Profane rites, p.13
Profane Rites, page 13
“Mother, with the greatest of respect, I follow the teachings of the Bhagava. She cautions all of us about extending above our stations, about giving up our humility in the search for something more. My love of Devi is a simple thing, a pure calling. I worry that these words that you ask me to meditate upon are anathema to my faith.”
The tensing of Severa’s hands was the only sign that her temper was returning. The old woman took a few deep breaths before replying. “Sister, you are a simple child in comparison to me. You would be wise to listen to me when I tell you what I know about the world. What I offer you is a tremendous gift; knowledge that you would not be offered elsewhere. But I can see that mere words will not convince you. I must show you.”
Severa clasped both hands before herself and closed her eyes. She began murmuring a silent prayer. Honorata could not tell what words came from her lips. That sensation which drew her to this place resumed, the familiarity of the Song being spoken by a follower of Devi. A reminder of her years in the abbey, the echo of a hundred priestesses before her reverberating through her brain. But there was something different here. The power grew by the second, Severa focusing and calling the Song into herself. There was a strange edge to this prayer, something about this blessing that she had never seen before. A hint of something alien, although not with the sickening taint that had infected Shankar’s aura.
She could feel the force of the woman’s power. Far greater than she had sensed before. It took her breath away. Like a wild river in comparison to the controlled trickle that Honorata could reach on her own. Even when linked with Mother Benedicta, she had never felt anything like this; that had been the magnification of the same familiar power that she could grasp herself. This was different.
“Open your mind to me, my child. I will show you.”
Honorata resisted at first. She was afraid. The wild tumult of the Song flowing through Severa terrified her. It was too different, too dangerous, too much for her to comprehend. She did not want to let herself go lest she be washed away, the sensation seeming too powerful for her mind to comprehend. Then she found herself slipping, losing control of herself. Before she could form another thought, she was caught in the flood of Song flowing into that ancient temple in the middle of the jungle.
She floated. Alone and unthinking. Only barely aware of herself. It was too much. At least at first. Gradually she began to adjust to what she was experiencing. At first her vision returned, an awareness of an all-encompassing blue glow. To simply call it blue was an insult to this colour though. It was far more than that, richer than she could have possibly imagined, the colour of infinite possibilities. To behold it filled her with joy and awe.
She felt her senses expand. Not just the sights and sounds to which she was accustomed; those seemed trivial things in the grip of this trance. She was not only aware of herself, her surroundings, but so much more. She could see herself, small and fragile. A young woman dressed in the garb of an ancient Church, her head shorn almost to the skin, her skinny body lost in that black fabric. She could sense the pulse of life from within her form, ebbing and flowing, a vibrant thing, which filled her body and more. She could see it clearly now! Her life force was a beautiful thing in its own right, both simple and natural but utterly complex at the same time, small enough to be contained within her insignificant body but much more, so much more.
And then there was Severa. Where Honorata’s soul was a garden, filled with flowers reaching for the sun, a whole ecosystem thriving in harmony, Severa’s was as wild as the jungle, which surrounded them. The force of her life dwarfed Honorata’s. It loomed over her, felt like it surrounded her, crowding out her very existence, yet it remained throbbing within that skeletal frame buried in that filthy black robe.
She could see Yonas outside the temple. He stood, obviously alarmed by the shouting from within but uncertain as to whether it was his place to intervene. She could see his soul. It was different to that of the two priestesses. Where theirs was a thing of wild beauty, infinite potential and growth, his was a solid shape. It spoke of rigidity and certainty, endurance and perseverance. It was beautiful in its own way, but she saw how limited a being he was. He had no idea what he was lacking! It was unthinkable to live in such a way, without the limitless potential of a soul like hers. She would have pitied the man, if not gripped by the power of the trance—she could feel no negative emotion in that moment. Rather, her curiosity of Yonas’s spirit was an intellectual thing, a study of an inferior species, devoid of emotion because why would she feel emotion for something so foreign to herself.
