CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVENHawksworth heard the exultant cheer of the Rajputs riding behind him and snapped awake. It was midmorning of the third day and he had been dozing fitfully in the saddle since dawn, fatigue deep in his bones. Through the trees ahead the camp of Prince Jadar lay spread before them, blanketing half the valley."I told you we'd make the camp in three days' ride." Vasant Rao smiled wearily at Hawksworth and spurred his lathered mount forward. "Every man with us is eager to be with the prince."They had covered, it seemed to Hawksworth, well over a hundred miles since departing the environs of Fatehpur. Between five and six hundred Rajputs rode behind them, all heavily armed with an array of swords, pikes, clubs, saddle-axes. Each man's body armor, a woven network of steel and the quilted garment worn beneath it, was secured behind his saddle, ready to be donned for combat. Hanging at the side of each rider was a round leather shield and a large quiver containing his horn bow and arrows. None carried muskets.Hawksworth glanced back at Shirin, who rode a few paces behind, and they shared a tired smile. She had ridden the distance like a Rajput, but now her eyes were glazed with weariness. He had suddenly realized, the morning after they all galloped out of the camp at Fatehpur, that he had never before seen a woman in India ride. Where had she learned? He had pondered the question for an hour, riding behind her to watch her easy posture in the saddle, and then he had pulled alongside and asked her point-blank. She said nothing, merely smiled and tossed the loose strands of hair back from her face. He understood her well enough to know this meant she had never ridden before . . . and didn't wish Vasant Rao to know."This is the moment I've waited for so long." She reined her mount alongside Hawksworth's, reached out and touched his hand. "You must help the prince now too.""I'm not so sure I'm eager to die for Prince Jadar.""You can always go back to Agra. And wait to be murdered by Janahara's guards. The prince has saved your life, and mine, once already. What makes you think he'll bother with you again?""To tell the truth, he also saved my life several months ago, the night we made landfall at Surat and were ambushed on the Tapti River by the Portugals.""I know." She spurred her horse ahead. "I received the pigeon from Prince Jadar ordering it. I passed the message to the Shahbandar, Mirza Nuruddin, who sent his personal Rajputs to protect you."Hawksworth urged his horse back alongside. "So I was right. You were one of Jadar's agents in Surat. What did Nadir Sharif once call them . . .swanih-nigars?”"I gathered information for the prince." She smiled in consent. "I kept his accounts and coded his ciphers at the old observatory. Then you came along and started combing through it. You made my work that much more difficult. I never knew when you'd decide to go out there. Or what you'd find.""Why didn't you just tell me? What did I care?""Too much was at risk. The prince once said never to trust atopiwallah."Hawksworth laughed. "But surely Mukarrab Khan knew what you were doing?""I think he probably guessed. But what could he do? He was only the governor, not Allah. He finally forbade me to go into the palace grounds alone. When I refused to obey, he thought of sending you to the observatory, just to annoy me." She smoothed the mane of her horse. "So I think he knew I was doing something there. But he was too entangled by his own intrigues for Janahara to really care.""Mukarrab Khan worked for the queen? How?""Two ways. Naturally he gathered intelligence for her, mainly about the Portuguese. But he also collected her Portuguese revenues at the ports of Surat and Cambay.""Her revenues? I thought all duties went to the Moghul’s Imperial treasury."Shirin stifled a smile. "That's what Arangbar thinks too. And at Surat it's mostly true. She collects very little. Mirza Nuruddin despises her and always finds devious ways to muddle her accounts, probably keeping some of her money for himself. But the Shahbandar at the port of Cambay, where Mukarrab Khan used to go every two weeks, would accept bribes from the Portuguese to undervalue their goods, and then split the money with Mukarrab Khan and Janahara." She paused to watch a bright-winged bird dart past. "Arangbar could never understand why his revenue from Cambay was so low. I heard he's thinking about closing the port." She laughed. "If only he knew it's going mostly to Janahara."Hawksworth rode silently for a moment, thinking. "You know, Nadir Sharif once proposed the same arrangement for English goods, if I would trade with him personally through the port of Cambay. I ignored him. I suspected he planned to find some way to confiscate the goods later on, claiming nonpayment of duty.""No, on that I think Nadir Sharif would have been very fair. He always honors his agreements, with friend or foe." She looked ahead, her weary eyes brightening as they approached the first jumble of tents and roaming livestock that formed the edge of the camp. Servants in soileddhotiswere leading camels bearing huge baskets of fodder along the makeshift streets between the tents. "But their swindle will be finished when Prince Jadar becomes Moghul. He despises the Portuguese traders and their Christian priests."The perimeter of the compound reserved for Jadar and hiszenanawas clearly visible now, towering above the center of the camp. It was bordered by a ten-foot-high wall of billowing red chintz, decorated with a white hem at the top and held up with gilded poles spaced no more than two feet apart. Spreading out around it were clusters of smaller tents—red and white striped cloth for noblemen, and onesided lean-to shelters ranging from brocade to ragged blankets for their troops."The prince asked that we all ride directly to thegulal bar, his personal compound," Vasant Rao shouted back over his shoulder at Hawksworth. "I think he'll particularly want to see you, Captain."Cheers erupted as they entered the camp. Tents emptied and infantrymen lined the sides of the wide avenue leading to Jadar's compound, beating their swords against their leather shields. As Hawksworth studied the forest of flying standards spreading out on either side, he suddenly realized that eachmansabdarnobleman was flying his own insignia above his cluster of tents.Ahead, rising upward from the center of Jadar's compound, was a pole some fifty feet high with a huge vessel of burning oil secured on its tip. Hawksworth examined the flame with astonishment, then drew his horse alongside Vasant Rao's."Why's there a light in the middle of the camp? It can be seen for miles?""That's called theakas-diya, Captain, the Light of Heaven. It's the Great Camp Light and it's used by everyone to keep their bearings at night. How else could a man find his tent? There are probably fifty thousand men here, with their women and servants. In the evenings, after all the cow-dung fires are lighted for cooking, it's so smoky here you can't see your own tent till you're practically in it.""This camp's a town almost the size of London. How do the people live?""The camp bazaar travels with us, Captain. But you're right. It is a city; merely one that moves." He gestured around them. "The prince of course has his own personal supplies, but everyone else must shift for himself. See those small tents on the street over there, between those two high poles bearing standards. That's one of the bazaars for thebanyas, Hindu merchants who follow the army and sell grain, oil,ghee, rice,dal, everything you'd find in any town. They feed the men. The horses are fed by sending servants out to gather fodder. They cut grass and bring it back on camels, or baggage ponies, or even on their own head. On a long campaign many of the men bring their women, to cook and carry water. The women have to bring water from any wells or streams nearby." He laughed. "Incidentally, I should warn you the prices thesebanyasask are as inflated as the market will bear.""For once I can't fault the merchants. They may well be out of buyers soon."Vasant Rao snorted and whipped his horse ahead. They were approaching the entry to Jadar's compound, a wide silk awning with the prince's banners flying from atop its posts. On either side stood rows of ornate red tents with yellow fringe along the eaves. As Hawksworth rode by, he noticed a high open tent on the left holding caged hunting leopards. Next to it stood a massive canopy, surrounded by guards, sheltering light artillery. He squinted against the sun to look inside and caught a glimpse of several dozen small-bore cannon mounted on carriages. He also noticed swivel guns fitted with a harness on their base, obviously intended to be mounted atop elephants or camels. In the center were several stacks of long-barreled Indian muskets wrapped in cloth. The last tent on the left, adjacent to the gate, sheltered several gilded palanquins and a row of immaculate bullock carts for Jadar'szenanawomen.On the opposite side of the avenue was a row of stables for elephants, camels, and horses. Turbaned grooms were busy brushing the animals and fitting harness. Next to the stables were quarters for the animals' superintendents."Does all this belong to Jadar?""These are for the prince, his women, and guards. Each nobleman also has his own stables and light artillery. The top command is split three ways: with separate field commanders for the Rajputs, for the Muslims, for the men of Moghul descent." Vasant Rao smiled reflectively. "It's always wisest not to mix. For one thing, each needs its own bazaar; no Rajput would eat food handled by an untouchable Muslim."Their horses drew into the shade of the awning above the entrance to the gulal bar. Vasant Rao and the other Rajputs reined in their mounts and began to dismount."This is thenaqqara-khana, Captain Hawksworth, the entry to His Highness' private compound." Vasant Rao waved toward the red awning. "Come. You'll be welcomed warmly by the prince, I promise you. I know he'd hoped you'd join him."Hawksworth swung down from his dark mare and stroked her one last time, wiping away the lather around the saddle. Then he turned to help Shirin alight. She leaned over and dropped into his arms, the sweat of exhaustion mingled with her perfume.Grooms from Jadar's stables were already waiting. As they took the horses, the leader of the Rajput riders shouted staccato orders to them in Urdu, the lingua franca of the camp, then turned and dismissed his men, who immediately swaggered into the gathering crowd to embrace old acquaintances."His Highness is expecting you." Vasant Rao smiled and bowed lightly to the Rajput commander, who was tan and beardless save for a small moustache, with a white skirt, a small turban of braided gold cloth, and a velvet-sheathed katar in a red waist sash. The Rajput nodded, then adjusted his turban and retrieved a tightly wrapped brocade bundle from behind his saddle. As he led the way through thenaqqara-khana, Vasant Rao turned and motioned for Hawksworth and Shirin to follow.Jadar's guards directed them along a pathway of carpets leading through the outer barbican. Ahead was another gate, decorated with striped chintz and sealed with a hanging tapestry. As they approached it, the guards swept the tapestry aside and ushered them through.The second compound was floored entirely with carpets and in its center stood an open, satin canopy held aloft by four gilded poles. The canopy shaded a rich Persian carpet and a throne fashioned from velvet bolsters. Several men with shoulder-high kettledrums and long brass trumpets were waiting nearby.As Hawksworth watched, two eunuchs emerged through a curtain at the far gate and lifted it high. While a fanfare of drums and trumpets filled the air, Prince Jadar strolled jauntily through the entryway, alone.He was dressed formally, with an elaborate silk cloak in pastel blue and a jeweled turban that reminded Hawksworth of the one worn by the Moghul himself. The brocade sash at his waist held a heavy katar with a ruby on each side of the handle. His beard was close-trimmed, accenting his dark eyes. Nothing about him suggested the appearance of a man facing impending defeat."Nimaste, Mahdu, my old friend." Jadar walked directly to the Rajput commander, grasped the