The Journey Beyond Bhuloka

by Krutant Iyer

  “Don’t worry about it.” Murari beamed.

  “You should have looked at him. He looked like a scaredy-cat back then.” Murari burst out laughing as he recollected the look on Ballu’s face.

  “Hey – don’t get ahead of yourself!” Ballu shouted from the back.

  Mitra glared at him before he could say more.

  “If it weren’t for Raaka’s father, this guy would have been mincemeat already,” Ballu said defiantly, ignoring Mitra’s glower.

  “This doofus would have made such a juicy treat for those wolves. Maybe, I should have let the wolf dig into him.” Murari shot back in between laughter.

  Ballu clenched his fist and began to move towards Murari, but was dissuaded by Raaka from doing so.

  “Ignore him,” Mitra said. “Father also wanted you and Amba to see this.”

  Mitra brought out a small parcel wrapped in a cloth from the folds of his dhoti.

  It was a collar with a strange insignia imprinted on it.

  Murari took it in his hands and inspected it closely.

  “What’s this?” he asked.

  “We are not sure,” Mitra answered. “Father found it strapped around the wolf’s neck.”

  Murari’s eyes widened on hearing this. It was a common practice to strap a collar on domesticated animals. But domesticated animals were known to be gentle and more controlled in behaviour.

  He couldn’t believe that the ferocious wolves could have been someone’s pets.

  “Even I don’t understand,” Mitra said, reading Murari’s expressions. “As far as I know, no one in the village is brave enough to keep a wolf as a pet, forget a whole pack of wolves.”

  “Why did the village head send this for me and Avva?” Murari asked.

  “Father said Amba seemed to have recognized this from somewhere, so -”

  Just then they heard a loud commotion from just outside the hut. Ballu and Raaka, who were closer to the door rushed to the entrance to see the cause of the commotion.

  What they saw, sent shivers down their spine and rendered them motionless.

  Standing around the fence were a group of beings they could not have fathomed even in their darkest nightmares and wildest imaginations.

  Though their build was very much like humans, they were almost as tall as the trees around them. The dark-skinned beings were heavily built and seemed like they could have easily lifted a buffalo over their heads. Pearly sharp fangs, in sharp contrast to their skin colour, protruded from the top end of their mouths. A black dhoti was wrapped around their waist.

  Most of the Nisacharas were holding a toothed mace, while some held a long spear in their hands. One Nisachara standing at the back had a bow and a quiver full of arrows on his back.

  Amba lay on the ground, holding onto her left arm. She had been struck by the brutal mace and was writhing in pain. A basket of fruits and herbs lay strewn on the ground beside her.

  “So, this is where you have been hiding all this while Sadhuvamshi?” The Nisachara growled as he grimaced at the helpless old woman.

  Diksha did not respond but boldly glared at the Nisachara.

  “Commander Shumbha will reward us handsomely.” The Nisachara grinned. “Now, tell us where is that cursed boy?”

  Diksha did not respond, as she dragged herself towards the hut. Her weak heart thumped rapidly against her chest, but her face was stoic, her feature rigid, and her eyes frigid.

  Ballu and Raaka took cover on either side of the door, inside the hut. Their minds were struggling to process what they were seeing. Though Mitra and Murari had not seen what was happening outside, they could hear every word being spoken and were aware that Diksha was in trouble. Murari sprang to his feet. But was held back by Mitra from charging out blindly without understanding the situation.

  The captain of the Nisacharas took slow, deliberate steps towards Diksha, swinging his mace casually in his hand.

  “You – Go and drag him out.” The Nisachara commanded a member of his troop.

  Seeing them advance towards the hut, Diksha mustered enough strength to dive towards the entrance with her hands stretched out.

  Seeing the old woman’s feeble efforts to keep them away from the hut, the Nisacharas laughed loudly as they moved ahead. Just then, Diksha pulled out a bunch of wires from underneath the layer of leaves on the ground and without wasting another moment tugged at it using all her might.

