The beast surprised him. It grabbed both of them in massive arms, holding them across their chest and pulled them out of the death waters. Tucking them under his, it walked towards the shore without any apparent effort. He walked out of the swiftly flowing torrent and dragged them unceremoniously through the mud. Sanath caught a whiff of a foul pungent smell emanating from the creature. He braced himself for an attack from the beast. But it surprised him again. Having rescued them, it threw them among the rocks, and let out a satisfactory gurgle that echoed across the valley. It walked away towards the jungle, loping with a peculiar two-legged gait and not a backward glance. Sanath's head hit a rock and he passed out.
When he finally came to after what seemed like ages, Sanath wondered how did he end up passing out on the marshy ground? Then the scheme of events hit his mind with a blinding flash. They had been caught in the flash flood and subsequently rescued by a strange creature. He wondered what the creature was. Yeti? The Abominable snowman? The half bear- half man of the legends he had been hearing? Why did it save them from certain death? And it did not even attack or attempt to harm them. Oh yes, he was thankful for that. Then he remembered Shalini. He turned around hysterical and saw that she was lying in the mud, her body very still. He crawled over to her and checked her pulse. She was alive. He sent a silent prayer of thanks heavenwards again. He pumped out water that she might have swallowed and stroked her head. He picked her up and carried her further away from the waters. He noticed with surprise that the rain had stopped. He wondered what he should do now. He checked Shalini's pulse again. It was fast but otherwise steady.
He tried to shake her awake. She did not respond. He realised that even he was exhausted by the ordeal and sat down next to Shalini and tried to regain his breath. The sun came out with startling suddenness as the clouds disappeared. Shalini stirred and opened her eyes.
“What happened? Where are we?” Then she remembered. “Sanath, the rain, the flood! Ah, and that horrible creature! Did it actually save our lives? What is happening?”
Sanath was relieved to see his wife regain consciousness. He held her hands and pulled her up. They embraced passionately, happy to be alive and unharmed. Sanath tried to get his bearings and decide the further course of action.
“We must have been washed a mile downstream. If we walk upstream we will eventually hit the trail that leads to the Chopta guesthouse. I guess we should be there in a couple of hours,” Sanath calculated.
“What if that creature comes back?” Shalini asked fearfully. “It may attack us now.” “Well, it saved us from certain death. And if it wanted to make a meal of us, it had ample opportunity in the morning. I think I have had enough of adventure! Let's find our way back to civilization,” Sanath sighed.
They trudged into Chopta two and a half hours later; wounded, bedraggled, fatigued but otherwise unharmed. They were greeted by an ecstatic pair of guides.
“Thank God that you are still alive. We went looking for you in the morning and found that the tent had been washed away in the flood. We had given up the hope of seeing you again,” Ramesh said, the moment they came near.
“Oh, we would have surely drowned if that creature had not rescued us!” Shalini exclaimed, relief dripping from her tired voice. “Creature! What creature?” Brijesh asked. “I don't know. We were about to drown, when this huge hairy creature came from nowhere, dragged us out of the water, and dumped us on the shore. Then he vanished into the trees,” Sanath said.
Both Ramesh and Brijesh paled visibly. “The beast! You have been touched by the beast? You are tainted! Both of you are doomed for life.” They both backed up hastily and started running away.
“Hey wait! Don't run away. Hold it!” Sanath shouted after them but the two were not even in the range to hear his voice. “That's strange! The guy's really high-tailed it! And I haven't even paid the jerks!” Sanath muttered.
“Sanath, let them be! I am tired. I need a bath and a change of clothes and food,” Shalini said, her body tilting towards his shoulders.
“So do I! Half our stuff was washed away in the flood. I just hope we find the rest of the stuff here,” Sanath said, still looking towards the direction where the guides ran away.
He met the caretaker and had everything organized in minutes. They spent the day and night recuperating, trying to overcome the shock from their adventure. They decided to abandon the trip and go to Rishikesh for the rest of their honeymoon.
“From now on we go to only cities and resorts where conditions are more under control,” Sanath said as he stretched his limbs. They asked the caretaker to arrange for fresh porters and set off. The return trek was mostly downhill. They made good time and reached Sari by evening. They checked into the same rooms. They were sitting in the verandah enjoying the mild breeze when Shalini brought up the question that had been vexing her.