the desert's rose

shattered view (🏜️🌹)

flashback

Heavy was the head that bore the burden of the crown.

That was the phrase passed down to Bharmal from the lips of his father, Prithviraj Singh. Except he was never meant to be the heir to the throne in the first place. That honour was due to his older brother, Puranmal Bhaisa. As for the then Rajkumar, he was satisfied with supporting his Bhaisa and providing counsel until the Battle of Mandrail which took the life of Raja Puranmal.

It took a series of plots, coups and overthrowing before the people of Amer reached their decision - their choice being Raja Bharmal as their king. He had sworn before the deities and the people that he would protect them even if it meant him losing his life.

Yet, here he was.

He had greatly underestimated the might of the Mughal Empire and that of their emperor, Shehenshah Jalaluddin Mohammad even after the latter had breached what was supposed to be the heavily guarded borders of Amer.

He had underestimated them and now, he was paying for it. His sons, his nephew, his soldiers - all of them were held as hostages by Mirza Shariffudin Hussain.

If he had taken the counsel of his advisor, Jairam Singh, maybe he would not be here in this underground tunnel awaiting Chughtai Khan's arrival.

The older man let out a shuddering sigh at the thought of what he was about to do - the one thing he would have never imagined doing in the many years he had lived. But at the same time, there was so much at stake that he had no option but to swallow his pride and leave Amer under the blanket of the night.

No one was aware of the true nature of his absence, not even Mainavati, Bhagwan Das or Jodha. And he hoped to keep it that way until he came back home, at least.

The sound of footsteps kept him vigilant as his hand gripped tightly on his sword in case he was about to encounter an intruder. However, he let out a sigh of relief when his ears picked up the sounds of chiming payals. It was probably the maids out to offer puja.

The royal women and the dasis had resorted to using the underground tunnels which linked the palatial forts to the surrounding mandir following the war.

Now, Bharmal could not confidently trust the safety of the tunnels as he could not say if the infamous Badshah knew of their existence or if Sujamal had also mouthed off about the tunnels to the Mughals.

His relief was short-lived as soon as he came face-to-face with the one person he was hoping would not find him there.

Jodha.

What was she doing here?

His legs moved a step back but it seemed to be a waste of time when she called out his name.

"Bhapusa," her face lit up with the glow of the torch as she stared at him in confusion.

No matter how many excuses he tried to come up with to explain why he was there, none of them made sense.

"J-Jodha, I was about-."

For the first time in many months, a warm smile lit up on his oldest daughter's face. The next words that left her lips brought back that relief.

"I understand you are about to seek help, Bhapusa," she said, her eyes softer than how they had been within the past few months. "Whatever decision you are going to make, I ask that you make them not as a father, as a king."

His lips curled in a smile as he nodded in assent.

Jodha smiled again at him before moving ahead in the tunnel. It took a moment before the sounds of payals would eventually fade into the background.