The Lost One: Story of the One who ends it all (Shiva the Destroyer Book 1)

by Aarohan Atwal

  “Hellu” he says, in a desi accent. It's his habit to greet people in different accents.

  “Abey Siddhant” I say. Wait a minute son, the voice says, I’ll call him.

  “This is his father speaking.” He adds.

  “Oh! Sorry uncle.” “Can you please call him?”

  Darn these telephone lines they screw-up your voice so much that everyone sounds so same.

  “Hello!” Siddhant says.

  “Abey Siddhant” I give repeat performance.

  “No, It’s his brother” The voice says.

  “Oh God!“ I say, “Can you please call Siddhant”

  Ha ha, the person on the line breaks into laughter, “Got you! You old fag. This is me Siddhant” He says.

  “How do I know?” I reply “You do sound awfully like an android”

  “Where are you? Are you okay? I have been trying to reach you since yesterday.”

  “I am fine” I reply.

  “What’s happening in the college?” I ask.

  “Aah the usual stuff” he says. “Automata was tough, I am not sure I’ll score enough to get through.”

  “That’s bad“ I reply.

  “You are lucky in a way” He says. “You don’t have to give these god-damn tests“

  “Listen,” I begin, “I have to tell you something important”

  “What?”

  “There is no Devraj!”

  “What do you mean, there is no Devraj?”

  “He’s not there at of the hospital, I checked everywhere, but no trace, no signs”

  “Now what, there must be some way?” He says.

  Chapter 11: Let Go

  Lying on my bed I stare at the note, the words appear all hazy. Is it really worth to go back? This is my chance here, I can just let it go, and never go back to the squandering walls. But what if this merely a test, a test of my strength and forbearance,

  The night doesn’t seem to end, sleep eludes me, and my brain drained by the thoughts of the day to come. I get up, and look for my watch; it’s four am in the chilly winter night. I open the door, the cold air fills me in, the big veranda is dimly lit by the glowy orange light of the street lamp; showering through the dense fog, the light falls on the floor.

  In restless dreams I walk alone -

  Every breath I exhale creates an illusion of smoking. A sharp whistle falls into my ear, the night guard, it is. How lonely it must be, to walk on empty streets at the dead of the night; how lonely it must to know that you are only one wide awake -

  When I get back in I have an idea -

  What if I sign the slip myself, there’s a chance that I might get caught, but there’s a chance that I might not!

  ~’~’~

  The first thought that came to my mind when the Sun rolls up, 'I am not sure, whether I should go to the college or not.' 'They are expelling me anyway, then why bother?' I think, as I roll over my bed. My mind then reminds me I have the note; reluctantly, I get up and dress up for the day, I put on my brightest shirt, iron my trousers twice and shine the shoes radiant black.

  The ten o'clock bus is not that crowded and there’s enough space for me to stand comfortably. “Ticket” TC says.

  “Here -” I say, giving him five bucks “ITS ” I add. Today I didn’t try to avoid him, my virtues guide me, honesty is my virtue.

  “ITS or Kuthal Gate?” He asks.

  “ITS” He is wary of the people who although take the ticket upto ITS but travel further to Kuthal Gate. I take out the note from my wallet and I carefully turn it around in the palm of my hands; I read it out:

  I, Devraj, hereby state that Shiva. is not guilty of any charges, instead I am much obliged to him for saving my life under threat by brutes of the second year. I am indebted to him for his courage at such a moment of need.

  - Signed.

  I get an unexplained eerie feeling, as if someone somewhere is crying out loud to me. Why? What if this is not really what I am supposed to do? Probably that's why all of this happened, getting into the fight, the accusation, Devraj’s disappearance, all of it. What is my identity, who am I -

  Why am I asking these silly questions? Destiny? There’s no such thing as luck or destiny.

  The thoughts come to an abrupt end when the bus swings like a swift serpent, the driver honks breathlessly as he tries to overtake another bus. The jerk is enough to jolt me out of my thoughts.

