In the Heart of Darkness

knew Shakuntala was simply seeking to calm the Kushans. So he obeyed instantly and without complaint. On his way out of the pavilion, he whispered to Belisarius: 'Envy me, Roman. I, at least, will be able to breathe.'

The Kushans were still standing, uncertain.

'Sit,' commanded Shakuntala. Within three seconds, all had obeyed. But, as they made to do so, She spoke again.

'Kungas-sit here.' Shakuntala pointed imperiously to one of two cushions placed not far from her own, diagonally to her right. Remembering the seating arrangement in the Malwa emperor's pavilion, Belisarius realized this was the Indian way of honoring those close to the throne.

She pointed to the other cushion. 'Kanishka-there.'

The Kushan commander and his lieutenant did as she bade them.

After all the Kushans were sitting on the carpeted floor of the pavilion, Shakuntala gazed upon them for a long moment without speaking. The warriors stared back at her. They knew her face well, of course. It had been they who had rescued Shakuntala from the Ye-tai savaging the royal palace during the sack of Amaravati. They who had brought her to Venandakatra's palace at Gwalior, where she was destined to become the Malwa lord's new concubine. They who had served as her captors and guardians during the long months they waited for Venandakatra's return from his mission to Constantinople.

Yet, for all the familiarity of those months in her company, most of them were now gaping. Surprise, partly, at seeing her again in such unexpected circumstances. But, mostly, with surprise at how different she seemed. This was no captive girl-proud and defiant, true, but riddled with despair for all that. This was-what? Or who?

The moment was critical, Belisarius knew. There had been no time to discuss anything with her. He feared that, in her youthful uncertainty, she would make the mistake of explaining the situation. Of trying to convince the Kushans.

The Empress Shakuntala, heir of ancient Satavahana, rightful ruler of great Andhra, began to speak. And Belisarius realized he might as well have fretted over the sun rising.

'Soon I will return to Andhra,' announced Shakuntala. 'My purpose here is almost finished. When I return, I shall rebuild the empire of my ancestors. I shall restore its glory. I shall cast down the Mahaveda abomination and erase from human memory their mahamimamsa curs. I shall rebuild the viharas and restore the stupas. Again, I shall make Andhra the blessed center of Hindu learning and Buddhist worship.'

She paused. The black-eyed Pearl of the Satavahanas, she was often called. Now, her eyes glowed like coals.

'But first, I must destroy the Malwa Empire. To this I devote my life and my sacred soul. This is my dharma, my duty, and my destiny. I will make Malwa howl.'

Again, a pause. The black fury in her eyes softened.

'Already, Raghunath Rao is making his way back to the Great Country. The Wind will roar across Majarashtra. He will raise a new army from the hills and the villages, and the great towns. He is the new commander of Andhra's army.'

She allowed the Kushans time to digest her words. The men sitting before her were elite soldiers, hardened veterans. They knew Raghunath Rao. Like all Indians, they knew him by reputation. But, unlike most, their knowledge was more intimate. They had seen the carnage at the palace in Gwalior, after the Panther of Majarashtra had raged through it.

Shakuntala watched pride square their shoulders. She treasured that pride. She was counting on that pride. Yes, the Kushan soldiers knew Rao, and respected him deeply. But their pride came from the knowledge that he had respected them as well. For Rao had not tried to rescue the princess while they had guarded her. He had waited, until they had been replaced by-

Shakuntala watched the contempt twisting their lips. She treasured that contempt. She was counting on that contempt. The Kushans, today, were elite soldiers in the service of the Malwa Empire. But they were also the descendants of those fierce nomads who had erupted out of central Asia, centuries before, and had conquered all of Bactria and Sogdiana and northern India. Conquered it, ruled it-and, as they adopted civilization and the Buddhist faith, ruled it very well indeed. Until the Ye-tai came, and the Malwa, and reduced them to vassalage.

For a long moment, Shakuntala and the Kushans stared at each other. Watching, from the back of the pavilion, Belisarius was struck by the growing warmth of that mutual regard. She, and they, had spent many months in close proximity. And if, during that long and painful captivity, there had been no friendship between them, there had always been respect. A respect which, over time, had become unspoken admiration.

Now, thought Belisarius.

As if she had read his mind, Shakuntala spoke.

'Rao will raise my army. But I will need another force as well. I, too, will need to tread a dangerous path. I will need an imperial bodyguard, to protect me while I restore Andhra.'

She looked away. Said, softly:

'I have given much thought to this matter. I have considered many possibilities. But, always, my thoughts return to one place, and one place only.'

She looked back upon them.

'I can think of no better men to serve as my bodyguard than those who rescued me from the Ye-tai and guarded me so well during all the months at Gwalior.'

Behind him, Belisarius heard Menander's shocked whisper: 'My God! She's crazy!'

'Bullshit,' hissed Valentinian. 'She's read them perfectly.'

And then Anastasius, his rumbling voice filled with philosophical satisfaction: 'Never forget, lad- only the soul matters, in the end.'

One of the Kushans seated in the middle of the front row now spoke. Belisarius did not know the man's name, but he recognized him as a leader of the Kushan common soldiers. The equivalent of a Roman decarch.

'We must know this, princess. Did-'

'She is not a princess!' snapped one of the Maratha women kneeling behind Shakuntala. Ahilyabai was her name. 'She is the Empress of Andhra!'

The Kushan soldier tightened his jaws. Shakuntala raised her hand in an abrupt gesture of command.

'Be still, Ahilyabai! My title does not matter to this man.'

She leaned forward, fixing the Kushan with her black-eyed gaze. 'His name is Kujulo, and I know him well. If Kujolo chooses to give me his loyalty, my title will never matter to him. Whether I sit on the throne in rebuilt Amaravati, or crouch behind the battlements of a Maratha hillfort under siege, Kujulo's sword will always come between me and Malwa.'

The soldier's tight jaws relaxed. His shoulders spread wider. He stared back at the Empress for a moment and then bowed his head deeply.

'Ask what you will, Kujulo,' said Shakuntala.

The Kushan soldier raised his head. Anger returned to his eyes, and he pointed to Kungas.

'We have been played for fools,' he growled. 'Was our commander a part of that trickery?'

Shakuntala's response was immediate. 'No. This is the first time Kungas has been in my presence since you were removed as my guards at Gwalior. I have never spoken to him since that day.' Her voice grew harsh. 'But what is the purpose of this question, Kujulo? You have not been played for fools. The Malwa have been the ones played for fools. And not by me, but by the world's supreme trickster-the foreign General Belisarius.'

All the Kushans stirred, turning their heads. Belisarius took that for his cue, and moved forward to stand before them.

'Kungas has never been a part of our plot,' he said firmly. 'Nor any other Kushan soldier.'

He smiled, then, and the Kushans who saw that odd familiar smile suddenly understood just how crooked it truly was.

'Actually,' he continued, 'the trickery was needed because of you. There was no way for Rao to rescue the princess so long as you stood guard over her. Even for him, that task was impossible.'