The Destiny of Shaitan

by Laxmi Hariharan

  She looks on, fascinated, as his actions speed up, very soon becoming a blur. So riveted is she by his performance that when, having completed his task, he stops, Tiina is startled out of her reverie.

  Yudi has been feeling her eyes burning into his back all the while.

  He turns and walks up to her. “Enjoy the show?” he asks, tilting his head as he continues past her and towards the entrance of the structure in front of which they have docked.

  Tiina has the grace to blush at his remark. Pulling herself together she follows him, running to keep pace with his long strides. Yudi leads the way along a corridor which has a massive wall of glass on one side, showing the vista of the megalopolis below. Ahead the corridor opens off into many rooms. Each of the rooms is of a different colour and seems to echo a different theme.

  Tiina does a rough count of the doors and realises that there are probably more than a hundred such rooms ahead of her. The entrance to each is a glass door. It is not unlike being in an aquarium with multiple tanks on display. Yudi sets off up the corridor at a brisk pace. Tiina struggles to keep up with his longer stride while simultaneously trying to peer inside each of the rooms. Finally out of breath and tired, she comes to a standstill.

  “Stop,” she pants. “Stop!” she says again, raising her voice in order to be heard. “What’s the hurry anyway?”

  Yudi. Who is a couple of feet ahead of her, slows down a little so that she is able to catch up with him. Tiina walks to him, managing to steal a glance inside various rooms. She spots Geishas, Indian folk dancers, Spanish flamenco artists, Russian Cossacks, one-eyed, big headed pimps from Pluto, nubile young aliens from Venus, endowed with multiple-faces and other multiple charms, many-armed soldiers from Saturn, the familiar multi-hooved horses from Ka Surya, the transparent ghosts who waft from the multi-dimensional world of Shanista, the swimming mermaids of Neptune … she loses count of the various familiar and not so familiar species.

  As they pass by one of the rooms, Yudi waves out to the three-headed kangaroo-like marsupials inside, playing what seems to be a game of mind dice.

  Tiina looks at him. “Your friends?”

  He shrugs “We shared an adventure ...”

  “Aren’t they from Mars?”

  “Yes.”

  “And they are happy to be kept here in a cell?”

  “Yes!”

  “Just like that?”

  “Shaitan destroyed their planet. These were the only survivors. When Rai and I found them, they were more than happy to come to Arkana. We recreated the optimum climatic conditions within that space so they could live there. Guess it works for them.”

  Tiina begins to flag. She slows down further and comes to an almost complete standstill. Yudi looks back to where she is lurking in the background and adds in a semi-conciliatory tone, “They need a very specific breathing mixture and did not object to being in that room. On the contrary, they all seem to be thriving.”

  “So they are the last of an endangered species?”

  “I just told you that?”

  “Being the survivor of a lost planet is a familiar feeling. Yet it is as if Arkana has been resurrected, all these structures, this maze of rooms is all new. I don’t remember anything like this.”

  “It had to be completed in record time, alright, to accommodate all these species.”

  Tiina does not reply. Something very familiar inside one of the rooms brings her to a halt. She gives a cry of pleasure on seeing the familiar scenery of Java. The scene is as complete as if she has painted it herself. It has Java’s characteristic large orange blossom flowers, the golden beach where she spent many afternoons lazing by the shores, the giant yellow bees buzzing around the flowers, the traditional paddy fields that made Java the granary of the universe, and the traditionally dressed Javanese rice harvesters. One of whom even looks up and waves to her.

  Taken aback, Tiina asks, “What is this?”

  “Don’t you get it yet?”

  “It’s not what I think it is?” He nods in agreement.

  “So each room reflects a different forgotten culture of the universe?”

  Yudi smiles “The galaxy under one roof. Shaitan’s violence does not spare much. These are the remnants.”

  “Ah, so these are the extinct and the extinguished. Is this Arkana’s version of a rogue’s gallery?”

