On a bright new morning, the battalion had set sail from Varuni island under the leadership of Samarth. Being the eldest, most experienced, and war-tanned among the group, technically he was in charge of the mission. Though Aparaajitha and Mrithyunjay were like the twin eyes of this mission, the final right to decide the exact course of action had been vested on Samarth by Annapoorna.

Annapoorna said, "General Samarth, your decision will be final. Not that I fear Aparaajitha would make a wrong decision that isn't in everyone's interest. This is the first time she is setting out on such a difficult and dangerous journey. I am still not sure if she is fully ready for this. I gave in to the wishes of the children. But I still fear her youth, inexperience, impetuosity and deep-rooted dislike and vengeful mentality for Subahu which might occasionally mislead her. I rely on you to keep all of them out of danger while successfully completing this mission."

"Please rest assured, Amma. I will take care of everything. Nothing will go wrong as long as I am alive", assured Samarth.

The fleet of five ships set sail on a south-easterly course with favorable winds and tides. As Aparaajitha waved goodbye to her foster mother and everyone at the islands from the deck of her ship, she felt her chest become heavy with emotion. As they started sailing further and further into the sea, all the people turned into distant specks on the horizon. After a few more minutes, the coastline and the islands were lost from the view.

Aparaajitha wiped the slight moistness from her cheeks. She turned around to examine her current surroundings. She told within herself, "That life is over. This is a new phase of my life." She glanced around at the crew members on her ship. These people were going to be her friends, supporters and comrades in this mission. She had to cultivate a close rapport with them and win their trust if this mission was to succeed.

Aparaajitha flashed a brilliant smile greeting them. But most of them simply nodded and continued with their duties. She felt momentarily disappointed. They were still apparently embarrassed and distant whenever they interacted with her. They spoke in monosyllables of 'Yes' and 'No'. It seemed as though they didn't regard her as one among them but placed her on a high pedestal much above them.

She envied the kind of rapport both Samarth and Mrithyunjay enjoyed with these men. They joked, they laughed, they made merry, they sang songs and also occasionally danced while rowing . Samarth was on the ship that was leading the rest of the ships including theirs. Mrithyunjay was at the steering wheel of their ship. Aparaajitha turned to Malli and asked, "Malli, why do these men treat us so distantly as if we are aliens from another planet? Don't they like us coming along with them on this mission?"

"Appu, both of us are the odd ones out. These men would never have travelled before with women on board. It is natural they feel shy and embarrassed. Why look at our flying tresses of hair and their short and trimmed hair. Look at our clothes and theirs. We are dressed in such fine silks and jewelry. And almost all of them are wearing sooty, oily, and stained cotton clothes. They are just wearing tunics and some sort of long pull up pants."

Aparaajitha instantly realized that though she did not want to create any sort of distance between herself and her men, her gender and her style of dressing were unconsciously self-imposing them on the men. Gender was something she couldn't help. They had to make peace with it with time. But style of dressing was something she could change. Without a doubt, they would never interact with her on an equal level if she was going to be dressed in such finery.

She summoned one of the crew members and asked him for something in a low voice. He sounded very surprised, "Are you sure, Princess? I am not sure it is advisable."

"You don't worry about that. I will manage. These clothes are too stuffy for a journey like this", Aparaajitha winsomely replied.

The crew member did not demure any further. He went in and brought back four pairs of clothes the crew members wore along with him, "These were the only spare pairs we could manage for you and your friend, Princess."

"Thank you. That will be all .....except that you will not call me Princess hereafter. Call me Aparaajitha, Appu, Comrade, Mate or anything under the Sun except Princess", said Aparaajitha. "Tell all your friends the same."

The man nodded his head and began "Prin....." by force of habit before he corrected himself "Comrade".

Aparaajitha felt absolutely elated. This was the first baby step she had taken towards knowing her men and interacting with them at a personal level. They would no doubt fight for her and her cause. But they would not root for her the way her father's soldiers did for him unless they saw her as one among them.

