Shiva raised his hand to silence them, and turned his attention back towards the Meluhan chief scientist. ‘Brahaspati...’

‘So the Nagas, though small in number initially, were usually Brahmins,’ Brahaspati continued. ‘But then, the Somras was used only by the Brahmins until then. Today, the connection seems obvious, but it didn’t seem so at the time.’

‘The Somras created the Nagas?’ asked Shiva.

‘Yes. This was discovered only a few centuries ago by the Nagas. I learnt it from them.’

‘We didn’t discover it,’ said Kali. ‘The Vayuputra council told us.’

‘The Vayuputra council?’ asked Shiva.

‘Yes,’ continued Kali. ‘The previous Mahadev, Lord Rudra, left behind a tribe called the Vayuputras. They live beyond the western borders, in a land called Pariha, the land of fairies.’

‘I know that,’ said Shiva, recalling one of his conversations with a Vasudev Pandit. ‘But I hadn’t heard of the council.’

‘Well, somebody needs to administer the tribe. And the Vayuputras are ruled by their council, which is headed by their chief, who is respected as a god. He is called Mithra. He is advised by the council of six wise people collectively called the Amartya Shpand. The council controls the twin mission of the Vayuputras. Firstly, to help the next Vishnu, whenever he appears. And secondly, have one of the Vayuputras trained and ready to become the next Mahadev, when the time comes.’

Shiva raised his eyebrows.

‘You obviously broke that rule, Shiva,’ said Kali. ‘I’m sure the Vayuputra council must have been quite shocked when you appeared out of the blue. Because, quite clearly, they did not create you.’

‘You mean this is a controlled process?’

‘I don’t know,’ said Kali. ‘But your friends will know a lot more.’

‘The Vasudevs?’

‘Yes.’

Shiva frowned, reached for Sati’s hand, and then asked Kali, ‘So how did you find out about the Somras creating the Nagas? Did the Vayuputras approach you or did you find them?’

‘I did not find them. The Naga King Vasuki was approached by them a few centuries ago. They suddenly appeared out of nowhere, lugging huge hordes of gold, and offered to pay us an annual compensation. King Vasuki, very rightly, refused to accept the compensation without an explanation.’

‘And?’

‘And he was told that the Nagas were born with deformities as a result of the Somras. The Somras randomly has this impact on a few babies when in the womb, if the parents have been consuming it for a long period.’

‘Not all babies?’

‘No. A vast majority of babies are born without deformities. But a few unfortunate ones, like me, are born Naga.’

‘Why?’

‘I call it dumb luck,’ said Kali. ‘But King Vasuki believed that the deformities caused by the Somras were the Almighty’s way of punishing those souls who had committed sins in their previous births. Therefore, he accepted the pathetic explanation of the Vayuputra council along with their compensation.’

‘Mausi rejected the terms of the agreement with the Vayuputras the moment she ascended the throne,’ said Ganesh, referring to his aunt, Kali.