The Sun

I closed my eyes and said the mantra, thinking of Him. As the reverberations and hums of the mantra faded into silence, I hoped it had worked.

I opened my eyes to an empty room.
No one stood before me.

It was a hoax. I couldn't believe I fell for that trick. Even after all I had done for the Swami.

That evening, as the Sun set, I watched as the glow faded into the sea, into the shadowed embrace of the moon.

With the final disappearance of light, I went back into my chambers. Even though brightly lit, the light did not excite me as before.

Suddenly, I heard a knock on my balcony door.

A thief certainly wouldn't be heroic and try to rob me while I was awake.I was trained enough in fighting to disarm and kill a man, if needed, as expected of a princess.

As I opened the balcony door, I saw a young man, his skin glowing in perspiration, his muscled body reflecting the light of a thousand candles.
The moment he looked at me, I was lost. Lost in his eyes, the magical pull of his all knowing smile pulling me into him. Or it may even have been the mantra affecting my judgement.

I fell into his embrace, not even bothering to ask his name.
I knew who this was. This was my God.

As his strong hands removed each piece of clothing covering me and caressed my body ever so softly, I found myself melting into him. As we joined as one, rhythmically moving in a synchronized motion, as if it was meant to be this way eons ago, ending in explosive orgasm after another, I felt him not waver.
He filled me with his seed, repeatedly, but we both knew. His only mission here was to satisfy me. Nothing else mattered here, not Him, the time, the guards outside or even my prestige.

As the night started to turn darker, he stood up to go.
'Surya!', I called after him, my hand weakly pointing in his direction.
He turned back to me, smiling, his words soothing my mind.
'Fear not Kunti. You shall gain what you desired. Our son shall be glorious, a true king.'

I didn't pay much heed to his words, tired as I was, just watching as he vanished into the air, tinting the sky ever so slowly red.

The Deletion- 16th Hour

We were thrown out from the hole.

I took a few minutes to catch my breath.

'Instantaneous Transportation and Untraceable' Sarah said, helping me get up to my feet.

'Where are we?', I motioned, unable to speak

Sarah smiled.

'You're lucky that you didn't die in there'

I looked at her.

'Don't look so shocked. Travelling through black holes take time, even though it seems instantaneous to us. I guess around 3 minutes are lost'

'3 minutes?' I guestured.

'Yes. Not a lot of time, but enough to knock out a person'

'You guys really need to carry around oxygen cylinders', I said, finally regaining my breath.

'We already do.', she said, taking out a small bubble of clear liquid.

'We use these in cases of emergencies only. And we always have one around. Just in case.'

'What is it?'

'It's a sort of liquid. Not sure about the exact specifications. We have to put it in a special device in front of our nose and breath normally. Lasts for hours.'

'Well that sure is convenient.'

'It also gives you terrible headaches. So, not a perfect science.'

'Oh. That's sad.'

'Well, now to the important part. Why were you chosen?'

'I have my doubts.'

'Okay...'

'I think this is revenge to the man who killed his brother.'

'But why you?'

'What if I am related to the man?'

'But Michaels brother was killed so long ago!'

'Yes, but what if I am the last living descendant or something like that?'

'Makes sense.'

'I think we should meet the chief.'

'That too, makes sense. I'll call it in.'

She took out a device and spoke something into it.

'We can leave in five minutes'

Suddenly, a portal opened up in front of us.

Michael walked out of it.

Sarah took a gun she had and shot it at Michael.

He fell down, paralyzed.

I looked at her.

'You had this the whole time?'

'Only usable for Emergencies. Team Rule.'

We saw as another portal opened a bit farther away.

'Run, Kid. Run!' Sarah screamed, as another foot stepped out of the portal.

It was Guy.

'Come with me!' I screamed

'Run!', she screamed, firing a shot at Guy.

He seemed to not mind it, walking forward.

As I ran towards the new portal, I felt a wave of air breezing against me.

I saw a black hole open up and Sarah pushing guy into it.

'Bye Kid! Be safe!'she said, as she pushed Michael into the hole and jumped into it.

I ran into the portal, walking out at the other end. The tears flew freely, falling into the portal.

I slumped onto the floor, as I felt someone catch me.

'There, there', a strong male voice said.

'You're safe now', a reassuring female voice said

'Where's Sarah?' a third voice asked, worry tinging their voice.

I sat on the ground, the floor taking my tears.

The Deletion - 17th Hour

I did not expect that.

'Who killed him?'

'His friend. A man he trusted like a brother.'

'And for what did he kill him?'

'Fame. Glory. Power. He knew. Somehow, he knew.'

'He knew? He knew what?'

'That's enough for now.', Michael said, getting up.
I saw him wiping away his tears.

Michael motioned at the guy.

He came and caught me like I weighed nothing.
He carried me over to my room.

And there I sat, in my bed, like the prisoner I was.

The book had disappeared. It seemed that Michael was playing some sort of game with me.

I lay down. And slowly, everything faded and ceased to matter.

A loud sound woke me up.

Someone was hitting against the door.

I sat up. I looked around to find some sort of weapon. There were none.

As I stared, the door crashed and fell on the pristine floors.

It was Sarah.

I felt happy seeing her.

'Come here you idiot!' she screamed.

I got off the bed and ran fast outside.

'Come! Quick!', she continued screaming

Only when I came out did I see why she had been screaming.

The floor had started turning into liquid.
The door had started to regrow.

I looked around. Vin was still in his cage. He looked at me pleadingly.
I could hear rumbles coming from far. Michael was sure to find out I had escaped. The guy would come now.

She took my hand and said,'Hold your breath.'

Before I could, she pressed a button and we were sucked into a black hole.

The Deletion- 18th Hour

'Michael!'

He turned around.

'Answer me!'

'Answer what?'

'This Jack. Was he your brother?'

'Come with me.'

Michael walked ahead of me.

He opened a door and walked in.

I wasn't sure if I should walk in. He didn't exactly have the best track record.

Well I'm dead anyways. Might as well walk in.

I pushed open the door and was greeted with a beautifully set out coffee shop.

There was a guy at the counter, preparing coffee.

Michael was sitting at a corner table, looking out of a window.

I went and sat next to him.
He did not look at me.

I looked outside. There seemed to be children playing in a garden.

'Where are we?', I asked.

Michael smiled again.

'Where are we?', I repeated.

'Shhh... Keep quiet.'

'Where are we?'

'You're watching my dream. Through the eyes of a monitoring system. This place, as I told before, is in my tertiary space.'

'Why am I here?'

'You don't know how important you are.'

'Answer me. Why am I here?'

'I am answering you, Kid. I am.'

I didn't say anything.

