Realm of the Goddess

by Sabina Khan

  “Callie, are you ready to go?” Tara called from downstairs. Our luggage had been loaded into the cars with all of our equipment while I double-checked the maps and files of research that we were taking with us. Nina had passed on all the information she had been able to find out from the Elders. This included accounts from witnesses dating back hundreds of years. At least I wouldn’t be bored on the twenty-seven-hour trip to Kolkata. I nervously touched my skull pendant, looking at my desk, which was strewn with paper and covered in post-its, making sure that I didn’t forget anything vital we might need there. Even though a lot of it seemed irrelevant to me, I was not leaving anything to chance. Even though crude hand-drawn maps didn’t seem to make any sense to me now, I knew that on the island we would be without phones, GPS, or any of the dozens of other resources we were used to. We would be in unknown, uncharted territory and I wanted to have as much information with me as I could carry in my backpack.

  “Tara, I’ll be right down,” I called out, taking one last look around the room I’d been staying in for the past couple of weeks. Then I closed the door behind me and went down the stairs to the foyer. I picked up the backpack that I’d brought down earlier and went out to meet the others waiting by the cars. Shiv and I were riding to the airport with Vikram so we could go over last-minute instructions. Tara, Dev and Nina were coming in the other car.

  When Vikram had first suggested that Shiv and I go on this quest alone, I had been suspicious. After all, he was the head of the Academy and it struck me as strange that he would send someone as inexperienced as me with just one other person. But when I discreetly hinted at it, I found out that the last thing he wanted was to raise suspicion in Mahisha’s camp. It was bad enough that they already knew about me and had my parents and Ben. But if they knew what we were planning, we wouldn’t stand a chance. So Vikram, Nina and Dev came up with a plan. Shiv and I would pose as newlyweds on our honeymoon in the Andaman Islands. That was so commonplace that no one would notice anything untoward. Of course, the tricky part would be to get from there to the North Sentinel Island. According to articles and reports we had read, there was no way to get onto the island without being attacked. What the Rakshakari were counting on was the fact that I was an avatar of Kali, and that would protect me from attack. This was all a theory, of course, and we had no way of knowing what would happen.

  A few minutes later we were on our way. To the casual observer we would appear calm, but each of us knew that this trip was no game. We had little knowledge of what we might face, and no amount of preparation could disguise the fact that this could be a deadly wild goose chase. Of the five of us I was probably the most apprehensive, but if the others were also aware of that, they were doing a pretty good job of hiding it. By the time we reached the airport we had gone over every detail for the umpteenth time. As Shiv and I said our goodbyes, I couldn’t help wondering if I would see them again. I knew I was being maudlin, but in the last couple of weeks they had been my anchor, my link to sanity in a world where everything had suddenly gone insane. I looked at Shiv and wondered what he was feeling. We hadn’t had much of a chance to spend time alone, so I didn’t have a clue what he thought about this whole plan. We checked in, dealt with immigration then went to find something to eat once we reached our boarding gate. It wasn’t too long before we were on the plane, and as I settled into my seat I hoped that on the long, long flight I would delve into the mystery that was Shiv.

  “So, Shiv, when was the last time you went to India?” I asked, thinking this a good time to start getting to know more about him. He didn’t answer right away and I didn’t push him; I knew how it felt. It wasn’t easy to leave everything and everyone familiar behind and just start a new life.

  “Actually, it’s only been three years. But it feels like a lot longer.” He turned to me suddenly with a look I couldn’t define. “You know who I miss the most?” I shook my head, even though I knew it was a rhetorical question. “My dog, Dobby.” He grinned when he saw my expression. “Hey, laugh all you want. I’m a huge Harry Potter fan and I’m not afraid to say it.”

  Was I surprised at this confession? Sure. Did I think he was absolutely adorable at this moment? Hell yes.

  “So what happened to Dobby when you left?”

  “We gave him to my uncle. The one we’re going to be staying with.”

  “So you’ll get to see him...that’s great.” Shiv nodded with a smile and leaned back in his seat.

  We sat in silence for a while until the attendants started bringing the drinks around. Then we began to go over our plan again.

