"We do not wish to be separated from Kashi, Devi."
The elderly devotee's voice carried neither fear nor hesitation. It was calm... unwavering... filled with a devotion so profound that even death seemed insignificant before it.
Siya stood in silence, her gaze sweeping across the gathered citizens.
Not a single face reflected panic.
Not one soul pleaded to be rescued.
Despite the poisonous rain devastating the world beyond Kashi's sacred borders, despite knowing that an unimaginable darkness was approaching, the people before her remained astonishingly composed.
She had only wanted one thing—
For them to stay alive.
Taking a slow breath, Siya stepped forward.
"Please... do not be stubborn," she said gently. "I am not saying Kashi itself is unsafe. But as long as all of you remain here, this city will continue to become the target of every calamity that seeks to reach it. I only wish to protect you. This is for your own safety."
A gentle smile appeared on the old man's face.
"We understand your concern, Devi."
He folded his hands respectfully.
"But perhaps... you should also understand our faith."
"Our Mahadev will never allow even a scratch to reach us before His will."
The crowd quietly nodded in agreement.
The old man continued,
"Perhaps you are unaware, Devi... Kashi is not merely known by three names."
"It carries five sacred identities."
"Kashi... Varanasi... Banaras... Anandavan... and Moksha Nagari—the City of Liberation."
His voice grew softer, almost reverent.
"And since you wish to protect us... allow me to tell you why none of us fear death here."
Even Hanuman, Ashwatthama, Kripacharya, Ali, and Andy listened without interruption.
The old devotee slowly turned toward the eternal flames rising from the distant cremation grounds.
"Do you see those fires?"
"That..."
"...is Manikarnika Ghat."
"The place where death itself becomes a doorway."
His eyes sparkled with devotion.
"Many people believe Manikarnika is sacred only because funeral pyres have burned there without interruption for centuries."
"But its story began much earlier."
"Long before mankind remembered history."
He closed his eyes as though witnessing the ancient past.
"There was a time when Lord Shiva and Mother Parvati descended to Earth."
"They came to bathe in the sacred waters of the Ganga."
"During that divine moment..."
"Mother Parvati's jeweled earring—her Mani-Karnika—slipped into the river."
"At the same time, a precious gem from Lord Shiva's forehead also disappeared beneath the waters."
The old man's voice deepened.
"Unable to find them..."
"Lord Shiva's anger shook the heavens."
"So great was His wrath that He declared—"
"As my heart burns in this moment... so shall this sacred land burn forever."
"From that day onward..."
"The fires of Manikarnika never ceased."
"They have continued to burn through every age."
"Every generation."
"Every empire."
"For thousands of years."
The crowd remained utterly silent.
The old man smiled again.
"But the story did not end there."
"When Lord Vishnu witnessed Shiva's grief..."
"He took the form of a divine tortoise and descended beneath the sacred waters."
"He searched endlessly..."
"Crossing rivers..."
"Crossing the very layers of the Earth."
"Until his journey led him to a distant land..."
"The region now known as Kullu-Manali, where the sacred hot and cold springs still flow."
"There..."
"He finally recovered both the divine jewel and Mother Parvati's earring."
"When Lord Vishnu returned them to Mahadev..."
"Shiva's anger subsided."
"But His spoken curse..."
"...could not be withdrawn."
"So instead..."
"He transformed it into a blessing."
The old devotee folded his hands.
"Lord Shiva declared—"
"Whoever is cremated at Manikarnika after receiving the sacred waters of Mother Ganga... shall attain Moksha."
"Liberation."
"Freedom from the endless cycle of birth and death."
"And from that divine blessing..."
"Kashi became known as Moksha Nagari."
His eyes met Siya's.
"So tell us, Devi..."
"If death itself grants liberation in this holy city..."
"Then why should we fear it?"
"If our final breath is destined to leave us here..."
"Is that not the greatest blessing a human being can receive?"
A faint smile spread across many faces in the crowd.
"For centuries..."
"People have traveled from every corner of Bharat with only one wish."
"To breathe their last in Kashi."
"To earn Mahadev's grace."
"And today..."
"You ask us to abandon this sacred land because death may come?"
The old man slowly shook his head.
"Forgive us, Devi."
"That..."
"...is simply impossible."
"We shall remain here."
"Until our final breath."
Silence embraced the city.
No one argued.
No one cried.
There was only faith.
Pure.
Unshakable.
Something stirred inside Siya.
She had faced immortal warriors.
She had confronted ancient darkness.
She had challenged nightmares beyond imagination.
Yet...
Nothing had prepared her for the strength born from ordinary human devotion.
For the first time...
She realized she had underestimated the people of Kashi.
They did not stay because they were ignorant of death.
They stayed...
Because they had already accepted it.
She slowly lowered her eyes toward the eternal flames of Manikarnika.
The sacred fire danced endlessly beneath the evening sky.
Its light reflected in her eyes.
A gentle smile appeared on her face.
"I understand now..."
she whispered.
Her plan to evacuate the people of Kashi quietly dissolved within her heart.
She would no longer force them to leave.
Some battles were won by power.
Others by wisdom.
But faith...
Faith was something no force in creation could ever uproot.