Last Light
Rudhra walked slowly, step by step, into the heart of the south-side forest.
Two hundred warriors were gathered there.
For the past four to five months, Ranjan, his family, and Rudhra had brought them together and trained them relentlessly. Now they stood ready—prepared to attack at any moment.
Among the warriors were two palace servants. They had secretly been passing information to Rudhra whenever they met him. Through them, Rudhra had learned about Yodhika’s pregnancy and its progress. The birth was expected any day this week.
Because of that, they had decided to hold their final meeting today.
The attack was planned for tonight.
Rudhra still had doubts about the numbers on their side. Two hundred men against the power of the palace felt dangerously small. But he also knew how hard they had trained. He had shaped them into warriors.
That thought gave him some confidence.
When he reached the usual training ground at the center of the forest, the entire group was already waiting. The wind rustled through the leaves around them, carrying the smell of soil and steel. No one spoke.
Ranjan walked toward him.
“Everybody is here.”
Rudhra nodded and walked past him toward the front of the gathering.
As he did, Ranjan placed a palm on his shoulder and leaned closer.
“The princess has been taken to labour.”
Rudhra paused.
For a brief moment he looked at Ranjan, absorbing the words. Then he continued walking until he stood before the crowd.
He took a deep breath and faced them.
“My dear comrades,” he began, his voice steady but heavy with emotion. “It is almost time for our freedom.”
The forest fell silent.
“The day for which we have been training for the past four to five months has arrived.”
He paused, letting the words settle among them.
“We… will attack tonight.”
A wave of gasps rippled through the crowd.
One of the warriors stepped forward slightly.
“But we don’t have clear information about the day the princess will give birth, right?”
Rudhra looked at him.
“It is today,” he said firmly. “Ranjan just received the news from one of the maids. We move tonight.”
The warriors looked down, breathing heavily. The weight of what was about to happen pressed upon them.
Rudhra watched their fear.
“I know you are all scared,” he said. “I am too.”
Several heads slowly lifted.
“But we have the advantage. We know they are coming for us. They do not know that we are making a pre-emptive strike.”
His voice grew stronger.
“We are strong as well. Do not forget that.”
He looked across the crowd.
“And don’t forget why we are doing this.”
A pause.
“For our families.”
The words lingered in the air like a vow.
“That thought gives me strength,” Rudhra continued quietly. “Use it. You will be strong too.”
Slowly, the expressions on the warriors’ faces began to change.
Fear hardened into determination.
After a long pause, Rudhra continued.
“I will reiterate our plan to refresh everyone’s memory.”
The warriors leaned in slightly, listening.
“We will split into three groups. The palace keeps its weapons stored at two points—near the two Hanuman Gates. Two groups will move toward those locations.”
He paused and looked across the crowd.
“The third group, led by me, will move toward the palace.”
A few murmurs spread among the men, but they quickly fell silent.
“The weapon centres are not heavily guarded,” Rudhra continued. “They do not expect an attack from us. Ranjan confirmed this during a reconnaissance mission he conducted a few days ago.”
Ranjan gave a small nod.
“Each group attacking the weapon centres will have twenty members. They will be led by Ranjan and Daithiya.”
Rudhra took another breath.
“The remaining one hundred and sixty will join me in attacking the palace.”
He scanned their faces.
“Any questions?”
No one spoke. The forest remained still around them.
“Good,” Rudhra said. “Now split into your groups. Ranjan and Daithiya will explain the attack patterns and signal codes.”
The warriors began moving, quietly organizing themselves. Soon, the crowd divided into three groups—two smaller groups of twenty and one large group behind Rudhra.
Rudhra stepped aside, watching them.
Ranjan and Daithiya moved forward and began explaining the signals and formations for the attack.
Rudhra slowly tightened his fist.
His thoughts drifted far from the forest—to the palace.
To Yodhika.
I hope you are doing well.
A faint ache passed through him.
I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.
He lowered his head slightly.
But I know you are stronger than me.
Queen Rekha paced outside the labour room in the palace, her hands clenched tightly at her sides.
A nurse hurried down the corridor toward the labor room. Rekha stepped forward and grabbed the woman by the shoulder, her face burning red.
“What the hell is happening inside there? Why is this taking so much time?”
The nurse stiffened. “I am sorry, my queen. The doctors are looking into it. She should be getting contractions now, but she’s just sound asleep. We don’t know the reason either.”
Rekha dropped her hands in frustration.
“Go, useless idiot. Ask the doctor to do something.”
She stepped aside while the nurse rushed into the labour room.
“Where the hell is Devansh and the children?” Rekha muttered to herself. “At a time like this, how could they not come here?”
Inside the labour room, two doctors stood beside the monitoring machine, discussing something in hushed voices. Two nurses cleaned equipment on a nearby table.
