Riding through the entire night the never-ending desert, at last, they boarded at the state boundary of the Amer kingdom. As they reach their destination, the new rising sun's first beam comes down to welcome the Mughal Emperor, King of the Kings, Shahenshah E Hindustan Jalal'uddin Muhammad (Jalal). The sight was breathtaking; the faded orange glow was perfectly melting with the dark sapphire and lavender sky. The endless desert sand sparkled in the radiance of the rays. Gradually sun began to plaster over the darkness with vivid golden shades. An impious grin curved Jalal's lips, and his eyes flashed while observing the massive artistic wall of the fort and the tall, strong iron gate of the Amer entrance.
The Fifteenth Century was prepared to endorse the most significant event of the era. The moment Jalal's feet touched the Amer land, his lonely, isolated heart known to be cruel fluttered strangely and began to beat unevenly. It was like time still for the split of a second; A sudden change of feelings made King's heart restless.
While looking at Abdul, the Mughal King dusted the sand from his Royal Rajvashi clothes. "Finally, with the first shaft of the sunshine, we have touched our final destination; let's find out what fate has written for us in the Amer." In a casual tone, Jalal stated. Destiny grinned at his casual mystifying statement.
Seeing a predator grin on Jalal's face, Abdul jested in an optimistic tone, "Maybe, Amer Princess, 'A Rose of the desert' princess Jodha."
Masking his keenness, the arrogant king spoke in a blank tone, "Abdul, what we heard was surely overstated. I am not here for Amer Princess; once I conquest Amer, the princess will willingly surrender to the Mughal king. We will find out how beautiful she is?"
While his sharp-razer orbs scrutinized the Amer entrance security process, Jalal inquired in a composed voice, resting on a bench outside the border, "Abdul, did you find any noteworthy particulars about Amer King Bharmal?"
"Shahenshah, King Bharmal was crowned because of his brother's untimely death. His brother King Purnamal's Son Sujamal was too young to be crowned. Recently King Bharmal announced his son Bhagwan das as a crown prince, and Sujamal will be subordinate to Bhagwan Das, which upset prince Sujamal." Abdul informed.
"Is Sujamal competent enough to be a king?" Jalal queried further.
"Yes, very well, Shahenshah. He is a fearless and skilled warrior." Abdul confidently responded.
Earshot of King Bharamal betrayed, the horrifying the dark memories of his uncle's betrayal after his father's death oozed out; his face stiffened; Jalal asked in a thick tone, "Hmmm... King Bharmal does appear to be unfair to his nephew. When are we going to send emissaries with proclamations?"
Before any war or attack, typically, Jalal's spy troop visits that kingdom and sends a decree to surrender their kingdom to the Mughal Empire. A dependable subordinate kingdom pays all taxes to the Mughal empire. Under Jalal's commend, the Mughal dynasty successfully conquered over eighty percent of Hindustan, but the Rajput clan was not an easy target. He heard a lot about the brave Rajput reign, none of the Rajput Rajvanshi accepted his decree to surrender. Ever since he heard how Amer princess, Jodha fought and defeated Mughal's well-trained five warriors all by herself. Since then, he desired to kneel her down at his feet.
Consequently, Out of many Rajput kingdoms, his first target was the Amer kingdom. Every time Jalal heard Amer and Jodha, he felt an indefinite connection. He was confused and surprised why every time, her name makes his heart restless. This mysterious feeling brought this heartless King to Amer.
"In two days, they will receive decree from the Mughal Empire," Abdul confirmed after a pause he hesitantly stated in an anxious voice, "Shahenshah, it is too dangerous to visit the kingdom just two of us.
His sharp-razer eyes lingered over Abdul, seeing his shadow's top most trusted warrior's petrified trepidation, a stern scowl creased his brow with disappointment. Jalal soon controlled his fury and responded in a poised manner, "Abdul, I can handle the entire Army single-handed; you have seen me on Warfield for years. If you are petrified, then leave; I don't want weaklings to accompany me."
Jalal's calm demeanor & words frozen Abdul for a moment; he replied with confidence, "Jalal, I have known you from my childhood, and you relish dangerous challenges, and your security is my prime concern. I am well aware of your unbeatable warrior skill. At Warfield, you are indestructible. I am not weakling or petrified; I would proudly die fighting for your protection. I questioned because logically, it doesn't make sense; our Army is way more prominent and enormous than Amer. We can defeat Amer with only one-tenth of our Army within a day, then why you want to take such a grave risk. If, by chance, if they captured you, then we lose without any fight."