man's turban and pressed it to his own breast. "How long since we sat together and ate your Udaipurlapsifrom the same dish?""The New Year's festival ofdiwalitwo years past, Highness. In my brother's palace. And I wore the gold cloak you gave me in honor of the treaty between your armies and his, five years before.""And tonight we will dine together again." He smiled. "If my cooks can find enough cane-juicegurin all the bazaars to sweeten yourlapsi.""Seeing you again, Highness, sweetens my tongue already." He bowed and produced the brocade bundle. "My brother, themaharana, sends this unworthy token, together with his prayers for your victory."A eunuch stepped forward and brought it to Jadar. When the prince opened the wrapping, a scabbard holding a jewel-handled sword glistened in the mid morning light."He does me honor. A Rajput blade knows its friends and its foes." Jadar smiled as he brushed the sword handle. Next he drew out the blade and tested its edge with his finger. The Rajput watched as Jadar sheathed the sword, then lifted the ruby-studded katar from his own belt. "To honor him, I grant his brother my own katar. May its blade soon be crimson with the blood of his foes."The Rajput bowed as he received the knife. Jadar admired his new sword a moment longer, then continued. "How many of our friends rode west with you?""Half a thousand, Highness. More would have joined us now, but I thought it unwise. Your Highness will understand why. But those who did come I picked carefully. Twenty officers of superior class, and the rest first and second class.""The eunuchs watched your banners enter the camp. I've already heard some of the names." The prince's voice rose. "I think you've gutted the Rajput field command in the Imperial army.""Not entirely, Highness.""Ah, but I know you did." Jadar smiled and leaned forward, dropping his voice again and switching from Turki to Rajasthani. "The tent poles here can repeat my words." He drew himself erect again and signaled for a tray of pan leaves from the eunuchs. "A tent has been prepared for you. Tonight we will dine again from the same dish and you can tell me how many white-necked cranes you bagged on Pichola Lake last winter."The Rajput clasped his hands together and bowed lightly before taking a pan leaf. "Tonight, Highness."As Mahdu marched regally back through the entryway, Jadar turned and studied Shirin thoughtfully for a moment. Then he motioned her forward and smiled toward Vasant Rao. "And who else did you bring? Yet another old friend?"Shirin salaamed lightly. "I thank Your Highness for still remembering me.""I remember you very well. But the last I'd heard, Janahara had ordered you imprisoned. I'm astonished to see you still alive.""I was released by Arangbar, Highness, after Samad was executed." She tried unsuccessfully to diguise the fatigue in her voice. "I still do not know why.""Perhaps it was his weakness for beauty." Jadar smiled. "But just now I think you need rest. Mumtaz has asked me to invite you to stay with her in thezenana.”"Shirin stays with me." Hawksworth heard his own voice, abruptly rising above his exhaustion.Jadar turned and studied him for a moment, then laughed out loud. "Suddenly I understand many, many things. Mumtaz was right after all. Why is it women always seem to see these things so clearly?" His gaze swept Hawksworth's tattered jerkin. "Well? How are you, Captain Hawksworth? Still alive, I see, just as I foretold. And still the fashionable English ambassador.""There is no other. Unfortunately, however, my mission was not a complete success.""First, India must have a just rule. Then trade can be conducted with an even hand." Jadar leaned back on his bolster. "Tell me, Captain, have you seen enough of Agra and court intrigue to rethink the matter we once discussed?""I've probably seen all of Agra I'll ever see." Hawksworth fixed Jadar squarely. "But then I'll have much company."Jadar sobered and regarded Hawksworth a moment in silence."I see time still has not mellowed you. Or taught you very much. Do you understand anything at all of land tactics, Sea Captain Hawksworth?""I've never claimed to. But I can count infantry."Jadar laughed again. "You still amuse me, Captain. I'll never know why. It saddens me there'll be so few occasions for us to pass the time together during the next few days. But at least let me show you around my compound. You'll see the next Moghul of India does not campaign entirely like a destitute Arab.""Why don't we start with your fortifications?"Jadar roared as he lifted nimbly from his bolster throne and walked into the sunshine. Then he paused and turned to Shirin. "Join us if you wish. And by the way, where've you decided to stay?"Shirin looked at Hawksworth for a moment, and their eyes locked. Then he saw a smile flicker across her face. "I'll stay with the English ambassador, Highness.""As you wish." Jadar's tone was wistful. "I no longer try to reason with the mind of a woman. But just let me caution you. If you stay among the Muslims here, their women will spit on you unless you put on a veil. They've never heard of Persia.""Then we'll stay with the Rajputs." Shirin tossed her head and followed along as Jadar led them through a side exit in the interior chintz wall and into the outer perimeter of the compound. The kettledrums thundered Jadar's exit."This side is for food, Captain." Jadar gestured toward arow of ornate tents that lined the inside of the chintz walls. "The first is for fruit and melons. No man can campaign without them, particularly if he has a hungryzenana. The tent over there is for makingsharbat, and that one is for keeping betel leaves to makepan." Jadar smiled. "Try denying a woman her betel and you'll have nothing but squabbles." He led them on, pointing, as he walked. "The large tent there is the kitchen, the one beyond it the bakery, and the one past that for grinding spices."Hawksworth found himself astonished. Who could lead an army amid such extravagance? The tents were all red satin, with gilded poles around the outside, giving them the appearance of luxurious pavilions. Some, like the one for fruits and melons, were raised on a platform above the ground, while others were two-story, with an interior stair. As he watched the servants scurry from tent to tent bearing silver trays, he found it difficult to remember a war was looming."You'll soon discover traveling with women is always burdensome, Captain. For example, on the other side of thegulal barI've had to erect a special tent just for their perfumes, another for their tailors, another to hold their wardrobes. Then there's a tent for mattresses, one for basins, and one for lamps and oil. These women rule my life. The things I really need—workshops, guardhouses, my arsenal— I've had to situate back behind thezenana, near where the servingwomen stay." Jadar paused, his eyes gleaming mischievously. "Well, what do you think?""I think an army camp should have fewer women and more men."Jadar laughed and looked pointedly at Shirin. "But what is life without women, Captain?""Wives don't travel with an army in Europe.""Then Europe could learn something from India.""About fighting or about women?""Before you're through you may learn a few thing about both." Jadar turned and started back down the row of tents. "War here is very different from wars on the seas, Captain. You should see my men fight before you judge them. But my question now is whether you know how to fight well enough to be of any help. Tell me, can you handle a bow?""Armies don't use bows in England any more. I've certainly never used one. I think the last time bows were issued for battle was back around the time of the Spanish Armada, about thirty years ago. Some of the local forces in Devonshire equipped eight hundred men with longbows."Jadar paused uncertainly. "What do you mean by 'longbow'?""It's a bow about five feet in length. The best ones are made of yew, but they're also made from ash and elm.""You mean your bows are made entirely from wood?" Jadar's voice betrayed his skepticism. "What weight did they pull?""I don't know exactly, but they were powerful enough. You can draw a longbow all the way back to your ear. During the time of King Harry it was forbidden to practice with a longbow using a range less than a full furlong. The English longbow drove the crossbow right out of Europe. I've heard it said a longbow can pierce a four-inch-thick oak door.""But you don't use them now?""We prefer muskets."He seemed to ponder the answer as he led them back into his carpeted reception area. He took his place beneath the canopy, then turned to Hawksworth."We use muskets too. But frankly they're often more trouble than they're worth. They're cumbersome and inaccurate, and while you're reloading and priming your matchlock a Rajput archer will put half a dozen arrows through you. Infantry here normally is one-third matchlock men and two-thirds archers. If you're going to be any help to us, Captain, you'll need to learn to use a bow."Jadar stopped and turned to look at Shirin. Her eyes were fluttering with fatigue. "But I forget my manners. You must have some rest while we teach theferinghihow to fight. Perhaps the best thing would be to clear a tent for you at the rear of thegulal bar, near the workshops. And the English captain can stay there too," Jadar laughed. "So I can watch him practice his bow." He glanced back at Hawksworth and his eyes froze on the pearl earring. "I see you're akhannow, as well as an ambassador. Congratulations. If Arangbar can make you akhan, I can surely make you an archer."Jadar motioned to the eunuchs, who came forward and escorted Shirin through the rear doorway of the compound. Hawksworth was watching her leave, praying for sleep himself, when Jadar's voice brought him back."Let me begin by explaining our Indian bow to you, Captain. I think it's probably quite different from the English bow you described." Jadar turned to Vasant Rao and motioned toward his quiver, a flat leather case hanging from a strap over one shoulder. It was covered with gold embossing and held both his bow and his arrows. "You know we have a proverb: the sword is better than the katar, the spear is better than the sword; the arrow better than the spear. I've heard Muslims claim the bow and arrow were first given to Adam by the archangel Gabriel." Jadar paused while Vasant Rao took out his bow and passed it over. "Now, the first thing you need to learn is how to string this. It's more difficult than you might suppose, since a bow is reflexed, curved back around the opposite way when unstrung. It's stressed against the strung position to give it more weight on the pull." Jadar examined the bow for a moment. "In fact, you can tell how much use a bow has had by the way it's bent when unstrung. The original curve in this bow is almost gone, which means it's had a lot of use. Here hold it for a moment."Hawksworth grasped the bow in his hand. It was some four feet long, shaped in a wide curve with the ends bent back. The grip was velvet, with a gold-embossed design on the inner side."You say your English bows are made of wood, but I find that difficult to believe. This one is a composite, a mango-wood core with strips of buffalo horn glued over the outside. And the outer curve is lined with catgut to give it even more force. That's why this bow had to be sealed on the outside with leather. We use leather or lacquer to protect the glue from the dampness of the monsoon. The string, by the way, is a silk skein with a crisscross binding at the center.""How do you string it?"Jadar grinned as he took back the bow. "It's not easy. If you have to string a bow while riding, you hook one end between the stirrup and the instep of your foot and brace it backward against your knee. But usually we bend it over our back." He took the string in his hand and slipped the bow around his waist. Then he flipped it against his back and pulled its free end over his left shoulder, inverting the curve and hooking the string in a single motion. It was done in an instant."There. But I've made it look easier than it is. You should practice. And it would also be well if you could learn to string a bow and shoot from horseback.""Horseback!""All horsemen use a bow.""How can you possibly hit anything from horseback?""Practice. A good Rajput archer can shoot as well