Metamorphosis in Hinduism - A research paper

Metamorphosis in Hinduism

What if two people were actually the same person? The most influential characters in the two most famous epics in Hindu religion are the same person. They are incarnates of the god Vishnu, known in Hinduism as “the Preserver”. The most well known avatars taken by him include the "Dashavataram"- the ten avatars. Three of the ten main incarnations -- Parashurama, Rama, and Krishna -- are closely linked, although not through family. The hidden symbolism behind them show that they can exist simultaneously, even though they are incarnations of the same god. This representation also establishes that they are not only forms of Vishnu but forms of Rama as well, proving that they can be incarnates of more than one god at the same time.

The three connected incarnations have a lot in common, for a number of reasons: some are easy to piece together, others are more complicated. A simple observation of the Dashavataram reveals that the interconnected three are the only completely human forms of Vishnu. However, being the incarnations of the same god does not imply that they all lived in different lifetimes. In order, they were born as Parashurama, Rama, and Krishna, but they each crossed paths with one another at least once in their lives.. Another key point which looks more closely into the three incarnations' connections is the fact that, as they are human, they each represent one aspect of human emotions - anger, childish fun, and compassion. In addition to all being incarnations of Vishnu, the three human avatars seem to also be avatars of Rama, who is already personified and is one of the three. Speculate this: all except Krishna have a 'rama' in their names, whether at the end or it being the name itself.

Parashurama, or Rama with an axe (Parashu), was anger personified. His story begins with his mother falling in love with a king while fetching holy water for her husband, a sage, to bathe in.Upon finding out what happened, the sage ordered his five sons to behead their mother. When the first four refused, their father cursed them, making them insane. His fifth son, Parashurama, was the only one who cut off his mother’s head with an axe (henceforth the name Parashurama). Pleased, his father decided to grant his son a boon, so Parashurama asked for his mother’s life back, with no memory of death and also the restoration of his brothers' sanity. Parashurama, skillful with the axe, asked for invincibility in single combat as well. Of course, the wish was granted. As he grew older, Parashurama disliked the way the Kshatriyas (warrior caste) considered themselves higher than everyone else due to their vast military knowledge and power as the royal family. After finding his mother harassed and his father murdered by the arrogant Kshatriyas, Parashurama vowed to kill all of the warrior caste, including children. He killed many people, supposedly rid the world of Kshatriya men twenty one times, angered by the death of his father and humiliated by the harassment of his mother. Only the next incarnation of Vishnu, Rama, succeeded in curbing him. Rama and Parashurama crossed paths at that certain point in their lives, even though they were incarnations of the same god.

As Parashurama is generally described as angry, uncontrollable, and hotheaded, he is often thought of as the opposite of Vishnu, whose characteristics are benevolence, willingness, and goodwill. However, each full human avatar of Vishnu personifies a different human emotion, therefore each one acted in an individual way.  But what makes Parashurama an avatar of Vishnu is not the way he behaves, or his emotions on a daily basis. What makes them similar is the fact that Vishnu wanted the Kshatriyas destroyed because of their arrogant behavior, and Parashurama wanted them dead for revenge. Vishnu has a secret motive behind every avatar he has been born into, but the incarnation has an elaborate backstory at the same time. Both Vishnu and Parashurama desired social order to be restored, therefore the Kshatriya mindset that they were to the rulers of the human race was corrected by Parashurama reiterating the point of the caste system - that the Brahmins (priests) were of a higher caste than Kshatriyas.

Why is Parashurama called ‘Rama with an axe’? Other than the extremely confusing  fact of Rama being born after Parashurama, both possessed quite of the same qualities. Although Rama is sometimes thought of as the 'perfect man', and Parashurama has too much of an uncontrollable temper, both are extremely obedient and listen to their parents, even if it means cutting off their own mother's head. The similarities between Rama and Vishnu in relation to Parashurama hints towards the fact that this specific incarnation of Vishnu is also an incarnation of Rama, who coincidentally is an avatar of Vishnu as well.

The great epic, Ramayana, is well known among Hindus. It features Rama, the prince of the kingdom of Ayodhya, being born as the oldest of four sons to King Dasharatha. Upon winning a competition that required the heaviest bow on earth to be broken, Rama proved his strength, and was wed to Princess Sita. After returning to the palace with her, he encountered Parashurama, livid with rage at seeing a Kshatriya, but subdued him by destroying all of Parashurama’s abodes. However, their life in luxury did not last very long. A devious servant convinced one of the three queens to make her son king and send Rama, the first in line to the throne, to the forest for fourteen years in exile. In turn, the queen used two boons given to her by the king a long time before to send Rama to the forest and make her son king, respectively. Rama readily agreed after hearing what his ‘mother’ wanted, because he was a very obedient child, to his parents, and also to his father's other two wives. The Ramayana merely begins there, and the events that made a story about banishment into an epic began with the kidnapping of Sita, who came with Rama into the forest. Captured by a demon king named Ravana, Sita was taken to the kingdom of Lanka (what is now considered modern Sri Lanka). The long quest to find and bring back Sita safely, as well as the war which took place during the rescue mission, made up the 7 book long epic Ramayana.