  My consciousness wakes up to find itself walking on the campus road:

  I find Raul and Siddhant in the canteen, skipping the lecture. They look evidently tensed. I am much more relaxed today then I was yesterday, and yet I am in much more doubt today than I was yesterday. I brief them about my mis-advenutres - my run through the hospitals and the forged signature in the end, they listen with a glint of incredulity in their eyes as if they saw a virgin in a whorehouse.

  Siddhant says, ”Show me that note”

  “There is no note” I reply.

  ~’~’~

  I slide off the window pane completely, and out from the window I take my head. I feel the cool wind in my nostrils, my hair sways away in a wild rhythmic chaos, people shout but I don’t listen, they’ve been shouting all my life, I finally have the vision what I have to do, and I have the courage sprawling inside me waiting to take off -

  I slowly open my clenched fist, my grasp loosens up, the note flutters, for a brief moment I watch it float in the air before it dissolves itself in the vast empty spaces.

  ~’~’~

  In the dark deserted corridors of the second floor of the admin wing is located the DC Room. It’s a place so dark that the sunlight stops short yards away from the door, and it’s a place so deserted that an inch deep impression is left as you walk on the dusted floor. With every breath a blend of dampness and uneasy coldness creeps through the system, a chill runs through the spine just by thinking about the place. Nobody dares to go to the place, it is closed for past few years and is reserved only for rarest of the rare cases. And whoever has gone or forced to get into the place hasn't come back alive. The place just crushes the spirits out of young spirited beautiful minds.

  With unruffled calmness I walk in the room. A row of (low strung) professors line up, like a group of crocs they wait for me, to kill and tear apart. Sitting on the bench are his highness - Dean and VC, the Mechanical professor - Mr. Semwal, and the Physics HOD - Dr. Anant Bahuguna.

  “Mr Shiva.” The Dean begins, “Where were you on the day of - ?” He pauses to remember the date, he is slowly slipping into Alzheimer.

  I begin, “I was in college that day” I quip. “Attending classes, as usual”

  “Can you tell us in more details?”

  “Tell us everything that happened that day” Dean adds, acting smart.

  So, I begin telling them the whole story right from the point I got from my bed, I went to bathroom, I brushed my teeth twice over, talked to ...

  “Okay! Okay stop it” VC says. “Let me put it like this, on the day of last Monday, were you involved in some kind of fight?”

  “It so happened that-”

  “Were you involved or not?”

  “Yes sir” I affirm. “But it was different, I was drawn in”

  “So, you accept your involvement in the threshing of Devraj ?”

  “I certainly not” I say. “I think you did not understand me correctly” I say in a vehement denial. “The allegation is completely baseless” I add.

  “Let me put it this way” VC says. “On Monday you along with your friends, due to certain internal disagreement, caught up Devraj at the diversion, and beat him incessantly.” “Then a young lady” “over here” he points out. “This fine young lady dared to interfere, to save the poor boy's life”

  “She challenged you people” “And upon sensing the situation that you wouldn’t be able to match the courage of this fine lady, you decided to flee the scene”

  “Isn't this what happened?” VC questions.

  “This is only half the tru
th Sir” “and it’s not entirely true” I add.

  “As we all know some students did attack Devraj but I was not among them, I actually –”

  He cuts me short, “The moment Ihita arrived you were leaning over Dev punching him mercilessly. Isn’t it true?” Dean questions.

  “Or is this half the truth as well?” He says sarcastically.

  “No, Sir -” I say.

  He chooses to ignore me and continues:

  “And the moment you saw Ihita arriving at you, the moment she challenged you, you fled away from the scene.”

  “What are you talking about -” “This is insane” I begin to lose my capacity to endure.

  “If this is not the truth, then tell us the truth Shiva, and trust me, we will believe you.” VC replies.

