Operation Chaos: A Gripping Action Thriller

by Himanshu Rasam

  ''Miss Shonali, are you absolutely sure we are on the right track? This looks like a dead end to me. There's absolutely nothing up there,'' said David as he climbed down the ladder.

  ''I think this should be it. There's no other location I could infer from the dhvaj.''

  ''Let me go and take a look,'' Raghav volunteered.

  ''Sure, go ahead. Give it a try. After all, you found that dhvaj,'' David said, stepping away from the ladder.

  Raghav climbed up and switched on his night vision goggles. He could see the small stream of light directed from near the feet of Lord Buddha on the ceiling. He touched the spot on the ceiling where the stream of light hit. He tried searching for a button or lever, but the ceiling was plain and hard. Raghav pressed hard his finger on the spot again where the light hit and that's when he got some movement. The ceiling of the cave shifted up to a very little distance. Raghav smiled to himself.

  Shonali and David were standing below watching him expectantly to come up with something.

  ''I think something just moved. I don't know what it-''

  Raghav's words remained incomplete as a big mass of rock parted from the ceiling out of nowhere and fell right on Raghav. Losing his balance, Raghav dropped down. Shonali and David watched in horror as the huge slab of medieval rock accelerated right towards them!

  Chapter 51

  Muhammed had followed his master's orders to the word. Now it was time to get ready for his final task. Having narrowly escaped the intelligence officers at the metro station, he had managed to get a room in another hotel far away. He planned everything with extreme care and meant to make no mistakes this time.

  Assignment 6.00 was not as easy as he had thought. It had been difficult to get a truck good enough to serve his purpose, but the next task was much more difficult. It was almost 4 am in the morning and he only had two hours before the President would make an appearance in the press conference.

  On the desk in front of him were the maps of roadways in Delhi. His master had informed him that the President would be landing at Safdarjung Airport instead of Indira Gandhi International Airport. Muhammed had then scanned and searched for every possible route which David D'costa would take to reach the I.B. headquarters, where the conference was going to be held.

  He cross-marked the positions on the road where he would have to set up the cameras for surveillance and park his truck. He knew he had to strike from a considerable distance as the impact had to be done with maximum possible velocity.

  Muhammed only had one shot to kill the President of India.

  Chapter 52

  Shonali and David were under excruciating pain. The weight of the slab of rock from the ceiling was crushing them slowly. They tried desperately to hold their hands up against the slab, but it was too heavy for them. Raghav had already passed out after hitting the ground hard. Shonali was screaming in pain, her left elbow taking the entire weight of the slab and her right palm desperately trying to push back the slab. The black commandos teamed up into two teams and started to lift the rock from two ends. It took the muscle effort of ten strong hands to move that heavy slab up by inches. After a combined effort, Shonali and David were able to crawl out from under the rock, but Raghav was still trapped and unconscious.

  David signalled his team to hold it for a bit longer and once again crawled in to drag out Raghav. It was a difficult task with the heavy weight pinning him down and Raghav's leg being caught under the rock. Sameer went over to the other side and helped the commandos lift the slab an inch more so David could slide out Raghav's leg.

  Shonali, who was now resting near the entrance of the cave, asked for a bottle of water. As she pressed her handkerchief against the wound on her elbow, she knew it needed medical attention. One of the commandos swiftly attended to it and rested Shonali's left hand in a temporary sling.

  David had some minor injuries to his shoulder and wrist, but Raghav was badly injured. His leg had been stuck under the rock for too long. Sgt Harish bandaged Raghav's leg while David sat silently drinking water. In one corner of the cave, he saw Shonali resting her head against the sculpture of Reclining Buddha, sitting quietly.

  ''I should have never asked you to help us. I didn't know I would be putting you in danger,'' David said as he walked towards her.

  ''Nothing that I can't handle. I am fine. Just the elbow hurts a little. Your medic said that it would recover soon. I was hoping that we don't mention about this incident to my dad. Let's just say I slipped somewhere. How is Capt. Raghav?'' she asked.