  “More like Mimir’s Ark. They are being kept here until they are ready to become part of the new world.”

  “And is that what we are too? Specimens?”

  “Not yet,” replies Yudi. “And I hope that it will never come to that.”

  “Mimir sure is taking this end of the world thing rather seriously.” For the first time Yudi agrees. “That’s what I think, too.”

  “I thought you were a willing accomplice, fully behind this new world thing.”

  “It gives me a chance to be back with two of my best friends, so I figure why not?”

  Tiina is puzzled. “So this is just your regular personal entertainment fantasy? You are a strange one, you know.”

  “Whatever gets it up for me, no?” Yudi mocks her. Then, on a more serious note, adds, “I do want to believe in a brave new world and fresh starts. Don’t you?”

  Tiina thinks about it “A chance to erase everything and re-write my future?”

  “You don’t have to change the past to forge a future.”

  “But you have to change, nevertheless.” A voice interrupts them. “The two of you are still engaged in foreplay, I see!” They turn to face the figure walking towards them.

  “Mimir!” exclaims Tiina.

  Mimir approaches them with that curiously floating gait of his, white robes fluttering behind him, eyes crinkling as he smiles. His beard is much longer than Tiina remembers. There are definitely more wrinkles on his face, if that is possible, she concludes.

  “Mimir!” She walks towards him.

  That old much-remembered feeling of sparkling power radiates from him, and flows over her. She feels the hairs on her forearms rise up, and a shiver of recognition runs through her. A feeling of complete surrender to the ultimate source of power overwhelms her, bringing tears to her eyes. She has forgotten how truly overwhelming it is to be in his presence. Once more, his halo of power reaches out and draws her in.

  “Welcome back Tiina,” says Mimir. He smiles while continuing to gaze at her with those peculiar piercing eyes of his. Turning to Yudi, he says, “I am pleased you found her.”

  “Did you doubt it?”

  “I was sure you would reach her. But seeing the two of you together was much beyond what I expected you to achieve.”

  “We managed to arrive at an understanding … Of sorts,” says Tiina.

  “You could say that,” agrees Yudi.

  “That was your first of many lessons to come on this journey,” says Mimir. “You will find yourselves and through that each other.”

  “All this and save the world too?”

  “First save yourself,” replies Mimir.

  “Mimir, as usual you are full of interesting facts. Some things haven’t changed.”

  Mimir chuckles “A wise man is allowed to indulge in mysteries.”

  “Isn’t that a woman’s prerogative?”

  “We can talk later Tiina. Right now it’s time for the three of you to heed the call. Shaitan’s power has grown exponentially since he stole the Isthmus. If we do not act fast, he will soon be un-stoppable. Already he controls the minds of most Humans and Half Lives.”

  “Humans are the most intelligent species in this galaxy. Surely they can resist him?”

  “They could have, if they had tried,” he says. “But they have been caught unawares. Over the ages, they have lost much of their ancient wisdom. Perception is replaced by illusion. The left-brain dominates. And money is the currency of life.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with a little bit of greed now, is there?” remarks Tiina. “We are human. We make mistakes. The pursuit of money is still the most pl
easurable journey of all.”

  “What does this have to do with Shaitan and the Isthmus?”

  “The Isthmus keeps the balance of the creative and the commercial. With the Isthmus gone, the pendulum has swung to the extreme. It must now swing back. Balance must be restored to the galaxy.”

  “And if you we don’t succeed …”

  “Then …” Says Mimir.

  “Then...?”

  “If this is not done, then the galaxies meet the same fate as your home planet Ka Surya.”

  Tiina grows pale. “Destiny repeats itself.”

  “And the wheel keeps turning till you isolate the evil and take it out once and for all.”

  “You are right, Mimir.”

  Yudi is quite happy to play his role in the mission, yet something bothers him. “I’ve got to ask why you decided to choose us when there are others stronger, more powerful than us, who could do this with less effort.”

  “On the contrary others more powerful than you have tried, but none have succeeded” replies Mimir.