The guy bought us coffee. Michael showed him V. He went back and bought us cake.

'Eat up. It's my favorite.'

I looked down. It was cheesecake.

I was about to move away the cake from me, when my stomach rumbled.

I just realized that I hadn't eaten anything in a while.

'Eat the cake Kid. You deserve it.'

I looked at Michael.

'Do you think I can get a sandwich here?'

Michael laughed.

'Ofcourse! Grilled Chicken good enough for you?'

I nodded.

Michael motioned something to the guy. He went into a room behind. Hopefully to prepare my sandwich.

I tucked into my cake in silence. Michael rarely made any sound while he ate. Nor did he speak.
I tried to speak to him. He said, after we finish eating.

So I kept quiet.

My sandwich came. I ate. It was realllly good. I hadn't realized how hungry I was.

Michael was watching me the entire time.

When he saw that I was done, he motioned to the guy to come and clear the plates.

He came, cleared the plates and brought out two beautiful glasses.
He filled it with water and shuffled back.

'What's this?'

'Water. That's it.'

I took a sip. It was indeed water.

Micheal took a sip from his glass. He was still staring outside. Now, it had a family sitting at a dinner table.

They looked happy.

'Michael?'

'Hmm? Yes?'

'Is that your family?'

Michael did not say anything.

'Micheal?'

He looked at me.

'Yes. And No. That is my family. Or that is what my family could have been.'

'Jack?'

'Yes. Jack, his wife and children. Me, My sister, my family. So happy.'

'What Happened?'

'You read what happened.'

'No. I did not.'

'He was murdered.'

The Deletion- 19th Hour

The words seemed to keep on appearing on the pages.

I ran to wash my hand in the sink, making sure that no glass particles were stuck in there.

Wrapping my hand in the bed sheet, I started reading.

This was the Diary of a man named Jack.

As the days passed in his life, he made a new entry into the book.

He wrote about his family. His father, John. His Mother, Katherine. His Sister, Mary and his Brother, Michael.

Michael? Could it be...

Jack never stopped writing, even as he fell sick from a poisoning. He went about seeing friends, once he got well. He talked about his Friend, Thomas. He talked about his lover, Jane. He talked about his town, his home, his work.

He never stopped writing, writing about the grisly murders that happened in the town he was staying in.

He wrote about what he found about the victims, people he knew, people he had seen the very day before.

And on 11th November, he stopped writing.

A voice behind me startled me.

'Ah. I see you found a way to open the diary.'

Michael was standing behind me, watching me read the book.

'There are other ways?'

'Plenty of ways.', Michael said, looking at my hand. He was smiling.

Michael came close to me. He took my hand, removed the sheet and wiped the blood. There were no marks of my hand being cut.

I had more pressing things to ask than healing hands.

'Whose book is this?'

'I am sure that you would have guessed by now.'

'Your brother...?'

Michael smiled.

He gestured at me to walk behind him.

I got up, following him. I took the diary along with me.

As I left the room, I saw Vin in a jail of sorts, chained to the floor.

Sarah was nowhere to be seen.

I walked forward, following Michael as he walked with a purpose in mind.

The Deletion - 20th Hour

I fell headfirst onto something soft.

A rough hand pulled me up and I felt something hit me on my face, repeatedly.

I think I lost consciousness for a bit in there.

When I opened my eyes, I was lying under a... tree?

I turned my head left and saw someone sitting beside me.

I closed my eyes and opened them again.

Something seemed to be on my face. I sat up, trying to feel my face.

As I touched my nose, I felt pain.

'Oh. You're awake.', a voice said.

The voice was familiar.

I turned. And there she was, my mother.

'Mom?'

'Yes, Kid.'

'What are you doing here?'

'Well. I had to come help my child.', she said, smiling.

'What happened to my nose?', I asked.

'That was Michael. He punched you until you lost consciousness. I tied him up and put him in the corner.'

She pointed to a corner where I could make out a person tied down.

'Where is Sarah?', I asked

'Oh Enough with the questions. Let's eat something.'

We walked towards my home, leaving Michael under the tree. I could see my Father and my Sister at the table, eating. They were laughing at some joke Dad had cracked.

Mom was stroking my hair, caressing my head in a loving way.

I walked into the room.
The meal sure looked delicious.

'I need to make a quick phone call... you guys carry on', I said, running to take my phone.

A strong hand caught my arm.

'Sit Down and Eat, Son'

My Father never said anything like that to me.

'No Dad. This is urgent. I need to call someone.'

'Listen to your dad, Kid. Sit Down and Eat.'

'What did you call me?'

'Son...', my Dad said, clearly not understanding.

'Not you Dad. You, Mom.'

Dad looked at Mom. Mom looked at Dad.

Mom smiled.

Suddenly, the entire room went dark.

'Not so easy to fool, are you, little Champ?'

Someone was walking towards me, talking. They seemed to glow a bit.

'I tried so hard to get this done. And I have been waiting for so long. You are definitely not going to come in between me and my goal. Not now. Not so close.'

'Who are you?', I screamed at the darkness.

'Don't you understand me... Kid?'

A beam of light fell on the person.

It was Michael.

'Michael? You?', I screamed, shocked.

'Yes Kid. I should have just given your Mom character to a Slave. They would have done it better', he said, glancing behind.

'Who was that then?'

'Vin.'

A bit of light played behind Michael, revealing a shackled Vin.

'Vin?'

'Yeah this dumbass can't even play a character he's known for so long properly.'

Vin looked ashamed. And sad. And Sorry.


'Where am I? What is all this?'

'Well, you clearly am in my Tertiary Space.'

'Why are you doing this?'

'You'll know soon', he said, walking away, Vin following him.

As he walked away, the space started to light up bit by bit.

I was in a room. No windows. Nothing. Just a bed. And me. I couldn't even see a door.

Curiously, there was a table beside my bed. On it were a jug of water, some biscuits and a black book.

I took to read it. The pages were empty.

I was about to close it when a glowing paragraph in the first page caught my attention.

'What water is to Earth
To Men this is
Far Great too Many Men
Lost too much of this
For Wine it may resemble
To Drink it a Folly
Many a Man have tried
Countless, paid the price
Not to drink, a lesson
To drink, not human'

Oh Great. A Riddle.

I suck at this.

I touched my nose.

That bastard really did punch and knock me out.

Wonder where Sarah is.

I sat there, turning the pages of this blank book. It seems, I am destined to turn into a Partial.

Suddenly, I felt the urge to pee.

I got up, heading in a direction I hoped I'd have something to pee in.

And I noticed a mirror on the wall.

There was dry blood caked on my face.

After peeing, I washed my face.

The entire basin was covered in red droplets.

Much like Wine.