  ''I think he is coming around,'' said David, pointing towards Raghav who was starting to regain consciousness.

  ''You feel alright, Capt. Raghav?'' David asked in a concerned tone.

  ''Yes, just travelled back into the history after getting hit by a historic rock!'' Raghav chuckled.

  David heaved a sigh of relief.

  ''Let us hope that you don't suffer from any memory loss, Captain,'' joked David as he helped Raghav get up and handed over his rifle.

  ''Did my sacrifice do any good?'' asked Raghav, adding to the light-hearted banter.

  ''We have not yet started looking for any clues that rock might offer us. Everything was so messed up after it fell down. Let's hope Sameer has something for us,'' said David, turning towards Sameer who had been closely inspecting the slab of rock.

  The rock had fallen off a metre away from the feet of Lord Buddha. Sameer had asked the commandos to keep it vertical so he could observe both the sides of the slab. But there was nothing visible on the rock to the plain eye. No inscription, no map, no hidden scrolls. Sameer was at his wits' end now.

  ''I am not getting anything here. This rock is without a scratch from all the sides. I don't know why it fell off from the ceiling when Raghav applied pressure at that particular spot-'' Sameer stopped dead in his tracks as he turned his head towards the spot on the ceiling of the cave from where the slab had fallen.

  Once again Sameer saw why the ancient cult of monks had been successful in hiding their deepest secrets for centuries.

  Chapter 53

  It was done. The completion bar was static at 67 percent and Ranjeet knew he could go no further. He had used all his skill and knowledge to get across the firewalls as far as possible, but the progress bar now remained stagnant.

  He dialled the Intelligence Bureau headquarters for confirming his doubt. A familiar lady picked up the call.

  ''Yes, this is Ranjeet again. I needed some information. Will you please connect me to your IT department?''

  ''Sure, just a second. I think Mr. Vishal might be working tonight. I will connect you to him.''

  After a few seconds, Ranjeet heard an irritating tone of a tired employee.

  ''Who is it? Why the hell do you need information from the IT at this hour?'' The voice at the other end was not clearly pleased.

  ''Mr. Vishal? This is Ranjeet. I am trying to break into a military grade firewall on Grid 17 and I need to know something-''

  ''Breaking into a military firewall? What the hell do you think you are doing?'' Vishal fumbled as he tried to find the right words. This was all very confusing and apprehensive for him. He knew about Ranjeet who had worked earlier on many cases for the Bureau but breaking a military firewall was completely out of line.

  ''Relax sir, I assure you that I have been granted the clearance to do so. It is a matter of extreme emergency. I just need to know something about the Grid 17 firewalls,'' Ranjeet said calmly.

  After a couple of minutes of convincing, Ranjeet finally made the man talk.

  ''Fine, I will help you out, but firewalls are not my speciality. If you want some expert guidance, I suggest you call tomorrow morning,'' Vishal replied hesitantly.

  ''No, I just need some clarifications. It's very urgent. Do you know where is the main hub of Grid 17 located? Is it at the I.B. headquarters or any other place known to you?'' Ranjeet asked with curiosity.

  ''Um... Grid 17? That's the east coast naval grid, I guess.''

>   ''Precisely,'' quoted Ranjeet.

  ''Most of the Grids have their hubs located at the nearest data centre in their area, but Grid 15, 17 and 18 are high security level Grids. My computer shows that the main hub of Grid 17 is at Wheeler Island missile launch facility itself.''

  ''So if I have to disable the systems, I would have to hack into their main hub and for that I have to be AT the Wheeler Island facility, right?'' asked Ranjeet, his heart was beating wildly.

  ''Tell me exactly for what kind of job do you have the clearance?'' Vishal was not giving up information without raising questions.

  ''Sir, you can ask questions later. I just need to know where in the Wheeler Island facility is the main hub located?''