  We pulled down the trays and spread out our stuff as best as we could. We spent the next several hours poring over reports and articles that the Rakshakari had been gathering for years concerning Mahisha’s followers and their activities. What I learned did nothing to banish my growing fear. Ever since Kali had all but destroyed Mahisha thousands of years ago, he had been regrouping. It had taken several millennia, but he was finally strong enough to pose a real threat to the Immortals and to humanity. His followers had grown over the last few centuries, and as humans turned against their own kind over land and resources, Mahisha fed off their greed and weakness to lure them into his fold. It didn’t take much to convince a desperate person to take the easy way when times were tough.

  This wasn’t just happening in North America. Reports from Rakshakari members all over the world told the same story. The day was near when Mahisha would arise, having regained his full strength. And from what Vikram, Nina and Dev had told me, once that happened there would be no stopping him.

  I had heard the whole story of Mahisha from my dad when I was little. Mahisha had once been loyal to the Immortals. So loyal, in fact, that he felt he deserved immortality. When he brought this request before the Trinity of Vishnu, Brahma and Shiva, the three most powerful gods, they were amused. Their rejection enraged Mahisha, who had spent many years in complete devotion to them. He approached Indra, the King of the Gods, and begged him to reconsider. Although Indra pitied the devoted Mahisha, he could not grant him immortality. He did, however, decide to grant him a boon. This boon would render Mahisha invincible from death by any man or god. Upon receiving this boon, Mahisha rejoiced. He would show the arrogant Immortals what he was capable of. He embarked on a campaign of terror against humans and gods alike. When the Immortals realized they could not stand against Mahisha’s powers, they complained to the Trinity, who created Kali. In receiving the boon, Mahisha had neglected to take into account that he could be killed at the hands of a woman. His arrogance would have led to his downfall if not for one thing that went wrong during the final battle. And it was this detail that no one could tell me for sure. No one knew why Kali had failed to destroy Mahisha, and if we didn’t figure it out soon, then we were all doomed.

  By the time the flight attendants came around with the lunch trolleys, we were both going cross-eyed and were ready for a break. After lunch I tried to close my eyes for a bit but found that I was too restless to sleep. All sorts of thoughts were swirling around in my head, and finally I just gave in and stood up.

  “No luck with the rest thing, eh?” Shiv rubbed his eyes and ran his hands through his hair.

  “I can never sleep on airplanes,” I said. “I think I’ll just walk around for a bit.”

  I almost ended up on his lap trying to squeeze out into the aisle. Muttering about how airplanes should really have more legroom, I walked to the lavatory and freshened up. By the time I returned to my seat the tea and coffee carts were being wheeled around, so I asked for a cup of tea. Fortunately, by this time Shiv had moved over to my seat, so I didn’t have to climb all over him with a hot beverage. I could see the dark circles under his eyes. I glanced at my watch and did a quick calculation. We’d been in the air for almost eight hours, so I knew we’d be landing in London soon. I was looking forward to the opportunity to get out and stretch my legs before getting on another plane for the nine-hour flight that would take us to Kolkata.
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  I finished my tea and placed it on the cart as it passed by again. I leaned back in the seat and closed my eyes. I was about to doze off when a sudden wave of nausea washed over me. I tried to open my eyes, but it was really difficult and I just gave up and waited for the nausea to fade. It started to abate but then something strange happened. I could hear Shiv saying my name, but it sounded like it was coming from far away. I could feel his warm cinnamon breath on me as he spoke and I felt a tingling that started deep in my belly and worked its way up to my chest then into my head, and then I was floating away. I wondered if I was having another vision, but this was different. I was weightless, as if floating on clouds.

  I looked around, but there were no bodies, no screams, only serenity. I felt a touch on my shoulder and turned around. Shiv was standing there. But he wasn’t really the Shiv I knew. He looked different, celestial somehow, his dark hair long and falling in curls around his shoulders. His chest was bare, muscular and over his right shoulder he wore a strap from which hung a sword. He wore some sort of loose trousers, the kind Indian men often wore for formal occasions. He was smiling down at me, and when I looked into his eyes I could see my reflection. Only it wasn’t really me. I looked exotic, with long, dark tresses cascading down past my shoulders. I was wearing a lot of jewelry and a gold sari. Then the reflection disappeared and I was drowning in his eyes again. I opened my mouth to ask what was going on, but no sound came out. Instead, he started moving away, as if pulled by some invisible force. He seemed to be calling out to me, but I could hear nothing. I reached out to touch him, to hold him to him, but he kept moving away until he was a speck in the distance. I felt myself floating again, getting heavier. My eyelids fluttered until I could not keep them open any longer, and then blackness took over.

  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 pakoras 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 m
ore 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.