Gandikota

The Chase

The loud knocking on his door, woke him up, he looked around, it was around the stroke of dawn, when most of the Matha's students, acharyas, would be awake to begin their morning prayers. But this tone, was different, unlike the gentle knocks, this was frantic and hurried.  Ramalinga hauled himself out of his sparse bed,in his chamber, and opened the door. 

It was quite a young student, just barely out of his teens, panting out of breath,

"Soldiers" is all he could say.

Ramalinga put on the rough hewn tunic, draping the robe across it,walked out of the chamber. He saw around four senior acharyas, huddled in group, looking pensive, worry writ large on their faces. The eldest of them, sighting him, came up

"It is the soldiers of the Bijapur army, we do not know how they have come here, they are within striking distance".

Ramalinga's heart skipped a beat, they were one of the most vicious force ever, not known to show mercy.  They ravaged the countryside like a locust swarm,  often destroying what came in their path.  Countless villages had been sacked and burnt, their Hindu inhabitants massacred, their women folk either raped, or carted off to their pleasure hovels.  Temples that lay in their path had been destroyed,  their priests butchered, their treasures looted. 

They had come for him, but how did they manage to know the location?  Who had informed them that he was in hiding there?  There was a time later, for such questions, now the Ahobilam Matha had to be saved.  Those men would not hesitate to burn down the Matha, just to capture him. 

"It's time for me to go"

"But Ramalinga we cannot leave you all alone to them"

"Do not worry about me, I will face them, but the sanctity of the Matha, should not be polluted by those beasts. And if I have to give my life, for this purpose I shall gladly do it"

"You have given me a new life, you have bought back the spirit that had been crushed, I shall forever remain indebted to you holy ones"

He bent and touched, the feet of the eldest of the Acharyas, who raised his hands in blessing

"You are a noble man, Pemmasani Ramalinga Nayaka, and men of virtue like you, have alway been put through the toughest trial and tribulations.  But in such flames of adversity are born the truly great ones.  Go ahead, the blessings of Narasimha Swamy are with you".

Ramalinga clambered up on the roof, and saw them just a few miles ahead.  There were around forty of them, in their dark black tunics, and wearing flowing robes, their conical turbans sitting on their heads. Armed with swords and spears, looking very much the messengers of death that they were.  There was no time to waste, he had to divert them immediately. 

He made his way out of the rear doors, which were hidden from sight, as he came out of the Matha.  The Bijapur army was just a couple of feet away from the Matha, there were a couple of large banyan trees, at the corner. He ran as fast as his feet could carry, and grabbing one of the large roots hanging from a banyan tree, swung with all the force, into the approaching army, knocking off one of the soldiers from his horse.

Before the others could even react, he grabbed the sword from one of the soldiers near him, and in one deft blow, plunged it straight into the latter's chest, who was too shocked to even react. And rushed straight towards the thick forests ahead.

"Go get him" boomed out a loud voice.

It was Mahabhat Khan, the Bijapur general, in his mid-thirties, of a heavy build, the thick beard covering his face, his eyes sharp and piercing, and a curved nose, who had been given the task of capturing Ramalinga Nayaka. Though stunned for a moment at the sudden turn of events, he regained his composure quickly, to command his men.

And they began to pursue Ramalinga, with cries of "Allahu Akbar", the sounds of the hooves of their horses thudding across the ground, dust raising, as the grass flew up in chunks, their pointed lances glinting in the sun.

As he heard the sounds of his pursuers behind him, Ramalinga's face broke out in a wry smile, he had achieved his objective of diverting them. He looked ahead at the Nallamalas looming ahead of him, their slopes covered with thick forests, peaks surrounded in mist.

"Narasimha Swamy, my life is all in your hands, as I enter your holy abode. Give me the strength to take on these Asuras"

And with one full thrust, Ramalinga gallopped at full speed into the Nallamala hills, as the Bahmani soldiers led by Mahabhat Khan, chased him in hot pursuit. He knew he could not ride too far without them catching up, and had to enter the jungle as soon as he could. The enemy was closing in on him now, as he felt the arrows whizzing by. 

As one of the soldiers, came up close to him,he yanked at the stirrups of his horse, as it crashed on the ground.  Another who came up behind, struck him on the shoulder, as Ramalinga turned back,and with another swift blow of his sword,  neatly decapitated his head from his torso. He was approaching close to the jungle now, as he rushed in with full speed into the narrow forest trail, and jumped off the horse.

"You need to go now my friend, thank you for bringing me all the way here, but these treacherous paths are not for you", gently patting him, and then with a firm whack, beckoning him to leave.

The trees of the jungle, towered above him, in various shapes and sizes, blocking out the sunlight, that shone only in small clearings.  Pemmasani Ramalinga Nayaka looked at the darkness of the jungle's undergrowth right in front of him, as he could hear the sounds of the soldiers approaching. 

Drawing a deep breath, gripping his sword, and making a silent prayer to Narasimha, he embarked on a journey that was important not just to his life,but they very future of Vijayanagara.