Ashtabhuj Advent: Chapter 2, Scene 2

Vedant woke up on the sofa with laptop still running on the table. He had spent a good time researching about university on the internet. He looked at the clock in the living room. It was 5'o clock in the morning. He closed the laptop, got up and looked out of the window. The outsides were covered in a fresh blanket of snow. The forest outside was totally white and in the darkness, the sun had still not risen. He goes to the kitchen and prepares the coffee machine for a coffee. After making himself a mug full of coffee he sits down on the sofa looking intently at the flames in the electric fireplace. It was a new beginning for him. He sips his coffee in silence, in warmth of the living room. He had a good sleep tonight and the best part, he had no dreams at all. The headache was better and he was feeling good. He had researched about the professor last night and he came to know that the professor was adopted son of, Dr. Shubhendu Bhattacharya, the son of Dr. Sudeep Bhattacharya, a renowned archaeologist, who had founded this university in 1947. Dr. Shubhendu himself was a renowned neurologist. The first chancellor of the university was Dr. Sudeep, then Dr. Shubhendu and now it was the professor. Professor too, just like his father, is a neurologist and does clinics two days a week for the underprivileged of Kalpa. Vedant had realised that something bigger than just academics and research is going on in this university. The university is one of the best universities in the country, but it it has its own rules of admitting students. The university randomly selects students, from among those who have applied and even those who haven't. There are various faculties, ranging from arts and sciences to economics, medicine and technology and there is continuous research that goes on in the university. Vedant was pondering on what he researched at night and the phone he had recieved in the parcel that was kept on the table rang. He picked up. "Hello Vedant, Rajesh here." "Hello sir," he replied. "Vedant get ready by 9 am. I will come to pick you up. We are going to the professor where he will brief you about what you have to do." "Sure sir," Vedant said and cut the call. He looked at the clock. It was 6'o clock. He got up went to the bedroom and started arranging the content of his bag in the bedroom cupboard.

9 am when Dr. Rajesh arrived he was ready. They went to the ground floor in the lift and got into the car. "Sir if you don't mind me asking, what do you do here?" Vedant asked Dr. Rajesh in the car. "There is nothing to mind. I do what professor say, but my day job here is that of a professor of theoretical physics." Dr Rajesh said, smiling. They had reached professors bungalow. Professor was having tea when they entered the living room of the bunglow. The fireplace had kept the room warm. Professor saw them and smiled. "Come you two, have tea with me." He said and the called, "Rustom!", a tall lanky man in his mid 30s dressed in a suit comes. "Can you help them with some tea?" "Sure sir!" Rustom bows and proceeds to pour tea for Dr. Rajesh and Vedant.

"Did you like your new home Vedant?" Professor asked.

"Yes sir, thank you for the beautiful house."

Professor smiled, "Today I have called you to tell you about what you'd do here. We are in a state of war Vedant. And we need people like you. There is a reason we have chosen you for the job that you are supposed to do, and we hope that you'd trust us. There is one more person who has come to Kalpa, his name is Jyotirmay, you two are the new inductions into the work that we do here, though the jobs you both would do here differ greatly but they are towards one unified goal."

"What is the job sir?" Vedant asked.

"You are here specifically for a purpose that deals with war at mental level. The psychic space in this country has become a warzone and there are various forces in this country that want to enslave people, in fact they have been successful in enslaving and subdueing the majority of population. You told me that you feel like Antichrist, and there is a reason for it. A lot of people are being exploited and tortured at the psychic plane in this country, and you are chosen as one of our psychic warriors because you have the ability for it. There is Dr. Sharanya who oversees psychic operations in the university and she would provide you the training necessary for you to be able to do your work. You have to realise that our minds are in control of entities that want to enslave and exploit us and we have to fight against these forces."

"You mean the minds of people can be controlled?" Vedant asked with dismay.

"I know it's a lot to handle, but this is the truth. Not only our minds but also our bodies are controlled, by the forces that want to enslave the people."

"Pardon me professor but if it is so how can we ever able to fight against these people, that would mean that they wouldn't ever allow us to grow big enough to fight them, they would always know our next step."

Professor looked at Vedant. "That's the whole game Vedant, there is nothing hidden, and it's a powerplay, the university is capable enough to fight against the entities, and that you could ascribe to sheer luck and timing. The common man cannot fight against it, and so he has to suffer the fate these individuals design for them. We actually are not alone, there are various structures and establishment that are fighting the same fight that we are the world over, but we know that we are not in a position of strength, but what we lack in strength we make up for it in efforts."

"Why did you choose me professor?" Vedant asked.

"There are reasons Vedant, and that you would come to know in due time. For now I understand that you need time to process all the information I have given you. Sharanya will meet you in the evening today. Till then take some rest."

"Let me drop you to your flat, Vedant," Dr. Rajesh said to Vedant.

They both got up and bowed to the professor and got out and got into the car.

"Your food would be on the table by the time we reach home, Dr. Rajesh said.

"Sir, I'd preferably cook for myself," said Vedant curtly.

"Very well. I'd provide you with a card that you can use to shop at university departmental store in the evening. I assume your fridge is stacked till then?"

"Yes sir."

They reach the residential complex and Dr. Rajesh dropped Vedant.

Vedant after reaching home, sat on the sofa. It was too much to process, but somehow he didn't have any doubts on what professor had said to him. It was still difficult for him to believe that people's minds and bodies were controlled by a structure. What was that structure? Was it the government? Or were it the corporations? He decided to sleep for a bit. 

It was 4'o clock in the evening. Vedant woke up. Dr. Rajesh would be bringing Dr. Sharanya at 5'o clock. He had not had lunch so he got up and went to the dining table to have his lunch. After his lunch he went to the library and shuffled through the books. At 5'o clock sharp he heard a his doorbell ring. He answers the door to find Dr. Rajesh and a woman in a saree and gold rimmed spectacles standing at the door. He invites them inside and asks then to sit. They sit on the sofa while he pulls a chair and sits facing them. 

"Hello Vedant, I'm Sharanya." Dr. Sharanya said. "I work in the department of psychology as an associate professor but as we might know that for a few people in the university their job profile entails a lot more than academics and research."

Vedant nods in agreement.

"Vedant, professor told me that he has given you a basic idea about what we are dealing with. You are specifically chosen for a job that is mainly at the psychic level. We live in tough times Vedant, and our chief adversary is Mackenzie-Brown Corporation. Their history with us goes long back, as far as 1920s, but that doesn't mean that they are out only adversary, there are a lot of players in the game and there are many whom we don't even know about."

"What do I have to do?"

"Your training would begin from tomorrow. I have come here to prime you about what we have to do. There is one more person who is new just like you to all this, and you will not only aid us in psychic operations, but also act as his handler. I know you are new to all this but then that's what training is for. You have to know that what we do is extremely important and the fate of the country and the world depends on it. We do all our work in Building 9, a place where all our operations, including psychic operations are planned and executed. At present our main focus are the the two new inductions, you and Jyotirmay, Jay as he likes to call himself. You would meet him in due time but before that I want you to be trained and ready. I will come to pick you up tomorrow morning at 9'o clock."

Vedant nods.

"Vedant, a new life begins for you from tomorrow, eat and rest well. Sharanya will come tomorrow and take you to Building 9," said Dr. Rajesh as he and Dr. Sharanya get up to go.

After they left. Vedant starts cooking his dinner, thinking what would be next. He missed the Matth, but life in Varanasi had no purpose. He had came far from that dingy room near Manikarnika ghat. Headaches were less severe and he wasn't feeling like the Antichrist anymore.