The Lady of Light - Part XIII

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To read the previous chapter, click here

I was not about to let the Martian prince walk all over me. I raised my chin and looked at him defiantly. His eyes glinted as he smiled smugly. A spark erupted. I knew how to subdue him. I looked back at the star in the gilded cage and its uncharacteristically flat appearance surprised me. I looked back at the prince and I realised what the glint in his eye was. It was not his eye at all that was glinting.

My hands were chained and my body bound. I was surprised he thought that could stop a Prabhas. Maybe it was a commentary on my performance so far, I had been helpless and foolish.

The Lady of Light - Part XII

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To read the previous chapter, click here

I rose up but paused to look at my body. My eyes were open and looked back at me with sentience. Our eyes met and the lips turned up into a smile. I felt a connection with myself and it did something to me. Something akin to falling in love, of being loved and needed.

The Lady of Light - Part XI

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To read the previous chapter, click here.

When I opened my eyes, I was on my bed and surrounded by my anxious parents. It was morning but the curtains were drawn and the room was shaded except for sunlight peeping through the chinks.

I lay back quietly, unwilling to talk. My mother fluttered around me, speaking fast and informing me that the Rajguru had managed to overpower the prince and some of the Daits who had been lending their power to him. The prince was being confined. On losing the Dait power, he seemed to have just shriveled and collapsed.

The Lady of Light - Part X

To read from the beginning, click here.

To read the previous chapter, click here.

Do I consciously reach a destination or am I taken there? I was in a windy place, but I was not on any planet, let alone Saturn. My star was with me, subtly rubbing against my fingers, spreading warmth in this cold place. What held me in place, I don't know, because I seemed to be in the midst of some spatial storm. I had nothing around me except the winds and then I realised that I was being held by the winds, as if my father was carrying me. "Be careful, be watchful. Conspiracy in high places," the wind seemed to whisper.

The Lady of Light - Part IX

To read from the beginning, click here.

To read the previous chapter, click here.

My father came with me to visit Manas in the hospital the next morning. Prince Ajat was there when we got there, leaning over Manas. Hearing us enter the room, he straightened up smartly and looked at us with a sad smile. "Pawan sir," he said with reverence to my father. My father nodded and pointed to Manas.

"Still unconscious. I tried reaching out to his memory, whatever is left of it. But it is beyond me..." He looked at me and smiled. "I wish he had chosen me to reveal it... I have always felt special respect for him."

The Lady of Light - Part VIII

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To read from the beginning, click here.

I was assigned a team now. While my security was to increase, my training was to redouble and some led by Rajguru's son Amrit were to research history to find out more about the earlier Shakti, her powers and how to reach her.

I was escorted out by an elite group of warriors wielding all kinds of power. Prince Ajatshatru walked with me, still full of questions and gratitude. I was flattered and hard put to respond to him without blushing. "I was 16 when your uncle vanished," he said regretfully. My mind started calculating our age difference immediately. I had been 9 years at the time. I wondered if the prince was married or betrothed and felt some of my enthusiasm deflating.

"Why was your uncle unable to escape but you did?" he asked me as we reached the gates.

I wanted to tell him about my star, my guide, my friend, my weapon. Something made me feel it was a secret that I could not share with so many people within earshot. I hesitated as I looked at him. He raised his hands in surrender and said, "I understand. You will have your ways..." I smiled at him and thanked him for his understanding. "Mmm... Would it be too much if I asked you over for dinner tonight, just as a mark of gratitude?" he asked in a voice that set my heart singing.

But Amrit, who was around, said, "My father wants her to come home for dinner tonight." I felt disappointed and I saw the prince looking disappointed too. "Well then, tomorrow night," he said and I nodded, feeling excited. He smiled as if my accepting the invitation was all that mattered.

I wanted some time to myself but till bedtime, I was with my mother first and later the Rajguru. Both revisited my kidnapping and escape in detail, but had little success in finding anything of value. "The Daits are getting very bold but even after this incident, we don't want to launch a direct attack. Now that I know the Sacred Shell is not with us, I understand the reason for our weakness. We were not only entrusted with it, but we also have our powers linked to it. The fact that we can still resist them in wars is a blessing we cannot take for granted. We have to now speed up to retrieve the Sacred Shell as well as free Mars of the Daits."

I felt the weight of his words on my shoulders and looked down, feeling helpless again. I had been there on Mars but my thoughts had been only of escaping. As if the Rajguru sensed my mood, he laid a kind hand on my shoulder. "You did what you could." Then he sat back and I saw sorrow and pain in his eyes. "I feel very sad about Manas and cannot believe that he turned out to be bad. The king says that the Sacred Shell vanished at around the time Tushar did. Ajat was there with Tushar and Manas and they seemed to have gone to the sanctum sanctorum where the Sacred Shell was kept. Without my permission. So the king was afraid that the blame would fall on his son and kept the matter hidden all these years."

