Satya Yuga, Vaikuntha

"Stop right there!"

The stranger paused in his steps, casting a reluctant glance at the two people who stopped him.

"I need to visit the Lord! Leave my way!"

"Lord is taking rest." Jay said, "No one is allowed to go inside before he wakes up."

"Also, you do not seem to be a sage or even a devotee." Vijay pointed out. "Who are you?"

"I'm son of Mata Diti. She sent me with a message for Lord Vishnu."

"A Daitya, means demon?" Jay observed him from head to toe. "What message Mata Diti has sent?"

"Apologies, Dwarpal! But my message is for Lord Vishnu alone and no one else. Hence, I request you, please let me in!"

"We understand your urgency, Daitya. But we cannot go against the order of our master. You can meet him only after he wakes up." Jay calmly said. "Till then, you have to wait."

"Do not force me to take my weapons, Dwarpal!" The demon warned. "I respect Lord Vishnu's dear servants and don't want to hurt you. Hence, requesting you for one last time. Do leave my way!"

"We are also requesting you for the last time, son of Diti!" Vijay said, "Do not force us to violet our Lord's order! Otherwise we too might have to use force on you!"

"Alright! As you wish!" The demon nodded. "I challenge you two! Stop me if you can!"

Jay fumed, exchanging a quick glance with Vijay. But confident they were, being blessed with the danda that Lord Vishnu himself had given them to protect his abode. The demon too was no less. He used illusions against the gatekeepers of Vaikuntha.

The battle dragged long enough. To their shock, Jay and Vijay could not overcome the demonic Maya of their opponent. A surge of ashes flew in front of their eyes, blocking their vision. They realized it was an illusion, but could not help or counter the demonic power. Soon their exhausted, bleeding frames sank to the sand of Vishnu loka.

"I requested you not to stop me! You did not listen!" The demon jeered. "Now suffer the consequences!"

"Jay, Vijay! Let him come in!"

The ever-compassionate, divine voice swimmed through the sacred air of Vaikuntha. Both the gatekeepers lowered their heads.

"As you wish, Prabhu!" They managed to utter through the pain, joining their hands.

Vishnu smiled a kind smile, sensing their condition. Could he ever forget his children, even if they forget him?

The next moment, his lotus eyes turned to Surya Loka, asking to heal his dear devotees.

***

"Feeling better now?"

Devi Usha's affectionate smile had a magical ability to cure half of the suffering, Jay noted.

"Who won't feel better in your presence, Devi?" He bowed to her in reverence.

Usha smiled more. "Is your pain only on your body, Dwarpal?" Her gaze looked through their hearts, just like her light went through darkness of night, on every dawn.

Jay lowered his head, unable to meet her intent gaze to which, he knew, none of his inner negativity could be hidden. Vijay followed him, too.

"You both wonder how an ordinary Daitya could defeat you, right?" Usha said again. "And that pain of dishonour is much more severe than these physical injuries."

"Isn't that shocking enough, Devi? We are gatekeepers of Vishnu loka, the abode of moksha itself!" Vijay finally voiced it. "How could we become so powerless in front of demonic Maya?"

"Well, Vijay, tell me first, what actually defines your power?" Usha's eyes sparkled in amusement.

"We are protectors of the abode of Lord himself." Jay replied. "Is there a greater power than that in universe?"

"Protectors?" Usha laughed. "Who protects whom, Jay? Is it you who protect him, or is it him who protects this universe, including you?"

Jay and Vijay fell tongue-tied now.

Why couldn't they think this earlier?

"Your power lies in your devotion, not in the ego that you are Vaikuntha's gatekeepers." Usha continued. "Did you invoke that power within yourself during the fight? Did you seek Lord's blessing before that? Did you pray to Mayapati to remove demon's Maya?"

Both lowered their heads now.

"Ego cannot be anyone's strength, Dwarpal! Ego weakens one, while devotion and prayer strengthens. Remember this!"

They joined their hands, tears filling their eyes now.

"You have opened our eyes, Devi!" Jay said. "You have not only healed our bodies but our hearts too! Our Pranam to you!"