Rama was just and kind to all his subjects. He is interpreted as the “perfect man”, because he has compassion towards all his subjects. and thinks logically of solutions to problems. Rama was born as a prince, representing an authorial figure. In addition to being an authorial figure, the caste system plays into this epic as well. Rama was a Kshatriya, the warrior caste being the only one out of four castes trained in the art of warfare. The caste system shows itself repeatedly throughout the course of the Dashavataram, ranging from the Shudra caste (farm workers and peasants) to Brahmins. Why did Vishnu take the form of a Kshatriya? It was the only way Ravana could be defeated. The demon once asked for a boon, to be invincible to everyone except a mortal. Rama, an incarnation of Vishnu, was similar to the Preserver. Both are described as having blue skin, having Lakshmi -- the wealth goddess -- as their wives (Sita was a reincarnation of Lakshmi), and having the compassion and kindness to rule and save humankind.

Krishna is known for his vehemence at the Battle of Kurukshetra during the epic Mahabharata Now known as the Bhagavad Gita, this 700 verse section of the epic proves the philosophical and theological knowledge, and also the vast amount of assistance he provides, starting from his childhood. Krishna was born in a jail cell. A demonic figure named Kamsa had heard that the eighth child of the king’s daughter would be the downfall of him. Locking up the princess and her husband, Kamsa consecutively killed 6 of their children. The seventh child was miscarried, transferred to the womb of another woman. On the day Krishna was born, his father found the chains binding his hands broken, the door to the jail cell open, and all the guards asleep. Knowing it would be extremely dangerous to keep his eighth child in the prison, as Kamsa would kill him, he walked with Krishna in a basket held over his head to the neighboring village of Gokul, in a storm so fierce a dry lake had turned into an ocean. However, it parted as they walked through, as though it had noticed the presence of a divine being. A giant cobra spread his hood over the baby and father, to shield them from the strong gales of wind whipping them. Upon reaching the village, Krishna was switched with another baby, and his father returned unnoticed. In Gokul, Krishna would be known as a troublesome child, but everybody could not help but love him, despite his antics. Kamsa eventually did find out that Krishna was still alive, and as Krishna grew, he sent many demons to find and kill him, but Krishna killed every single one.  Finally came the day when him and his brother, Balarama (the baby who transferred into the other womb) found out the truth about their parents, and succeeded in destroying Kamsa in a boxing match. However, Krishna’s childhood was merely the beginning of a long reign as the prince of his own island, an advisor during the Mahabharata, and the defeater of many demons.

Krishna represents childish fun, life on the lighthearted side of things, and logical methods of advice. In his childhood, the serpent which covered him while on his journey to Gokul is the exact one on which Vishnu rests. Other symbols which connect him to the Preserver, as well as Rama, can be pointed out by comparison of their appearances. Both are described as having blue skin, and incarnates (or the original) of Lakshmi for wives. During the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna showed his true form, which is Vishnu, to the man he was addressing. In paintings, both have discuses (chakras) and a conch shell in their hands. Like Rama, Krishna was fair and kind and offered assistance to whoever needed it. He too solved problems logically and methodically.

Parashurama, the angry one, Rama the perfect man, and Krishna, the divine lover, are all reincarnations of the Preserver Vishnu. Although all three are avatars of Vishnu, Parashurama and Krishna also bear resemblances to Rama - not only because of appearances, but also because of the aspects of human emotions that they possess, as well as their backstory and the demons they kill in their lifetimes. This proves that the avatars of Vishnu can be incarnations of more than one god at the same time.

Works Cited

1. Krishna, Nanditha. The Book of Vishnu. New Delhi: Viking, 2001.
2. Ashok, V. Dasavatara : the Ten Incarnations of Vishnu. New Delhi: Rupa & Co., 2002.
3. Eknath, Easwaran. The Bhagavad Gita. Petaluma, CA: Nilgiri Press, 1985.
4. Gupta, Ravi M, and Kenneth Russell Valpey. The Bhāgavata Purāṇa : Sacred Text and Living Tradition. New York: Columbia University Press, 2013.
5. Vālmīki, and Sheldon I Pollock. Rāmāyaṇa. New York: New York University Press , 2006.
6. Vālmīki, Robert P Goldman, and Sally J Sutherland Goldman. Rāmāyaṇa. New York: New York University Press , 2006.
7. Vālmīki, and Rosalind Lefeber. Rāmāyana. New York: New York University Press , 2005.
8. Vālmīki, and Robert P Goldman. Rāmāyana. New York: New York University Press , 2005.
9. Vālmīki, and Sheldon I Pollock. Rāmāyana. New York: New York University Press , 2005.
10. Vālmīki, and Ravi Prakash Arya. Rāmāyaṇa of Vālmīki : Sanskrit Text and English Translation According to M.n. Dutt. Delhi: Parimal Publications, 1998.

Chapter 3: Erissa

I can’t shake the face of the strange boy from my mind. I keep replaying our first meeting in my head. I see Cassie with that starcrossed look on her face that she saves for her impossible dreams, but instead looking off into the distance like she usually does, she was staring at the boy. Then I see the boy, Sürch, as he called himself, look at her with a repulsing expression. His head then swiveled over to me and flashed a smile of perfectly straight teeth, but I see straight through his fake looks, and right into his stone cold heart. There is room only for one person in it and that is himself. I just wish that Cassie could see what I see in this jerk. She is too innocent and I don’t want to see her get hurt. Its been like this ever since we were little: she was always the creative one with her head in the clouds while I was the grounded one making sure that she stayed safely up there and far away from the terrors down here. So if this boy thinks he can waltz right in here and drag her down from up in the sky and make her fall hard on the ground, well, he is sorely mistaken. I will go to all means necessary to protect my friend.

