They have found him. At last...
Soon, the first ray of light broke through the horizon, engulfing the stars close to the land. In a matter of seconds, the dark gray sky turned into shades of light pink. Luke turned away from the window and doubled back to his desk. He sat in the chair and stared at the desk. It was filled with documents and files and globe of earth rested in front of him, next to his encrypted cell phone.
He stared at the cell phone. Soon they will call him. He knew it. But he hated waiting. He could feel the tension building inside him like a pouring coffee threatening to cross the rim of a cup and overflowing it.
He stretched out his hand, reaching for the drawer under his desk.
He grabbed the knob and gently pulled the drawer, revealing the content inside it. The corner of the drawer was huddled with little cobwebs. An old, dust-smeared, a black and white photograph was resting in the center of the drawer. He lifted the photograph, and ran his fingers over it—it was his most cherished possession—and was very close to his heart. The photograph showed an old guy in his early fifties, wearing a lab coat and thick framed glasses. Two teenage boys were standing beside him. The photograph felt cold against his fingers.
And the morning of June 1972 came back to him. It had rained heavily last night in Surabaya, a famous hill station in Indonesia. His dad had rented a big farmhouse on the outskirt of a small town. Luke sat on the porch staring at the dense forest cloaked in fog and rain.
His dad, Danilo Tesla was a renowned Serbian scientist and Philosopher, was sitting in the reading room, rocking on his chair. His brother was playing upstairs. The rain dropped in cold sheet, hammering on the rooftop. Aroma of wet mud hung in the air.
Luke kept gazing at the rain, brooding. He was actually not in good state. The news that he had read two days ago in the newspaper had disoriented his mind. The noise of rocking chair died. He heard footsteps. Then shuffling of books on the racks. Maybe his dad had decided to read some other book. He heard footsteps approaching him.
His muscles tensed up. He knew what was coming.
“Luke,” he heard his father calling.
Luke turned, and saw his father walking toward him. Smiling at Luke.
Luke smiled back. He loved the old man. His dad had married his mother at the age of forty-two. His mother was then only twenty-seven. She died of lung cancer when Luke was just one-year-old.
“What are you doing here?” His dad asked.
“Just watching,” Luke replied.
“You look so sad these days,” His father sat next to him and stroked his hair. “Is something bothering you?”
Luke swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. He looked up at his dad and said, “I read something in the newspaper.”
“You did?” His father smiled. “What was it, son?”
“It was about Vietnam war. There was also a photograph that—Dad why do people have to fight? Why do they have to kill each other?”
His dad stopped stroking his hair. “You know son. You are completely like me. Do you know why did if leave Serbia?”
Luke shook his head.
“Because of the second world war. They wanted me to create things that were cruel. Things that only an evil person can make.”
“But you are not evil,” Luke said.
“I'm not,” His father said solemnly, ‘Neither were those people who asked me to make those things. I realized it later, though.”
“Dad, you didn't give the answer to my question.”
“Answer to that question is that sometimes the bad things, which we think are bad for the society turns out to be good for the humanity. You know about the black death?”
“No, I don't,” Luke said, “But it doesn't sound a good to me.”
“It was the plague that killed millions of life in Europe. What do think about it? Was it good or bad?”
“I guess if it killed people then it was a bad thing.” Luke shrugged.
His dad smiled. “It was bad. But it was also good.”
“How?”
“Before the Black death. The cities in Europe were cramping up with people. The population was growing hastily. It lead to poor job opportunists, lots of pollution, and many other bad things. Basically speaking, the quality of life was decreasing in Europe. The black death killed people. But it also cleared up space. It lowered the population of the cities. The Black death brought the things back to normal. So, remember son that the end is necessary for a new beginning.”
Luke said nothing. He just kept staring at the old man.
His father put his hand around Luke’s shoulder and said, “You know why I became a scientist?”
Luke put his head on his dad’s chest and said, “Because you wanted to make the world a better place.”
“That’s right. I’m growing old now...Luke promise me that after my death you will carry on my mission.”
“I will,” Luke said.
“Good, Let’s go up and see what your brother is doing.”
Luke ran his hand over the photograph of his dad.
He smiled and said, "Dawn is coming, and so is the change... the change that will shudder the world. It will send the world into the abyss... The End... because the end is necessary for a new beginning."
29
Two men grabbed Karthik's arms and twisting them, they pushed him onto the ground, until he was lying flat on his stomach with his cheeks pressed against the cold floor. The floor was so cold that it stung. His body felt like a rock, unmoveable, all because the fear that had clouded his mind.
Piper was shrieking in protest. Her voice echoed in the basement. He gingerly turned his head to his left and saw Lilly staring back at him. She was also on the floor. There was calmness in her eyes, which bewildered him.
She was used to this kind of situations, and it clearly reflected through her expressions. Two years ago, her mission in Afghanistan had turned into a nightmare. She always considered it her worst mission... She was deployed in Afghanistan to spy on Taliban, one of the most feared terrorist organizations in the world. One week after arriving she was arrested, along with five others, on 27 June 2013, on suspicion of working for the Illegal Program spy ring under the American Federation secret agency. Luckily she was rescued by the remaining members of the United Knights.
