Agniputr

by Vadhan

  CHAPTER 19

  THE Xenon reached the castle a few minutes before ten in the morning. Sheila, dressed in faded blue jeans, a white shirt and a pair of walkers, her hair tied loosely in a bun, got off the car. The crisp morning sun bounced off her glowing skin.

  The rusted old iron gates led into the castle. Up close and personal, the building was far more imposing that it had been when she had seen it from a distance. It didn’t look like much of a castle, more like a fortified palace. Maybe it was the fact that parts of it were rotting with disuse and its bleak greyish borders were hazy in the thick December air. There was a shroud of great sadness about the place, as though it was in mourning.

  ‘Don’t you ever paint the...err castle?’ she asked.

  Poti shrugged as though it did not make a difference to him if they did.

  ‘It must have been beautiful in its day,’ she observed.

  ‘Yes, it was. It was snow white with all the woodwork in dark green. There was a beautiful rose garden there,’ he pointed a finger to one side, ‘and there were magnificent trees over there. That was the enclave for the cock fights. Babu’s great grandfather loved it, they say. We celebrated some festival or the other throughout the year. In fact, the castle was the single largest source of entertainment and income for the village right till the seventies, till the time Babu’s father...passed away.’

  ‘What happened?’

  ‘Muscular Dystrophy! He lost all use of his muscles.’ He did not tell her that Surya Prasad did not die of the illness.

  ‘Babu’s mother was just nineteen, the poor dear, she simply crumbled. Of course she knew he had the illness when she married him. She always thought he could be cured.’

  ‘Why couldn’t he be cured?’

  ‘There is no cure for muscular dystrophy. By living till his mid-thirties, Rajah Garu belied all medical knowledge of that time, a rare case they said. What’s more, he procreated. He had Raghu. Rani Garu, Rajah Garu’s mother, was devastated when he died. She took control of the estate. But, they left this place. It was a time of great sadness, Madam. A great family of kings had just crumbled. The two women left behind wanted nothing more than to save the little bundle wrapped up in his mother’s arms from whatever had wiped them out. Babu is the only remaining heir of the Surya dynasty. They came back several times of course but merely as visitors to sell whatever properties they had in neighbouring towns and to make sure that the castle was taken care of. This castle is the last remnant of the Suryas.’

  ‘What about Mr. Surya’s cousins?’ Sheila asked. She had seen them, they were part of the family, surely.

  Poti shrugged again, this time like he didn’t care in the least. ‘They left much earlier, when that mad bastard, Bharatram, killed Babu’s grandfather. His wife and sons left in disgrace though the old zamindar is said to have settled considerable property to them. We haven’t seen them since though I hear they made a fortune for themselves in Hyderabad.’

  Sheila was lost in the sorrow of the castle as she followed Poti into it. Her eyes were searching for Raghuram when he appeared suddenly, dressed in a traditional starched and ironed white dhoti and kurta. He was a big man, Sheila noticed. And strikingly sinister looking, like a great big vampire.

  ‘He looks so much like his father,’ Poti said to her sotto voce.

  ‘Miss Pitambar, welcome to my home,’ Raghu said with a smile that transformed his face from something close to a brooding vampire warlord to a mischievous boy. Without realising it, Sheila returned the smile.

  ‘Wow,’ he said. Her smile was dazzling. Like bright flowers in a meadow.

  ‘Mr. Surya, thank you for meeting with me,’ she hastened to add and lowered her head to hide the blush.

  Raghu laughed. ‘Well, you fairly threatened to go to court against me if I didn’t!’

  ‘And I would have too,’ she retorted.

  ‘All right, the both of you; come on in, I think there is a lot to discuss,’ said Poti, leading the way. The duo followed him.

  GOVIND was silent that day on the way back to Delhi. The Surya brothers were easy enough to manage but there was something else nagging him that he couldn’t quite place his finger on. Was it something that Sheila had said to him? He couldn’t quite recall, yet, it upset his day. He called her mobile phone so she could debrief him again. It was out of reach or switched off. He called Javaaram and was told that Sheila had left the guest house a while ago, apparently someone had picked her up.

