CHAPTER 11 – KARAKORAM OR HINDU-KUSH?
Karakoram Mountains.
19:10 (Central Asia Time)
Friday, January 9, 60 B.C.E.
Inn of the Taxila caravanserai
Taxila, Indo-Scythian Kingdom
Both Hiram and Sajith drank their wine quietly, their minds preoccupied by the news that they had gleaned up to date after their arrival in Taxila. Everybody was talking about hard fighting happening to the Northwest around the Khyber Pass region between the Kushans and the Sakas, who were wrestling for control of that vital area. One indicator of the seriousness of that fighting was the fact that over half of the usual Saka garrison of Taxila had gone to Purushapura to reinforce the Saka lines holding the Khyber Pass. There were also rumors that Saka reinforcements were about to arrive from the South to help push the Kushans away. Overall, the prospects for using the usual caravan road through the Khyber and Bactriana were not good. The innkeeper had also told them about a caravan from Samarkand which had recently been caught in the fighting, decimated and then looted, something that had further darkened the prospects of the combined caravans Hiram and Sajith led. They were now waiting for the innkeeper to bring to their table the lone survivor from that looted caravan and were hoping that the man would be able to tell them more about what was happening around the Khyber Pass. Hiram tensed up when he saw the innkeeper make his way to their table, followed by a man half hidden behind him.
‘’Here is the innkeeper, bringing that survivor, Sajith.’’
Sajith, twisting his neck to look behind him, then decided to switch places at the table and sat next to Hiram, so that this caravan survivor could talk to both of them face-to-face. Hiram’s face suddenly reflected shock and dismay when the man following the innkeeper got closer to their table. Shooting up from his bench, he quickly went around the table and gently touched the left shoulder of the man, who had his right arm in an improvised sling and also had a long gash across his left cheek.
‘’Poros, my poor Poros! I am truly pained to see you in such an awful state. Please, sit down at my table.’’
As the said Poros sat down, Hiram threw a gold piece to the innkeeper.
‘’Bring a cup and a pitcher of your best wine for my friend Poros… And thank you for bringing him to me.’’
Hiram then sat back next to Sajith, facing Poros from across the table and speaking to him.
‘’Poros, this is Sajith Singh, a caravan master from Pataliputra. While I was in Pataliputra, Sajith and I agreed to travel to Samarkand together, so that we could have bigger numbers with us and thus better safety. Sajith, this is Poros, a caravan master from Samarkand who is also an old friend of mine.’’
Poros nodded his head at Sajith instead of exchanging a forearm shake, since his wounds still appeared painful. His voice and tone were those of a broken man.
‘’I…I wish that I would have met you in better times, Sajith Singh. However, I cannot call myself a caravan master anymore: I lost my caravan, my men and my goods and am now stuck here, nearly penniless and with no way to go back home.’’
Hiram then hurried to reply to that.
‘’Please don’t say that, my friend. We can bring you back to your home in Samarkand, where you will be able to reunite with your family.’’
Poros lowered his head, while tears came out of his eyes at those words.
‘’That is most generous of you, Hiram, and I thank you for that. However, I still lost the sixteen men who had been traveling with me, good men and great merchants who also were my friends.’’
‘’Can you tell us what exactly happened to your caravan, Poros?’’
Poros nodded once and swallowed hard before starting to speak in a subdued voice.
‘’I can! I was leading my caravan through the Khyber Pass and was maybe three days away from Purushapura, with my final destination being Pataliputra, when we encountered a squadron of Saka mounted scouts. Those Saka scouts then accused us of being spies sent by the Kushans but I suspect that they were only looking for an excuse to loot my caravan. I strongly denied those accusations but those Sakas ignored me and attacked us. We defended ourselves as best we could but we were no match for both their numbers and their armors and weapons. I myself was seriously wounded before I could escape. I then went around Purushapura, avoiding it because the Saka soldiers there were in a frenzy and were acting very aggressively, and managed to eventually arrive here, in Taxila, where local healers treated me the best they could. By then, however, I was nearly penniless and without the means to return to Samarkand.’’
‘’When did that attack on your caravan occur, Poros?’’ asked Sajith.
‘’About a month ago. Since then, no caravan has been able to go through the Khyber Pass either way, while caravans heading west have been turned away by the Sakas in Purushapura. Unfortunately, those caravans who were rerouted then went South, instead of North. That is why I am still stuck here, surviving only thanks to the generosity of local merchants whom I know.’’
‘’You will no longer be stuck here, my friend.’’ replied Hiram softly. ‘’Once we will have replenished our supplies for the rest of our trip, we will then head to Samarkand via the Karakoram and Kashgar and we will take you with us. We are all part of the fraternity of caravan men and we will always support each other in difficult times.’’
