The Mists of Brahma

by CHRISTOPHER C. DOYLE

  Despite her immense distance from the ground—primarily to ensure that she was not detected by the vikritis—and the darkness around, she could see clearly. She had already spotted the Mahamatis and their protégés in their positions around the entrance to the Hall of Archives.

  But it was what she could see of the vikritis that had her worried.

  The first thing that struck her was the presence of Vishwaraj. She had recognised the young man immediately. If Maya had been in her physical body, she would have rubbed her eyes in disbelief and probably thought she was imagining things, but it was less easy to deceive the atma than the eyes.

  Vishwaraj was a vikriti?

  She was confused. Vishwaraj had been a member of the Gana. How could he be a vikriti?

  Yet, nothing else seemed to explain his presence here, among the vikritis.

  The fact that he was here was terrifying, for Maya had seen how easily Vishwaraj had countered the mantras during the siege in Panna. If Garuda had not been there, the Gurukul would have been destroyed for sure.

  And Vishwaraj would have had a significant role to play in its destruction.

  Her fear of Vishwaraj was nothing, however, compared to the horror evoked by the sight of the creatures that bounded along the ground and floated through the air, advancing towards the Gurukul force, invisible to them in the darkness.

  How were the Mahamatis and the students from the Gurukul going to protect themselves against them?

  Chapter Sixty-one

  The Battle of Bhimbetka

  The Bhimbetka Caves

  Abruptly, a number of large, brilliantly glowing orbs appeared in the forest, suspended just beneath the treetops. Some of the spheres cast a diffused light through the trees on the creatures advancing towards the defenders from the Gurukul. The others hovered above the group of vikritis who, caught unawares, scattered among the surrounding trees to escape their penetrating gaze.

  In the light of the glowing orbs that lit up their path like a spotlight, the creatures unleashed by the vikritis appeared in stark relief against the darkness.

  They were of two kinds.

  One group, on the ground, bounded towards the entrance to the Hall of Archives. Fearsome to look at, they were tightly muscled though lean, with bulging eyes, red bodies and faces and fangs that dripped blood even as they sprinted towards their targets.

  Pisachas.

  The second lot were in the air. Pretas, who floated towards the defenders, their dark, sunken eyes staring at their intended victims, their jaws open in a silent scream which made them look even more horrifying than when Arjun had seen them in Panna.

  It had to be Satyavachana who had created the orbs to light up the attackers. The defenders were quick to take advantage of the situation.

  Jignesh, Usha, you go after the vikritis. Parth and I will handle the creatures. Kanakpratap issued crisp orders. Arjun, Agastya, ready?

  Even as they watched, the pisachas split up, going in different directions, targeting all four groups of defenders.

  Kanakpratap grimaced. This was not going to be easy. He knew what was going to happen next.

  Near the Entrance to the Hall of Archives

  Vishwaraj cursed as the glowing orbs suddenly appeared, negating the advantage of darkness. Some of the orbs were shining down right over his group, revealing their numbers and giving their position away.

  He knew immediately that these were no ordinary orbs. Unlike the golden globes that lit up the Gurukul or those that the Rishis created to light their path in the dark, these were solar orbs created by a special mantra which invoked the power of Surya. Not only were they powerful and difficult to create, but they were almost inextinguishable by anyone other than their creator. Even he did not know the mantra to create the Surya Prabha orbs, as they were known. Only the most powerful Maharishis in the Sangha had this ability. Had the Sangha somehow discovered his plans?

  A cold, uneasy feeling took hold of him for a split second.

  Then his confidence returned and he pushed the thought away.

  Whoever it was, it didn’t matter. Vishwaraj had only just begun. And, if the Sangha had somehow learned about his plans, they were going to regret their presence here tonight.

  He smiled to himself.

  He knew that the number of defenders had to be limited. While the number and capacity of the vikritis too were limited, the bhutagana was different. And, even if there was a Maharishi on the other side who was formidable enough to create a Surya Prabha, Vishwaraj had confidence in his own power. He would relish using it against a powerful member of the Sangha.