from horseback as standing. The Uzbeks shoot better." As Jadar spoke he was extracting a heavy ring from inside his cloak. One side of the ring was a green emerald, flat and square and half an inch wide."This is azihgir, a bow ring, to protect your thumb when you draw. It also increases your range."He pushed the emerald ring over his thumb, notched an arrow into the string, and drew it back effortlessly, holding the thin bamboo arrow in position with a touch of his forefinger. The whole sequence had taken less than a second. Hawksworth found himself staring in admiration."By the way," Jadar turned to Vasant Rao, "show him how you shoot under a shield."The Rajput turned to one of Jadar's guards, whose shield was hanging loosely from a shoulder strap. He took the shield and slipped it onto his wrist. It was circular, a quarter inch thick and about two feet in diameter, and curved like a wide bowl. The front was figured with a silver ensign and in the center were four steel nailheads, which secured the handgrips on the back."That shield's one of the best. It's made with cured rhinohide and toughened with lacquer. You hold it by those two straps attached inside, there in the center." Jadar pointed as Vasant Rao held out the back of the shield. "Notice the straps are large and loose. So when you want to shoot, you can slip your hand through and slide the shield up your wrist, like he's doing now. Then your hand extends out beyond the rim and you can hold the grip of the bow. But remember you'll have no protection when shooting, so you'll learn to shoot fast or you won't live long in a battle. Here, try the shield."Hawksworth took the shield and gripped the leather thongs on the back. "It's light. How much protection does it give?""A buffalo-hide shield is really only effective against arrows, but a rhino-hide shield like this one will usually deflect musket fire. We'll find a rhino shield for you somewhere." Jadar rose to leave. "Incidentally, after seeing how you handle that bow, I think I'd better assign you to the guards stationed back with thezenana. That should keep you well out of the battle. I don't want my first English ambassador dead just yet." He fingered his long pearl necklace and studied Hawksworth. "You may be interested to know my reports say the Imperial army will reach us in two days. Tomorrow I plan to poison all the tanks and water wells within twentykoseast of here, forcing them to attack immediately. I hope you'll be ready."He turned and was gone.Hawksworth awoke at noon the following day to discover work had begun on fortification of the camp. He left Shirin sleeping and walked to the eastern perimeter, where the heavy cannon were being drawn into position. As he paused to study one of the cannon, he found himself comparing it with the European design. It looked to be a six-inch bore, with a molded iron barrel strengthened by brass hoops shrunk around the outside. It was bolted onto its own carriage, a flat base supported by four solid wooden wheels, and pulled by a team of ten white bullocks yoked in pairs. Cotton ropes almost two inches in diameter were tiedaround the breech, looped beneath the axles and then through a heavy iron ring on the front of the mount, extending forward to hooks on the yokes of the bullocks.While their drivers whipped the animals forward, a crowd of moustachioed infantry in red and green tunics clustered around the gun carriages pushing. A drummer in an orange cloak sat astraddle the breech of the cannon beating cadence for the other men on two large drums strapped along each side of the barrel. A large bull elephant trailed behind, heavy padding on his forehead, and whenever the gun carriage bogged, the elephant would be moved forward to shove the breech with his head.As the cannon were rolled into position, some fifteen feet apart, they were being linked to each other with heavy ropes of twisted bull hide the size and strength of metal chain, to prevent cavalry from riding through and cutting down the gunners. After the hide ropes were camouflaged with brush, a leather screen was placed behind the breech of each gun to protect the gunners when it fired.Hawksworth counted approximately three hundred cannon along the camp perimeter. Firepots were being stationed behind each gun, together with linstocks and leather barrels of powder. A few bags of dirt had been piled between some of the cannon to provide protection for matchlock men. Around the cannon, men were assembling piles of four-sided iron claws, and beyond, diggers with picks and wicker baskets had begun a halfhearted effort to start construction of a trench. He studied the preparations uneasily for a moment, sensing something was wrong, and then he froze.There was no shot. Only stacks of iron claws.He whirled and made his way back to the munitions depot, rows of yellow-fringed tents. The shot was there waiting, in gauge ranging from two inch to ten inch, but none had been moved.He moved on to other tents and discovered several hundred more cannon. Some were the same gauge as those being deployed, others much larger. All had been fitted with harness, ready to be moved, but now they stood in long rows, waiting. As he moved onto another row of tents, pushing through the swarm of men and bullocks, he discovered a vast cache of smaller cannon, thousands, also mounted on wooden carriages but small enough to be moved by a bullock, or even two men. These too were harnessed and sat untouched.Beyond there were other rows of tents, where seven-foot- long muskets—together with powder, bags of shot, and a wooden prong to rest the barrel on when firing—were now being broken out and distributed to the infantry. The men were being armed, but the camp itself was practically without fortification.Hawksworth stood brooding about the preparations, about the Rajput horn bow he had only barely learned to use—he was finally able to hit thetodah, practice target, a mound of earth piled near Jadar's officers' tent, but shooting under a shield seemed impossible—and the situation began to overwhelm him. Jadar's position was becoming more hopeless by the minute.He stared around the open camp and decided he would try to requisition as many matchlocks as possible, and perhaps also try to teach Shirin to shoot in the time remaining. If they had muskets, he told himself, perhaps they could somehow defend themselves when the Imperial army swept through the camp.He turned and pushed his way back toward where muskets were being issued. Men were walking past him carrying heavy matchlocks, five feet in length with a barrel of rolled steel welded together end to end. The barrel was attached to the stock by a broad steel band, and both were profusely ornamented with embossing and colored enamel. Some of the muskets had wooden tripods attached to the end of the barrel.As he approached the munitions tent, he saw Vasant Rao standing in its center, issuing orders with an easy smile, his moustache and turban as prim as though he were on muster. Behind him was a head-high pile of muskets, each wrapped in a roll of green broadcloth. Hawksworth stared at him for a moment, then pushed forward. Through the shouting mob he finally managed to catch the Rajput's arm and pull him toward the rear of the open tent."Why aren't the cannon being deployed?""But they are, Captain." Vasant Rao stroked his moustache and looked past Hawksworth's shoulder toward the next stack of matchlocks."But only the medium-bore guns, and even those have no shot. Nothing else has been moved.""By medium bore I assume you mean thegau-kash, the ox-drawn cannon. That's true. But these things all take time.""You're spending what little time you have left deploying medium-bore cannon, and those with no shot! Who the hell is in charge?""Prince Jadar, of course. Thegau-kashcannon are the key to his strategy." Vasant Rao moved past Hawksworth and barked orders for the next stack of muskets to be unstrapped. Waiting infantrymen in ragged cloaks pushed forward. "Take a musket, Captain, if you want one. They're probably of some small use. When I'm finished here, I have to check all the harness on thefil-kashcannon, the large guns that will be drawn into position by elephants. Then I still have to issue themardum-kashguns, the small cannon that are assigned to two-man teams.""Where will this other artillery be deployed?" Hawksworth shouted toward Vasant Rao's back.The Rajput seemed not to hear, as he paused to speak to one of the men assisting him. Then he turned and unwrapped a musket, selected a tripod, and passed both to Hawksworth. The other man was bringing a wide velvet belt from the back of the tent, and he handed it to Hawksworth. Hanging from it were a powder flask, bullet pouch, priming horn, match cord, and flint and steel. "The prince will issue orders for deployment of thefil-kashandmardum-kashguns after they've all been harnessed.""He'd better issue them soon. It'll start growing dark in a couple of hours, three at most.""I'm sure he's aware of the time, Captain." Vasant Rao turned and disappeared into a circle of bearded Rajputs, barking orders.Hawksworth watched him disappear, then turned and grabbed two more muskets. Holding them ahead of him like a prow he pushed his way back into the milling street. The air was rank with sweat and the crowds seemed more disorganized than ever. Women jostled in the streets, haggling with the merchants for clay jars of oil, while grooms moved among them leading prancing horses, each wearing a gold-fringed saddle blanket that glowed like ancient coin in the waning sun.Hawksworth studied the crowd, searching vainly for some sense of organization, then turned to begin working his way back toward Jadar's compound and his own tent.Shirin was still there, asleep. He stood admiring her again, her soft mouth, the olive skin of her high cheeks, her shining dark hair, and realized he loved her more than ever.Dear God, we've only just begun to live. Jadar is a madman.Almost without knowing why, he began to rummage through the remains of his clothing, still rolled in the carpet and lying where he had thrown it. His pulse suddenly quickened when his fingers closed around a hard round object. It was his very last bottle of brandy, miraculously entangled in the remains of his formal doublet.If there was ever a time . . .He ripped away the rotting cork with his teeth and pulled deeply on the brandy, twice. As always, it seemed to work at the knot in his gut. He took one more swallow, then shook Shirin.She startled awake and stared at him wildly for a second. Then she broke into a smile . . . until she saw the brandy."Do you really need that now?""I need this and a lot more. How can you sleep? This whole God-cursed camp is going to be leveled by the Imperial army in a few hours." He stopped and stared at her. "Are you listening? Only a fraction of Jadar's cannon are deployed. Most are still waiting to be pulled into position. It's unbelievable."Shirin pulled herself up and leaned against a bolster, examining him with weary eyes. "Then why are you here? Ithought you'd decided to help Prince Jadar.""How can anyone help him when he won't help himself?" Hawksworth took another burning mouthful of brandy and stared at his bow quiver lying on the carpet. In a fit of disgust he kicked it toward the center of the tent.Shirin watched the bow fall and laughed."Have you mastered your Rajput bow yet?""No, and what does it matter? You know Jadar is outnumbered three to one." Hawksworth pointed toward the muskets he had leaned against a coil of rope by the tent pole. "I've got three weapons for us. Do you think you can shoot a matchlock?""I can shoot a bow." She dismissed the muskets with a glance. "I sincerely hope you've learned enough to shoot one too."A trumpet sounded from the center of the compound. Immediately it was answered by others the length of the camp.Shirin snapped alert and rose off the bolster, pulling her gauze cloak around her waist."That's the signal to begin preparing the firewood. Come. At least you can help with that."Hawksworth examined her aghast."Firewood! What in God's name are you talking about? Is Jadar planning to light fires? Is he worried the Imperial army won't find our camp?" He turned and walked to the doorway, rubbing his brow in disbelief. "I think there's damned small risk of that. The red tents of