I suddenly got the answer to the riddle.

I turned to the mirror. In one hard punch, the entire glass came crashing down.

My hand got all bloody.

The glass repaired itself, somehow. What world was I in?

I ran over to the book, opened it and wiped my blood on the first page.

The gleaming lines now read,

'What a sacrifice, O Noble One
Not in Vain it shall
Find you shall all you seek
To destroy the darkness
You did not see approaching'

Suddenly the page went blank.

And below it, words started appearing in black, black ink.

The Deletion- 21st Hour

We walked into the street.

All was calm. Well as calm as it could be. This did not look like the street where an hour ago, a huge Slave had crashed his hand into.
It was back to normal.

We walked into Vin's home.

He seemed to have slept through the entire ordeal.

Sarah took out a scanning device, scanning for the Tertiary Space nearby.

The device was silent for most part, except for this weird humming noise it did.

'Whats that weird humming noise?'

'Thats me humming a song.', Sarah said.

Before Sarah could see my embarrassed face, the device beeped.

'Found it!', Sarah whispered.

'Why are you whispering?', I asked, whispering myself.

'There's a guy asleep here. We do not want to wake him up.'

Sarah took out another device, aiming at the spot the device had beeped at.

'Hope for the best Kid', she said, firing the device at the particle.

A ray of light touched it, dispersing light as if it was a prism.
A rainbow of colors sprayed itself onto the wall, each shade brimming with energy.

'Michael, make sure that he does not wake up. We are going to search for the body. And hold this device. Keep it at the particle. Do not waver.'

'On it.'

'Kid. You take from the Violet end. I will begin from Red.'

'All right.'

'Do you know what to do?', she asked me.

I smiled.

'No.'

'Thought so.'

She gave me a pair of glasses.

'Wear this. Look at the lights carefully. If you find any shimmering or difference in shades or anything, anything at all, let me know.'

'Allright.'

I wore the glasses. The lights seemed to intensify in strength.

Violet was such a peaceful color. It flowed slowly, not disturbing the others nearby.
In fact, the speed of the colors increased from my end to her end.

I noticed that there was some sort of shimmering in Green, as if something was trying to get out from it. It kept pushing its borders.

'Sarah?'

'Yeah?'

'There's something moving in Green.'

'I see it too. I think it might be best if we just look for your body and leave the rest. It might be dangerous.'

'I think we should help it.'

'That is a wrong decision, Kid. We need to find your body. We are running short of time.'

'Does that mean leaving a living being stuck in that world forever?'

Sarah let out a sign.

'First thing after finding your body, we will release it.'

I was not satisfied, but hey, beggars can't be choosers. I had to find my body fast. I did not want to end up as a trophy in Michael's or Chief's room.

I looked at the colors at my end a bit more carefully.

It helped that these glasses had a zoom capability.

The moment I noticed something floating in the colors, I zoomed in.

It was mostly just some random thing, like a vehicle or some sort of weapon.

As I was starting to lose hope, I saw something floating in Blue.

It seemed to move along slowly, as if there was nothing to guide it.
I zoomed in. I could make out something covered, but it sure looked human.

I gestured over to Sarah.
I realized a second too late that she probably couldn't see me waving my hand at her.

'Sarah.', I whispered.

'What?'

'I think I found myself.'

She walked over to my side, zooming in with her glasses.

'Move back.'

She walked over to the color, wearing a glove over her hand.

'This is going to be interesting.'

She put her hand into the color, zooming in with her glasses.

Slowly, carefully, she removed it.

She now had me in her hand.

She gestured at me to bring the device from Michael.

Michael handed the device over to me, waiting for me to do something with it.

Sarah pressed a couple of buttons on it and watched as it fired a beam of light at the thing.

I felt pain. Shocking, numbing pain. I almost dropped the device.

I watched as smoke rose from her hand, as something happened to my body.

I jumped at her, yelling. The device clattered to the floor. The pain vanished, so did the beam.

Vin woke up, yelling.
.
Michael looked at Vin, who punched him in the nose.

He got up, cackling.

'Think you can steal from my collection, fools?'

He threw a small transparent ball onto the floor. Suddenly, a Slave appeared.

'Capture them.', he said.

I turned and ran.
Michael and Sarah followed behind.

Suddenly, I felt an arm close on my hand.

'Jump, you Idiot!', I heard Michael scream.

And I jumped right into darkness.

The Deletion- 22nd Hour

We landed with a thump.

Michael was at the bottom, Sarah on top of me.
I was sandwiched between them.

Sarah got up, looking at her body.

Michael pushed me off.

We both stood up and looked at our surroundings.
Michael seemed awfully interested in looking at my arms and legs. Weird.

'Where are we?', I asked.

'Somewhere.', Michael replied.

'Yeah... Where?', I asked.

'That's the name of the place. Somewhere.', Sarah said, before Michael could reply.

'What are we doing here?'

'This is the place I first thought of... the Transporter Device locked onto this and took us here.'

'Can It trace us?', I asked, gesturing behind me.

'Well... Depends on how long the portal was open there.'

'What do you think happened to my body?'

'I am pretty sure that your body is hidden... probably in a tertiary space tagged on to your friend.'

I probably looked like I did not understand a single word he said, because he started to explain.

'In simple terms, your body has been taken into a small space, basically a tiny dot, so small that people can mistake it for a dust particle.'

'Ok...'

'And in that particle, people can store things. It was really common before and it still is, if you don't want to carry an AllBag.'

'What's an AllBag?'

'That's the heavy bag you're carrying.'

'This one?'

'Yeah. It has all the stuff we need.'

'But It's so heavy!' I complained.

Sarah looked at Michael.

'Yeah Genius here packed in some weapons.'

'Did you check in on the teams?', she asked.

'I did not.'

'We should.'

Sarah took out a small device, entering in details.

The screen lit up, transmitting details to her.

She projected the video she has received onto a wall nearby.

It showed a huge being crashing into our car, moments after we escaped. It seemed to solidify only its arm so that it could cause damage to us.

Teams of our Agents swarmed onto it, taking it down and containing it.

Oh Great. I just thought of them as our agents. It's like I'm working for them as well.

I watched as it was transported using a beam of light, carrying it as if it did not weigh much.
The being seemed motionless.

'What was that thing?'

'It's a Slave.', Sarah replied.

'A Slave?'

'Yes. It does as it is told. Has a host of magical capabilities, but has to be bound to someone. Otherwise it will go berserk.', Michael said.

'If its like a pet, there should be some way to know who it is bound to.', I said.

'It usually has a chip embedded into its neck or arm. Teams reported negative on finding any ID.'

'Why was it motionless at the end?', I asked.

