Vimana

Once again, Aaditya figured it was a rhetorical question, so he waited for Ganesha to continue.

'He divides and conquers. He pits one nation against another, hoping you weaken your nations enough to give him a chance. And you ask if this intelligence gathering serves a purpose! Hell, sitting in this very chair, I discovered how he was leaking knowledge on rocketry to the Nazis. We put an end to that, for sure.'

Suitably educated and chastened, Aaditya got back to work. After four hours, his eyes were blurry and he desperately needed a break, so he went back to his room. Tanya was there, though it looked like she was about to leave. She greeted him with a kiss.

'Hey, sweetheart, I hope Ganesha's not working you too hard.'

'Where are you off to?'

'I've got some work. Looks like some newspaper picked up a report on a vimana sighting over Nepal. So I need to draft a Press Release which Narada will get one of his contacts to issue.'

'They do work like the frigging CIA, don't they?'

She lovingly tousled Aaditya's hair.

'It is hard work. And they don't even pay a salary. And you thought studying in college was a tough gig. See you later.'

She kissed him and left. Not having anything better to do, Aaditya returned to the room he had been with Ganesha. There was nobody there, so he called up, or rather willed up, a monitor and asked for any news reports on unidentified flying objects. He got several references to the story Tanya had mentioned. Then he asked for any references to unexplained aircraft losses. He saw one report, from an internal Pentagon memo.

How the hell did these guys hack into everything including the Pentagon?

One line in the memo caught his eye.

December 14, 2011. Predator drone lost over Northern Afghanistan. Cause unknown, though enemy action suspected. Fourth loss in three weeks.

Four Predators lost in three weeks? As someone with a lifelong interest in flying, he had followed how the US had used Predator drones with devastating effect, the one bright spot in an otherwise disastrous war in Afghanistan. So, how had the Taliban suddenly discovered how to knock out four in three weeks-more than they had managed in the last ten years put together?

He quickly called up any other reports of lost Predators, and sure enough, he saw that all four has been lost as a result of suspected enemy action. He also saw in some US Army memos the emerging panic that if the Taliban had indeed mastered how to down Predators, then the balance of the war in Afghanistan could shift decisively. He began cross-tabbing with any reports of unidentified flying objects. Then he saw it.

Four months ago, before the spate of Predator downings had begun, a Pentagon report had a small item tucked away among the minutiae of war. A US Air Force F-15 flying over Afghanistan had picked up an unidentified flying object on its radar for a split second near the area where the Predator had been reported lost. The unidentified contact then disappeared off radar, being tracked as moving at more than five thousand kilometres per hour. It had been dismissed as a glitch in the radar system and ignored.

Aaditya looked over at Ganesha, who had opened a box of sweets and was gulping them down, two at a time. He offered one to Aaditya, but then seeing his expression asked what was up. When Aaditya mentioned what he had discovered, Ganesha looked over the data, and then asked Aaditya to go take a break while he dug deeper. As Aaditya left the room, he heard Ganesha mutter to himself.

'What mischief are you up to, old friend Kalki?'

***

Aaditya was lost in thought. Tanya put her head on his chest.

'I do hope you're not thinking of another woman.'

'Of course not, but I was thinking of something.'

When Tanya probed, he said, 'Look, even if I assume that these guys are actually aliens, and everything they say is true, one thing does not make sense. How could they not have aged in 15,000 years? You know, you've been around them for so long.'

Tanya looked irritated and turned her face away.

'Tanya, did I say something wrong?'

'No, they did tell me, but I'm sure they can explain it better. Why don't you just ask one of them? But for once, at least now, please stop thinking of them and pay me some attention.'

Aaditya pulled her close and did just that.

The next morning, he was called to the conference room for a meeting. When he walked in, he found the Devas more agitated than he had ever seen. All the Devas were there, and they seemed to be talking at the same time.

'Let me and my Ganas go over there. We will smash them,' thundered Shiva.

'Shiva, this requires a bit more thinking through. The last thing we want is for a nuclear bomb to be triggered in the battle,' counseled Vishnu.

Brahma's voice cut through the clutter. He did not raise his voice, but there was an unmistakable stamp of authority that silenced everyone.

'Everyone has had their say, but most of you are just reacting to bits and pieces of information we've heard this morning. Let Ganesha tell us what he found so we all know exactly what we're dealing with.'

Ganesha stood up, and then pointed to Aaditya.

'He's the one who found out about it first. Hear it from him.'

With that he sat back down, popping another sweet into his mouth, leaving Aaditya with every eye in the room trained on him. When he finished his account, Ganesha piped in, 'So, I got our satellites to intercept a few cellphone conversations and my father here helped break a few knees to get the information we wanted.'

Shiva nodded with a smile as Ganesha continued, 'So, here's the deal. It seems Kalki is helping Al Qaeda but in return has extracted a terrible favor. He is passing on a crude nuclear device which he wants them to use on a US target.'

Aaditya was stunned at the casual way in which Ganesha shared the information. Brahma brought up a map of Afghanistan on the holographic display.

'So like him. Wreak havoc so he can reign over the rubble that remains. Well, we know what to do. Indra, get a plan ready. We meet again in an hour.'

Everyone left the room, leaving Aaditya feeling pretty confused. He rushed after Indra, figuring that since he was the one making whatever plan needed to be made, he could help.

'Aadi, I have a lot to plan. Can we chat later?'

'Whatever you're doing, can I come along?'

Indra stopped in his tracks.

'No.'

'Come on, I'm the one who found out about all this. Please don't leave me here while you go after them.'

'Aadi, it was made very clear that you cannot fly or take part in battle.'

This time, Aaditya was not going to give up that easily.

'These guys killed my father. Fine, you won't let me fly your precious vimanas, but at least let me be there when you take them out. At least let me have that measure of revenge.'

Kartik was passing by and stopped when he heard the exchange.

'He could just sit in my vimana. I won't let him get into trouble.'

Indra glared at him.

'Why don't you go and convince Brahma?'

Kartik replied with a smile, 'I did. Aadi did uncover this operation in the first place.'

Indra looked in Brahma's direction, not believing what Kartik had said, but the older Deva smiled, nodding his head in affirmation.

'Let the boy tag along. Kartik, keep him out of trouble, and he stays in your vimana.'

An hour later, Aaditya was in the hangar, where all the Devas had assembled. He had been given a white, full body suit, with a hood to protect him from the cold in case he was exposed to the elements. As Aaditya saw the buzz of activity in the hangar, it was clear that now Indra was in charge.