War For Love

~Twenty Three~

Sahib stared at Siya for a long time in silence. It was either Siya was cracking a really scary joke or she was intending to make this 'scary joke' a reality. Breaking into a marriage to help the bride flee? Was she on drugs or had she consumed some intoxicated food item because no sane person would every try to help the bride to escape her own marriage. When she first showed her interest in the sword, it was an innocent curiousity Siya had after witnessing the weapon but when she voiced her decision of learning sword fighting, determined to learn, with or without, Sahib's help, he should have known, something wasn't right.

Marriage was a sacred bond in their village and country. A man and a woman tie their knot, in the presence of their families and priest, swearing on the God of fire, loyalty and lifelong support. But Siya wanted to break all the laws and help the bride to run from her own marriage. People would kill her! Why does she wishes to do everything dangerous and which defies their social norms? Siya was a rebel but she could go to that extent of helping someone flee was beyond Sahib's understanding.

"I am in no mood of jesting, Siya. And this is not the subject you joke on." Sahib rebuked her and she rose her brows at him.

"But I'm not even joking, Rudra. You asked me the reason to learn sword fighting and this is the exact reason why I'm here, training to fight. I want to help a girl to run away from her marriage." Sahib clenched his jaw, taking a step forward as he glared at Siya, the woman, who had managed to irritate him atleast once in every five days. No day goes without her thinking something so radical.

"Then you've lost your senses to think! You do know how these people are, right? How much they value their traditions and their religion and yet you dare to think you can make a bride flee without any dire consequences?" Sahib growled, trying to keep his urge of shaking Siya to get her back in her senses, inside.

"I know what I'm doing, Rudra. And I am very well aware about the consequences of my actions and I am ready to face them. And that's the reason, I am learning to fight; to save my life." Siya retorted back. Her eyes had the fire lurking in them as she stared right in his eyes.

"Siya......"

"I can't see another woman's life getting destroyed because her parents think it was perfectly alright to sell their daughter in exchange of their unpaid debts! Do you know, who is Mamta getting married to? That good for nothing landlord! And Mamta is not his first wife and I am pretty sure, she won't be his last wife too, Rudra! You know how cruel the landlord is and not to mention, he's twice her age. She feels like the world has abandoned her because no-one's listening her, no-one is ready to help her." When Sahib didn't say anything, she continued.

"This is inhumane, Rudra. Selling human beings for money and treating daughters as their assets, they think they can trade in, when they feel necessary, is wrong! Inhumane!"

"They'll kill you for this, Siya." Sahib whispered as he too took a step forward, looking into her eyes as he softly cupped her face and she closed her eyes at his eternal and affectionate touch.

How hard it was for Siya to swallow her emotions down when Sahib was holding her face so gently, so lovingly, just like the way he was gazing at her. So lovingly.

"And she's already dying, Rudra. Would you have sat idly if someone would've been marrying me without my consent?" Siya asked and Sahib's eyes widened at her words.

He hadn't yet thought about someone marrying her. He would never marry her, true. But the idea of Siya taking wedding vows and phere (moving in circles, around the fire, with their spouse) with someone else made his heart to clench painfully. And this was bound to happen. Siya's parents would make her marry someone else if he won't and he would have to see that. After all, he has signed for this himself.

Siya could see the pain and turmoil in Sahib's dark eyes. The sudden mention of her marriage had saddened him and her heart curled painfully at the same thought that had made Sahib to feel the never ending pain in his heart. What Sahib was still unaware of, was that Siya would rather spend her life alone than marry a man who isn't Sahib. What Sahib felt for Siya was so much akin to love and yet not love. And Siya was too reaching at that point. They still were a few feet away from the eternal emotion of love but still so much near.

"What would you have done, Rudra?" Siya asked, this time more softly, tenderly. This question was for her and not for Mamta anymore. She wanted to hear it from him. Her throat was getting parched, her mouth went dry as her fingers rested against his bare shoulders and he sucked in a breath.

"Anything without your consent, Siya and I would rip the people in shreds." Sahib said, almost growling out and Siya's lips tugged up in a smile. She let out a breath, softly chuckling as she held his palm with her own.

"I hope that would suffice your query, hm. If I won't fight to free her, Rudra, I'll forever live in the guilt of not helping a person, when I could have."

"If this is what you want, Siya, I'll always stand by you and your decisions." Sahib said, his eyes promising her a thousand lives in that one second.

"You don't have to, Rudra."

"Nonsense, Siya. You may infuriate me to a level, no-one ever had but always remember, no matter how much you annoy me, you'll always be the dearest to me. Most precious person in my life." Siya felt her cheeks heating up as she looked up at him, no barriers amid them as they gazed at each other.

"Careful Sahib, you're confessing a lot more than you should." Siya whispered and Sahib rose his brow, snorting as he wrapped his arm around her waist, making her heart to thump loudly inside her chest.

