Chapter 401 - 369: Horse With A Flag... News To Drona...

(A/N):

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Meanwhile, far beyond the royal gardens of Trivenivrata, on the opposite side of the three sacred rivers, Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswathi, an unexpected visitor arrived at the kingdom’s borders.

The afternoon sun cast its golden light over the flowing waters, illuminating the massive fortifications that protected Trivenivrata from any threat approaching its territory.

The three rivers formed a natural barrier around the kingdom, their sacred waters separating its lands from the territories beyond.

Along the riverbank, a fortified border wall stretched across the accessible passage, its watchtowers manned by vigilant soldiers who had been trained to recognise even the slightest disturbance near their borders.

It was during one such routine watch that a soldier noticed movement on the opposite shore.

A lone horse had approached the riverbank and come to a halt, its hooves pressing into the damp earth near the water’s edge.

The animal stood calmly, seemingly unconcerned by the imposing walls on the other side of the river or the armed guards observing it from above.

What immediately caught the soldier’s attention, however, was the flag attached to the horse.

The banner fluttered in the breeze, displaying the unmistakable emblem of a bull.

The soldier narrowed his eyes, trying to identify the origin of the unfamiliar arrival.

After observing the horse for several moments, he turned towards his companions and called out,

"There is a horse on the opposite shore! It carries a banner bearing the symbol of a bull. Inform the commander immediately!"

His fellow guards exchanged wary glances before one of them hurried down from the watchtower to summon their superior.

Within a short while, the head of the border guards arrived, accompanied by several armed soldiers.

He climbed the steps to the upper platform and looked across the river, his expression growing serious as he examined the solitary horse and the flag it carried.

He was an experienced officer who understood that a lone horse appearing at the borders of a powerful kingdom was not necessarily an innocent occurrence.

In these lands, banners carried meanings far greater than their appearance suggested.

They announced the arrival of envoys, proclaimed the authority of kings, and sometimes served as warnings that an army would soon follow.

A horse bearing a royal or religious emblem could not be ignored, especially when it appeared before a kingdom whose borders were protected by three sacred rivers.

"Has anyone crossed the river?"

he asked, keeping his eyes fixed on the opposite bank.

"No, Commander. The horse arrived a short while ago and stopped there. We have seen no rider, nor have we observed anyone approaching from the surrounding area."

The commander considered the situation in silence.

The bull emblem was distinctive enough to warrant immediate attention, but he had no intention of making assumptions before learning more.

He ordered the guards to remain alert and instructed them not to permit anyone to cross into Trivenivrata without authorisation.

Then, after taking one final look at the banner, he descended from the watchtower and entered the small chamber used by the border officers to record unusual occurrences.

A writing desk stood beside the window, with fresh palm leaves, ink, and several scrolls arranged neatly upon it.

The commander sat down, took a clean scroll, and began writing a concise report describing the horse’s arrival, the bull emblem displayed upon its flag, and its position beyond the three rivers.

He included the time of the sighting and the observations made by the guards, ensuring that the message contained everything necessary for his superiors to assess the situation.

Once he had finished, he rolled the scroll carefully and secured it with a cord.

He then pressed the official seal of the border command into the prepared sealing wax, marking the message as an authenticated report requiring the attention of the kingdom’s senior authorities.

Calling one of the soldiers inside, he held out the sealed scroll.

"Take this directly to Dronacharya,"

he ordered firmly.

"Do not stop along the way, and do not hand it to anyone else. Tell him that a horse bearing the emblem of a bull has appeared beyond the three rivers, outside our borders. We have not yet established who sent it or what its purpose might be, and I want Acharya to be informed before we take any further action."

The soldier accepted the scroll with both hands and bowed.

"As you command, Commander."

He immediately departed, making his way towards the inner quarters where Dronacharya was staying.

Behind him, the commander returned to the border wall, his gaze once again settling upon the distant horse.

The animal remained motionless beside the river, its banner fluttering in the breeze.

Whatever message its arrival carried, Trivenivrata’s guardians would not leave it unanswered.

Meanwhile, at the gurukul, Dronacharya was overseeing Arjuna’s archery practice in the training grounds.

The young prince stood before a row of wooden targets, his bow held firmly in his hand as he concentrated on improving the precision of his shots.

Dronacharya watched him with the keen eyes of a master who demanded nothing less than excellence from his students, occasionally correcting the angle of Arjuna’s elbow or reminding him to steady his breathing before releasing an arrow.