I looked at him in wonder. "Is that really possible?"

Rajguru shook his head. "It wouldn't have been possible, but the king played a deep game. If the Sacred Shell had been stolen, then I would have been alerted. But it was handed over. Ajat's presence may have something to do with making the handing over seem natural since he is the king-in-waiting. Any theft would have caused a reaction. But handing over..." He became silent and thoughtful. "I must think this over. You must also be tired. Take some rest," he said gently and saw me off at the gate. 

My mother was to share the room with me that night and she was very keen to stay with me. But mercifully, one of her childhood friends landed at the safe house I was staying in and insisted on taking my mother away to her house to catch up on old times. I waved a hearty bye to her, relieved of getting some time to think of the developments peacefully.

Almost as if on cue, my father tele-called. He wanted to know all about Manas's role in my uncle's being captured by the enemies. I didn't have much to tell him except those few disjointed words and he remained thoughtfully silent. "I always suspected there was some foul play," he said softly. His voice shook. "Why didn't you get Manas arrested, then?" I asked, puzzled.

"Because Manas always swore his innocence and maybe weaved some magic so that I was always a little confused about the events back then."

"Where were you at the time? I thought you were with him?"

"No, and even Manas wasn't supposed to be with Tushar at that time... Manas and I were together and then Manas flew like the wind. I followed him, but by the time I reached, Manas had already got to Tushar and..." My father's voice trailed. "Let me think back on that day some more," he said and let me go.

My mind was in a whirl as I lay back thinking of all that I had heard that day. Of course, Prince Ajat's face also kept flashing, sometimes distracting me completely. I wondered why I had felt so hesitant to speak out about my star though a part of me wanted to boast too! I looked around to see where it was and was amazed at how it seemed to act on its own, appearing and disappearing at will.

I heard my name being called and this time, I was more alert. But I also sensed that this was different. In a moment, I realised that this was Manas's voice. I felt anger surge through me and Manas's voice wavered. But he made an effort against my will and whispered, "I am weak, my powers have been taken away. I have just a few minutes before I lose it all. Please give me your time and attention, there is something you have to know."

I was no proof against such a request so I inhaled to keep a hold on my emotions. "I am innocent," he started and hastily added, "I was not supposed to be with Tushar that day. Your father and I were in the woods nearby when I felt something tugging my mind. I rushed to find Tushar and Ajat in the sanctum sanctorum. I tried to stop..." His voice became feeble. "Some power overpowered me. I went blank... When I regained consciousness, I was alone there." Now his voice was unable to reach me but he sent me a dark image of uncle Tushar lying on the floor staring at Manas, who was standing over him. And then Tushar's body started vanishing. Just then my father entered and tried to hold Tushar back. But Tushar waved a bye and left. My father turned on Manas and the image vanished.

I felt tears running down my cheeks. I felt I may have wronged an innocent man. After hearing the doubt in my father's hand and hearing Manas' version, I felt he at least deserved a hearing.

I got up and rushed out to help Manas in whatever way I could. But there were protective charms that held me back. I couldn't even tele-call my parents or the Rajguru. Not knowing what to do, I let my aura rise and went searching for the golden light that had reacted to me. There it was, shining and warm in the dark night. I rushed and joined it, compelling it to acknowledge me and found myself back in my room with Amrit standing in front of me. "What happened, Shakti?" he asked.

I was baffled but quickly blurted out that we had to save Manas. He didn't even ask why. He just vanished. A few minutes later, the Rajguru was in my room with tears in his eyes. "Thank you, Manas is like a son. I could never forgive him if he had been a traitor, and never forgiven myself if we had destroyed him unfairly. I was unhappy with the precipitate reaction to your report, but I think I was more shocked about the Sacred Shell than him." He sat down with his hand on his brow. I felt guilty of having over-reacted too.

"Is Manas... How is Manas? Will he regain his powers?"

Rajguru shrugged. "The science of removing someone's powers is still inexact and so we can only hope that we would have botched it up. We may have temporarily bound it, but I am hoping we wouldn't have destroyed it fully. His ability to remember that day and why he never spoke about it may give us some direction. Let's pray for the best."

(Continued here)

   

The Lady of Light - Part VII

To read the previous chapter, click here. To begin at the beginning, click here

I was crying in my mother's arms when we were summoned by the king. My parents had arrived post-haste on hearing of my kidnapping and safe return. While my mother consoled me my father was busy capturing Manas, which wasn't easy despite many power wielders including the Rajguru putting their power behind him. He seemed to be weaving a  web around their minds, weakening their skills. He was also in my mind, constantly pleading with me to believe in his innocence. "I didn't harm your uncle. I wasn't aware he was still alive. We thought he was dead," he said.

