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Chapter 1. Where Water Magic Brought the Curse

August 1896

The bright morning sunlight tried its best to cut through the grove of trees just a little over two miles away from the new premises of the Collegium of Sanskrit Magic. Whereas the sunlight was unsuccessful to make any dent through the dense undergrowth, the trees felt the wrath of one Eshanth Rajagopalan, currently slicing away precisely at twigs and leaves with razor sharp jets of water. Invisible to the untrained eye, but Eshanth worked at pulling the moisture from the humid August air and shaped it into multiple rings of water spinning around him, as it directed certain amounts to take forms of sharp objects and cut and stab away at various forest objects.

He had allowed himself the luxury of forgetting about the embarrassment he had caused himself last year – having failed to dissect the harmonium and forfeiting the ritual; but, most importantly, forgetting the ordeals communicated by Ekantika in her latest letter.

“Dear Eshu Bhaiya,

I don’t know whether this was a dream, a hallucination or visions from the future. I think it has definitely something to do with the cantharide powder the tantrik had suggested to Nana. Well, you see, my fever and headaches gradually started and I had a crippling attack last week. Nana contacted a local tantrik who suggested some remedy from his apothecary.

After ingesting it, I have been a fitful night’s sleep every night. I see the same thing over and over again, a girl falling off a waterfall – I don’t know if it is me or I am the spectator. But I see you jump in after her. And before you can recover, the nightmare dissipates. I don’t know what these nightmares are supposed to represent.

I am scared bhaiya. Please come back. Let me meet you one last time. I feel strange as if something bad awaits us.

Love,

Ekantika”

He felt the omens vibrate off that letter as it sat carefully folded inside his jacket, which was left hanging from the branch of a neem tree. With morning progressing into noon, and the sun decidedly beating harder down his back, Eshanth restarted slashing away at tree trunks harder. His Jalnag had manifested subconsciously, out of an inherent need to keep his emotions in check, and monitor his rage and anxiety. However, in between his shots, Eshanth could feel his mind slipping to the past…

*

Four years earlier.

“Eshu Bhaiyaaaa, why do we need to go to the temple when this puja is done only for first-borns?” Ekantika whined as she held onto Eshanth’s hand who led the way to the nearby Brihadeshvara Temple. 

It was the day of Prathamastami, when the parents in every Hindu family had to offer their prayers to Lord Vishnu in order to gain his blessings and protection for their first-born. But Eshanth’s parents, while being strict about traditions, had the opinion that other children in the family also deserved blessing and protection and a special day for only the first-borns was unfair. And that is how Ekantika was also unwillingly dragged into this whole shebang. 

Eshanth had just started his schooling in the famous Collegium of Cholan Lore located in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. At 16, he felt like he was on the cusp of finally living life the way he had always envisioned it. A natural at water element and effortlessly brilliant at his other classes – he knew that after four more years, he could utilize his powers to exorcise various evils and also travel the Indian sub-continent while doing so.

His Collegium was affiliated with the Brihadeshvara Temple, patronized since ages by members of the Chola and Pandya dynasties, a lineage he also belonged to. They prided himself for not being as flashy with their magic as their Northern counterparts, but rather strictly enforced a high level of control over powers and their careful and sparing usage in solving grave, mortal problems. They did not believe into jumping headfirst to solve the littlest of supernatural issues plaguing the non-magical folks, for they believed in the will of the Tridev – Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva – who would not afflict humans without cause.

Thank Gods for the small, picturesque and virtually-untouched-by-the-British town of Madurai, thought Eshanth as he guided his 10-year-old sister to the Temple for the puja. Their parents were already there, setting things up with the priest. Ekantika has thrown a fit and it was up to Eshanth to mollify her. She only ever listened to her big brother. Their house, the Collegium and the Temple were just a little off way from one other, so getting from one place to another by foot was easy.

The only thing that ticked Eshanth off about the arrangements was that they had settled on that priest. It was no secret that Pandit Gokul was the only non-magical staff at his Collegium. He could have gotten a job anywhere but his ancestors had served at the Temple and so he was obligated to do it, too. Embittered by his peers’ powers and the bondage to legacy, he had become the resident grumpy old man. And only Lord Mahadev knew what his special problem with Eshanth was, because as soon as he came into the Pandit’s periphery…

“Ah, there is our privileged first-born! Must it not feel wonderful to have a day devoted to solely yourself, apart from of course, your birthday,” he sneered, “Wait, what is she doing here?” he flinched, directing his sneer towards Ekantika.

“She is also sitting for the Puja” Eshanth deadpanned. His parents were away - probably making offerings to various Gods at the various mini temples scattered around the main Temple.

“Second-borns or any other children for that matter are not allowed to be present during the Prathamastami Puja” the pandit said, ceasing the arrangements that he was busy making, crossing his arms and staring down at the siblings.

“And where is this dictum specified exactly? Pray tell me which God wrote you the sweet letter about this word?” Eshanth replied, as the prayer room went cold.

“SILENCE, BOY!” the pandit roared and advanced upon the siblings threateningly, “Your insolence is going to be your downfall. I may not be versed in Sanskrit magic but I still have the arts of stars instilled in me deeply by my late grandmother. I don’t need to bend elements to clearly see that you mean trouble for your family and friends.”

