At dusk, the Queen ordered that fort gates be opened; those who wanted to escape into the city, could go. I and uncle too left, and reached Mandavgane's place.
Around midnight, the Queen left the fort with 1,500 troops. They ran into the English, and sword-fight started. Hundreds were killed, the Queen lost 400. The Queen rode a white horse. She was dressed in a men's attire and wore an armour of mesh and carried a sword under her arm. The 12-year-old adopted son was strapped to the back.
As she passed along, the English chased after. The Queen broke through their ranks and galloped away. Most of the troops with her perished in the fight, she was left with only a handful of men and her maid (who too rode a horse). They set our for Kalpi. The English horsemen went after them a mile out, but turned around as nothing could be seen in the darkness of the night.
The Queen reached Kalpi by the next nightfall. When she woke up in the morning, she had her period, which made her (momentarily) untouchable. What a condition she found herself in! Words fail me. She hadn't had a meal for three days. Apart from the sari and blouse she had on, she had no other feminine clothes. She had no money. No wonder she was in tears; those who saw her wept uncontrollably.
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