The Lady of Light - Part VI

To begin at the beginning, click here. To read the previous chapter, click here.

I fought hard to not lose my consciousness. I felt the spirit of my grandmother aiding me by lending some light. But it was feeble and light. I felt drained from the effort and realised with a shock that I didn't know what my power was since light wasn't responding to my need.

I felt something scrape my hand. I stared at the star that seemed to be twinkling in my hand. I didn't remember picking it up. I couldn't even remember where I had kept it and yet here it was. I looked around me and realised that I was in a teleportal and the voice that had beckoned me had vanished. But I felt that I was heading towards whoever had called me. I felt fear for the first time in the truest sense. I was alone and this reeked of a kidnap. When I could protect an entire army, how was I so weak and vulnerable when it came to my own safety?

The Lady of Light - Part V

For reading from the beginning, click here. For reading the previous chapter, click here.

My mother was so excited and proud of me. She made it sound as if she had always expected great things from me. But when Rajguru asked her about the war and my role, she couldn't say in what way I had contributed. There seems to have been some blanket amnesia about anything that I might have done. Or, I thought, I had played no role and people were pinning false hopes on me. I played along, or rather, I was made to play along.

The Lady of Light - Part IV

(This is part IV of a series. To read from the beginning, click here. To read the previous episode, click here.)

Was there thunder and lightning? Did the earth burst forth? Did realisation dawn on me? Was I suddenly elevated to some noble status?

Nyet. Nada.

I was trudging up a difficult hill behind the two men as they discussed me as if I was not there and how to present me to our King who lived atop the hill. Soon we were at the gates and the soldiers bowed deeply before letting us in. Not to me, who was lucky enough to gain entry because of these exalted me.

The Lady of Light - Part III

Continued from Part II

The conversation during dinner was stilted and stiff. I was relieved to be asked to quickly pack a bag, a backpack, with barest essentials. I thought my mother will come with me to help me but she remained behind. When I went down again, she was sitting on the large couch, alone. I went up to her and stood uncertainly. "Ma," I said softly.

She looked up and a flame burned in her two eyes. Then she closed her eyes for a second and pulled me onto her lap in an embrace me. "I am sorry, Deepika," she whispered. "I just need time to get used to it... Oh, my Tara... I am terribly sorry. These things are not in our hands. We just play the role..." She stopped. This is precisely what Manas had also told her. She sighed. "Do well... Your grandmother taught me much. I know you always felt her life was futile... I can't say I understand it either. But she was very dignified and graceful about it... Never forget," my mother whispered. "They are waiting for you outside. I love you," she said and cried as she hugged me once more before letting me go.

The Lady of Light - Part II

Continued from last week. If you have not read Part I, Click here

When I came to, I felt so embarrassed! There had been a battle. Even the half-drunk fighters had mustered enough of their powers to keep the enemies at bay, but all I had done was swoon, not to get up till everything was over. And when I did, I felt as if I had fought a war! I felt so weak and helpless.

I was still in the dining room, waiting for the others to return. My hand trembled as I tried to sip a glass of water. The weary fighters returned one by one. Some were injured. Luckily no one was dead. I quietly slipped away before anyone noticed me and went back to bed. The exhaustion and shame made me take cover. Hopefully, I could pretend I did not know about the fight. I am sure my parents will not give me away. As I wallowed in self-pity, I thought of my maternal grandmother and started understanding a little about why she would be so quiet when tales of fights were exchanged. She would go off to the kitchen and cook up large meals on such occasions.

The Lady of Light - Part I

I stepped out into the garden, looking up at the stars, the hazy clouds drifting like veil, and the crescent moon engraved against the black sky. The night wove its magic around me as I drifted towards the fragrant magnolia tree in the centre of the garden. My heart was brimming with a mix of emotions - joy, anticipation, apprehension, excitement - I had just turned 18. The age when I would know if I was worth anything. It could be revealed to me today, or any day in the next six months. If nothing happened, I was doomed to a life of ordinariness, serving the more privileged.

The Song of Silence

On 22d March, when the curfew was announced for the first time during this Corona virus crisis, I woke up and what hit me was the silence. Not even birds chirped. No dogs barking or cats mewling. Of course, there was no vehicular noise, which was to be expected.

Fight for the Right to Live

"What shall we do?" they despaired. "Can God really accept this? So much suffering?"

"God helps those who help themselves," one rebel said and a few others nodded in agreement.

An elder was offended. "Do you think we have not done enough?"

"The world wouldn't have come to this state if you had done what you should have!" the rebel protested vehemently.

Miss Calculation

Ranjana looked through the file and glanced up at Jha, her PA. "Who sent this request?"A diminutive figure, the large chair in the Ministry of Home Affairs of the state vested in her authority that she seemed quite capable of handling.

"Madam, the state head of the Nation First party," the PA replied deferentially.