  As soon as she did so, the small parcels she had planted all over the entrance came tearing out of the ground. Before the Nisacharas could realise what had happened, the entire area in front of the hut was shrouded in a dark, cloudy vapour that cut off their view of the hut, while their eyes started burning and it became difficult for them to breathe.

  Diksha had already covered her mouth and eyes, as she quickly entered the hut to avoid inhaling the noxious vapour.

  “Quick! We need to get out of here.” She gasped as tears trickled down her eyes, even as she shut them tightly while holding her throbbing head.

  Even though she had managed to avoid inhaling the vapour, she couldn’t evade it completely.

  “Who are they, Avva?” Murari asked as he rushed to her aid.

  “We don’t have the luxury of time right now,” Diksha said. “Let’s leave through the back door.”

  The boys did not have to be told twice. They came out the back door. The vapour had cut off Nisacharas’ vision, making it easier for Diksha and the boys to leave the premises without getting noticed.

  The boys tore down a small portion of the fence and quickly escaped into the cover of the jungle with Diksha leading the way.

  No one spoke a word. They knew this jungle better than the Nisacharas, after all, it was their land. Before long, they were out of the cover of the jungle and running down the trail that led down to the village.

  Diksha was still reeling under the effect of the toxic vapour and was finding it difficult to keep up with the young ones’ pace.

  “You boys quickly run ahead and alert the village head.” She murmured, her words were almost slurring and her voice was raspy.

  “Avva, I am not leaving you,” Murari said.

  Seeing her struggling to maintain balance, he held one of her arms over his shoulder, allowing her to lean on his shoulder.

  Ballu and Raaka decided to rush ahead of the others and notify the village head and Raaka’s father to gather some men and be prepared in case the beings from earlier come looking for them.

  It was getting increasingly difficult for Diksha to run down the trail. She was already running short of breath and couldn’t see clearly through her teary eyes.

  “Hold on a little longer Avva, we are almost there,” Murari said.

  They were almost at the edge of the jungle now. Just then, Murari heard a whizzing thump and he suddenly felt his Avva’s entire weight on his shoulder as she collapsed on him.

  An arrow had torn into her right calf, tearing through her tendons.

  Mitra looked back and saw a bunch of Nisacharas standing up on the trail, looking at them menacingly. They were still coughing due to the poisonous vapour Diksha had released earlier, but were otherwise completely fine and had managed to catch up with them in no time. One of the Nisacharas lowered his bow, as he sniggered, looking satisfied with hitting his target.

  Murari got out from under Diksha and looked at the Nisacharas in horror and disbelief. Mitra was too stunned to even react. He stared at the Nisacharas and back at Diksha, in sheer disbelief.

  The Nisacharas started making their way down the hill. Seeing them advance, Mitra jolted into action.

  Murari was desperately trying to pull the arrow out of Diksha’s calf, but it refused to budge.

  “We shouldn’t stop. Help me up.” Diksha said, trying to get off the ground.

  “This is going to be painful, Avva,” Murari said as he put his hands under her arms and lifted her off the ground.

  Mitra took her left arm over his shoulder, while Murari came around the o
ther side. They came out of the jungle, and onto the village ground by the jungle’s edge.

  They saw Ballu and Raaka emerge from the village street on the other end, followed closely by the village head, Raaka’s father, and two other men. While Raaka’s father was carrying his trademark axe, the village head had brought a spear, and the two men held long swords in their hands.

  Seeing Diksha injured, Ballu and Raaka rushed towards her and the boys.

  “What happened?” Ballu asked.

  “No time to explain right now. Those demons are right behind us. We need to get Amba to safety first.” Mitra said.

  As they entered the village street, the Nisacharas came out of the jungle, roaring in exasperation.

  Ballu rushed ahead and threw open the door to his house, allowing Murari and Mitra to carry Diksha inside.

  As soon as they lay her down on the ground, Diksha fell unconscious. She had held on this long for the sake of the boys but had finally exhausted her strength. Murari quickly inspected her injury.

