Rudra's POV
As Nandi Ji and I continued at a leisurely pace, my curiosity reached a fever pitch. The forest around us didn't just feel alive; it felt aware. It was as if every leaf was an eye and every rustle of wind was a whispered conversation about the interloper walking through their sacred halls.
I gazed at wonders that I had always assumed were the frantic hallucinations of fantasy writers or the faded ink of ancient myths.
Large squirrels, their fur a shifting kaleidoscope of iridescent teals and burnt oranges, fluttered between branches on skin-membranes that looked like silk. Butterflies, some as large as five-year-old children, drifted through the shafts of golden light, their wings shimmering with patterns that seemed to tell the history of the stars.
Then I saw the foxes. They didn't just have tails; they had cascades of them. Some had three, others seven, and I even spotted one pure white vixen with eleven tails fanned out like a royal throne. Horses with fur that shone as polished pearls galloped silently through the thickets, their eyes glowing with an intelligence that felt uncomfortably human.
Above us, eagles with wingspans that could shade a small house circled in the sky, their chirping so melodious it sounded like a choir of flutes. Even the lions here were different; majestic, golden-maned kings that didn't radiate hunger, but a terrifying, quiet wisdom.
I looked around as if I had stepped through the screen of a cinema and into a world where colour and logic had been redefined. I was like a kid at a carnival, my head whipping left and right, unable to find a place for my eyes to rest.
"Sir," I finally asked, my voice cracking with awe.
"Are these... are these animals and birds truly alive? I mean, are they real? Why haven't I ever heard of them? Back home, we only have these in tales and fantasy stories. And this forest..." I trailed off, watching a flower peel itself open to reveal a core of liquid light. "It feels as if it's interacting with every organism within it. It feels... unified. Can you tell me its name?"
Nandi Ji let out a quiet, rumbling chuckle that vibrated in the soles of my feet.
"A name, huh? This is no random thicket of Kailash, child. The point we crossed earlier was not merely an entrance. It was the manifestation of a Door. A Realm Door, to be precise. You are no longer walking on the physical crust of the mountain. You are in a Divine Realm."
They continued walking, the golden bell on their ankle chime-syncing with the heartbeat of the forest.
"I will not speak of this realm's name or its inhabitants yet. I will let them introduce themselves. After all, we are guests here. Even I, in truth, am a guest in this specific sanctuary." They gestured toward a passing stag whose antlers were made of living crystal.
"The trees, birds, and animals you see are the ones who wish to see you, not the other way around. If they did not wish for your presence, you would not even be able to sense the air here, let alone see the fur on a fox's back."
Nandi Ji paused,
Their expression became uncharacteristically sombre.
"All these mystical beings did live on Earth once. At some point in the deep past, they shared the air with your ancestors. But I do not know when, why, or how they were shifted to this realm. That specific point in time is blurred even to the Devs and devis. It is as if a Great Hand erased the chalkboard of history. Only some chosen ones were given permission by the Trinity and the Great Goddesses to remember fragments. I think... it was done to protect them from the fading of magic."
They stopped, looking up at the canopy.
"And this realm manifests here because of the presence of the Kalpavriksh upon Kailash. The Divine Tree. The Wish-Fulfiller."
A shiver ran down my spine.
What I had assumed was a sacred forest was a high-security vault for the forgotten. Who or what could possess the power to make even the Trinity—Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh agree to a collective amnesia? What event could warrant this level of cosmic secrecy?
And it didn't take a genius to realise that the entity wishing to meet me was likely a Godly being who presided over this entire "For the Forgotten" dimension.
I was so lost in the implications of "cosmic amnesia" that I didn't realise the terrain had changed. One moment, we were in a dense thicket, and the next, the trees had parted to reveal a clearing of such symmetry it looked planned.
I blinked, confused. I knew I was out of focused but definitely, I wasn't that out of focus. I should have felt the time pass.
Seeing my confusion, Nandi Ji spoke again, their voice a comforting anchor.
"Fret not. We were personally invited by the Divine herself. When the Forest wants you to arrive, the distance between 'here' and 'there' simply ceases to exist. It is natural to reach the centre without realising the journey."
Before I could respond, a voice echoed through the clearing. It didn't come from a throat; it felt like it was woven into the oxygen. I felt as if our itself spoke with me.
"Yes, it would be rather embarrassing if we allowed our guests to wander through the Forest of the Forgotten on their own. I do not underestimate the Great Nandi, but such an oversight would reflect poorly upon our hospitality."
The voice sounded like the chime of distant silver bells, soft, pleasant, and humming with a rhythmic vitality. I looked toward the source and saw a figure stepping out from behind a jade-colored trunk.
They were lithe, with skin that had the texture of polished bark and eyes that shifted like leaves in the wind. They have a well-sculpted face, and the beauty of flowers, a perfect symmetry and scent wafts around them.
Nandi Ji smiled warmly.
"How are you, Ruchika? Oh..." They paused, looking closer at the being.
"Hmm... so you have achieved a higher realm of self-realisation since we last met. Congratulations are in order, dear friend."
Ruchika inclined their head slightly, a gesture of profound grace.
"Thank you, Great Nandi. I truly appreciate it, but we will speak of the long years later. It would not be appropriate to keep our Lady waiting. They are awaiting our presence with great anticipation."
Nandi Ji then turned to me, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"Child, they are the manifestation of the Kalpavriksh I mentioned. The Tree you see before you are their true body. The Divine Tree of Desires."
I looked past Ruchika, and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe.
There stood an enormous tree, I had seen from afar, but I couldn't imagine it would be this grand. It was magnificent beyond any word in any language. Its crown rose so high that it didn't just reach the sky; it was the sky. The clouds seemed to emerge from its branches. The trunk and branches shimmered with a translucent green light, as if carved from the finest, most ancient jade in the universe. The leaves were mesmerising, each one a perfect emerald that pulsed with golden veins. I felt my soul being pulled toward it, a sense of belonging so strong it was almost painful.
Ruchika turned toward me, their gaze gentle yet piercing.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, traveller. I am called Ruchika. I am the High Tree Spirit, and I lord over this side of the forest,
which is known to the Heavens as the Forest of the Forgotten. Those who reside here are beings who, due to misfortune, uniqueness, or the changing tides of the ages, found no place elsewhere. Here, they are granted eternal safety under the protection of our Devi."
They gestured ahead, toward the base of the massive jade trunk.
"Come. I will take you to meet our Lady."
Urged gently by Nandi Ji, I shook off my stupor and followed. Our path led directly toward the massive wall of jade that was the trunk of the Kalpavriksh. It was so wide it felt like walking toward a mountain range.
When we reached the bark, Ruchika stopped. They folded their hands before their chest and began to utter a prayer. It was a strange, melodic sequence of sounds. No matter how hard I strained my ears, I could not hear a single word; the sounds seemed to exist in a frequency just outside of human hearing, vibrating in my chest instead of my ears.
The moment the prayer ended, the universe seemed to ripple.
Space itself responded to Ruchika's call. The jade bark of the tree didn't break; it simply dissolved into a swirling vortex of golden and emerald light. A portal opened, humming with the power of a thousand suns, leading to a realm unknown; a place far beyond the forest, far beyond Kailash, and far beyond anything my human mind had ever dared to imagine in its wildest stories.
"Step forward," Ruchika whispered, their eyes reflecting the portal's glow. "The Overseer is waiting."