She of the Mountains by Vivek Shraya

out of social commitments and repeatedly call in sick at work.
    I am a bad worker. I am a bad friend. I disappoint everyone. I can’t be what they want. Everyone is better off without me. I am not good enough. I am not good enough. I am not good enough. I am not good enough. I am not enough. I am not enough. I am not enough. I am not enough.



After we killed him, I lost her.
    Kali had lapped up every drop of his blood, preventing new Mahishasuras from sprouting, and I steadfastly slaughtered the remaining Mahishasuras. Together we were a terrifying and magnificent team. But then, high on the taste of life, she began feeding on any human in sight, dancing feverishly as she drank their innocent bodies dry, her eyes rolling in circles. She wanted more.
    Kali! I said, over and over again, trying to awaken her from her madness. She was beyond my reach. For a moment, I wanted her to have everything. Why must we always prioritize harmony and consider consequence? What lessons do we miss by suppressing rage and chaos? Why did Shiv alone have domain over destruction?
    These thoughts only heightened Kali’s delirium, and she nodded violently in agreement. I could taste the blood in her mouth. It was sour and cold, like rotting plants, foretelling the extinction ahead. No , I whispered, shifting my attention to the humans, moving as many as I could to safety.
    Into the trees! Hurry! I yelled.
    Suddenly, Shiv appeared. He looked at me, then at her, and then at me again. Although he had never seen Kali before, he recognized her as part of me. He approached her from behind, waited for her to be mid-air, and stealthily laid himself down beneath her feet.
    Shiv! What are you doing? She will crush you! I cried.
    Kali danced on his body, oblivious to him, her feet pounding on his chest and her arms flailing in every direction. Shiv’s eyes were closed. I knew that I had to push her off of him somehow, even if this meant incurring her wrath. Before I had the chance, she wobbled and look down, startled.
    Blue, I remember you , she said. She disappeared back into my brow, leaving a smell of smoke, of fires quenched.
    I rushed to Shiv’s side.
    Shiv, I am so sorry. She was insatiable. I should have …
    He opened his eyes and smiled.
    You should have everything , he said, echoing my earlier thought.
    But I do!
    Perhaps the only way to steady her—and me—was for him to rest his body under hers.

Can’t you see what is happening to me? he said, massaging his temples with vigour, trying to pacify the throbbing under his forehead.
    She had not mentioned anything about his new body, but he assumed she was being kind, the way she would pretend not to see the bulbous zit on his face, even when he pointed it out.
    Yes, you seem different, she said.
    So you can see my new leg?
    A new leg? No … you seem restless. And unhapp—
    What about my tail? he interrupted and pointed behind him.
    She examined him closely.
    I still don’t see anything, love. You are as beautiful as ever.
    He cringed. Why couldn’t she see what he saw?
    Just be honest. Please. I need you to be honest.
    She walked towards him and said, You are beautiful.
    Whenever she looked at him, including at this moment, her entire face turned to light. He wondered what it would feel like to look at himself and see what she saw, to shine as she did, or at least feel a lightness in his body. He imagined what it would be like to walk down the street, a tower of light, fully connected to his limbs and senses.

    His three arms pushed her away, refusing to succumb to her light, and he grew silent.
    Please just talk to me .
    One of his tongues held the other tongue down.
    Listen, I love you. Whatever is going on, we can figure this out together.
    His top tongue loosened.
    What did you just say? he asked.
    I said I love you.
    His new leg dissolved.
    Can you say it again?
    I love you …
    In minutes, his body was entirely restored.

He found himself