***

The next morning I get out of bed with the sun. I didn’t get a wink of sleep last night because my mind wouldn’t turn off. Thoughts just kept bouncing around in my head like ping pong balls and all I could see were flashes of faces and events from yesterday. It all felt so surreal, like living in a dream. But I knew it wasn’t a dream.

It amazing how your whole world can change in a second. Yesterday morning all I had to worry about was our upcoming math test and now I have to fret over my best friend being head over heels for a mysterious stranger who I don’t trust in the slightest. Why can’t she fall for Hõss?  It’s so obvious that he he likes her - his baby pink skin always seems to be glowing when he is around her and he always has a goofy grin on his face when he looks at her.

Well, sitting here thinking about it isn’t going to solve anything, I decide, so I roll over in my sleeping bag and shake Cassie awake. She lets out a groan that sounds like when Hõss’ mother, Mrs. Oscan, gave birth to her triplets. “What do you want,” she mutters groggily, “I was in the middle of a very nice dream.”

“Cassie, there is something we need to talk about,” I say, my voice low and urgent.

“What is it?” She yawns as she sits up.

“Well,” I begin, not sure if I want to continue this conversation, ”it’s about Sürch.”

Her ears perk up at the sound of his voice. “What about him?”

“Uh, well, you see,” I stammer, trying to get the right words out; I never was very good at this sort of thing. Oh Erissa, what have you gotten yourself into? Well, I already started, so I plow ahead and blurt out, “I don’t trust him and I don’t think that you should either. I especially don’t think that you should go falling in love a person you only just met and don’t know anything about.” I take in a big gulp of air as I finish and look up at Cassie wondering how she is going to take this outburst. I know the old saying is ‘Cat got your tongue,’ but I can never seem to catch my words until its too late.

Cassie looks startled at first, like I have just slapped her across the face, her jaw hanging on the ground and her big blue eyes wide open. Her expression changes from shocked to guarded in order to cover up her hurt. “So that’s the way you feel,” she says coolly, “well, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But that doesn’t mean that I have to agree with you.”

“But Cassie,” I sigh, exasperated, “there is just something about him. I-I don’t think that he should be trusted.” My voice cracks as I see Cassie’s eyes narrow at me.

“Erissa Nass, you think that I am just going to go along with everything you say? You know what I think? I think that you are just jealous; I have finally found someone I love and you haven’t. You have always been the pretty one and I have always just been the nice girl that who is your friend. I have found love before you have and that drives you crazy!” She isn’t shouting. But I wish she was. It would be better if she was shouting. Her soft voice isn’t lilting like it is normally. It is hard, cold, and hurt. “You better watch it, Erissa,” she growls. Those blue eyes that usually stare at me with kindness now glare at me with such an intensity I feel my eyes burn. With that she rolls up her sleeping bag and stomps out of the room.

***

I can’t believe I just got mad at Cassie. We’re both the same age, but I feel like my intuition makes me older. We both are fiercely protective of each other but I think I went a little too far. Oh, how is she ever going to forgive me? I groan softly as that persisting thought runs through my head yet again.

But, it isn’t only my fault. She knows that my gut feeling is usually right, so why did she get so angry? And what happened to the “nice girl” who was my friend? I always felt like she was the leader of our little pack, that I was the one living in her shadow. Even though Cassie doesn’t like Hõss back - yet - I feel like I am the third wheel around them. Cassie understands Hõss much better than I do, and yet why doesn’t she feel the same way about him as he does for her?

If they get together, I won’t care that I’d be the third wheel around them. At least she won’t fall for that idiotic, narcissistic boy. But I’ll still lose my best friend, even though it won’t be because of our fight. If I can make Hõss do something amazing to get Cassie’s attention, maybe she’ll forget about the outsider. My smile is private, and no one is there to see it except for my reflection, but I don’t care. I bolt towards the bathroom door to brush my teeth, and to think my plan through.

After my shower, I watch my eyes sparkle in the mirror, because I just got the most amazing idea. I’m going to make Cassie fall in love with Hõss.

***

I don’t bother to eat breakfast at Cassie’s. She’d just fume and stare at the wall behind me. Now I know how it feels to lose a best friend. I wish she’d just see reason. But, I can’t help that she has fallen in love with someone who can’t even go a day without looking at his reflection. Furthermore, he could never love her back. It is obvious that he only cares about one. Himself, and no one else can charm her way into his heart. As beautiful as Cassie is, with her daydreamy mind and pale blue eyes, Sürch could never, ever, care even to give her a second glance, so much as looking at her with adoration.

Instead, I go back to my own house, but as I greet my parents with curt hellos, ask them how their trip was, and try to act like nothing is wrong, I can’t shake the feeling that they are ignoring me even more than usual. I try to push aside the feeling like I normally do, but I can’t. I blurt out, “What’s wrong? You are ignoring me, as usual, but you’re acting so cold. Why? Is there something wrong with me? Because my own parents don’t care enough to notice I was gone for a whole night without permission, and I just fought with my best friend!” My voice is quivering with rage.  I don’t even know what I am saying but at this point I don’t care, so I let my mouth take over. I am have so many mixed emotions right now that it just feels good to let it out. Unloading on someone else takes some of the pressure off that is threatening to suffocate me. But I then I realize who I  just clubbed over the head with my whirlwind of feelings, my parents. They look alarmed, and they have good reason to. I have never talked to them like that before, I have always been the one to hold everything back from them, knowing that they could never understand. I am just as shocked about what I have just done as them. For a moment I just stand there staring at them open mouthed. Paralysed. But the the weight of what I have said comes around and knocks the air back into me. “I’m sorry,” I mutter as I drop my bag on the kitchen counter and dash out the door.