She still remembered those days when her father used to go on tours around the villages of Mahishmati. She  used to accompany him on several occasions along with her mother. All of them sat around the bonfire eating the same food and sharing a slice of their own lives with him. They did not see him or her mother apart from them. May be because both of them had been humble citizens of the soil for the early part of their lives without being burdened by the tag of royalty.
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After strolling and rambling around the ship for a while, Aparaajitha made herself acquainted with the crew members and soldiers along with whom they were traveling. An entire morning had passed. It would take two and a half days more to reach the western shores of the Mahishmati mainland where all their ships were headed. The first batch of galley crew had been given a break from rowing while the second batch took over from them.

Food and drinks were passed over from one person to the other. Aparaajitha and Malli sat down affably with the rest of them eating with relish the simple and humble food that had been served for everyone. After her meal, Aparaajitha remarked, "That was the most wonderful meal I had. I never enjoyed my food so much. You guys must have added some special spice to make it tasty."

"We do not add anything special. But what makes food so tasty to eat is the fact that all of us labor for it. Ask any farmer. His midday meal would be the tastiest after he has worked the whole morning on his field. A smithy would say the same thing about his repast simple and humble as it is. It is the feeling that we have earned our food through hardwork that makes every meal special", said one of the experienced and aged sailors.

Aparaajitha exclaimed, "Yes, very true. There is a lot I have to learn about life from all of you. I have hardly seen what real life is." After a pause, she suddenly asked, "Did Mrithyunjay eat as well? He didn't come down to eat with the rest of you."

A crew member replied, "Mrithyunjay is usually the last one to eat. He always remains near the steering wheel ensuring that we stay on course. He rarely takes any breaks even to eat or sleep. He literally forgets himself during these journeys. We usually send his food up after everyone on board has had their fill."

Aparaajitha clicked her tongue, "That is really bad then. He ought to take care of himself and his needs. Send his food up immediately. I will ensure that he eats each and every morsel."

"I will send it up immediately", said a crew member.

Aparaajitha said, "Yes, thank you."

A few eyebrows were unconsciously raised at the peculiar concern and solicitude the Princess seemed to feel and express for Mrithyunjay. But however, they refrained from expressing it in words and calmly went about their usual chores and duties on the ship. Malli dragged her friend aside and said, "What did you do Appu?"

"Why? Did I do something I shouldn't have done?" Aparaajitha innocently asked as if she did not understand what her friend was trying to hint.

"I know that you like Mrithyunjay. But was it necessary to make an advertisement of it to every crew member?" An exasperated Malli asked.

"How sad isn't it? Every crew member and you too notice everything I feel. And the object of my attentions, Mrithyunjay, just remains impervious to everything I do for him", lamented Aparaajitha.

"Yes, true. I wonder why he becomes so stiff-backed with you", laughed Malli. Mimicking Mrithyunjay's voice and body language, she continued, "Yes, Princess. Your wish is my command! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"I wish he would at least forget temporarily for some time that I am the Princess of Mahishmati and be just the Mrithyunjay I like to me. He always creates this invisible wall between us. I know both of us have several duties and responsibilities and that we cannot run away from. But does this mean we can never be happy together? I yearn for something apart from being the Princess of Mahishmati and being the daughter of my parents. These things came to me by birth. But somewhere down the line, I yearned to hold the hand and walk beside the person who held my hand when I was drowning in that whirlpool. I was too small then to give an exact name to what I really felt. I grew up watching him serve me and my needs unconditionally without seeking anything in return. I didn't know when I started feeling that I could not contain myself from reciprocating everything Mrithyunjay had ever done for me. I wanted to serve him and his needs just the way he looked after mine. I know both of us give different names to the same thing we feel. He gives this the name 'LOYALTY' while I give mine the name 'LOVE'."

Malli embraced her disappointed friend while trying to console her, "I know. I understand everything. Don't worry. Both of you will have a number of opportunities to spend time together and get to know each other better. He will realize what your true feelings for him are during this mission. If he will not, I will endeavor to drive some sense into him."

