Be bold and wise.
Give thyself to the field with me.
Arise!
—Bhagavad Gita

Fatigue shrouded Ishvari like an iron cloak, but Maruti pulled her along, refusing to let her rest. Nagging pains slashed through her stomach at intervals, accompanied by waves of nausea; something was very wrong with her body, but even in her dazed condition she knew that Maruti was right to push her forward—survival, not just her own, but that of Sumangali and Obalesh—hinged on persuading the hermitage monks to rescue her family before Daruka and his men executed Takshak’s inhuman orders. The monks were bound to know shortcuts through the forest and she fervently hoped they would be willing to rescue her family before the soldiers arrived in Devikota.

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