"I know."

~~~~~~~~

It was the day. It was the day when Sahib and a few more villages would bomb the mills in their respective villages, destroying them to help the poor artisans to build their businesses again. Everyone had gathered on the outskirts of the their villages and town. They all had turbans on their head and blankets around their body. The very blankets Siya had given them. Everyone had the similiar flame erupting inside them as their cresset did.

Siya, no longer worked in secrecy but with them. She stood beside Sahib, who was learning to include her in all of their protests and revolts. Jayanti Lal and a few men who had gathered around Siya's house when she got the whipping were not so shocked as the other men were but none of them questioned Sahib, knowing that if he permitted her, he must've thought about the pros and cons of involving a woman in the protest, very well.

"This is our land. Our birth and work land. We should not pay to work on our land. We should not pay to fill their pockets! Are we ready?" Sahib asked, his voice bold, loud and Siya felt a tremor passing down her body as she heard the crowd chorusing in affirmation.

"We'll kill our country and we'll die for our country!" Sahib roared and so did the villagers with him, this time Siya shouting with them. Sahib felt Siya's voice piercing deep down his heart and he gazed at her and in return, she nodded her head. Telling him silently that she was ready.

"Vande matram!" (I bow to thee, Mother) Siya said, her fist pumping in the air and for a minute, none of them said anything, just looked at each other. Siya felt her heart sinking down but that's when she heard the same chorus by the men. Her heart brimmed with happiness as she looked at Sahib in euphoria and he squeezed her hand in support.

"Vande matram! Vande matram! Tell the truth prevail!"

"We have discussed this. We've got this. We'll meet each other at the same spot, once we're done. We only have fifteen minutes in our hands. Do not fear to use force when necessary, hm?" Sahib said and all of them nodding their head before they marched to their respective, assigned areas and Siya went with Sahib with a bunch of few more men.

Siya saw the revolver in Sahib's hand as they were marching towards the mill. The rest of the men had the grenades, knives and swords. Siya had nothing. Sahib had told her to learn in this protest. Learn how revolts happen and how you need to complete your assigned task in given period of time.

'A warrior doesn't enter in the battle with nothing, Siya. You need to learn how revolts happen. How agitation works.' These were his words when he told her about their mission.

Even though Siya was just to observe how things happened and to learn about revolts, she still played a vital role. She made the paste to make anyone unconscious which Sahib later on coated on the iron arrows. Siya had used her medicinal knowledge to help the men reach inside the mill.

As soon as they reached near the mill, they saw foreign guards, guarding the mill. Sahib nodded his head at his men who had now turned their cresset off, walking in the darkness with light steps before wrapping the guards' faces with a black, opaque clothe from behind, kicking their shins, making their guns to fall down and just in time, Siya stabbed the iron nails, coated with paste in their neck, making them unconsciousness after a few minutes of struggling and screaming against the clothe. Siya had given the similar nails to rest of the groups too as they had decided to knock the guards out before bombing the mills.

Sahib clapped his hands and the workers rushed out. Siya looked at them with her heart clenching in pain. They looked so weak and tired. The dark bags under their eyes and the whip marks on their body made her eyes to brim with tears and anger. How can someone be so cruel as to forget the person in front of them is also a human?

"Sahib! You're no less than an incarnation of God, Sahib. You're really here to help us get rid of our plight. Oh and this generous woman also gave clothes to our families. You'll all are here!" A worker cried out, walking out, as if trying to test the free air and tears of happiness rolled down his eyes. They were stepping out of the mills, after Lord knows, how long.

"Allah is everywhere.  And Allah has sent you to free us from this bondage, Sahib. You're no less than any farishta (angel), you man of Allah." A man named Aftaab said, his eyes brimming with tears and Sahib shook his head.

"I'm no incarnation of God, nor did the Allah sent me here. I'm one among you. One of you. Now please step at a far distances so that we can carry out our mission." Sahib said, his eyes promising them the freedom, they've been deprived of, more than three centuries.

"Siya, get them the food and medicines. And Majid, take them to our safe place. You'll find our men there too. But remember, you man of your words, you must fight when the time comes." Sahib instructed and the workers nodded in unison. The fire of revolt had just ignited in them.

"You've fought for us, Sahib. We'll fight for you, one day." Sardar Param said before they went with Majid, taking their cartons of food and medicines from Siya.

Once they had left, Sahib turned to Siya and other men before giving them a grenade each. Vallabh Vyas kicked the can of oil, letting the oil to spill on the floor and inside the mill.

Sahib had taught Siya how to throw a grenade and how other bomb functions a few days before. He handed her the grenade and Siya looked at the grenade with her wide-eyes before looking at him.

"You know what 'Vande Mataram' means, right? I bow to thee, Mother. And you, represent all the women, all the girls, all the mothers today. We bow down to the energy of our motherland, Siya. It's the day you show the world the real power of a woman." Sahib said, his eyes telling her how much he believed in her and Siya felt the sudden surge of energy in her.

She was the energy and power, people worshipped for. She was the power, people seeked outside.

"Attack!"