hiszenanacan be seen for miles."Shirin laughed and pushed her way ahead of him, past the portiere of the tent. Servants had already begun assembling piles of logs along the center of the walkway that ran the length of the compound. Hawksworth stood at the doorway and stared in astonishment as clay jars of oil were carried from the kitchen tent and stationed near the logs. As he watched, he noticed the long shadows of dusk beginning to play across the walls of nearby tents.He turned to retrieve the brandy, and when he emerged again from the tent, Shirin was lost among the crowd of servants bringing wood. He slipped the bottle into his jerkin and started working his way down the side of the compound, back toward the munitions tent.Pairs of elephants had been harnessed to the larger cannon, and now they were being led out of the camp, into the dusk. Following these were camels with two-pound swivel guns mounted on their backs, together with infantry pulling the smaller guns after them on two-wheeled carriages. Bullock carts heaving with powder and shot came after.Pyramids of firewood were scattered among the tents, and already many of the Rajputs had assembled by the unlit piles, talking and embracing. Some had seated themselves and removed their turbans, chanting verses from the Bhagavad-Gita as they began to oil and comb their long black hair. Hawksworth watched silently as they started passing around inlaid teakwood boxes, taking and eating handfuls of small brown balls.As he stood puzzling, he recognized Vasant Rao standing among the men. The Rajput was somber now, clasping each of the men in what seemed a farewell gesture. He looked up and saw Hawksworth and smiled."Captain Hawksworth, I'm glad you're here. You're almost a Rajput yourself by now. Do you want to comb your hair? It's how we prepare for what may happen. Who knows which of us will see the morrow?""I can die just as well with my hair the way it is.""Then you're not entirely a Rajput after all. But you're still welcome to join us." He held out one of the boxes.Hawksworth opened the box and gingerly took out one of the balls. As he rolled it under his nose, it triggered a distant memory of his first night in Surat and Mukarrab Khan's dinner party. Suddenly he stopped dead still.It was opium."Jesus Christ! Have you all gone mad?" He flung the ball to the ground and whirled on Vasant Rao. "That's the last thing you need if you hope to fight at all. It's like eating death.""Affion prepares a Rajput for battle, Captain. The more we eat, the stronger we become. It gives us the strength of lions.""Good Jesus help us all."Hawksworth pushed his way incredulously back through the milling crowd of infantry and mounted cavalry, feeling as though the world had collapsed. All around him Rajputs were eating handfuls of opium, combing their hair, embracing in farewell. Many had already put on theirkhaftan, the quilted vest they wore under their armor. He wondered how long it would be before they became drunk with opium and began killing each other.God, we're all going to die. Can't Jadar stop it? Can't he at least stop them from eating opium before we're attacked? And where are they moving the cannon? Out of the camp? What the hell is happening?He wheeled and headed for thenaqqara-khana, the entry to Jadar's compound. When he reached it, he realized the guards were gone. Amazed, he walked through the entry and discovered all the interior partitions of the gulal bar were also gone. The satin tents that had held the melons, the pan leaves, the kitchen—all were deserted, empty.He made his way on through the deserted gulal bar, feeling like a man lost. In the dark there were no guards, no troops, nothing. Ahead he heard the sound of elephants trumpeting and he felt his way forward through the semi-darkness, the ground a mosaic of flickering shadows from the still-burning camp light. His despair absolute, he reached into the pocket of his jerkin for the bottle.A katar was at his throat."It's forbidden by death to draw a weapon in thegulal bar, Captain.""I was only . . ."There was an explosion of laughter and he turned to see the shadowed face of Jadar."What . . . what are you doing here?""Thinking, Captain Hawksworth. Do you never think before a battle at sea? Surely you must.""I think. And I also keep my gunners sober." Hawksworthfelt vaguely foolish as he finished extracting the brandy bottle. "Do you know half your men are eating handfuls of opium?""I'm glad to hear it. It means my Rajputs will be invincible tomorrow." Jadar flipped the katar in his hand and dropped it into is leather sheath. "By the way, I understand you failed to master the bow. But let's talk about something more important. Perhaps you can be of help after all. I'm sure you realize. Captain, that a commander must always understand two things. He must know his own strengths, and he must know the strengths of those who oppose him. But he can really only know one of these for sure. He can never know exactly what he will meet." Jadar paused. "Tell me, if you were Inayat Latif, how would you deploy the Imperial army tomorrow?""What do you mean?""How would you choose to attack? The position of infantry, cavalry, elephants is never exactly the same in any battle. For example, often the front line is held by rows of infantry. The first row will be men wearing plate armor— which is much heavier than the usual steel netting—forming a protective wall with special broad shields. They are always excellent archers. Behind these will be another row, wearing only helmets and breastplates, and armed with swords and pikes. The third row is infantry with swords, bows, and axes. The fourth carries lances and swords. The rows are segmented, so those behind can see ahead, and cavalry can get through.""That deployment would mean a slow-moving attack, and a very bloody fight.""Precisely. That's why many commanders prefer to use their cavalry as the vanguard. Horsemen can move faster, and they can more easily avoid defense barricades."Hawksworth looked at Jadar, wishing he could see his eyes. "But cavalry can be cut to ribbons with small artillery. Is it wise to charge with your cavalry if your enemy has heavy gun emplacements?"He heard Jadar laugh. "You may make a commander yet. You see, Inayat Latif will naturally assume our camp isheavily defended. Now although it's considered questionable manners to attack a camp at night, your manners become excusable if you attack at early dawn, even though it's still dark. I've known of attacks occurring almost half apaharbefore dawn. What's that in European measure? An hour, an hour and a half?""But if it's still dark, how can you see the enemy's lines?""You can see them if your enemy's camp has been negligent enough to leave a few fires burning." Jadar smiled as he paused to let the words sink. "But now let's examine the third possibility. Leading the attack with your elephants. Elephant armor is steel plate and it can withstand everything except heavy cannon. If you can entice your foe into firing his biggest artillery before you charge, then you can send a wave of war elephants and devastate his gunners before their cannon cool enough to reload. Since it can take at least half apaharfor a large cannon to cool, large guns are rarely fired more than once in a battle. And never after your cavalry has moved out. Leading the vanguard with war elephants always entails danger, since if they panic, they can turn around and trample your own infantry, but in this case it's probably worth the risk.""And you think that's what Inayat Latif will try to do?" Hawksworth absently twirled the brandy bottle in his hand."I'm asking you.""It sounds the most plausible. He'll position his biggest cannon to fire into the camp, and after he's drawn your fire in return, he'll stampede about a thousand war elephants right through here, crushing everything in their path. Including your opium-sotted Rajputs and their invincible bows.""You're doing remarkably well so far, Captain." Jadar took Hawksworth's arm and guided him toward the back of the compound. "And then what would you do?""I'd send an infantry wave right after the war elephants, with lines so thick it would be a wall of death. And behind them I'd have cavalry, with muskets, to contain the camp and meet your own cavalry when it broke through—as it probably would eventually.""Cavalrymen wouldn't bother with muskets, just bows, but you're still thinking very clearly. Now tell me, from what direction would you attack this particular camp?"They were approaching the tents, where servants were beginning to soak the wood piles with oil. Hawksworth found himself astonished that Jadar would listen calmly to the strategy spelling his own destruction."From the east, the way we came in.""And why that particular direction?""Several reasons." Hawksworth tried to remember the terrain as they came into the camp. "First, if I'd marched from the east, I'd already have my army deployed there. Second, and probably more important, it's the only direction that's really accessible. The other sides are too forested. But from the east there's a wide clearing that funnels down right into the perimeter of the camp.""With a very clear demarcation of forest on each side, which helps keep your army grouped.""Correct. And, also, the sun would not be in my men's eyes if I hit you from the east."Jadar stopped and looked at him. "So that is precisely what you would do? Attack at dawn on the eastern perimeter. And lead with a front line of war elephants?""With the biggest and best I had."Jadar sighed. "You know, it troubles me that aferinghiwould conclude the same thing I have. But I think it's a classic problem. And that will dictate a classic solution in the mind of Inayat Latif, whose alleged brilliance does not include a flair for originality. He'll have to mount a conventional attack. What's more, because of the restricted terrain, he'll have no room to split his army into a right wing and a left wing. They'll have to be a single phalanx. That's dangerous if you ever need to retreat, but he'll not even consider that possibility. And you say you also believe he'll hold his cavalry for the third wave." Jadar paused. "That's more important here than you probably realize. Everything else depends on it. The cavalry must attack last.""It seems best. And his cavalry is mainly Rajput. He'll not risk cutting up his finest troops by sending them in the first attack wave, when your artillery is still in place." Hawksworth hesitated, then continued bitterly. "Or should be."Jadar laughed and looked at Hawksworth, then at his bottle."What's that in your hand. Captain?""A bottle of brandy. Spanish, I'm ashamed to admit, but it's still the best.""May I try it?"Jadar took the bottle and gingerly swallowed a swig. He stood motionless for a moment and then coughed violently."Merciful Allah! Now I understand why the Prophet forbade its use." He shoved back the bottle. "But I wanted to drink once with you, Captain. I'm told it's a European custom. You've eased my mind.""Eased your mind! I just told you how your camp will be devastated at sunrise.""Absolutely. I will regret losing these tents." Jadar's tone grew pensive. "You know, some of them have been with me since my first campaign in the Deccan, years ago.""How about your Rajputs? And your women? Will you regret losing them as much as your tents?""I don't expect to lose them." Jadar took Hawksworth's arm and led him around the last tent. In the firelight baggage elephants were being loaded with women from thezenana. The elephants were covered withpakhararmor, steel plates around the sides of their bodies and a special steel casement for their head and trunk. The women were being helped up tall ladders and into their elephants'howdah, an octagonal box of heavy boards strengthened with iron plate."Why are you loading the women now?""But we're leaving, Captain."Hawksworth stared at him speechlessly for a moment, then noticed Shirin walking toward them, carrying a bow and two quivers of arrows."You're leaving?"
Hawksworth heard the exultant cheer of the Rajputs riding behind him and snapped awake. It was midmorning of the third day and he had been dozing fitfully in the saddle since dawn, fatigue deep in his bones. Through the trees ahead the camp of Prince Jadar lay spread before them, blanketing half the valley.