'That means that its duty is done. Someone gave it a last duty and then set it free. Effectively removing any traces of their act. And now that it's gone into Stasis, there is no way to get its memory back.', Sarah said.

She smiled at my dejected face.

'We will find your body Kid. We are so close to it now.'

'So... We safe to return?', I asked.

'Well it sure does seem like it', Michael said.

'Open a portal then.', I said.

'You cannot travel so soon. It could break you.'

'I am sure I can handle it', I said.

'It's your funeral.', Michael said, snorting at his own pun.

He opened a portal ahead, gesturing at Sarah to go in first.

'Ladies first', he said, smiling.

'You just want to stare at my ass, Perv.', she said, sarcasm dripping in her voice.

'Well, guess you found my secret.', Michael said, laughing.

I rolled my eyes. They should really get laid, I thought, as I walked into the portal after Sarah.

The Reluctant Hero- Chapter 3

As the nurse tried to save him, he stirred.

He could feel hands trying to spot where he was hurt. He also heard someone ask his name.

"Rackett", he replied, sitting up.

"The Superhero Rackett?", someone asked.

He nodded.

"Are you OK?"

He nodded again.

"Let me off. I'm OK."

They let him off at the sidewalk. Now he would be called The Suicidal Hero.
Not a good look, but he didn't care about that anymore.

He stood on the pavement, watching the ambulance drive off.

He felt a sense of power well up inside him, and he took off into the skies, flying.
He could still hear the city and it's movement, the cries for help, the sirens and the footsteps of a million humans.
He longed nothing more than to leave.
As he stared into the sky, a memory walked into his vision.
It was that woman again, laughing at him, pointing at the sky.

The Deletion - 23rd Hour

Me and Michael got out of the house.

Sarah stayed behind but was behind us in a minute.

I thought I saw a small flash of lighting in the room. I also heard him snoring next.

No idea what happened there, even though I can guess. 

I had seen Men In Black five times. 

We got into the car.

Michael looked at me.

'I shouldn't be saying this, but things are starting to look grim.'

'I thought so.', I said.

Sarah looked at me through the mirror.

'We will find your body Kid. Before you turn into a partial.', she said.

'How can you be sure?'

'This ain't our first rodeo, Son.', it was Michael who answered.

'What?'

'Yeah, we have done this before', Michael said.

I looked at Michael.

'How many were saved?', I asked.

'Like... 10 percent?'

'That is the worst reassuring I have ever had in my life.'

'Hey. What's in a percentage?', he asked, laughing.

'It's death for me.'

He stopped laughing really quickly when he heard that.

'You know what. I will make you a deal.', he said, all serious now.

'What deal?', I asked.

'In case we are not able to find your body, I will personally put in a good word for you. You can become an agent like us.'

I looked up at the mirror. I thought I saw something dangerous flash there. Sarah did not approve.

'For real?', I asked.

'For real, Kid. I like you. Let's hope for the best though, allright?', Michael said.

I let it go as him just trying to make me feel better.

I smiled and nodded along, as if to make it look like I was enthusiastic about it.

We drove forward.

Sarah was just driving along, when she asked me about my phone.

I told her that it had gone missing with me as well.

I did not have it with me anymore.


'Can you track it?', she asked.

'I should probably be able to.'

We stopped at the next Electronics Store we saw.

I logged into my Gmail account and checked for my phone status.

Thankfully, it was still online.

It seemed to be located a bit farther from my home.

I was surprised. It was at Vins place.

Sarah looked at me.

We ran out of the store, taking the laptop with us.

The store cameras caught a young man running out with a laptop.

They couldn't catch my face properly, apparently. It was all blurred.

Sarah drove back to his home. She was going pretty fast. If we did not have special help, I am sure we would have gone back up there.

As we drove up to the place, we saw a hole forming above his home. There were sparks coming out of it. A humanoid shape was forming in the air.


'Agent Sarah, AE34 calling in. We have a One Oh One happening here. I am posting my location now.' she said into a device. She pressed a red button which started glowing green.


The humanoid shape was allmost done joining together.

It descended into the world, landing on the road, as if it weighed nothing much than a feather.

It turned its huge head in our direction. It seemed to be transparent, with vehicles crossing through its legs as if nothing blocked them. No one seemed to notice the huge hole in the sky either.
I wonder how many of these I had missed.

Sarah took the beaming device in her hand.

'Michael. Take the weapons. Kid. Take what all you can, but do not forget the bag in the back. And slowly, exit the vehicle.And whatever you do, do not shout. And do not make any fast, sharp movements.'


I reached back and took the bag. It sure was heavy for such a tiny one.

We all slowly got out from the vehicle, making sure not to make any sharp movement.

Suddenly, a sound spoke from the device.
'Teams AE34, 35, 36 Dispatch Confirm'


Sarah looked up at the being.

'Oh.... F...', Sarah was not able to complete the statement.

Before that, the being had started running towards us.

'RUN! IDIOTS!', Sarah screamed.


I threw the bag onto my shoulder and started running.

Michael took my hand.

'Hold on!', he said, as he disappeared into the air, sucking me along with him.

I could just barely make out Sarah jumping into the place where I had been. 

The Deletion - 24th Hour

Michael took a while to come out.

Even when he did, he was inscrutable. I thought he looked dejected, but then, it was probably my imagination.

We went to the lobby and then to Level - 0.

'Why not Level - 1?', I asked Michael.

'We're going to travel.', replied Michael.

'Where?'

'Where do you think to, genius?'

'Uh... Earth?'

'You sure got that right', he said, snorting at his own joke.

The sarcasm was not lost on me. I pretended not to notice.

We met with Sarah Gene down at Level 0.

And man, was she pretty.

She had blue eyes, blonde hair. Spectacular looking woman.
What impressed me most was her style. She looked like an angel.

I realized a moment too late that she probably was one.

'Sarah. Shadow Angel Team AE34', she introduced herself.

I shook her extended hand.

'Michael', she nodded her head at him.
He returned the nod.

We went towards another room guarded by a guy.

He seemed uninterested in anything that was happening around him.
After a while and some paperwork later, we were standing in some sort of tunnel shaped device.

Above me was a huge circular device, some sort of controls at a corner of the room and a set of clothes that was to be worn.

'We need to find you a body.', Michael said suddenly.

'What happened to mine?', I asked.

Sarah looked at me like I was stupid.

'That's what we are trying to find.', Michael said through clenched teeth.

We found a suitable body for me from a database. Dude was supposed to Warp today. I felt sorry for him. But then, he probably had a good and healthy life. Hopefully. He was also around my age and from what it seemed like, was going to be in an accident.

Michael explained to me what was going to happen to me and what was happening.