Those words attracted fresh tears on the cheek of the dispossessed caravan master, prompting Hiram to get up and go gently hug him while being careful not to touch his wounded arm.
‘’Tomorrow, I will get a horse and some travel equipment and clothes for you, my friend. Sajith has already led his caravan through the Karakoram a few times in the past, so he knows the way well and I am confident that we will get safely to Samarkand. From now on, consider yourself as one of my associate merchants and a member of my caravan.’’
‘’Me, an associate merchant? But I have nothing left to trade with. In truth, I will be a ruined man, even if I return safely to Samarkand. I have no horses or camels left and no merchandises to trade, while my warehouse in Samarkand is presently empty.’’
‘’All that can be corrected, my poor Poros. The important thing is that your family will not have lost you. As long as there is life, there is hope.’’
‘’Thank you, Hiram! You are a real friend.’’
Hiram was about to say something more to Poros when he felt that persons were gathering in his back. Alarmed, he pivoted around but then calmed down when he saw that it was Nauca and his other associates, who had left their nearby tables to approach him. All of them wore sober expressions as Kasim, Hiram’s principal associate, spoke.
‘’Hiram, we heard the story given by your friend Poros and we would also like to help him.’’
‘’That is most kind of you to say this, Kasim. How do you propose to help him?’’
‘’In a simple but most effective way, Hiram.’’ replied Kasim before stepping forward next to the table. He then took his belt purse and poured dozens of gold and silver coins on the table in front of Poros, who could only look on with disbelief. Nauca was next to come forward, adding five rubies to the coins before letting another associate of Hiram come forward. All twelve of Hiram’s associates ended up putting either coins or gems in front of Poros. They were then followed by Sajith and his thirteen associates, who also put money and valuables on the table. Hiram was last, putting on the table his large belt purse, which was only one-third full.
‘’Here! You will need a purse to carry all this, my friend.’’
The poor Poros then broke down and cried without shame at the view of the small mound of gold, silver and gems now resting on the table in front of him, next to Hiram’s purse.
‘’Thank you, thank you, all of you!’’
‘’It was the least we could do for a caravan brother.’’ replied Sajith. ‘’You will now be able to return to Samarkand and to rebuild your caravan business there.’’
‘’Well, this calls for a fresh round of drinks, I believe.’’ said Nauca before shouting to the Inn’s maid.
‘’Bring us three fresh pitchers of wine, girl! It’s on me!’’
The caravan men collectively cheered at that and sat back to wait for the extra wine. Once everybody was served, Hiram raised his cup high.
‘’TO ALL THE CARAVAN MEN IN THE WORLD!’’
‘’TO CARAVAN MEN!’’
The other customers of the inn then joined in, warming further Poros’ heart and bringing fresh tears on.
07:55 (Central Asia Time)
Sunday, January 11, 60 B.C.E.
Taxila caravanserai’s compound
Poros, mounted on the horse bought for him by the merchants of the combined Hiram-Sajith caravan, felt both renewed hope and humbleness as he trotted out of the caravanserai as part of the long column of horses and camels. They had even provided him with an axe and a knife as new weapons for him. As they exited through the northern gate of Taxila, Poros did his best not to throw a dark look at the Saka soldiers guarding it. The memory of his now dead associates was still painful in his mind and it was very hard for him not to hate every Saka soldier he met. However, showing hostility to them now could only attract trouble to his fellow caravan men who had proved so generous to him. Still, he felt much better once the caravan and himself trotted away from the city.
10:03 (Central Asia Time)
Tuesday, March 4, 60 B.C.E.
Karakoram Road, nine kilometers east of the village of Chilas
Near the border between the Indo-Scythian and Indo-Greek Kingdoms
Gilgit River near Karakoram Mountains.
The travel from Taxila had up to now been fairly easy, as the caravan was following a dirt road running alongside the Indus River, which flowed down a relatively flat valley. It had left the small village of Chilas in the early morning and was now heading for Gilgit, an important stop along the Karakoram Road situated at the foot of the Karakoram Mountains. Nauca, riding next to one of the caravan guards employed by Sajith Singh, was conversing with the man as they rode up a trail following the Gilgit River.
‘’The present weather kind of surprises me by its mildness, Sirhan. From what I had heard about the Karakoram, I was expecting much worse.’’
Her remark made the young man smile in amusement.
‘’Aah, but you should wait until we are at higher altitudes, among the mountains, Nauca. There, the climate is much colder and the winds and storms much more violent. Also, we are lucky in that we are not traveling during the coldest months of the year. Once we will have passed Gilgit, then you will start to feel the cold.’’
