by Varun Sayal
“But you time-readers can read the exact future, Gurudev. You can find out where Kumbh went and which specific host he took with ease. Isn’t that correct?”
“It’s not that easy, Tej. Kumbh is an ancient time-demon. He knows that we time-readers will track his movements, and he knows how to cover his tracks. Whenever he takes a new body, he undertakes an action called a ‘knock-off blitz’ to throw us off his scent.”
“A knock-off blitz?”
“Yes. As soon as he leaves his previous host, he zips through several hundred, even thousands of human brains. He takes up one of these bodies as a host. For rest, he knocks off their consciousness. It’s nearly impossible for us time-readers to keep tracking him during this quick blitz, and we lose track. Even with a hundred time-readers, it can take us months to study these time visions. Only after a careful study, documentation, and tying them, can we deduce the exact host.”
“And the people whose consciousness he represses, do they die?”
“Not necessarily. The people he knocks off feel a sense of dizziness. This happens because their consciousness is repressed for a few microseconds. Some of them faint; others only feel dizzy. Frail ones may actually die too.”
“So from your visions, you know that Kumbh undertook this knock-off blitz after he escaped this time?”
“Yes, he did that two days ago when he escaped. Several thousand people throughout this city of Mumbai felt a sense of vertigo and a feeling of dizziness in the wee hours of the morning. Some of them were in deep sleep at that time so they did not feel it. But great numbers of those who were awake reported it the next day. Investigative authorities couldn’t identify why so many people felt dizzy around the same time. This incident got attributed it to some kind of gas leak controversy theory. But we know it was Kumbh’s doing.”
Tej grasped the greater part and understood that he had to go to a place called Mumbai five thousand years in the future to find where Kumbh was.
Rigu gave Tej some papers to read, bearing a description of the host Tej was to acquire in the future. After looking at several options, Rigu’s team had selected a specific individual in Mumbai who was best suited for Tej. His name was Ravi Kumar Cheri. He was an international illegal arms dealer in the guise of a successful businessman.
The rationale behind choosing that host was that Tej should get a host who was influential. Kumbh too would have most likely possessed a host with money, business contacts, and political relations. The time of Tej’s transit had also had been chosen with care. He would be able to enter his host at his weakest moment: his death.
“So when I take his host body, Gurudev, I would repress this Ravi Kumar’s original consciousness, as time-demons do?”
“No, Tej, we will not act like those demons. We don’t want you to possess a live body. We will do the same exercise as we did with Shambhu, your previous host. Ravi is going to die in a few minutes. You will enter his body a few seconds after his death, soon after his consciousness leaves his body—but before his brain dies due to lack of oxygen. A brain-dead body is a worthless host.”
Tej was making some sense of what was going to happen. He closed his eyes and relaxed.
Business Class Cabin, Onboard Flight VQ7101
At the same moment in the year 2024 AD, Ravi Kumar Cheri was sitting on his comfortable business class seat onboard VJM-Pacific Flight VQ7101. This was the longest flight from Dallas to Mumbai. The airliner was cruising at eleven thousand feet and had crossed the North Pole.
Ravi was a smart-looking man in his mid-thirties, with a healthy build, wide face, and a thick mustache. He wore a light blue formal shirt and black trousers. He had a golden pen in his left shirt pocket and wore a shining Ulysse Nardin watch on his left wrist. He was sipping a premium scotch, eating roasted cashews, and watching a live Euro Cup football match between Germany and Turkey. He was also sending WhatsApp messages to several ladies in his “friends” group in Mumbai.
The flight was only a hundred minutes out from its destination when Ravi felt a slight uneasiness in his chest. He was also feeling shortness of breath. He attributed it to too much scotch and the constant turbulence the plane dealt with while crossing over the North Pole.
“Are you okay, Mr. Cheri?” asked Pamela, an air hostess who was passing by the aisle. She noticed that Ravi had a hand on his chest. Ravi had been flirting with her a couple of hours ago when he went to fetch a drink at the bar, so he was the last person she wanted to talk to. Still, on seeing him uncomfortable, she felt concerned.