The moment I reached Earth, my body would start counting down. After exactly 24 hours, I would be lost. My body will go berserk and I will have died. I could not exist without my genetic body.

Chief, Michael and Sarah will then Axe me. I will be put up for trial and if not found guilty, would be put up for rebirth.

It was a long process. Only the Elite were ever green lit for immediate Rebirth. Because they had important things to do.

I realized there's levels everywhere.
I was at the bottom.

Suddenly, the device above powered up. It took me apart piece by piece, molecule by molecule.

And I blanked out.


When I came about, I was in a hospital bed. There were beeping sounds nearby.

I could hear sounds of people rushing here and there.

I moved my hand up. Blood coated it.

Someone shined a light into my eyes.


'Who are you?', a female voice asked.

'Jo... John', I answered, my body responding automatically.

Soon, I was cleaned up.

The Doctors were amazed that I had healed so quickly. Except for the blood, they could not find any fault in me.

They called it a miracle of God. I was sure it was.
I was discharged, even though the Doctors wanted to keep me in observation.

They made me sign a couple of documents and I was on my way.


Outside, a car was waiting for me. It was a cab.

I saw that Sarah was driving the car.

'I suck at driving', Michael said, sheepish.

'So... where to now?', I asked.

'Where does your friend stay? The one who sent you the message?', Sarah asked.

'Close by to mine... you think he is related to this?'

'Well, it's a good enough place to start.', Sarah engaged the drive gear and we were off.

A clock was set in the middle of the car. It showed 24:00 and the moment she started driving the car, the clock started running.

23:59.

One minute less.

23:58

One more minute less

'Don't look at the clock Kid. It will not make you feel any better.'

'Then why is it there?'


'Standard feature of Issue. We cannot control or change it.'

23:57

This sucks.

'Go a bit faster then. I'm dying by the minute here.'

Sarah looked at me through the mirror. I looked away.
She signed and drove.


We pulled up to my friends home.

He was home. I could see the car in the parking outside.


I walked up to his home and was about to ring the bell when Michael stopped me.

'What are you doing?', he asked.

'Ringing the bell... people do that here.', I said, sarcasm in my voice.

'We have other methods.', Sarah said, smiling.

Taking hold of my hand, we walked through the door together. Michael followed behind.

Sarah started to look around the place.

'He's up.'

'Let's go... '

'Um... maybe in a few minutes'

'Why?'

'He's in a compromised position.'

'What?'

'He's jacking off Kid. Wait for a minute or so. He will finish now.'

I could feel my face turning red when she said it. I also felt a boner coming up.

'Dude. Keep it in your pants.', Michael warned me.

I smiled sheepishly. There went that one.

Sarah looked up again.

'Yeah. He's done. Let's go.'

We barraged into his room. His back was turned to us but he turned when he heard the sound.

'Who are you guys?', he asked, shocked.

'It's me, Vin'

'John?'

He was quaking now.

Sarah pointed a gun at him.

'Speak.'

'Who's this?', he asked.

In one swift motion, Sarah slapped him.

'I know nothing. I got this message from an unknown number. I saw it and I had to forward it.It was me or someone else. I thought you would forward it to someone...', he started speaking in a frenzy.

'Then?', I asked.

'Then... today I heard you were missing.'

'Then?'

'Then you started disappearing.'

'I started doing what?'

'You started disappearing. Everyone is starting to forget who you are. That you existed. It started off with your farthest friends. It's reached up to our school and news channels.'

'So... I don't exist anymore?'

'I'm sure you do... just that you're not in their minds.'

I looked at Sarah and Michael.

They looked back at me, hopelessness in their eyes.

And, at that moment, I understood that I was truly and royally screwed.

The Deletion- 25th Hour

The chief was sitting behind a huge table.

He looked like the CEOs you see in business magazines.
Crisp suit, well dressed, wearing expensive things, looking ferocious.

Michael seemed to be afraid of him.

'Sit Down, Michael. And you too, Kid.'

Wow. He sure had a deep voice.

'Why does everyone call me Kid down here? I have a name you know.'

'That is your code name. And you're not down anywhere. You're up somewhere'

Chief sure seemed like the last person anyone would want to screw with.

'So tell me Michael. What is this about?'

'Well... This is ID Number AEA291193540.'

Chief typed that into his computer.

He kept on hmming as he read my file.

'So, No body found. Just disappeared off the world.'

'Yes.'

'What are his chances of being a partial?'

Michael looked at me before he answered.

'Right Now... 50 percent.'

'And?'

'Increasing with each passing hour'

'How is this different from the people before?'

'We were able to track their body. It was located at the exact place they had Warped.'

Warp? What are these guys talking about?

'So, what you're saying is, unless we find his body, he is sure to turn into a partial.'

Chief looked over to the right wall of his office.

It was filled with guns and assorted people killing things.

On it, was a framed picture. Someone holding the head of a being.

I stood up. Chief and Michael followed me with their eyes.

As I studied the pic, I realized the man was Chief. A much younger Chief. The head he was holding was that of a human, disfigured beyond recognition.

'That was Jack. Pretty famous. And my first kill of a partial.I believe you guys called him Jack the Ripper.'

The Chief had walked up to me silently.

'I do not want that to happen to you, Kid. You have a bright future ahead of you.'

Michael was standing next to him, nodding his head off.

'So, I am going to help you. I am assigning Michael here to help you find your body.'

Michael looked astounded.

'Another agent, Sarah will join you as well.'

Michael instantly brightened.

'Come with me Kid.'

Gesturing at the seat in front of me, he sat down in his chair.

'This is a dangerous game Kid. We do not know who is behind this. But we do know that they have upped their game. We do not want you to fall into their trap. A life saved is greater than creating another life.'

Seeing the skepticism rising on my face, Chief continued.

'You do not have much time. Truthfully. You have exactly 24 hours to go before you turn into a partial. And believe me, I shall be the first person who drives the Axe through your heart.'

I looked at Michael.

'Michael shall of be no help to you, Kid. He will join me. That is where his duty lies.'

Michael stood up to leave.

'Stay back Michael. Kid, you can wait outside.'

I got up and was escorted out. Michael watched me leave.

'You have 24 hours Kid. You have the choices before you. Choose them wisely.' Chief shouted at me, as the doors closed.

The Agreement

My phone lit up.

It was her. Anushka. My best buddy. We had known each other for 5 or 6 years, not too long. We met at college. We shared the same class. She was insanely pretty. And so clever.
Guess someone else saw it too and well, before the first semester was over, she was in a relationship, That lasted for four years. Insanely long in my P.O.V. We were good friends from start. Then she broke up and then she dated a few guys. And somewhere along the way, we became best buddies.

