"Laksmi, where are you?"
Rudra looked high and wide on where she could have gone. He had searched the temple premises and now was pushing through the shrubs and trees in the nearby field. The smell of liquor and fumes, and crunches of broken bottles surrounded the area.
"Lakshmi, where are you?" carried through the field, the voice weaving between thickening trees and tangled flora. Rudra stopped in his tracks as he saw a drunk man passed out on a mat near the clearing. Rudra went and started shaking the man
"Chetta, chetta have you seen a person here"
The man mumbled something in his sleep before turning his face to the side to sleep
"Chetta please wake up" Rudra said as he started shaking the man once more. His hopes fell when the man only started snoring. Fed up, Rudra decided to use a bit more of his abilities. He channelled a spark of his cursed technique into his hand and touched the man's sleeve, zapping him lightly.
"Ayoo." The man yelled as the pain shook him awake. The man sat up upright and looked side ways to see a slightly surprised Rudra
'Damn does it really hurt that much? I only used a bit'
"Koche, what did you do. Why is my arm and sleeves burnt a bit?" asked the man rubbing his bicep with tenderness (Koche means boy).
"Sorry chetta. I just used a bit of force and a bit of the burnt wood that was nearby cause you weren't waking up. Please forgive me. It is really urgent" Rudra said giving his best puppy face
"Fine what do you want" asked the man rubbed his hand a bit more gently but still suspicious.
"Have you seen a girl of about my age. Slightly darker complexion and wearing a blue blouse and white pavada" Rudra asked. The man thought for a bit before clicking his fingers and pointing to some broken down building behind him
"I… think someone like that went that way. But I was drunk and nodding off, so I couldn't see clearly. Thought I was just imagining it, to be honest."
Rudra looked at the ruins before running towards it. A faint scream of wait came from the man's lips which were ignored.
Rudra reached the ruins and started to call out her name. A few moments later his spidey sense started ringing to which he ducked
Something fast and heavy landed a few feet ahead of him. Rudra looked up to see something resembling a leopard hissing at him.
'Damn another cursed spirit? There are so many sorcerers around here and none of them noticed this?'
Rudra sprinted toward a nearby wall and scaled it just as the leopard pounced again. Seeing Rudra gain height, the beast darted to a nearby tree and began to climb.
'Oh, so it wants to play that game, huh? Well, I can use that to my advantage.' Rudra half closed his eyes and carefully listened to his spider senses
Reaching the top of the thick trunk, the leopard launched itself toward Rudra. Rudra's spider sense blared a moment before and he hurled himself backward off the ledge, arms spread wide, surrendering to gravity as the world flipped upside down beneath him.
Their gazes clashed in midair, the leopard soaring overhead as Rudra plunged beneath.
However that was not the only thing Rudra had planned for
Rudra shot two webs at the leopard, attaching to its underbelly. He then twisted his body sideways and used both his and the leopard's momentum to throw it at a tangent towards the opposite wall.
The leopards back hits the wall as some loose chunks of rock fall on top of it
'Well, that thing was still holding through hopes and prayers. I guess I should actually be surprised the whole thing didn't collapse'
Rudra reached for his pocket. His mundu got in the way so he simply took it off to reveal the shorts underneath. He took out something that looked like a spike made from steel
'Good thing I had this on hand. Now I can make the binding vow'
"I vow to give up this weapon. In return let my webs gain ability to hold cursed energy even after being detached from my body for 7 seconds"
Rudra said it aloud so that he would get the slight boost from announcing your vow to others. This time though the increase was extremely minimal
'Well then again it is a cursed spirit and an animal at that.'
Rudra took the metal and threw it to the side. He had made sure to use his cursed technique on a few metallic objects everyday so that cursed energy would recognize them as his cursed tools. Using them he would make binding vows to gain an advantage for his webs. Due to the weapons not actually being that useful or dangerous the time limit was minimal but nevertheless very effective for his webs
Rudra shot two webs and lunged to the top of the wall to stay safe as precautions. He then immediately started shooting webs as the leopard started to get up. Unfortunately for the leopard, the webs were simply too strong for it too move further
'Now for the final attack.'