"I am glad that you realized your mistake soon! May you never fall prey to ahankaar again, devotees of Lord!" Usha beamed.

"The favour you have done to us is huge, beloved of Ashwinis! I wish I could serve you as my own, to pay my gratitude to you!" Jay prayed.

Usha realized his heart's wish.

"I shall come to you if Lord wishes so, Jay!" She assured with a smile.

***

"You want to say anything, Jay?" Narayana's kind eyes fell on his devotee.

"You are antaryami, Prabhu!" Jay bowed. "Can my tongue express more than what you already know?"

Vishnu smiled with a slow nod.

"As per Sanatkumar's curse, you and Vijay have to take three births on earth, as my enemies. Hope you remember that."

"We do, my Lord! But please give us this boon that we do not stay completely away from Dharma!"

"You won't. In every birth, my devotees will surround you always, either as your son or brother. In Dwapara, Devi Usha herself will be born to you as your daughter." The Lord of Lakshmi raised an eyebrow knowingly. "This is what you came to pray for, right?"

"Thank you, Prabhu!" Jay submitted himself at the lotus feet that held entire universe under their compassionate shelter.

***

Dwapara Yuga, Chedi, Chaitra Shukla Panchami

Crown Prince Shishupala had never become so calm and composed in his life. As if something had wiped out all darkness from his mind. As if some forgotten memory of past life had triggered after long, long time.

It started with a dream. Dream of a she-elephant, with an eye-soothing blue colour, stared at him for long. Her large eyes were deep as ocean, like someone's profound wisdom. Shishupala tried to touch the elephant but before that she disappeared, leaving him awake. The first thing he saw after opening his eyes was the first ray of dawn.

It is said that Devi Usha, the darling of Ashwini Kumaras, herself travelled ahead of her Lords, before her father-in-law began his journey of the day!

Shishupala saw a surge of clouds rolling on the sky. As if the Goddess of dawn had taken a form of a cloud-hued she-elephant.

Just like the one he had dreamt!

Why did this sight of dawn make him so emotional? Shishupala wondered. Nobody had ever seen such a softness in the usually raged eyes of this Prince of Chedi.

"Hail Yuvaraj Shishupala!" A midwife bowed. "You are blessed with a girl!"

"Thanks to all Gods!" Shishupala exhaled. "May I see her once?"

"Come, Yuvaraj!" The midwife led him to the labour room. Shishupala saw his newborn daughter, his heart skipped a beat. She was dark-hued, lotus-eyed, just like the she-elephant! Or that cloud in front of dawn, the chariot of Usha!

"Pita! I'll see her! Please!" A five-year-old Dhrishtaketu pleaded.

Shishupala smiled and took the baby in his lap, turning to his little son. Dhrishtaketu caressed his sister lovingly, a feeling of responsibility sprouting in his young heart.

"What will we call her, Pita?"

"Karenumati!" The word escaped Shishupala's lips almost in a trance.

"Karenumati, the she-elephant, the auspiciousness personified!"

The baby smiled a calm smile, looking at her father.

I fulfilled your wish, Jay!

Usha vyadhi nivarinim Ashwini dwaya samyuktaam
Namami Chedi raajasutaam Maadreyaagraja priyaam

[I bow to Devi Usha, the remover of diseases, the one who is always united with Ashwini Kumaras. I bow to the Princess of Chedi, to the consort of elder son of Madri.]
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Author's note:

1. Jay and Vijay were born three times. First, as Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu, second, as Ravana and Kumbhakarna, third in Dwapara, as Shishupala and Dantavakra. That was their last birth after which they went back to Vaikuntha again.

2. In Sanskrit, Karenumati means female elephant.

Credit: This entire story was originally conceived by _justloveharry_33. She imagined the plot and discussed with me. I just present it in my own way, adding my research to it. Even the meaning of Karenumati's name was found by her only.

Karenumati being Devi Usha's incarnation is found in Garuda Purana, as discovered by PandavaPriyaa and PadmaVaasati