Makeshift oars had already dropped hastily into the waters. Men strained, trying to slow down the boats. It didn’t make any difference; they still were being carried along.
“What do we do?” asked Chandra, alarmed.
Veer gave her a somber glance. “Princess, we may have to jump. When I give the word, aim for the banks. I shall be right behind you.”
“But so close, with the river speeding like that, we will be dashed against the wall regardless,” she said, anxiety making her voice high-pitched. She was a good swimmer but it was more than likely the chaotic waters would overwhelm her.
“We don’t have a choice. We must try,” he said grimly before speaking to his men.
The boats passed along a patch of light caused by a row of circular openings cut into the top part of the wall. The eyes of the birds on the prow flashed in the light.
An answering spark flared in the darkness near the ceiling of the wall.
Veer, about to give the word, halted.
It was fortunate he did because a minute later, a vertical line of light bisected the wall. The two halves swung outward, revealing the wall to be a massive arched door.
The birds at the front soundlessly raised their wings up and out. They acted as brakes and the boats finally seemed to slow down as they passed through the arches of the door.
They were gently swept into what appeared to be a wide, exposed cave on the seaward cliff. They rolled to a stop on the edge of a small rocky hillock.
Chapter 14: The Grotto
People disembarked to look at the cave. It was a grotto, open to the elements with a wide mouth and half the ceiling missing. After the preternatural darkness of the passageway, it seemed like it was flooded with sunlight, but in reality, what little sunlight existed was being rapidly swallowed by thunderclouds. The River Saraswathi met the sea in a gushing torrent of water, showering them with a salty spray.
But like everyone else, Veer’s gaze was snagged and held by a goddess statue on the rocky hillock.
Against the backdrop of a lightning-patterned sky, the eight-armed statue of Goddess Durga rose majestically. Easily twelve feet tall, the statue was made to strike awe and devotion in the hearts of the people.
At least, it appeared to, for the princess, who was an ardent devotee. Durga was said to be one of the many forms of Goddess Parvathi, and Veer watched as the princess joined her hands in prayer.
The statue was made of the same black-sheened metal as the lotus key. Her eyes, however, were made of white ivory painted with black irises, giving an imitation of life. Despite the passage of time and the exposure the statute must have been subjected to, there was no trace of the degradation of themetal. Against the gray stone, the dark statue shone with an otherworldly brilliance, drawing the eye.
Shota came to stand beside her, patiently waiting until the princess paid her respects to the goddess. The others were trying to anchor the boats to the small hillock. In Veer’s opinion, it didn’t seem there was any danger of the boats drifting away. They were obviously magical and put here for a specific purpose, and they would stay until that task was completed. But there was no harm in trying to add an extra layer of insurance.
“What is the significance of putting a goddess statue here, do you know, Princess?” asked Shota.
“Well, we in Amaravathi believe the goddess protects us from calamities and this place…” She watched the roaring sea. “Well, you can see the sea has always been rough. So much so that some believe if not for this plateau of rock, Amaravathi would be destroyed by its ferocity. I believe the statue was put here symbolically, facing the sea, protecting us from its fury.”
Shota went near the statue. To Veer’s surprise—and Veer saw to Chandra’s as well—Shota joined his hands in prayer before he started to examine it more closely.
Seven of the statue’s arms each carried a traditional weapon: the conch, chakra, sword, bow and arrow, trident, club, and lotus. Her remaining arm was raised in a blessing. A demon’s torso was pinned under the paws of her mount, a lion, while the tip of her trident pierced through him.
“I found it! The key piece,” said Shota. He was pointing at the lotus in the goddess’s hand. Veer approached the statue as well and saw that the key piece was embedded within the lotus the goddess carried, cleverly camouflaged. But it was distinguishable by the rivets on it.
Time passed, and with it, daylight rapidly decreased. Several people tried prying the key piece from the goddess’shand with no results. Without proper blacksmith tools, their task was difficult.
Frustrations mounted with the lack of progress. Whispers came from the men as they kept looking out into the sea, pointing fingers at the gathering storm on the horizon.
“Maybe we should go back,” said Shota, in a worried aside to Veer. “We can come back later.”
“I hope you are jesting,” said Veer with an eye on the storm. “Who knows what we will find once we return? You know, the whole lower levels tend to flood at any moment. We can’t risk it. We are staying until we get this damn piece.”
Veer tried to separate the key piece,once again, and cursed as his hand slipped on the wet metal and hit against the statue with enough force to bruise. His hands were numb from the freezing sea spray or rain. He couldn’t tell the difference anymore. Everything was wet, cold, and salty.
He wanted to use the magic in his left arm, but he knew it would result in damage to the statue. But if there was no other way… He kept a wary lookout for the princess, who was standing a distance away, her attention on the brewing storm and the sea.
Veer made his decision and unsheathed his sword. “Right, we don’t have another option. I am going to cut the goddess’s hand. We’ll pry the key piece from it later.”