  He looked around at the vikritis, who were scattering, dispersing in all directions in panic as the spotlights searched them out.

  Near the Entrance to the Hall of Archives

  Remember, the pisachas have to be decapitated. Parth issued last minute instructions to the Kshatriyas before they launched into the advancing creatures.

  Got it. Adira adjusted her grip and rushed towards the pisachas and pretas that were advancing toward them.

  Sonali, the Rishi partnering Adira, was already reciting mantras against their attackers.

  ‘Sahe pisachantsahasaishan dravinam dade,

  Sarvaan durasyato hanmi sung ma aakootitridhyataam!’

  This was the core foundational mantra used while embarking on a fight against pisachas. As they charged towards the attackers, Sonali continued her recitation.

  Then the attackers were upon them.

  Adira launched into them, slashing at the pisachas and pretas, even though she knew that her sword would have no effect on the latter, who were immaterial beings, no more than wisps of smoke, existing on a plane other than this material world. There was nothing she could do to harm them.

  But, like all the others, she was wearing an amulet that would protect her from them.

  As she fought the pisachas, she heard Parth tear into their ranks as well.

  Both Kshatriyas engaged in a counter attack that was fierce and well coordinated, with Sonali backing them up with mantras that ensured that the pisachas stayed away from her.

  The pisachas tore and scraped at Adira as they pounced on her. They were flesh eaters and nothing would please them more than a meal here and now.

  Adira’s sword flashed as it swung through their ranks like a blur.

  She had a reputation for being one of the swiftest Kshatriyas in the Gurukul.

  Three pisachas rushed at her.

  ‘Udnayate! Vegita vriddhi!’ Adira was instantly propelled at top speed above the heads of the attacking pisachas, so that they were left grabbing at empty space. She latched on to a branch of a tree and somersaulted down behind them.

  ‘Here, suckers!’

  The three pisachas turned to face her. Before they knew it, she had swung her sword across their necks. Three hideous heads rolled to the ground.

  Adira was not just the fastest Kshatriya in the Gurukul. She was also known for her accuracy. The deadly combination of speed and precision was her strength.

  She paused to catch her breath.

  ‘Adira!’ she heard Sonali shout.

  Adira swivelled around.

  Her eyes widened as she took in the scene.

  Chapter Sixty-two

  Pisachas

  The Bhimbetka Caves

  Vishwaraj had sized up the situation well. He had not moved from where he stood, despite being revealed by the light that shone down on him. He knew that the first wave of attacks by the creatures he had unleashed would keep his adversaries busy.

  As the pretas and pisachas reached those who lay in wait for them, the band of defenders came into the light and their scant numbers were revealed to him. As was the fact that most of them seemed to be children.

  Vishwaraj laughed to himself, despite being the only one left standing in the light; the vikritis had all sought refuge in the dense forest around them.

  Children.

  Accompanied by adults.

  Which meant they
were unlikely to be members of the Gana. If that had been the case, they would have operated unsupervised.

  They must be from some Gurukul nearby.

  Students.

  This would be less difficult than he had thought, even if there was a powerful Maharishi among his adversaries.

  He saw two groups break away from the defenders and head towards him. One group was led by a woman, with a girl and a boy in tow, and the other group comprised two boys following a man.

  Time to leave.

  Vishwaraj vanished.

  Near the Entrance to the Hall of Archives

  Varun sprinted towards the vikritis who were closest to his group, slashing and cutting at the pisachas that stood in his way.

  The pretas he could not do much about, so he ignored them, focusing instead on decapitating the pisachas, even as Gopal recited mantras to kill those that he was decapitating.

  Jignesh was busy tackling the pretas, reciting mantras that would despatch them into oblivion.