***

I don’t exactly know where I’m going, just that I’m walking around in circles. I finally give up and plop down on one of the hoverseats, and say impulsively in a resigned voice, “Hõss Oscan’s house, please.” The hoverseat lifts itself up with a groan and pushes its way into the air. Great, I got a bad one. But as the chair creakily climbs higher and higher over Eirus, I can’t help but appreciate how nice it looks under the scorching noon sun. The hoverseat glides noisily across two blocks and sets me down at Hõss’ hoverseat station. When I unbuckle myself from it, it jumps into the air and flies away, disappearing as fast as it came.

My hands are shaking and I feel like I am going to cry, but I pull myself together and finally, finally, I am furious at Cassie. I was just sad, and worried, when I told her in the morning, but now, I am letting my anger out. I don’t scream and shout and throw things when I am mad. I glare at everything I can see. Hõss’ mother’s beautiful rose garden, the taut trees looming over me, their branches and leaves smiling at me with delight. And suddenly, I sink down into the grass, the anger draining out of me.  I can’t stay mad for long, not when there’s so much natural beauty, unlike the artificial look of Sürch’s plastic face.

I raise my hand to knock on the door, the blue nail polish is wearing way on my nails. But before I can complete my action, Mrs. Oscan opens the door, smiles, and waves me inside with grandiose. She wordlessly gets me a glass of water and some orange juice, and while I drink, she hunts around in her kitchen for the fresh cookies I could smell from outside. My stomach rumbles softly in agreement, and I laugh airily. But in my head, thoughts are going 3000 miles per hour. Sürch. Outsider. Survivor? Should I trust him? Cassie. Hõss. Together. I’m glad I remember why I’m here before I go up to Hõss’ room and blurt out my plan.

“Hõss wasn’t expecting you,” Hõss’ mother says, gently. She knows what I have been through, because her parents were the same way. She confided that in me when I was 5 years old, incomprehensive of why Mom and Dad didn’t care for me as much as their jobs. And Mrs. Oscan is like the mother I have always wanted - she knows when something is wrong. I nod, and tell her what happened and why I needed to talk to Hõss, leaving out the part about my plan, partly because I hadn’t worked that out yet.

And in that split second, I thought of two. He could be her secret admirer - obviously Cassie would know who he is. I also am thinking of something drastic, like spelling her name in the clouds, or kissing her on the cheek. Actually, anything would be extreme for Hõss, who is nothing more than a wimp when it comes to Cassie. I know I am pushy sometimes, and when I lead certain projects, I lead. I can’t bear standing by and watching something I created crumble.

Hõss’ mother returns with my plate of cookies and I take one to ease my nervousness and also to give my hands something to do. I bite a cookie in half, and the crumbs settle on my lower lip. Licking them off, I take a sip of water, trying to stay downstairs for as long as possible to clear my thinking. Mrs. Oscan smiles and heaves herself up, and takes the cookie plate into the kitchen to wash it off. As she steers herself towards the kitchen doors, I stare at her cow tail, the hair at the ends dangling off... Oh no. My cat side is taking over. It only happened once before, when Cassie came home with a bag of catnip that she thought could help with Ms. Hoc’s kittens. I went crazy. But for the most part, I am human. The only cat features I have are on my face - a tiny white triangle of a nose and gray and red striped ears. The same colored tail peeks out of my red jeans.

The whole appearance thing still intrigues me. Almost all of Cassie’s face is dog, while Hõss only has pink tinted skin with various dark spots. All the Hybrids look different. Most of us have animal features on our faces, but some, like Hõss, have very little features displayed on their faces. Everyone who’s parents had tails, have tails. Bird Hybrids are a totally different story. I can’t even think about their diversity because theirs is so much more vast than the other Hybrids. I shake my head to push out the unnecessary thoughts.

Why am I here again? Oh, yeah. Cassie and Hõss together. That’s what I’m aiming for. Stupid Sürch. I smile as I think of more vile insults to the outsider who was thrown into our midst, toppling the only thing I had ever grown to enjoy - my friendship with Cassie. I can’t stand her falling in love with someone and leaving me out. Maybe that’s it. Maybe I’m jealous. But I can’t be! I am trying to keep her safe.

That mantra repeats over and over again in my head until I have convinced myself.

“Are you ready to go up now, Erissa?” Hõss’ mom reappeared from behind the kitchen counter.

Yes. I’m ready, and so I nod slowly. Hõss’ mother smiles and gathers up my empty orange juice glass and water cup to dump it in the sink. I hear her humming an old song, one from before the Wipeout. I often hear this tune playing in the background at Cassie’s house. I keep forgetting the name of the band, but I remember distinctly that it was some kind of insect.

I do the impossible and break my record of how fast I think of my parents after a fight. I see their shocked faces and their smug smiles and my blood boils. Right then, my phone starts beeping. I glare at the screen when I pull it out - Mom. Rolling my eyes, I set it on silent and smile like nothing is wrong when Mrs. Oscan comes back, minus the apron. My head is swimming from all the thoughts about Mom and Dad, and as not to remind me of them, I look up at Hõss’ mother.

