Samrat Gautamiputra Satakarni ensured that the departure of the Lankan army would not disturb his plans. Before he would embark on the hard journey to the distant land of the Kushans, he would need to secure the defenses of the major cities of the empire. His first concern was the defense of each of the metropolises of Takshashila, Indraprrasth, Varanasi and Pataliputra. With the departure of the Lankan army Pataliputra was undefended, so to ensure that each city had a garrison the samrat who had taken upon the command of the military, reorganized the defenses of each of the cities.
The garrison of Varanasi was thus reassigned to Pataliputra, the garrison of Indraprasth was transferred to Varanasi and an additional division of archers defending Takshashila were transferred to Indraprasth. With these measures to reorganize the army, the defense of each city was ensured and a smoother transfer of Lankan troops could be effected.
While on the economic front, Raja Chulabhaya focused on enacting such measures as would see the fulfillment of his father's vision for economic reforms. When the truth of the omissions on Raja Amandagamani's reforms were brought to the Samrat, one of this first acts was to seek out who the corrupt governors and their subordinate administrators who interfered with the proper implementation of his reforms. Each of them were sought out and were punished either with exile or imprisonment. Raja Chulabhaya personally saw to the appointments of the new governors for each of the empire's cities.
The first city to undergo a change in policy was at Varanasi. Here a sect of monks had bribed the governor to supply their matha with workers and gems. This math was closed down and the worker guilds working under their service was made to mine the gems to the jungles in the South.
After Varanasi, the Samrat and Raja Chulabhaya turned their attention to the western city of Takshashila. What was found here was not an example of corruption as much of ignorance and incompetence. Since the last of the insurgents and bandits let loose by the infamous Amatya Kartikeya, the quarries were left unexploited. Not simply that, the farmers of Gandhar were devoid of the benefits of farming the floodplains that lay beside the quarries. The governor it seemed still felt that the threat of long dead bandits was still alive, the Samrat befittingly punished him by exile to the Parasik lands. The farming community from the Sutlej were resettled along the floodplains, these villagers provided the manpower to work the marble quarries.
With Varanasi and Takshashila improved, there was only Indraprasth that was yet to be brought under the ambit of the new reforms. Here, the yavana governor seemed to have performed better than the other provinces, his error being an error an error in understanding the directive of mining the hills of Kumaon. The governor had administered Indraprasth and from there the province of Kuru since the 50th year of the Vikram Samvat. His old age and feebleness had left him in no position to continue his work, the samrat allowed his due retirement. The new governor, this time a dravida, promptly corrected the error of his predecessor and allocated workmen to mine the hills of Kumaon.
The reforms had now been implemented, the results showed almost immediately. The month after Raja Abhaya's reforms were implemented in full, the empire raised more taxes that one month than the two months preceding it ! Avantinagar however, remained small and under-developed. Regardless, Samrat Gautamiputra Satakarni felt the stage was now set to begin the war on the Kushans.
The emperor travelled to Takshashila in the province of Gandhar, here the army of Magadh was situated in a mining town on the Pariyatra Parvat. West of this province, at the fort town of Herat, the garrison of Herat remained alert. They possessed a division of spearmen and a legion of veteran scouts. The emperor met with the Saka king Pacoras at Takshashila and sat to drew their war plans at the royal manor of Takshashila.
"Pranam Raja!" the emperor greeted Pacoras, "Pranam Samrat" the Saka king folded his hands and bowed before the emperor. Though taller of stature than the Samrat of Bharat, he knew his place before one of the most powerful men in the known world. Likewise, Samrat Gautamiputra knew how indispensable the Parasik were in defending against would be barbarian conquerors from beyond the Oxus river. The Saka king knew more about the affairs of Afrasiyab than anyone else in the realm. It was said, he had a network of spies spread from Afrasiyab to the frontiers of Han empire, Samrat Gautamiputra Satakarni intended to use this.
The emperor and the Saka king sat down on the seat and the emperor spoke, "If we are to win this war, we must prepare the conditions of our victory before the Army of Magadh marches on the enemy."
"How, Samrat, do you hope to achieve this ?"
"From the reports that have come to me from the governor of Gandhar, there are Kushan raiders who are pillaging North of Herat. These have to be done away with before the Army of Magadh marches and we will only begin our march in the spring season when the weather is kind to us."
Pacoras nodded in agreement, "That seems like a wise course of action, yet it would still be far from guaranteeing victory." Pacoras crossed his legs and leaned towards the emperor ,"Of course, there must be more to your plan than just defeating the raiders. What do you have in mind?"
the samrat smiled, "I would not have called you King Pacoras, if the Army of Magadh could fight this war on its own. I am told, your spies are spread across the Kushan empire up to the frontiers of the Han empire in the East. These would be our most dangerous weapon."
"Samrat, you had my curiosity, now you have my attention. What would you have my spies do?"
"We need to infiltrate the ranks of the Kushan army, know of their movements before they would know of ours'. The spies must spread lies among the forces of the Kushan emperor on our strategies. Create distrust among their forces turning one Ashvadhyaksh against the other. This would weaken them, while the Army of Magadh marches to conquest in the North."
"Of course no doubt, you would like the Parasik domain to grant your troops rest and support while you wage this war on the distant lands of Tocharia, is it not?"
The Samrat nodded and for a time there was a pause. King Pacoras rubbed his chin thinking over the task that the emperor had assigned for him. "it seems that you wish to fight a shadow war, hollowing the enemy before your blades see blood. Pedant ! So it shall be done." The king rose up as did the Samrat, "Before we begin, I should let you know, the news we do have from the sands of Tocharia. The emperor Vima Takto has summoned the four leading ashvadhyaksh, he intends to marshal the full strength of the horselords for this final invasion of our lands. Twelve divisions of horsemen are being readied for war assisted by 400 siege weapons." The samrat was alarmed by this news, "So it seems my coming to Gandhara could not have been more opportune ! We must make haste, and make war."
The first act of the second Kushan war began a mere three weeks after the emperor came to Herat to rally the spearmen in its garrison. He had decided that this time, he would personally lead the war effort and make the Kushan pay for their attacks. The lands North of Herat had been scorched by the Kushan raiders, there was not a village that did not show a sign of destruction, but these raiders did not operate on the orders of the Kushan emperor, or so it was believed.
Spearmen, it was held were the ideal counter to Horse cavalry. Gautamiputra Satakarni had learnt this basic tenet of war in the royal academy of Pataliputra. During his command of the elephant division of the Army fo Magadh, he distinguished himself as a master tactician. His campaign against the raiders reaffirmed this. The spearmen were deployed along the forests North of Herat assisted with the legion of veteran scouts, the forests were where the raiders were said to have encamped. The campaign took place in the manner of a sweeping operation where the spearmen infantry fought smaller detatchments of Ashvaks whose movements were traced by the veteran scouts.
Before the month was over, the raiders were all but annihilated with only a handful having retreated to the forests. These were defeated in head on battle and their leadership captured. He revealed more to the forces of Magadh than they could ever have known.
The war with the Kushans had now begun in earnest, and the Samrat of Bharat had taken the battle to the Kushans. Now it is they who will know fear.
)
. This is how the sequence of events happens : 
. By now Kartikeya is long dead and gone, but it is rumored that he was instrumental in killing Kujula Kadphises and bestirring his grandson Kanishka to invade India. 
but for the sake of the story I split it in two different persons 
. Ah well..