Rudra jumped down towards the leopard and then clutched its neck. He knew that his strength and electricity might not be enough to crush it. So obviously, he took another vow
'I vow to not be able to use my cursed technique for 5 minutes after the next attack. In return increase my cursed output'
Rudra immediately felt like something akin to floodgates opening in him. It was as if a dam had started to release the water it was holding back. Rudra immediately summoned his cursed technique and using his hands as blades, pushed his hand on the neck in opposite directions. The neck immediately snapped, and his hands tore through the cursed spirit's flesh. It's head fell off with the neck looking like it had been clumsily sawed and charred. Rudra leaned towards the side and started puking.
'Damn, I still am not used to it huh. This time I had to do it with my own hands.' Rudra shook the sticky cursed spirit blood clinging to his fingers in disgust. 'Uhh, I am so glad that this thing automatically disappears in a few hours or so. It feels really disgusting. Better wash my clothes just to be safe'
Rudra turned around to explore the rest of the ruins before he heard the scream of a man. Rudra rushed towards the sound for a scene he was not prepared for
The previously drunk man was now slapping and screaming insults at the face of another man who was cowering away. His arms clutched his hair and was hyperventilating while whispering something to himself
However, that was not the issue
Lakshmi's body lay on the floor while the earth stained itself red in thirst. Three stab wounds lay beside a few claw marks on her shoulder on her stomach staining here pretty blue blouse. Her eyelids wide open as her face betrayed the shock she felt. Her hands tied behind her as she still wriggled for freedom. The knife that stabbed her lay a few inches away from her
Rudra's eyes widened in surprise and shock as he could not process what he was saying. He ran towards her while untying the rope.
"Hey, hey stay with me. It is going to be ok. We are going to take you to a hospital right"
Her hands clutched his shoulders for support as he gently and hurriedly picked her up
"I didn't want to do it" came a small voice from the cowering man
"What the hell did you say you son of a bitch?" asked the other in anger
"I didn't do it on purpose" he screamed in anger. His anger turned into confusion and then fear as he looked at his hands as his fingers shook. "I don't know what came over me. I was so drunk and so… so angry. And.. and then something talked to me.. promising so many good things… and then she came… " his index pointed to Lakshmi as the reason for his misery. "She started talking about some spirits.. and something cursed or so.. it made me.. made me so confused… and then the voice told me she was like them. Laughing at my plight. It told me to take revenge so... so I did it"
"You son of a bitch. You stab an innocent girl and now you say this?" The other man cocked his arm back and punched whimpering man on the jaw knocking him out cold
'Cursed spirit? That explains the claw marks. But what is this whispering about?' thought Rudra in shock as he listened in. He shook his head as he yelled
"We have got to get her to a hospital. Leave him here"
The other man gathered his bearings as he ran towards the road with Rudra behind him
"Anyone, get us a car. We need to take an injured girl to the hospital. There is no time to spare." The man yelled as they reached the road.
The people who were lazily lounging outside the temple overheard and started relaying the message forward. A police jeep drew forward with a private van behind. Few self-proclaimed nurses helped them with a makeshift stretcher into the vans with a policeman in the front seat
"Man, I always tell these mother****kers to put an ambulance on standby also. But they always site some issue with money or not enough people and ignore my warning" yelled the policeman as he motioned for the driver to follow the jeep to the hospital
A few little ants carried their friend to safety
The vehicles drove across the bumpy road littered with potholes as the cursing of the policeman became louder. His voice snapped silent as a softer voice spoke.
"I wanted to become a designer. Will I get to do that?" asked Lakshmi as her voice gargled with pain. The nurses immediately started coddling her telling her to not strain herself. Yet she spoke
"I wanted to…." a painful cough interrupted her before she spoke again
"I didn't want to actually do that. I wanted to become famous and loved. I wanted to travel the world and eat all the sweets in the world. Can I.." a single tear and sniffles interrupted her before she spoke again. "Can I do that now?"
