The golden peaks

 

'We are traveling to Subornorekha in two days' time' Hasi announced one morning, much to the delight of Suborna and Labonno. The next two days went in a flash. On the morning of the third day, they left Nisorgo with few people and little supplies. Most of the supplies and the auxiliaries had been sent by ship beforehand. The king, Hasi, Suborna, and Labonno rode in the carriage while the commander rode alongside it. Soon after leaving Nisorgo, settlements started to become sparse and when they resumed after midday, all that lay before them was an uninhabited, wild country. 'Our southern lands are softer and much more fertile, that's why we have populated that portion first', the king explained in response to Suborna's query, 'These lands are good too, but it's higher & harder, and water runs off quickly. We will need to build water supplies before building settlements here.' Though evidently fertile, the land had a rugged, barren, look. It was wide open, there wasn't much forest, just the random clumps of trees. 'Are there wild animals here' Labonno asked. 'Further north, you will have all sorts; tigers, leopards, bears, wild dogs, elephants, rhinoceros, deer, boars, everything. Most of them either come down from the mountains or come across the Matonggini.' He continued, 'But down here, you will only find deer, boars, and the occasional leopards'.

After midday, everyone rode on horseback. Labonno, as usual, rode with Suborna, and they were accompanied by the king. Hasi and the commander rode in front of them. 'He is her husband' the king said to Suborna. He had noticed that she was watching them with curiosity and felt she was bursting to ask something. Suborna smiled shyly. 'and yes, Hasi is my sister, I feel you have already guessed that' the king said again. Suborna gave an embarrassed smile. By afternoon they reached their camp at the confluence of two rivers. Oshru (tears), the river they had been following from Nisorgo, went straight ahead towards the Subornorekha, while Voboghure (wanderer) ran away from Matonggini from the northeast. The camp was simple; a large tent for the horses, oxen, and supplies, and a smaller tent for the royalties. The ship that had brought the supplies and the servants was anchored in mid-river. Though they didn't know, another team had already trudged ahead to make the camp for the next evening. The tour wasn't just meant for pleasure, they had business too and as soon as everyone freshened up they gathered in the king's tent. Even the king's tent wasn't anything grand; a curtain divided it into two parts, rugs covered the floor, and layers of blankets made the beds.

'Have you charted both the banks in detail', the king asked the unknown young man. 'Yes Sir', he replied and presented some pieces of parchments. Evidently, he was a cartographer, the parchments had rough sketches of the banks of Oshru. The king, the commander, and Hasi examined the parchments. 'He will continue to chart the banks of Oshru as far as our frontier', he addressed Hasi and the commander, 'Then, on our return journey, he will map the banks of Voboghure. 'We will need details of this area', he marked the space between Oshru and Matonggini 'to plan our future settlements' he concluded. They discussed a few more things for an hour and although Suborna & Labonno weren't a party to the discussion, they listened with interest. When they came out, it was dark outside. The camp was surrounded by a circle of torches and although most of the soldiers were resting, sentries stood on the perimeter looking into the dark. The king and the commander started talking with the soldiers and servants while Hasi, Suborna, and Labonno walked up to the perimeter and looked out into the darkness. Though it was a bit eerie, it was oddly calming. An animal barked in the dark and startled Labonno, Suborna put her hand around her, 'Relax' she said, 'it's just a jackal'.

The dinner was simple and wholesome. The king, Hasi, Suborna, and Labonno ate together, while the commander ate with his troops and other auxiliaries. Everyone was pretty tired and they had another long day ahead and so they went to sleep without much delay. The king took one side of the curtain while the ladies along with two maids took the other half. Suborna kept her sword and bow by her side; in this middle of nowhere, she felt oddly relaxed and at home. Hasi was still outside when she fell asleep. But she was already up and about when Suborna woke up at dawn. After a hurried breakfast, they resumed their journey. The confluence was too deep for the carriage to cross and they traveled several miles upstream to find a shallow crossing. 'Baba, why do we call it Voboghure?' Labonno asked. 'Look at it, it left Matonggini to wander alone in this wilderness' the king explained. 'And Oshru?' 'When we get close enough you will see it looks like tears flowing from the Subornorekha'. They were now traveling in the wild country and the king, Hasi, and Labonno were no longer allowed to ride, but Suborna would ride occasionally. She looked amazingly relaxed and self-assured, sometimes she would point to a distant herd of deer or a lone wolf which no one else could spot.

'The little queen needs a sword' the commander said affectionately during the midday break. 'I'm so small for a sword' Labonno said sadly. 'No worries, you can have this' The commander took out a curved dagger from his belt. Labonno carefully took it, checked its weight, and adjusted her grip; she didn't look scared or tentative like someone who has never handled such a thing. She looked cautious like someone who knows how to handle such things. Then she made some slashing moves and although she looked a bit ungainly, she looked totally at ease. Now the commander took out the scabbard and asked 'Do you want to hang it on your right or on your left?' 'No, no' Labonno said, 'I want to carry it on my back, like a quiver.' After the commander hung it on her back, she checked if she can reach it with ease. 'Now, you wouldn't have to ride beside us, me and rani-ma will protect Baba and Choto-ma'. The king ruffled her hair, 'I have a feeling that you will be protecting many more when you grow up' he said with conviction. After the break, the caravan picked up its pace, and the travelers, specially those in the carriage and the cart, tolerated the inconvenience in exchange for safety and comfort at a later time.

Still, it was nearly evening when they reached the camp. Since morning, Suborna could see the vague and imposing outline of the Subornorekha; now, even in the gathering darkness, she could distinguish the ridges and the slopes. She kept looking at it until it was lost in the darkness. She woke up before dawn and woke up Labonno too and together they went outside and gazed at the mighty mountain. The mountain was taking shape in the fading darkness, slowly the darkness became grey and then the grey became shadowy lightness. Then, the first ray hit the mountain; slowly the peaks, ridges, and slopes turned gold like an invisible hand has trickled molten gold on them. They went where the king and Hasi were sitting; 'Thank you, Thank you' she said to both of them, her voice was heavy and her eyes were teary. The king just bowed, but Hasi hugged her and whispered, 'Anything for you, dear, anything'. 'I will read my Chronicles when we return' the king said. 'No' came the sharp reply. 'I...we will read it ourselves when we finish learning reading, right!' she looked at Labonno, and the little girl nodded.