Ghost Monkey, стр. 50
Sugriva slipped into the water and swam for the closest shore, not too far from the shack. He hid in the bushes as his monkey self. Pankatav came out shortly after, wailing, "What are you doing? You fools! You brutes! How did he get off the island?" Sugriva assumed they could not answer her, as she went looking for him. She put a foot in the water first, likely checking if he died or was still swimming.
With the woman's eyes closed, and Sugriva nowhere near water, he slunk around the back of the shack and entered. He took the boy and his staff. The child cried, and Pankatav heard it. "You will not escape," she screamed. However, monkey had no need to defeat the woman. He left with haste, off to the tribe.
That night, Sugriva left the boy at the doorstep of a large house with a letter. "My father was a warrior. My mother was a water spirit. Please raise me as your own. My mother is dead, and my father couldn't."
Chapter NineteenThree Men and a Campfire
Age of Finality
Divyan's eyes were wide. For a long time after Sugriva finished the story, the only response was the crackle of the fire. Then Divyan said, "You had a son?"
"Have, I hope. He's either in Bahimatt or dead. The demons did a good job subjugating the jungle, and a water janaav would be a threat when he got older."
"We can look for him when we return to the city." Resolve hardened Divyan's features.
"I abandoned him twice. He is with better caretakers than me." He thought of his son, the features of the boy as he grew up to a toddler, and it made Sugriva cry. He calmed himself and threw the thoughts aside, doing his best to harden his heart.
Tears dripped down Divyan's cheeks. "You fool. I would give anything to be with Amu again."
"Amu wasn't conceived with a witch who cursed your groin with fire."
"Do you know what happened to Pankatav?"
"Yes."
Divyan continued, when it was apparent Sugriva didn't feel like elaborating. "She was a great evil. It was your duty to kill her." The hawk man scowled.
"I was already outcaste. I had no duty."
A long silence was broken by Dameneh's snoring. Both men chuckled.
Divyan asked, "How many fake Ashtadash did you meet?"
"Dozens. Every spirit who was a king in some tiny village claimed to be one. Why not? If they're old enough they have the power of gods coursing through their veins. They can bring fertility or draught. Earthquakes that swallow hundreds. Most were kind. I probably killed a dozen and a half."
"What about when you found the Ashtadash?"
Chapter TwentyFire Snatches the Monkey's Tail
Age of Men 815
After wandering for three years, Sugriva could barely see straight from the strain of travel. Smoke turned black in his veins and blurred his vision. He shambled into the wealthy city-state of Kanpir, a blasphemous people for shirking dharma, though far enough away from Jaya that the self-righteous empire wouldn't attack.
The buildings were hewn stone. Coins jingled in nearly every pocket. A few boys and girls scattered across the dirt street, hands out pleading for kindness, a heavy contrast to the otherwise wealthy city.
The weight of darkness was heavy on Sugriva's shoulders, and it was exhausting even to stand. The street would make a fine grave, so he laid down. Rats sniffed at him, hungry for fresh meat, but they fled from the corruptions.
Then there was a tap on Sugriva's shoulder.
A little girl, no older than eight, tapped his shoulder again. "You dead, sir? Don't look good. Might not make it the night if you don't keep going."
Sugriva squinted at her. "Go away. If I don't die, I'll turn into a demon and eat your kidneys."
"Adults always use demons to scare kids," she clucked and shook her head. "You aren't from here. Walked here to die? Doubt it." She found a stick and started poking up Sugriva's nose.
He swatted at the stick. "Thrice cursed urchin. Knock it off." The girl only laughed and kept poking him. "Fine, child. Fine. I'm here to see the Ashtadash. But I can’t walk anymore. Now get."
"No, sir, how 'bout instead you get me food?"
She is food, the voice nudged. No one will miss such a scrawny thing. And she might not be filling, but she is a meal.
Sugriva sat up and glared at the kid. "You want me to what?"
"Get me food, sir. Please?" Her eyes were wide, the wide that says she lies to a hundred people a day.
"No." He laid back down in the refuse.
"Please?"
Sugriva stood up and growled, "If it'll shut you up."
The girl's eyes lit up, and Sugriva did his best to stifle a smile.
The market had plenty of food, much of which would go to waste. He scampered around, knowing that the girl wouldn't be picky. Shifting into a monkey, he picked up a few pieces of fruit, some root vegetables, and a scrap of hard bread, then went back to the gutter.
"Knew I pegged someone good." She devoured the food and curled up with Sugriva. The small, warm body soothed him to sleep.
THE FOLLOWING MORNING, when Sugriva woke to the summer heat, the girl was gone. "Urchin," he muttered, chest aching. He sat up and looked down the alley.
The sounds of the city surrounded him. People walking, kids playing, and boisterous salesmen shouting. It was home. He grinned, even if he was stuck in a gutter. At least it was civilization.
He found a place with relatively few beggars and sat down lotus style. He put his head down and hands up. "Alms for the poor. Insight for the spiritually blind. I look for food, money, and direction to the Ashtadash."
This he did all day, and he received some food, some money, and some fruitless information. He stored away the food and