The Intern : A Short Story by Ajit Hirekar
He was now a god amongst men. A lesser known, hardly worshiped being but nonetheless a god. He did not have the powers that the sons of the Almighty possessed, he was an apprentice after all. Yet when no one stood to be sent to the earth, he volunteered.
The cries from men beneath made the Heaven sombre. Having created the perfect beings, the creator pondered ‘what is it that ails these humans?’ And so he sent one of his trusted intern to understand the plight of humans.
The earth was a beautiful place. Yet no one seemed happy. The job was simple: Ask the Humans the reason for their plight and report back to the creator. But why was the job so damn hard.
Pain and suffering everywhere. Cries and howl everytime . There was no one solution to the problems that the Humans created for themselves. And yes they multiplied a lot and too frequently. They had everything , yet they craved for everything else.
Nothing could soothe their pain. And the Men looked upto him. Women talked to him for days at a stretch. Babies cried in his arms till they could cry no more. How could he disappoint them all. They even created Idols that resembled him. He tried telling them he was not their creator and that he was just an Intern. But he was a God amongst Men after all.
For the first time he was angry at the creator himself. Wasn’t it the creators responsibility to aide his creation. Help them cope with Pain and loss. Suffering and bereavement. But the creator was busy relaxing in his luxurious heavens. And here he was helpless. A God with no powers. A God who could not perform miracles. A God who could not bless their problems away. He realized he was as good as the idols that the humans prayed to. He resented his own existence. The heavens seemed too far away from the Earth now.
He knew the consequences of his action. But something had to be done. If he was banished from the heavens so be it. If he was degraded from a God to a mere mortal, so be it. So what If it was everything he had worked for. He could no longer see the pain and the suffering. The heaven guards had warned him about the side effects of being with Humans. But he found himself more close to these mortals than any other God he had ever met. He had made a decision and was ready to face the music, come what may !
That was the day when Men learnt the art of making Wine. The elixir of life and the drinks of the God. Somras is what they called it.
It was also the day when the Heavens not only lost their most priced creation but also one of their most promising Intern.
Satan is what they called him.
