Entanglement With Fate (Part 2)

16. The Twice Lived

Only men usually do the cremation. Shiva has specifically told Daksh not let Sonakshi come because he knew how she would react. She would go hysteric watching her sister's body being burnt. She wouldn't be able to handle it.

Defeating all the asuras, they returned to take the body ahead.

Shukra, Alakshmi, and Jayanti returned to Alakshmi's place. It was just a little away from Sri's. They cannot stay in the same place but they lived opposite each other. Always maintaining a specific distance.

Finally, for the first time, Alakshmi looked at her sister's child for the first time. She was shocked as to how much she resembled Vishnu.

"The amount of resemblance of him in her is actually shocking, you know," Alakshmi commented.

"I know."

She then looked for a while longer and noted that the child also looked quite a bit like Sri. A really cute mix between Sri and Vishnu. Alakshmi suddenly remembered the day she was stolen away by asuras. Sri had lost her memory before that in an accident caused by Virat. The curse played out. Even then, she found out that she lost her baby. She was heartbroken. Alakshmi was herself sad to see her always happy sister become sad. Enough that she did try to find the baby. No one could track the baby. 

Now, she was here, right before her eyes. Alakshmi, just once, touched the girl. That too with gloves, scared that she may mistakenly cause misfortune to the girl with her touch. That would be the last thing she would wish. Alakshmi cursed her own infertility. How much she wished to have a child. It wasn't a promise that didn't allow her to have a child. It was her own infertility. 

A life of bitterness. That was all she had. For ages until she finally got to be with her sister again. She was so obsessed with staying near her sister because Mahalakshmi was herself a source of happiness. The secret to Vishnu's ever-pleasant self was that she resided in inside his heart, the Queen to that kingdom. What would a kingdom lack with Rajyalakshmi herself as the Queen and monarch? All the people who lived there would do everything to keep her happy. She would do all to keep them happy. The kingdom that so many saints would give up everything to receive. That kingdom was hers where she happily accepted those who arrived there. 

A Queen of such caliber that all the great learned people knew to approach her when they wanted to attain Vishnu. Who could please him faster than her? 

Alakshmi looked at this child who was born from that Bhargavi who could bring Vishnu down to Earth from his Vaikuntha. 

"You always stay safe from all the troubles. You always stay unharmed by disturbance, my sweet niece." Alakshmi blessed her, a single tear escaping her eyes. She quickly covered it up. 

Shukra went back to his bungalow and gathered needful things quickly and returned to Alakshmi's place. He was glad for Narada who invented portals. Mentally making a reminder to thank Narada.

Alakshmi began to warm up the ice-cold body of Vishnusuta. Applying the specific mixture of herbs that Shukra brought to Alaknanda's skin. First to the toes and fingers. Rubbing them to warm up the dying cells and start regeneration.

The first applied mixture burns the decomposing cells. This mixture is applied a few more times to burn everything that is decomposing. Then through a saline bottle, the same mixture is sent into the body. It meant that each toe and finger had one bottle. Several more attached to her to clear more of the decomposed cells.

Shukra did a ritual to summon Alaknanda's soul wherever it was. It hadn't been completely 48 hours since her death, so it wouldn't have entered pitraloka yet. Shukra also knew to have a small talk with Yama about this. Yama has to keep mum about not receiving Alaknanda's soul.