"And that's it? We let laborers dig up archeological sites? And then we steal the artefacts back from them? Is he crazy? Are all of you crazy?" Gaurav was apparently not happy. But then thought Priyanka neither was she, though Arun seemed perfectly fine with it. Which was just like her. "C'mon you guys. You KNOW this is wrong. I say we do something about it", he thundered. Oh no, another one of his crazy schemes. She could see it coming. What would he suggest this time. Killing the Big P? Drowning all the laborers and then impersonating them and continuing the excavation. Where G was considered you could never be sure."What do you want to do, Gaurav? This is how it is. Like it or lump it, and I suggest you lump it." "Priyanka, don't be defeatist. You can do better than that! We need some initiative here. Can't we get all the other students together and stage a protest? Write a letter to Mr. Subramaniam? Write out a petition to the Big P?" Priyanka sighed for what felt like the millionth time, "Don't be a baby, Gaurav. You think writing a letter to the head of the ASI is going to help? How? You think he'll immediately come running, give you an award and make you head of the excavation. You're just being ridiculous. Protests and petitions, they serve no purpose in our country. And you ought to know better." Gaurav simmered silently. She could hear thoughts popping in his head, like popcorn in a microwave. Which made sense because men were a lot like microwaves. You put thoughts in their heads and let them mull over them too long and they tended to boil over, making a mess. Arun's slow voice made itself heard in the ensuing silence, " Guys, I think I have an idea". Both of them looked at her. "Let's use the skeleton that Gaurav found. Yeah the one you're attempting to hide ludicrously under that bush, Gaurav . Let's use it to scare the laborers. It'll at least buy us some time, won't it? And when THEY protest it normally makes a difference. And I'm not trying to make a casteist statement or anything! Before either of you come up with something brilliant like that. Just stating facts. If they refused to work on religious grounds, no pun intended it'd play into our hands, wouldn't it?"
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She had to find her family. Where were they? Never mind Baltos. He had never mattered much except in her dreams. He had been their saviour there. This made her stop and think. Everything else she had dreamt about had come true. Should she try to find Baltos? What if this was her chance to atone for her sins? She knew the enemies of their race were out there, waiting. The forest fire was the perfect opportunity for those devils to attack her tribe and vanquish them. They were defenseles, hungry, tired, homeless and vulnerable. She hesitated. She didn't know what to do and the confusion on top of everything else that had happened made reality harder to deal with. She squatted on the muddy ground and began chanting the first prayer her mum had taught her. Pashwan was a Fierce God but she believed He was a Just one as well. And while she couldn't understand the reasons for His actions she knew that all the trouble that had been visited on her tribe was mainly her own fault. She had been wicked and she had to atone for it. She would find Baltos and she would ask him, no beg him, to be their Hero.