Vir knew that Mungwa’s claws were still retracted. When Mungwa prepared to speed up, Vir slithered and went around and suddenly appeared before the startled Mungwa, blocking his path. The little blue demon, though also startled, believed that Mungwa was faster than the naga and ordered him to leap above the naga and head toward Gerua quickly. It didn’t want Mungwa engaging with the nag. It had to have him quickly immobilize Gerua using his immense strength.
Vir had no intention of engaging with Mungwa. He was just distracting the big cat and predictably Mungwa had hesitated. He had not realized that the naga were inaudibly silent and lightning fast when they were attacking. After all, they were snake—and there were two huge ones within striking distance, right behind Mungwa.
The larger of the two naga behind Mungwa uncoiled with blinding speed, his sharp backward-pointing teeth grabbing Mungwa’s spine below his shoulder. Before he knew it, Mungwa was entwined in the huge coils of the massive snake. The second snake wrapped his body around the Mungwa’s front paws and neck. Both naga contracted their coils and squeezed. Mungwa squealed like a defenseless kitten, and then went limp, unconscious.
The unconscious Mungwa wrapped in naga coils no longer served the little blue pishacha’s purpose. The pishacha flew out of the Mungwa’s ear. Vir was waiting for this. The red-black stone on Vir’s necklace grew bright, and a red beam emanated from it, trapping the pishacha and drawing it into the stone. Vir then turned and headed for Gerua and Danta as fast as possible. The two naga released the unconscious Mungwa and hurried after Vir.
Gerua saw the imminent danger Danta was in. She was helpless, but only for a moment. She recalled Master Iku’s teachings and focused on freeing herself. She hoped that all the time Danta had spent with Master Iku would now come in handy. Gerua grabbed hold of the shaft of the trident with her empty hand. It was the hand with the bracelet. The tip of the bracelet pointed directly at the shaft of the trident. At the same time, Gerua spoke a mantra to activate the bracelet on her wrist as the aghori pushed the trident even harder on to Gerua’s heart. The bracelet released a burst of energy. The burst compressed the wooden molecules of the trident shaft into a matchstick and it snapped. Gerua saw the aghori who had been pushing downwards on the trident, loose his balance and begin to fall on her. She rolled to the side. The aghori tried to break his fall by bringing his shield down in front of him. Gerua hit him with the back of the handle of the urumi on his temple as he fell, knocking him out. She stood up ready to defend Danta.
Meanwhile, Danta had seen the second aghori in the air preparing to bring the whip down on him. A dart was aimed at his right shoulder, and it contained a powerful sedative. Danta moved his torso by moving his left foot forward and to his left and closing the distance between him and the aghori to the left. The dart flew by him, but his right leg was still in the way of the metal whip and could be hit. He pulled in his right leg to his left, and the dart and the whip harmlessly flew past Danta and embedded itself into the ground well behind him. Pulling the whip out of the ground, the aghori swung the whip again to his right, hoping to ensnare Danta. Using the urumi in its grabbing mode, Gerua grabbed the second aghori’s legs and yanked the urumi. The aghori fell to the ground. The metal whip flailed wildly out of control above Danta, and the dart embedded itself in a nearby tree.
Unwinding the urumi from the aghori’s leg, she swung it around Danta’s waist, simultaneously deactivating her shield. Gerua pulled him toward her. Danta took her extended left hand and swiftly leaped onto her back. Gerua re-activated the protective shield.
Gerua set the urumi to full cutting mode. The second aghori who had got up on his feet again saw that Danta was on Gerua’s back. With amazing dexterity, he pulled the dart out of the tree and launched the dart at the end of the whip at Gerua. Gerua sidestepped the dart and brought the urumi down on the whip, slicing it cleanly as the dart, along with half the whip behind it, embedded itself in another tree away from the aghori. The chain hit the tree and then hung limply down. The aghori was disarmed, but he was not defeated yet. He looked around for a weapon and saw the first aghori’s trident head lying on the ground near his limp body. He also saw the shield of the other aghori under his body.
