Sa'eed - The Warrior

Crowning

Shehzada sat praying for a long time after Fajr Salah. All these days he had been looking forward to being crowned and now that the moment was here he felt scared. Being a Shehenshah was not easy. He will be answerable to Allah even if he did a grain's worth of injustice. He prayed for the ability to uphold his responsibilities and also for Mayera to become his wife. Her presence around the palace and her constant support will be enough to motivate him and help him move forward. He couldn't even imagine running the kingdom without her. She was his fuel, the source from which he derived his energy. He wanted to hold her tight and tell her what she meant to him so that she realized her importance but it was not possible. He missed her terribly and wished he could just see her once before he went to the pedestal. Didn't she want to wish him luck? At least as his teacher shouldn't she be blessing him before he went? But there was no sign of her.

He could see people gathered in the huge palace grounds where the tasks were to be held. They had come all the way from 24 provinces, travelling for days just to attend the crowning and pay respects to their new king. He made his way to the pedestal from within the palace. The royal ladies had already taken their place behind the curtain. As he stood on the pedestal with Mir Jafar, his sons and other court officials facing the vast crowd beneath him, his eyes searched for the signs of Mayera or Hammad Khan. He was not able to locate them. Hammad Khan had promised he will stand below the second left pillar with Mayera but that spot was empty. Maybe they were late.

He looked at people on the pedestal. Mir Jafar was busy discussing things with Mir Faseeh and a few others. He saw Mir Tabrez give him a malicious smile.

"I'll soon wipe off that smile from your face", said Shehzada to himself.

He had extracted all the info he could from the man who had tried to attack Saira and ordered him to remain silent until he was called to give his evidence. He had also warned Mir Saleem about what had happened. The poor man. His father and brothers had been giving him a hard time.

Finally Mir Jafar took his place in front and addressed the people. "In the name of Allah the most beneficent and the most merciful. My beloved people, today the 15 days given to Shehzada to prove his worth come to an end. Today will be the final decision as to who ascends the throne. Mir Faseeh, the army general and Shehzada will be given 3 tasks which they need to perform in front of people. The one who wins will become the Shehenshah". People listened in rapt attention. Mir Faseeh and Shehzada's eyes met. Their looks challenged each other.

"The first task....", said Mir Jafar consulting the papers before him and came to an abrupt halt. His expression changed. His eyes flamed and his face turned purple. He glared at Mahmood Hassan, who gave him a cool smile.

"..... is to test strength. Mir Faseeh and Shehzada Sher Shah need to wrestle each other". Mir Faseeh panicked openly. He turned to his father who pushed him forward muttering "Just do your best". Shehzada understood the whole game! Just like Hammad Khan had promised he had changed the tasks and Mir Faseeh was very much unprepared. The thought gave Shehzada renewed energy. He looked below the second pillar again and he finally spotted Hammad Khan and his happiness just increased. But where was Mayera?

He happily entered the wrestling ring that had been prepared somewhere during the night. How they had managed to make so many preparations without Mir Jafar noticing was remarkable. Wrestling clothes had been presented to both of them and they faced each other in the ring.

With a loud gong the match began. Mir Faseeh was a strong man but clumsy. He had the strength but lacked the tactics and agility to tackle the opponent. As a result he was defeated. The crowd cheered Shehzada with slogans as he walked back to the pedestal.

Mir Jafar and Faseeh had a quick conversation as he was resting after the match.

"Father, don't you know I am not a good wrestler? Yet you made me enter the ring. The first task was supposed to be a duel you told".