  The shaft of the arrow had penetrated through the calf and gone in more than halfway.

  Murari asked Mitra to bring him a fresh piece of cloth and a bowl of water.

  “Do you have any of Avva’s herbal paste?” Murari asked.

  “We ran out of that a long time ago,” Mitra answered as he set down several small pieces of clean, white clothes, and the bowl of water.

  Murari studied the position of the arrow more closely. With one hand over Diksha’s calf, Murari held onto the shaft of the arrow firmly and pulled it out in one swift motion.

  Blood came oozing out of the open wound. Mitra cleaned the area around the wound with fresh water and wrapped a fresh piece of cloth firmly around Diksha’s calf.

  Just then, they heard a blood-curdling scream coming from the street.

  The boys rushed out of the house and onto the street to see a Nisachara lying on the ground with an Axe wedged deep within his chest. His body convulsed violently before coming to a dead-stop.

  The rest of the Nisacharas were still standing by the edge of the jungle, looking at their immobile comrade in shock.

  Raaka’s father quietly walked over to where the dead Nisachara’s body lay. Bending over his motionless body he pulled out the Axe from the Nisachara’s chest. Without taking his eyes off the rest of the Nisacharas, he slowly stepped away from the body.

  The captain of the Nisacharas glared at Raaka’s father but did not make a move.

  The village head turned towards the boys, without taking his eyes off the Nisacharas.

  “How’s Amba’s condition?” he asked.

  “I have pulled the arrow from her leg, but she has lost consciousness,” Murari answered.

  “You all need to get away from here.” The village head said. “Murari, you should stay with Amba. Boys, run around the village once and ensure everyone’s secured themselves within their houses. See if we can get more men to join us here, while you are at it. We will need strength in numbers if we have to face them.”

  Though he had said so, the village head knew better than to rely on the men from his village.

  When Ballu and Raaka had come running in from the jungle, the men of the village had been hounding him with their grievances. The moment they heard about the Nisacharas and their attack, the village men lost no time in dispersing and had locked themselves inside their houses within a blink of an eye.

  Ballu and Raaka started to protest, knowing the futility of appealing to the cowardly men of their village to come out and stand their ground against the giant beings in front of them.

  Even so, the village head instructed them to give it a shot and come back with as many men as they could gather.

  The two boys bolted down the street, while Murari and Mitra headed towards Mitra’s house.

  Diksha was still lying unconscious inside.

  “You should stay here to take care of Amba,” Mitra said.

  “But what about you guys? The villagers will be no match to those monstrous giants.” Murari said.

  “Don’t worry. Besides, Raaka’s father has already taken down one of them with his axe. We should be fine.” Mitra said, reassuring Murari.

  Mitra rushed back onto the street and joined Ballu and Raaka as they went from door to door calling the villagers to join them on the streets.

  “You cowards!” Ballu shouted. “Amba was injured fighting those monsters while saving us. She healed your wounds, treated you when you were ill, and now when she needs us, you don’t even have the guts to come out and fight for her.”

  No response came from any of the houses lining up the street.

  Then a door opened, and another. Slowly one after the other many doors opened and women stepped out of their houses, holding whatever weapons they could get hold of. Even as their husbands and children protested the women came pouring onto the street.

  They all headed up the street to join the village head and the rest of the group.

  Ballu, Raaka, and Mitra looked at each other and nodded before running to Raaka’s house to equip themselves with weapons.

  The captain of the Nisacharas silently watched the odd group of people gathering by the clearing.

  Ballu, Raaka, and Mitra cut through the throng and stood alongside their fathers.

  This was the first time they were seeing the group of Nisacharas from the front.

  Even though the villagers had their advantage in numbers, the boys, as well as everyone present there knew they couldn’t take on the Nisacharas without suffering a heavy loss on their end.

  The village head decided to try and open a dialogue with the Nisacharas.