  That only increased his suspicions. The government car on duty would have marked her whereabouts, where could she have gone? By then, Govind was sure it was something she had told him, something about a device that could control the God of Agony. Why hadn’t he paid attention? What if she had gone on her own to trace the device?

  Govind cursed himself silently. He needed complete information about her meeting with the village council, he was sure that was the key. The car driver would be forthcoming on such information. After all, the driver, Shekhar, was a spook for the cops.

  Govind gave necessary instructions to his secretary.

  It was late afternoon by the time the complete account of her travel was placed before Govind. He knew now whose car had picked her up. That same car was there that day during her meeting with the village elders and it belonged to Raghuram Surya, the driver had been emphatic about it. Govind smiled, the battle lines were being drawn and he had more than an inkling on which side Sheila Pitambar stood. He had to fine tune his own plans to control the Sutram and to do away with a few meddlesome interlopers.

  CHAPTER 20

  RAGHU took Sheila on a guided tour of the castle.

  ‘It’s not really a castle in the strict sense of the term,’ he said. ‘It’s more of a fortress. We could barricade ourselves into it for months and no one could do a thing,’ he said to Sheila.

  ‘Why would you do that?’

  ‘Oh, it could be anything, a flood for instance. In the olden days, the granaries were stocked, there was livestock inside. Vegetables were stored for at least a month. The entire village could be supported, not only this one but a few of them around the castle. In the olden days every ten villages had one of these castles built close to them. You can still find their ruins if you looked hard enough.’

  ‘Gudem was originally a forest, a huge one. Some three hundred years ago, my ancestors built this castle just so they could hunt. It was originally a village of hunters.’

  Sheila shook her head in disbelief. The agricultural fields and brick kilns she had passed on her way to the castle were once part of a great big forest.

  ‘I would never have believed it if you hadn’t told me.’

  ‘It’s true. I guess I am the only one in the family who hates to hunt. I am good at it though. I can shoot as straight as the next man but I just don’t see the fun in shooting an animal that’s minding its own business. There used to be deer, wild buffalo, bears and the big cats in the forest here. There’s a room downstairs that’s got a lot of heads hanging all over the place. I guess it’s worth a fortune. I love guns, I just don’t like using them on animals that don’t mean us harm.’

  Sheila laughed. ‘I agree,’ she said, admiring his philosophy on animals.

  They were now on the first floor veranda. Raghuram told her about the ambari and the bell of appeals. He showed her the bedrooms and the dining room with its sixty-four chair dining table. Sheila was left speechless for a time. Just then the servants brought in the lunch.

  ‘Do you eat non-vegetarian?’

  ‘Yes I do.’

  ‘Oh good.’

  ‘So, tell me about yourself,’ he said as they were being served with hot fried mutton and mixed vegetable.

  Sheila shrugged. ‘I was born into a middle-class Gujarati family living in Mumbai. My father was an accountant in one of those old English companies from the time of the British Raj. They were into logistics. My mother was a home maker, a pigeon of a woman. She used to tell me mythology stories and my father used to
fill my head with numbers. Presto, I became a quantum physicist, if there’s such a thing. I got married just after I finished college. Alok was a professor and a scientist, I met him in college. He was passionate about his work. He encouraged me to get my doctorate in quantum mechanics.’

  ‘Why do you refer to your husband in the past tense?’

  Sheila’s eyes were pools of sadness even as she found her wall slipping away.

  ‘Alok is dead. He died in 2005 during the floods in Mumbai. He rescued me but...’ Raghu was out of his chair in a flash.

  ‘I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to pry,’ he said, holding her hand firmly.

  ‘No... It’s all right, I guess.’

  ‘What about your parents, any siblings?’

  She bit her lip and shook her head.

  ‘I was an only child. My...parents were killed,’ she said.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Well, they were boarding a train in the Victoria station, in Mumbai. They were headed for Ahmedabad for a wedding. It was the twenty-sixth of September 2008. The terrorists attacked the station. The old couple did not know it but they ran right into Kasab.’

  ‘I am so sorry. Please, accept my deepest condolences.’