"I told you we'd make the camp in three days' ride." Vasant Rao smiled wearily at Hawksworth and spurred his lathered mount forward. "Every man with us is eager to be with the prince."
They had covered, it seemed to Hawksworth, well over a hundred miles since departing the environs of Fatehpur. Between five and six hundred Rajputs rode behind them, all heavily armed with an array of swords, pikes, clubs, saddle-axes. Each man's body armor, a woven network of steel and the quilted garment worn beneath it, was secured behind his saddle, ready to be donned for combat. Hanging at the side of each rider was a round leather shield and a large quiver containing his horn bow and arrows. None carried muskets.
Hawksworth glanced back at Shirin, who rode a few paces behind, and they shared a tired smile. She had ridden the distance like a Rajput, but now her eyes were glazed with weariness. He had suddenly realized, the morning after they all galloped out of the camp at Fatehpur, that he had never before seen a woman in India ride. Where had she learned? He had pondered the question for an hour, riding behind her to watch her easy posture in the saddle, and then he had pulled alongside and asked her point-blank. She said nothing, merely smiled and tossed the loose strands of hair back from her face. He understood her well enough to know this meant she had never ridden before . . . and didn't wish Vasant Rao to know.
"This is the moment I've waited for so long." She reined her mount alongside Hawksworth's, reached out and touched his hand. "You must help the prince now too."
"I'm not so sure I'm eager to die for Prince Jadar."
"You can always go back to Agra. And wait to be murdered by Janahara's guards. The prince has saved your life, and mine, once already. What makes you think he'll bother with you again?"
"To tell the truth, he also saved my life several months ago, the night we made landfall at Surat and were ambushed on the Tapti River by the Portugals."
"I know." She spurred her horse ahead. "I received the pigeon from Prince Jadar ordering it. I passed the message to the Shahbandar, Mirza Nuruddin, who sent his personal Rajputs to protect you."
Hawksworth urged his horse back alongside. "So I was right. You were one of Jadar's agents in Surat. What did Nadir Sharif once call them . . .swanih-nigars?”
"I gathered information for the prince." She smiled in consent. "I kept his accounts and coded his ciphers at the old observatory. Then you came along and started combing through it. You made my work that much more difficult. I never knew when you'd decide to go out there. Or what you'd find."
"Why didn't you just tell me? What did I care?"
"Too much was at risk. The prince once said never to trust atopiwallah."
Hawksworth laughed. "But surely Mukarrab Khan knew what you were doing?"
"I think he probably guessed. But what could he do? He was only the governor, not Allah. He finally forbade me to go into the palace grounds alone. When I refused to obey, he thought of sending you to the observatory, just to annoy me." She smoothed the mane of her horse. "So I think he knew I was doing something there. But he was too entangled by his own intrigues for Janahara to really care."
"Mukarrab Khan worked for the queen? How?"
"Two ways. Naturally he gathered intelligence for her, mainly about the Portuguese. But he also collected her Portuguese revenues at the ports of Surat and Cambay."
"Her revenues? I thought all duties went to the Moghul’s Imperial treasury."
Shirin stifled a smile. "That's what Arangbar thinks too. And at Surat it's mostly true. She collects very little. Mirza Nuruddin despises her and always finds devious ways to muddle her accounts, probably keeping some of her money for himself. But the Shahbandar at the port of Cambay, where Mukarrab Khan used to go every two weeks, would accept bribes from the Portuguese to undervalue their goods, and then split the money with Mukarrab Khan and Janahara." She paused to watch a bright-winged bird dart past. "Arangbar could never understand why his revenue from Cambay was so low. I heard he's thinking about closing the port." She laughed. "If only he knew it's going mostly to Janahara."
Hawksworth rode silently for a moment, thinking. "You know, Nadir Sharif once proposed the same arrangement for English goods, if I would trade with him personally through the port of Cambay. I ignored him. I suspected he planned to find some way to confiscate the goods later on, claiming nonpayment of duty."
"No, on that I think Nadir Sharif would have been very fair. He always honors his agreements, with friend or foe." She looked ahead, her weary eyes brightening as they approached the first jumble of tents and roaming livestock that formed the edge of the camp. Servants in soileddhotiswere leading camels bearing huge baskets of fodder along the makeshift streets between the tents. "But their swindle will be finished when Prince Jadar becomes Moghul. He despises the Portuguese traders and their Christian priests."
The perimeter of the compound reserved for Jadar and hiszenanawas clearly visible now, towering above the center of the camp. It was bordered by a ten-foot-high wall of billowing red chintz, decorated with a white hem at the top and held up with gilded poles spaced no more than two feet apart. Spreading out around it were clusters of smaller tents—red and white striped cloth for noblemen, and onesided lean-to shelters ranging from brocade to ragged blankets for their troops.
"The prince asked that we all ride directly to thegulal bar, his personal compound," Vasant Rao shouted back over his shoulder at Hawksworth. "I think he'll particularly want to see you, Captain."
Cheers erupted as they entered the camp. Tents emptied and infantrymen lined the sides of the wide avenue leading to Jadar's compound, beating their swords against their leather shields. As Hawksworth studied the forest of flying standards spreading out on either side, he suddenly realized that eachmansabdarnobleman was flying his own insignia above his cluster of tents.
Ahead, rising upward from the center of Jadar's compound, was a pole some fifty feet high with a huge vessel of burning oil secured on its tip. Hawksworth examined the flame with astonishment, then drew his horse alongside Vasant Rao's.
"Why's there a light in the middle of the camp? It can be seen for miles?"
"That's called theakas-diya, Captain, the Light of Heaven. It's the Great Camp Light and it's used by everyone to keep their bearings at night. How else could a man find his tent? There are probably fifty thousand men here, with their women and servants. In the evenings, after all the cow-dung fires are lighted for cooking, it's so smoky here you can't see your own tent till you're practically in it."
"This camp's a town almost the size of London. How do the people live?"
"The camp bazaar travels with us, Captain. But you're right. It is a city; merely one that moves." He gestured around them. "The prince of course has his own personal supplies, but everyone else must shift for himself. See those small tents on the street over there, between those two high poles bearing standards. That's one of the bazaars for thebanyas, Hindu merchants who follow the army and sell grain, oil,ghee, rice,dal, everything you'd find in any town. They feed the men. The horses are fed by sending servants out to gather fodder. They cut grass and bring it back on camels, or baggage ponies, or even on their own head. On a long campaign many of the men bring their women, to cook and carry water. The women have to bring water from any wells or streams nearby." He laughed. "Incidentally, I should warn you the prices thesebanyasask are as inflated as the market will bear."
"For once I can't fault the merchants. They may well be out of buyers soon."
Vasant Rao snorted and whipped his horse ahead. They were approaching the entry to Jadar's compound, a wide silk awning with the prince's banners flying from atop its posts. On either side stood rows of ornate red tents with yellow fringe along the eaves. As Hawksworth rode by, he noticed a high open tent on the left holding caged hunting leopards. Next to it stood a massive canopy, surrounded by guards, sheltering light artillery. He squinted against the sun to look inside and caught a glimpse of several dozen small-bore cannon mounted on carriages. He also noticed swivel guns fitted with a harness on their base, obviously intended to be mounted atop elephants or camels. In the center were several stacks of long-barreled Indian muskets wrapped in cloth. The last tent on the left, adjacent to the gate, sheltered several gilded palanquins and a row of immaculate bullock carts for Jadar'szenanawomen.
On the opposite side of the avenue was a row of stables for elephants, camels, and horses. Turbaned grooms were busy brushing the animals and fitting harness. Next to the stables were quarters for the animals' superintendents.
"Does all this belong to Jadar?"
"These are for the prince, his women, and guards. Each nobleman also has his own stables and light artillery. The top command is split three ways: with separate field commanders for the Rajputs, for the Muslims, for the men of Moghul descent." Vasant Rao smiled reflectively. "It's always wisest not to mix. For one thing, each needs its own bazaar; no Rajput would eat food handled by an untouchable Muslim."
Their horses drew into the shade of the awning above the entrance to the gulal bar. Vasant Rao and the other Rajputs reined in their mounts and began to dismount.
"This is thenaqqara-khana, Captain Hawksworth, the entry to His Highness' private compound." Vasant Rao waved toward the red awning. "Come. You'll be welcomed warmly by the prince, I promise you. I know he'd hoped you'd join him."
Hawksworth swung down from his dark mare and stroked her one last time, wiping away the lather around the saddle. Then he turned to help Shirin alight. She leaned over and dropped into his arms, the sweat of exhaustion mingled with her perfume.
Grooms from Jadar's stables were already waiting. As they took the horses, the leader of the Rajput riders shouted staccato orders to them in Urdu, the lingua franca of the camp, then turned and dismissed his men, who immediately swaggered into the gathering crowd to embrace old acquaintances.
"His Highness is expecting you." Vasant Rao smiled and bowed lightly to the Rajput commander, who was tan and beardless save for a small moustache, with a white skirt, a small turban of braided gold cloth, and a velvet-sheathed katar in a red waist sash. The Rajput nodded, then adjusted his turban and retrieved a tightly wrapped brocade bundle from behind his saddle. As he led the way through thenaqqara-khana, Vasant Rao turned and motioned for Hawksworth and Shirin to follow.
Jadar's guards directed them along a pathway of carpets leading through the outer barbican. Ahead was another gate, decorated with striped chintz and sealed with a hanging tapestry. As they approached it, the guards swept the tapestry aside and ushered them through.
The second compound was floored entirely with carpets and in its center stood an open, satin canopy held aloft by four gilded poles. The canopy shaded a rich Persian carpet and a throne fashioned from velvet bolsters. Several men with shoulder-high kettledrums and long brass trumpets were waiting nearby.
As Hawksworth watched, two eunuchs emerged through a curtain at the far gate and lifted it high. While a fanfare of drums and trumpets filled the air, Prince Jadar strolled jauntily through the entryway, alone.
He was dressed formally, with an elaborate silk cloak in pastel blue and a jeweled turban that reminded Hawksworth of the one worn by the Moghul himself. The brocade sash at his waist held a heavy katar with a ruby on each side of the handle. His beard was close-trimmed, accenting his dark eyes. Nothing about him suggested the appearance of a man facing impending defeat.
"Nimaste, Mahdu, my old friend." Jadar walked directly to the Rajput commander, grasped the man's turban and pressed it to his own breast. "How long since we sat together and ate your Udaipurlapsifrom the same dish?"
