by T. G. Ayer
Although she strained to listen, Maya heard nothing. Dad will be back soon to fetch me.
Scared of being alone, Rao?
She scowled, shaking off the paranoia. The stupid inner voice was right, she’d become overly cautious, borderline paranoid. The week had crawled by, each day a visceral sign of how much her world had changed. Ria's absence from school had served as a constant reminder that their trio was down to a duo because one of them was currently possessed by a demon.
Even Joss was subdued. Whether her encounter with Ria had dampened her usual joy for life, or whether she sensed the carnage in the air, Maya had no idea. Besides, she had little time left for messing around. Training followed every day of school, hours of backbreaking, finger-blistering, eyebrow singeing practice.
And though Maya’s improvement was consistent and strong she often wondered what the purpose was to it all. Chayya had disappeared, and the demon in control of Ria had retreated to the shadows. It would have been so easy to pretend nothing bad had ever happened.
There.
The sound came again, a scrabbling of paws and claws at the door to the studio. Maya sighed, relieved she hadn’t imagined it, but annoyed at being disturbed at all. She’d finally reached the stage in her fire training where she was able to send out small controlled bursts of flame. She practiced her accuracy on dozens of targets set up around the gym. Right now, she had to douse the flames of them before she went searching for strange noises.
Learning to absorb the fire had been much harder than actually producing one. Maya concentrated, pulling the energy toward her, sucking the power out of the hot flame before it entered her body. Or was it her mind? She was still unsure where the flame went. She made a mental note to check with Nik.
When Maya opened the door, the entrance fell silent. She clicked her tongue, more annoyed now than ever as she searched the blackness hanging from the moonless sky. A strange foulness filled the air, as if rotten garbage littered the street.
She wrinkled her nose and retreated into the room. She was about to lock up when a vicious growl erupted from the darkness beside the door. She’d seen Chayya’s shadows coalesce and dissipate but these dark and oily blobs were no mild shades. A viciousness in the rumble of the sound sent blades of ice deep into Maya's veins.
She froze, struggling to see anything within the night. Beads of nervous sweat coated Maya's forehead as she forced her body to behave, to cease its shuddering.
No fear.
Don't be afraid. Animals can smell fear.
Whatever lurked outside in the black night knew she was terrified.
She moved her fingers again, a fragment of an inch-hardly much considering the door stood wide open. But the unseen creature growled, the sound sending waves of terror into her bones. The street remained silent, no lights shone. The nearest streetlights were out too. As if everything had fled from the presence of the invisible evil lurking outside.
Now what?
She couldn't close the door, and she couldn't run. Did it mean she had to stay and die? But Maya gritted her teeth, knowing and feeling the power of the fire coursing through her veins. She could defend herself. If she could smoke a friggin’ demon she could darn well smoke whatever creepy animal stood outside.
Bring it on.
A monstrous dog sprang from the darkness, its haunches as high as Maya’s shoulders. It growled again, jowls shivering, spittle dripping from gaping pink jaws, four eyes glaring. All this she processed in slow motion as it took mere seconds for the dog to land on her, and even less for both Maya and the creature to hit the ground.
Its paws slammed into her chest, sending shards of agony into her body. The amount of pain made Maya look down at her chest. Blood. Too much of it for Maya to believe everything would be okay.
She examined the dog's blood-drenched paws and shivered at the sight of its enlarged, and deadly sharp claws. Just like the Rakshasa’s.
Wait a freaking minute. Four eyes?
It was a demon dog.
But Maya refused to take it lying down. The beast backed off and watched her, its head tilted slightly to one side as if it listened to the voice of an absent master. She stared at the beast, eyeballs-to-eyeballs, and rose inch by tiny inch to her feet. She would have run except a second growl stopped Maya in her tracks.
Another monstrous dog stood behind her, within her line of sight. Maya wanted to cry. Until she remembered she had a pretty strong power herself. She just needed to produce the bursts of fire without giving herself away.