And then she comprehended the connections. The world around them, a web of fine and all-encompassing spiritual links. Thin filaments of gossamer thread, connecting every living thing around them. A broad, thick bind connected Honorata and Severa. It pulsed and throbbed with a life of its own. Weaker links connected both women to Yonas, Honorata’s connection to the swordsman a far more vibrant thing compared to what he shared with the old woman. And then a web of links to the other beasts surrounding this place. The monkeys in their troop, sleeping nestled in the canopy of the trees. A crocodile lurking unseen in the water nearby. Two tigers, silently prowling through the jungle in unison. A host of birds. A flurry of ten thousand insects. It went on and on. Honorata could sense it all and the longer she remained in this trance, the more she could see, the more she could sense, the more she could comprehend about the world around her.
And then it ended. Severa stole that world away from Honorata in an instant, the sudden absence of that enlightenment an agony. A profound sense of loss enveloped Honorata as she gasped. She felt numb, felt nothing. Imprisoned in her physical senses, it felt like she was looking through a keyhole at the whole of existence, catching just a glimpse of the majesty of the world around her.
“You speak of Devi, but you do not understand. I have seen the face of our god, I have held her hand and I have walked in her shoes. That is but a glimpse of what I know. Of what I can do.” Severa placed both hands on Honorata’s shoulders, holding her gaze with those clouded eyes. “That is what the Church has kept from you. Go. Leave this place. We are done for now.”
Chapter Thirteen
The journey back from the temple was mostly silent. Honorata had much on her mind. Yonas tried probing, plainly curious as to what went on in that ancient building. Evidently he felt nothing of the ritual that was performed within. He heard shouting and an argument, but not ever enough that he feared for Honorata’s life. As far as he knew, she was simply in a small room with an old woman. Sensibly, any threats would be coming from the outside, he explained. She was not minded to tell him about Severa’s true nature. It was enough that the ghoul was on the loose and that Shankar was somehow pulling strings with an unknown goal in mind. There was nothing that Yonas could do anyway; he knew nothing of the ways of the Song. He could neither understand the significance of what took place nor do anything to help in a practical sense.
So they walked in silence. A few words exchanged periodically, the polite stuff of strangers sharing a road. Yonas seemed comfortable enough with the quiet in the end, perhaps used to travelling companions with a reluctance to talk for the sake of it.
Honorata used the silence to do exactly what she protested to Severa that she would not do. To meditate upon the mystery of what she had felt. To contemplate what it meant in the grander scheme of things. To question why the world was the way that it was when there was a secret like that hidden just below the surface of perception.
Surely Severa was not the first to discover that power. There was nothing unnatural or heretical about the experience by the way that it felt. Nothing of the profane that Shankar cloaked himself with. Why would the priestesses of Devi reject such a thing? How could they blind themselves to that majesty?
All that she had been taught, a lifetime of education and study, had been but a fraction of the truth. She had spent her adult life, admittedly just a few short years so far, thinking that she was one of the lucky few who knew the real truth, who were blessed with feeling the clarity and serenity of the Song. But she was just as naive as those who heard nothing, who knew nothing about what it was like to channel that power. She had gone from feeling like she had all the answers to feeling like a child again, in awe of her teachers who effortlessly grasped the nature of the world around them.
But if this ritual was truly the work of Devi, then why did the Church forsake it? Why would Severa be forced to practice these things in the middle of inhospitable jungle if the ritual was accepted as orthodoxy by the Church? The very nature of how Severa had secluded herself suggested that this thing was against the teachings of the Church. And Church law was abundantly clear on this point: the misuse of the Song of Devi was a crime punishable by excommunication. Or worse. It was always a theoretical concept; how would someone abuse a power that did not much more than heal and bless those in need? There were those who had relied upon cheap displays of power to win some material gain, but that was the act of the desperate and hopeless. There was no point engaging in such acts of charlatanry when a priestess simply had to follow the Church law and there was so much more to gain.
