The beginning

The walls and doors of the palace were silent today, but this silence was not peaceful. Within this silence were screams—of the parents whose breaths had been stopped, and of the Princess whose very existence had been erased.

"Princess Rajsree is dead."

When her uncle made this announcement, the crowd standing outside was weeping, but inside the palace, the game of chess had shifted. Sree, who until yesterday was the destiny of that throne, was today colliding with the walls of her own palace like a shadow.

The Princess who had been taught to wield a sword, understand politics, and make enemies bite the dust was today forced to flee from her own home. Her own people had begun to see her as prey. (There was a fire in Sree’s eyes.)

From behind her veil, Sree looked at the chair where her father used to sit until yesterday. His teachings echoed in her ears— "Child, fear should belong to the enemy, not to you." She did not wipe her tears; instead, she let them dry. Today, Princess Sree had died, but from these very ashes, a new 'Mystery' was about to be born. She had to go to Manveer... but not as a wife, rather as a riddle so complex that Manveer would forget his own world while trying to solve it.

Outside, a storm had knocked on the door; perhaps nature itself was bearing witness against that sinful game of chess. One by one, Sree removed the heavy royal jewelry she wore on her body. Those gold bangles and pearl necklaces, which were once her pride, felt like shackles today.

She picked up an old, soiled shawl and wrapped herself in it. She picked up the same sword her father had given her on her fifteenth birthday—a final token, a final support.

"Where are you hiding, Princess?" Her cousin’s voice echoed through the palace corridors—a voice that reeked of lust and greed. Sree’s hands trembled, but not with fear—with rage. Her heart yearned to stop right there and slit that beast’s throat, but she remembered that her staying alive was necessary for her kingdom.

She moved toward the secret passages whose maps her father had made her memorize in childhood. With every step, she saw the image of her parents.

"Do not look back, Sree..." she told herself.

When she reached the back door of the palace, she looked one last time at the high flag, which now appeared blurred. She picked up the soil and applied it to her forehead.

"Today, Princess Rajsree is leaving this soil... but I promise, one day 'Sree' will return, and then the throne will be colored not with blood, but with justice."

She fled toward the dark forests. Behind her, a false celebration of her death was being held inside the palace, and ahead was an unknown world where she had to live by hiding her identity, becoming an 'unsolved secret.'

Sree’s feet were now giving up on her. The Princess who walked on the velvety paths of the palace was today falling and picking herself up on stony ground—running not from the fear of death, but in search of life. Far off, a small village appeared. On the boundary of the village was a broken-down hut from which smoke was rising. Sree staggered and reached outside that hut. Her throat had become as dry as a thorn.

"Water..." Sree’s voice trembled. "Mayi (mother), a little water..."

A woman wrapped in tattered clothes came out from inside the hut. She saw Sree’s condition—torn clothes, but the royal embroidery on them and the radiance of Sree’s face told that she was the daughter of a great house. But instead of extending the pot of water, that woman stood there and looked at Sree intently.

"What is your caste, girl?" the woman asked in a cold tone.

Sree raised her eyes in shock. Death was chasing her, and this woman was asking about caste in the midst of thirst?

"I am... I am just a traveler, mayi. My throat is parched, just give me two drops of water," Sree pleaded.

The woman took a deep breath and stated the bitter truth— "We are 'Shudras,' lado (girl). The water touched by us will not be nectar for you, but poison. If you are of a high caste and drink water given by me, you will become 'impure.' I cannot bear the burden of your religion for the crime of quenching your thirst."

Sree was stunned. She had studied politics in the palace, learned to fight enemies, but this 'mystery of the division of humanity' had come before her today for the first time. In the wrinkles of that woman’s face, she saw a sorrow that was perhaps older than her own. Sree extended her trembling hand and said, "mayi, I am coming here with death behind me... there is neither caste nor religion there. Thirst only needs water. Make me impure by feeding me this, but do not let me die."

The woman handed the earthen pot to Sree with trembling hands, but the fear was still in her eyes.

"Drink it, lado... but remember, I had warned you. Tomorrow, if your religious folk shun you or something bad happens to you for drinking water from my hand, do not blame this unfortunate soul. We were born sinners," the woman said with sadness.

Sree drank the water without a second thought. That cool water went down her throat, but the woman’s words had stirred a storm in her mind. After drinking the water, she took a deep breath and looked at that hut, which was the hallmark of poverty and grief.

"Mayi... this never happened in my kingdom. Which kingdom is this where caste is asked before quenching thirst?" Sree asked in wonder.

The woman breathed a cold sigh, "This is Sultangarh, lado. Just a short while ago, a Hindu King won it from the Muslims. That King... he is a great hypocrite! In the name of religion, he has made life difficult for poor people like us. Because of his greed, both my husband and young son were killed in the war." A tear fell from her eye and got lost in her wrinkles.

"Look at the cruelty, since we are Shudras, we are not even allowed to perform their last rites. Now I just pray to God that their wandering souls find peace. We are as good as dead even while alive."

Sree’s blood began to boil. She had always dreamed of protecting the subjects, and here the subjects were being crushed in the name of religion. "Mayi, this is very wrong! A King’s religion is to protect everyone."

"I don't know, lado... this has always happened to us. Wherever we go, we get no respect. But you... in such royal clothes, where have you come from in this state? What is your caste?" The woman asked, looking at her intently.

For a moment, Sree buried those memories of the palace. She looked toward the threshold of the temple and said softly— "mayi, I am an orphan. I have no place left in this world. I am just wandering... in search of a place where a human is considered only a human."

Night had deepened. The forest winds were rustling like an old wound. The old woman held Sree’s hand and said gently, "Where will you wander in such a dark night, lado? Beasts and even worse humans are roaming outside. Spend tonight in this small hut of mine."

Sree looked at that broken roof through which the stars were clearly visible. She nodded and agreed. That night, a Princess and an unfortunate mother slept together on the earthen floor. Their sorrows were different, but their nights were equally long.

With the first ray of the sun, Sree took her leave from that old woman. She touched the woman’s feet, which was perhaps the greatest respect of that woman’s life.

Sree’s path was now toward Guru ji’s Ashram—the same place where she had learned the lessons of weapons and scriptures in her childhood. When she reached the ashram, covered in dust and exhausted, Guru ji recognized her and embraced her immediately.

Guru ji placed his hand on Sree’s head and said slowly, "Sree, the peace here will heal your wounds, child. You are safe here."

Sree immediately held Guru ji’s hand and looked into his eyes; there was a chill in her voice that bit like ice:

"Acharya... I have not come here in search of peace. I have come here only so that I can take revenge on those beasts because of whom everything was snatched from me."

She clenched her fist, so hard that her nails began to dig into her palm.

Guru ji took a deep breath. He no longer saw that innocence in Sree’s eyes; there was only a smoldering volcano. He understood that now this Princess was not going to stop.

"Fine, Sree," Guru ji said gravely. "If you have chosen the path of revenge, then remember—this path will burn you from within as well. But if your intention is pure, then my every knowledge, my every blessing is with you."

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