Before Eshanth could retort, he felt a little pull on his kurta. “Bhaiyya, let it be” Ekantika implored him to restrain himself. Eshanth held himself and the clearly scared Ekantika out of the prayer room to avoid any further confrontation and to wait for their parents. Eshanth wanted to be done with the puja soon. He did not want to stay in the vicinity of the pandit anymore.

Soon their parents returned, totally oblivious to the animosity between Pandit Goku and Eshanth, and requested Pandit Goku to start the puja, calling Eshanth to sit before the fire pit. Pandit Gokul proceeded coldly through the ceremony, doing the bare minimum monotonously while Eshanth, too. maintained a stoic attitude, cooperating only for the sake of his parents.

The puja took about half an hour, at the end of which the Pandit started packing up only to be stopped by Eshanth’s mother, Latika.

“Pandit ji, can you please also undertake the same ceremony for Ekantika?” she asked politely.

The Pandit’s face did not even move a single muscle as he glared at Eshanth’s mother for a whole minute. “No” he said and resumed packing up.

“But why?” Latika was confused.

“Because this puja is clearly named Prathamastami, meaning only first-borns get blessed.”

“But Ekantika has also been sitting for the puja since she was three. Pandit Venu has always included her too,” this time Eshanth’s father, Shantanu interjected.

“Because he was always trying to be a kind, lovable fool to the masses. Well, kindness won’t get you closer to God and neither will your ignorance and foolishness regarding rituals” Pandit Gokul raised his voice.

“Watch how you speak to my parents!” Eshanth stepped in, “you are getting paid by us. We have paid you for the puja of two people, so you are going to do it!”

“Well, I’m sorry I cannot refund the extra money, as it is sacrilegious to take back money from a brahmin. The money you gave you me was essentially offerings to the Gods themselves. Meanwhile, I think you have attracted enough bad omens and energy onto yourselves by arguing with a brahmin,” the pandit said condescendingly.

Eshanth was almost going to call out the pandit on his avarice despite being a brahmin, when he was stopped by his mother. “No, Eshanth, leave it. We’ll have Ekantika sit for the puja next year.”

“Yes, please incur the wrath of the Gods on some other priest’s account. Just not mine” the pandit voiced acerbically as he went about his business. 

No one knows whether the pandit actually accidentally kicked the little water brass pot kept near the fire pit, but everyone remembers the pot had tipped, spilling the holy water out; Pandit Gokul being too late to notice the same as his left foot stepped into it and he came crashing down; his forehead precariously hitting the edge of the pit.

The silence was deafening, interspersed with the clang of the still rolling brass pot and suddenly, there was a mad scramble to help up the incapacitated pandit who was floating in and out of consciousness.

“That boy. That cursed water user,” he stammer-whispered, “he tipped the pot, I know it, Agni is my witness.”

At his words, the dying embers in the fire pit slowly came back to life, as if inflamed by the fuel of the pandit’s hatred towards Eshanth, catching everyone’s attention.

“Agni is my witness… why that wretched, pampered second-born girl of yours will suffer. The arrogance of your entitled son will be the downfall of the Rajagopalan family,” and before he slipped into unconsciousness forever, he said, “His powers will be the cause the reason the rest of you remain powerless for the rest of your lives.”

Back to Present Day

Truly, that fateful day seemed like the day all their miseries started originating. Pandit Gokul’s death was, of course, ruled an accident. But there was some amount of apprehension amongst the Rajagopalan’s as to whether Eshanth’s power had gone out of control. But this apprehension slowly crystallized into fact, as four-five months after the incident, Ekantika started showing signs of an unknown illness. She would surreptitiously cough blood into the edge of her dupatta until one day, the house help had caught the same while doing the laundry.

No doctor or shaman could tend to it and Eshanth’s mother grew more and more paranoid, convinced that it was Eshanth’s doing. There was no secret that Latika had wanted a little girl badly,  and had madly adored Ekantika, that she had openly defied society’s expectations which always treated girls as second-class citizens.

Eshanth had also started guilt-tripping, slowly receding into a shell and refusing to use any powers during his time at the southern collegium. Finally, after the principal of his old collegium heard of the entire incident and the ensuing ordeal, he surmised that Ekantika had been plagued by a disease set upon her, potentially by, and in the presence of, Lord Agni - catalysed by Pandit Goku’s final words. It would only take a powerful fire user who believes in the Rajagopalans’ purity to reverse Ekantika’s curse.

Under the impression that as Ekantika had been stricken due to her family’s folly, her parents and brother decided to put some space between themselves and her, much to her dismay. “It’s for your own good. We’ll try to find you a cure. We’ll be back together again soon. Stay strong,” they had promised her and left her in her maternal grandmother’s care.

Transferring to the new Collegium during his second year and gradually making new friends had been the brightest spot in Eshanth’s dreary life, yet. However, he did not forget his true goal – to try to become stronger for his and his sister’s sake. And also, find a capable enough fire user who could help reverse Ekantika’s curse. So far, only one candidate had shown some promise.