“May I go up now? I think I am ready to talk to Hõss.”

© Copyright Roopal Kondepudi, Erin Hearne. All rights reserved.

Prologue: The Founding

Prologue: The Founding

Pytis, with his sharp features, his eyebrows drawn together, his eyes piercing Till’s like daggers, whispered dangerously, “It is a good idea, but unfortunately, I do not agree with you.”

“They are not as repulsing as you think. They are equal, and they defy all the cruel ways of the past.” Till’s face, with his brown eyes and thin lips harden as he spat the answer back at Pytis. His cream khaki pants and green shirt were pressed against the door, the colors muted when seen through the frosted glass. His wrinkled skin appeared even more aged, like just arguing with Pytis was draining his energy.

“But how?” Pytis’ voice was alarmingly calm and soft, like a tiger laying low in the grass before it pounced.

“At least Velia has sense to stay here,” Till snorted, annoyed. It was unusual for someone as old as Till to be so rude, especially to someone as powerful as Pytis. But Till was always adamant; he strived for people to stay alive during the Wipeout.

Pytis bristled, struggling to keep his composure. They were in a soundproofed, private meeting room, their shadows being cast upon the whiteboard with Till’s plan projected on it - a plan for a new country to rise out of the rubble. The box of pencils rattled precariously at the edge of the shelf behind them as their voices escalated. Pytis disliked Till’s idea for the new country.  

“Velia? She wished our child to revisit her homeland. But now? After hearing your plan, the only way our successors will be allowed to come here is when we are threatened. Velia wanted to stay, but is following me because she loves me. It is the only way I could even think about loving her back. And I need a child to rule after I die,” Pytis said in frosty tones. His icy face appeared even more closed off and cold when his wife was mentioned. “Besides, how will making people equal prevent trouble?”

“You, Pytis Noriss, think that just by making everybody equal, havoc will erupt? It’s the opposite! People will be content!” Till shouted, his beard quivering with anger.

“But that’s just it! One day or another, someone will want to gain power. We need this country to be safe! We need this country to be pure. Only humans. A society built by humans, for humans. Think! My plan is perfect. Besides, even if you do make this Eirus Arc,” Pytis sneered, as he mocked the name Till had chosen for the new country, “what will you call yourselves? I call myself The Preserver, because I preserved humankind. Unlike you. Your plan is to eradicate the existence of humans?” Pytis barked a laugh.

“My followers and I will call ourselves Scholars, the founders of Eirus Arc, because we actually think our plans through, unlike the narcissistic man in front of me. Now leave. I’ve had enough with you. Stay or go, I do not care.”

“Call yourselves what you’d like, call me what you’d like, but I will know you only as one thing. A greedy fool.” Pytis slammed the door.

And then he was gone.

© Roopal Kondepudi, Erin Hearne. All Rights Reserved

Chapter 2: Sürch

Sürching

I can’t believe I’ve been walking around in circles for the past three hours. My feet are getting tired and I see nothing in this wasteland. My blue eyes search the horizon but the only thing I see is the sky ablaze with the colors of the sunset. I brush my dark hair across my forehead and plop down on a broken tree stump. Just another relic from the Wipeout.

Sweat drips from my perfectly curved brow. Plunging my hand into the one sack I have, I pull out a small fragment of a mirror. Staring into it, I swear I can’t read my own eyes. Dark blue, stormy almost, going so deep I could fall into them.

SNAP!  I tear myself away from the mirror look around. At my feet is a broken branch. I look up. A large raven of some sort is eyeing me. In fact, it looks so human I am not surprised when it speaks.

“Who are you? Why have you come here?” it asks, in a raspy voice that drives my indefectible ears nuts. I didn’t see how talking to a large bird could change my current predicament, but I answer in a deep voice. A deep, unequaled voice. A voice which only could come out of my throat.

“My name, is Sürch Noriss, and I need a place to stay for the night.”

***

The raven turns around and takes flight. I don’t know how I’m going to do that, but if I sprout wings, I bet they’d be beautiful. Disappointed, or worried, I don’t know, I sit back  down on the tree stump and think about what I just saw. I think I’m going crazy. Since when do ravens talk? Or am I hallucinating? I search my pack for some kind of comfort, but all I can find is a daffodil, slightly crumpled. I breathe in its heavenly scent, but I know I don’t need to. I smell like that 24/7; even my sweat smells like that.

“You think about yourself too much.” The raven’s voice startles me, and I wonder how he can read my thoughts, and how long he’s been behind me.

“I’m an animal. I can sense emotions. You, young man, are obsessed with yourself. I’ve been behind you for about ten minutes. Even called to you a few times.”

I squint at the figures behind him in the fading light, and I make out three dark shapes. More ravens.

“Come with us. We will take you to a safe place.” And with that, two ravens clutch me by their talons and spring into the air, the contents of my pack, including the mirror, streaming behind us. I howl in protest, but they ignore me. Instead,they chit chat about the events of the day, and while I try not to listen it was quite funny. Apparently some guy named Hoss got tangled in his chair. Again.

I wonder if they were kids like me. They sure seem to be talking about school.