She would tell me about all these guys at her office and how hot they were. I would tell her about my struggles at home, work and all that stuff. We bonded. She was my coach in many ways. Kinda like a guiding light, you can say.
Then she got a new job in Dubai. She met this guy we knew, Rohith. He was in my same school, college, my senior by an year. And their relationship lasted for two years.

She broke up with him last week. She has been taking it surprisingly well, or so I thought, until I saw her message.

'Wanna get married?'

My mind went into overdrive.

'What?', I replied back, confused.

'Will you marry me?', she asked back.

'Are you crazy?'

'Well that bastard is getting married next year.'

'So?'

'I want to get married before him.'

'So you propose to me? You sure you have the right number?'

'Yes, Dumbass. I want to marry you. Well, Fake Marry you.'

Okay, this was turning into an interesting conversation.

'What?'

'Stop saying that so much.'

'Ok. What?'

'Man just meet me tomorrow at 5. Starbucks near your home.'

'Make it 6. I got work till 5.30'

'Allright'

She went offline after that.

And now I couldn't sleep. What did she mean by all this?

I mean sure, I had developed feelings for her while in college and then briefly during her relationship with Rohith. I had talked to her about it, we were cool. My mom teased me all the time about me falling for her and well, I had stopped catching that bait. That was just to ask me to get married.

I definitely did not want to get married. I valued my privacy and space more than anything.

So, I waited for it to become the next day. I could not sleep. I worked through the day, looking like a zombie. We were going to have to talk for a long time to clear this up.

I reached at 6, on time, another first for me when meeting anyone, at the Starbucks near my home.

She had already reached. And she looked like the bomb.
Cute knee length patterned white dress. White heels. Her usual handbag. So chic.

We went in together. I noticed a lot of people staring at her and then at me. And well, I think the first question that came into their head was,'What does she see in him?' 

Or maybe that was my inferiority complex speaking. I wasn't exactly John Abraham... more like Boman Irani.

We ordered cappuccinos, a cake and a croissant. We found a cozy spot and sat down.

Now, it was time to talk.

Taking a sip of her coffee, she said,'You know about my past. And how it was with Rohith.'

I stared at her blankly.

'I feel real lost now that he walked out of my life. And mom is pressuring at home, that my age is high, I need to get married soon and what not.'

She continued,' I really don't want to bring someone else into my life. I think, you might just be the right person to marry now.'

'But, I don't want to marry. Ever. I am not ready for that sort of commitment to anyone - I mean, it sure is nice when you meet someone for a couple of hours every week or once in a while, but what do you do with someone for a lifetime?'

'I wasn't done.', she said,'I do not want to actually marry you.'

I stared blankly at her. Here were those same words, again.

'Well, have you heard of fake marriages? Marriages that couples get done to avoid their parents and society sitting on their head?'

'I have read about it happening in China or something like that'

'Well, I propose the same thing. Think about this: You and I, in the same house. Separate rooms. We have our own space, like room mates. You don't need to share a bathroom. You have your life, I have mine - like an open marriage. In front of society and our families, we are married. But, deep down, we know, we are not.'

I sat, dumbfounded, for a while. My silence was clearly getting to get as she grew fidgety every passing minute. She kept fidgeting with her cake. It now lay in ruins.

'Do you want to live a life of lies in front of everyone?', I asked, finally speaking what had been in my mind for a while.

'Yes. Anything to get my parents to back off. I am 27 now dude. They are anxious.'

'I am 27 too. I know what you're talking about.'

'Not as much as me. And also, this is great for you too. Your mom is not going to pressure you into marrying if you already are.'

'What kind of logic is that', I asked, laughing.

'Think about it. I have. A lot.', she said.

I did not say anything back, eating my croissant in silence. 

She leaned over and wiped off a few crumbs that were stuck in my beard.

We talked for a while after that, but nothing about this.
While I was walking her back to her car, she said to me, 'Consider what I have said, will you?'

I just nodded.

I couldn't sleep that night either.

What was she proposing? A life of lies, acting in front of family, friends, relatives, colleagues and who else? What about children? What about my life? What about hers?

I was so confused. I looked at the clock. It was 2.

I called her.

'You up?'

'Yeah. What?'

'I wanna meet. Come down.'

I went over to her place and we drove to the beach nearby.

'Do you have any idea what you proposed to me today?'

'I do.'

'You do? Really?'

'Yes.'

'Why this. Why?'

'I...', she paused,'I cannot forget him da. I cannot. I think about him all the time. I am miserable. He is a nice guy too. But we are not- were not compatible. It was hell with him.'

'How do you make this lie believable? People are gonna start expecting kids and it's gonna be rough.'

'Well, we can always have kids without having sex, if that is what you are asking about.'

'Well...'

'Dude. This is a fake marriage. We get married so that everyone get's off our backs. We sign pre-nups so that in case any of us wants a divorce, neither of us has to pay the other anything. We want kids? We have IVF kids using a surrogate. We hire nannies to look after them. We have separate rooms and once the kids come, we can just make two rooms into one and share the room so that it looks like we stay together. You will have to adjust on the couch tho. I'm not letting you get into the bed with me. I can't imagine having to watch your morning wood poking through the sheets. We both work so that we can make a living. You don't have to get me anniversary presents, just birthday presents. Just think of all the freedom you get. Not a real wife, so not gonna poke my head into your business. And you, will also do the same for me.'

I just stared at her. She was an evil genius and she knew it.

And the truth was, I could see some sense in her plan.

I did not tell her that, just that I wanted a few more days to think it through.

I proposed to her in a few days. Things happened so quickly after that, it was all a blur.

Our parents had our stars checked out to see if they matched and everyone was relieved when it did.
Anu was really tensed that this was gonna throw a wrench in her plans.

Our friends, all of them, mutual and close were shocked when we announced our marriage. No one saw this coming.

And suddenly, I was looking at my wedding invitation.

"Anushka weds Sharan"

Wow. That was quick.

And in a month, I was married to my best buddy. It was huge. Our friends came. Our close friends came. Families. Relatives. Our Exes came. Imagine the look of jealousy on my Exes face when she saw Anu. Well, I did not have to imagine, because well, 1. Anu was glowing that day. She was so beautiful. 2. My last Ex did not take a photo with us. Her face was literally green with envy and purple with hate. So, I guess not exactly a good combination.

We met my family lawyer the week after we married. We signed Pre Nups. Even though they are supposed to be signed before the wedding. We thought, well, why not wait until the wedding is over to sign it.

And it was registered and wills were written.