Assessing the situation, the aghori picked the trident head. The aghori pointed the trident, aiming the prongs at Gerua. Gerua looked at him curiously. Did the aghori mean to fight her with the head of the trident? Then she realized his intention when he twisted the handle, but it was too late. The right prong of the trident shot like a missile at Gerua, hitting her in the ribcage, knocking her back a little. It fell uselessly to the ground, unable to penetrate her. The second prong was aimed at her heart but bounced off her too. But the first two prongs were just a distraction. The aghori turned the shaft another notch and fired the third prong.
The prong flew straight for Gerua’s chest and exploded as it made contact. The shrapnel from the prong was not able to penetrate neither Gerua nor Danta, but the blast knocked her backward, and Danta was forced to release her again. The thunderous explosion echoed throughout the forest. The aghori had dived for the ground away from Gerua to avoid the shock wave and possible injury from the shrapnel. He knew he had to find the woman’s body, but he couldn’t see it through the smoke. He hoped that she had shielded the boy with her body and was at least unconscious from the blast. He had to have her body, dead or alive, and deliver the living boy to Bubba.
CHAPTER 44
REALIZATION
Gerua had absorbed the blast, shielding Danta. But she had been knocked down and was disoriented by the sound of the blast, her ears shrilling. Her eyes closed she could feel Danta, who had again leapt off her again, shaking her. She forced her eyes to open and saw a huge shadow of Vir appear over them. Shaken but unhurt, Gerua held Danta’s hand with her left hand and switched off the protecting shield with her right hand. She activated the shield again so it would protect them both. “Hold on to me, no matter what,” Gerua muttered. Vir moved toward the dissipating smoke where the prong had exploded.
“Mom, get up! We have to get going!” said Danta urgently, tugging at his mother’s hand. “We have to hurry.”
“Why?” asked Gerua, fighting the shrilling noise in her ears. “I need a couple of minutes.”
“No, please get up. We have to hurry. Please get up. Vir is here and he will take care of the aghori,” Danta pleaded, pulling on her arm.
“Okay, I’m getting up. Hold on to me,” she said, and with an effort, Gerua rose, shaking her head, wishing the noise in her ear would stop. She picked her urumi, encasing it.
The second aghori, who had shot Gerua with the prong, had picked the shield of the first aghori. He walked through the smoke, hoping to find Gerua dead or unconscious. Instead, he came face to face with a huge naga, half man and half serpent, standing between him and an unharmed Gerua.
“Please leave,” Vir told Gerua. “I will handle this.” Vir’s gigantic tail hit the aghori on the back of his head knocking him out. He then took his shield and crushed it with his coils. The first aghori was stirring. Vir turned his attention to the stirring aghori and lifted him in his tail. Turning the aghori’s face toward him, Vir punched him on the jaw with his massive fist. Vir uncoiled, releasing him and the aghori fell to the ground, unconscious again.
Vir lifted the beaded necklaces from the demons and tossed them to Danta, who caught them with his free left hand. Danta put one necklace around his own neck and the other around Gerua’s. Freed, the demons immediately changed to their ghostly forms and tried to escape, but the red beam emitting from Vir’s stone trapped them and pulled them into the red-black stone in Vir’s necklace.
Vir glided over to Gerua who had briefly paused to thank Vir. “The demons are imprisoned, and the aghori will be unconscious for some time.”
“Thank you again for your help. Please wait for me by the cliff for a day. I will be returning soon, I think alone.” Gerua smiled weakly and Danta briefly held Vir’s right hand with his left and s
miled.
Vir nodded. “Please be safe and hurry as young Danta has suggested.”
Gerua, now alert and oriented, moved briskly, following Danta. They had traveled less than a kilometer when they heard elephants trumpeting in a distance. Gerua slowed down, but Danta pulled her by the hand toward the sound. Another twenty-five meters and they could hear numerous elephants trumpeting loudly. They also heard the noise of the elephants trampling and crashing through trees moving toward the trampled clearing where they were.
“Danta, we have to get out of the way!” said Gerua urgently. “The elephants are stampeding! Move!” Danta stood still and did not let Gerua move. The elephants were nearly on them. Just before the elephants appeared, a vast humanoid with a long tail and a kind, benevolent face that resembled a vanara landed in front of Gerua and Danta, from the sky. The humanoid had golden-white fur and a celestial aura around him.
