Realm of the Goddess (12 page)

Chapter Ten

When I came
to, the first thing I felt was a cool hand on my forehead. I opened my eyes and found myself looking into Shiv’s eyes. Once again I felt the tingling, but this time there was, thankfully, no floating away. I was still in the airplane seat with Shiv leaning deliciously close to me. I decided that I wanted to relish the moment a little longer, so I closed my eyes again.

“Callie,” Shiv was saying softly. “How are you feeling?” He sounded really worried, and against my better judgment I decided to let him out of his misery. I opened my eyes as slowly as I could.

“I’m okay, Shiv,” I said, straightening and sitting up.

“Did you have another vision? What did you see?”

“Nothing different from what I’ve seen before,” I lied. I was not ready to tell him what I’d really seen until I had a chance to figure out what it meant.

“Can I get you anything? A sandwich? You should have some ice water.”

He reached up to press the call button, and when the flight attendant came Shiv asked him for a glass of water for each of us. By the time the water came I was feeling a little better already, but my throat was parched so I gratefully took big gulps and emptied the glass in no time. Something had been nagging at the back of my mind for some time, and I decided this was as good a time as any to discuss it, seeing as I wasn’t about to get any more rest on the plane.

“Shiv, something’s been bothering me for the longest time...how exactly did Mahisha escape?”

“Well,” Shiv, taking a sip of his water, “from what I’ve read, Mahisha was able to evade Kali by changing forms. The myths say that during the battle he took on the form of a buffalo, a lion and a warrior. It was when he was in buffalo form that Kali last fought him.”

“Exactly, and Kali was able to sever his head while he was a buffalo.” I distinctly remembered reading that as a child, which was why I was so confused.

“Yes, that’s what popular legend tells us about the Great Battle between Kali and Mahisha,” said Shiv.

“But that’s not what really happened, is it?” I knew the answer to that question even before I asked, but I couldn’t help it. I needed to hear it again, just in case this whole thing was a crazy mistake.

“No, but no one knew right away. It wasn’t until after Mahisha started recruiting that anyone figured out what was going on.”

“But does anyone know exactly how he survived?”

“Well, one theory is that he knew Kali’s weakness and was able to stop her from killing him.”

“What was her weakness?”

“That’s where the problem lies. Only Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma knew her weakness. When the gods created her, they each gave her some of their powers so that she would be all-powerful.”

“Okay, so whose bright idea was it to leave her with a weakness? I mean, wasn’t that the whole point of creating her — to make sure she would be able to destroy Mahisha?”

“Yes, but you are overlooking an important fact. The gods aren’t all that different from us humans. They’re just as insecure when it comes to their power. The Gods of the Trinity, Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma, have always been considered the most powerful. They weren’t about to risk losing control of an all-powerful goddess they had created.”

I was beginning to think that maybe the gods weren’t as all-knowing as we made them out to be.

“So they left one thing about her vulnerable to attack, and somehow Mahisha knew about it and used it to his advantage?”

“That’s right,” said Shiv. “And no one really knows what can hurt her.”

At that moment the flight attendants started coming around with the in-flight meals, and the next few hours went by with little conversation. I even managed to take a short nap before the pilot finally announced our arrival in London. We had about three hours here before getting on another plane that would take us to India. We used our time at the airport to stretch our legs and just look around. Before long we were on our final leg of the journey and eventually the pilot announced our descent into Kolkata’s international airport. I couldn’t wait to be out there, breathing in the humid air, pushing my way through the sea of people.

After an excruciatingly slow exit through immigration and customs, we finally made our way toward the exit. As soon we walked through the massive sliding doors that led to the outside, the air engulfed me. It was thick with humidity and carried with it familiar smells. Some of them made me gag momentarily. Others evoked memories I had not visited in a while. The smell of deep-fried
pakora
s like my grandmother used to make. The fragrance of jasmine flowers permeating everything. For a brief moment I felt as if time stood still while I inhaled Kolkata. Then it was over. The shrill sound of a whistle broke the spell, and I was jolted back into reality. Reality was swarms of sweaty bodies jostling for space, trying to make their way to the pre-paid taxi stands. Young men and boys vied to carry our bags.