Jalal grinned, seeing his childhood pal's fiery retort at his word petrified. In a content tone, he responded, "Abdul, you do valid reason to question; I do love to take the risk, but I am not foolish. I am here personally because I want to rule on the entire Hindustan, and only this Rajput clan is an obstacle. Today almost every Rajput King is coming to Amer to attend the Ghangor festival fair. I want to measure their strength, their culture, and their skill before I pounce on them. When I heard Princess Jodha defeated my five-strong warriors single-handed, I decided to see this clan's bravery with my own eyes. I don't want to underestimate their strength, and if all of this Rajvanshi gathered, they could defeat me."
"Jalal, your bravery and long vision have taken the Mughal Dynasty to this height. I bow down to my Shahenshah." Abdul praised while beholding his gaze.
To hide his identity, Jalal disguised himself as a Hindu prince and Abdul as his worker. Due to the festival, they were able to enter the kingdom without any hitch.
It was the Ghangor festival's time; Ghangor was one of the biggest festivals in the Amer. At this festival, many Rajput Rajvanshi Kings and Princes come to take part in this grand celebration from different states and villages. The entire surrounding looked colorful and lively; happiness was visible in the aura. Everyone seemed excited and was enjoying this celebration. The most exciting part of the fair was the many types of races and contests. There were big markets, games, camps, food stalls, music, drama, dance, fun activities for kids, and many more things.
As per the plan, Jalal sends Abdul on a mission to collect confidential financial information and a detailed Amer Palace map. Jalal was supposed to meet Abdul behind the palace courtyard.
Meanwhile, he decided to attend the fair to see the state's culture, market, and warriors' strength.
At first sight, Jalal got impressed seeing well-organized arrangements and preparations. He strolled around to see the maturation of the market & the richness of Amer. Then he walked by competition camps to consider how potent are the soldiers of Amer. He was stunned to see how disciplined and systematic these competitions were taking place. The attendee expressed love and esteem for their land before they entered; they crouched down to their ground. While fighting, all participants were following rules and respecting other fighters. There were forty arcades of different competitions. People were expressing their various talents, artistry, and expertise in different areas.
Jalal halted at the sword fight area; he wanted to see Rajput sword techniques. There were eight grounds assigned for the sword contest. Jalal devoted more than one hour to his preferred sword skill; he observed more than thirty warriors competing boldly with discipline. The sword was not a weapon to him, but it was part of his body. It was difficult for him to watch and not participate. While strolling one by one ground, he reached the last cornered ground.
Two sword fighters were competing. One of the challengers wearing a white outfit looked very different from others; his face was covered up, petite, delicate frame, and rounded bosom. He looked oddly a warrior, but his skill fascinated him. This challenger's flexibility, moves, and quickness impressed him, which is the most significant in a sword fight, and his petite figure was helping him move faster than all of them. The way he ducked and crouched was remarkable, as if his body made out of rubber and spring. He was in the top rank, winning; he defeated three soldiers one by one in no time. In the end, the announcer declared him as a winner and asked the group, "If anyone wants to challenge this brave fighter or he will move into the final round."
Jalal didn't want to take part since there was a probability for his identity to become discovered. He kept quiet for a while, but then again, the announcer quizzically asked the viewer, "So no one can defeat this brave soldier here?" Jalal couldn't hold himself longer, and Winning is everything to him, so he decided to take the risk.
In that century, Jalal was one of the best sword fighters in entire Hindustan. He was not only skilled but well trained and well-practiced. Half of his life spent on Warfield, and his relentless sword killed thousands without a single hitch. He needed only one minute to defeat the warrior.
Jalal haughtily declared, "I am ready to challenge this fighter, and I would enjoy displaying a real sword fight." He gazed at the opponent's doe-like big girly eyes and grimaced sarcastically.
Jalal climbed the pole with boldness and entered the contest area; the opponent fighter slightly grinned, but as soon his eyes met with Jalal, he got stuck in his place like he's been hypnotized.
Jalal felt weird how his opponent stared at him. Jalal warned the warrior, "Ready," His opponent realized right away with the first attempt that Jalal is not an ordinary fighter; he put all of his effort to win this competition. They fought for about ten minutes with different moves and tactics. Jalal was impressed with the fighter's attacks and defense moves. Jalal fell twice, but he balanced too quickly. Jalal was only playing defense; he wanted to test the opponent's skills. He didn't want to defeat him too swiftly to hide his identity.
At last, he decided to attack and finish the fight. Swiftly he charged at the fighter with full power and strength. In one single stroke, his opponent lost complete balance and fell on the ground facing down. His covered face veil and turban came off and fell on the ground.
Jalal was about to attack again, but his sword was still in shock. What he saw couldn't believe his own eyes. A long silky beautiful hair rested on the ground, a woman in a soldier's outfit. He had never seen any women in sword fighting; this was a staggering surprise to him.