“I came hunting for the Chozha tiger, but, instead found the Vaanarkulam fox. Not a bad catch.”
“There is something catastrophic that has happened here. The fact that one of the Chozha Navy’s ships has met this fate saddens me. I am also very confused as to how this might have happened. Our Chozha captains are very experienced. W
They passed barren lands, thick forests, rivulets and streams. Poonkuzhali lost track of where she was. She had originally felt afraid. The Prince turned towards her and smiled a couple of times. This calmed her down. She returned to her daydreams.
The elephant suddenly trumpeted loudly and started running wildly. It did not care for the trees and branches in front of it. The earth shook. Frightened birds shrieked and flew out of the way. Small animals scurried out of the way. Poonkuzhali felt fear envelop her.
“Parthibendran and I did not know what happened inside the hut. We recently got to know that it was a girl who had given refuge to Veerapandiyan. She had stood between Karikalan and her lover, the Pandiya King. Karikalan had kicked her aside and beheaded the King.”
The General said in a slow voice, “Prince, that girl inside the hut – she was Nandini. “
“There is a reason for this. The Prince is going through a very bad time. Even the Kudandhai Josiyar confirmed this to me. Friends and associates of the Prince would also face hardships. The Prince does not want this. He does not want anyone else to suffer.”
They moved on to the dilapidated mandapam. Vandhiyathevan whispered into Nambi’s ears, “This friendship with the Prince is becoming dangerous by the day. The other day he got into a fist fight with me, and today, a fierce sword fight.”
“After you meet the Prince, and you deliver this scroll, when the Prince is in a relaxed mood, can you please ask him, if he remembers Samudra-Kumari? If he does say that he remembers, tell him that she was the one who brought you here to Lanka in her boat.”
“You can untie yourself if you want. The knot is very loose. But, you do not need to help me. Just keeping out of my way would be helpful.”
She knew about the perils of rescuing people who were hysterical and on the cusp of drowning. She had heard about how they would clasp the rescuer so tightly that it would make it very hard for the rescuer to swim. She thought quickly. There was only one way. She went close to him and landed a powerful blow between his nose and temple.
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