The Three Tests for the Golden Throne

King Dheeraj was the ruler of Shakthi kingdom. He had two sons with his Queen Shyama. The boys were twins. Their names were Vayu and Surya. When they grew up, the King decided to coronate one of his sons to be his successor. So, he summoned his wise ministers and sought their counsel.

The ministers were asked to discuss the matter and come up with the successor's name in one month's time. The wise ministers held a meeting and decided to come up with three tests to decide the next King.

Next day, both the Princes were summoned to the court. They were told that they would have to go through three tests. Whoever completed all the tasks would be coronated as the successor. Both, the Princes were happy with the opportunity and said that they were ready for the challenges.

Their first task was to climb the sacred mountain Kishore and bring back the blue lotus from the Mansi Pond at the top of the mountain. Prince Vayu was the stronger of the two Princes. He was a good mountaineer. He immediately made the preparations and started ascending the tall mountain to bring back the blue lotus.

Prince Surya was intelligent and had an analytical mind. He liked to think well before committing himself to any task. He thought that the mountain was very tall and it would take at least three to four days to climb it. Also, very few people had managed to come back alive from this dangerous quest. He had often stood at the foothills and seen few mystics climbing the mountain. He often wondered how those mystics were able to climb the mountain so easily.

So, he went to the old library and ordered the librarian to get him all the books on the Mountain Kishore. As he pondered over the books, he finally got what he was looking for. He got hold of a book called "The secret pathway to the Mount Kishore". When he finished reading the book, a smile crossed his face.

Prince Surya made his way through the secret pathway in the Mountain and was able to bring back the blue lotus all in two days time. Prince Vayu took four more days than his brother to return back. When he returned, his condition was bad and he needed one more week's rest to recover his full strength again.

Prince Surya was adjudged the winner of the first task. The ministers next announced the second task. There were two small kingdoms located in the Northern and the Southern borders of their kingdom. These kingdoms were very strategically placed and it was vital that they were conquered. So, the Princes were told to conquer these kingdoms. Whichever Prince conquered the kingdom with minimum casualties would be declared the winner.

Prince Vayu was assigned the task of conquering the Kingdom of Supradesha which was on the southern border of Shakthi kingdom. Prince Surya was assigned the task of conquering the Kingdom of Vijaya which was on the northern border of Shakthi kingdom.

Prince Vayu was desperate to win the second task. So, he pulled out the best infantry and the best cavalry units from the Kingdom's army. He handpicked the most fearsome fighters from the Kingdom and also took out the best siege weapons to help him in his battle. He marched with a strong army of twenty-five thousand men to conquer Supradesha.

Meanwhile, Prince Surya was again thinking hard to find an easier solution to his task. He studied the geography of Kingdom Vijaya thoroughly and also asked his ministers and spies to bring him any more information about this Kingdom. He learned that the main source of power Kingdom Vijaya was that they had four huge dragons to guard their kingdom. So, no Kingdom in the last hundred years had dared to cross paths with them. Apart, from the dragons, they had just a few thousand soldiers. So, once you took out the dragons the kingdom would fall in no time.

Prince Surya learned that the dragons loved to eat cows and goats which grazed on the borders of his kingdom. Many shepherds had reportedly complained to the King to check their menace. This was also one of the reasons why it was important to conquer this kingdom. Prince Surya came up with a plan to tackle the threat of the dragons.

He ordered the shepherds and farmers living near the borders to feed their cattle with grass after mixing it with a secret potion. The secret potion was actually a special type of sedative called Herba. The cattle were immune to this sedative. But, if a carnivore were to kill and devour the cattle, immediately Herba would be released in the form of a gas inside the body of the carnivore and would temporarily paralyze it. This drug was often used in hunting to capture the wild beasts.

The shepherds and farmers did as they were instructed. After about a week, a news came which Prince Surya was eagerly waiting for. Two of the dragons had ventured into their territory and carried a few cows. The dragons had reportedly been paralyzed after devouring the cattle. The soldiers who had been waiting for this to happen had already captured the dragons and bound them in huge chains and locked them in underground dungeons.