  “Sir, the truth is just like -” I search for her name, “- Ihita, I tried to save Deb too, that day I left a bit early from the college, I was traveling on my bike on my way to home”

  “I saw a bunch of people beating a guy mercilessly” “And so I decided to do something about it” “I, then, like Ihita, went after these people knowing very well that they outnumber me”

  “Okay, for a moment let’s assume you are speaking the truth, then tell us why did you run away upon seeing Ihita?” He questions. “I believe you had no reason to run away, if you indeed were helping” A sweat drop trickles down my forehead as I gather myself and begin,

  “I got scared sir, it was just an involuntary reaction at that time”

  “Ihita” Dean says “Can you come here please?” Ihita walks with a set of assured steps and stands beside me.

  Dean questions “So Ihita tell me what did you see?”

  “Anything that you might want to add up to what you have already told us?“

  She replies, “Sir, I remember clearly Shiva is the same person I saw that day”

  “And I am sure to my life I saw him sitting on top of Dev, punching him.“

  I say, “Are you really sure, it was Deb you saw?” “Wasn't it someone else?” I suggest.

  “I mean, how can you see something so clearly, when you are far away, and just arriving on a scene” I reason.

  “There was no way you could clearly see the faces” I conclude.

  “I know what I saw Aarone, don't you try to suggest that I am wrong.” She says shrieking.

  'I am running out of patience with this girl.'

  A silent murmur breaks in the jury, their faces bear a clear expression of a question mark. Ihita stares me doubtfully. Well there is a definite possibility that she might be wrong, they had to consider my arguments, this after all is a fair trial.

  ~’~’~

  The DC takes a break for a lunch, I sit with Raul and Siddhant over a plate of cheese pasta. This is the only decent dish that canteen could cook. I say, taking the spoon to my mouth:

  “I don't know” “I think the decision will be in my favor”

  ~’~’~

  At exact one-thirty I enter again the doors of the dreaded DC room.

  “We discussed among ourselves -” Dean begins “and we talked with Ms. Ihita as well.”

  “-and considering the circumstances in the new light of arguments, we have reached to the conclusion that -”

  “There is no solid ground on which we can tie you to the events of that day” Pause. “Although there is something we still don't understand, that why you fled the scene” Pause. “But still we can't, certainly, hold you responsible for what happened”

  “So, because of the lack of conclusive evidences and an uncertain testimony whose details can be described best as sketchy. It’s difficult to establish the exact nature of your involvement in the case and so we would hold our judgment till Devraj gets well and able to clarify on the matter.”

  “Till then you can’t be accused of anything. You are as good as free to go.” He concludes, breaking the nib.

  ~’~’~

  I still remember it vividly, I was thirteen then, when it happened, it's been almost six years since, but still it feels as if it was only yesterday. We were on a school trip to Auli for a ski camp, I was particularly happy, reason being my best friend Ojas was there. His parents agreed only after constant pestering, they were apprehensive about the whole ski thing, but eventually they agreed to let him go, they trusted me. Ojas and I were two inseparable pair, there wasn't anything that we did alone, if there was something to do, we had to be together in it. We studied together, we played together, we ate our lunch together, and even together we liked the same girl; she was from our class. That's how strong our bond was, and that's probably why a part of me died, when he died. Barkha was a good friend to us, a pretty, jovial girl, and of-course she couldn't be shared, so we made a pact that we'd let the burden of choice on her. We three were all excited for the trip, but unfortunately, as the fate had it, the camp was divided into two, we were in one and she was in another. So, on the second night we arrived we decided to pay her the visit and surprise her, he wasn't much sure actually about going in the dark but it was me who pushed him, the camp was not that far, but neither it was very close, maybe about 2-3 km, but understand that it was 2-3 km in a complete snowy, deserted and dark place.. And so it had to happen, we lost our way, no surprise, we were stuck for the whole night, cold and exhausted, we walked and we slept on the snow. We knew if we could survive the night somehow, we will find our way during the daylight, thirteen year old and still we understood it was not going to happen that easily, chances of getting through the night were dim. Of two of us, he was getting worse, he told me we had to get the help, if we were to survive. And so, I took off leaving him behind, battered and alone. I walked in the dark, I fumbled and I stumbled, I knew I had to go on, I couldn't be weak, it was me who convinced his parents to send him, it was me who forced him to see Barkha. So, it was me who had to save him, and save us. On my way the rescue party found me, but I was dead tired, and I lost consciousness, I couldn't go back for him. When I woke up the next afternoon, I wake up all wrapped in the nearest hospital, I came to know rescue party was late, by the time he was found he was already dead, claimed by the night. He could have been saved, I would have lead the rescue to him… had I not given up.

