“Apparently,” he said, raising the torch to illuminate their path ahead. “I never said I didn’t have one.” He took her hand again and jogged lightly to catch up with the others.
“Then what did you make me walk in the dark for?” she said, furious.
Veer glanced back and took in the sparks shooting out of her eyes, and his mouth curled into a slow smile. “To have my hands on you, of course. No man worth his salt would pass up an opportunity like that, Princess.”
Her jaw clicked shut, and she snatched her hand from him and turned away, walking slightly ahead of him. Her anger showed itself in her walk and the dark braid that swung indignantly across her hips.
Veer grinned and followed her. He did enjoy riling her. And he seemed to have achieved what he set out to do. She still might not forgive him completely for his words, but at least they were back on speaking terms.
Chapter 13: The King’s Pathway
Veer and Chandra turned a bend and found the rest of their party, waiting for them at a stone door that marked the end of the passage. Veer was relieved to find none of his troops had disappeared down a hole.
Thankfully, the others had been able to open the door already without breaking it down.
They went in together and found themselves in another long tunnel, roughly perpendicular to the current one.
A river explained the mysterious rushing sound from earlier. It flowed swiftly in a smooth channel, forming the floor of the tunnel. Long columns supported a wide arched ceiling, barely visible in the darkness. Two sharp cliff-like banks made of river sediment were on either side of the tunnel.
Girish was already knee-deep in the river. He cupped his hands in the water and took a sip.
“Fresh water,” he pronounced happily.
Shota waded in after him. “You’re right. This must be the River Saraswathi. It isn’t lost or dried up. It must’ve changed its course at the upper cave levels, tunneling new passages through the rock. No wonder everyone thought it had dried. Finding it in the miles of rock would have been impossible.”
“Except here, apparently,” said Veer, gazing at the masonry of the tunnel.Yalipillars of mystical half-bird, half-horsecreatures lined the straight walls at intervals, interrupted by the occasional smooth, cylindrical pillar supporting what must be tons of rock above the tunnel.
This was the most extensively carved thing they had come across so far. In the upper chambers, whatever carving was made, was done gently, with an aim at preserving the natural outlook of the caves. But here, the tunnel was too ordered and artificial. If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, Veer wouldn’t have believed it was possible to build something like this marvel under the giant rock. It must have taken years—no, decades—to finish.
Billadev, who had ventured farther beyond a bend, returned with more exciting news. A short distance ahead, there were several boats floating.
They had a brief discussion about whether to use the boats to traverse the river. For one thing, they didn’t seem to have oars.
Chandra ran her hand expertly over the hull. “Ironwood,” she said in awe. “I haven’t seen a boat made of this wood before. It’s quite strong and water resistant, but it’s rigid to work with. How on earth did anyone make this?”
Veer tilted his head at her, a question in his eyes. She caught his look and smiled as if in nostalgia. “I know about boats. I spent practically all my childhood in them,” she said, leaving him puzzled. Where exactly had she learned about them?Amaravathi, despite having a seacoast, didn’t have a coastline that was accessible to ships.
The boats were simple in their design, with enough capacity to carry their entire party. At the front end, the bow was shaped into a bird. Its eyes gave off a metallic sheen.
Veer brought out the lotus key and held it against the eyes. It had the same onyx hue.
“What do you think it means?” asked Chandra, who came to stand beside him.
“I’m willing to wager that these boats were probably built by King Amarendra, or at least during his time,” said Shota.
“Should we take them?” Billadev asked the most crucial question of all. Could they trust the boats, which had been there for hundreds of years?
In the end, they had no choice. The river was too swift and deep for them to swim. People climbed into the boats, and they set off.
* * *
Chandra stood at the bow, watching theyalipillars speed past, her eyes on the dark ceiling, deep in thought. The boats required no direction from them. As soon as the last person boarded them, the boats set off sure and straight, traversing the waters with ease. Their troops had made a token attempt at steering with their makeshift oars, which were shields tied to spears with ropes. But it quickly became apparent that they weren’t necessary.
The river twisted and turned, and so did the tunnel along with it. It was hard to say if the tunnel was built around the natural watercourse or if the river had been diverted to flow along the tunnel. Slats of sunlight shone through well-placed holes built for illumination and ventilation.
None of the meager light penetrated the darkness of the ceiling, leaving it pitch black and formless. A cold breeze blew strands of hair into Chandra’s face as the boat picked up speed.
She blinked. Something moved up there. She strained her eyes, trying to peer into the dark, but it remained opaque. But before she could call attention to it, she was distracted by a tap on her shoulder.