“Yeah…yeah, Pamela, yes. I had too much to drink. Can I get some hot black coffee? That may bring me to my senses.” Ravi still felt an uneasiness in his chest and stiffness in his neck.
“Coming your way right away, sir.” Pamela gave him a wide, plastic smile and went away, cursing under her breath.
“Isn’t she a piece of melted butter?” Ravi exclaimed as he watched her walk away.
“Sorry?” A British passenger seated next to him and listening to music removed his large headphones. “You said something, sir?”
“No, no, I didn’t. Please go back to your music.” Ravi made a fake, smiling gesture.
Back in 3057 BC, Tej was seated again on the cement block, his physical anchor pod. Rigu and Manika were standing next to him. The moment of his time-travel was near.
From her visions, Manika knew that Ravi’s enemies had poisoned him with a specific undetectable chemical designed to send his heart into an irregular rhythm, which would eventually cause a heart attack. After doing its job, the chemical would leave his body via sweat and urine within a few minutes. But the chemical had not reacted yet. In a few minutes, Ravi would experience a heart attack from which he would not recover, after which his consciousness would leave his body. It would be the ideal time for Tej to take his new host.
Manika told Tej that as soon as he acquired Ravi’s body, he should pass urine, and the poison would exit his body. It would pose no further mortal danger to his vessel.
“The future is different, Tej. But don’t worry. Like the last time, the host’s memories, thoughts, habits, friends, and foes, will all be at your fingertips. Don’t get overwhelmed. Give it some time,” Manika said with a smile.
She knew the task that lay ahead was much more difficult and complicated. For a village boy, Tej, whose exposure to technology was no more advanced than his bow and arrow, to go into the year 2024 AD and succeed would be immensely difficult. For a decisive victory, he would have to assimilate the new technologies, gel into the environment, and understand the resources available to his host. On the other hand, his nemesis Kumbh was a primordial demon of time and a habitual time traveler. He had been to the future many times and was much more accustomed to it than Tej could ever be. The odds were low. But Tej had pulled off no less of a miracle by going to Rudrakshini and winning her trust. There was a flicker of hope that Tej would emerge a victor. But only “time” would tell.
Rigu looked at Tej as if he might never meet him again. “Tej, it’s time for you to rote-memorize what the code-phrase is. You need to go to the ancient temple of Lord Shiva in a village called Bhramatipura near Mumbai. The code-phrase is a verse from Shiv Mahapuraan, one of the ancient Hindu Scriptures.”
Rigu handed over a dried leaf with Sanskrit verse written on it to Tej. He recited it a few times, and then repeated it from memory.
“No advice for me this time, Gurudev?”
“Two pieces of advice again. First, Kumbh is a liar. You will meet him face to face. When you do, he will say anything to dissuade you from your aim. Just stick to your path, and you will taste the ripe fruit of success.”
“And the second advice?”
“Be cognizant of the time. You have to get him before the sunset of the seventh day.”
“But why sunset, Gurudev? He got off at sunrise our time. Seven days means the sunrise of the eighth day. Isn�
��t that right?”
“No, Tej. It’s not exactly seven days—the seventh day is critical. He is an old time-demon; he can establish his anchor anytime on the seventh day. My experience is that the sunset of the seventh day is a strong cut-off. The sun is a heavenly body which interferes with time-travel. His anchor would be finally established on the seventh day itself. As soon as the sun sets on his geo-locale on the seventh day, he will bolt out of 2024 and go into the farthest future, where he has plans to take billions of lives.”
“Billions?”
“Yes—it’s inconceivable, unthinkable, but it’s true. The stakes are high, Tej, and a lot is riding on you. And I won’t mince my words—the task before you is daunting. But you have the element of surprise. He doesn’t know who is coming for him and how we plan to capture him. Keep your eyes on the clock.”
“Sunset of the seventh day. I will remember Gurudev.”