By the time I get over the fear of my unblemished arms being marked with the sharp talons of the ravens - I still am - I start to appreciate how beautiful everything is at sunset. Not as beautiful as me, of course, but, still. The sun pours over everything; the meadows that are now deserts, the rivers which are now valleys, and the lakes, which are now mere craters, reminders of the Wipeout. The sun gives everything a pink or purple or baby blue hue. My eyes wide open, trying to see as much as I can until it becomes too dark. I find things I haven’t seen in a long time. Barren landscapes with a lone tree, a shrub with just one shriveled up leaf on it, and I see a moon. A moon. Oh, I want to cry. The moon reminds me of the stories I heard about before the Wipeout, and I am suddenly jealous. I don’t know why or who I am jealous of, but I dislike the feeling. People have only been jealous of me, not the other way around.

I am so wrapped up in my own thoughts that I didn’t notice the ravens stopped talking. I turn my attention to the front, and gasp. It’s a country almost as beautiful as I am. Almost.

“Welcome to the country of Eirus Arc. We doubt you’ve seen anything like it before,” the ravens say in unison.

***

The ravens were right. It’s  a country washed over with rainbow hues and in harmony with the sunset, every single building sparkles. I’ve never seen anything like it. They set me down at the steps of a building with pure white slabs of marble as stairs. But I am taken by surprise as the marble begins to levitate and propels me toward a big room where a tired looking man is sitting. Finally, another human!

The slabs begin to fold themselves and the next thing I know is that the hum of electricity used to propel me forward was absent. I absentmindedly wiggle my hands, getting agitated - I want to see if I look okay. But my sack as well is my mirror is gone. So is my flower. But I see a penguin faced human wearing glasses gather up broken off petals of my flower and waddle into a lab of some sort. I wish I could wake up from this dream. I am amazed but scared, which is unlike me.

“Sit down. Welcome to Eirus Arc. My name is Nic Risch.” It took me awhile to understand that the man was talking to me, and when I did get it, I sat. The chair molded itself to suit me, making me yelp. The man had a short clipped voice, but I was sure he could talk long when he needed to.

“What is your name?” he asks

“Sürch Noriss.”

“How old are you, young man?”

“17, sir.”

“And you were doing what when my team spotted you?”

“I was searching for survivors of the Wipeout.”

“Why?”

The questions drone on and on, and I try to answer as much as I can before I pass out from exhaustion. After about an hour, Mr. Risch nods curtly and tells me to wait outside.

I walk out and a marble slab zooms over to me. I sit on it, willing it not to go to the other side. Thankfully, it stays put and I am able to see my reflection in the brightly polished floor. My cheeks are blotchy, my eyes have a red tinge to it, and my arms are covered in grooves made by the ravens’ talons. Groaning, I wish I could retrieve my pack and make myself handsome again.

Mr. Risch comes out in a couple of minutes. “You have permission to stay at the guest home on my estate.” I thank him, shake his hand. With that, he puts on a bowler hat and slips into a coat. I follow him across the hovering bridge and down three flights of escalators that could fly.

At the bottom, there is a big purple circle in the middle of the room, like an art exhibit. Its label reads: “For Mr. Risch and authorized personnel only.” He beckons me in front of him, gives me a slip of hard paper.

“Slide this into the card reader when you are inside.”

“Inside what, sir?”

In answer, he pushes me into the center of the circle and says “Happy Trip.”

I hold in a yell as I feel myself turning in circles. The giant building is disappearing from sight, and I feel the heat of a fireplace and smell toasted marshmallows. A metallic voice says, “Enter, visitor. Please insert card into reader.” Following directions, a purple screen slides open and I step out of the teleporter into the biggest house I’ve ever seen.

***

Looking around, I see that two girls are near the fireplace, toasting marshmallows. But as I  shake the dizzy feeling off I realize that one has red and gray striped cat ears and the other has long dog ears. Ok. Now I know I'm going crazy. They are both talking animatedly about something.

Mr. Risch enters the room and nods at me. Very quietly, I take a seat and Mr. Risch whispers in Long Ears’ ear. She gasps very quietly and slightly turns her head. She gasps at the same time I do. Her eyes are so light blue they are almost gray. But the rest of her head is a dog’s head - black snout and caramel and black ears. She is probably the oddest thing that I have ever seen. Everything about her is perfectly normal until you reach her head, and she also appears to have a tail sticking out from her moss green pants. She has that same dazed expression on her face that every other girl I meet has - she, like so many others, adores me. But there's no way I could ever love her; she is literally a dog. On the other hand, the girl next to her isn’t that hard on the eyes. She has dainty features with a small little nose and red and gray striped cat ears sticking out from the top of her head. She looks like she dressed up in a costume. She even has the same colored tail peeking out from her sapphire blue jeans. The girl smiles at me and I find myself giving them each a hard look. No one can love me except for me. It is the way of life.

“Cassie, meet Sürch Noriss, the...” Mr. Risch hesitates for some reason.

“May I go to sleep?” I probably sound rude, but I am so tired I could slump down here and not move until I get my full eleven hours worth of beauty sleep. Mr. Risch looks grateful for the distraction and leads the way to the guest house, which is almost a kilometer from the main house, so I am extremely tired when we get there. . But for some reason, once I lie in bed, I can’t shake the feeling that I’m forgetting something. “Yeep!” I squeal, remembering it at last. I leap out of bed and burst into the bathroom. An entire wall is a mirror. I yell with happiness and everything I could use to make myself pretty again appears in a cup - rather, cups - on a shelf that pushes itself through a slit in the mirror, which I swear wasn’t there a second ago.

