2 Grandma's story

My eyelids fluttered and I gently opened my eyes, to be left staring at my plain whitewashed walls. There was only one framed certificate and a picture of Nani and I, which had been taken on a trip to Batavia Island. We had been so carefree and happy then.

I had a pounding headache and I tried to think when exactly I had gone to sleep. I looked down at my body.

'Strange, I'm not wearing my nightie. And I'm wearing my shoes.' At that idea, I was jarred awake and I sat up straight. The movement was so abrupt that I temporarily felt lightheaded. It all came back to me then...the naked intruder...the pillow. I looked down at the pillow on which my head had been resting. Oh my god, was it the same pillow? Ewww.

'I think I fainted...he was talking about vampires, werewolves, something like that...'

Where was he? I whipped my head to the right, then to the left. Nothing. I was all alone in the room. Gingerly, I set my feet on the ground and tried to stand, leaning on the wall behind. I took one step forward and then the next, releasing the wall only when I felt confident that I wouldn't faint again.

Was anything missing in my room? Or anywhere else in the house? It wasn't as if I was living in Ali Baba's thieves' cave. I barely had a few expensive things, nothing that a thief would break in for, however.

'My locket? Where was it? The last time I saw it, it had rolled in front of me and landed on the carpet in front of the cupboard. It wasn't there anymore.

'Did he take it? I've never fainted before...'I muttered to myself.

'I would hope so. I wouldn't like to think that Nani's grandchild is a wimp,' a voice rang out clearly, causing me to jump. I pressed the palm of my left hand to my chest and I could hear my heart beating frantically.

'Can you stop just appearing from nowhere?' I pleaded. The intruder was now clothed in one of my oversized T-shirts and sweatpants with the Khoon logo emblazoned on them, a gift from the board of trustees to all educators. I had never worn it before due to the size. They made a uniform size and with my five feet, I fell far from that range. He was still barefoot though.

'You should have thought of that before calling me.'

'But I didn't call you,' I protested weakly. 'That's mine by the way,' I added pointing to the outfit he was wearing. He disregarded my words and waved his hands as if they were pesky flies bothering him.

'Is this locket yours?' He was holding my chain in his right hand, making the locket twirl around.

'That's mine!'

'Just what I said. You called me.'

'But I didn't c....'

'Sweetheart, we are going to keep turning in circles like that,' he interrupted me with a flick of his hand in my direction and to my shock I felt the locket land neatly in my lap.

He grabbed a wicker chair from the hallway and put it at the foot of my bed. I didn't recall the chair being in the hallway before, it used to be in the kitchen. I recoiled a bit deeper in my bed, trying to put some more distance between us.

'Didn't your grandma tell you about the locker? About our world?' At that point I started recollecting more bits and pieces about what had happened before I fainted.

'You said something about vampires and werewolves?' I asked with distrust.

'I understand that Nani didn't explain anything then...'

While he was talking, I suddenly got the image of the book Nani had left for me in her will. It was like a revelation, getting a stark clear image which was displayed in front of my eyes. I blinked nervously and, remembering that I had left it in the drawer of the bedside table attached to the main frame of the bed, I leaped forward and opened it with a flourish. The book was where I had left it, untouched.

'I see that Nani did leave you some knowledge about our worlds. Read it. I'll prepare some food for us.' And he turned and left with no backward glance. I stared at his back open-mouthed. A man I did not know, came into my house without my permission, in his birthday suit. I didn't even know his name and now he was giving me orders! The nerve of him!

'It's Dave, by the way.'

'Huh?'

'My name.'

'How did he guess what I was thinking?'

All this confusion was giving me a massive headache again. I then consciously put these thoughts at the back of my head and chose to focus on the book in my hands instead. It had a red leather cover and when I turned it around, there was no title written on it. It seemed to be hand bound by a thin leather strap that ran all the way across its seam. Holding my breath, I opened it and tears immediately flooded my eyes. On the first page, in Nani's handwriting, was written,'

I hope it will give you all the answers and happiness you seek Ash.'