Shiv looked at me and grinned. “It’s great to be back, isn’t it? I never realize how much I miss all this until I’m here.”

I just nodded, too overcome by emotion to actually speak. Shiv was scanning the crowd, looking for his uncle.

“There he is. He’s seen us.” Shiv started making his way toward the moving mass of people. Contrary to my instinct, which was telling me to turn around and run back into the cool refuge of the terminal, I followed him into the crowd. A minute or so later we came to a stop in front of a middle-aged, slightly balding man.

“Ah, so you are the young Callie I’ve been hearing so much about. I’m Suresh, Shiv’s uncle. I hope the flight wasn’t too bad?” As he spoke, he took the carry-on bag I was holding and handed it to a young man standing behind him.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Uncle Suresh,” I said, folding my hands in the traditional
namaste
. “Thank you for all the trouble you’ve gone to. Shiv’s told us that you’ve been a great help getting everything arranged for us.” 

It was funny how I was still able to switch into that super-polite version of myself when faced with an adult in India. When I was in Seattle I was always amazed at the dichotomy of being an Indian teenager. There was one way you were with your friends and another when you were around the more traditional Indian adults. It sounded duplicitous but it really wasn’t. It was more like self-preservation, as well as a way of being respectful. My friends would tease me about it all the time. I even had a different accent when I spoke to my relatives; I tended to revert to my Indian accent when I was around them, a remnant of my years living in India. It hadn’t always been easy. Sometimes I wished I could just be the same around everyone, but that was just the reality of my life. And it wasn’t that I didn’t love my Indian heritage; I loved all the richness and warmth and color it brought to my life. But I had to admit I did not like some of the complications that came along. Luckily, I had found a pretty good balance.

Before we landed Shiv had filled me in on all the details of his family. Uncle Suresh was Nina’s brother. We would be staying with him while we were in Kolkata before beginning our journey to North Sentinel Island.

Our drive into the city was a trip down memory lane. We drove across the Howrah Bridge. It was still as huge as I remembered from our family trips years ago. It was strange to be there again, as if nothing had changed, but everything was somehow different. From the bridge I could see the rows of slums that lined the banks of the Hooghly River, but as we approached the city center tall buildings reached up into the sky as if they were trying to grab bits of cloud to shelter them from the sun. Giant billboards advertised all the latest brands and fashions while voluptuous Bollywood heroines pouted down as we drove beneath them. Traffic in India had never been light, but clearly things had changed in the ten years I’d been gone. We didn’t move for what seemed like hours. It was nearly dark by the time we reached Uncle Suresh’s house, and I was exhausted. Shiv had somehow managed to take a nap during the long drive, but I felt a headache coming on and needed to rest.

Uncle Suresh’s home was in an upscale neighborhood judging by the luxurious homes with sprawling gardens we passed on the way. Tall wrought iron gates separated his estate from the outside world. I realized this had to be a requirement of any Rakshakari home, given the kind of lifestyle they led. We went down a long, winding driveway and finally stopped in front of a massive entrance flanked by actual armed guards in uniform. I saw Shiv raise an eyebrow as we pulled up.

“Uncle Suresh, what’s with all the security?” he asked.

His uncle turned to him with a wry smile. “Things have changed since you were living here, Shiv. We cannot take any chances.”

Shiv didn’t respond as we got out of the car and went up the marble steps to the main door. All of a sudden a flash of black and brown shot out the front door and jumped on Shiv. The next moment he was on the floor of the entrance rolling around with his beloved Dobby. I just stood and watched. The expression on his face was one of sheer joy.