"I just hope so!"
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Mrithyunjay was completely engrossed at the ship's steering wheel. When Aparaajitha took his food up for him, it did not immediately register in his mind that it was her. After a cursory glance at the dress, he simply assumed that it was one of the crew member and waved off to take back the lunch that was brought.

However, Aparaajitha refused to budge from there. Contrary to his instructions, she brought the lunch and set it right before him. Only now did he realize the identity of the supposed crew member. After fidgeting a bit in embarrassment, he politely demurred. But Aparaajitha was not about to be convinced by it. She simply remained standing where she was until finally Mrithyunjay himself was forced to reluctantly budge from his position and sit down to eat the food she had brought.

Her face instantly brightened up as she served his food and handed it over to him. She sat down beside him watching him as he ate with his eyes resolutely on his plate while her eyes were resolutely only on him. Finally, he had completed eating his food and rose up to wash his hands. She poured the water from the water jug for him to wash his hands.

At that moment, his determination and resolution got the better of him and he slightly looked up to catch her eyes for a single fleeting moment. Both of their eyes met and they simply got entranced in that moment. The water which she was pouring kept flowing from the jug. He had finished washing his hands but refused to draw back his hand. The water in the jug had got exhausted but neither did she nor he notice. So they stood together unmindful of everything when they heard Malli giggling away looking at both of them. Both of them drew back embarrassed.

Mrithyunjay looked up at her and said, "Thank you!" But the very next instant he lowered his heightened glance to the ground with utmost respect and esteem. Aparaajitha who had expected a lot more from him was apparently dejected. But she instantly tried to cover it up by talking about something different, "Captain, can you please explain to us about this ship and how it works? I hardly know anything about it at all."

"Yes, Princess. Your wish is my command. Please come this way." Aparaajitha inwardly groaned and flinched at these words. They reminded her of all those invisible walls that kept both of them apart.

"Navigational vessels like ships are divided into two classes Samanya (ordinary) and Vishesha (Special) based on the type of voyage they undertake. Ours is a special sailing vessel with a higher and wider hull called Unnata (best). Based on the positioning of the cabins and furnishing, we can classify this vessel as a Sarvamandira vessel. This is the most comfortable and suitable among all the five ships that are currently sailing to Mahishmati. The rest have been crafted in the style of the Agramandira vessels that are mainly warships. This has been done to ensure your personal comfort, Princess."

Aparaajitha nodded trying to grasp all this superfluous information while he continued, "That is 'Nava-Bandhan-Kilaha' (anchor) which we drop whenever we land at a sea port or harbor. This is the 'Vata Vastra' (wind-cloth) which helps the ship make use of the direction of the wind while traveling. This is the 'Stula-Bhaga' (hull) of our ship and that is the 'Nava-Tala' (bottom of the ship). This is the 'Keni-Pata' (rudder) and that is the 'Kupadanda' (mast). You see this iron  iron fish floating in a vessel of oil,  pointing towards the North. It is a mariner's compass and shows us the exact direction in which we are traveling. We call it the 'Matsya-Yantra' (fish machine)."
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Two more days at sea passed uneventfully. There was only a half a day of voyage at sea left to traverse before they would land on the western shores of Mahishmati when the weather turned stormy all of a sudden and gales of enormous speeds started tossing and turning all the five  ships.

An anxious Aparaajitha asked, "What's happening, Mrithyunjay? Is everything alright?"

He did not have anything comforting or soothing to say in reply. He just pointed to the waves rising like a huge fortress all around them. As all their ships pitched and tossed on the tremulous waters of the Sea of Ratnasagara and the fearful gales, he said, "We are all in the eye of a terrible storm."

Aparaajitha clutched his hand for comfort. This time, he did not unclasp her hand. He took her hand fully in his, covering and shielding it from the fury of the storm. Full of stoic determination and a fatalistic self-belief in their destiny, he whispered a promise in her ear, "This too will pass! We will survive this.....TOGETHER!"
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Author's Note: Hope all of you liked this part. Were any of you expecting this storm? Where do you think this will take our protagonists? If you liked what you read, kindly vote, comment and support this story.