After the pain of her death, it was difficult for me to encounter all the objects that Granny had touched and this was why I had stored the book and the locket away. But now I saw that I was wrong. Ignoring these objects would not make the pain go away, it would just postpone it.

With fingers shaking, I turned to the next page which had yellowed with age. This was handwritten as well and turning through the next few pages, I saw that everything was written by hand. That was not a book that had been published, it was a diary of sorts. I moved to the second page again.

**** I know that you are confused, my darling, but there are some truths that you should be made aware. Ours is not the only world that exists. There are 14 worlds in the universe, 'lokas', 7 in the Upper world and 7 in the lower world. There is the Sat-loka, Tap-loka, Jan-loka, Mahar-loka, Svar-Loka, Bhuvar Loka and our planet is the Bhu-Loka. The other half is Atal-loka, Vital-loka, Sutal-loka, Tatal-loka, Mahatal-loka, Rasatal-loka and finally Patal-loka. I know that these names mean nothing to you, but I will try to simplify things for you. The upper 6 worlds are inhabited by deities, semi-deities, divine souls and vampires who have given up their blood-thirst in the search of spiritual enlightenment. The 6 lower worlds are inhabited by demons, trapped souls, vampires and werewolves.

Those who live in Sat-loka are blessed with immortality, while those in Tap, Jan and Mahar have immense powers. Mahar is the abode of all those seeking knowledge, while Svar is the land of enjoyment, filled with unimaginable bliss. Bhuvar is very similar to planet Earth except that the inhabitants are blessed with both powers and knowledge. Vampires live on that planet. The last 7 worlds are filled with many dangerous creatures, including werewolves and vampires banned from Bhuvar.

The six upper worlds have always lived in peace, but that harmony is constantly threatened by the lower seven worlds. The inhabitants of the 7 lower worlds, especially those of Talatal are constantly trying to steal the powers and wealth of Bhuvar, and our planet is caught in the middle and has often been the battleground of the fight between the worlds. ****

I had to take a break after reading that extract. What was with all the lokas and multiple worlds?

'Don't think on an empty stomach,' Dave said, bring a plate of steamed rice and a gravy of some sort. It looked simple but the perfume was divine. It smelled like Nani's cooking, in fact. My stomach growled embarrassingly loud in agreement.

'Eat,' he ordered thrusting the plate in my hands. He had not brought any cutlery, so I dug in with my fingers themselves.

'Which world are you from?' It was not that I was ready to believe everything that Granny had written, but I wanted to know more about this uninvited guest of mine.

'Bhuvar.'

In between mouthfuls, I managed to say 'Oh.'

'I can see that you don't believe me, but one day you will have to. It is part of your heritage and birthright as Nani's grandchild.'

'Ok, let's say I believe you. What are you doing here? And how do you know Nani?'

'She was a close friend of the family and also my mother's cousin. I am here because you called me with your locket.'

I frowned and swallowing the last morsel from the plate, I stood up and went to the washbasin in the adjoining bathroom. I rinsed my hands carefully, taking the time to collect my thoughts. I rubbed each finger gently, adding some soap as an afterthought.

'You cannot wash your hands off the situation, Dave said from behind me handing me a towel that had been hanging on a hook on the wall.

'Ha, weak pun. Thanks. For the towel.' I added the last part as I didn't want him to think that I was thanking him for his joke.

I went back to my bed, where I had kept the locket. It was warm to the touch when I picked it up and turning it around, I looked at it fixedly.

'So what's the mechanism behind it? See there's no phone attached to it, no technological device. I couldn't have called you,' I finished triumphantly.

'What were you doing to the locket before I appeared?'

I didn't want to tell him that I had been wallowing in self-pity so I stuck to the basics. 'I cleaned it with toothpaste.'

'And?'

'And I was missing Nani, so I kissed it.'

'That's it then. The locket recognized your need for help so it called me. So I'm here.'

Dave said it so easily as if it was something so common, to have someone appear out of thin air after being called upon by a locket. He crossed his arms over his chest, making the thin material stretch out to its maximum. I couldn't help but peek at the way his nipples pressed through the thin cloth and how his biceps flexed at his movement.

'So what do we do now?'