"The New Year's festival ofdiwalitwo years past, Highness. In my brother's palace. And I wore the gold cloak you gave me in honor of the treaty between your armies and his, five years before."
"And tonight we will dine together again." He smiled. "If my cooks can find enough cane-juicegurin all the bazaars to sweeten yourlapsi."
"Seeing you again, Highness, sweetens my tongue already." He bowed and produced the brocade bundle. "My brother, themaharana, sends this unworthy token, together with his prayers for your victory."
A eunuch stepped forward and brought it to Jadar. When the prince opened the wrapping, a scabbard holding a jewel-handled sword glistened in the mid morning light.
"He does me honor. A Rajput blade knows its friends and its foes." Jadar smiled as he brushed the sword handle. Next he drew out the blade and tested its edge with his finger. The Rajput watched as Jadar sheathed the sword, then lifted the ruby-studded katar from his own belt. "To honor him, I grant his brother my own katar. May its blade soon be crimson with the blood of his foes."
The Rajput bowed as he received the knife. Jadar admired his new sword a moment longer, then continued. "How many of our friends rode west with you?"
"Half a thousand, Highness. More would have joined us now, but I thought it unwise. Your Highness will understand why. But those who did come I picked carefully. Twenty officers of superior class, and the rest first and second class."
"The eunuchs watched your banners enter the camp. I've already heard some of the names." The prince's voice rose. "I think you've gutted the Rajput field command in the Imperial army."
"Not entirely, Highness."
"Ah, but I know you did." Jadar smiled and leaned forward, dropping his voice again and switching from Turki to Rajasthani. "The tent poles here can repeat my words." He drew himself erect again and signaled for a tray of pan leaves from the eunuchs. "A tent has been prepared for you. Tonight we will dine again from the same dish and you can tell me how many white-necked cranes you bagged on Pichola Lake last winter."
The Rajput clasped his hands together and bowed lightly before taking a pan leaf. "Tonight, Highness."
As Mahdu marched regally back through the entryway, Jadar turned and studied Shirin thoughtfully for a moment. Then he motioned her forward and smiled toward Vasant Rao. "And who else did you bring? Yet another old friend?"
Shirin salaamed lightly. "I thank Your Highness for still remembering me."
"I remember you very well. But the last I'd heard, Janahara had ordered you imprisoned. I'm astonished to see you still alive."
"I was released by Arangbar, Highness, after Samad was executed." She tried unsuccessfully to diguise the fatigue in her voice. "I still do not know why."
"Perhaps it was his weakness for beauty." Jadar smiled. "But just now I think you need rest. Mumtaz has asked me to invite you to stay with her in thezenana.”
"Shirin stays with me." Hawksworth heard his own voice, abruptly rising above his exhaustion.
Jadar turned and studied him for a moment, then laughed out loud. "Suddenly I understand many, many things. Mumtaz was right after all. Why is it women always seem to see these things so clearly?" His gaze swept Hawksworth's tattered jerkin. "Well? How are you, Captain Hawksworth? Still alive, I see, just as I foretold. And still the fashionable English ambassador."
"There is no other. Unfortunately, however, my mission was not a complete success."
"First, India must have a just rule. Then trade can be conducted with an even hand." Jadar leaned back on his bolster. "Tell me, Captain, have you seen enough of Agra and court intrigue to rethink the matter we once discussed?"
"I've probably seen all of Agra I'll ever see." Hawksworth fixed Jadar squarely. "But then I'll have much company."
Jadar sobered and regarded Hawksworth a moment in silence.
"I see time still has not mellowed you. Or taught you very much. Do you understand anything at all of land tactics, Sea Captain Hawksworth?"
"I've never claimed to. But I can count infantry."
Jadar laughed again. "You still amuse me, Captain. I'll never know why. It saddens me there'll be so few occasions for us to pass the time together during the next few days. But at least let me show you around my compound. You'll see the next Moghul of India does not campaign entirely like a destitute Arab."
"Why don't we start with your fortifications?"
Jadar roared as he lifted nimbly from his bolster throne and walked into the sunshine. Then he paused and turned to Shirin. "Join us if you wish. And by the way, where've you decided to stay?"
Shirin looked at Hawksworth for a moment, and their eyes locked. Then he saw a smile flicker across her face. "I'll stay with the English ambassador, Highness."
"As you wish." Jadar's tone was wistful. "I no longer try to reason with the mind of a woman. But just let me caution you. If you stay among the Muslims here, their women will spit on you unless you put on a veil. They've never heard of Persia."
"Then we'll stay with the Rajputs." Shirin tossed her head and followed along as Jadar led them through a side exit in the interior chintz wall and into the outer perimeter of the compound. The kettledrums thundered Jadar's exit.
"This side is for food, Captain." Jadar gestured toward a
row of ornate tents that lined the inside of the chintz walls. "The first is for fruit and melons. No man can campaign without them, particularly if he has a hungryzenana. The tent over there is for makingsharbat, and that one is for keeping betel leaves to makepan." Jadar smiled. "Try denying a woman her betel and you'll have nothing but squabbles." He led them on, pointing, as he walked. "The large tent there is the kitchen, the one beyond it the bakery, and the one past that for grinding spices."
Hawksworth found himself astonished. Who could lead an army amid such extravagance? The tents were all red satin, with gilded poles around the outside, giving them the appearance of luxurious pavilions. Some, like the one for fruits and melons, were raised on a platform above the ground, while others were two-story, with an interior stair. As he watched the servants scurry from tent to tent bearing silver trays, he found it difficult to remember a war was looming.
"You'll soon discover traveling with women is always burdensome, Captain. For example, on the other side of thegulal barI've had to erect a special tent just for their perfumes, another for their tailors, another to hold their wardrobes. Then there's a tent for mattresses, one for basins, and one for lamps and oil. These women rule my life. The things I really need—workshops, guardhouses, my arsenal— I've had to situate back behind thezenana, near where the servingwomen stay." Jadar paused, his eyes gleaming mischievously. "Well, what do you think?"
"I think an army camp should have fewer women and more men."
Jadar laughed and looked pointedly at Shirin. "But what is life without women, Captain?"
"Wives don't travel with an army in Europe."
"Then Europe could learn something from India."
"About fighting or about women?"
"Before you're through you may learn a few thing about both." Jadar turned and started back down the row of tents. "War here is very different from wars on the seas, Captain. You should see my men fight before you judge them. But my question now is whether you know how to fight well enough to be of any help. Tell me, can you handle a bow?"
"Armies don't use bows in England any more. I've certainly never used one. I think the last time bows were issued for battle was back around the time of the Spanish Armada, about thirty years ago. Some of the local forces in Devonshire equipped eight hundred men with longbows."
Jadar paused uncertainly. "What do you mean by 'longbow'?"
"It's a bow about five feet in length. The best ones are made of yew, but they're also made from ash and elm."
"You mean your bows are made entirely from wood?" Jadar's voice betrayed his skepticism. "What weight did they pull?"
"I don't know exactly, but they were powerful enough. You can draw a longbow all the way back to your ear. During the time of King Harry it was forbidden to practice with a longbow using a range less than a full furlong. The English longbow drove the crossbow right out of Europe. I've heard it said a longbow can pierce a four-inch-thick oak door."
"But you don't use them now?"
"We prefer muskets."
He seemed to ponder the answer as he led them back into his carpeted reception area. He took his place beneath the canopy, then turned to Hawksworth.
"We use muskets too. But frankly they're often more trouble than they're worth. They're cumbersome and inaccurate, and while you're reloading and priming your matchlock a Rajput archer will put half a dozen arrows through you. Infantry here normally is one-third matchlock men and two-thirds archers. If you're going to be any help to us, Captain, you'll need to learn to use a bow."
Jadar stopped and turned to look at Shirin. Her eyes were fluttering with fatigue. "But I forget my manners. You must have some rest while we teach theferinghihow to fight. Perhaps the best thing would be to clear a tent for you at the rear of thegulal bar, near the workshops. And the English captain can stay there too," Jadar laughed. "So I can watch him practice his bow." He glanced back at Hawksworth and his eyes froze on the pearl earring. "I see you're akhannow, as well as an ambassador. Congratulations. If Arangbar can make you akhan, I can surely make you an archer."
Jadar motioned to the eunuchs, who came forward and escorted Shirin through the rear doorway of the compound. Hawksworth was watching her leave, praying for sleep himself, when Jadar's voice brought him back.
"Let me begin by explaining our Indian bow to you, Captain. I think it's probably quite different from the English bow you described." Jadar turned to Vasant Rao and motioned toward his quiver, a flat leather case hanging from a strap over one shoulder. It was covered with gold embossing and held both his bow and his arrows. "You know we have a proverb: the sword is better than the katar, the spear is better than the sword; the arrow better than the spear. I've heard Muslims claim the bow and arrow were first given to Adam by the archangel Gabriel." Jadar paused while Vasant Rao took out his bow and passed it over. "Now, the first thing you need to learn is how to string this. It's more difficult than you might suppose, since a bow is reflexed, curved back around the opposite way when unstrung. It's stressed against the strung position to give it more weight on the pull." Jadar examined the bow for a moment. "In fact, you can tell how much use a bow has had by the way it's bent when unstrung. The original curve in this bow is almost gone, which means it's had a lot of use. Here hold it for a moment."
Hawksworth grasped the bow in his hand. It was some four feet long, shaped in a wide curve with the ends bent back. The grip was velvet, with a gold-embossed design on the inner side.
"You say your English bows are made of wood, but I find that difficult to believe. This one is a composite, a mango-wood core with strips of buffalo horn glued over the outside. And the outer curve is lined with catgut to give it even more force. That's why this bow had to be sealed on the outside with leather. We use leather or lacquer to protect the glue from the dampness of the monsoon. The string, by the way, is a silk skein with a crisscross binding at the center."
"How do you string it?"
Jadar grinned as he took back the bow. "It's not easy. If you have to string a bow while riding, you hook one end between the stirrup and the instep of your foot and brace it backward against your knee. But usually we bend it over our back." He took the string in his hand and slipped the bow around his waist. Then he flipped it against his back and pulled its free end over his left shoulder, inverting the curve and hooking the string in a single motion. It was done in an instant.
"There. But I've made it look easier than it is. You should practice. And it would also be well if you could learn to string a bow and shoot from horseback."
"Horseback!"
"All horsemen use a bow."
