"I shouldn't." She sat back, hands going to her thighs as if meditating. "But this world should. It should all terrify you, because one day the corruption will free itself from you, and you will die horrifically, brutally slaughtering many in your selfish wake."
Sugriva chuckled. "I'll be healed soon."
Ishva interrupted their banter and said, "Sugriva, you are starting the day early. How are you feeling?"
"I understand beyond myself. I feel everything around me better, and it focuses me. The air is just out of reach, and I wish it wasn't."
"In time. Wuzi, can you add water to the cauldron? Then go get Taro. I will need her to enforce it after I start the fire. Sugriva, you need to climb in. You will be immune to the fire, but this will still be ripping at parts of you, searing you physically and spiritually until you are pure."
Sugriva climbed in and took a deep breath. This is probably going to hurt, he thought. Flames licked at the cauldron, and Sugriva asked the spirits of fire to protect him from the ensuing blaze. Fire spilled over the cauldron and settled in, consuming Sugriva, though they didn't hurt—until the corruption was discovered.
He could feel the tendrils of darkness flail about his insides as the ends were burned back. A hiss emitted from his skin, with smoke bleeding from his pores. Sugriva went into shock, body rigid, mind unable to process the pain. The corruption latched onto the paralysis, and fear was born out of it.
She means to kill us. To kill you. We need to kill them. With our immunity, we could. Kill them, Sugriva. Kill them all and claim your power with Chaos, Earth, Water, and Fire. Do not let them take me from you.
The plead came too late, however. Sugriva was gone, his body and mind spasming, imprisoned by agony. Then the flames receded, the voice became a whimper, and Sugriva felt freezing water splash over him.
Ishva said, "You have endured a lot today. We will let you rest and begin again tomorrow." She kissed his forehead.
He passed out.
WHEN HE WOKE UP IT was dark. Taro shaped sculptures nearby. "I thought you were dead." She gave a sad smile, uncharacteristic for the earth spirit.
"How long?" He wanted to ask more, but the words were enough, and a cough choked them off. It felt like sand lined his throat.
"Four days." Taro came over with some food and a large vessel of water. "Drink and eat, Sugriva. I need to wake Ishva, so she can check on you. We want to make sure the corruption isn't becoming stronger with our healing."
"Is it—" he coughed and gave up speaking.
"Not one of my gifts."
When Taro disappeared to find Ishva, Sugriva dove into the food. He ate fruits and roots, with a little bit of fish. Honey drizzled into his mouth, and it never tasted so sweet. Using his tongue, he coated the roof of his mouth before swallowing. When he was done, his stomach ached to the point of wanting to vomit. So, he did the only thing a stuffed monkey could, and threw up.
Once he finished retching, he rolled over and looked at the stars. He couldn't hear the voice, but the voice was fickle and self-serving. If silence served it, then it would be silent.
He reached up for the stars and moon and whispered, "Where are you Prisha? Where are my friends who died? Do they already have new bodies so they can start a new and fruitful life? I pray they do, Ashtadash. They deserve it."
A light flared in the distance as Ishva came out of the temple. Usually she formed legs, but this time she moved swiftly as a wisp, her torso and head alone visible.
"Sugriva, you woke up. I apologize for pushing you the way I did. It was not intentional." She embraced Sugriva, and he called on protection from fire. Her guilt and concern blazed and made him sweat. "Forgive me. I understand if you do not want to continue."
"No," he rasped. "Continue."
He hobbled to the cauldron and flung himself in. The corruption reeled when she lit him on fire.
A TOME SPREAD OUT BEFORE Sugriva, as he rested from the weekly burnings. The corruption was barely a whisper in the back of his head, and there was only a black patch of fur on his shoulder. Soon he would be healed, but he didn't want to wait that long before learning everything Ramaswam could teach.
Ishva saw him looking at the tome. "Do you know much about Bahimatt, the holy city of your ancestors?"
Sugriva shook his head. "My ancestors were monkeys. But the priests claim Jaya will go there if we follow our dharma. I suppose I'll never see it."
Ishva laughed. "Man is creative." She took the tome and put it down on a nearby stone table, then thumbed through the pages until she found a map. It laid out the entire city. "This is a physical place. The water spirits created this book. They were told by their mother, Paanee, to study Bahimatt before exile. They learned whatever they could and cataloged it here, against the orders of Void. So the story goes."
Sugriva blinked away tears as his chest clenched at the thought of seeing the city. "This could be our home one day?"
"I fear one day soon," she said. "The demons rally. When they attack we will be responsible for getting as many people from Sankive to Bahimatt as we can."
"Then why haven't you gone to Jaya? They need to know. Do you know where Bahimatt is?"
"Taro does. She spent decades searching for it, becoming one with the earth. There are strong spells around it to make it nearly invisible to the senses. It even repels people who come too close."
"We need to tell Jaya."
Ishva put a hand on Sugriva's shoulder. "Jaya may not be worthy. They are haughty, and haughty is why we were exiled from Bahimatt in the first