A couple of days after that, we went on our honeymoon. I had always wanted to tour Europe and U.S.A, so that is where we went.
It was a beautiful trip. I acted as her wing-man and she as my wing-woman. We went everywhere as a couple, did a ton of couple activities. We specifically asked for two single beds in the rooms we went to, not that it mattered. Most of the places had been booked by a company that specialized in honeymoon packages and had been a gift from my sisters. They were, naturally, overjoyed that their only brother had finally caved in and accepted marriage after so long of fighting against it.

Things were usually smooth. We had our disagreements. Some days, she had this odd look on her face. I could never read it.

One day, we were hanging out at our hotel pool and she was in this beautiful one piece.
I stared at her and for some reason, my mind said, 'Damn Son. You are one lucky bastard. Look how fine your wife is.'

I caught myself thinking this and I was shocked.

We had agreed not to develop feelings for each other, even though we had agreed that we would tell each other if we did.

I took her aside and talked to her.

'Dude. I think we have a problem'

'What? Let me enjoy my swim.'

'Dude. I think I am developing feelings for you.'

'That's just the bikini working its magic on you. All the alcohol does not help either.', she said.

'Maybe.', I said. I did not want to look like a wimp in front of her.

'Look. You just need to get laid. Let's try hitting the bar tonight, try to find someone for some fun.'

And she went back to swimming.

We went to the bar as promised. Found a beautiful woman. Played the cards right and well, went back to my room with her. This was a separate room we had taken, just for romps like this.

I played all the cards right and while I was deep in her, I came to the realization that this is what my life is going to be like for a long time. I was going to be banging random women as my libido said so.I also realized that she had not had sex for a while either.

I came soon after that. She looked disappointed as she left.
I raced back to our room.

I barged in to find Anu in a robe, eating cake, drinking wine, watching TV and sobbing.

She jumped at my barging in.

'Dude! What the fuck?'

'Sorry. I just had to.'

'Over so soon?'

'It's been over an hour dude'

'Oh yeah. Guess you don't last very long'

'Well, beats eating cake and sobbing at the TV.'

'27 Dresses does that to you, Dumbass.'

'Oh.'

'So? How was it?'

'It was fine. Mind if I join you?'

'Just come here man. All this formality.'

I jumped onto our bed, grabbed the glass of wine she offered me and settled down.

And she snuggled close to me, I realized something.

Maybe, marriage wasn't so hard after all.

I looked down at her. Her hair smelled wonderful.
She was sobbing again. I patted her arm, trying to soothe her. She snuggled closer to me.

It felt amazing.

And then I decided. Tonight was going to be my last fling. My next goal was to make her fall in love with me. And that, was something I am going to do, no matter what happens. Damn the agreement we made. I couldn't care less about it now.

The Deletion - Prologue

I opened the WhatsApp message.

It was a GIF from a close friend. And it had some hairy dude screaming about deletion on it.

I was bemused. Sort of.

He had a crazy streak.

I asked him if he was crazy.

His only reply was,'I am Sorry.'

He went offline after that and did not reply to me at all.

I put the phone to charge, brushed my teeth, and got down to sleep.

Tomorrow was an important day, after-all.


I woke up to find myself surrounded by nothing.

I was not wearing any clothes, nor could I make out the things around me.

I was in a white room?

Yes. I was in a white room. There was some neatly folded clothes next to me.

I wore them.

A voice spoke from what seemed like the back of the room.


'Oh Good. You're Awake. Make sure to wear the clothes...' he trailed off.

'And you're wearing them.Pretty advanced, for a first timer. Walk with me', he said.


I walked up to him.

He was a tall fellow. His black hair slicked back, stubble on his cheeks. He was smoking a cigar it seemed, his darkened lips sucking on it. He had deep set eyes that were surrounded by dark circles. He sure seemed to be losing sleep a lot. And he seemed to love black clothes, wearing a black jacket, jeans, shoes, a white tshirt and a scarf of some sort around his neck.


As I opened my mouth to speak, he said,'If you have questions, wait till we are inside. This place has ears all around.'

None of that made sense to me. All I could see was a white corridor, that was far too wide for some reason.

He opened what seemed to be a door and let me in. He then walked in behind me and closed the door.


'Allright Kid. Sit down. And then tell me, what all you want to ask.'

I sat down on the seat. It was comfortable.


'Where am I? Who are you? What am I doing here? Why am I here?', I asked.

'Hmm. Only four. Off to a good start Kid.'

He was making no sense to me.

'So, coming to your questions. You are in my office. Which is located at Level 1, Block-C, Heaven Street. I am Michael. I am your Guardian Angel. Sorta. Regarding to what you are doing here, that is what we are going to find out now. And Why you are here is what is puzzling everyone.'

'You are not making any sense to me.'


'Well, the thing is, you're not supposed to be dead now.'


'I'm Dead?', I ask, incredulous.

'Well...', he paused.

'Answer me!', I shouted.

'Shut up. I am your Guardian Angel. Not the other way around.' Michael said.

'Sorry.' I said, feeling stupid.

'It's not your fault. I would react the same if I just found out I was dead.'

I smiled. He continued,' See, the thing is, according to your files, you're supposed to live on for longer. You are not supposed to be dead now. It's just confusing us that you have just vanished off Earth too.'

'What?'

'Yes. Your body has disappeared too. This never happens unless you are a high level operative of ours or you have been given special status.'

'Then what happened to me?'

'That is what we have to find out. Tell me what you did, without missing anything.'

I explained to him everything, even the last deletion message I received.
He was pacing around the room this entire time.

When he heard about the deletion message, he paused.

He went to his computer and showed me a GIF. The same GIF I received yesterday.

'Is this the same one you received?' he asked.


'Yes.'

He smiled.

'Man. I'm saved.'

Then his smiled stopped.


'We don't know where your body is'
He seemed to be shocked.

He took up his phone.


'Tom. Put me to John from Block- B. John Horn'

I sat there, looking dumb.

'John. We have another deletion case on our  hands. No. It's not as simple as we had hoped. The body is missing. If it is damaged, you know what happens. We cannot have another Partial around here.'

'What's a partial?'I asked

He gestured with his hand for me to keep quiet.

He just listened for a while. And then he put down the receiver.

'Come along Kid. We're going to see the Chief.'


We walked out his office and I could start seeing things. I could see silhouettes of desks and start hearing sounds of phone ringing and people typing.

We took the elevator to the Top Level of the Building.

It connected out into a lobby where a lot of lifts were there. Each where marked with a number and an alphabet.

I soon understood that each of them was from each block and each block had at the least three elevators.

It was madness.


We went and waited out in the front office. There was an attractive lady there. I could make out from her silhouette.

She was slowly clearing up for me and if I squinted hard enough, she became visible for a few seconds at a time.