I jump into the shower and a bar of jonquil soap appears by my side. As I scrub myself clean, I think about the strangers in this society. Why are there dogs and cats and penguins and ravens who look human? By now, my mind is bursting with thoughts and we can’t have that, can we? I shake my head and shift my thoughts to food. Oh, darn. Now I’m hungry. I wrap myself in a green towel and proceed back to the mirror, where a blow dryer from the ceiling dries my hair in a matter of seconds and even shifts it into the right place. One less thing to be done!

A knock sound on the door. I pull on some clean clothes that have magically appeared on the giant countertop and open the door. Oh. It’s the girl who looks like a cat.

“Hi. I’m Erissa.” I step out of the bathroom and nod.

“Sürch.”

“Ok, buster. Playing nice is over. I swear, if you hurt my best friend I will punch you and ruin your amazing face!” I nod vigorously and she smiles sweetly. “Goodbye! See you in the morning! Sleep well, Sürch.” It almost sounds like a challenge. And with that, she steps out into the cool air.

I am already trying to think of a plan to see if she will really hurt me.

© Copyright Roopal Kondepudi, Erin Hearne. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1: Cassie

The sun streams in the schoolhouse window in strips of rainbows as Mr. Striver drones on about some old dead dude and what he did to help our country. I, for one, couldn’t care less. I mean, why did we have to sit around all day learning about the past when there was a whole future out there to explore? I look at the clock above the smartboard - just five more minutes to freedom. Glancing over at my best friend Erissa, I give her a sly grin. She’s absentmindedly rubbing the half moon shaped scar on her right arm - the same one all of us have.

THUMP! I am pulled from my thoughts and look over to see a small form entangled in his chair. Of course, it is no one but Hoss. Small, skinny, sweet Hoss. He struggles away from the chair’s grasp and stands up, his pink tinted skin glowing crimson with embarrassment.  

“Hoss, that is the third time this week you’ve been tied up in your chair!” Mr Striver sighs, disappointed that his top student had disrupted his class. His giant glasses are almost falling off his pink triangle of a nose and he pushes it up with one neatly trimmed claw. His nose twitches and the glasses slide back down.

“Sorry, it’s my tail! It’s been growing and it sets my balance off,” he whispers, so quietly that only Erissa and I could hear. We smile sympathetically and I squeeze his pink hand. I can almost feel the heat of more embarrassment flooding through him.

We turn our attention back to Mr. Striver, who had already begun the conclusion - YES! - of his lecture. “... so, that’s why Eirus Arc is how it is today - smart, tech savvy and amazing. Just because of that one great man, who by the way, also...”

So much for conclusion, I think.

***

When the ultrasonic wave passes over us, Mr. Striver ignores it, listing the greatness of other dead people who brought Eirus Arc to its state today, even as the other students leave the classroom to paw at their snack bags filled with Milkbones or Friskies or other treats until the end of school.

I have to admit, our country is pretty amazing. Smack dab in the middle of nowhere, the Scholars, the people who created our country, strived to make our society work. I glance, jealous, at the bag of rich, dark chocolate Hoss is half heartedly nibbling. I can’t eat chocolate. I wish more than anything that I could. I can eat small amounts at a time, like maybe a 1/16 of a square, but if I eat anymore, my stomach turns inside out and I am sick everywhere. I’ve done this before and it wasn’t pretty.

Hoss notices me noticing and pulls me up to my feet. I smoothen my long, silky ears and open my blue eyes wide. My father is walking briskly down the halls. Hoss turns around to see what I’m seeing and gasps. On his heel is Cossan, my little brother. He seems frightened. My father’s face shows worry and anger.

“Papa! What are you doing here?” My voice is panicked, and the ultrasonic wave for the end of school rings in my ears - 23 KHz. Gets me everytime. I’m glad they didn’t put it too high a frequency. Hoss wouldn’t be able to hear it and Erissa and I would just about bleed our ears out. My father ignores it. Of course - he can’t hear it. But Cossan, too young for such a high frequency, whimpers in protest. I rush over to him and cover his ears with my hands. His ears aren’t like mine - they’re human. I huff at my dad, irritated. That gets his attention. He whirls around and shows a ghost of a smile at me.

“Cassie, I need you to take Cossan and I up to Mr. Nach’s room.” In answer, I give my brother a look that clearly says What did you do this time? I nod and lead them up a series of flights of hovering escalators and over a hoverbridge, which quickly pack into boxes and stack neatly into a pile, ready to spring open at the next visitor. Outside his room, Mr. Nach, the principal, has a statue of an Older. Mother always tells me that her great grandparents were Olders. They were four legged, without opposable thumbs, and were kept as almost slaves by the Scholars’ ancestors. Mother said the Olders were called “pets”. And the Scholars believed that “pets” and people needed to be equal.

And that’s why the majority of our population is genetically mutated. And that’s why my mother is a mutated dog and my father is a human. And that’s why Hoss, tinted pink, with a corkscrew tail, is half pig, half human; Erissa, with her striking green eyes and red striped pointy ears, is half cat, and me, with my silky long ears and blue eyes and a voracious appetite for reading, am half dog, half human.

***

I scan my school card against the statue’s eye, the card that reads:

Name: Cassie Risch

Date of Birth: October 22

Years Until Graduation: 1

Printed on the side is a small square image of me - light blue eyes that were almost gray, long brown and black ears, a middle size triangle of a black nose... The statue turns its head, and says in a metallic voice, “Enter, Cassie Risch.” The statue splits apart to reveal a stone staircase - something very rare, something from far before the Wipeout - and we descend it. I hear the statue close behind us with a resounding Crrreeak.

