A General's Nightmare

General Kishore tried to assess the forces on his side which was made difficult by the fact that the warring sides were wearing the same uniform and it was almost impossible to find out who was who. He needed a way to identify the loyalists so that he could regroup and defend the palace better. He needed a distraction.

“Captain Sowmya!” a female warrior saluted him or tried to salute him with her injured hand. She was in the temporary treatment room set up to treat the injured soldiers.

“Sir!”

“I need a distraction. Can you, captain Sandhya and Captain Vaidehi give some distraction so I can re organise the battle? Wear vibhudi (holy ash from lord Shiva) so we can identify you.”

“It will be done general.” Both looked at each other well aware that it might be a suicidal mission. “It is an honour fighting by your side sir.”

“The honour is mine Captain. Hara Hara Maha Deva....”

“Shambho Sankara!”

The warrior left with what was left of her team to accomplish her mission. General Kishore took his twin swords and leapt into the fray, furious that he was forced to send loyal warriors to death due to these immoral traitor filth.

He created waves of terror wherever he went, mowing down the enemy like grass. Looking like Lord Rudra with his blood red eyes, forehead smeared with the holy bhasmam (holy ash from Shiva Temple) and his swords oozing blood, he was a sight to behold. The enemy soldiers tried their best to escape death or dismemberment in vain. How can anyone escape when they are facing Lord Rudra himself?

Soon, he cleared a vast area for the loyalist forces to regroup and reorganise themselves again. The battered loyalist forces got a chance to breathe. The enemy forces, realising that they had lost the initiative retreated a few paces and regrouped for a fresh offensive.

Both generals had realised the same problem at the same time. The battle had been a stalemate due to the similarity of the uniforms and both sides had received considerable casualties. They needed to recognise friend from foe or they would lose their own men to friendly fire.

General Kishore surveyed his forces. He had five battalions left; none of them were at full strength. Most of them had lost their officers and the men needed leaders. It was a miracle they had held till then without any leadership. That needed to be rectified. He surveyed the sea of faces and recognised a few. These would have to do for now.

“Captain, Vikas, Captain Mitra, Captain Saranya, Captain Aswini and Captain Suyash! Step Forward.”

“Sir!” Five voices rang out in unison as they stepped forward.

“You are now battalion commanders! Take charge of your battalions!”

“Sir!” the five new battalion commanders went to their battalions and swiftly promoted a few men filling the gaps in the officer ranks. Once they were done, they reported to General Kishore again.

“Garuda Battalion ready General!”

“Arundhati Battalion ready Sir!”

“Rudrama Battalion Ready Sir!”

“Durga Battalion Raring to Go Sir!”

“Kodanda Battalion ready Sir!”

“Davanala Vyuham! (Forest Fire Strategy) Hara Hara Mahadeva!”

“Shambho Sankara!” the ground shook with the battle cries and the battle to defend the palace had begun.

General Srikar frowned in irritation. He had won twenty battalions to his side but he was left with only ten battalions for this battle. He had lost ten battalions to either casualties or defections to the other side. He had to level the odds or he would lose and lose horribly.

He didn’t have to change the uniforms of his men as the loyalists had made themselves visible by smearing the bhasmam. It would be their undoing! He smiled at the thought and urged his men forward. He had a battle to win.

******

The two armies again clashed ferociously – swords meeting swords with a deadly clang that echoed in the compound indicating how bitterly fought the battle was. The whole palace was now wide awake and whatever security forces were left had taken up defensive positions. The thickest defence positions were around the queen’s palace ready for a mortal combat with the traitors. These defence forces were made of the elite women brigades that waited with bated breath for a surprise attack on the queen’s palace.

Princess Satyabhama had already placed her warriors at strategic locations. Her plan was simple – ambush the enemy from a place he least expects and defend where needed. She also had a brigade set up as a decoy in the queen mother’s palace. This brigade was also tasked with backup duty in case a hasty escape route was needed for the royal family. She had only four companies with her for the defence of the queen. She hoped that her gamble of keeping a small force would attract less attention of the enemy. So, she had chosen the Rudra Kaali, Bhadra Kaali, Durga and Shakthi companies for this mission. These were the crème da la crème of the empire’s forces considered undefeatable and feared across the galaxy. She hoped the terror striking uniforms of these companies would scare the enemy away. Her task was to hold till the emperor returned and the tide would turn in their favour.

General Kishore was fighting the battle of his life. He was a battle hardened general and had pacified many rebellions in the past. But this had been the first time he had had to deal with a treachery unparalleled in the history of the empire.

He was enraged by the fact that twenty battalions had broken oath to the emperor. He was death incarnate as he hacked the enemy soldiers mercilessly. They were outnumbered 4 to 1 and were barely holding.

Captain Vikas, now commander of the Garuda Battalion, urged his men as he fought furiously to hold the line. His battalion had been the worst hit and was only at half strength when he took charge as commander. He had promoted some of the promising fighters who, to their credit were doing a brilliant job leading their men to a desperate superhuman effort. He did not know how many of his battalion might survive but he knew he was the second last line of defence for the royal family. Only the four dreaded companies from the Parvathi battalion stood between the royal family and the traitors.

Captain Mitra, now commanding the Arundhati battalion, was fighting like a demon possessed. His battalion was at full strength in numbers but all of them, including himself, had been injured but fighting desperately to hold the line. The enemy outnumbered them 8 to 1 here as it seemed they had found out they were the weak link in the line. Every soldier in the battalion knew what would happen if they caved in, so they were making an inhuman effort. Each of them was taking down 6 of the enemy with them but it was not enough. It was only a matter of time before his battalion was wiped out. He just hoped he would be able to deplete the enemy forces so much that victory would be impossible for them.