  ‘I am sorry... I am so sorry. It’s just that it’s been so long since I...never mind. I am sorry.’

  Raghu knelt by her chair. ‘It’s all right, all of us need to let loose sometimes.’

  A subtle change came over her as Sheila stepped back into her breached wall.

  ‘I know all about you Raghuram Surya. Is this how you woo your girls?’ she asked in a cold voice. ‘You soften them with your impeccable manners and then have your way with them.’

  Raghu stood up. Count Dracula could not have looked more sinister.

  ‘Girls are usually much easier,’ he said icily.

  Sheila bunched her fists as she smarted under the insinuation in that statement.

  ‘I am sorry your efforts are wasted,’ she barked.

  Raghu fell silent. He thought, ‘She’s a guest in your house. She just broke down after you made her recount the saddest part of her life and your ego will not allow her that much leverage. What have you become?’

  ‘I am sorry,’ he said, ‘I didn’t mean that. You...are not one of those girls. I respect you, I guess.’

  ‘Does that mean you don’t find me attractive?’ the wall around her broke like glass.

  ‘What did you just ask him?’

  Raghu did not know what to say. ‘I...’

  ‘Don’t answer that, it’s a silly question,’ she said quickly.

  ‘Right. The meal’s getting cold.’ He tried hard to suppress the warmth growing inside.

  They ate in silence. After lunch, they continued to sit at the table, both unwilling to break the magic of the moment. Poti stood at a distance. After a time, Raghu cleared his throat.

  ‘Sheila, why is the government after my property?’

  She gave Raghu the benefit of a bleak look. ‘Listen, if we have to work together, we both need to be open with each other. Don’t tell me you don’t know what’s underneath your own house.’

  Raghu blinked. ‘What’s underneath my house?’

  Sheila shook her head in disbelief. ‘Are you honestly telling me that you don’t know about the phenomenon?’

  Raghuram only stared at her blankly, ‘Phenomenon? What, Sachin Tendulkar was here?’

  She leaned forward in her chair. ‘A few weeks ago one of my team members found something that totally belied belief. We had a satellite imagery taken and we found huge electro-magnetic presence right under your memorial hall.’

  Raghu and Poti exchanged glances.

  ‘What electromagnetic activity? For god’s sake do you people think we have an underground super generator or something?’

  Sheila said, ‘Something like that. It’s almost the size of ten football fields. It is a ball of some sort and Raghu; the electromagnetic activity around is phenomenal. Like I said to the Prime Minister, it is generating about ten thousand terawatts of electrical energy. Need I add we tested our theories with the most advanced technology we have.’

  ‘What the Hell is a terawatt?’

  ‘One terawatt is one trillion watts of electrical energy,’ said Poti. ‘Babu, that’s impossible. Miss Sheila, I am an electrical engineer. That kind of power would never have been easy to stabilise, let alone hide. For god’s sake, it would have destroyed Gudem and burnt the rest of the world to cinders.’

  Sheila nodded in agreement. ‘I agree Mr....Poti, we don’t even know what’d happen if that kind of power goes super nova.’

  ‘So why didn’t it go super nova?’ Raghu asked.

  ‘Something is containing the power. It’s like an invisible wall that doesn’t let the energy out from within the confines of your memorial hall. There is no other explanation for it that I can think of. The aftermath is so weak that it affects things close to the memorial hall.’

  Raghu exchanged glances with Poti. Is that what dad did? Did he arrest the electromagnetic thingy in the hall?

  ‘What else can you tell us?’ Raghuram asked her.

  ‘This thing is growing. It’s becoming powerful by the day. What we need is an organisation that can afford to take steps to contain and maybe even harness the power of this thing. I feel that the government is the best choice. If we’re able to blow this thing wide open and bring in international attention, this could still be safely studied and analysed.’

  Poti shook his head in disagreement. ‘I think we need to destroy it. Babu, you must meet Rathaya.’