Severa seemed far from desperate and hopeless. She was intelligent, bizarre, driven and distracted. A woman entirely lacking in the discipline, which defined the soul of a priestess but with more ability than anyone she had ever sensed.
And so, the thoughts roiled in Honorata’s head, a cloud of confusion and uncertainty. Debating herself over and over, taking one position and then the other, torn between what she had been taught and what she had seen. Because she was lost so deeply in her thoughts, it was Yonas who had to point out the approach of Manjit.
They must have only been an hour’s walk from of Aluia when they saw him. Their winding jungle path followed the lazy loop of the river, occasionally brushing the banks and at other times driving deeper into the wilds. It was at one of those times when they were closer to the water that Yonas saw the youth approaching, announcing his appearance with a subtle clearing of his throat, which snapped Honorata from her internal monologue.
Manjit wore the black kurta and carried the same spear that he had held at Partho’s fort, his feet bare and his long black hair tied back neatly. He waved as he saw them, a broad smile visible on his face even at a distance. He carried a sack over his shoulder, although the weight did not seem to trouble him much. As they approached, he greeted them with a shout.
“Ho, Sister! It is good that we meet!”
Honorata did not want to be seen to be shouting so she awkwardly nodded, not even sure if Manjit could see the gesture from that distance, and continued walking towards the man. She noticed Yonas’s hand move subtly to the hilt of his sword.
As they drew close enough to speak without yelling, Manjit tried again. “Sister, it is lucky that we have stumbled upon each other!”
“May Devi bless you, child. You come from Aluia?”
“Yes, Sister. Partho sent me to pick up some supplies.” He hefted the sack that was slung over his shoulder as if to demonstrate the point. “They usually send me to do errands like this. I guess they figure I’m not much use defending the fort. But that’s fine by me. I enjoy it. A change of scenery to break up the monotony of training and more training,” he said with a grin.
Yonas interrupted the man with an annoyed tone. “Manjit, I’m glad you’re having a pleasant journey, but we’ve been on quite a long one ourselves and we’ve earned a soft bed and something nice to eat, so if it’s all the same to you, we might keep on moving.”
“Wait—before you go, I’ve got something to tell you. About the ghoul. Partho told me to let you know something. I looked around Aluia for you and no one could tell me where you ended up, so I had given up hope. But here we are.” His grin broadened. “Like I said before, lucky.”
“What is it, Manjit?” Yonas persisted with his impatience.
“After what you said to Partho, he had the scouts do some looking around. We can’t have a threat like that lurking nearby. And we found something. There’s a valley not far from here, just south of what the locals call Red Goat Hill. There’s a cave there where we found a heap of bones and other stuff—it’s got to be the ghoul. Our scouts were sure of it.”
“Did your scouts actually see the beast?” asked Honorata.
“No, Sister. I don’t think so, but these fellows know their business. They’ve been scouting these parts for more years than I’ve been alive. They swear that there’s no animals around here that make a nest like that. It’s the ghoul alright, of that we’re certain.”
“And why did Partho ask you to tell us about this?”
“That I don’t know, Sister. Who can say with that man. He didn’t get to where he is by being a soft touch but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t care about the people of Aluia either. Maybe he wants to do something to help without actually doing something to help?” Manjit shrugged. “I’ll be on my way. The lads at the fort are desperate for these spices and they’ll have me over a barrel if I’m not quick about it.”
He gave them one last grin before spinning about and heading off the trail into the jungle. Honorata watched him leave with a frown.
“What do you make of that, Yonas?”
“Hard to say. He’s an odd little man, but that doesn’t mean that his information isn’t accurate. I don’t trust Partho though, not with the reputation that that man has.”
“Yes, that is a wise position to take. I do not think that it is something that we should involve ourselves with in any event. At least, not directly.”
