the Arocana Ratri a famous ballad sung in most of Lambodara. A ballad everyone in the chariot loved but Ramani couldn't hear anything but one old phrase.

'You will see your father shamefully hung on the Dhumra Droni tree if you defy me'

The words told to her many years ago resurfaced at the sight of the tree. Ramani shut her eyes tight, she waited for the sound of flute to fade and for the chariot to move further away from the view of Dhumra Droni. The chariot crossed narrow clay brick roads and a bridge crossing a waterway, bringing them to The Arana Square, a place for all the visitors to stay.

'Once they take you to Arana Square, find for the farthest inn from the bridge that's connecting to the city. In case of emergency, we can use the waterway to get out of the country.' It was an order from their princess. After scouting for the perfect place to stay, Dharani led them to a guesthouse nearest to the waterway located at the end of the Arana Square, just as Nakshathra had instructed.

It was one of the largest guesthouses in Arana, whitewashed with intricate paintings of animals and humans in the colour of the soil on the walls inside out. Furnished with wooden furniture and large sized pots in gold, a huge chandelier hung from the ceiling, one could use a fortune to pay for a night. Ramani drank in the spectacular guesthouse. Never once lived in a place as luxury as the guesthouse she fell into a day dream of owning one as such in the future. Ramani was awestricken by the appearance of the guesthouse she almost missed the conversation happening between Dharani and the woman at the front desk.

"Yes, we will get two rooms. One with two bed and the other with three."

Dharani's words finally hit her ears. A shared room with Arunya? She gave her head a faint shake, disagreeing it silently before she let herself talk.

"But I would like to get a single room for myself."

Five heads including the front desk who was working on some papers to get their rooms turned to her with a confused look.

"What do you mean? Do you have a problem in sharing a room with Arunya?" Dharani took a few steps and stood before her.

"Not that I have a problem. I just cannot because I like my privacy." She shrugged and tap the table to get the front desk's attention back but instead faced Dharani again. "Anyway, I am sure the fare for a night is quite reasonable. I am sure, you were given enough money to spend, were you not, Dharani?"

"We were not given the treasure box, Ramani, to spend as we wish." Dharani's eyes were filled with rage, burning her skull in its fury. "Take what's given or use your own money."

"Well, she did give you the money to accommodate each of us. So, who are you to question what I want?"

"I told you we only have that much and we are not sure the duration of our stay. An extra room is going to cost a little more than two shared rooms." Dharani tried as hard as he could to keep his voice low while he attempted to put sense into Ramani.

Behind them a conversation started between Arunya and the front desk woman. The words were too soft, Ramani could barely catch a word being spoken. However, a little while later, the front desk woman interrupted them.

"I have a suggestion. I can give you three rooms at the same price we had agreed on earlier. This young lady promised to bear the extra charges." She pointed at Arunya whose head hung low, fidgeting fingers with the loose end of her saree.

When Dharani crossed the distance in three stride and questioned her for her choice to bear the cost. She said, "We are getting too much attention and it isn't much. I checked with the lady. I'll pay for the extra. Let's finish this."

"Fine but make sure you don't get into trouble," he warned as he took out the pouch of coins Nakshathra had given him in Indrud.

Ramani huffed. "We will see to it that you don't bring trouble to us."

A loud clung burst in the lobby, the coin pouch was on the desk with Dharani's hand still clutching it tight, he glared at her. "Why will I when it's you who likes to roam around getting into petty arguments back there."

"I don't go to them, they co—"

"Alright, please stop. Shall we go get the keys and rest for the day. Please." Arunya begged with pleading eyes.

*-*-*-*-*

All three rooms were assigned on the third floor in the five-storey guesthouse. The corridors were painted in the colour of the sea while the floor sparkled in white along with the doors. Oil lamp lanterns hung between rooms, illuminated the hallway presenting a luxurious ambience. Ramani found her room corresponding to the number written on the key, next to her was Arunya's room while the room at the end of the hallway was the men's room.

Should I be worried to have Arunya as my neighbour? Ramani pondered as she watched Arunya unlock the door and disappear into the room. Worried or not, I should be careful not to be caught.

They spent their first day going around the wide Arana square relishing themselves with the famous local cuisines and talking to follow visitors alike, in other words killing their time as they wait for Nakshathra to get back safely from her expedition.

On the second day, they stepped out of the Arana Square and into the main city. Although they had nothing much to do in the city, upon the captain, Suyathi's request they all agreed to visit all the four temples of Devi Shambha, the deity who protects. The legend of Devi Shambha goes back five hundred years where an ordinary lady defended an army of two hundred of the then existed foe kingdom. She was hailed, celebrated, made into a legendary tale and later into a goddess.