Prince Surya next sent an emissary to the Vijaya Kingdom. The emissary threatened the Vijaya Kingdom that if they did not surrender by that evening both their dragons would be slaughtered. The sudden disappearance of the two dragons had created a huge panic in Vijaya kingdom. Their King was weak hearted and did not dare to cross swords with a huge kingdom like Shakthi just with two dragons and a few thousand soldiers at his side. He immediately signed the surrender documents.

Prince Surya had managed to conquer a whole kingdom without shedding a single drop of blood on either side of the Kingdoms.

Meanwhile, Prince Vayu attacked the kingdom of Supradesha with his huge army. The kingdom of Supradesha was ruled by a princess called Shalini. She was orphaned at a young age when her parents were killed during a hunting expedition. She was a strong lady and a fearsome military general. The kingdom of Supradesha was well fortified on all the four sides. The kingdom of Supradesha had only a force of six thousand men. But, what they lacked in numbers they compensated in their technology.

The princess Shalini had invited several travelers to her kingdom. Through them, she had learned the latest advances in weaponry. Shalini's armory boasted of a rocket division. No other kingdom, in the seven lands had heard or seen this weapon before. It was an ingenious weapon, the technology for which she had obtained from a Chinese traveler called Hiwen Twang.

When Prince Vayu led siege to the kingdom of Supradesha he had not expected much resistance. He was over-confident and arrogant. He thought his huge army would crush their opponents in no time. All these theories were put to the test when his whole army was found running helter and skelter in the wake of the rocket attack. The Rockets exploded and destroyed two of his infantry divisions and three of his cavalry divisions all within a span of one hour. Prince Vayu was left with no choice but to retreat.

When he returned, he learned of how Prince Surya had conquered Vijaya kingdom.  He immediately went and congratulated his brother. He told the ministers that there would be no need for a third task as he had admitted that his younger brother was more deserving to be the successor. The ministers and the King were happy with Prince Vayu for accepting his defeat gracefully.

The king summoned the Prince Surya and told him that even though his brother had accepted defeat from him. But, there was still the problem of the kingdom Supradesha which needed to be tackled at the earliest. He said that conquering this kingdom would be regarded as his final test which would earn him the right to sit on the Golden Throne of Shakthi kingdom.

Prince Surya bowed to his father and took his leave. He talked to his brother and learned that the enemy had used a new weapon on them. Prince Vayu's soldiers had managed to collect some rocket shells and showed these to him. Prince Surya was amazed after seeing the new weapon. From his spies, he learned that this weapon was gifted to the Princess of Supradesha by a Chinese traveler.

Prince Surya sent emissaries to the kingdom of China with many gifts and a message. The message said that if the Chinese would share their weapon technology with them, they would be given a dragon in return. Prince Surya very well knew that the Chinese were crazy about the dragons and they would never refuse this offer.

As expected, the Chinese transferred their rocket technology to him and sent three scientists to assist him in making new rockets for his armory. In return, Prince Surya kept his promise and gifted them with one of the captured dragons. He was happy that at least one dragon was now permanently taken care of.

When the rockets were ready, Prince Surya sent a messenger to Supradesha kingdom. The messenger told the Princess Shalini that the kingdom of Shakthi also had now learned to make rockets and there was no use in useless bloodshed. The formula for making the rocket with gunpowder was delivered as a proof. Princess Shalini was taken aback and stunned at the wisdom of the man who had outwitted her. She learned from the messenger that the architect of this great battle strategy was Prince Surya. The Princess returned the messenger with another message.

The messenger announced that the Princess Shalini had refused to surrender. She said that the people in her kingdom preferred to die rather than live as slaves. When Prince Surya heard this he was shocked. For the first time in his life, someone had not accepted his terms. Prince Surya was a wise person. He appreciated the valor of the young princess and this time he himself traveled to her kingdom in order to persuade her to join hands with his kingdom.

The Prince went to her and proposed to her so that both their kingdoms could live peacefully. The Princess accepted his proposal and they got married. On returning to his kingdom, the Prince was coronated as the next King and he was made to sit on the Golden Throne where he ruled as a just ruler to the end of his days.

The End