  ''It's in the main server room right behind the MODULE 12,'' Vishal said, checking the data on his screen.

  ''Thanks, Mr. Vishal. Now I need you to answer my next questions very carefully,'' said Ranjeet. ''And I want you to keep the further conversation just between the two of us. Got that?''

  Ranjeet's voice was harsh.

  Chapter 54

  Sameer, David, Shonali gathered around the fallen slab of stone as they looked up at the space in the ceiling which the slab had kept hidden for centuries. The slab of stone had been a cover- a perfect cover to hide one of the most brilliant paintings at Ajanta. Painted in Prussian blue and red, the painting encompassed the entire rectangular piece of canvas which the slab had covered.

  ''So I guess we are on the right track after all!'' said Shonali glancing at David. She was beaming.

  ''I still don't get it why the slab fell down after putting pressure on that precise point,'' said Raghav who was experiencing a minor pain in the legs as he walked around the slab.

  ''Must have been engineered like that,'' replied Sameer, pointing at the corners of the canvas. ''Check the corners, there are those hook like structures at each corner. You exerting pressure at those points must have released those hooks.''

  ''And these four hooks have been holding that big mass of rock for centuries?'' Shonali asked with a look of incredulity in her eyes.

  ''There might be something more to it than what appears, but if a metal pillar can't get rusted for two thousand years, I won't question the strength of those hooks,'' added Sameer, with a grin.

  David knew the clock was ticking and that they needed to move fast. Real fast.

  ''So if this is where that message on the dhvaj leads to, what does this painting say?'' David asked the experts.

  Shonali was trying to figure out what the painting looked like. Even in the light from spotlights and searchlights, it was quite difficult to get a proper view of the painting. The painting was of Lord Buddha sitting under a tree and writing on something which looked like a bark of a tree. Above and below the painting were transcripts which were illegible.

  ''This is a different type of painting! The painting depicts Lord Buddha writing something. Most of the sketches, paintings or sculptures of Gautama Buddha depict him in a state of deep meditation, delivering sermons or attaining nirvana,'' Shonali responded.

  ''I am unable to make out the script written below the painting. Is it in Sanskrit?'' enquired Sameer.

  ''I don't know. The script looks familiar, but many of the letters are reversed. I think maybe it is some kind of cryptogram,'' said Shonali as a chill raced down her spine. She was getting excited to delve deep into the ancient secrets.

  ''Or perhaps a mirror might help us here,'' said David.

  ''Mirror?'' asked Shonali with a little rarity.

  ''Yes. I think it's a simple script in Sanskrit, but only inverted so that a mirror placed on the ground would give the perfect reflection and reveal the script. It was you who said that mirrors were extensively used during the painting of these caves. Can't you see it?''

  David's sharp eye had observed what the others had failed to- each letter in the script was written reverse.

  ''That was a quick observation,'' appreciated Sameer.

  ''I suppose tonight's search might make me a treasure hunter!'' commented David in jest.

  Sameer spread some water on the floor of the cave and asked the commandos to direct their flashlights towards the painting.

  Shonali remembered the lines written on the dhvaj.

  The secret you seek is far more simple than you think yet very hard to find

  The water acted as a mirror and clearly gave the reflection of the painting which was shining in the flashlights. Raghav's leg was now hurting badly and yet he stood there- staring at the secret kept hidden by the slab of stone which had crushed his leg under it.

  You will need the courage to face all the obstacles which may come in your path.

  Shonali watched in awe as the reflected transcript made complete sense. It was written in plain Sanskrit and yet had remained hidden from the eyes of man for such a long time.

  The text above the painting was quite short. It read - बुध्दम् सरणं गच्छामि।

  Below the painting was a bigger chunk of Sanskrit text.

