As the drops began to fall, the villagers lifted their faces, letting the cool shower stream down their cheeks, refreshing them. Ana had some kind of natural instinct about combining the powers of our various weapons, and she used them in creative ways to rebuild what had been destroyed. Not only did she refill the river but she used the Golden Fruit combined with the kamandal to heal the land and bring life back to the river.
Trees grew around the banks and spread wide canopies. She placed the trident in the river and stirred the waters. They hissed and bubbled, and fish of all kinds burst from the trident and swam away in all directions. She found a broken eggshell, and when she blew on it, a bird appeared. It flew up into a tree and then hundreds of birds erupted from it and flew away.
Taking a bone and some mud from the river, she touched the tip of an arrow to it and it became a deer. She dragged the arrow in a long furrow, and the ground opened up as dozens, no, hundreds and hundreds of creatures leapt from the breach. Lastly, she took the gada and beat a mound of dirt. The hill melted into insects of every kind, and from the center rose reptiles of every description.
I fell hard onto my haunches, amazed at what she had done. Even with all the powers of Durga at our disposal, Ren, Kelsey, and I had never even tried the things she’d accomplished. We didn’t know they were possible. I stepped away as a particularly deadly snake wound his way around me and headed away from the people.
Did you have to create biting gnats and poisonous reptiles? I asked.
All creatures deserve a space in the world, she replied.
When everything was settled, she approached me. Her eyes were weary and her shoulders hung low. How? I asked her. How did you know to do that?
She shrugged, exhaustion obvious in every single one of her arms. “My teacher,” she answered.
Kadam? I asked incredulously, absolutely floored by the idea that he had taught her. Wh…when?
Phet came to me when you were in the jungle all those months. I didn’t know he was your Kadam then. Out loud, Ana said to the people, “Will you take us to your well?”
A few of them attempted to rise and heed her request, but it became quickly obvious that they needed sustenance first. She stepped back and filled the space before them with food and flagons of nourishing broth, including the firefruit juice that Kelsey had introduced her to, then waited patiently for them to eat and drink their fill and watched carefully to see if there was anything else they needed. Exhausted, she sat down, resting her head against my back, and fell asleep.
While she slept, I pondered what she’d revealed to me. I’d sat pining away in the forest while she’d been honing her skills, practicing. It was ridiculous the things I didn’t know. I’d been feeling all superior, like I had the edge when it came to the weapons or the amulet. Turns out I was sorely mistaken. Some companion I turned out to be.
I hated to wake her but I knew she’d rest better at home. The villagers were ready to show us the well, so I mentally called to her. Ana. Ana, wake up.
“No, Sohan. Let me sleep,” she mumbled and turned on her side, cushioning her head on one of her many arms.
Sohan? I don’t think I’d ever told her my full name. Only my mother called me Sohan. Everyone else used Kishan. Even Kadam. It took me by surprise but I found that I didn’t mind that she called me by that name.
Wake up, Ana. The people need you.
Instantly, she opened her eyes. It was unusual for Anamika, who enjoyed sleeping in and was rather cranky about being woken up. But when she was Durga and people relied on her, she responded quickly. We made our way back to the village, and with her magic, Ana filled the well to brimming with sweet water. I was happy to drink from the bucket that a little girl placed in front of me while Ana remade the village into a bustling little place full of trees and her signature flowers.
The greenery spread out around us in a wide arc and flowed all the way up to the mountain and beyond. When she was satisfied with her work, she slumped against my side and lifted a ladle full of water to her lips. After saying our good-byes, we headed out of the village, and when we were a good distance away, she used the scarf to change herself back into her normal green hunting dress.
Tilting my tiger head, I followed suit and changed back into human form. She gripped the Rope of Fire in one hand and the scarf in the other. The scarf transformed into a bag not unlike Kelsey’s old backpack. She placed all the weapons inside except for the bow, which she slung across her back. I took the bag from her and asked, “Aren’t we going home?”
She shook her head. “Not yet. There’s one more person who needs our help.”
I groaned. “Can’t it wait until tomorrow? I’m exhausted and I know you are too.”
“This one won’t be physically demanding. There’s a woman from your time. She’s fasting.”
“Yeah? Lots of women do that. What’s the emergency?” I’d had to teach her that word and it had become one of her favorites. She liked asking me, Do you have an emergency, Kishan? every time I couldn’t find a fork or was in a hurry.
She smiled tiredly at my use of the word. “The emergency is that the woman who needs to speak with me is your Nilima.”
Chapter 10
Beach Party
“Wait a minute. Nilima? Are you sure?”
“I am. She is supplicating the goddess Durga even as we speak. She is very intent about it.”
I rubbed a hand across the back of my neck. “Can you tell why? When?”
Ana cocked her head, closing her eyes. After a moment, she said, “She prays for the safety and happiness of Kelsey. I cannot be certain of when this prayer was said, but I think it is important for us to attend to her request immediately.”
My breath caught at the mention of Kelsey. “Yes,” I replied quickly. “I agree.”
Her luscious lips quirked downward in a frown. “Then again, perhaps we should wait,” she said hesitantly.
“No.” I shook my head. “Kelsey might need us.”
Ana gave me a long look. I squirmed under her gaze, feeling guilty, but held my ground.
“Very well,” she finally said and took the Rope of Fire, twirling it until a vortex appeared.
My gut wrenched hard when we leapt through, indicating that we were traveling far into the future indeed. When we landed, I could immediately tell we were in India, but where and when we were, I had no idea.
It was daytime, and I shielded my eyes from the glaring sun, trying to see if I recognized the city. With me being barefoot and Ana in her green hunting dress with boots and a bow strapped across her back, we were conspicuous in the modern world. As she looped the Rope of Fire and slung it around her waist, attaching it like a belt, I used the scarf to make myself some shoes and her a pair of leggings that formed beneath her dress.
Ana fussed about that, saying I had no right to dress her without her consent. She wasn’t wrong, so I grumbled a sorry. She still stood out. There was nothing I could do about the bow, so I stashed it behind a dumpster, a terrible thing to do with such a beautiful weapon, and, after asking permission, laid the scarf over her head, covering her long, shiny hair. The Divine Scarf lengthened and matched the color of her dress.
“Where are we?” Ana asked as I adjusted the scarf, tucking her hair beneath it.
When I was satisfied, I realized just how close our faces were. Her lips looked incredibly soft and I froze in place. Our eyes locked and I swallowed. Her hands pressed against my chest, and my heartbeat kicked into overdrive, but apparently her thoughts were not in alignment with mine because she pushed me away. “Are you finished?” she asked.