Chapter SeventeenRajaraja held his council of war in the public Durbar room, with his son Rajendra, half a dozen commanders and three admirals present. Torches sent out flickering light and cast shadows over the faces of the gathered men who studied the map of the Chola Empire that was spread over the low, carved table.
'What we did wrong last time,' Rajaraja said, 'was to divide our forces too quickly. We struck too far apart. If we had attacked both places at the same time, we might have been more successful. Nobody, not even a rakshasa, can be in two places at once.'
The generals and admirals nodded. Melcorka thought they looked a professional bunch; warriors experienced in the art of war, men who knew that one setback did not mean the end of a campaign.
'What do you suggest, your Ma