Mr. Nach looks smug, like he knew Cossan would be back in his office, but I saw a flicker of worry in his eyes. Nodding curtly to Mr. Nach, I whisper, “I’ll leave you now.” I turn around, but when I reach the base of the staircase, I hear Papa whispering to Cossan to tell Mr. Nach what happened, inside the Private Room.

“Wait, Cassie. I need to tell you something,” my dad is speaking urgently and quickly.

I turn around again and cock my head, look expectant.

“My office, they search for potential threats to Eirus.” I know that... he tells us every night at dinner. How is it important?

“They found an outsider.”

***

My ears prick up. I need to hear this. I’ve never seen an outsider in my life. “What? Who?”

“A human. One of my employees is going to go and find out who he is and where he’s from, after dark.” My dad seems agitated somehow. “It’s possible he’s a survivor, but you never know with people who haven’t seen Eirus Arc. They get scared of us and often try to do something that could destroy us.”

“But, Papa, how do you know this? He’s the first outsider in a hundred years, and Eirus didn’t exist a hundred years ago.” I think my voice seems too elated. I need  to know who he is.

I don’t care much for the outside world. I know it’s just deserts or mountains of rubble. I feel safe in Eirus. I hope the arrival of the outsider won’t change that.

I feel the same safety blanket me as I join hands with Erissa and Hoss, who waited for me outside. We walk out the door, when Hoss drops my hand and smiles at me. I give him a quizzical look but grin back at him. Finally, I can’t hold in my excitement any longer. “My dad says they found an outsider.” Erissa lets go of my hand too and gasps. Hoss looks crestfallen, but I don’t see why.

“WHO?” They speak at the same time. In answer I shrug, try to look disinterested. I am trying to hide a smile but it slips out and I start laughing.

“I love your laugh.” Hoss is smiling at me again and suddenly I feel blood rushing to my cheeks. I smile in answer and ask Erissa about her day, trying to change the subject. Hoss’s hand slips into mine again and it feels right. All three of us have been friends forever, so I know nothing could be different.

We reach Hoss’s house first, so I walk with Erissa in silence for a few minutes before she asks me about the outsider again. “Is your dad going to interrogate him? I know that is his job, but is only he supposed to do it or can someone else?” It wasn’t often that Erissa asked about Papa’s job. Her own dad was the president of the Architectural Board, so she didn’t really know about anything outside of that. I, on the other hand, pelted her with questions, all of which she answered in a patient voice. So I tell her.

“Yes, Erissa. Many people can interrogate suspicious people, but an outsider is the most dangerous thing that could end up in Eirus Arc. That's why my father needs to question him. He’s the head of his office." My voice is small, because I'm realizing what I just said. The outsider could be a trained assassin. Erissa nods knowingly. My thoughts flit back to what is happening to Cossan back in Mr. Nach’s office. I turn to Erissa, worried about him. Just when I’m about to tell her what happened to Cossan, my thoughts are interrupted by squawking.

“I can’t believe he picked us for a mission! A mission! I think I’m going to scream. Do you think we’ll be able to talk while we’re on it?” It’s Hessa and Nessi, two half-ravens whose excessive chatter gets them into a lot trouble at school.

“I hope so! I wouldn’t be able to go a day just by being quiet. I’m so happy. A mission! A mission! I think I am going to go crazy!!! Aaaaahhh!” Wow. Nessi is going crazy. She is always a loud person but that scream just about blew my ears up. I don’t see how they would be offered missions, they talk way too much for ravens.  Ravens are supposed to be secretive and quiet. But either way, it would be a mission at night so nobody would be able to see them. Their feathers are as black as grease on a hoverbridge engine.

As we steer away from them to enter an architectural masterpiece - Erissa’s house, I hear them screaming loud enough to wake up every sleeping child in Eirus Arc. Erissa whips inside to put her backpack on her bed and bounds across the beautiful green lawn with a neon yellow bag on her shoulder. I grin mischievously and she laughs.

“I thought, you know, since your father’s working late and my parents are out visiting Arch - you know, the old cousin who brings me clothes about forty sizes too small - I could spend the night?” I nod in reply, glad I’ll have company. Other than Cossan, who is extremely annoying, I never have anyone to do anything fun with. Mama loves doing random projects which makes life at home interesting, but she never wants help on anything.

Things are eerily quiet as Erissa and I cross the street to my house. Correction. My estate. It is a 3 acre lawn with fountains, a guest house, a pool inside the living room and a big theater that was customized just for me, because nobody watches movies nowadays. Plus, very few movies were saved from the Wipeout and they were evenly distributed to all the families of Eirus Arc. So at home we have only one movie. Erissa has one I’ve never seen before in her paw, though. “Where d’you get that from?” I ask, curious.

“Oh, Rissa gave it to me” she says dismissively.  I raise my eyebrows at her, but she just laughs.

“Let’s eat dinner first, Then we’ll watch it. I think my mother will let us eat marshmallow cookies for dinner!”

“Oh, the ones with the chocolate sauce?”

“Yes, precisely, but I can’t eat chocolate. We have to toast the marshmallows so they are warm and gooey!” I can’t help but feel excited. The sun is setting already. The winter night sets in fast. We step into the warmth of the house, but I think about the outsider one last time before he is completely wiped from my mind.

What’s he like?

© Copyright Roopal Kondepudi, Erin Hearne. All rights reserved.