"How can you possibly hit anything from horseback?"
"Practice. A good Rajput archer can shoot as well from horseback as standing. The Uzbeks shoot better." As Jadar spoke he was extracting a heavy ring from inside his cloak. One side of the ring was a green emerald, flat and square and half an inch wide.
"This is azihgir, a bow ring, to protect your thumb when you draw. It also increases your range."
He pushed the emerald ring over his thumb, notched an arrow into the string, and drew it back effortlessly, holding the thin bamboo arrow in position with a touch of his forefinger. The whole sequence had taken less than a second. Hawksworth found himself staring in admiration.
"By the way," Jadar turned to Vasant Rao, "show him how you shoot under a shield."
The Rajput turned to one of Jadar's guards, whose shield was hanging loosely from a shoulder strap. He took the shield and slipped it onto his wrist. It was circular, a quarter inch thick and about two feet in diameter, and curved like a wide bowl. The front was figured with a silver ensign and in the center were four steel nailheads, which secured the handgrips on the back.
"That shield's one of the best. It's made with cured rhino
hide and toughened with lacquer. You hold it by those two straps attached inside, there in the center." Jadar pointed as Vasant Rao held out the back of the shield. "Notice the straps are large and loose. So when you want to shoot, you can slip your hand through and slide the shield up your wrist, like he's doing now. Then your hand extends out beyond the rim and you can hold the grip of the bow. But remember you'll have no protection when shooting, so you'll learn to shoot fast or you won't live long in a battle. Here, try the shield."
Hawksworth took the shield and gripped the leather thongs on the back. "It's light. How much protection does it give?"
"A buffalo-hide shield is really only effective against arrows, but a rhino-hide shield like this one will usually deflect musket fire. We'll find a rhino shield for you somewhere." Jadar rose to leave. "Incidentally, after seeing how you handle that bow, I think I'd better assign you to the guards stationed back with thezenana. That should keep you well out of the battle. I don't want my first English ambassador dead just yet." He fingered his long pearl necklace and studied Hawksworth. "You may be interested to know my reports say the Imperial army will reach us in two days. Tomorrow I plan to poison all the tanks and water wells within twentykoseast of here, forcing them to attack immediately. I hope you'll be ready."
He turned and was gone.
Hawksworth awoke at noon the following day to discover work had begun on fortification of the camp. He left Shirin sleeping and walked to the eastern perimeter, where the heavy cannon were being drawn into position. As he paused to study one of the cannon, he found himself comparing it with the European design. It looked to be a six-inch bore, with a molded iron barrel strengthened by brass hoops shrunk around the outside. It was bolted onto its own carriage, a flat base supported by four solid wooden wheels, and pulled by a team of ten white bullocks yoked in pairs. Cotton ropes almost two inches in diameter were tied
around the breech, looped beneath the axles and then through a heavy iron ring on the front of the mount, extending forward to hooks on the yokes of the bullocks.
While their drivers whipped the animals forward, a crowd of moustachioed infantry in red and green tunics clustered around the gun carriages pushing. A drummer in an orange cloak sat astraddle the breech of the cannon beating cadence for the other men on two large drums strapped along each side of the barrel. A large bull elephant trailed behind, heavy padding on his forehead, and whenever the gun carriage bogged, the elephant would be moved forward to shove the breech with his head.
As the cannon were rolled into position, some fifteen feet apart, they were being linked to each other with heavy ropes of twisted bull hide the size and strength of metal chain, to prevent cavalry from riding through and cutting down the gunners. After the hide ropes were camouflaged with brush, a leather screen was placed behind the breech of each gun to protect the gunners when it fired.
Hawksworth counted approximately three hundred cannon along the camp perimeter. Firepots were being stationed behind each gun, together with linstocks and leather barrels of powder. A few bags of dirt had been piled between some of the cannon to provide protection for matchlock men. Around the cannon, men were assembling piles of four-sided iron claws, and beyond, diggers with picks and wicker baskets had begun a halfhearted effort to start construction of a trench. He studied the preparations uneasily for a moment, sensing something was wrong, and then he froze.
There was no shot. Only stacks of iron claws.
He whirled and made his way back to the munitions depot, rows of yellow-fringed tents. The shot was there waiting, in gauge ranging from two inch to ten inch, but none had been moved.
He moved on to other tents and discovered several hundred more cannon. Some were the same gauge as those being deployed, others much larger. All had been fitted with harness, ready to be moved, but now they stood in long rows, waiting. As he moved onto another row of tents, pushing through the swarm of men and bullocks, he discovered a vast cache of smaller cannon, thousands, also mounted on wooden carriages but small enough to be moved by a bullock, or even two men. These too were harnessed and sat untouched.
Beyond there were other rows of tents, where seven-foot- long muskets—together with powder, bags of shot, and a wooden prong to rest the barrel on when firing—were now being broken out and distributed to the infantry. The men were being armed, but the camp itself was practically without fortification.
Hawksworth stood brooding about the preparations, about the Rajput horn bow he had only barely learned to use—he was finally able to hit thetodah, practice target, a mound of earth piled near Jadar's officers' tent, but shooting under a shield seemed impossible—and the situation began to overwhelm him. Jadar's position was becoming more hopeless by the minute.
He stared around the open camp and decided he would try to requisition as many matchlocks as possible, and perhaps also try to teach Shirin to shoot in the time remaining. If they had muskets, he told himself, perhaps they could somehow defend themselves when the Imperial army swept through the camp.
He turned and pushed his way back toward where muskets were being issued. Men were walking past him carrying heavy matchlocks, five feet in length with a barrel of rolled steel welded together end to end. The barrel was attached to the stock by a broad steel band, and both were profusely ornamented with embossing and colored enamel. Some of the muskets had wooden tripods attached to the end of the barrel.
As he approached the munitions tent, he saw Vasant Rao standing in its center, issuing orders with an easy smile, his moustache and turban as prim as though he were on muster. Behind him was a head-high pile of muskets, each wrapped in a roll of green broadcloth. Hawksworth stared at him for a moment, then pushed forward. Through the shouting mob he finally managed to catch the Rajput's arm and pull him toward the rear of the open tent.
"Why aren't the cannon being deployed?"
"But they are, Captain." Vasant Rao stroked his moustache and looked past Hawksworth's shoulder toward the next stack of matchlocks.
"But only the medium-bore guns, and even those have no shot. Nothing else has been moved."
"By medium bore I assume you mean thegau-kash, the ox-drawn cannon. That's true. But these things all take time."
"You're spending what little time you have left deploying medium-bore cannon, and those with no shot! Who the hell is in charge?"
"Prince Jadar, of course. Thegau-kashcannon are the key to his strategy." Vasant Rao moved past Hawksworth and barked orders for the next stack of muskets to be unstrapped. Waiting infantrymen in ragged cloaks pushed forward. "Take a musket, Captain, if you want one. They're probably of some small use. When I'm finished here, I have to check all the harness on thefil-kashcannon, the large guns that will be drawn into position by elephants. Then I still have to issue themardum-kashguns, the small cannon that are assigned to two-man teams."
"Where will this other artillery be deployed?" Hawksworth shouted toward Vasant Rao's back.
The Rajput seemed not to hear, as he paused to speak to one of the men assisting him. Then he turned and unwrapped a musket, selected a tripod, and passed both to Hawksworth. The other man was bringing a wide velvet belt from the back of the tent, and he handed it to Hawksworth. Hanging from it were a powder flask, bullet pouch, priming horn, match cord, and flint and steel. "The prince will issue orders for deployment of thefil-kashandmardum-kashguns after they've all been harnessed."
"He'd better issue them soon. It'll start growing dark in a couple of hours, three at most."
"I'm sure he's aware of the time, Captain." Vasant Rao turned and disappeared into a circle of bearded Rajputs, barking orders.
Hawksworth watched him disappear, then turned and grabbed two more muskets. Holding them ahead of him like a prow he pushed his way back into the milling street. The air was rank with sweat and the crowds seemed more disorganized than ever. Women jostled in the streets, haggling with the merchants for clay jars of oil, while grooms moved among them leading prancing horses, each wearing a gold-fringed saddle blanket that glowed like ancient coin in the waning sun.
Hawksworth studied the crowd, searching vainly for some sense of organization, then turned to begin working his way back toward Jadar's compound and his own tent.
Shirin was still there, asleep. He stood admiring her again, her soft mouth, the olive skin of her high cheeks, her shining dark hair, and realized he loved her more than ever.
Dear God, we've only just begun to live. Jadar is a madman.
Almost without knowing why, he began to rummage through the remains of his clothing, still rolled in the carpet and lying where he had thrown it. His pulse suddenly quickened when his fingers closed around a hard round object. It was his very last bottle of brandy, miraculously entangled in the remains of his formal doublet.
If there was ever a time . . .
He ripped away the rotting cork with his teeth and pulled deeply on the brandy, twice. As always, it seemed to work at the knot in his gut. He took one more swallow, then shook Shirin.
She startled awake and stared at him wildly for a second. Then she broke into a smile . . . until she saw the brandy.
"Do you really need that now?"
"I need this and a lot more. How can you sleep? This whole God-cursed camp is going to be leveled by the Imperial army in a few hours." He stopped and stared at her. "Are you listening? Only a fraction of Jadar's cannon are deployed. Most are still waiting to be pulled into position. It's unbelievable."
Shirin pulled herself up and leaned against a bolster, examining him with weary eyes. "Then why are you here? I
thought you'd decided to help Prince Jadar."
"How can anyone help him when he won't help himself?" Hawksworth took another burning mouthful of brandy and stared at his bow quiver lying on the carpet. In a fit of disgust he kicked it toward the center of the tent.
Shirin watched the bow fall and laughed.
"Have you mastered your Rajput bow yet?"
"No, and what does it matter? You know Jadar is outnumbered three to one." Hawksworth pointed toward the muskets he had leaned against a coil of rope by the tent pole. "I've got three weapons for us. Do you think you can shoot a matchlock?"
"I can shoot a bow." She dismissed the muskets with a glance. "I sincerely hope you've learned enough to shoot one too."
A trumpet sounded from the center of the compound. Immediately it was answered by others the length of the camp.
Shirin snapped alert and rose off the bolster, pulling her gauze cloak around her waist.
"That's the signal to begin preparing the firewood. Come. At least you can help with that."
Hawksworth examined her aghast.