A few cries and comforting words to her came from the audience as they soon silenced themselves with grim determination
Rudra looked at her blouse which was stained red on blue
Red, deep lovely red. As red as the pomegranates she once enjoyed
They soon reached the hospital. The loaded her onto the hospitals stretcher trolley as people yelled at the nurses for the doctor as they fled towards the ICU. Rudra grasped her hand as they kept running.
Soon a doctor joined them in front of the ICU. His grim expression turned into confusion as he looked at the girl's eyes. His confused face once again turned grim as he touched her neck to feel her pulse.
"Stop." He yelled holding a hand up
"What the hell do you mean stop? She needs to be treated quick" yelled Rudra
"It is no use. She has already passed away"
"What the hell do you mean? She is still alive. She is still grasping my hand, look." Rudra yelled as he brought his hand out forward.
However, her hand fell out of his.
Rudra looked at his hand
It was empty
It felt empty
Just as he felt
His breath grew louder. His pupils dilated as his other hand clutched his chest. He fell down to his knees as sweat poured from his forehead.
Everything around him felt dizzy. Voices of concern and warning blurred around him.
However, nothing mattered
One thing ran across his brain
One thought in his mind
'Is this the same no matter where I go?'
The spider saw neither prey nor a target. So, it spun a web. A web in its mind
'Is it going to be the same as when I was '
He was immediately propped up against the seat. His hearing returned before his vision
"Are you fine boy? Shit stupid question. Uhmm… do you need anything. Water or anything?" asked the nurse as she shook him.
He nodded numbly
For now, this was the best he could do
He sat on the seat
Curled up.
People all around him
Yet so alone.
It happened again
Just like when he was
A few moments later loud wailing from his right snapped him out of his thoughts
"My baby. My dear baby girl. What has happened to you?" her mother wailed as she clutched Lakshmi's feet.
Her husband cried silently beside her. He tore of his shirt and threw it.
A yellow shirt.
Bright yellow. As yellow as the mango Rudra enjoyed.
Her brothers stood behind them. Half shocked and silently grieving.
Like two little ants that stayed behind everyone else
However suddenly Rudra's spider sense trembled. His eyes picked up something moving away from the window. Something small. Something cursed
His eyes sharpened.
His legs regained strength
The spider found its prey
He bolted out of his seat and ran for the exit. He ran around the hospital so that whatever cursed spirit was there before did not see him.
He climbed to the top of the hospital
'There it is'
He saw something like a blackslime moving around. It slowly moved across the wall trying to move away from the hospital windows
'No, you don't.'
Rudra shot two webs at it and yanked it upwards. The cursed spirit flailed to get free but inevitably ended up in Rudra's hands.
"Tell me. What are you? Don't bother acting dumb. The fact that you spoke to the man means you have intelligence."
It's one eye zoned in on Rudra's two. A wide stretchy mouth appeared on it as the top of the eye flattened out as if it was speaking in joy (think of slime version of black zetsu from Naruto)
"A human that talks to a cursed spirit. That is fine. I will tell you what I am. I am…"
"Don't bother" yelled out a voice behind Rudra. He turned to find a slightly sweating Mariamma.
"It took some time to find you, but when I heard the crowd talking about some boy with an injured girl, I rushed here" she said so that Rudra wouldn't have to ask
Rudra turned back at the slime and squeezed it hard as it's eyes widened in fear.
"What is it?"
"It is a cursed spirit born from the tales of the Kuttichathan and the like. Particularly of it's mischievous behaviours. Of course, it is not the actual thing, and the original cursed spirit was killed long before. However, due to some barriers from a sorcerer in Japan called Tengen, this spirit whenever reincarnated is weak and completely out of the original shape. In return for being weak however, it is extremely sneaky and can pretty much become untraceable to eyes or even advanced cursed energy trackers. It also keeps its advanced intelligence despite being a weak spirit"
"So that is what this thing is huh. All this was a fun little trick to it huh" said Rudra as he started squeezing
"It was not a trick. It was revenge" the cursed spirit yelled out
"What?" Rudra said in shock
"Yes, it was in revenge. You killed my friends at the temple. They did no harm to anyone. Yet you…" a slimy tear ran down from the cursed spirits face. "You killed them for no reason."
