After the tilapia had left the underwater cavern, Sanaka followed the fish as best he could. His soul had left Huhu and re-entered the catla. Eventually, he found himself at the resident cottages and then the Eka’s hut. He hung about, an inconspicuous sparrow, quietly listening to the Eka and her friends plot his downfall the next day. When the five Souls left for dinner, Sanaka did not head back to his mortal body in his hut. Instead, he made straight for Aranyala.

Later that night, a lal bicchu, bright red in its tail, eyes and body, emerged from the forest and crawled to the five Souls’ huts one by one for the third step of Sanaka’s plan.

26

Sabha and Samiti

He initially thought he was in a dream, so he blinked a few times to be sure.

What Aman saw, through the haze in his eyes, was a bright white land before him behind a thin curtain of mist. He was walking, but he couldn’t feel much—neither his toes nor fingers—other than an unusual weight on his back.

‘Who has the neer?’ It was Aarti’s voice somewhere near him, but he couldn’t make out more than a silhouette.

The weight lifted from his back.

‘Oh, Indra! Already finished half of it?’ Aarti said, shaking the kamandalu before taking a sip and handing it back to him.

It took a while for Aman’s eyes to adjust. Fresh sleet covered his feet with each step.

Aarti seemed to be looking back at him pitifully. ‘Yes, yes,’ she said, ‘my feet are feeling it too, or rather not feeling much of anything. And the wind is picking up, which can’t be good.’

From a bird’s-eye view, he was no more than a speck on a wide canvas.

‘What sort of meditation is she in?’ Aarti asked, pointing ahead. ‘I understand that only she can find the Himalayan bee and stop us from going astray . . . But she hasn’t responded to one question properly the entire day. I mean, don’t we need to find neer and fruits before anything? Aditya is almost gone for the day, and the Eka has no plan for a fire. I’m telling you, boy, we will not last the night.’

No . . . it cannot be! The hairs on his body stood on end. His eyes widened, searching frantically. Around him, right above the crests of the mountains in all directions, was a green light. Further up, the sky turned an ominous blue. The trees were scarce and their leaves scarcer. It was a barren sight.

The Souls walked in a long, single file in the snow-laden land, the Eka right in front. Yuvan followed Idhika, and behind him was Dhara, with Payal. Aman and Aarti appeared to be lagging at least a hundred metres behind, but they were by no means the slowest. Jagrav and Savitri trudged along after them, and at the tail end of the contingent was Fayza, with Ujal and Prithvi.