She received a ring on her phone and she waved us in.


When I stood up, he looked at me.

'Where are you going?'

'She waved us in!', I said, indignantly.

'You can see her?' he asked, incredulous.

'Kinda.'

He just looked down at his hands. I could hear him muttering "This is Bad" under his breath.

'Let's go', he said, getting up.

The White Giantess and The Three Dwarf Brothers

Once upon a time, in a land far, far, away, there lived a Giantess in a dense forest. 

Everyone who knew her called her the White Giantess.
It was due to her fondness for white clothes.It also did not hurt that she was fair skinned.
She lived in a huge house that she had built. Not much was known about her, except that everyone feared her.


On the outskirts of this very forest, in a small and tiny town, there lived three dwarf brothers. Named S,R and M by the many villagers after their parents had abandoned them in a cottage, they lived among them as their children. S was the oldest of the three and M the youngest. They did odd jobs for surviving and for their day to day expenses.


One day while out in the forest to gather some wood, young M lost his way. S, calling out for M, found himself going deeper and deeper into the forest.

He finally reached a part of the forest he had never seen before. A beautiful clearing, with trees and shrubs, wild animals and birds and a river.

S, tired beyond measure, took a deep drink from the river to find it to be tasty. He drank more and then found a cozy spot under a tree.
He did not intend to fall asleep, but fall asleep he did.
His snores attracted the attention of the White Giantess, who was nearby.


She came to see who was making such a ruckus, only to find a small man sleeping under the shade of her bonsai tree.

Pitying the small creature, she took him in her tender arms, carrying him over to her very large home.
And all this while, he did not stop snoring. He was so tired that he did not even notice being carried.


He soon woke up, pleasantly surprised to be surrounded by things that were too large.
He saw an eye peer at him from above.

Believing the stories he had heard from the villagers, he tried to run away from her.

She stopped him with a large hand and brought him to eye level.

'Why are you afraid of me?' she asked, her eyes moist.

'You... You're the White Giantess. Everyone told us to be afraid of you', S said, his fear not showing through his bravado.

She laughed, the sound echoing through the house. It was deafening for him, not being used to such large sounds.
Sensing his discomfort, she stopped laughing.
And soon, they were pals. They did not notice the time passing from noon to late noon and then to dusk. And finally they realized that time had gone when the pearly rays of the moon touched his arms.


She dropped him off at the edge of the forest, lest he lose his way again. But this time, she made him promise to come back to her home.


And it was just as he reached the edge of the town that he remembered his brother M.


As he walked towards town, he saw a large crowd near his home. Fearing the worst, he ran towards it, only stopping when he saw angry villagers scowl at him.
Only then did it dawn on him that it was he who had made such a fuss now.

Sheepish, he walked into his home, thanking all the villagers for their love.
His brothers hugged him and cried for a while and then listened in rapt attention as he told them everything about the giantess.
He could see that they were skeptical, but he did not talk about the topic anymore.

And that was that.

But S made it a point to visit her every week under the pretense of collecting wood.

And soon, they were best friends. They shared everything, from her loneliness as being the Sole Giant in the area, to his fear of him and his brothers not finding partners for eternity.

And soon, even without them knowing, they fell in love.

He talked to his brothers about it and they supported him.
But the villagers were afraid for his life and did not want him to take the risk.

They even found a beautiful lady for him to marry from the neighboring village.

But his heart was made up and he fought for her.
She slowly won the trust of the villagers and they accepted her.
And he, at long last, married his true love.

His brothers too married beautiful, capable young women and they all lived happily ever after with their children and grandchildren.

The Reluctant Hero - Chapter 2

He saw the nearly floored pavement raising up to greet him, his speed incontrollable. 

He closed his eyes to let the floor touch him, punch through him. And with a resounding bang, he crushed into the pavement. 

The bricks around his body cracked, dust flying in the air. 

Men and women alike ran away from his body. A few brave souls ran towards him, to help him. 

They ran closer to him, a couple of them calling out for help,a few on their phones and even lesser people calling the police. 

As the dust cleared, they could him out, lying on the floor. 

They ran closer to him,to find ripped clothes and no blood. 

He was stirring, his incredibly muscled body not showing even a sign of impact. 

An ambulance screeched to a halt near his body, shooing away the onlookers. 

They brought stretchers and placed him on it,ever so gently. 

The lack of blood seemed to disturb them, but they cleverly hid it. 

They deduced that he might have internal bleeding and decided that he must be transferred to a hospital. 

And screeching and wailing, they rode towards the nearest hospital in hopes of saving a mans life.  

The Reluctant Hero - Chapter 1

Tossing and turning in his bed, even with the buzzing alarm clock near him. The watch on his wrist blinked red, unable to attract his attention. 

He turned on his bed once more, ignoring what was the hundredth help call he heard. 

Amplified hearing was a pain in the ass sometimes. 

He sat up, taking a look at the clock in the bedside table. It showed half past two. The bright light shining through the window made him realize it was afternoon. 

He got up, quickly going through his morning routine of push-ups, pull-ups and squats. 

He drank some mouthwash, hoping that it would clear up his morning breath. 

Walking out from his home to the balcony, he stared out into the beautiful sun, so bright and powerful. His rays seemed to fill him with warmth, something that he needed desperately. The floors below, seemed to taunt him. 

A lot of memories flashed through him... Memories he never knew could have stayed on for so long. 

It ended... Pausing at the picture of a young woman... A vibrant young woman, smiling, laughing at something. 

And suddenly, he was pushed away from that memory by something powerful. A force too strong, that even he couldn't resist it. 

Enraged by sorrow and feelings unknown, he jumped from the balcony. 

The Reluctant Hero

A mind. A man. Terrible Secrets. A terrible Past.

Manuel is wrecked by guilt. His past actions haunt him. His memories torment him. His soul is broken, his mind crushed. 

Will he find the strength in him to do what is required? Or will his past get the better of him, leaving him nothing much more than an senseless animal? 

Chapter List

• Chapter 1 
• Chapter 2

Amira- The Beginning

A pair of eyes. A black dot. An ancient battle. A ripple of power in an unforgiving time.

A power is arising, hidden, unforgiving of the past and seething with hatred. Their motive is not known to any, their name hidden from our minds. Our scrolls fear their presence and our ancestors hid in their shadows.
Amira, a young woman is thrown into this battle, unable to stand on her two feet in the flow of power. Her trust is shattered, her mind confused. Her will is broken, her soul wandering in time.
Will Amira find in her the strength required to strive on, flourish and spread her wings of fire? Or will she too, goaded by her friends, follow the steps of many a cowardly men and women, hiding among mortal beings?

Enjoy reading!!

Link : Amira:The Story

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