  Sheila started at the mention of Rathaya’s name. ‘Funny you should mention him. Rathaya is the other enigma that’s been eating into me. He talks quantum physics for god’s sake and I hold a Ph.D. in it. He talked about atoms communicating to each other, he said at the sub-atomic level there is no time. He said we see the imagery our brain throws at us and the world is an enormous hoax, an illusion, maya he called it. He knew I was going to meet you, he knew that you were here and he said you had to meet him and that I had tell you it was time to use the Agniputr.’

  CHAPTER 21

  AGNIPUTR!

  Images flashed in Raghu’s mind.

  Light. All pervasive. Valour.

  White. Pure. Driven.

  Red blot. A wound. Contagion.

  Blue. Heal. Protect.

  ‘I was hoping you’d tell me what that is,’ he said to Sheila.

  ‘I don’t have the foggiest idea what Agniputr is.’

  ‘Babu, tell her about the other night,’ Poti said from behind Raghuram.

  Raghuram hesitated for just a second. Somehow, he felt the woman sitting across the table was someone he could trust. He just knew it. So he told her.

  Sheila’s reply was, ‘I am sorry to ask you this, but are you sure you didn’t dream the whole thing?’

  Raghu laughed but it was forced. ‘I wish it were Sheila, I wish to God it were. Either all of us were dreaming that night or I wasn’t.’

  ‘This is fantastic, right out of a story book. And you say this man...P. Eshwar, told you about the Agniputr.’

  ‘Well, not about the Agniputr, just that he was hoping I was ready to use it.’

  ‘What does all of it mean?’ asked Sheila.

  ‘I really don’t know Sheila and I am looking desperately for answers. I was hoping you’d give me a few of them.’

  ‘Well, there you have it. I told you all that I know.’

  ‘Let’s meet Rathaya. I think we’ve waited too long, he might hold the answer to all of this and here I was all this time thinking he was balmy,’ Raghu said.

  It took them close to an hour to reach the blind man’s thatched roof hut. There was not a soul in sight.

  The house was silent, somehow it looked empty.

  Something was gone.

  A force.

  An energy.

  Poti was the first to get out of the car. He walked in, followed by Raghu and Sheila. They heard Poti’s ga
sp before they saw it.

  The famed sentinel, the man who could gaze at stars and see only atoms could not conquer time. Pichi Rathaya was dead, he had been so at least for a few hours. He was lying on an old wooden bed, his white eyes were wide open and a thin layer of dried foam coated his mouth.

  He had died a peaceful death by the look of it. The red veins across each of his eyes were gone. He was clutching a dirty cloth. It took them a while to pry it loose because rigor mortis had already set in. Poti opened the cloth, it was soiled and dirty, but they could still make out the one sentence written on it in Sanskrit.

  ‘Agnír éka ksarena vacam úd ajayat’

  CHAPTER 22

  THE man remained hunkered on his haunches for close to two hours by managing to ignore his aching thighs. He was a spy, had been one all his adult life. Right from the time he joined the force he trained to be a spy, he was good at it. Nondescript, of average of height, he could be anyone he wanted, blend anywhere, do anything and no one would be the wiser. Language was the only barrier, because of which he had to restrict his spying within the State of Andhra Pradesh. His Telugu accent infiltrated into any language he spoke.

  He had followed the girl and young man from the Eluru railway station. Of course they did not suspect his identity, after all he was good at his game. It was easy enough, the red Xenon pickup truck stood out for a mile. The moment he saw them getting into the truck he knew he did not need to physically tail them; he knew where they were headed. All he had to do was get there as quickly as he could, if possible before them.

  He could not manage that. The tired old mini-truck he had hitched a ride in broke down half way to Gudem. Years of training had taught him not to panic. He simply stopped the next truck and hopped in. He did not have to pay much to truck drivers and he was good at collecting twice the money he spent from his employers. He still hoped to be in Gudem before nightfall.

  His hopes were dashed when the truck driver dumped him fifteen kilometres from Gudem and picked up a woman, his usual lay on the route. There was no use in arguing. If he did, the spy knew he’d be thrown out of the truck anyway. He legged it for fifteen kilometres, a steady fast walk. It was dark by the time he got into Gudem. A nameless fear began to gather in the pit of his stomach as he neared the accursed village.