Satyayoddha Kalki- Eye of Brahma

by Kevin Missal

  “It was an honour serving you, your highness.”

  “You shall be a great man but you must be careful. There’s a thin line between . . .” he coughed again.

  Kali saw how weak and frail Parikshit looked. His eyes had shrunken and his face had lost all colour.

  “There’s a thin line between good and evil. Always make sure to do good, for life is too . . . too short to be evil.”

  That moment, the younger Kali had lost the man who had been like a father to him. Parikshit’s eyes were closed forever. Kali now felt sick. If only the Eye of Brahma had the power to not just show him the past but let him alter it, Kali would not hesitate to murder Janmejaya.

  Kali already knew what the next scene would be. He clearly remembered.

  Now he saw Janmejaya with the crown over his head. Younger Kali and Durukti were had been tied up as Janmejaya ordered their execution.

  “My father never had the courage to do so. But I would. Kill them both! They poisoned my father! We know you are working with the Nagas and I shall burn all of them after I deal with you. You and your sister are evil.”

  Younger Kali and Durukti were taken into a cell where they would be killed quietly for Kali was getting a lot of support from the people. But the executioner was none other than Koko and his sister Vikoko who were Janmejaya’s guards now that Parikshit was dead. Koko and Vikoko cut off their restraints and told them that the cell opened up to the sewers which would lead Kali and Durukti out of the kingdom.

  “Why are you doing this?” asked Kali.

  “Because he’s killing you for being an Asura, my lord. And we are Asuras too.”

  “You are an Asura?” young Kali shrieked.

  Koko and Vikoko nodded.

  Young Kali had wondered why they didn’t have golden eyes—the usual Asura trademark. But then, not every Asura had golden eyes. Only the pure ones did. Kali’s father had been of pure breed. He had been a nobleman while his mother had been a slave, both of them from the Asura race. Thus, Kali and Durukti were purebloods while some of his siblings weren’t.

  “Thank you, my friend,” young Kali patted him on the shoulder.

  “Let us come with you. Janmejaya is a tyrant. We do not wish to work for him anymore,” said Vikoko.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Without a doubt,” Koko said.

  And the voice trailed off as the scene dissolved. Kali realized now that the warmth, the burning sensation in his hand had stopped and he woke up. He was sweating profusely as he watched the water where his hand was. Swallowing a lump in his throat, he sat upright on the boat, wiping his sweat. He was back in the present and Durukti was watching him intently while Alakshmi was still at the wheel. He looked at Koko and Vikoko who looked worried. Kali stared at Koko. He looked so old now with his wrinkly skin, his grey beard covering his face, and his white hair.

  The past seemed so real to him, as if it had just happened.

  Kali looked at his hand which was wet. He wiped it off on his dhoti. Shukr came and sat beside him. “What did you see?”

  Kali told him.

  “Yes. The Eye of Brahma doesn’t just let you see the past from your eyes but from every perspective. You had no idea about Janmejaya, did you?”

  Kali shook his head. “I didn’t know he had poisoned his own father.”

  “We do some crazy thingsss for power and the crown.” Shukr sniggered. “You have blood on your nose?”

  Kali hadn’t realized that. He wiped it away. “This is horrible.” He shook his head. “I just don’t understand how—”

  “You left the kingdom, made peace with the Nagas, led an expedition against Janmejaya and killed him.” Shukr narrated the rest of the story that Kali hadn’t seen through the Eye, but he knew. “You helped Koko and Vikoko conceal their identities and gave them a new life. Thus, they swore a blood oath to protect you sssince in the original Asura culture, we protect the almighty one,” Shukr hissed, signalling at Koko and Vikoko. They were now old and battered, but still the same, strong individuals that they used to be.

  Kali recalled how he had defeated Janmejaya. It had taken years for him to come in the inner circle of the Nagas before joining their ranks and fighting Janmejaya. But by then, the Kuru empire had been dissolved and broken into scattered provinces by Janmejaya. He had then assigned these provinces to the kings of his choice, one of them being Vedanta’s domain. Janmejaya had been in Varungarh when he had been attacked.