Rigu again applied sandalwood paste on Tej’s forehead. “It’s time, my son. May victory be yours.”
Tej closed his eyes and started chanting the mantra of the time-goddess. He focused on the sketch which Rigu showed him, in which Ravi was unconscious because of cardiac arrest. The flight cabin crew was struggling to re-start his heart using a defibrillator. That was his time-slice destination.
Ravi had opened the top two buttons of his shirt, feeling as if a heavy stone was placed on his heart. He was sweating a lot when he called for the cabin attendant. He also asked the air-hostesses to inform two of his co-passengers in economy class. His co-passengers were actually his bodyguards, who usually traveled with him in plain-clothes. What he did not realize was that the plan to murder him was already set in motion. There was nothing those two bodyguards could do.
Ravi laid back on the chair and tried to relax, but his body was giving up. His heart’s ventricular fibrillation was getting severe. He felt a sudden shooting pain, after which he suffered a cardiac arrest and went unconscious.
One of the cabin attendants checked his pulse and knew what she had to do. The crew was trained in using a defibrillator. They brought the apparatus and tried to resuscitate him a few times, but the pulse was gone. The bodyguards came running, but they stood by, helpless. This was not a threat they could protect their boss against.
The co-passengers looked on with absolute shock as a man died right in front of their eyes. An old lady started sobbing as the pale, lifeless body of Ravi Kumar Cheri lay stiff on the plane seat. One of the air-hostesses went to inform the pilot that one of the passengers was deceased. Another one started to make a sad broadcast on her announcement system.
But Ravi suddenly sprang back to life with a deep breath. His pupils were widened, his face was mottled a little, and he was gasping for air as if he had just been smothered.
Those who saw him coming back expressed sighs of shock, and some even clapped. Two air-hostesses hugged each other. Few passengers nearby chanted their deities’ names. They had witnessed a miracle. A guy who’d died a few moments ago rebounded from jaws of death. Little did they know he was no longer Ravi Kumar Cheri—he was Tej.
12.
Ears and Eyes Of An International Gangster
Tej recollected himself and let the muscle memory of his host guide him. He ordered the bodyguards to return to their seats, though they insisted on standing near him for the rest of the journey. He felt too weak to walk, but as instructed by Manika, he had to go and pass urine. He spent the rest of his flight journey with his eyes closed and rarely spoke to others.
A flood of Ravi’s memories streamed into his consciousness, but this time, he was calm. He didn’t let the host memories overwhelm him, as they had with Shambhu.
He started reading Ravi Kumar Cheri’s whole life like a textbook, from his hazy childhood to the present day. Ravi’s journey had taken him from childhood as a poor farmer’s kid in a small village in Tamil Nadu, India to a global illegal arms dealer, an international criminal who operated under the radar of the world’s best law enforcement agencies. Good, bad, sweet, bitter memories. His achievements in business, his loss of loved ones, his ventures into the dark side, his first foray into the land of illegal arms dealing. His friends, political connections, safe-houses, foreign bank accounts, illegal business dealings. His known associates, his strong competitors, his arch-enemies. All these details were as clear and manifest in Tej’s mind as if they were his own memories.
Ravi had started as a normal government contractor around seventeen years ago. Over time, he built his clout among bureaucratic and political circles. Within a few months, the line between what was legal and what was not, blurred out for him. He has been dealing with small and big guns and bombs for the past fifteen years. Recently, he’d started dealing in chemical weapons such as mustard gas, hydrogen cyanide, and Sarin. These new deals made him an even more potent death merchant.
His parents lived in an old village, which he rarely visited. His only sibling was an elder sister, whom he had not seen or talked to in a few years. He had married once, got divorced, and had no children. His only love interests were his ever-changing mistresses. The latest one was Tanisha Mahadevan, a young, upcoming actress from Southern India’s film industry. Rujeeth Kumar and Abbas Shafi were two of his closest business associates. Naahan was his personal bodyguard and driver in India. He would receive Ravi at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai.
