Wanderers in Eternity – Chapter 6 (Page 3)
Hearing the last few words, a shudder ran through Vasantharaja’s body. Uncle Ranga said all that without any emotions. But there was a harsh tone in his voice. As fear gathered in Vasantharaja’s eyes, Uncle Ranga laughed and squeezed one of the nipples of the boy. In that touch was a pain and a pleasure. “Here,” Uncle Ranga gave a candy to Vasantharaja. “Eat!”
Squeezing the candy in his hand, Vasantharaja watched his uncle walking away happily. The candy was wrapped in a multicolored shiny paper. As he unwrapped that fancy paper to eat the hardened drop of sugar, Vasantharaja remembered the advice given to him by his mother and grandmother. Had Uncle Ranga put a charm into this candy? If he ate this lozenge would he fall for Uncle Ranga? Then he felt that he was already drawn to Uncle Ranga even without eating a charmed candy.
How great it would be to go to Velvetithurai with Uncle Ranga and then get on a boat from there to go on to India? How much longer could he be imprisoned behind this palm leaf fence? Unwrapping the candy, he put it in his mouth. He felt that it had a very unusual sweetness. He could feel a certain electricity rushing through his whole body. Was this candy a charm? Sitting by the palm leaf fence, Vasantharaja felt an awakening within his body. The afternoon sunlight warmed his entire being. Without thinking he caressed his nipples. There was an unusual pleasure in it. He squeezed one nipple very slowly. It was as if he could still feel Uncle Ranga’s rough fingers on his chest.
“What are you doing there?” Mother’s voice jolted Vasantharaja to reality. “I thought you went to Shivamma’s house.”
“I went there and came back. Did Uncle Ranga leave?”
“Yes, Yes, he did go. You come into the house. Don’t stay out there. There’s rumor that some very evil people are taking away boys like you. Oh, I don’t know.”
Heeding to his mother, Vasantharaja came into the compound. But till nightfall he was restless. That night he did not eat, but just played with his rice.
“What’s wrong with you?” Grandpa Mahes who sat on the same mat with him to have his dinner inquired from him.
“My stomach hurts.” Vasantharaja lied.
“What did you eat? Did you eat unripened mangoes? Did anyone give you anything?”
“No, no.”
“My younger brother came,” Janaki revealed. “When he came I sent my son to Shivamma’s”
“Did Ranganadan give you anything to eat?”
“No. I did not even see him.”
“Be careful, podian.” Grandpa Mahes said emphatically.
“I heard that Ranga has joined them. Today they have killed some more people.”
None of this was news to Vasantharaja. There was gunfire blasting now and then. He could smell the smoke from nearby fires. There was a fear enveloping everything. But Vasantharaja never felt any fear. He had decided to somehow runway with Uncle Ranga this evening.
That night he slept on the porch.
“You sleep inside the house,” mother urged.
“No it’s too warm for me. My stomach is bothering me. If I have to relieve myself at night it’s easier if I sleep on the porch.” Mother’s approval came in the from of silence.
The night was dark. Though there were stars shining in the sky there was no moon in sight. Vasantharaja kept on listening. There was a continuous croaking of the frogs. Since it had rained a few days earlier, all around were puddles of mud. He guessed that the frogs were breeding in the muddy water. Inside the house, the clock struck ten. Then he heard eleven. Vasantharaja tried to stay awake by squeezing his nipples. Everyone was asleep. The world was quiet. The palm leaf fence was only a silhouette. When his eyelids were drooping, Vasantharaja rubbed spit upon his eyes.
Vaguely he could hear the wheels of a motorcycle scraping against the earth. Vasantharaja got up at once and hurried to the fence. When he opened the gate and came to the road he could see Uncle Ranga holding the bike.
“Get on. get on, we are not going very far.”
Vasantharaja hopped onto the back seat. Ranganadan who kept on pushing the bike for some distance, started the engine only after he had passed by several houses in the neighborhood. Just like he promised he did not go too far. Vasantharaja spent that night in a house in Puttur itself.
In a large room in this old dilapidated house. there were several other young men and teenagers. Since his uncle was there, Vasantharaja did not feel any fear. Three older men were holding on to their guns. In the middle of the room was a small kerosene lamp. In its red glow the men’s eyes also appeared red. Once in a while a boy could be heard sobbing. No one uttered a word.
Vasantharaja fell asleep while hugging Uncle Ranga. When he woke up in the middle of the night, he could still see those three men holding their guns. Vasantharaja moved away from his uncle’s hold. The man holding the gun nearest to him extended a bottle towards him.
“Kudi” (Drink) That is all that the man said. Vasantharaja placed the bottle to his lips. The man was still holding the bottle. He angled the bottle to Vasantharaja’s mouth. The liquid tasted sweet. Vasantharaja drank without any trepidation. After this he fell into a deep sleep.
He woke up in a boat in the middle of the ocean. It was night time. By next morning he had arrived in India. After this Vasantharaja spent some time holding a wooden rifle.
He had to undergo various training. He listened to various lectures. He learned to wear the cyanide capsule around his neck at this camp. He listened to speeches which explained how the Sinhala race had destroyed his own cultural heritage which made his blood to boil in his veins. Feelings of hatred to destroy his enemy and to die in the process were well established within him.
He forgot everyone including his mother, grandmother and Grandpa Mahes. In this new surrounding he made new friends. He learned to chew on tobacco leaves while eating rice with gravy.