  Kali had come with his ships and cannons and blown Janmejaya’s gigantic castle that was situated on the sea. As the battle came to shore, he had used the technique of Mandala Vyuha. It was a defensive position—cavalry in the front while the Commander-in-Chief, Kali at the back. Once his men had started killing Janmejaya’s men, he had raced ahead to fight Janmejaya, who had been waiting for him on his chariot.

  Kali had lurched from his chariot to Janmejaya’s. They had tried to slice each other apart. Janmejaya’s chariot had been moving at a breakneck speed. The horses had trudged and collapsed when the chariot had jerked. Janmejaya had been flung into the sea. Kali had also fallen. Standing up, he had walked towards Janmejaya as Janmejaya had tried to find his sword in the water.

  Kali had no need for a weapon then. He had punched Janmejaya and plunged him deep inside the water, drowning him until Janmejaya’s body stopped resisting. He had won. Varunagarh had been his. The Nagas had cheered for their leader.

  All this was coming back to him and for a moment, Kali felt proud for who he was and what he had achieved. Though now he had fallen and had lost everything.

  “You saw the wrong part, though,” Shukr quietly added.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You saw what you wanted to see. But you must now go back and see what you don’t want to see.”

  “Why? I have learned my lesson. And I am proud of what I did.” Kali paused, thinking. “I am one of the last Asuras and I conquered half of this country. If that’s not damn well impressive, I don’t know what is.”

  “That’s true. But there is still something you don’t know about yourself. You are, after all, just beginning your journey to fight the Adharm. And you are preparing yourself. But first, you must know the truth.”

  Kali narrowed his gaze. “What truth? That Janmejaya poisoned his own father?”

  Shukr shook his head. “It is about the memory you have blocked. Remember the night your siblings died in the fire?”

  Kali nodded.

  “Now go back to that time and see for yourself.”

  “Who should I see in particular?” Kali asked.

  “Your brother.”

  Kali recalled the image of a baby boy—the only male in his entire lot of siblings.

  “What truth? He died in the fire like the rest. End of story!” Kali spat.

  “No, he didn’t,” whispered Shukr.

  Kali’s blood ran cold. “What do you mean?”

  “Your brother is alive. He lives in Illavarti and has grown into a fine, strong man. And it is time you know who he isss.”

  Kadru was getting bored.

  She had been waiting in the meadows for a while with her men and Jamun. They had accepted the invitation and were here in Suparnika—the land of Suparns. Far off, across the sea, she saw a large dome-like fortress as huge as the entire Naagpuri. That marked the entrance to Suparnbhoomi. Around it was a long-winded bridge. Trees lined both the sides of the fortress.

  Suparnbhoomi stood above sea level with long, strong pillars that held the entire city. Little caves had been built on the sea where the actual Amrit could be found. The wheels of her mind were turning.

  How can I steal the Amrit?

  She glanced at her wound. It had filled with pus. She needed the bloody Amrit to save her life. She felt weaker every day. Jamun had noticed that too. But then, the political leader didn’t care much about Kadru’s well-being. He was glad to be here, standing in the meadow close to Suparnabhoomi.

  People said that Suparnbhoomi is a
well-nourished, well-supplemented city belonging to one of the brightest and the most technologically advanced Tribals. But then there had been a massive war, the Breaking had happened, the Mahayudh had caused the Suparns to be more cautious and reserve their resources. They had already been extensively using their abundant supplies.

  I hate them.

  She didn’t like the Suparns—selfish creatures that were hoarding the Amrit. But she was going to take it. She had a plan, of course. Go inside, bond with them well, make her way to the caves, steal the Amrit and escape. Though the stealing part was going to be tricky. She will have to create a diversion and she had a plan for that as well.

  She couldn’t see partially. That bloody Nanda had stabbed her eye. The recovery had taken time, which is why it had taken them so many days to accept Tarakshya’s invitation. The eye had been covered with a patch. She was in a cloak that covered her battle armour, her short skirt made of linen, and a bronze plate on her chest.

  Jamun was in traditional Naga robes.

