Chapter 8
Garv was terrified with whatever happened in his room. He asked his land-lord if they heard any strange voices or something to which they said they heard none, but just bursting of the tube-light. Garv couldn’t understand what was happening to him. He had never felt so vulnerable and restless as he felt now. He demanded immediate help and he knew nobody in this new, strange city.
It was that time of the year again when the evil powers became their strongest. Durga pooja was about to begin, and just before that, all the bad and evil would rise to surface so that goddess Durga could kill them all, and end their terror forever. Garv knew that the dark energy inside of him was becoming stronger, only because of this one reason. He decided to visit a priest of Durga-Mandir – which was the biggest temple of goddess in entire Kolkata. He narrated his entire story to the priest but his reactions were shockingly weird.
‘Sir, do you think whatever you’re saying is true?’ the man said. He might be in his thirties, not too old, maybe he occupied the chair of the priest recently.
‘Pundit-ji, believe me why would I lie to you? I myself have experienced anger and frustration at such a height that it can kill someone miles away from me.’
‘Haha, so you do believe that the suicide of that chain-smoker, was a result of your anger?’
‘Yes, I do! That’s why I want to seek your help, why would I bother you otherwise?’ Garv smacked his forehead.
‘You don’t need me, you need some anger-management and psychiatrist consultancy. I’m an educated priest and I don’t believe in unscientific and illogical things. This thing you call ‘dark-energy’, does this have a name? It might be a disease. Better get yourself checked up than roaming around in temples seeking help. I swear, this is the biggest problem of this country. People believe in stupid things more than they believe in reasoning and logic.’
‘Pundit-ji, you are testing my limits now. I have nowhere else to go. You think I’m bluffing? That woman has made a voodoo doll with my blood and she has the power to kill me, why don’t you understand?’ Garv smashed his hand on the table. A shadow rose on the wall behind him, although there was another shadow of him falling in the direction of sun, but the priest ignored it.
‘Son, come with me.’ a very old man, probably in his eighties, took Garv along. He was the grandfather of the guy who was attending to Garv earlier.
‘What now? I’m not free for your entertainment, if you have some serious solution for my problem, only then waste my time.’ Garv was frustrated now.
‘Calm down first, I know what’s happening to you and why you feel like you are going to burst into pieces. I can see the dark energy that is surrounding you, come…sit.’ the old man took him to his dingy room and closed the door behind them.
‘But why is it happening to me only?’
‘Honestly son, even I don’t know that, but this is a power for which only special people are chosen. You’re not the first one. I’ve seen many such cases in my life before you and believe me, yours is the most fatal one. Other cases I’ve seen, involved self-harming, loss of appetite, poor health, diseases but yours is causing deaths and that too of the people who have no link in common, just because they are angering you.’
‘What should I do now? How should I end it?’
‘There’s a ritual that is many centuries old. It can be performed only at the night of Durga pooja, which is in two days. Meet me then, exactly at 12 in the midnight. It will get rid of all the bad energies out of you and make you free of the evil which has latched upon you now.’
Garv pressed his lips. He had never thought in his life that he would be doing all this, but he found no other solution now. He was willing to do it and make himself normal again.
The next day, he attended his college normally and Ms Samantha sent a peon to call Garv in his office. Garv didn’t quite feel the need to meet her, but couldn’t deny it as he was a junior.
‘May I come in?’ Garv knocked on her cabin door.
‘Ah, sure. Welcome Mr Garv Raichand, how are you feeling now? I believe you must be quite exhausted after last week’s big-projects you have completed, isn’t it?’ she was pointing at the death of lab-assistant.
‘No, ma’am…I’m completely fine.’ Garv was ashamed and disgusted.
‘Well, well, then let’s have a cup of tea, shall we? I need to discuss some important things with you. C’mon, let’s go out for a tea-break.’ Samantha packed her bags, but Garv refused to. She slightly twisted the neck of the voodoo doll in her bag and Garv felt a sharp pain in his neck.
‘I think you might want you change your mind, dear?’
‘Alright, alright I’ll go…’ Garv panted with pain and terror. He had never imagined himself to be so submissive to someone.
They both went out for tea and Samantha told him to focus more on his anger, to collect his rage and project it on someone who was pure and truthful so that the bad energy can completely dominate. Garv was confused, it was not in his control to project or collect his anger, it was like a reflex action, a reaction that came out after a series of frustrating events, and he felt rage only against those who harm him to the limits, like Srijeet or that lab assistant who had tested his patience.
‘But I can’t control it.’
‘Then learn to. It’s not difficult. Do you know about sub-conscious mind and its power? It’s thirty-thousand times more powerful than your conscious mind, even scientists have proved it. If you learn to control it, you can win the world. What do you think I want from you? Just your energy. Rest, I can manage. I have immense control at my sub-conscious, I just need power to focus and you can be an excellent source. We can both help each other, I’ll help you in focussing and controlling your sub-conscious, and you help me in generating that dark energy, teach me how you do it, and I shall free you of all spells and voodoo dolls.’
Garv was getting it. Samantha was willing to teach him how to control his sub-conscious, something which not everyone could do. With the dark energy in his control, he couldn’t imagine to what extents he would be powerful. He decided to make a bargain.
‘I met a priest today. He asked me to visit him at midnight in two days, on the night of Durga pooja. He said he would destroy all the evil inside of me and make me normal, regular guy. But I think I’m changing my mind now. The way you control me using voodoo and spells, it’s fascinating, and with all the dark energy I possess, I think I can enhance it more to my benefit if I focus on my sub-conscious. The world isn’t all rosy and beautiful after all, and there are certain people in my life who have betrayed me and let me down. I can’t leave them all unharmed. Alright then, let’s start it. Three days from now…’ Garv forwarded his hand for Samantha, but she didn’t shake it.
‘Alright, three days from now, but first you kill that priest for me. It’s your test. Let’s see if you can focus your energy in killing somebody who hasn’t harmed you.’
‘I’ll try my best. Tomorrow night, I’ll tell you if I am successful or not.’ Samantha shook hands with him.
The deal was signed.