  ‘OM namo bhagavate anjaneyaya mahabalaya svaha ’

  ‘OM namo bhagavate rudraayah kosheshvaraaya namoh jyotiah

  patangaaya namo namah siddhi roop roopaaya gyapati svaha ’

  By the time they reached the spot where they had seen the vikritis, there was no one there. They had disappeared into the forest, scattering in different directions.

  Varun didn’t know if that was good or bad. Scattering meant they had panicked. But it also meant they could regroup and attack from different directions.

  Not far away, Usha was busy battling the pisachas, who seemed to have attacked her group with a vengeance.

  Tanveer had been cutting the pisachas down, as they ran, with a flurry of well-aimed arrows that sliced off their heads, his hands a blur as he handled his bow with practiced ease.

  But the closer they got, the more difficult it became.

  Varun looked on as a group of pisachas swarmed over Tanveer even as he released arrow after arrow, decapitating several of them.

  A bow and arrows were not of much use in close combat.

  Need help, buddy? Varun asked Tanveer telepathically, through his suit of armour.

  About time someone asked. Tanveer sounded wry.

  Alright.

  Varun looked at Jignesh. They need help.

  Jignesh nodded in response and the three of them rushed towards Usha’s group.

  Varun charged into the group of pisachas who were trying to overwhelm Tanveer, cutting them down with a few swift strokes of his sword, even as Usha, Jignesh, Anisha and Gopal recited mantras targeting the pretas and the pisachas.

  Look out! A silent shout went up from somewhere near them.

  It sounded like Arjun, but Varun couldn’t be sure.

  All he could focus on for now was the mass of vikritis bearing down upon them.

  Near the Entrance to the Hall of Archives

  Arjun stared at the vikritis who had regrouped and were now returning to the fray.

  It wasn’t their numbers that had caught him off guard.

  It was the person leading them.

  Was that Vishwaraj?

  He recognised the boy from his appearance in Panna when the Nagas had attacked the Gurukul.

  He had just a split second to ponder this question before he was back to tackling the swarm of pisachas.

  A group of pretas swooped down to surround him, their jaws open in silent snarls, frustrated at their inability to attack him and possess his body, repelled by the amulet he wore and the mantra within it.

  ‘Rudraayah Kosheshvaraaya! Anjaneyaya Mahabalaya!’ A few well-aimed mantras from Agastya, and the group of pretas around Arjun disappeared, snuffed out, released from their suffering, their souls liberated.

  Thanks, Ags. They were getting to me. Arjun grinned at Agastya, then realised that Agastya could not see his face. He realised that he was no longer petrified by the pretas, unlike the first time he had seen them, but he still hadn’t got used to them. He put it down to his lack of experience.

  What worried him was that there seemed to be no end to the ranks of the pisachas. They kept coming at him and the others as fast as the vanguard got cut down. And now, to make things more difficult, the vikritis were attacking.

  From the corner of his eye, even as he neatly sliced off the heads of two pisachas who were attempting to leap onto him, he saw the vikritis break up into smaller groups of two and three.

  They were operating to a game plan.

  But what was it?

  Chapter Sixty-three

  Vikritis

  Near the Entrance to the Hall of Archives

  Vishwaraj had managed to regroup the vikritis. He had changed his location and somehow the glowing orbs of light had not followed, perhaps because it had happened so fast. They were still suspended in mid-air over the spot where he had stood some time earlier.

  As a result, he had been able to marshall his forces and quickly convey a plan to the vikritis.

  A plan that he knew would not go wrong.

  Could not go wrong.

  It was simple. They would break up into five groups, of two or three. The plan was to surround the enemy and reinforce the attack already under way by the pisachas and pretas.

  It was only a matter of time before their opponents were overwhelmed.

  He hadn’t come here to battle anyone. That had not been among Shukra’s instructions.

  But if they wanted a fight, he would take it to them.