"What do you mean for no reason? Every single cursed spirit tries to attack humans"
"Only the ones that interfere with us. Even then we did not attack anyone. Why should we be crucified for things that someone else has done?"
Rudra stood in silent shock in hearing this. It was kind of true. He had not seen the spirits at the church attack anyone. He had simply attacked them on the assumption that they would inevitably run out of luck and attack.
Mariamma silently looked at Rudra to see his reaction.
'For a bright child he sure finds it difficult to find the obvious flaws, doesn't he?' She sighed in slight disappointment. She then looked at him in concern and a tinge of sadness
'Well, I can't really blame him though. It is the first time he has seen a human die so close to him. That too one of his friends.' She stared at the heavens before looking at Rudra again
'I wonder when can children be safe enough to act like children'
"That is completely false, and you know it. Mainly due to 2 reasons"
Mariamma held up a finger before continuing
"Reason 1 is that it is not the fact that they didn't attack. It is simply because they couldn't. The talismans on the wall were made specifically so that whenever there is a person in the church, a large chunk of wasted cursed energy automatically gets absorbed into the barrier. The greater number of people the stronger it gets. Of course, this only works because it is such a small, enclosed space so naturally you would be pushed outside to the graveyard. I also make sure that no high cursed spirits are born by carefully killing them routinely. So, if anything, you should have focused your act of revenge on me first. Like killing some weak person related to me as revenge for them"
She held up her second finger and continued
"The second is that if you only had low level cursed spirits as friends for some reason and thus evaded my killings, why did you not join them while they were fighting Rudra?"
She smiled as the cursed spirit wriggled to move as it realised the conversation was falling apart
"You want to know what I think? I think that you only saw them as minions. Minions who would complete your orders. As such you saw no reason to guide them during the attack while standing close. After all minions are disposable, aren't they? Now that you are out of minions, you are finding it difficult to convince other stronger curses to join you as no one wants a weak leader. So, you wanted to attack someone close to Rudra and cause him pain as now a few cursed spirits have seen him fight or at least noticed his strength. Use that to convey the message that while you can't beat him physically, you can tear him down mentally. Did I get this much right?"
Rudra's grip on the spirit tightened, choking it.
"So that is all it was. A plan for more minions. For just that you made a man kill an innocent girl"
"I made?" the curse spat out. "I did not make that man do anything. He was already on the verge of madness. He lost his job, and the bank took his house for a loan he could not pay. His neighbours did nothing other than offer him words of comfort. He was already half drunk when I saw him. I tried to coerce him into doing something dangerous for fun and saw that this girl that you hang around so much following us. I simply used what frustration he had. I did not manufacture anything"
Rudra was livid. All this. All this just for an innocent girl's death. A man that meant no harm pushed to murder another
"Wait no…" the curse spluttered as his fingers now stretched across it's body
"Listen to what I…" were the last words it said before Rudra crushed it between his fingers. A moment of silence stretched as he looked at his palm
It was empty
As empty as it was when hers fell out of his
"Mariamma amachee."
"Yes"
"I want to go home"
"You don't want to see the others?"
"No." Rudra hesitated. Tears welled up in his eyes as he looked to the sky.
"I just want to go home"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
A heavy downpour made itself known on Rudra's doorstep. Yet he was not there to see it.
Leela held out a hand and the raindrops traced their path on her hand. She looked back at Rudra's room
"Rudra, come outside. You love the rain. Feel it for a bit" she yelled gently.
"Don't bother him. He needs time. He is still grieving." Gregory said from the living room as he folded the newspaper he was reading
"Dear but how long will this go on? He has locked himself in that room for a few days and only comes out to eat" she asked as she wiped tears from her face
"Don't pressure him dear. Different people do it differently."