  “They take too much time,” he rasped under his breath.

  And perhaps it was a coincidence but at that moment, Kadru saw something in the air. She looked up and saw three winged chariots appear. They were flying, shooting blue remnants of the Amrit from the back.

  Finally, they landed in the meadows and from one of them came out Maruda, chewing something in his mouth. “Ah well, lookie!” He grinned.

  “What took you so long?” Kadru asked, trying hard not to cuss at him.

  “Chill down, snake.” Maruda chuckled. “On board now.”

  Kadru nodded. She didn’t expect she would get to sit in one of these thingies, though this way she might be able to observe the mechanics of the chariot.

  “We aren’t using the main gate?” Kadru asked as she sat with Jamun. Maruda sat opposite them.

  The Naga soldiers climbed in other chariots that Maruda had brought with him.

  “We aren’t Tribals, my dear,” he grinned before he asked the driver to ignite the Amrit and manoeuver the chariot.

  The feast had begun. Tables had been filled with all kinds of delicacies. Some people were eating, and some were dancing with Apsaras.

  But even with the festivities around, Kadru couldn’t help but think about Manasa. She was worried that Manasa might return. She had jumped in the lake that merged with the river Sheshnad. This river joined another river in Bhanmati. Hopefully she hasn’t reached the bloody kingdom of Vibhishana. She could only hope.

  There was a lot of distraction. Lord Tarakshya, seated in the centre, was caressing the cheek of an Apsara sitting on the arm of his chair. The Suparns were joyously celebrating the treaty between the Nagas and Suparns. Kadru’s men were thoroughly enjoying themselves as well. She had brought fifteen of her trusted ministers. Tarakshya had had one condition—no soldiers, only the people in Kadru’s inner circle could attend the feast.

  Kadru noticed how Suparns looked quite similar to Manavs. The only difference was that they were strangely obsessed with the colour yellow and golden. They would dress themselves in that colour, paint the buildings in that colour, and even preferred to eat things of that colour.

  The feast was happening in the open. Guards had been placed around the premises. The tall, bronze statue of Garuda towered over the place. All the guards had strange, small wings clasped at their backs and Amrit in their pockets to fly off when needed. Some people laughed as the clown entertained them, while the others were ogling at the dancers.

  At least the Nagas don’t treat women like objects.

  Jamun was drinking a delicious gold wine. He even nudged Kadru, told her to have some fun, but her mind was on other things. She was observing the little entrances and exits that were in the crevices of Suparnbhoomi, the city.

  Unfortunately, the feast was happening outside the main domain of Lord Tarakshya and it was evident that that was where lay the reserves of Amrit. Kadru saw one of her guards that she had sent to scout the city while everyone enjoyed the celebration. The Naga guard came to her and whispered in Kadru’s ears. “There’s a trolley that goes down to the caves. Usually many guards are stationed there, but today some of them missed their duty to come and watch the feast.”

  Kadru nodded. She knew what she had to do. She hadn’t come here to wine and dine. She glanced at Lord Tarakshya. He was seven feet tall, had kohl in his eyes, and his waist-long hair had been oiled. He was busy drinking and dancing.

  Time to go.

  The trolley was close to Lord Tarakshya’s palace in a small citadel that was hidden in the shadows. Kadru was traversing through dark lanes, lit by fire lamps. She, with two of her guards, entered the lane and grabbed one of the fire lamps. Two armed Suparn guards were standing next to a grilled door.

  “Who is this?” one of them called.

  Kadru wasn’t afraid. She pulled her sword out of the sheath and without wasting any time, she stabbed one of them in the throat and with a quick reflex, beheaded the other one. She had been so fast, the guards hadn’t seen it coming. She looked at the grilled door as she began to bash it open, as much as she could, finally breaking the lock and coming inside a small platform that had a rope and a pulley. Her guards pushed the pulley and the trolley moved downwards. As the cement in the corners began to wash off, she saw she was leaving the floating city that was held up by the pillars.