After they both calmed down, Dobby came to me and put his cold nose on my hand. As I ruffled the fur on his head, he wagged his tail and gave me kisses. I was in heaven. After a while I looked up and saw a young woman trying to greet us. She wore a white sari with a thin yellow border running along the bottom. Because she seemed so young, I was surprised to see her in white, the color of widows. She folded her hands in a
namaste
, as did we, and after giving her some instructions, Uncle Suresh ushered us into the lavish interior of his home. The living room, or drawing room as it was called in India, was tastefully furnished with antiques. By the time we were seated, the young woman had brought in a tray of tea and assorted cakes, cookies and other goodies. I was starving and wasn’t shy about helping myself, while Uncle Suresh and Shiv made small talk about relatives and acquaintances. I was curious about the young woman, so with the excuse of having to use the washroom, I went to find the kitchen. She was there, chopping vegetables, and was a bit startled when I walked in.

I asked in Bengali for her name, but she replied in English. This didn’t really surprise me; given that there were around twenty-six different languages spoken in India, English was often the only common language, a remnant of two centuries of British rule. Her name was Aruna.

“Aruna...I’m Callie. Thank you for the tea and cakes. They were delicious.” She didn’t respond, but her shy smile told me that she was pleased. I waited for her to say something and was rewarded for my patience.

“I have heard about you from Mr. Suresh and the others.” She glanced up from her vegetables and looked directly at me for the first time. “I didn’t think that you would be so young,” she said softly.

I smiled. She was really pretty, with delicate features. She wore no makeup yet her skin was flawless, her doe-shaped eyes dark and fringed in long black lashes. Once again I wondered about her white sari, but I couldn’t very well ask her something so personal. Even though I’d just met her, I felt profound sadness when I looked at her.

“Can I help you with anything?” I asked, feeling bad that she was stuck in the hot kitchen, no doubt preparing our evening meal. As soon as the words came out of my mouth I regretted them. She looked up at me pleadingly.

“Please...no, thank you...I can manage on my own.” She nodded toward the living room. “Why don’t you go and relax with the others, it’s so hot in here.”

I got the distinct feeling that I had been dismissed, so I turned around to go back. She was probably worried that she’d get in trouble if Uncle Suresh found me helping her. As I walked back I could hear Shiv and his uncle. It sounded like they were arguing. All I caught was a snippet of what they were saying.

“...talk about this later,” Shiv was saying as I walked in.

“Callie, there you are. You must be exhausted from your long trip.”

Uncle Suresh looked over at Shiv. “Why don’t you show Callie to her room and let her freshen up. Dinner should be ready soon.”

“Uncle Suresh, I don’t think I can eat anything tonight. Would you mind if I just went to bed?” I asked.

“Of course, I understand. I hope you will be comfortable. If you need anything at all, please just ask Aruna. She sleeps downstairs and can bring you anything you need.”

I thanked him and followed Shiv out of the living room into the foyer. A spiral marble staircase led up to the second floor. As we walked up I ran my hand over the smooth mother-of-pearl inlaid banister. And I couldn’t take my eyes off the richly colored tapestries that hung on the walls. These Rakshakari sure knew how to live. Shiv led me up the stairs, down a hallway and came to a stop in front of a heavy wooden door.

“You should get some rest, Callie. We still have a lot of preparation to do before we head off for North Sentinel Islands.” I nodded and he turned away to leave, but I grabbed his sleeve.

“Shiv...wait. What were you guys talking about when I walked in? Is everything alright?”

“Yes, of course. We were just talking about some family stuff...don’t worry.” And with that he turned around and walked away. Something didn’t feel right, but I figured I was just really tired and needed to rest. With the twelve-hour time difference I knew I was going to feel awful in the morning. I went in and realized that someone, probably Aruna, had already brought up my luggage, and I gratefully took my PJs out and changed. I barely managed to brush my teeth before passing out. The last thing I remembered was the heavenly softness of the pillow as my head sank into it.