Leela hugged him as she sobbed on his chest while he patted her head gently. It carried on until he noticed the priest in white robes and a black umbrella coming towards the house through the window. He quickly tapped Leela's shoulder and pointed at him. They both immediately straightened their posture as Leela wiped away her tears and went to the door
"Ahah Leela mol and Gregory mon is here. It is good to see a familiar face in this harsh storm" he replied as he closed his umbrella and let it lean against the wall outside. He wiped away a bit of sweat from his grey hairs as he took off his sandals. (mon/mone is referred to a younger boy or son.)
"Welcome father." she said with a strained smile that betrayed her worry while kissing his hand
"Thank you dear" he said with a smile that acknowledged her worry. He looked sideways to see Gregory getting up from the couch
"Oh you don't need to stand. Please sit." He said waving a hand at him. He moved himself to the opposite couch to sit down while Leela moved towards the kitchen.
"Leela mol I have come to meet you too. I won't be staying long so don't bother getting coffee or tea. I just wanted to talk to you both. Come sit down" he said while pointing to the space beside Gregory.
Once they settled in he asked gravely
"So, I guess we will breach the main topic. How is Rudra holding up?"
Leela once again fell into tears as Gregory answered grimly.
"Not that great. He has holed himself in that room ever since he came home. Luckily Mariamma amachee explained the situation. He only comes out nowadays to get his food and take it back to his room. Ah and then he came out to take out the package that Anand gave"
"Ah I see that Anand is also not holding that well"
"Ya he is always drunk now and wandering about. Even when I try to talk with him, he just sits there with a blank look as if nothing matters. The same goes for his wife. His wife is now continuously breaking down and crying and can't do much work either. The brothers do the housework and a bit of the farm work right now. Luckily we, a few other families and the youth group have come together to support them financially. But seeing how it is going now, I am not sure if that is not enough"
"Hmm, I heard he hasn't done his daughter's final rites yet. I guess it is a tall ask for them to do that. That Avinash boy is still in the hospital from shock though. Physically he is making a recovery but mentally I guess he will be scarred for life" he said as he sighed. He clapped his hands to bring them back to the current topic
"Have you shown Rudra to any doctor?"
"We did. Physically he is fine but he refuses to talk much to them"
"Hmm I see. Do you mind if I try?"
"Are you sure?" asked Gregory hesitantly.
"If I cannot even attempt to help a poor boy like Rudra, then what right do I have to call myself a priest. However though" he said pointing at both of them. "I will need privacy with the boy"
"Very well then father. Do as you think is best." Gregory said as he cajoled Leela to leave the room with him. They took the priests umbrella and stood outside.
The priest went to Rudra's room and leaned against the door frame.
"So, Rudra. How are you? I haven't seen you at church at all." He said to the closed door
"I am not interested in talking father. I already know why you are here."
"Ohoh, so if you know why I am here, then you also know for whom I am here too no?"
"I don't want to talk father" he repeated again
"Hmm, but your parents are quite worried about you. I guess you know that too huh?"
"I…" some shuffling sounds and creaks of the bed came from inside. "I just need some time"
"Hmm, maybe you do, but Rudra, tell me. Has any of the time you have taken till now produced anything useful or is it just creating more sorrow?"
"I… I don't know. I just want to be left alone."
"Maybe. Maybe that is what you need. But we got to make sure, no? Otherwise, no matter how much time you take, it won't be enough."
"I don't know father. It all seems pointless."
"Hmm what exactly seems pointless"
"Life, death, everything. What is the use if we are all fated to die?"
"Well I could go on about the Bible for that but I think I will tell something else" he stopped and softly grinned
"Tell me Rudra. There are flowers in your garden that bloom when the sun shines one day and the wither and fade a few days after. Is their beauty when they lived overshadowed by the withering of their petals?"
"I… I guess not"
"Same thing here. Each one has their own life. Their own beauty to explore. When you are in the land of the living, do not worry about the land of the dead."