Yodhika slowly opened her eyes.
“Excuse me?” she called weakly.
Everyone turned toward her.
“Hey, how are you feeling?” one of the doctors asked.
“I am fine, doctor,” she replied.
“Do you feel any pain or anything?”
“No… but I feel like something is getting pushed outward from me.”
The doctor frowned and glanced at the monitor. After a few seconds he said, “Your cervical dilation has reached eight centimetres. You not having any contractions is very worrisome. Since this isn’t a normal scenario, we’re considering further procedures.”
Yodhika lowered her head anxiously.
“Listen… did you hear?” one nurse whispered to another.
Yodhika overheard them and listened closely. Her face suddenly froze in shock. Her breathing quickened as she gripped the bedsheets tightly.
She looked back at the doctor.
“I am ready,” she said. “Do whatever you need to do now.”
Rudhra moved silently through the narrow alleys with forty members of his troupe. They advanced toward the front gate of the palace, keeping to the shadows behind the shops that lined the street.
No one spoke.
A hundred metres from the palace gate, the alley ended. The group stopped at once, breathing heavily after the hurried march.
Rudhra scanned the area.
No soldiers.
Luckily, they had crossed none on the way.
He looked up at the sky toward the eastern and western ends of the island.
No signal yet, he thought.
Three groups of forty each were hiding in the darkness near the south, east, and west gates of the palace. All of them waited, eyes fixed on the sky.
A few minutes later, two firecrackers burst high above the island—one in the east and one in the west.
The signal.
All three groups sprang to their feet and ran toward their assigned gates.
Two guards noticed the approaching figures.
Rudhra accelerated.
“Archers!” he shouted.
Two arrows whistled through the air. They struck both guards cleanly in the neck. The men collapsed before they could raise an alarm.
Rudhra reached the massive gate with five others and shoved it open. The heavy doors groaned as they moved.
The group rushed into the palace grounds, sprinting across the lawn toward the main building.
Something felt wrong.
The darkness at the front of the palace was unusual.
Rudhra frowned, but he took it as a blessing and pushed forward as fast as he could.
They had reached the middle of the lawn when—
Suddenly the lights came on.
Blinding brightness flooded the entire courtyard.
Rudhra and his men froze.
From every direction, hundreds of soldiers in black combat suits emerged, surrounding them with rifles aimed directly at Rudhra’s squad.
Rudhra’s chest rose and fell rapidly.
He glanced back at his men. Panic spread across their faces.
Then he noticed something else.
Ten members were missing.
His eyes darted across the courtyard.
There they were.
They stood behind the armed soldiers… beside Ashura and one of his squad leaders.
Rudhra’s breathing grew heavier.
“What is the meaning of this?” he shouted.
Ashura slowly stepped forward through the line of soldiers.
“That is exactly my question, Rudhra,” he said calmly. “What are you trying to do here?”
Rudhra’s face slowly sank into resignation.
“H… how did you know?” he asked quietly.
His gaze drifted toward the palace entrance.
Three figures stood there.
Devansh. Adhrivan. Jeron.
Jeron burst into manic laughter.
“I can’t believe you actually thought you could pull something like this against us Pranvars,” he said. “You idiot.”
Rudhra turned back to Ashura.
“How did you know?” he demanded, louder this time.
Ashura folded his arms.
“You underestimated the depth of belief within your clan,” he said. “It wasn’t easy. But when Jeron pushed hard enough, many of your own members revealed everything.”
He paused, staring directly at Rudhra.
“And despite knowing that we are about to conquer the world… you still believed we wouldn’t discover your little coup?”.
Rudhra lowered his head.
“We have surrounded all your little teams—at every gate and near the Hanuman Gates,” Ashura said calmly.
Rudhra slowly dropped to one knee, the tip of his sword resting against the ground.
Around him, the others began dropping their weapons one by one.
Metal clattered across the stone.
“It’s over,” one of them said, his voice breaking. “All those months of training… for nothing, huh?”
“I… I am sorry, guys,” Rudhra said quietly, looking at them.
Then he turned toward the traitors standing behind the armed soldiers.
“Idiots,” he muttered, a tear sliding down his cheek.
Suddenly—
The ground began to vibrate.
Everyone staggered slightly as the earth trembled beneath their feet.
“What—?”
Soldiers looked down in confusion as the vibrations grew stronger.
At the palace entrance, Devansh grabbed a nearby pillar to steady himself.
His eyes widened in shock.
How is this possible?
Who turned it on now?
A soldier burst out of the palace doors, running toward them with panic written across his face.
“My king!” he shouted breathlessly. “The princess is wreaking havoc inside. She has turned on Wamon!”
Devansh’s face flushed red with fury.
“Yodhika!” he roared.
(To be continued)
Karun G Nath 
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