  ज्ञानविषये वक्तव्यं चेत्‌, तद् कदापि पूर्णं न भवति तस्य तृष्णा अधिकाधिकं वर्धते। एषा तृष्णैव युगानुयुगं जगते प्रेरणां यच्छन्त्यस्ति । सा नाम ज्ञानतृष्णा । ऋृषयः तपश्चर्या कुर्वन्ति स्म, धर्मगुरवः दूरं यावत्‌ यात्रां कुर्वन्ति स्म, तथापि अल्पजनाः एव वास्तविकं ज्ञानं प्राप्तवन्तः । हे पथिक, त्वयापि, सत्यस्रोतसः अन्वेषणार्थं मार्गस्थेन भवितव्यम्‌ । तदर्थ वयं सहाय्यं कुर्मः यतो हि ज्ञानस्य प्रसादः अन्येभ्योऽपि दातव्यः न तु गोपनीयः । यदि त्वं तस्य यशसः अन्वेषणार्थं अर्हः तर्हि त्वया तद् सत्यं मगधनृपतेः देवानामप्रियः राज्ञः विश्वासपात्रैः सैनिकैः अनिशं रक्षितस्य पुष्पस्योपरि विराजमानं दृश्येत ।

  Its meaning was explained by Shonali: The thing about wisdom is that, it is never enough. The thirst for wisdom grows ever more. That is what has been driving the world for ages- the thirst for knowledge. Rishis sat in penance, the priests travelled far and wide and yet a very few tasted the true wisdom. O traveller! You too have set out to find that source of truth and we will help you to find it for wisdom should be shared and not kept hidden. If you are worthy enough to seek it, you shall find your truth resting on a flower and guarded day and night by the faithful guards of the King of Magadha- Devanampriya.

  There was complete silence in the cave. The serenity in the air, the sculpture of Lord Buddha attaining nirvana had slowed down the time for everyone.

  David and Raghav turned towards Shonali for further answers. Shonali could not make a head or tail of the message below the painting. She also could not figure out why Gautama Buddha was shown writing something in the painting. She kept looking at the painting from different angles while Sameer jotted down the Sanskrit transcript for further reference.

  In the flashlights directed towards the painting, Shonali observed something out of place. She saw that in the upper left corner of the painting, there was a 3 by 3 grid which they had failed to spot earlier. It was so beautifully camouflaged that it appeared to be a part of the painting itself.

  ''Hey! Did you see that? Is that a part of the painting?'' Shonali asked Sameer, pointing towards the empty grid. The grid was located at the exact spot where the stream of light
from the feet of Lord Buddha now hit the painting.

  Sameer looked up and observed closely. Some part of the grid was bulging out from the painting.

  ''It must be made to fit in a compartment. Maybe applying pressure on THAT thing caused the rock to fall. Secret within a secret! Let me try to get it out,'' said Sameer, trying to guess the ancient mechanism designed to hide the painting.

  He took the ladder and climbed up slowly. He gripped his fingers tightly around what seemed like a cube with the empty 3 by 3 grid on its face. The cube had been embedded into the painting for a long time in an exact cavity made to hold it and Sameer was finding it really difficult to extract the cube out of the cavity. Raghav passed Sameer his pen knife so that Sameer could scrape off any material in the space between the compartment holding the cube and the walls of the cube. Slowly and steadily, the cube started to come off the ceiling.

  ''It is a closed box. Some kind of chest to store things,'' said Sameer, as he descended down the ladder and put down the cube on the floor of the cave. It was around fifteen centimetres in length, breadth and depth; light in weight and carved out of stone. Sameer shook it near his ear to get a hint about the contents of the chest, but there wasn't any sound from inside the cube.

  ''Can't hear anything inside,'' he said passing the cube to Shonali.

  Shonali focussed on observing the cube very carefully- feeling every face of the cube with her fingertips, looking for a way to open it. The cube was designed in a typical way. The empty 3 by 3 grid was the top face of the cube and on the opposite face there was a sliding window which perhaps was the only opening of the cube. Shonali somehow knew that the only way of knowing what was inside that cube was by sliding that window open.

  What she held in her hands was the most secure safe designed by an ancient guild of the monks.

  Chapter 55