Chapter 6

After the shock wore off, and the untimely hunger made my stomach growl. I noticed there were golden platters of fruit set before the Lingam statue. I crawled towards the goodies and inhaled the sweet-scented lotuses. The fresh fragrance relaxed me a little, and I helped myself with the juicy fruit. I guess if I were going to die here, I might as well die with my stomach full.

After my hunger subsided, I shoved some ripe bananas and other odd fruit that looked like apricots into my brown bag. My ears caught a faint sound of faraway footsteps. Some rushing movements and voices came from the base of the temple.

I quickly got up and took a peek at the ground. From the main staircase leading up to the top, a troop of shirtless men climbed the steep stairs. They wore red silk cloths around their waists. Some of them wore golden collars and belts around their bodies. In their hands were long sharp spears and swords. I wiped my mouth of the juices and turned back with wide eyes.

Oh no, people are coming! What am I going to do?

My eyes darted for a good hiding place but found none. The fear of getting caught stealing the offerings scared me senseless.

Then about ten bulky brown men appeared at the top at last. They looked like ancient soldiers. Four of them dressed in white silk robes with sewn bags hanging from their shoulders. But by then, I had dove behind the giant Lingam to hide.

"Master! I swear I did see a brilliant light coming from the sky,!" I heard one of them spoke.

"Are you sure you're not mistaken?" the other man sounded astonished.

I frowned and then I remembered what happened. I got pulled towards the eclipse by the light of the Moonstone —that must be what they saw.

But then I covered a gasp of realization with my hand. Oh my god, I could understand them! I was pretty sure they didn't speak English, and I didn't know ancient Khmer or Sanskrit, but now every word made sense in my head as if I was born with it.

I sneaked a peek at them from behind the pillar-like statue. Another older man followed up to the top. He had trouble catching his breath. They helped him walking towards the statue. He seemed rather important. He dressed in pure white. Four of them had long gray hair pulled up in a bun. The rest of the soldiers waited by the temple's steps, guarding.

"Yes, master, I swear over the Lingam of Lord Shiva," the same man said with vehemence. "I was fully awake when I witnessed a huge column of brightness descended from heavens!"

"Good lord, this is a good sign!" the old man breathed. "We must pray to thank the Lord."

While I was lost in my thoughts, a betraying apricot rolled out of my satchel and bounced away. I squeezed my eyes shut in despair.

"Who's there?" a harsh voice yelled out.

I was trembling when a pair of strong hands grabbed my shoulders and pulled me out of my hiding place. I flinched and struggled against their grips.

"Why on earth is there a girl on the temple?" said one of the white-robbed men as everybody stared at me in bewilderment.

The oldest man came forward and scrutinized me under his intense gaze. He looked at my face and then rubbed his wrinkled eyes as if to get a better look at me.

Then his mouth fell open and the color drained off his face. He almost looked frightened. The old man stepped back, causing the others to do the same.

"Tell me, young one, how did you get here?" the old man asked.

"I...I...er...don't know," I stuttered. "Please, let me go. I didn't mean to steal the fruit. I just woke up in the pit down there and had to climb my way back then I got hungry..."

"O blessed heavens! Now we will sing a hymn to praise the Lord for his holy answer!" the old man turned to say.

"What?" I froze in confusion.

The soldiers released me then the white-robed elders came forth. They turned to the bronze Lingam and kneeled before it. Others followed suit. They put their palms together and bowed their heads to the floor.

The four elders then pulled out their white conchs from the bags and started blowing a long note. The humming sounds echoed through the morning sky. The sensation caused the hair on the back of my neck to stand. They blew the conchs three times before they started chanting a hymn in unison.

'O Lord Shiva,

Lord of Pasus or Jivas,

O Blue-necked Lord,

The Destroyer of Daksha's sacrifice,

The Beloved of Uma,

The Five-faced Isvara,

Holder of Trident,

Swallower of Poison,

Through Thy Grace,

I realized Oneness with Thee.'

Once they finished, I felt an icy chill running through my veins. As I stared at them, one of the white-robed elders came to whisper something into the oldest man's ear. They nodded in some sort of agreement and turned to me again.

"We are obliged to escort Your Holiness from here."

"My Holi...what?"

"We promise there shall be no harm done unto you," the frail old man reassured, smiling at me with his crooked and blackened teeth. "The next Parasurama, Protector of the Creation, is now sent to us from heavens. This is a fortunate time. This is the greatest hope of all hopes!"

"Wait...what?" I said again with a screwed face. "What are you all talking about? Who are you, people?"

"We are the Brahmin priests from the Palace of King Jayavarman."

"Excuse me?" I said, still unable to understand what was going on.

"Once you come with us, you will understand."

I didn't know how to respond, but it also seemed like there was nowhere else I could go. I couldn't make this temple my second home either. I would explain to them later that they were in some sort of religious delusion.

"So if I agree to go with you, will I have these fruit to eat?" I asked.

"You shall be offered so much more, Your Holiness."

"Well...then...okay," I said with a shrug. I was too tired to make sense of anything anymore.

"What is 'okay'?" one of them asked.

"Oh —okay is okay —you know—" I tried to explain. Maybe some modern words hadn't been successfully converted to their ancient tongue yet. "I meant, yes, I'll go with you.'"

They escorted me down from the top of the pyramid. I glanced around at everything as I walked past by. There were manicured gardens and trees dotting all around the moat that bordering the seven-tier temple. Everything was laid by blocks of stones. A walkway rolled out between two rows of curved pillars and massive statues of animal guardians.

We walked through the stone path. From a distance, I could see a horde of guards stood beside a row of ox-drawn carts parking at the entrance.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked one of the elder men. None of them answered. They just gestured to me to get into one of the wooden-wheeled wagons. There was no one inside. I looked through the small window and watched those men whispering to each other before they, too, boarded another wagon. Then we started moving.

An hour later, we arrived at what looked like a beautiful village. Each wooden house was built high above the ground with fine wood art and red-tiled roofs. We passed an impressive entrance made of pink sandstone with carvings that were encased in gold.

On the east side of the small village was an enormous open-air pavilion. It had four rectangular porches like a courtroom. About eight wooden buildings with numerous pillars clustered around the area. Their gardens were full of jasmine flowers and their ponds bloomed with pink lotuses.

After the guards and high priests led me through the golden entrance, we walked up the grand pavilion, passing many halls.

Once the maids saw us, they quickly kneeled down and bowed in respect at the priests. But the women murmuring something to each other as they looked at me. I blushed in embarrassment.

Some of the halls looked like a meditation or prayer room filled with statues of the gods and goddesses. I could see people sitting in their lotus positions and some chanted the mantra with their hands clasped together. Incense smoke was thick in the air. This felt like a religious place.

"Your chamber will be this way," the oldest priest said to me. "I believe Your Holiness would want to take some rest after a long journey."

"Oh, thank you," I said.

"We shall see you again at the Main House with the Hora."

"The Hora?"

"The Oracle."