Vandiyathevan’s first thought was that, somehow, he must save Kandhamaaran. But if he tried to save him first, he knew the same fate would befall him as well. Therefore, he must first subdue this cruel guard. With that resolve, he sprang forward and wrapped one arm tightly around the guard’s neck. With his other hand, he struck the lamp from the guard’s grasp. The lamp fell to the ground. Its flame shrank, smoke billowing up and thickening the darkness. Tightening his grip around the guard’s neck with all his strength, Vandiyathevan forced him down. The guard’s head struck the wall of the tunnel and he collapsed to the floor. Vandiyathevan picked up the lamp and bent over him. The guard lay as if dead. Still, acting with caution, Vandiyathevan took the man’s waistband and tied both his hands together, binding him securely.

All this he accomplished in a matter of seconds, then ran to Kandhamaaran. He saw him lying half inside the tunnel and half outside, the knife still embedded in his back. His spear lay fallen beside him. Vandiyathevan hurried outside, lifted Kandhamaaran onto his shoulder, and dragged him out; he also picked up the spear. At that moment, the door closed by itself. The wall, concealing its great secret, stood tall and silent in the darkness. Vandiyathevan realized that he had come out of the fort and into the open air, for the strong wind that struck him was no longer confined within stone.

Dense trees and the fort’s battlements hid the moon, so its light was faint and ghostly. Hoisting Kandhamaaran onto his shoulder, Vandiyathevan took up the spear in one hand and stepped forward. Suddenly, the earth crumbled beneath him and he felt himself slipping straight down. He quickly planted the spear into the ground and, with great effort, managed to steady himself. Looking down, he saw, in the shadows cast by the trees and the fort wall, the glimmer of flowing water. He could just make out the swift current, swirling and eddying as it rushed by. What luck! One wrong step and death would have been certain. The gods had saved him! That wretched, murderous guard—but what use was there in blaming him? He had only carried out his master’s orders! Surely, the plan had been to stab him at the threshold and then push him into the floodwaters below. If his foot had slipped just a little more, both he and Kandhamaaran would have fallen into the river’s depths. Even if he had somehow survived, Kandhamaaran’s fate would have been sealed!

At one spot, Vandiyathevan knew, the wall of Thanjai fort ran very close to the Vadavaru river. This must be the Vadavaru, he thought. Though there was not much floodwater in the Vadavaru at that time, there could still be a deep pit at the edge of the fort wall. Who could say? Vandiyathevan thrust his spear into the water to test its depth. The entire length of the spear sank beneath