  In the Skies above the Bhimbetka Caves

  Maya watched from above as the battle continued. She had got over her initial surprise at seeing brahmadandas in the hands of the young Rishis. When Satyavachana had gifted her one, she had not known that other students in the Gurukul had them as well. Seeing the weapons in their hands gave her some comfort. For it meant that the defenders had one more weapon to battle the vikritis.

  But would it be enough?

  The defenders had done a good job of fighting off the first round of attacks. But now, not only were they facing unending waves of the creatures, but the vikritis, having regrouped, were using the bhutagana as a cover for their own attack. And they were being led by Vishwaraj.

  A double whammy.

  From her vantage point she saw Jignesh and Usha lead their protégés to meet the vikritis head on, leaving Kanakpratap and Parth with their wards to continue the fight against the pisachas and pretas.

  But where was Satyavachana?

  Near the Entrance to the Hall of Archives

  Shukra stood, invisible, in the shadow of an enormous boulder perched on some rocks and watched the battle with great interest. Even though he was present in his physical form, he had used his powers to ensure that he could observe the clash of the two opposing forces, from his vantage point, without the dense forest cover obscuring his vision.

  Unusually for a Gana member, Vishwaraj had well developed siddhis, no doubt a result of his past births. Shukra’s blood coursed through his veins, and much of Shukra’s power too.

  What Shukra had not been able to gauge so far was Vishwaraj’s ability to lead.

  Shukra knew that, in order to put his plans into action, he needed someone to lead the Vikritis.

  But was Vishwaraj capable?

  He knew that this battle was unnecessary. It didn’t advance his plans in any way.

  But there were two things he would learn tonight.

  The first was whether Vishwaraj could be the one to unite the vikritis. That would be a useful development for him. A unified band of vikritis operating under a single leadership would be an effective counter to the Sangha, enabling him to carry out his plan. In any case, the reason he had come here tonight was to move that plan forward, irrespective of Vishwaraj’s abilities. But if he was capable, it would definitely help.

  The other thing was, of course, that the ongoing battle would conclusively demonstrate whether the One—the boy who had so fortuitously escaped him twice—was actually going to pose a threat to him.


  Shukra still believed that the boy was not ready to fulfil the prophecy. He didn’t consider him a danger at all; just a minor irritant. But it would be good to see that conviction validated in the battle tonight.

  One thing bothered him though.

  He could sense another presence.

  An atma.

  And it wasn’t one of the bhutagana.

  This was a spirit that belonged to a living being, not a dead one.

  It was travelling out of its body, which meant that it was the spirit of someone who had unusual powers.

  It was at a distance, observing all that was happening on the ground.

  But he could sense it nonetheless.

  And there was something about it that was deeply disturbing. Even familiar. Like a memory from thousands of years ago. And he didn’t know why.

  Even as he pondered this, he saw it.

  The atma that he had sensed.

  It had been in the sky, hovering above them all.

  And it was swooping down now, towards the ground. As it approached, he could see it clearly, flying straight towards the vikritis who were going in for the kill.

  Chapter Sixty-four

  Overwhelmed

  Near the Entrance to the Hall of Archives

  Jignesh and Usha, with their band of students, struggled to free themselves from the onslaught of the pisachas and pretas so they could focus on the vikritis.

  They had just two Kshatriyas—Varun and Tanveer—between the two groups, and Tanveer was handicapped by the close combat conditions that reduced the effectiveness of his bow and arrows.

  But they had to break free—they were the first line of defence against the vikritis, since the other two groups had only two Rishis between them.

  Varun and Tanveer fought back-to-back, slicing and slashing at the pisachas, who kept up the assault relentlessly. Tanveer had resorted to grasping two arrows, one in each hand, wielding them much as one would wield knives. He used the sharp edges of the arrowheads to decapitate the pisachas as they got close to him.

  The vikritis stopped their headlong rush and paused to hurl flaming spheres at their opponents. Jignesh and Usha, with one accord, raised their brahmadandas to counter the attack and absorb the energy of the missiles, which flew fast and furious at them.