‘’Well, it is not that I was fearing much the local climate. After all, Winters can be quite cold on the steppes of Sarmatia and… Wait! I see something ahead.’’
Concentrating her attention ahead, like Sirhan, she spoke up after a few seconds.
‘’I see what looks furiously like a group of soldiers manning some kind of road checkpoint. They are wearing a lot of metal on them. Did you encounter soldiers here before on past trips?’’
‘’No, but my last trip up this road was nearly two years ago and the last Saka soldiers were posted in Dasu, far behind us. However, I know that the Sakas have been steadily pushing out the borders of their territories during the last few years. They may have pushed north as far as here, throwing back the soldiers of King Hippostratus in the process.’’
‘’Saka soldiers, again!’’ said Nauca. ‘’If they try to loot this caravan, like they did to the caravan of poor Poros, then they will regret it. Stay here, while I go warn Sajith and Hiram.’’
Making her horse Tamat pivot around and then pushing it to a gallop, Nauca got to the two caravan masters in less than a minute and stopped her horse once level with them.
‘’There are soldiers ahead, probably Sakas. There are about thirty or forty of them and they seem to be manning some kind of road checkpoint. They also have tents set up to one side of the road.’’
Hiram’s face hardened at that news.
‘’Sakas! What tells us that they will be less greedy or arrogant than the ones who massacred the members of Poros’ caravan?’’
‘’Nothing!’’ replied Nauca. ‘’We should be ready to defend ourselves resolutely if those soldiers try to loot our caravan.’’
‘’Agreed!’’ said Sajith. ‘’The integrity of caravan trade should be defended. I will tell my men to prepare discretely their weapons.’’
‘’And I will tell my men to cock and load their crossbows.’’ added Hiram before making his horse pivot in order to go down the line of riders. On her part, Nauca galloped back to Sirhan and stopped next to him.
‘’The word is to defend ourselves if those soldiers try to rob the caravan. We will wait for Hiram or Sajith’s command to start fighting but prepare your weapons now.’’
‘’Bow or sword?’’
‘’Since we are riding point, we will be right on top of these assholes when they will stop our caravan to check it, thus a close quarters weapon will be preferable for us.’’
‘’Right! My sword was getting rusty anyway.’’
‘’And my Kontos lance is screaming for new blood since I killed that tiger near Mathura. We will not fight without a reason but I won’t mind teaching good manners to some of those arrogant Sakas and repay them for what they did to Poros’ caravan.’’
Nauca then grabbed one of the two lances she carried in a leather tube attached to her saddle and put its butt inside the holder fixed to one side of her right-side stirrup. Holding her lance to the vertical with her right hand, like cavalrymen did while parading around, she then pushed her horse to a trot, with Sirhan riding next to her on the trail. The duo soon arrived at the checkpoint and was able to confirm that the soldiers were indeed Sakas. While most of them were heavily armored infantrymen, two of them, probably officers, were mounted on horses protected by armored skirts made of iron plates fixed to a leather backing. Their overall attitude did nothing to reassure Nauca.
‘’Those assholes look way too arrogant to my taste, Sirhan. I bet that there will be a fight soon.’’
‘’I love to teach lessons to bullies. I am ready as soon as Sajith gives the go to defend ourselves.’’
With Nauca and Sirhan stopping just short of the soldiers manning the checkpoint, Hiram, Sajith and Poros then trotted forward to join them, while the rest of the caravan stopped a short distance behind them. One of the Saka officers trotted forward on his horse to meet the caravan masters and spoke in Sanskrit to them.
‘’Who are you and where are you going?’’
‘’We are merchants and are on our way to Samarkand. We request free passage for our caravan.’’ answered Sirhan, since Nauca didn’t speak Sanskrit.
‘’Not before you pay a toll to us.’’
‘’We already paid tolls at every city we passed by on our way to here.’’ protested Sajith in Sanskrit. While Hiram did not understand his words, his angry tone was enough to understand what was being said. In response, the Saka officer threw a severe look at Sajith.
‘’Our kingdom is at war and needs extra treasury to finance it. We decide what tolls are justified, not you. MEN, SEARCH THEIR BAGGAGES!’’
Six of the armored infantrymen then came forward towards the caravan riders while holding shields and javelins. The first of them went to Poros and started undoing one of the straps holding the flap of his left-side saddlebag, intent on searching that bag. That was when Poros could not contain himself anymore. Grabbing his battle-axe, he swung it down while screaming with rage, splitting in two the man’s head with a mighty blow. Seeing that, Hiram then shouted as loud as he could in Sogdian, which everyone in the caravan understood.