"Remember, Arjuna, archery is not merely about the strength of your arms or the speed with which you release an arrow. Your mind must remain steady, your senses must be alert, and your judgement must be clear. A warrior who allows his attention to wander at the critical moment may lose far more than a target,"

Dronacharya instructed.

Arjuna nodded respectfully and prepared to shoot again, but before he could release the arrow, a soldier hurried into the training grounds.

Dust clung to his garments, and his breathing suggested that he had travelled without wasting a moment along the way.

He looked around until his eyes settled upon Dronacharya, then approached the acharya with the urgency of someone carrying an important message.

Dronacharya immediately noticed his arrival and raised a hand, signalling Arjuna to lower his bow.

"Acharya,"

Arjuna began, looking towards the approaching soldier,

"has something happened?"

"I do not know yet,"

Dronacharya replied, his attention already shifting towards the messenger.

"You may leave for now, Arjuna. Continue practising the exercises I assigned you, and do not neglect your footwork merely because I am not standing beside you."

"As you command, Acharya."

Arjuna bowed before gathering his arrows and leaving the training ground.

Although curiosity lingered in his expression, he knew better than to question his teacher when an official messenger arrived bearing what appeared to be urgent news.

Once Arjuna had departed, the soldier stopped before Dronacharya and bowed deeply.

"Acharya Dronacharya, I bring a message from the head of the border guards. He has instructed me to deliver it directly into your hands."

Dronacharya acknowledged the soldier with a nod and accepted the sealed scroll.

The official seal was intact, confirming that the message had come through the proper channels.

He broke it open, unrolled the parchment, and began reading the report.

At first, his expression remained composed.

The appearance of an unfamiliar horse beyond the kingdom’s borders was certainly worth investigating, but such incidents were not entirely unheard of.

It was the description of the banner that caught his attention.

A bull emblazoned upon a flag, carried by a horse that had arrived alone and stopped at the edge of the sacred rivers, was an unusual sight.

More troubling was the fact that the animal had remained there without any apparent sign of its rider or master.

As Dronacharya continued reading, his brows gradually drew together.

Something about the report troubled him, although he could not immediately explain why.

It was not simply the emblem or the strange circumstances of the horse’s arrival.

There was a peculiar feeling surrounding the incident, a sense that the animal’s presence carried implications that the border guards had yet to recognise.

His years of experience had taught him not to dismiss such instincts, particularly when an unexplained event occurred near the boundaries of a kingdom as significant as Trivenivrata.

He read the message once more before rolling it up and looking at the waiting soldier.

"How long has the horse remained at the shore?"

"By the time I left, Acharya, it had been standing there for some time. The guards have kept watch, but no rider has appeared, and nobody has attempted to cross the river."

"And the animal has shown no signs of distress or aggression?"

"None that the guards could observe, Acharya. It has remained unusually calm."

Dronacharya fell silent for a moment.

An ordinary horse might grow restless when separated from its rider or confronted with unfamiliar surroundings, yet this one had apparently stood quietly before the kingdom’s fortified borders.

Perhaps there was a reasonable explanation, but until he saw the animal himself, he would not allow speculation to cloud his judgement.

"You have done well to bring this message promptly," he said at last.

"Return to your post and inform your commander that I shall personally inspect the situation. Until I arrive, the guards are to remain vigilant. Nobody is to approach the horse unnecessarily, and no one is to cross the border without proper authorisation."

The soldier bowed.

"I shall convey your orders, Acharya."

After the messenger departed, Dronacharya remained beside the training ground for a few moments, contemplating the report. His first responsibility was to ensure that the kingdom remained secure, and an unexplained arrival at its borders demanded his personal attention.

He had no intention of alarming the court over a horse and a flag, but neither would he ignore a warning simply because its meaning remained unclear.

He secured the scroll within his robes and summoned one of the attendants to prepare his horse.

Before long, Dronacharya was making his way towards the border, accompanied by a small escort of soldiers.

As the gurukul gradually disappeared behind him, his thoughts returned to the bull emblem described in the report.

He had seen enough of the world to understand that symbols could carry meanings beyond what appeared upon a banner, and the circumstances surrounding this particular horse seemed too unusual to be dismissed as coincidence.

Whatever awaited him beyond the three rivers, he intended to see it with his own eyes.

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(Author note:)

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