Moments later, a large bull elephant burst out of the trees. The mighty humanoid gently placed his hand on the bull’s forehead, stopping the elephant in its tracks. The elephant trumpeted loudly, curling its trunk upward. Other elephants came out of the forest to join the bull.
At that moment, it dawned on Gerua in whose presence she was. She immediately fell to her knees and lowered her head, bowing to the immortal, her right hand on her thumping heart. She had been right about Danta’s humanoid sculpture… Lord, she prayed silently, please forgive my ignorance. Please forgive me for not seeing what was in front of my eyes.
Gerua wanted to look up at the magnificent immortal in front of her but was unable to do so. She was unable to move, awestruck and totally humbled by the presence of the immortal. Danta had released Gerua’s hand, freeing himself from the protection of the belt. He walked fearlessly toward the grand immortal.
Gerua continued to pray silently. She finally recalled that her shield was still active, and she moved a trembling hand to her belt to deactivate it. Gerua was so overcome by emotion that she had forgotten all about the gate. Despite her training, her heart was pounding uncontrollably in her chest.
The immortal lowered his impressive frame on one knee as Danta rushed to him and wrapped his arms around the immortal’s large calf. “Mom, it’s my friend, the sage! I’ve been telling you about him. Come and meet him in his real, celebrated form.”
The hand that had stopped the bull elephant gently reached for Danta and lifted him to the immortal’s eye level. “My Danta, you have made it.” The immortal’s voice was gentle but deep. He smiled at the boy. Danta smiled back and extended his hands, touching the immortal’s face.
“Yes I did, and you found me when I needed you. I want mom to meet you properly. I think she is very humbled by your presence.” The immortal nodded, lowering Danta to the ground, and the boy ran to his mother, tugging her.
“Mom, you have to get up and meet my friend. Only if he is here will the gate show itself.”
Gerua finally found the strength to rise. Trembling, she straightened her body and lifted herself from the ground. She clasped her hands in front of her and kept her head lowered respectfully.
The immortal blessed her by putting his enormous palm on her head. He gently lifted her chin with his forefinger making eye contact. At last, Gerua could see the immortal in all his glory and splendor. “O Lord, please forgive me for my mistakes and for not recognizing you earlier.” Her voice was trembling.
“Bless you. There is nothing to forgive,” he said kindly. “No one recognizes me until I want to be recognized. This is the case with all immortals. I appreciate your sacrifice, and I am thankful that you brought Danta to me.” The voice of the magnificent immortal reverberated through Gerua’s being.
At that moment, Gerua knew that this was the immortal that knew the whereabouts of the gate, and in whose presence the gate would reveal itself. But where was the gate? A number of vanara appeared, leaping from the dense trees, atop the elephants. The elephants knelt before the colossal immortal, and the vanara leaped from the elephants backs to the ground and knelt before the immortal, heads bowed and palms clasped in front of their sternum. The forest was unusually silent.
CHAPTER 45
AIRAVATA
The silence was disturbed only by the noise of Danta opening the backpack. He took out the elephant sculpture and put it on the ground. The immortal that had now assumed his human sage form, nudged the sculpture. To the amazement of Gerua, the tiny little elephant came to life and trundled off into the thicket, disappearing. Then she heard the noise of something big moving through the thicket. Suddenly, a huge white elephant, looking exactly like the tiny sculpture Danta had sculpted, came crashing into the clearing, the earth shaking with his weight.
“Mom, look! Airavata is here!” Danta shouted excitedly when the large white elephant crashed through the foliage. The white elephant continued to grow till it was twice the size of the other elephants. Right before their eyes, the elephant grew two extra heads on either side of his central head. The elephant kept on changing, adorning itself.
Gerua was confounded. Did the sculpted elephant change into the magnificent creature that had just appeared before them?