To Be Still

Waves after waves
of one thought or another
animated and excited
strike me in succession.

My Beauty Queen

Every time you looked at me, I thought, ah, you love me. Love at first sight, it was, wasn't it?

But you were only seeing yourself. Did you like what you saw? That smile that caressed your lips, so slow, so full of love, admiring... Wasn't it me who made you feel that way? Made you feel like a queen? As if the world began and ended with you? Don't you owe it to me?

And Thus Flows Life

Radhika and Satvik looked at the antique showcase they had just bought with immense satisfaction. Rearranging the room to make space for it had been challenging, and it was with great regret that they gave away two low chairs to accommodate this giant piece.

"All your books can come here," Satvik said pointing at the two sides. "All my showpieces can take the inside shelves. We can keep the big Nataraja idol here in the centre."

The Blurring Days

Days merge into night
Dawning again in silence
Seasons come and go
Into each other they flow

Words

"Why? Why don't you tell me what's bothering you?" he pleaded with her.

She looked at him confused. "No, nothing is," she said, feeling as if he were assaulting her with that tone of his voice - an urgent demand, a persistent plea that wanted to grab her heart and open it violently. She felt her heart trembling and shrinking. "Don't imagine things," she said and turned away to continue pretending that everything was as should be.

Waiting for a Change

To wake up every morning
And to be the same
A routine that is comforting
And yet unsurprisingly inane!

Number Trap

From school days I struggled
Numbers making me feel strangled
Exponents, permutations, combinations
Triggering severe perspiration

The Voice From Beyond

"Hi honey."
The voice seemed so real that Priya jumped. Though she looked up instantly, she went back to reading the instruction for the pregnancy test.
"I thought you would have outgrown this behaviour now that you are older. Still behaving like a teenager!" the voice of her mother continued in that particular exasperating tone of amusement.
Priya had to look up and was startled to see her mother actually there. "I am seeing things," she told herself loudly and went back to reading.

Twilight - The Hour of Magic

The blazing sun
Showering light around
The dark night
The lights bright

When the Music Stops

"Very impressive singing," the message made her look at the sender a second time. The sender was a good singer himself.

So she replied, "Thank you. You sing very well too."

"That means a lot. I didn't know the song, but loved your rendition. Wanted to join your collab."

Possessed by Possession

"Do we really need this brassplate?" Suhas asked frustrated.

"It is ornamental and will look good in our dining room. And look at the price! It's a steal!" his wife Archana exclaimed. Suhas raised his eyebrows and rolled his eyes, knowing any argument against that logic was a waste of time.

Embers That Start a Fire

Daya stared at the television and felt tears stab her eyes. The collective sigh of disappointment in the room revealed how much everybody was affected by the space mission's failure. She could hear her mother-in-law chanting, no doubt, hoping for some miracle to save it. Her husband Nitin loudly slapped the sofa as the headlines repeated the disappointing end - or hopefully, interlude - to this much awaited event. Her father-in-law shook his head and got up, clearly having expected some such fate.

But Daya herself felt as if it were a personal loss, a loss that had its roots fifteen years ago, when she gave up her pursuit of education to pursue Nitin and eloped to get married to him. Shalini, a friend she had reconnected with recently, told her, "I had expected you would be somewhere in NASA, working on some space mission! Never expected you to give it all up for marriage!"

The Square Peg

Raksha glanced up as she cleared the dining table. "Don't you think you are a little too much in love with your phone?" she asked Arun.

"I don't come here to be nagged," he said sharply, without taking his eyes away from the phone.

She shrugged. "Not nagged, but surely, I can tell you when it starts hurting..."

He looked up with a twinkle in his eyes, "Hurting whom, you or me?"

Joy, I Choose

I sharpened my nails
I bared my fangs
I readied words
More hurtful than bombs

The Path that Forked

The path branched in two.
Leaving her thoroughly confused.

Could she straddle both at once?
Run back and forth one by one?

An Ode to A Reunion

The road seemed straight and clear
Her own path seemed to lead away
Turning sharply to a side
Leaving others behind to go their way

For Whom the Wedding Bells Toll

It was a simple affair, exactly as Rishi had desired. Only the closest family and friends in his favourite Krishna temple to witness his wedding to the lovely Sharmila were invited. His parents had arranged the match and he had met Sharmila informally in a cafe. He had communicated his willingness the same evening, but Sharmila's family had taken some time to respond, citing her professional commitments and travel as reasons for being unable to decide quickly. After the informal 'fixing' of the wedding too, her parents had preferred to conduct the wedding right away instead of delaying the actual event with a 'meaningless engagement'. "Can we have a simple wedding but a grand reception as we are going at breakneck speed," her father had asked politely, much to Rishi's mother's dissatisfaction. "We didn't ask for the wedding to be rushed! He is an only son, so we would like to call our relatives..." she had insisted.