There is disease everywhere and the wells stink from the carrion rotting in their waters. The river is nothing but a sewer and even though the rains have begun, they cannot alleviate all the pestilence that is abroad in these streets. Those who do not starve still sicken and then die, their agony unattended and no record made of their death. Vermin are the only creatures flourishing in this charnel house— they and the vultures are sating themselves on the dead.
The children of the city— those remaining here— are gaunt and their bellies are swollen. Every day we find their bodies where they have gone to sleep the night before and never wakened. Women, too, are dying rapidly, sacrificing their food to their husbands and children. A few get by prostituting themselves, but some of them are killed for dishonoring their families and others are beaten by the soldiers because they are women of the streets and no laws protect them.
In fact, there is no law here any more. I and my three remaining priests have become a haven for those seeking to find security in the
city, and we can no longer offer that. We have tried to do as you requested and tend to those still living in the city, but it is no longer possible and there is no reason for us to remain, not when there are temples in other places where we could be welcome and safe. It is lamentable that we must abandon our temple, but we have remained here longer than we had intended to fulfill your purposes. Since that has become an unendurable task, we are leaving the city in two days time— when your messenger puts this into your hands, we will be gone.
May your god Allah and our Gods spare this city any greater grief than it has already suffered.
Rishi Harata Medha
High Priest of Shiva at Delhi
PART
III
SANAT JI MANI
Text of an edict from Hasin Dahele, Rajput of Beragar, to the people of Devapur, his principal city.
* * *
It is my Will that all those living in Beragar, especially those in and around the glorious city of Devapur, shall give heed to this and obey:
* * *
First: it is my intention that this city and all of Beragar should prepare for war.
To that end, new taxes must be levied. Any transaction beyond that of purchasing food and foodstuffs shall give five percent of the transactions into my treasury. Failure to do this will result in confiscation of the goods of the transaction, or equal service being rendered to my household. Those who transgress twice shall have their eyebrows cut off, and those who transgress a third time shall have lips cut off and the miscreant be turned over to my army to serve as a laborer for a year.
All merchants entering the city shall pay an additional five percent on the value of their merchandise as well as the transactional levy as described already, and failure to adhere to these conditions will result in the confiscation of all goods brought for sale, as well as any beasts
of burden owned by the merchant, which beasts are to be given to the army for the use of the soldiers.
Second: I require that all those traveling away from the city shall leave a report of where they are bound and the duration of their stay.
Anyone going beyond the frontiers of Beragar shall pledge to act in accordance with my interests; it shall be the traveler's duty to make note of anything he sees on his travels that might have bearing in any way upon the war I will wage. Thus the traveler will make a record of all roads and their condition; all bridges the same, including their width, height, composition, and capacity; the number and type of boats, ferries, barges, and the like; the fortifications of any towns and cities; modifications or enlargements of existing fortification; the size, composition, and character of any armies found; the level of readiness in these armies; the types of weapons and their number; what animals they have for battle; the general wealth of the rulers commanding the armies; any unrest among the populace, and its cause; any signs of previous battles or uprisings; any apparent stockpiling of supplies, foodstuffs, matériel; or any other information germane to achieving my victory. Those not intending to return are to leave a pledge of gold or property behind to ensure their loyalty to Beragar and me. Any duplicity shall result in the forfeit of gold or property.
Any returning traveler unable to provide a modicum of intelligence will suffer the loss of three fingers. A second such failure will enlist his oldest son in the army for the duration of the war that we are going to wage.
Third: I command that all houses with stone walls are required to reinforce the walls and roofs of the houses to secure them against any attack, and that all owners of stone houses shall donate twenty new-cut stones to the shoring up of the city's walls. Those who have stone houses adjacent to the walls shall contribute double amounts of stones, for their own protection as well as the city's.
All those attempting to avoid this duty will be fined double the cost of labor of making the reinforcements, and shall be required to donate thirty new-cut stones for the city walls. Those who have barns or other housing for animals inside the city shall reinforce these buildings as well. Those with wooden roofs shall replace or overlay the wood with stone or tile so that any attack will not result in fire or collapse of
roofs. Failure to comply in these particulars will result in the confiscation of housed animals for the use of the army, and the eviction of the household from houses with wooden roofs.
For those in wooden or wattle houses, there will be a ten percent reduction in taxes for those who fortify their houses with stone and replace their roofs with bricks. Those who make no effort to fortify their wooden or wattle houses with stone shall be taxed at an additional ten percent, and if the houses are not fortified, they will be subject to demolition should the city face a battle or a siege.
Fourth: I decree that all marriages, births, and deaths shall be taxed at a rate to be determined by my customs officials, to add to the equipping of the army.
Those seeking to delay paying this tax shall find it doubled for every fortnight that passes. The sole exception to the doubling tax shall be in the case of the death of priests, whose living brothers will be asked to address the Gods on behalf of Beragar and Devapur, which shall serve in lieu of the doubling tax.
Fifth: I require that all those who work with wood or metal shall donate two days' labor a week to assist in the preparation and stockpiling of weapons.
Those who will not comply are to be confined in my prison until they are willing to do what must be done. During such confinement, no one is to help or shelter the families of the incarcerated; doing so will result in similar imprisonment.