In his full splendor Airavata was beautiful. He was adorned with an inverted triangular ornamental piece over each of his three foreheads. Each piece was made of exquisitely linked scale-like pieces of white gold with precious stones embedded in a beautiful decorative pattern. The decorative adornment extended over Airavata’s back and sides, which were also covered with the same white gold and precious gemstones pattern.
A light appeared on Airavata’s back, briefly shining like a miniature sun, bedazzling Gerua. As the brilliance faded, a small shining howdah appeared on Airavata’s back. The howdah was also made of white gold. It was closed on all four sides without any windows or doors and was topped with a small minaret.
A howdah without any entrance in which no one could sit. Must be a part of his adornment? Gerua rationalized.
“Mom, can you see how big Airavata is!?” Danta exclaimed smiling as he moved toward the huge three-headed elephant. Gerua grabbed Danta’s hand, unwilling to let him go. “Mom, please let me go. I want to say hello to Airavata.”
Gerua was trying to keep ahead the fast-paced events unfolding before her, but she felt unsettled. She realized that the presence of the divine immortal and the arrival of Airavata meant that what she was looking for was in front of her. But she still couldn’t figure out where the gate was.
“Let Danta go,” the sage spoke gently to Gerua. “This is what you have been looking for.”
Gerua released Danta, and he ran to Airavata. “Thank you for coming. I knew you would come.” Danta hugged the huge elephant’s front right leg and Airavata stroked the boy with his trunk. Airavata then gently nudged the boy with one of his trunks toward the sage standing nearby.
“I will see you again soon,” Danta said, hugging the sage. “Yes, you will. Learn well.” The sage released Danta and gently guided him toward his mother.
There were tears in Gerua’s eyes, and she smiled weakly. She lowered herself on her knees and hugged Danta tightly. Are you leaving me, Danta? Is this the end, the moment I have been dreading? Why does everyone leave me? Please don’t leave me...
“I will be back soon, Mom,” Danta whispered. “Kally...needs you to find...”
“What did you say?” interrupted Gerua, overwhelmed with emotion. Airavata gently pulled Danta’s shoulder with the trunk finger at the end of his trunk. Feeling the tug, Gerua released Danta.
“Mom…I have to go now,” said Danta. “I love you very much.”
Before she could say anything, Airavata used one of his trunks to lift Danta gently onto his back, and the boy disappeared into the howdah, seeming to go through the metal walls. Gerua tried establish a telepathic link with Danta, but she couldn’t pierce the howdah. Gerua fell to her knees, sobbing shamelessly, her head bowed.
A white elephant trunk curled gently around Gerua’s waist, picking her up, and she foun
d herself in the howdah. Once inside the howdah, Gerua was totally insulated from the outside world. The howdah was huge inside, as compared to how it seemed from the outside. Danta was standing next to the opposite wall. The wall had the three eyes, very similar to the ones that had teleported them from the ashram.
“I asked Airavata to bring you up. I am going to miss you, Mom.” Danta rushed across the floor of the howdah to his mother and hugged her again. Gerua hugged Danta back tightly, unwilling to let him go.
“I wish I could come with you,” said Gerua, still weeping.
“Mom, please don’t cry. You have done so much for me. You brought me here safely. Wait for me. I promise I will be back soon. Master Shalya, Ku, the other masters as well as the friends we have made adore you,” said Danta, smiling. “Watch out for Bubba though. He is very bad, and he will try to hurt you again. Please take care of yourself.” Danta took off his beaded necklace and placed it around his mother’s neck.
“This one is special, Mom. Keep it for me till I return. Ku also told me to tell you before leaving that if you turn the stone on your belt counterclockwise and press it, you will be cloaked from being seen by anything sinister.”
Danta released Gerua, and moved toward the opposite wall and she noticed the fourth eye on the floor, exactly as it was in the ashram. “Bubba...? Are you talking about the master of the edict? Where is he? I have never seen him.” She did not know what she was saying; she just wanted to keep talking to Danta.
“He is the worst of all sinister beings, and he desires power of Asura Cosmic Council,” said Danta as he moved on to the fourth eye on the floor. “He wants to find the ashram. He is the one that caused all your pain. Fight him till I return.”
Dwandv:: The Battle for the Gate Page 23
