Victory City

Unable to curb his libidinous impulses, Krishna announces that he will have 108 wives. These wives will be ranked according to their authority and status, with the highest ranking wife becoming his queen. Saluva Timmarasu, Pampa, and Zerelda Li are involved in the recruitment of the wives. Pampa assigns several of the highest ranking wives and informs them of their duties to the king. As she talks to Zerelda, however, she is surprised to find herself jealous that Zerelda sees herself as a potential wife and queen. Zerelda, who has spent most of her life without a true home, admits that she relishes the chance to put down roots in her ancestral homeland of Bisnaga. Pampa, cautioning her grandchild, warns that Krishna looks at her in the exact same way that he looks at Zerelda. This drives Zerelda into a passionate withdrawal, spending a week alone in her map room.

When Zerelda emerges, she has created two maps of the country of Zerelda and the land of Ye-He, her ancestors. The beauty and intricacy of the maps move people to tears. When Krishna sees the maps, he declares his love publicly for Zerelda and offers to make her his queen. Timmarasu takes him aside, however, and warns him that this choice is unwise: Krishna must make a marriage of political convenience, he suggests, by marrying the daughter of King Veerappodeya of Srirangapatna. His daughter Tirumala is rumored to be “a monstrous bully, tyrannical in her habits and unloving in the extreme” (220). Krishna accepts this advice, as he plans to continue his relationship with Zerelda. Since she is descended from the founders of Bisnaga, he notes, any children that they produce will unite the Tuluva and Sangana dynasties. In the meantime, Pampa reflects on her unexpected jealousy. She desires to reclaim her status as an important figure in Bisnaga history, she realizes, even though she is ashamed of the vanity underlying this desire. Zerelda brings Pampa the news that she will not be the primary queen, though she assures herself that she is still happy to receive Krishna’s love. Pampa promises to give Zerelda everything, hoping to repay the failures she made to her daughters many years before.

Pampa meets Niccolo de’ Vieri at the market and realizes that he is another incarnation of Domingo Nunes. He tells her that he comes from Venice, rather than Portugal. Pampa tells him that “once in each generation [he reappears] to cheer [her] up” (228). They begin a romantic relationship. Meanwhile, Zerelda Li prepares for the arrival of Princess Tirumala of Srirangapatna. Zerelda and Krishna plan to continue their relationship, in spite of the arrival of his new wife. When Tirumala arrives, however, Krishna finds her unexpectedly beautiful. She immediately criticizes Krishna for dressing in a Muslim fashion and she is displeased by the flagrancy with which Zerelda and Krishna continue their relationship. Zerelda hears a rumor that Tirumala’s mother, Nagala, is known as “Madam Poison” and she begins to fear that she may be targeted, as relations between her and Tirumala are hostile from the beginning. When Zerelda performs a flirtatious dance for Krishna at court, Tirumala is particularly outraged. Tirumala wages a war against all of Krishna’s many wives. Krishna is reluctant to listen to her, especially when Tirumala accuses Zerelda of being the true poisoner.

Pampa continues her relationship with Niccolo, even though she admits that she is “too old to fall in love with imitations of imitations” (239). She tells Zerelda that she plans to help her as best she can, as a way to repay the now-dead daughters whom she feels that she betrayed. She gives Zerelda an antidote that offers immunity to poison. She also admits that she is tired of hiding her true nature and wants to be acknowledged for her role in the magical founding of Bisnaga. Zerelda recommends that Pampa use her magic to build high, impregnable walls for the city. Pampa reluctantly does so, winning the stunned adoration of Krishna. After, she is exhausted to the point of collapse. At this time, both Tirumala and Zerelda announce that they are pregnant with Krishna’s children.

The competing pregnancies cause much consternation in the palace of Bisnaga. The two women wage a silent war against each other, as they are particularly concerned about the potential issue of succession to the throne. Timmarasu advises Krishna to delay any judgment on which child might be considered his heir. At this time, Pampa is beginning to feel old for the first time in her long life. She ends her relationship with Niccolo de’ Vieri. In the midst of Pampa’s introspection, Zerelda asks for her help in settling the matter of the competing heirs. Pampa offers her advice to Krishna, telling him to wait until his as-yet-unborn children are fully grown before deciding which child would be better suited to rule Bisnaga. This advice displeases everyone.