‘’DEFEND YOURSELVES!’’
Surprised by this sudden development, the Saka soldiers took a critical second to react. That was enough time for young Sirhan to draw his sword and run the nearest soldier through his throat. As for Nauca, she quickly reversed her grip on her lance and, adding her left hand to grip it with both hands, plunged her lance tip down the collar of another soldier, reaching his heart and killing him nearly instantly. Pulling out her lance in a flash, she then pushed her horse to a gallop while holding her Kontos with both hands over her right side, pointing it at the officer who had stayed behind the first officer. Screaming a savage war cry, she charged that Saka officer and skewered him with her lance as he was starting to take out his sword. The stirrups attached to Nauca’s saddle helped her by steadying her in the saddle and also helped her absorb the shock of the encounter. The Saka officer, who did not have stirrups to help him stay in the saddle, flew backward off his horse and slammed down hard on the ground. Continuing her charge, Nauca made her lance pivot as she passed by her dying opponent, pointing it at a new target, this time a Saka infantryman. The man tried to stop her lance by holding his wooden shield in front of him while raising his javelin but Naucas’s lance went clean through his shield before skewering the man’s torso despite his armored vest. This time, her Kontos stayed stuck in the man’s body, so she let it go and grabbed her battle-axe, charging yet another Saka infantryman.
The rest of the Saka soldiers didn’t fare better, suddenly finding themselves the targets of six bows and fourteen crossbows. The leading Saka officer was pierced by one arrow from Igrid’s bow plus two arrows from the crossbows of Talya and of Askhat. Grimacing with pain and wobbling on his saddle, he was then killed by a ferocious slash from Hiram’s sword. With over half of their numbers killed or severely wounded within a few seconds, the surviving Saka soldiers broke out in panic and tried to flee. ‘Tried’ was the operative word, as the archers within the caravan kept firing at them, shooting them down in quick succession. The last surviving Saka soldier got his head cut off cleanly by a swing of the battle-axe held by a hard-charging Nauca. Not seeing any other Saka soldier left standing or running, she stopped her horse and quickly looked around the battlefield. Seeing one wounded Saka soldier who was trying to get up, she first went to retrieve her lance and then ran it through the man, downing him for the count. Sajith, who had himself killed one soldier with his battle-axe, grinned and shouted in triumph after making sure that none of his people had been hurt.
‘’THE FIELD IS OURS! LET’S CHECK OUT THOSE SAKA BASTARDS! KILL THE WOUNDED ONES AND LOOT THE LOT OF THEM!’’
Poros and the other members of the caravan did not have to be told twice, getting off their horses or camels and then checking out every Saka soldier lying around, while Amara and Babita helped by holding the reins of the unattended horses and camels.
‘’DON’T FORGET TO RECUPERATE THEIR WEAPONS, PARTICULARLY THEIR BOWS. THEY CAN BE RESOLD FOR A GOOD PRICE.’’ shouted Hiram as he himself checked out the dead soldiers. Nauca grinned at Sirhan on hearing that.
‘’The good old game of ‘stealing from the thieves’, hey, Sirhan?’’
‘’It’s a game to my liking, Nauca.’’ replied the young man as he cut off the purse carried by one of the dead soldiers.
After a few minutes, and with about everything of value grabbed by the caravan people, Sajith then had the dead soldiers’ bodies carried away from the road and the river and dumped some distance away, behind a group of large boulders. Poros was returning to his horse after helping carry away a dead soldier when Hiram approached him, a wooden coffer in his hands.
‘’Talya found this in the tent occupied by those Saka officers. It seems that they have been ‘taxing’ quite a few travelers before we came. This coffer is now yours as a repayment for what the Sakas inflicted on your caravan.’’
Accepting the coffer from Hiram and opening it, Poros looked with disbelief at the hundreds of silver and gold coins contained in it before looking back at Hiram.
‘’But this should rightfully be split among all of us, Hiram.’’
Hiram shook his head in response, his expression dead serious.
‘’Sajith and me believe that you are the most in need and that you could use that money to distribute it in Samarkand to the families of your murdered associates, who are now without a bread-winner. Take this coffer, my friend, and make good use of its content.’’
Poros didn’t know what to say for a moment, then put the coffer on the ground before sharing an emotional hug with Hiram.
‘’Hiram, you are indeed a friend and a generous man.’’
‘’Compassionate, not generous!’’ replied Hiram, a smile on his lips. ‘’A good merchant can’t be generous, or he will quickly get bankrupt.’’