  ~’~’~

  I splatter the water on my face, my mind wakes up to a new reality. The Dean shouts, shaking with anger:

  “What did you think? We are a bunch of lampoons here?” “Think that you’d just walk-off from here?” “You are a big liar and I must say and you had VC sir under the spell but you can’t fool us no more”

  I silently wait for him to finish.

  “You had a chance to come clean and admit to your misdeed but you didn't.”

  “This is DC, and not some animal circus; and the DC finds you guilty of the charge” He continues to thunder, “And we have decided that, you are suspended for six months” “You may go now”

  This time I did not resist my fate, maybe it was meant to happen, maybe it was the destiny.

  ~’~’~

  I pick up the receiver, "Aarone, Vairagi here" He announces.

  “Are you free tonight?” He asks.

  “You heard that, didn’t you?”

  “Let me take you somewhere then”

  “Where?”

  ~’~’~

  To be continued…

  Zero Defect

  Also by the author Aarohan Atwal

  ~A story of Love and Revenge~

  Prologue

  I remember that day clearly, partly because it was New Year’s Eve, and partly because a man arrived at my doorsteps half-dead. It was enough to shock me, I live in a place where you don’t see many visitors, let alone an unconscious one. You might ask is it moon I live in? The answer is no, but it isn’t exactly a buzzing place either. I live in Rackcham, a quaint little village, and a simple Google search will tell you it lies up in the Himalayas bordering Tibet. We don’t have whole lot of civilization thriving around here, but only a handful of people getting-by.

 
The winter that season was unusually cold and temperature went as low as -10 degrees. Nobody could survive that cold out in the open, and any sane man who values his life would prefer to stay inside tucked in the warm bed. So, it implied either this man was crazy or had a reason strong enough to risk his life.

  Not so long back I was in a similar situation myself. I was on my way to Sangla, it was dark and cold and my car broke down. I would have stayed inside but there was a short circuit and hence no power. Inside, I would have frozen to death. I had no other option but to walk until I find a place where I could get help.

  I was following the road, walking at a brisk pace. And all was fine until I decided to take a short cut, it was a long walk and I didn’t want to tire myself to death. But a few minutes on the new path and I began to panic. I had no idea where I was, and I had no idea which direction I was heading. I had zero knowledge about navigation. I was completely lost and soon I was tired too. But, I somehow kept dragging myself through the mounds of snow in the darkness of the night. As far as I could see it was a barren landscape, trees looked like tall, frozen elves; and there were no empty shacks to be found - no shelters to take, no place to save myself from the bitter cold. A voice in the dark corner of my head was whispering I wouldn’t be able to make it through the night.

  I was walking for what it felt like hours, tired, but I didn’t give up. And then, I heard a voice, I heard someone shout. I was not sure if I was just tripping or if it was real. I dismissed it first, but then I heard it again. Someone was calling for me, and I thought - who might be that stupid to venture out in the dead of the night? I turned back, there was a shadow of a man. As he came toward me with brisk, confident steps, I felt relieved and collapsed there on the wide field of snow. An angel saved me that night.