Page 36 of Lost and Stolen Gods
A gust of wind tore at my hair, and the beat of wings drew my attention to the night sky, where a winged figure cut a path toward us.
Guru Chandra landed on the other side of the ring. His wings snapped closed, then vanished, and he crossed his arms. My scalp prickled in that way it did when I was being watched. Was he looking this way? It was hard to tell at this distance.
Another winged figure joined us that I recognized as Guru Mihir. He took a spot on the left of the ring, adopting an almost identical pose to Guru Chandra.
A soft rumble sounded, and it took a moment to figure out that it was coming from the donut hole below us. It was moving, turning counter-clockwise to reveal an aperture…a dark rectangle.
The flames in the wall burned higher and brighter, illuminating the lower platform and the steps hidden in the aperture.
“Welcome to the binding,” Guru Chandra said, his voice rising easily into the night for us all to hear. “Tonight, the Shaktis will descend, and you will be placed in a jodi with a drohi. A jodi is a partnership that will aid you in the many years to come. It’s a pairing that only death can destroy. It is a sacred union of souls that will make you a formidable force to be reckoned with. Your drohi will guide you, protect you,follow you to the ends of the earth if you so wish it. Your drohi will be an extension of you. This is a pivotal day, and we rejoice in creating these powerful unions.”
There was movement below as drohi rose out of the aperture to fill the platform. All were powerfully built males and females, and all were dressed in gray tunics that stretched across muscle-rounded shoulders and loose black pants that made their bare feet look eerie and pale in contrast.
They filed in, keeping to the perimeter of the space. I caught sight of a few faces I recognized. Jasha, the drohi who’d warned me to stay away from Araz, Pashim the blue and silver-haired guy, and Araz, who looked irritated as usual, probably wondering why he had to be here.
Whywashe here?
There had to be over thirty drohi down there now.
Another rumbling sound drifted up from below, and the center of the lower platform pushed up to create a new, smaller platform. It rose until it was a meter below us.
“Look!” Poppy pointed to the sky, where a swirling gold and silver light had appeared.
It descended, growing until it had to be about six feet in diameter, then stopped about ten feet above us, hovering over the small platform in the center of the donut.
We watched in awe as fingers of light lashed out of it, hitting the ring we were standing on, reminding meof the lightning in the crystal balls I’d seen in the novelty stores back home.
The etchings on the rings burst to life, glowing amber, and a voice filled the air, echoing as if three people were speaking in unison.
“New blood and new life. New unions to be formed. Let us see. Let us test.”
My body jerked as the light from beneath washed up and over me. It coursed through my body, warm and tingling, testing and reading me somehow.
The pulsing sphere—that must be the Shakti—expanded a glowing arm and latched on to Dharma. It raised her up and carried her to the central platform.
“Strength of mind and will. We see your match.”
A second beam of light shot down to the mass of drohi and plucked out a female with golden curls that sat close to her head and skin like burnished copper. She landed on the platform facing Dharma, and there was a flash of intense light that obscured them for a moment. When it died, the platform was empty.
Where did she go?
Another beam, and this time Sylvie was chosen. She didn’t go easily, kicking, yelling, and sobbing as if she was being attacked. And heck, who knew what being in that tracker beam felt like? She landed on her knees begging the beam to let her go.
“Will and heart clouded by fear. Let us find your courage,” the Shakti said.
A male drohi with dark brown skin etched withgold swirling tattoos landed beside her. He reached for her hand, and she stilled, looking up at him in awe. The flare of light swallowed them too, leaving the platform bare once more.
Joe was taken next and paired with a powerful female drohi with hair like a rippling waterfall. Then Eve, Poppy, and Priti. One by one, they were matched and taken.
The warm light cocooning me pulsed, and a voice filled my head.
The path is unclear, the road filled with unknowns. The heart can guide. It can be given. It can be returned. There is power in it. Do not forget.
I was yanked off my feet and flailed for a moment, panic setting in before the security of the beam’s hold registered. I relaxed, allowing it to carry me across to the platform in the center.
If I was going to become a god, then this was part of the process. I needed a drohi to succeed.
“To feel too much is to risk being broken,” the Shakti said. “An anchor will help against the storm.”
