"Huff... Huff... Huff!" Arun gasped for breath.
His eyes opened quickly, darting all around as he breathed in large swathes of air. After gasping for a while, he sat up on his bed and calmed his mind.
In his mind, the scene of betrayal kept on playing like a tune stuck in his head. The disbelief from the situation almost covered the absurdity of his current circumstances.
Slowly, though, his eyes stopped darting as clarity returned to them.
'Wait, if I died, how am I still alive?' he thought. Doubt surfaced in his mind. He temporarily let go of his feelings, looking at his body: young and untrained arms, small build, legs barely reaching the floor as he sat on the edge of his bed.
At this time, he took a look around the room. The tiled floor, a dull white and repressed in the dark of night. A small square window letting in dim moonlight, a wooden desk placed right below the window with a simple wooden chair placed in front. A cupboard on the left side of the table and a small bookshelf on the right, about the same height as the table.
On one side of the table was ink and on the other a feathered pen. Some sheets of paper were collected neatly in a bundle with a small paperweight stone to keep them from flying.
The bookshelf contained a few books: Maths, Ethics, Rules, Various Arts, and Records of Sharira Shuddhi by a humble monk.
His eyes did not stay long as he stood up. The room was a square, with an exit on the east side and a window on the west, his bed in the southern corner, and in the northern corner a large shelf which contained all his clothes along with a full-body-sized mirror on the left of it.
He walked to the mirror as he thought about the absurd scene he was seeing.
His footsteps were slow and heavy, but the wooden floor did not make too much noise. He walked in front of the mirror. His room was not large to begin with. Just a small square like the thousands of disciples raised by the temple also had. It served as a place to rest and study and was functional.
He looked at his young body in the mirror. His head was shaved, his eyebrows bland, his ears small, a slightly larger nose, his lips a healthy red and a perfect set of teeth shining in that smile. His skin was smooth with almost no blemish, healthy and supple, just like a young child. But his eyes changed his entire disposition. They seemed vast and deep, a dark black color like a small void, containing extraordinary knowledge.
If someone looked at just the eyes, no one would think that they belonged to a 12-year-old kid and would instead guess they were from an enlightened master. Shockingly, they would be right.
His body was small and his health in good condition. Sufficient muscle and fat were visible in his build. The temple did take good care of each and every disciple, with a nutritious and fulfilling diet provided for free to everyone. This resulted in most disciples having a healthy body, making it easier to train in the future.
At this moment, his nostrils suddenly expanded, making his already large nose appear larger, his smooth forehead now showing a crease as his eyebrows were raised in astonishment. 'This is definitely me, at just 12 years old! But how? Did the heavens give me another chance? For what? Revenge? Truth? I do not hate Master for what he did, but I am confused regarding his intentions. There is no way he just killed me in spite or to stop my promotion to the next level. Master is not like that. There must be another reason and I shall get to the bottom of it in this life.'
His raised brows relaxed, his forehead once again smooth. The eyes also gained clarity, and a resolute will shone in them. He walked to the window, looking up at the beautiful night sky.
Arun's eyes also had a similar look when he sacrificed his life. Alas, Shakti did not know what had transpired after he died or how his second life came to be.
...
The next day.
The sun rose, driving away the cold night air. Little droplets of water fell from leaves. Thousands of disciples gathered in a large field.
Shakti stood in front of the gate. The gate was unique, made of tree branches intertwining against each other. The rows of trees extended all around the ground, forming a natural border.
He walked inside, and thousands of disciples came into his view. All of these had been trained since the tender young age of five by the temple. Taught basic education including a core set of ethics and rules, one could say each one of these individuals would go on to become a valuable working member of society.
This was how this city functioned. Bhramvatra Mandir, meaning the divine territory where the temple was the absolute authority. Children were taken in at birth and trained till the age of 15, thereafter being sent into various families depending upon their personalities and future prospects.
Today marked the beginning of the first day of training. For the next three years, these kids would be arduously trained, undergoing the process of Sharira Shuddhi. Those who showed good potential and an admirable personality would even be taken in by the higher masters of the temple.
'Arun should make an appearance today. If I recall correctly, he would give an opening speech and then Vishwa will take over, imparting the sacred techniques.' Thinking while walking, he kept looking at his fellow disciples.
A few greeted him, and he greeted them back. In this sea, he was looking for her. He had to see her. He did not know what he was going to say or if he was even going to approach her.
'Right. She should have been recruited by Vishwa. How could I forget? Such a child prodigy, how could she be among this sea of normal?' He stopped moving. Just like the many others surrounding him, he patiently waited for the ceremony to start.