But this time, the situation was completely different. The United Knights had no idea where she was. She clearly knew that if they don't act quickly—they will surely face death—or even worse than that.
A moment later Piper stopped protesting, maybe realizing that was useless.
"Tie them up," the man who was holding Dr. Sharif's nephew barked. His name was Haen. The men obediently started tying them up. They first tied Karthik and dragged him toward the wall, where they dropped him with his back pressed against the cold wall.
"Not him, you fools!" Haen barked, as two guards started tying Dr. Sharif's hands. "He is coming with me,"
"I'm not going anywhere!" Dr. Sharif replied firmly—and for a moment, he looked younger. Karthik wondered what kind of person he must have been when he was of Karthik’s age. He must have been braver than me, Karthik thought.
"Really?" Haen pressed the gun against the boy's forehead. The boy winced.
"Javed!" Dr. Sharif cried, bolting forward, but the two men seized his arms and dragged him back.
"Follow my orders, and I'll spare this boy's life," Haen replied, pressing the gun deeper into Javed’s skin.
Dr. Sharif's face became devoid of color. He stared at his crying and wearily looking nephew. He pondered on the thought of giving up and finally nodded.
Haen let go of Javed's shoulder. "Tie him up with the others." He motioned Dr. Sharif to follow him and started for the door. One of the guards poked his gun at Dr. Sharif's back, making him walk forward, toward the door.
Dr. Sharif miserably glanced at Karthik and others. As Haen and doctor Sharif neared the door, one of the guards asked, "What are we going to do with them?"
<
br /> Haen gazed at the empty space for a few moment and said, "Keep an eye on them and just wait for the orders. I'm going to call him."
Him? Who can be him? Karthik thought. Then it came to him. It must be Gun Katz, the leader of S.A.L.F. Yes, he must be the guy Haen is talking about.
They tied Javed with others and was thrown crammed up in the corner of the room. The smell of phenol and chemicals from the lab floated in the air. Javed's sobs echoed in the room. "I'm sorry," he kept saying, "very, very sorry. This is all my fault."
"Will you please keep quiet!" Jack snapped.
Lilly glared at him and turned her gaze to the boy. "It's okay... What happened? How did they—"
"I brought them here," Javed sobbed, "I'm very sorry. They were giving me money... I thought they were good... Guys..." and he started crying.
"It's okay," Lilly said.
She raised her eyes from the boy on the guards. There were two guards standing in front of them. The guards stared back at her. She held her gaze, but soon felt her stomach lurch. She turned her gaze back to her companions. They all looked miserable and terrified. How are we going to escape from here? She thought. There was no way out.
Luke Tesla's cell phone rang while he was staring out the window. He spun around and bolted toward the phone. He grabbed and raised his encrypted cell phone to his ears. It was Haen.
Luke waited, his heart pounded in his chest.
"Sir," Haen said.
"Yes, speak," Luke said.
"We have caught him. "
Luke's eyes widened with excitement. Soon, He thought.
"But," Haen continued. "There were more people with him. We identified one of them: Piper Watson and there is also an Indian guy with them."
Must be Karthik, Luke thought. What are they doing there?
"What should we do?" Haen asked.
And without even thinking Luke said, "Kill everyone. Destroy all the evidence."
"Copy that... "
30
Karthik had always imagined himself dying as an old man. One who had achieved all his dreams and was now ready to let it go. His dreams. There were many of them. He always wanted to scale mount, Everest (Surprise!). He wanted to own a stock company, and many more. But now, everything was looking far away. Death was close.
So this is how everything is going to end for me, he thought. His wrist felt sore. He tried to squirm his hands, but ropes dug deep into his skin. He felt like crying. He really did.
Men don't cry. His dad used to say. Of course, they do they are human after all. You prissy little bastard!
The two guards, in front of him, were talking with each other. The guns were poised on their shoulder. He heard someone coughing, and turned his head toward the source of the sound. It was Lilly. She was staring at him and nodding above him.
What, He mouthed.
Above you, she mouthed back.
He slowly turned his head and stared above. All he managed to saw was the stone ceiling. Disappointed, he looked back at her.
What, He mouthed again.
Lilly glared at him. Behind you and then above you, she mouthed back.
He nodded. Glanced at the guards and looked behind him. There was a desk, and more importantly, there was a dissecting knife on it.
But how to get it was the big question. He pondered for a while, trying to find an answer, and came up with an idea. He jerked his head and mouthed, Distract them.
She nodded. Then she started shouting, "Hey! Hey, you fools!"
The guards stopped at once and glared at her. "What is it?" One of them barked.
"What do you want from us?" she cried and tried to stand up.
"Shut your fat mouth!" He pointed the rifle at her.
For a moment, Karthik thought that they would shoot her. But they didn’t. Instead, they started quarreling with her.
The guards were shouting at her. Karthik exhaled and slowly edged to his left. He did not stand up. Just slid to his left. He glanced back at them.