  “Oh! I did not know that. What do we have, which the others didn’t?”

  “You have each other.” Mimir smiles and putting an arm around their shoulders he walks them, one on either side, to the large window overlooking the city.

  “The two of you in the same place at the same time, and with true intent. That is really powerful.”

  “Alchemy to neutralise?” comments Tiina.

  “A tune that revives?” Yudi laughs, trying to rhyme his words with her sentence.

  Tiina and Mimir both look at him in mild frustration. “Sorry ... sorry, just couldn’t resist that one” Yudi apologises.

  “You don’t believe me, do you?” asks Mimir.

  “OK, we are each unique. I give you that. And together we are a strong combination. We thrive off each other,” concedes Tiina.

  “Real purpose,” says Mimir. “Together you have unadulterated power.”

  “But is that enough to overcome evil as strong as Shaitan?”

  “It will not be easy.” Mimir pauses. “You will be tested. And there will be casualties.”

  “Do we even know where to start,” asks Yudi, wearing a confused look on his face. Mimir looks at both of them. “You will be guided every step of the way. When you need me most, I will be there. Just follow your instinct and find the way,” he says.

  “But Mimir, you have the power. If you look for the Isthmus you would find it like that” Yudi snaps his fingers for effect.

  “If only it were that simple.” Mimir smiles “I can help, I can guide, but this is your destiny not mine.”

  Tiina is about to ask him another question, when Mimir interrupts her “Let’s find Rai, shall we? There will be more time for questions, I promise.”

  Mimir and Tiina follow Yudi along the seemingly never-ending corridor. It slopes gently upwards and then abruptly turns a corner. They find themselves in a space overlooking an open-air arena, right in the centre of which is what seems to be an old-fashioned boxing ring.

  They reach a viewing gallery. As they step into it, it gently disengages from the main structure and floats light as a bubble over the circular arena until they are in a prime position for a ringside view of the action unfolding in front of them. The figures in the centre of the ring carry on, not in the least disturbed by their newfound audience. As Tiina continues to train her sights on the action, she makes out a familiar profile.

  “Rai! What is he doing here?”

  Tiina follows Rai’s movements and realises that he is engaged in what seems to be a very strange game: pitting his mental powers against a very striking being. She can only describe the figure facing Rai as half man, half lion. It has the face and torso of a lion, tapering to a narrow and oddly sexy waist, and then the strong legs of an athlete clad in black leather, but with a powerful lion’s tail swishing back and forth.

  The two gaze at each other across the length of the boxing ring the surface of which is clear enough to reflect back their images as if the surface of a frozen lake. Tiina realises that it looked like a sheet of solid glass. Her logic however told her, that given the dimensions of the figures and the force of their actions, it had to be something a little stronger to hold the weight of Rai and the Lion Man. A surface tough enough to withstand their actions.

  As she watches, the area between the two figures suddenly erupts. It is as if getting tired of the mental game, Rai and the Lion Man had exploded into the physical plane. They pull out their swords flinging it at each other at the same time. The swords clash and a blinding light flares out, so intense that she can feel heat and almost hear the static even from two-miles away.

  Tiina puts up a hand to protect herself against its brilliance. The sheer power from the conflict is such that she almost blacks out. She has a feeling of déjà-vu, but is unable to really comprehend or catch up with the memories triggered by the explosion. Meanwhile the action continues. Rai and the Lion Man engage in fierce warfare, each of them now charging the other from opposite ends of the field. Only they both seem to have moved onto riding metallic beasts which are as translucent as the surface of the boxing ring on which they are fighting. The sunset in the background with its reds and golds frames the figures, makes it a picture-postcard scene. The sunshine bouncing off the metallic animals, create a rainbow.

  The two figures close the distance and when they are within inches of each other, the animals they are on seem to melt away. Then it is just the two of them on their feet. They rush towards each other and lock in a death grip. The tussle continues for a few evenly matched seconds. When it seems that neither of them will give way, Lion Man morphs into a complete lion and catches Rai by the neck.