Although these memories did not trouble Tej, he was overwhelmed by the technology. High-tech advancements of this distant future were convoluted riddles to him. Phones, laptops, computers, and TV screens were strange artifacts, which he had a tough time comprehending. These gadgets fascinated as well as intimidated him. Last but not least, the fact that he was sitting in a huge carriage weighing millions of kilograms baffled him. Heaped upon that, this prodigious machine was somehow flying through the air, carrying hundreds of passengers. This was a miracle to him. His ability to travel through time, though miraculous, had a supernatural feel to it. But all this technology? It was built by humans and was close to unbelievable.
What was most annoying to him so far was that he felt the need to check his phone again and again. He scrolled through his messages, emails, and stared at the phone screen. Long-term habits had encoded these activities into Ravi’s muscle memory. Tej let that muscle memory take over these mundane tasks. Ravi’s brain knew how to deal with these regular situations best, and Tej followed those instincts.
Upon landing, Tej went through the usual Customs and Immigration. He relied on Ravi’s brain to sleepwalk through galleries, queues, smiles, and handshakes, even producing relevant documentation. At Customs, though, he felt his heartbeat rising for no reason. He realized that Ravi was uneasy while going through it. But it all went smoothly.
While waiting for his baggage at belt number five, Tej saw a tall, handsome man standing at the adjoining conveyer belt. He wore a dark green three-piece suit with a dark orange designer tie. He also had a golden brooch on his coat pocket.
Tej found the man very well-dressed and charming. His facial features were appealing, too. He had beautiful eyes, well-done eyebrows, a thin, slanting nose, and a broad jaw. His clean-shaven face gleamed under the bright ceiling lights. Tej had rarely seen a more gorgeous man.
If Manu Kumar lived in this age, he would have dressed exactly like this. Tej thought and smiled to himself. He thought of exchanging numbers with Mr. Handsome but decided against it. He kept stealing glances until the man’s suitcase arrived, and he left.
After collecting his bags, Tej walked towards the exit, where his attentive, loyal, and careful employee Naahan received him. Naahan escorted him to his BMW V9 Coupe.
A kilometer outside the airport, two armed gunmen also joined them in the car. Another car full of five armed personnel also followed them for the rest of their journey. On usual occasions, Ravi traveled light, with only Naahan as his company. It was important for
him to maintain the façade that he was actually a normal businessman, but given the recent attempt on his life, Naahan felt these precautions were mandatory.
Armed with the knowledge of Ravi’s brain, Tej got lost in introspection throughout the way. Amidst the vagaries of this futuristic new world, assiduous thoughts of capturing Kumbh lurked at the back of his mind. He needed Ravi’s resources, and he needed to mobilize them fast to hunt for Kumbh. He knew that there was a team of private detectives on Ravi’s payroll who could do this with ease, but he needed to take his close associates Rujeeth and Shafi into his confidence. It was important before he took any further steps. There was no question of revealing his identity and his true aim to them, so he would have to devise a story which would work for this world and this time.
He recalled that in Dallas, Ravi had attended several meetings with a machine tools company called Rock & Apostle Inc. But the machine tools were a false front for a money-laundering firm which Ravi used on regular basis. These details sparked his imagination, and a plan took shape in his mind.
Tej was witnessing another time-demon gift. Ravi’s brain was working to fulfill Tej’s desires without explicit instructions from Tej. The brain had realized that the eventual aim was to capture Kumbh, and it was devising strategies to reach that aim.
Tej didn’t delve into the “why” and “how” of these strategies. He went with the flow in the direction Ravi’s brain was taking him. He had to reach Kumbh and exact his revenge. That burning desire drove him forward.
He asked Naahan to not take his car to his mansion at Nariman Point. Instead, he ordered him to drive to a reticent bungalow on the outskirts of the city. Ravi’s brain suggested that this could be the best place for him to stay away from the bustling noises of the city, and act upon his plan in peace. Tej also messaged for Rujeeth and Shafi to meet him at the bungalow as soon as possible.