  The city finally revealed to be hollow from within, made of iron just like the entire façade. The pillars were intertwined with vines and shrubs. She looked down to see the rushing sea as she saw a small shore of sand and marshes that led to the deep, glimmering caves made of charcoal black stone. The trolley finally reached the platform. The smell of seaweed and oysters wafted in the air as she stepped out of the trolley. There were rocks of black and brown texture, humongous in size, that glinted in the light.

  She walked to the caves and saw what she desired—Somalata plants were spread across the entire cave. The caves were incredibly huge. They seemed to go on forever.

  Suparns can conquer the world with this. And yet they don’t, impervious to what they have.

  Some Tribals just didn’t have foresight like Kadru did. She wanted to conquer Illavarti and make it the land ruled by Nagas. And she would be able to achieve it only through the use of Amrit. She plucked out one of the plants and crushed it over her wound. Her guards questionably watched her as she began to rub the paste. It didn’t soothe her initially but rather burnt her.

  But it’ll be fine after a while.

  “Gather as much as you can in the sack.”

  The guards nodded, pulling out cotton sacks that they had kept inside their breastplates. Kadru also pulled out the sack from under her clothes and kept the fire lamp on the ground. As she began to tear out the plants, dropping them inside, she heard a familiar voice.

  “Whatcha doin’, snake?”

  Kadru turned, so did her guards. They dropped their sacks, pointing their swords at the figure. But Kadru signalled them to lower their weapons.

  Standing in front of her was Maruda with a devious grin over his face. He was alone.

  “I’m quite shaken by your betrayal. But then, I did expect this from a snake. I was quite curious as to why there were two dead guards at the entrance of the trolley. Now, it makes sense.”

  Kadru just smiled. He is an idiot to come alone to face me.

  “Why are you alone?” she asked.

  “Because honestly,” he pulled out his sword, “I can defeat you all by myself. Imagine my reward when I tell Lord Tarakshya about how I stopped you from stealing his treasure.”

  Kadru sighed. There had to be some complication. Before Maruda could come forward, Kadru lurched forward with her own sword. Maruda instantly deflected it.

  “You thought you can be spontaneous. Naw, snake. I’m better!” And then he clanged his weapon against hers. She deflected it again.

  “Why do you never use these against armies?”

  “Because unlike snakes, we respect our tribe
and other people.”

  He pushed her towards the back of the cave. The fire lamp broke apart and the fire spread and reached the oil that was around the Amrit.

  The cave was on fire.

  Kadru saw her guards leaving with their sacks out of the cave to be safe, while she and Maruda watched the burning caves going up in ashes.

  “You fool! You don’t bring a fire lamp inside! The plants give out oil from their roots. It’s combustible.”

  And with that, he bashed his sword against her sword. She dodged, rolling around as she saw the flames burst open and there was a crackling noise. The crackles grew louder, a strange light emanated, blinding both Kadru and Maruda.

  The cave had exploded.

  Kadru was flung outside from the impact. She yelled in pain. Her body was burning and she jumped in the water to douse the flames. She had no idea where her sword was. Four hands gripped her and pulled her up.

  Maruda came out of the cave slowly. His back was burnt. He staggered towards Kadru trying to attack her with his sword, but by the time he reached her, he was dead.

  They climbed in the trolley as Kadru staggered and sighed. She was panting, carrying the heavy sacks of the remaining Somalata plants.

  As she came out of the palace, she felt tremors in the ground. Kadru told the guards to hide the sacks while she went to fetch Jamun. She had to escape. As she reached the area of the feast, she saw Jamun enjoying the show. He was in the same spot, but Tarakshya wasn’t there, nor were his guards.

  Kadru walked up to him, trying to act naturally as she sat down. Jamun’s smile vanished as he turned to Kadru and said, “We have a problem.”

  “And I solved that problem. I got the plants, but I kind of . . . destroyed the stock.”

  Jamun widened his eyes in horror. “What should we do now?” He was drunk, but was trying to retain his wits as he bit his tongue.

  “Find a flying chariot and escape the hell out of here.” She paused, recalling something Jamun had said earlier. “What was the problem you just referred to?”

  He shook his head irritably. “She’s here. She demanded Tarakshya’s presence immediately.”