Maya concentrated on the steady panting and the gleaming black eyes, searching deep inside herself for the fire. Heat rose in tiny waves from her gut. The solar plexus Chakra Nik had mentioned. The heat built up steadily until its molten fire broiled. At last, Maya readied her hand turning it ever so slowly to face her palm to the animal, keeping a steady eye on him.
Maya sent a burst of fire straight at the dog in front of her, dashing out the door as soon as the flame left her hand. Behind her, the dog yelped and whined, in pain at the mercy of her fire.
She ran, leaving the gym behind, knowing she couldn't outrun those hideous monsters but trying anyway.
The clatter of claws on the blacktop confirmed the second creature was hot on her heels. She stayed focused, and sped off. As fast as she’d ever run in her life. But it wasn’t enough.
The dog caught up to her, ran beside her for as long as it took to swipe at Maya’s leg, knock it out from under her and send her tumbling onto the sidewalk.
Her chest burned with the wounds from the first dog and now her calf was surely split wide open.
They were intelligent enough to know the best way to bring her down. Who sent these animals to kill her? Someone must want her dead.
Badly.
Maya had no energy left to produce her fire. No other means of self-defense except to run and that was no longer a viable option. But she could use her body and her strength to beat the beast.
She waited as the animal drew closer, as it stood over her, staring at her face. It bent its head and sniffed her skin. The dog nuzzled her injured calf, and whined, pushing her leg with its huge wet nose. The nose drifted up to her neck where the dog nudged her again, sniffing and whining and pawing the concrete. Agitated about something, the creature didn’t see her bring her leg up.
Maya kicked it straight in the ribs, and the dog howled in pain. She got to her feet, glared at the animal now whining piteously on its side. She would have to kill it. Whoever had sent it would either send more or come here himself to retrieve the monster.
Yes, she had to kill it. And she could harness her firepower now that she had her breath back, not to mention the surge of adrenaline rushing though her body.
Maya focused her mind, and concentrated on the crying animal. For the briefest instant pity tugged at her heart until the burn of her injuries reminded her they were here to kill her ass. The fire built inside her again, stronger this time and more focused.
She stepped back, aimed her hands at the dog and pushed the heat through her fingers, expecting the pulse of energy to shoot through her arms.
Nothing happened.
Maya stared at her hands, scowling at them. What had gone wrong? She was positive she’d done everything right. Had the energy been greater, it would have killed the animal.
A breeze lifted Maya's hair, throwing loose strands across her face and a hand grasped her forearm.
"Maya. Leave the poor dog alone. It is not here to harm you," a woman said behind her.
Maya spun on her heel, ready to counter the woman's ridiculous statement with the proof of her injuries. But when she turned, all words left her throat.
A woman stood there, shrouded in a blood red sari, her hands adorned with golden jewelry. Maya had seen enough pictures and statues in her lifetime to know who the woman was. Her black hair flared out behind her in a wavy sea, all the way to her waist. The most distinctive part of her though, was the color of her skin. Her entire body was t
he color of a deep blue sea.
The Goddess Kali stood before Maya.
Chapter 21
Maya couldn’t help but stare. Strange. The bluish tinge to her skin didn’t even clash with her pitch-black hair or the red of her garment. Maya was a little disappointed to see the goddess only had one pair of arms. She’d expected four at the very least. Still, she was even more beautiful than Chayya.
"Hello, Maya. I had hoped we would meet under better circumstances but I believe you need me, and so does Sabala, it seems," said Kali, throwing a wry glance at the prone dog.
"Sabala?" Maya hadn’t imagined her first meeting with the Goddess of Death to be this mundane. In fact, she hadn’t envisioned meeting the Dark Goddess at all. Somehow, even her encounter with Chayya hadn’t prepared her for this.
"Yes, this is Sabala." Kali was already tending to the dog, who still lay writhing in agony on the concrete.
Harden up, mutt. You ripped me to shreds and you don’t see me crying like a baby, do you?
Soon the dog got to his feet, nuzzling Kali’s legs in gratitude. More like adoration. Without his hideous growl, he resembled a four-eyed, muscle-bound Doberman, vicious teeth and all. He trotted over to Maya, who flinched and remembered to hold still. It wasn’t because she was afraid of dogs in general. Her trepidation was due to Sabala’s very recent attempt to rip her to pieces.