They were still quarreling. Karthik Edged to his left. Glanced back. Still quarreling. He sighed and kept sliding. Good work, Lilly. Just hold them for few more minutes, he pleaded.
Soon he reached to the desk. Glanced back at guards. Their backs were facing him. His heart was now almost in his throat. What if he get caught? What would they do with him? Shoot him on sight? Or will beat him until he die? The stakes were high. The failure was not an option.
Gingerly, he gave the desk a little tackle, and the knife dropped on the floor with a clink. He turned his back to the knife and tried to pick it up with his tied hands.
He found it quite difficult to pick up a knife without looking at it. Finally, he grabbed the Knife and lifted. But felt someone's feet pressed on his hands. He turned and found another guard glaring at him. "Not so fast," The guard growled and smacked him the rear end of the rifle. A sharp pain shot from the back of his head, and everything went black.
Karthik found himself walking on an empty road, surrounded by a forest from both the sides. He was wearing a white school uniform. A red bag, crammed with school books was slung on his shoulder. His hair was matted with oil.
The dusk was falling around him. He was singing a song when someone called from behind. “Karthik!” He turned, and saw three boys glaring at him. They were taller than him. The middle one was fat and his fist was balled. “You told the teacher that we trouble street dogs!” He barked.
“Oh no,” Karthik muttered and ran. They ran behind him. They caught him and slammed him on the ground. Then they kicked him, punched him.
Few minutes later, Karthik knocked on the door. His father opened it and stared at Karthik in horror. Karthik explained to him what had happened. After he finished his dad’s horror turned into pure rage. “They beat you and you did nothing?” He said curtly.
“I was one. They were three,” Karthik said.
“You’re not coming in this house until you teach them a lesson,” His dad said and slammed the door on Karthik’s face.
Karthik sat outside as the night drew around him.
The door opened and his mom’s voice said, “Come inside.”
Karthik winced when the antiseptic touched his peeled skin. “It’s okay,” his mom said. She dressed his wounds. “Your dad is not a bad man,” She said.
Karthik said nothing.
“He just wants you to become a brave man.”
“I’ll change,” Karthik said feebly, “I promise you, mom, I will change.”
Karthik opened his eyes. His head felt murky and dizzy. Everything around him blurred. He blinked and things started coming back in focus.
The two guards were staring down at them, clearly more alert and watchful. and he knew that they had lost their last hopes of getting out from this mess. His head seared with pain. It's all over. God, please help us.
And something cluttered of his left. He turned his head and found a broken flask rolling on the floor. The guards were also staring at it suspiciously.
One of them moved toward it and lifted his gun. The other guard stood there staring at him.
Suddenly, something behind him moved, like a shadow. The shadow pounced at him and smacked his head with a metal rod. Karthik realized that the shadow was actually Mr. Walker.
The guard dropped on the floor. Dark, red blood poured out from his head.
The other guard turned around and before he could act, Mr. Walker dashed at him. Mr. Walker swung his metal rod and knocked the wind out of him. The guard dropped into his own pool of blood.
Gasping for breath, Mr. Walker turned toward them. “You guys are okay?” He said and started untying them.
“Who are this guy? Why did they tie you like that?” He asked.
They said nothing.
"How did you get in?" Lilly asked, picking up the rifle from the floor.
"Remember that guy told us the basement has two entrances?" Mr. Walker said.
"Oh..." Lilly said admiringly.
"This i
s the third time I have saved someone's life," Mr. Walker said. There was a pride in his voice that made Karthik feel guilty. I failed them, he thought, shaking his head. Then the promise came back to him. The promise that he will change. I will change, Karthik told himself. He gazed around.
Piper pulled herself up and examined her red wrists. She could easily see the marks where the ropes had dug into her skin. She ran her fingers over them.
"You alright?" Karthik asked her.
She nodded. This was the second time she had come so close to death, and thinking about it made her legs rubbery. She felt like falling.
"Let's get out of here," Jack said, picking up the rifle from the pool of blood. "Yuck..."
He turned to Javed. "You know the way to get out of this place, right?"
Javed miserably nodded.
"Good. Karthik and Piper, you both stay behind us and also you, Mr. walker."
Piper and Karthik nodded.
Mr. Walker snorted. "I’m not a kind of person who hides behind people’s back."
“Mr. Walker, thanks for saving us. But now you’ll have to cooperate,” Piper said.
“Fine,” He said.
"Okay, Guys! Let's move!" Jack announced.
31
They silently clambered up the narrow staircase. Their footfalls echoed in the narrow tunnel. As they neared the door, Karthik wondered what kind of horrors awaited them at another side of the door. He even wondered how many men did that guy had brought with him. Four? Six? Ten? He didn't know and he was afraid to guess.
Piper was climbing ahead of him. He bumped into her and realized they had reached the end of the stairs. The wooden double-doors loomed in front of them. The archway was small and Karthik felt like he would die of suffocation. Jack turned toward them and said, "Okay, guys no sudden movements. You’ll have to stay quite as far as possible. Okay?"
They all nodded. God, please save us, Karthik thought. Then he thought that god could not save them only they could save themselves.
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