Suyathi narrated the story to them as they travelled from the Arana Square to the east temple. Ramani followed the story with little interest. History wasn't her favourite and one from Durja can never pump her interest at all. She tagged along the group and entered into the temple of what looked like a huge dome made of limestone and glass. Inside the dome were four large pillars in the shape of human knight with armour guarding the goddess Shambha, each facing different directions. Seated in crossed leg, both the hands of Devi Shambha held on the hilt of the sword with the tip of the blade buried an inch into the ground. Next to her on a smaller pedestal was everyone's favourite deity the Ganesha.

By the end of the day, they were at the fourth temple of another similar copy of the last one they visited. It wasn't only exhausting for Ramani but it also bored her to the core, she was having a hard time not to let a word slip out of her mouth. All the while they were visiting from one place to another, Ramani knew the guard of the princess was having an eye on her. Is he suspecting me already? Ramani tried to convince them otherwise only to be seen more suspicious.

Outside the Southern temple a few empty bull-pulled carts waited to be hired for a ride. Suyathi insisted they use the cart for the day, the man looked paler than he was in the beginning of the day. Ramani could tell, he was about to fall sick by nightfall, the colour of his face and the clarity of his voice showed symptoms of sore throat.

"I think we should take the cart back to Arana," she joined Suyathi to convince the rest.

"Why can't you walk? We have to save as much as we can," Dharani

"Excuse me, are you blind? Can't you see, Suyathi isn't doing good. He going to go under the weather if he continues to strain himself."

She let Dharani make the call, what she needed to tell she had and there was nothing much to be done if this stingy guy decides to walk instead of renting a cart. But to her surprise, he hailed one. While she waited to get into the carriage, she felt a presence of someone behind yet before she could get a glimpse of them a note was slipped into her hand and they disappeared.

Ramani tried not to make it obvious as she tucked the small piece of the note into her waist band. Every passing minute seemed like hours of wait until they finally disembarked from the cart and made their way to their rooms silently. She was no longer bothered about Suyathi, he was the last thing she would think about but the first will be the note.

Ramani fumbled with the key and barged into the room. The small lantern lit at the corner of the room helped her locate the matches to lit the rest of the lamps. Her hands shook and she found herself running low with patience, Ramani grumbled and settled down next to the only lamp she managed to light up.

Meet me in the coffeehouse opposite Dhumra Droni after the twelfth bell. - Alli

*-*-*-*-*

When the night fall and the bell from the tower rang twelve times, Ramani sneaked out of the guesthouse to the coffeehouse near Dhumra Droni tree, where people were finishing their business for the day. She waited in the shadows close to the coffeehouse, fidgeting with her fingers and pacing within the boundary of the shadow.

Alli joined her soon after, cloaked and masked as always. They entered into the coffeehouse which was left unlocked. It made her wonder if the owner of the shop was also an ally to Alli.

"Where is she?" She slammed her hand on a table nearby, Ramani flinched a little. "Why did I not see her with you earlier?"

"Didn't you say you have eyes everywhere. Why don't you find her on your own?" retorted Ramani as she had always done.

Alli's emotionless eyes turned darker under the shawl. "Who do you think you are? You are paid do to as I say. Where is she?" she demanded.

"I don' know. She asked us to leave for Mahina first and she will meet us later."

The dimly lit coffeehouse restricted her from reading Alli's exact emotion. As much as she loved to see Alli in a troubled state, Ramani had no choice but to adhere to her orders. It would have been easy if Ramani was alone without a family but she still had one family member of hers alive... in Alli's captivity. For him, she had to do it putting her conscience away. While the cloaked lady dwelled in her own unrest thoughts, Ramani's own mind revisited the day it all begun.

Ten years ago on a humid night, she had unfortunate fate to witness the silent abduction that took place in her village. Masked rogues were dragging out men out of their houses, neither the men nor anyone in their family made any noise. Ramani sneaked into the nearest house only to find all of them were unconscious. No one woke up to her call. Every other house she later sneaked into was the same state. Ramani knew she had nothing much left to do, her father would have been taken away just like the others. She tailed the rogues carrying the men of her village to a canal where several large boats waited with no light except for the moon's brightness. Her courageous confrontation with Alli on the boat impressed her and that earned Ramani a concession—a deal. Information in exchange for her father's safety. Although Ramani did not manage to freed her father, she managed to keep him unscathed.

"Fine." Alli broke her silent from her afterthought. "I need you to give me every detail on her whereabouts as soon as she gets to Mahina. All of it." She closed the distance between them, eyes boring into Ramani's. "Don't ever try to act smart with me or you will see you father there." Alli pointed behind her. Thunder rumbled at the same time.

She dared not turn to see what Alli pointed at for she knew well what stood outside the coffeehouse. Ramani's limbs trembled as the mere image flashed in her mind.

"Will you keep my father alive if I give you the princess?"

*-*-*-***