"His brother Syama is back there." Kali pointed a dainty finger at the gym. "Syama and Sabala are the dogs of the Underworld. The dogs of Patala."
"They belong to Yama?" asked Maya.
"Yes, they are his guard dogs…his search dogs. The dogs and others like them roam your world seeking those who have escaped their fate. They also, come to hunt the Rakshasas and return them to Patala where Yama can deal with their fates."
"Why do they want me?" Maya swayed on her feet, about ready to collapse.
"They do not want you. They seek the creature that has marked you." At Maya’s frown Kali continued, "They seek the Rakshasa who has escaped her death. The one who has taken your friend. And of course, they track the demons by odor. The scent of the Rakshasa remained on your body after your battle."
"Ria? These dogs are looking for the demon who has taken over Ria?" Maya shivered, the horror of how Ria could die made her head spin. "If they find Ria they'll kill her."
"No, Maya. I will not let that happen," Kali replied, her tone firm.
"Who sent them?"
"Yama. Or to be specific, whoever is in charge of the Hellhounds. The dogs get their orders and then set out to fulfill them." Kali turned and led the way back to the open door of the studio. The lights blazed a bright welcome from the shadowy darkness of the street. As they entered the gym, the streetlights flickered and switched on one at a time.
Maya thought of Nik who should've been passing the information to Yama. But really, she had no idea how these things worked. No real idea how Nik communicated with his boss in Patala.
Kali knelt beside the other dog. Maya recalled its name. Syama. Both the animals were identical, not a hair different from each other.
"So the Rakshasa should have died? What happened?"
"That is what we need to find out. Chayya has told me the demon possessed your friends." The beast twitched then shook his head and sneezed. He moved one paw at a time and got to his feet, and proceeded to nuzzle the golden edge of Kali’s blood-red sari in much the same manner as his brother had.
Maya didn’t deny that Amber had been her friend. At this point, it was hardly necessary. The girl was dead anyway. And probably never responsible for the whole Byron episode either.
"So what will they do now? Won’t Yama be angry that they haven't done their job? Or whoever it is they report to?" asked Maya.
Both the dogs turned to look at Kali, the same expression of expectation mirrored on their faces, as if they'd understood Maya's question and also sought the answer.
"I will speak to Yama. They must go home now." The dogs whined, pawing at the carpet in protest. Perhaps they feared their master. "No nonsense, you two. Off you go. And do not fear, I shall send Yama the news so he is not angered by your failure."
Both animals, the monsters that had lurked in the shadows and scared the living daylights out of Maya, the creatures who had ripped the skin at her chest and cut her leg open, now jumped up and down, spinning and chasing their tails like puppies beneath the benevolent gaze of the Dark Goddess.
Maya had to smile. The sight was such a happy one it was easy to forget how quickly the beasts could have killed her.
The dogs turned in unison, and ran to Maya, running circles around her too, nuzzled her legs and then sped off out the open door, into the night. Before they crossed the blacktop both animals disappeared.
Maya faced Kali, eager to know how she intended to help Ria. Her head spun as she moved and her vision clouded as she opened her mouth to speak. She fell to her knees instead, her legs unable to carry her, her body overcome by blood loss and shock.
Maya stirred, her breath coming in raspy gusts. Pain lay on her chest, burning strands of it etched into her living flesh. Shards of memories drifted to her.
"Kali," she whispered.
"Yes, honey, the goddess will help you. Pray to her," Leela said, but Maya wanted to laugh. She knew her mom assumed her words were only prayers. What else would she think they were?
Perhaps it was all a dream.
"Stay still, Maya. You’ve lost too much blood. And you have to tell us what happened."
"The dogs, they attacked me. And Kali came to save me."
"What dogs, honey?" asked her mom.
"Leave her."
