-: Pancha Vastra :- ( By Shailu )

[shailu4ever]

 
At first, nothing happens.
 
The world hangs suspended between sound and silence.
 
The women near the granary glance upward.
 
A few villagers turn toward the building.
 
The rain continues to fall.
 
Then,
 
The roof erupts into flame.
 
It happens so quickly that Arjun’s mind struggles to understand it.
 
One moment the roof is dark with rain.
 
The next moment it is burning.
 
Not a small flicker.
 
Not a slow spreading spark.
 
The fire explodes outward as if the entire structure has been soaked in oil. Bright orange flames leap across the dry inner layers of thatch hidden beneath the wet surface.
 
Within seconds the entire roof is engulfed.
 
Smoke pours from the entrance in thick, choking clouds.
 
And from inside,
 
Screaming.
 
For a moment, even the storm seems to hesitate, as if the island itself has taken a sudden, terrible breath.
 
The nine women.
 
They had been standing at the doorway only seconds ago.
 
Preparing lamps.
 
Arranging baskets of rice.
 
Now they are inside the burning granary.
 
Trapped.
 
Arjun doesn’t think.
 
His camera bag drops from his shoulder and lands heavily in the mud.
 
Behind him, he vaguely hears Amma Lakshmi shouting something, her voice suddenly sharp with urgency. Villagers begin running toward the granary. Someone forms a chain toward the well. Clay pots appear as water is passed hand to hand.
 
The little girl who had been chasing the goat begins crying for her mother.
 
But Arjun is already moving.
 
Running.
 
Somewhere behind him, he hears Amma Lakshmi shout a single word in Tamil, a word that carries both alarm and something deeper… almost recognition.
 
The entrance to the granary is a mouth of smoke and fire.
 
The heat slams into him like a physical force, forcing him to squint and turn his face away.
 
For a fraction of a second, instinct screams at him to stop.
 
This is madness.
 
The building is burning too fast.
 
No one could survive inside that.
 
But another sound cuts through the roar of the flames.
 
A woman coughing.
 
Another voice screaming.
 
And suddenly instinct is no longer in control.
 
Arjun pulls his soaked jacket over his head, takes a deep breath, and plunges into the fire.