“Agreed. Come on, Sister. Let us find some hot food and some sleep.” They watched as Manjit disappeared from sight, swallowed by the impenetrable jungle, the flight of a bright-red bird disturbed from its nest the only sign of his passing.
* * *
After enjoying the luxury of bathing, they shared a meal with Mihir in his manor. The headman’s table carried a curry of fish and coconut milk, served with wide flat bread, which had been charred over an open fire. Yonas devoted himself to the food while Honorata and Mihir spoke.
“Sister, I appreciate the information that you’ve brought, but we’ve tried twice to fight the ghoul and both times had ended in disaster. The people of Aluia don’t have the appetite for a third.”
Honorata nodded at that. “That is understandable, Mihir. I do not wish to encourage more violence, and the ghoul is undoubtedly a dangerous opponent in any event. However, I wanted to share this information so that you could be fully informed.”
“And for that I thank you, but there’s not much we can do with it. We’ve already had a handful of families leave in the last week because they couldn’t bear to live with the threat of that monster lurking around our walls. And while you’ll never hear me say this in public, who can blame them? The thing could show up at any moment and savage any of us.” He took a mouthful of food and chewed before continuing.
“I’ve done all that I can to keep the people safe. We’ve put together a militia, we have nightly patrols, I have the people training twice a week to make sure that they know one end of the spear from the other. But if anything, all these precautions have just made everyone even more nervous. It means that they’ve got to think about the ghoul, even when we can’t see it and have no idea where it is. The blasted thing does just as much damage when it’s not here!”
“I am deeply troubled to hear that, Mihir. I will pray for you and the people of Aluia. Of course, we will do anything within our power to help, but I fear that there does not seem to be much that we can do at the moment.”
“Perhaps there is, Sister. What about Brewer?” Mihir asked with a raised eyebrow.
“That man has refused to assist. I could not convince him previously. I am sorry,” she said.
“Hear me out, Sister. We’ve now got something to work with, we’ve got a place where we think the ghoul might be. Brewer should be just as worried about this thing as we are. His men aren’t in the clear by any stretch of the imagination.” He waved a piece of flatbread to emphasise his point. “And before, he was worried about Partho and the rebels mounting an attack against him, so he was too afraid to leave his little stockade. But things have settled down! There hasn’t been any fighting in weeks. And we know for a fact that Partho has pretty much decided to dig in and wait it out. He’s no threat to anyone right now!”
By this stage, Yonas had finished his share of food and was resting back in his chair. “Maybe he’s right, Sister. Partho didn’t look too interested in anything outside the walls of his fort. Maybe we could pass on this information to Brewer—the rumours about the ghoul and what we know about what Partho is up to—and we could let Brewer decide. The man seemed willing to help, just too afraid of the rebels to put a plan into action.”
Honorata shook her head. “No, I do not want to become involved in the machinations of any conflict between Brewer and Partho. I do not want to be a messenger that delivers intelligence about an enemy to an army of soldiers. I will not allow myself to be a tool of men determined to do violence against one another.”
“But that’s the thing, Sister, you would be doing the opposite!” said Mihir. “This isn’t information about where to find their enemies or anything like that. It’s information about how to help the innocent people of Aluia! I don’t see how telling Brewer that Partho is comfortable within the confines of his own walls is doing anything to encourage the spilling of blood in these parts.”
She frowned. Perhaps the men were right? The Church maintained that distance from armed forces, independence from their causes was essential to their mission in Pala. If one became involved with either side of a conflict, even if it was only the perception of being involved, then any appearance of neutrality would evaporate. She could not do her work if she was seen to be favouring one side over the other. It would be the innocents who would suffer in that scenario. But both Partho and Brewer knew that she had spoken to each other. What would change if she did this thing? Manjit had not spoken of this information being a secret; he had not urged secrecy upon her. In fact, the opposite seemed true. The youth had seemed determined that she take the information and do something with it.