Maya heard the voice and relaxed on her pillow. Just the rhythm and tone of Kali's voice was enough to send waves of calm through her body, relaxing her tense and tired muscles. Kali leaned over her, in much the same way she’d done with Sabala and Syama.
The goddess laid a palm upon her heated forehead, then sat beside her. Kali lifted her hand off the bed and smiled at her. The goddess was beauty personified. How had she ever thought her a hideous depiction of blood and sacrifice? How ignorant had Maya been to scoff at the beauty of this love now passing through her.
Kali healed her body, repairing the damage done by Yama’s pets. Maya sighed as the pain faded away, as the muscles loosened and healed. She thought of Ria and a shaft of fear rushed through her heart. She prayed her friend would remain safe. Once Maya got better she had to find a way to free Ria from the hold of the Rakshasa.
For now, she had to heal. Strength meant she’d have the power to fight the Ria-demon.
Her eyes drifted closed and she sank into a deep sleep. Beyond the reach of pain and sorrow.
But not beyond the reach of dreams.
Chapter 22
Even the air seemed to know something momentous was about to happen. It seemed to know, too, that this event was not a happy one, for it hung, unmoving, dense and heavy with incense and the rich odor of frankincense. The priestesses burned them incessantly, hoping to drive away the evil spirits and demons sure to be lurking in the darkness at times like these. Shadows curled around the pillars of the temple hall, slithering in sinuous blackness, disappearing into nothing high above their heads.
Mother was dying.
Her breath came in shallow, uneven waves. The buttery light from the oil-lamps shuddered, gleaming, reflecting against the gold threads in the fabric of her crumpled, sweat-ridden sari, like tiny golden, ghostly fireflies. Her drenched red cotton sari lay plastered to her emaciated form, and her dying body resembled a bloodied corpse.
Her chest rose and fell, the movement so fleeting that many times the priestesses leaned over her, to place a cheek close to her mouth hoping for a whisper of heated breath to confirm she still lived, she still breathed. The fevers had turned her body into a mere shadow of the once-strong, once-vibrant Mother.
Against the rich burgundy of the fabric, her skin looked sallow, papery thin, and burned with fever. Such a fever her dark
cheeks were rosy with the blush of it.
She groaned and turned to the statue of the Dark Goddess, her pallet conveniently placed within the inner sanctum of the temple. In the outer room, the priestesses began to sing. Soft and low, the rhythm of their voices and the heartbeat of music soothed both ear and mind, entrancing. The sweet melody rose, joined by cymbals and the methodic beat of drums. Music of devotion, music to move to and dance to. Music for life, not this pathetic excuse for what was left of the high priestess of the temple.
The Mother blinked, a tear gathered in her eye, burning with the heat of fever and regret, pooling as she struggled to swallow and breathe and clutch the last seconds of her life to her breast. The tear escaped from her eye as she clasped her hands to her heart and prayed, muttering ancient chants.
Would her prayers be heard?
Would the music of her daughters guide her prayers to the feet of the Dark Goddess?
The Mother gathered her will and her faith, and pushed herself upright, struggling to stay seated even though she shouldn't have the strength to do more than raise her head a few inches off her sodden pillow.
The dried ropes of the pallet cracked and groaned beneath her. She transferred her weight to her weak legs, legs shuddering with the effort, promising to give way if she so much as blinked.
The Mother shivered, bent over, body so heavy, so tired. She held on to the bed frame, and then a nearby pillar, for support. The pillar felt hot, it burned her fingertips, seared her palms. Or perhaps her own body emitted the intense heat. She ignored it, the way she ignored the sparks from the ceremonial fires, when they sometimes spat their flaming embers at her as she prayed.
She shuffled forward, one pillar at a time, urging her feet to move, one heated inch and then the next, until she reached the foot of the statue. The form of the Dark Goddess shone, pure unadorned stone. The marble gleamed the deep blue of the dark waters of the sea. No garments hid her body from view, no garlands shrouded her, just the single slim rope of marigolds carved into the stone itself. The face of the goddess was beauty incomparable, hair flung out behind her, hanging down her back and over her shoulders. No red blood dripped from her mouth or coated her tongue.