"Isn't that different from what the bible says about believing in Christ?"
"Maybe. But then at the end does it matter? I say no. In all honesty there is a chance even Christianity is wrong too. Maybe even none of the religions are right and the atheists were the ones right too. Even then if you truly are a good human being does it matter? Do good because you want to do good. Not just because you fear retribution."
"Are you not afraid that what you believed true to be false. You are a priest after all. You do the Holy Qurbana too"
"Maybe. But then again, personally, I was never much a fan of organized religion. I was born Christian, so I continued in that. I became a priest because I felt I could do some good in this role. I simply do my prayers as a duty and people who know me knows that too. I have always preached to everyone I meet outside, mind you pretty much everyone I meet, to simply be a good human being regardless of religion. If God is good, he will see your good deeds and reward you for your actions. If he doesn't exist, then you will still be remembered as a good man and can see and equally good retribution from your community"
"Huh." Rudra chuckled a bit. "An agnostic has infiltrated the ranks of the priesthood huh."
"Ya well what can you do. I was pretty good at convincing my teachers, so I got the job. I do it simply because this puts in a good position to help others"
"Help huh. Maybe if I was a bit faster, I could have helped her."
"Maybe you could. But simply reaching there a bit faster doesn't guarantee that does it. No matter how much you would have strained, from what I heard, the injuries were already sever no?"
"I could have arrived before that. I could have saved her from getting stabbed"
"Maybe. Maybe you could. But will you simply sit on a pile of maybe's or move forward and learn to be better."
"What do you mean?"
The priest laughed a bit at this before answering
"I know I am not the brightest bulb but even I notice things. I always noticed from when you were a toddler that you had this strange sense of understanding. Both of the world and others. I noticed that while you played with others your physical age, while you were stronger faster and smarter than them, you still held back so as to not hurt them. And furthermore, you have the same shifty behaviour as Mariamma. It is almost as if you both are really related. The same crafty look."
"I don't understand"
"Huh, don't bother pretending child. I know there is something special about you. Both your physique and mentality prove it. My only question is what are you going to do with such a blessing?"
"What if it is not a blessing? What if it is a curse? A curse to remind me that no matter how hard I try people are always going to die."
"Well to be honest Rudra, people always die. Everything dies from the dawn of time. Some happy, some sad. The question is not if you can save them all. The question is what you can do so that you can attempt to save the person in front of you. And that includes learning from your past to become a better version of yourself."
"What do you recommend?"
"I don't recommend anything other than to follow what you already know. I know it kid. I know that you have good in you. You also know who can help you be better too. The answers are right in front of you child."
"Well," the priest said as he shuffled his feet and stretched. "It seems I have overstayed my visit, and your poor parents are still in the rain. I hope you know what to do kid."
The priest walked towards the door before he heard some shuffling from Rudra's room. He grinned as he heard the doors slam open and looked back to see Rudra run out of the room with a brown paper cover clutched to his chest.
Rudra ran out of the house while his parents called his name in surprise
He ran though the familiar path once again
People called to him
Strangers and friends alike
Yet he did not turn
He did not falter
He ran
Towards Mariamma's house
He knocked on her door and was met with her curious face
"What do you want boy? I thought you wanted to stay in your room, no?" she said as his hair covered his eyes as they dripped wet
"No, not anymore. I want to become better."
"Kid you are still young. Death like that will happen again. Enjoy your life. You are talented. You can always live a successful normal life."
"Maybe. But what happened today will happen to others won't it? Who will be there then?"
"Do you think you can handle the sadness?"
"Yes" Rudra pushed his hair up to reveal his eyes.
His eyes were no longer black
A single black Tomoe spun against a blood red background
The simple sight of it sent a chill down Mariamma's spine. She had no idea what it wass, but she knew it was powerful
"So, you want to be a sorcerer?"
"No" he shook his head as he reached into the cover and pulled out a mask
A mask of a saviour
A mask of power
A mask of responsibility
"I want to be Spider-man"