Zerelda Li dies in childbirth and her son is stillborn. Tirumala survives, but her child is also born dead. Bisnaga’s enemies take this portentous triple death as a sign of vulnerability. As they prepare to invade, Pampa exhausts herself by carrying out Zerelda Li’s funeral. She has outlived all her descendants, and she worries that she has lost her battle to bring an empire of equality into the world. Krishna comes to Pampa, revealing that he has experienced a vision that told him to go to war. He wants Pampa to rule in his absence, as he will be taking Tirumala with him in the hope that they can conceive another child. To allow her to serve as Queen Regent, he will marry Pampa, but their marriage will be purely administrative. Finally, Pampa realizes that she has been given what she always wanted: “to be king” (258).

At this point in the story, the narrator notes, Pampa also introduces Krishna’s brother for the first time. Achyuta has been locked up in exile for much of his life due to his poor character. Pampa also makes an alliance with Saluva Timmarasu to help her rule Bisnaga while Krishna is away with his army. Tirumala and Nagala resent Pampa’s appointment as Queen Regent as they ride away with Krishna, his army, and his war elephants. Krishna lays siege to the Eastern Mountain, which is ruled by a man who is “the mirror of himself” (264). After two long years, he defeats the King of the Eastern Mountain. During this time, Tirumala gives birth to a son and a daughter. Tirumala Devi names her son Tirumala Deva, after herself. She names her daughter Tirumalamba.

During her time as Queen Regent, Pampa sticks to a strict routine. She sets about turning the empire into a hub of art and poetry. Women are treated equally, and Bisnaga becomes famous across the world for its wonders. Not everyone is pleased by the changes, however. Madhava Acharya, who sees himself as the spiritual successor of the puritanical Vidyasagar, opposes her changes. When he reintroduces mass worship meetings, Pampa considers whether she should revive the Remonstrance. However, she is assured that her changes are popular. She also discovers that her technique of whispering into people’s ears is no longer as effective. Instead, she settles the rivalry through a political negotiation. She outmaneuvers Madhava by forging a letter from Krishna. During this time, Krishna has realized that he is fighting to destroy social class discrimination and establish a fairer society. Krishna defeats his enemy and marries Tuka, the daughter of the King of the Eastern Mountain, much to Tirumala’s displeasure. She is vindicated when, on the night of the wedding, Tuka tries to poison Krishna. Tuka is sent into exile and, after six years away, Krishna prepares to return to Bisnaga.

Pampa’s time as Queen Regent has transformed Bisnaga into the fabulous place she has always dreamed it to be. When another European in the image of Domingo Nunes visits, she resists his charms this time. She does allow him, however, to spread stories about Bisnaga’s cultural opulence across the globe. When Krishna returns, Tirumala and Nagala make sure that Pampa understands that she was never a true wife of the king, but “a sort of servant” (277) and now she will return to her former status. Soon after Krishna returns, however, a great drought hits Bisnaga. The crops die in the fields and the people die. Krishna panics and decides to invade a nearby city with a rich supply of water. His army causes Adil Shah to flee and, soon after, the rains begin again in Bisnaga.

While Krishna is away, Pampa resumes her role as Queen Regent. During this time, the two young children of the king fall sick. When Tirumalamba notices how much happier her mother and grandmother are that her brother, Tirumala Deva, has recovered, she begins to feel unloved. She is married to an older, ambitious, cunning man named Aliya Rama and grows apart from her family. Bisnaga never truly recovers from the drought. Though he has seemingly recovered, Tirumala Deva dies. Tirumala and Nagala accuse Pampa and Timmarasu of killing the crown prince and, in the depths of his grief, Krishna listens to them. He orders Pampa and Timmarasu to be blinded. Pampa and Timmarasu have their eyes cut out by hot iron rods as the people of Bisnaga protest the punishment. Blinded, Pampa hears the people chant “Remonstrance” (284).

Blindness is painful to Pampa. She sits in the darkness, losing all sense of time. Krishna visits her to beg for forgiveness. Pampa coldly forgives Krishna, but Timmarasu refuses to forgive the king he served loyally for many years. He shouts at Krishna and, a short time later, he dies. Pampa is offered shelter by Madhava Acharya and, in his temple, she continues to work on her epic poem that tells the history of Bisnaga. She writes about the ordinary citizens this time, hearing their voices whispering to her in the darkness. Krishna is haunted by his mistakes but cannot find atonement. In his state of decline, he orders the release of his brother Achyuta. He believes that Bisnaga needs a king, pushing his daughter Tirumalamba aside. Aliya tries to plot on his young wife’s behalf but Krishna will not listen to him. Krishna dies, naming his brother as his heir.