  There was uncertainty in his steps as he moved forward, accompanied by Raaka’s father. Seeing him walk in their direction, the captain of the Nisacharas also started walking in their direction. Soon they stood facing each other in the middle of the clearing.

  The wind started howling, adding to the menacing snarls of the Nisacharas at the back, even as dark clouds rumbled overhead.

  The village head knew even a single erroneous step would result in his entire village getting wiped out.

  “I am sorry about your man. We had no choice but to defend ourselves when he charged in blindly.” The village head said.

  The Nisachara only stared back in response.

  “Who you are?” he asked.

  “You puny Manava – You don’t need to know who I am.” the Nisachara growled.

  “Why are you –”

  “Shut up and listen carefully.” The Nisachara captain cut in, “I will give you one chance. The boy we came for has taken refuge in this village. If you hand him over quietly, we will leave you in peace. If you don’t, we will cut you into pieces.” The Nisachara threatened.

  The village head looked perplexed. Seeing Diksha injured, he had imagined the Nisacharas would be asking for her. Instead, they were looking for someone else. Could it be Murari?

  “I don’t understand what you mean. Who are you looking for exactly?” the village head asked.

  The Nisachara grimaced.

  “The boy who has been living with that old lady. We want him.” The Nisachara shouted.

  The village head was now losing his patience as well.

  “We are peace-loving people here; we do not wish for any trouble.” He said, his voice was straining to maintain calmness.

  “Hmph! It’s too late for that now.” The Nisachara said. “We will burn this village to the ground if you don’t hand over the boy right now.”

  Saying so the Nisachara lifted his spear over his head, but before he could attack the village head, Raaka’s father swung his axe at the Nisachara’s chest. The sharp edge of the double-edged axe pierced into the Nisachara’s chest, cracking a few ribs on impact. The Nisachara fell on his knees as he screamed in pain.

  Listening to their captain’s shrieks of pain, the rest of the Nisacharas howled fiercely and charged towards the villagers.

  Seeing them advance, the village
head quickly pointed the tip of his spear at their leader’s throat and threatened to impale him if they advanced any further.

  His action seemed to have the desired result. The Nisacharas stopped in their tracks and glared at him savagely. The village head and Raaka’s father were momentarily distracted as they looked at the Nisacharas. Taking advantage of this, the injured Nisachara captain grabbed the spear with both his hands and snapped it as if it were a twig.

  Before the village head could react, the Nisachara turned the tip of the broken spear towards his chest. But Raaka’s father pushed the village head out of the way and the took the attack on himself. The spear dug into his shoulder and came out of the back.

  Such was the impact of the attack that Raaka’s father slumped to the ground, without being able to scream or say another word.

  The terrified village head looked on in shocked disbelief as his friend’s body hit the ground.

  The Nisachara captain pulled out the axe from his own body and blood came spurting out of the open gash on his chest. Advancing towards the village head, the Nisachara lifted the axe to strike him but a spear whizzed past his head making him stop and look in the direction from which it had come flying in.

  The Nisachara captain scowled on seeing Raaka running towards him, his eyes flush with rage, followed closely by Ballu and Mitra.

  “Oh, look, the children have come out to play.” He guffawed.

  He lifted his axe to attack Raaka, but at that moment he heard harrowing screams of his comrades from behind.

  Raaka and Ballu came to an abrupt halt as they looked past the Nisachara captain in horror.

  He turned around to see his troop of Nisacharas burning like firewood. A gentle breeze fanned the fire into a raging blaze, reducing the Nisacharas to piles of ashes where they stood. Before he could even react, he felt a strange burning sensation emerge from his navel, spreading all over his body. Within moments the Nisachara captain was screaming in agony, as fire burst out from within his body.

  Just then, a tall figure emerged from the jungle. He held a lathi in one hand and limped across the clearing towards the street. He wore a white dhoti, while his lush, thick hair was secured over his head in a neat bun. His face was impassive and calm, even as he made his way through the clear field.