Sixth: I decree that all those having stores of wood and metals are to bring half of them to my palace for the use of the army as weapons. With the single exception of furniture, all wood and all metals are subject to evaluation and inclusion in this seizure.
Anyone attempting to hold back woods and metals will be branded on the arm, the entirety of his woods and metals taken for use of the armorers; a fine of half the value of his belongings shall be imposed on any such man as well. Anyone willing to donate more than is stipulated will receive a ten percent reduction in regular taxes as well as preferred defense of his property and household should the war reach the city walls.
Seventh: I compel all those having beasts of burden or beasts of slaughter to donate ten percent of their animals to the army for their
use. For those having fewer than ten animals, I require the following substitutions: one lamb, one chicken, or one goose for every five sheep, chickens, or geese owned by the man in question, to be given to the army procurers within three days of notice by them.
Failure to provide the required animals to the army procurers will result in the seizure of all but one of each creature stipulated. In the case of donkeys, asses, and horses, all such animals will be taken. For those possessing an elephant, the use of the animal by the army for a period of a year is demanded, and the use of the elephant does not exempt its owner from any other assessments made against him, his household, his animals, or his property.
This is the sum of my Will at this time, and to it I have set my hand: by the dark of the year we shall be prepared for war.
Hasin Dahele
Rajput of Beragar
1
They lay tangled in their sheets, her leg across his, her head on his arm, his hand in her hair. From the open window the night wind bore in the scents of blooming and rotting flowers mixed with the more distant tang of smelted ore from the foundry located a short walk from the palace; this single reminder kept it apparent that the appearance of peace was illusory, for otherwise the whole of the city of Devapur presented the semblance of prosperity and the outward display of invulnerability.
In the fortnight since they had arrived at Devapur, Sanat Ji Mani and Tulsi had settled into a kind of routine, visiting Hasin Dahele every few days, having polite discussions that seemed to be cordial enough but without much substance; occasionally the poet Vayu Ede joined them, but most of the time he did not, preferring what seemed to be chance encounters in the corridors, or after sunset in the gardens. The servants of the palace treated Sanat Ji Mani and Tulsi with respect, presenting them with more fine new clothes and offering them savory meals: generally they were left to their own devices so long as they remained inside the palace grounds; Sanat Ji Mani had not yet been able to discover what Vayu Ede had meant:
I know who you are.
Tulsi stirred, blinked at Sanat Ji Mani, and settled down on his shoulder. "You were not asleep, were you?"
He gave a single, small shake to his head. "I sleep very little."
She laughed softly. "And during the day."
"Whenever possible," he said.
She considered him seriously, contemplating his attractive, irregular features in the spill of moonlight. "Tonight would make four times," she said after a long silence.
"Yes; it would," he agreed. The silken sheets rippled on his silk-wrapped shoulder like water; he did his best to smile at her, curious to discover what she intended.
"I would still be safe from you, would I not?" She laid one hand on his cheek where he had shaven off his beard.
"Yes, for this time and the next. After that, you would become one of my blood upon your death," he reminded her. He shifted a little so that his night-robe would not bind against his arm.
"I understand that," she said. "Does that mean we can only make love six times, and then must stop?"
"No. There is no limit on how often while you live if you are willing to come to my life later. If you are not, then five times is all you can be sure is safe. Six times generally ensures you will come to my life when you die." He said nothing more, waiting for her to decide.
"Well, tonight at least, let us make love. I have now and another time before I must make a final decision, do I not?" She stretched to kiss him, all the hesitation that had worked upon her now gone; her mouth was eager on his, her lips open, her tongue busy. Her hand slid into the top of his robe, moving over his deep chest and down to the top of his scars. Breaking off the kiss, she said, "I cannot imagine how dreadful this must have been."
"It was: dreadful." He did not stop her touching the white band of skin, although he found it unnerving.
"You must have suffered a lot," she went on, still keeping her hand on the hard, white skin. "They took so much."
"I do not remember it well," he lied; the event remained vivid in his memory through all the centuries since it happened. "I know I howled with the pain of it."
"So did my father— he howled," said Tulsi, and moved to kiss him again.
Evading her kiss, Sanat Ji Mani said, "I hope it did not last long, for both your sakes," with a depth of feeling that surprised Tulsi; little as he liked to admit it, he was troubled by combining such memories with their awakening passion.
"It seemed ages and ages, but it was just an afternoon," she answered, staring at the bright wedge of moonlight that lit the foot of their bed. "I can still remember the smell."
"You should not have had to see it," said Sanat Ji Mani. "You should not have been there."
"Timur-i commanded that everyone see," said Tulsi. "I hid some of the time, but I heard it all." She put her hand on his chest. "Do you not want me to become one of your blood, Sanat Ji Mani— is that it?"
"No, it is not," said Sanat Ji Mani. "If I wanted that, I would never have touched you, no matter how famished I became."
She stared at him for a while. "You are a very strange creature, Sanat Ji Mani," she said finally, and resumed the seductive movements of her hand, but this time staying above the line of scar tissue, along his chest and shoulder, softly insistent. "I still want to know why— why would you not take what you needed from me? We were all alone on the road. No one would have stopped you."
"Because," he said as patiently as he could, growing tired of repetition, "I wanted more than your blood. If you doubt that now—"