"Firewood! What in God's name are you talking about? Is Jadar planning to light fires? Is he worried the Imperial army won't find our camp?" He turned and walked to the doorway, rubbing his brow in disbelief. "I think there's damned small risk of that. The red tents of hiszenanacan be seen for miles."
Shirin laughed and pushed her way ahead of him, past the portiere of the tent. Servants had already begun assembling piles of logs along the center of the walkway that ran the length of the compound. Hawksworth stood at the doorway and stared in astonishment as clay jars of oil were carried from the kitchen tent and stationed near the logs. As he watched, he noticed the long shadows of dusk beginning to play across the walls of nearby tents.
He turned to retrieve the brandy, and when he emerged again from the tent, Shirin was lost among the crowd of servants bringing wood. He slipped the bottle into his jerkin and started working his way down the side of the compound, back toward the munitions tent.
Pairs of elephants had been harnessed to the larger cannon, and now they were being led out of the camp, into the dusk. Following these were camels with two-pound swivel guns mounted on their backs, together with infantry pulling the smaller guns after them on two-wheeled carriages. Bullock carts heaving with powder and shot came after.
Pyramids of firewood were scattered among the tents, and already many of the Rajputs had assembled by the unlit piles, talking and embracing. Some had seated themselves and removed their turbans, chanting verses from the Bhagavad-Gita as they began to oil and comb their long black hair. Hawksworth watched silently as they started passing around inlaid teakwood boxes, taking and eating handfuls of small brown balls.
As he stood puzzling, he recognized Vasant Rao standing among the men. The Rajput was somber now, clasping each of the men in what seemed a farewell gesture. He looked up and saw Hawksworth and smiled.
"Captain Hawksworth, I'm glad you're here. You're almost a Rajput yourself by now. Do you want to comb your hair? It's how we prepare for what may happen. Who knows which of us will see the morrow?"
"I can die just as well with my hair the way it is."
"Then you're not entirely a Rajput after all. But you're still welcome to join us." He held out one of the boxes.
Hawksworth opened the box and gingerly took out one of the balls. As he rolled it under his nose, it triggered a distant memory of his first night in Surat and Mukarrab Khan's dinner party. Suddenly he stopped dead still.
It was opium.
"Jesus Christ! Have you all gone mad?" He flung the ball to the ground and whirled on Vasant Rao. "That's the last thing you need if you hope to fight at all. It's like eating death."
"Affion prepares a Rajput for battle, Captain. The more we eat, the stronger we become. It gives us the strength of lions."
"Good Jesus help us all."
Hawksworth pushed his way incredulously back through the milling crowd of infantry and mounted cavalry, feeling as though the world had collapsed. All around him Rajputs were eating handfuls of opium, combing their hair, embracing in farewell. Many had already put on theirkhaftan, the quilted vest they wore under their armor. He wondered how long it would be before they became drunk with opium and began killing each other.
God, we're all going to die. Can't Jadar stop it? Can't he at least stop them from eating opium before we're attacked? And where are they moving the cannon? Out of the camp? What the hell is happening?
He wheeled and headed for thenaqqara-khana, the entry to Jadar's compound. When he reached it, he realized the guards were gone. Amazed, he walked through the entry and discovered all the interior partitions of the gulal bar were also gone. The satin tents that had held the melons, the pan leaves, the kitchen—all were deserted, empty.
He made his way on through the deserted gulal bar, feeling like a man lost. In the dark there were no guards, no troops, nothing. Ahead he heard the sound of elephants trumpeting and he felt his way forward through the semi-darkness, the ground a mosaic of flickering shadows from the still-burning camp light. His despair absolute, he reached into the pocket of his jerkin for the bottle.
A katar was at his throat.
"It's forbidden by death to draw a weapon in thegulal bar, Captain."
"I was only . . ."
There was an explosion of laughter and he turned to see the shadowed face of Jadar.
"What . . . what are you doing here?"
"Thinking, Captain Hawksworth. Do you never think before a battle at sea? Surely you must."
"I think. And I also keep my gunners sober." Hawksworth
felt vaguely foolish as he finished extracting the brandy bottle. "Do you know half your men are eating handfuls of opium?"
"I'm glad to hear it. It means my Rajputs will be invincible tomorrow." Jadar flipped the katar in his hand and dropped it into is leather sheath. "By the way, I understand you failed to master the bow. But let's talk about something more important. Perhaps you can be of help after all. I'm sure you realize. Captain, that a commander must always understand two things. He must know his own strengths, and he must know the strengths of those who oppose him. But he can really only know one of these for sure. He can never know exactly what he will meet." Jadar paused. "Tell me, if you were Inayat Latif, how would you deploy the Imperial army tomorrow?"
"What do you mean?"
"How would you choose to attack? The position of infantry, cavalry, elephants is never exactly the same in any battle. For example, often the front line is held by rows of infantry. The first row will be men wearing plate armor— which is much heavier than the usual steel netting—forming a protective wall with special broad shields. They are always excellent archers. Behind these will be another row, wearing only helmets and breastplates, and armed with swords and pikes. The third row is infantry with swords, bows, and axes. The fourth carries lances and swords. The rows are segmented, so those behind can see ahead, and cavalry can get through."
"That deployment would mean a slow-moving attack, and a very bloody fight."
"Precisely. That's why many commanders prefer to use their cavalry as the vanguard. Horsemen can move faster, and they can more easily avoid defense barricades."
Hawksworth looked at Jadar, wishing he could see his eyes. "But cavalry can be cut to ribbons with small artillery. Is it wise to charge with your cavalry if your enemy has heavy gun emplacements?"
He heard Jadar laugh. "You may make a commander yet. You see, Inayat Latif will naturally assume our camp is
heavily defended. Now although it's considered questionable manners to attack a camp at night, your manners become excusable if you attack at early dawn, even though it's still dark. I've known of attacks occurring almost half apaharbefore dawn. What's that in European measure? An hour, an hour and a half?"
"But if it's still dark, how can you see the enemy's lines?"
"You can see them if your enemy's camp has been negligent enough to leave a few fires burning." Jadar smiled as he paused to let the words sink. "But now let's examine the third possibility. Leading the attack with your elephants. Elephant armor is steel plate and it can withstand everything except heavy cannon. If you can entice your foe into firing his biggest artillery before you charge, then you can send a wave of war elephants and devastate his gunners before their cannon cool enough to reload. Since it can take at least half apaharfor a large cannon to cool, large guns are rarely fired more than once in a battle. And never after your cavalry has moved out. Leading the vanguard with war elephants always entails danger, since if they panic, they can turn around and trample your own infantry, but in this case it's probably worth the risk."
"And you think that's what Inayat Latif will try to do?" Hawksworth absently twirled the brandy bottle in his hand.
"I'm asking you."
"It sounds the most plausible. He'll position his biggest cannon to fire into the camp, and after he's drawn your fire in return, he'll stampede about a thousand war elephants right through here, crushing everything in their path. Including your opium-sotted Rajputs and their invincible bows."
"You're doing remarkably well so far, Captain." Jadar took Hawksworth's arm and guided him toward the back of the compound. "And then what would you do?"
"I'd send an infantry wave right after the war elephants, with lines so thick it would be a wall of death. And behind them I'd have cavalry, with muskets, to contain the camp and meet your own cavalry when it broke through—as it probably would eventually."
"Cavalrymen wouldn't bother with muskets, just bows, but you're still thinking very clearly. Now tell me, from what direction would you attack this particular camp?"
They were approaching the tents, where servants were beginning to soak the wood piles with oil. Hawksworth found himself astonished that Jadar would listen calmly to the strategy spelling his own destruction.
"From the east, the way we came in."
"And why that particular direction?"
"Several reasons." Hawksworth tried to remember the terrain as they came into the camp. "First, if I'd marched from the east, I'd already have my army deployed there. Second, and probably more important, it's the only direction that's really accessible. The other sides are too forested. But from the east there's a wide clearing that funnels down right into the perimeter of the camp."
"With a very clear demarcation of forest on each side, which helps keep your army grouped."
"Correct. And, also, the sun would not be in my men's eyes if I hit you from the east."
Jadar stopped and looked at him. "So that is precisely what you would do? Attack at dawn on the eastern perimeter. And lead with a front line of war elephants?"
"With the biggest and best I had."
Jadar sighed. "You know, it troubles me that aferinghiwould conclude the same thing I have. But I think it's a classic problem. And that will dictate a classic solution in the mind of Inayat Latif, whose alleged brilliance does not include a flair for originality. He'll have to mount a conventional attack. What's more, because of the restricted terrain, he'll have no room to split his army into a right wing and a left wing. They'll have to be a single phalanx. That's dangerous if you ever need to retreat, but he'll not even consider that possibility. And you say you also believe he'll hold his cavalry for the third wave." Jadar paused. "That's more important here than you probably realize. Everything else depends on it. The cavalry must attack last."
"It seems best. And his cavalry is mainly Rajput. He'll not risk cutting up his finest troops by sending them in the first attack wave, when your artillery is still in place." Hawksworth hesitated, then continued bitterly. "Or should be."
Jadar laughed and looked at Hawksworth, then at his bottle.
"What's that in your hand. Captain?"
"A bottle of brandy. Spanish, I'm ashamed to admit, but it's still the best."
"May I try it?"
Jadar took the bottle and gingerly swallowed a swig. He stood motionless for a moment and then coughed violently.
"Merciful Allah! Now I understand why the Prophet forbade its use." He shoved back the bottle. "But I wanted to drink once with you, Captain. I'm told it's a European custom. You've eased my mind."
"Eased your mind! I just told you how your camp will be devastated at sunrise."
"Absolutely. I will regret losing these tents." Jadar's tone grew pensive. "You know, some of them have been with me since my first campaign in the Deccan, years ago."
"How about your Rajputs? And your women? Will you regret losing them as much as your tents?"
"I don't expect to lose them." Jadar took Hawksworth's arm and led him around the last tent. In the firelight baggage elephants were being loaded with women from thezenana. The elephants were covered withpakhararmor, steel plates around the sides of their bodies and a special steel casement for their head and trunk. The women were being helped up tall ladders and into their elephants'howdah, an octagonal box of heavy boards strengthened with iron plate.
"Why are you loading the women now?"
"But we're leaving, Captain."
Hawksworth stared at him speechlessly for a moment, then noticed Shirin walking toward them, carrying a bow and two quivers of arrows.
"You're leaving?"