  The illusion breaks. The lion fades away.

  Rai gets to his feet, dusts himself off, and walks over, limping a little, a sheepish look on his face.

  Mimir looks at Rai with a steady piercing gaze. “You need to listen to your intuition. Anticipate.”

  “Sure thought I was doing just that.”

  “Trust,” says Mimir. “Leap and you shall be caught.”

  Tiina notices that the years seem to sit easy on him. “How do you do that?” she asks.

  “Do what?”

  “Look exactly the same as when I last saw you.”

  Rai laughs pleased with her compliment. “Hey, you look good too, Tiina, even better than what I remember.”

  “Doesn’t say much for your recollection then, does it?” She gestures to the scene behind him. “So all that was what? An illusion?”

  “You mean the Lion Man?” replies Rai, then without waiting for her answer continues, “If you mean the creature I fought with? Then yes, it was an illusion too.”

  “He is not real?” asks Tiina

  “No,” Mimir corrects Tiina “He does exist. Simh — the Lion Man. The one who taught me the skills of the fight,” he says.

  “So that was an illusion?” Tiina presses them both for an answer.

  “No, he was there,” says Rai finally. “Only in spirit, though. On Arkana we have the technology to channel him. What you saw was a fabulous illusion, which simulates the exact real impact of your opponent. And it’s potent, because it taps into the real strength of the person or thing. So you are right there in the moment, caught up in the fight.”

  All of a sudden Tiina begins to feel a little lightheaded. Her head reels from the after effects of the bright blast that washed over her. She looks around. “When did all this happen, how was all this built?”

  “After you left …uh!” Rai clears his throat looking from Tiina to Yudi, “Well after you left, Yudi and I were set to go our separate ways as well.”

  Yudi completes his sentence. “But Mimir held us back.”

  “We didn’t want to stay on, but Mimir convinced us to complete what we had started.”

  Yudi looks at the magnificent buildings around him. “We stayed until this place took shape.”

  “So this is where the two of you vanishe
d to so often, then?” she asks. Some things suddenly click into place. Even after all this time, the scenes from their earlier years at Arkana are bright and alive in her mind.

  “Trust Mimir to discipline both of you.”

  “I wouldn’t say we’ve lost all our firepower yet,” Rai smiles.

  Mimir looks at the three silhouetted against the glass wall, beyond which lies the magnificent metropolis of Arkana. It is a moment in time forever etched in his mind’s eye.

  “So, what have you decided?”

  The three of them look at each other and hesitate. They are not quite sure how to voice their doubts.

  “You know this is our last chance,” says Tiina looking at the other two. “This is the time to speak up, if we have any doubts.”

  “Else hold our words forever,” agrees Yudi.

  Rai finally says, “We are together, for better or worse. So is there anything stopping us from taking this journey?”

  “I am in. I have always known I was going to do something different. This is how I change the course of my destiny, so why not?” replies Tiina, without any hesitation.

  They both look at Yudi who bursts out, “OK! OK! I admit I am not thrilled. I would rather do something a little less stressful. But hey! I’ll do it just so we can spend a little more time together.”

  “What about you, Rai?” asks Tiina. “Why are you doing this?

  “For a long time I wondered why I didn’t feel comfortable anywhere. I wandered the entire galaxy, and never found a place which felt like home. And then,” he looks at them, “and then it dawned on me. It isn’t the place. It is the people that make it feel like home.”

  Both Yudi and Tiina are listening with rapt attention. “I found the two of you at Arkana, and for the first time I felt I belonged. It was as if...” he struggles for a word to describe the emotions he had felt then “As if I were whole again... you know. I was safe, and could just be myself with both of you. I did not have to pretend anymore. If I could only hold onto that feeling forever well then I would die happy.”

  “That was from the heart, Rai,” says Tiina. “So poetic....I didn’t think you had it in you.”

  “The words, you mean?” asks Yudi.