Operation Chaos: A Gripping Action Thriller (9 page)

''Breaching now. Go.''

The Commandos swiftly entered the corridors of the Quwwat mosque. Left and right corners. Ten seconds later, Cpl Ramesh spoke over the mouthpiece from the left
Zanana
. ''You should see this sir. We were wrong. DEAD WRONG!!''

Chapter 24

The red blinking dot on the console in front of him had ceased blinking; which indicated he had lost his camera feed. Realising that the gun control chip had blown away, Muhammad decided to report to his boss. He took a puff from the cigarette, ran his finger over the scar on his left cheek and switched on his satellite phone.

Miles away, his master was glancing at his watch. A second glance at the watch and a heavy frown.

''Boy, your gross dereliction of duty is endangering the entire mission.'' The voice was bare, it carried vehemence.

''Sir?'' Muhammad did not expect his master to open the conversation so sternly.

''I should have had received your call exactly three minutes ago.'' Silence.

''I am sorry, Sir. They have located it. They are moving and they are fast. I better know each and every step of the game we are playing or else they will turn all the tables upside down.''

The voice on the other end switched to calm. ''Muhammad, you worry too much. They don't have the slightest idea of what is going on. We already agreed on our conditions. Your destruction would be delivered to you. Just hang on a little. Let's play with them for a while. I expect everything is going as planned.''

''Yes, Sir. So far so good''. Muhammad had not completely understood his master till now, but there was one thing he was absolutely sure of: A reason existed behind every move his master played. 

''Return to your base now. As soon as they figure out the next location, inform me and follow them. I want you to keep a close watch on them. Be their shadow, but don't let them sense your presence. You have been completely trained for this.''

''Allah Hafis, Janab.
'' Muhammad ended the call, shifted the gear and pressed hard on the accelerator, making his way into the heart of the city once again.

The mastermind knew that the moment was about to arrive.
These are the crossroads from where I couldn't move further. Tonight I will see where this path leads to. They will find that path for me.
 

Chapter 25

''There was never any shooter! It's just a gun mounted on this automated arrangement,'' Cpl Rakesh radioed in.

''What? You sure there wasn't anyone operating it?'' David was perplexed. Although he was not new to the world of automated self targeting weapons, his surprise was obvious. He hadn't imagined this in his wildest dreams.

''Damn sure, Sir. We double-checked the area. No sign of anyone operating it. Looking at this mechanism, I think the operator was controlling it using a wireless connection, but can't say anything for sure. Send Capt. Ashish up here. He handles the tech.''

''Did you disable the gun?'' David questioned.

''Some kind of circuit automatically blew off and the gun now displays
offline
on its display panel. Looks busted,'' Rakesh answered. 

10 minutes later when Ashish had checked the gun mechanism, he had a chat with Commander David.

''We don't have anything. The entire data burnt up. So now we don't have any information about who was operating this gun. Let me be clear on one point, Sir- whoever these people are, they are well equipped. I mean, nothing this big was ever used during any of the earlier terrorist attacks.''

''How was the stored data destroyed?'' asked David.

''The data chip must have been rigged to blow if someone came within a certain distance of the gun. Easily achieved using proximity sensors. The gun was attached to a wireless controller with a range, I would say, about a couple of kilometres. Anyone within that range could be our man, who must have vanished by now- so no point in sending a search team. The gun has a camera mounted on its upper end near the scope facilitating the operator to use the gun almost like a first person. Professionally done. No clues left.''

David was trying to gather what Capt. Ashish had just said when Avinash jumped into the conversation. ''I bet I saw one of these models earlier tonight at those bunkers in Thar desert. Do you think it's the work of the same terrorist organisation?''

David's brain started putting things together, one piece at a time.

''Okay. Here's what we are going to do. Now that we can't trace who operated this gun, there is no point in following that lead. Although, I will ask the Headquarters to send a team to the Rajasthan border to confirm if what Avinash said checks out. If it is the work of the same terrorist organisation, at least we have an idea who we are up against. Until then, the situation pretty much remains the same. They have that goddamn missile and we still need to work on why the hell did that lunatic give us the coordinates to this place. Raghav- check with the NSG team and call an ambulance.''

President Ajaysingh Chauhan was filled in on the happenings at the Qutub Complex. He had been anxious as Shonali had ended their previous conversation rather abruptly.

''David, we NEED to end this,'' Ajaysingh said, with a profound concern. ''I do not want any more of our soldiers to die. Let's get done with whatever this guy wants us to find for him.''

''We are working on it, Sir. But I have no idea why we were asked to come here,'' David replied.

''Maybe we will have to hear the tape again. Carefully.'' Shonali suggested.

David took out the tape and played it. '
... The first clue is written in metal at
28° 31′ 27.68″ N, 77° 11′ 6.89″ E
. Take the paper beside this cassette player along. Would be quite helpful if you would know how to read the numbers on the pape
r...'

''This place is full of inscriptions, ancient symbols and a lot of things made out of metal. How are we ever going to find out? We will have to turn the place upside down,'' David said, with a rising frustration.

''Maybe not!'' Shonali hadn't missed hearing what everyone else had. ''I think he meant a very specific inscription when he said-
written in the metal
. That inscription which was written on iron almost two thousand years ago and still remains intact- surviving almost two centuries without any sign of rust on it.''

Chapter 26

Often regarded as
a testament to the skill of ancient Indian blacksmiths, the 23 ft iron pillar at the Qutub Complex withstanding corrosion for about 1600 years was always in the limelight of archaeologists and corrosion technologists. Shonali briefly explained about the monument to David as they made their way towards the centre yard of the Quwwat-Ul-Islam mosque where
the pillar was located.

''Believed to be erected by Chandragupta Vikramaditya of the Gupta dynasty, the pillar had initially been located at Vishnupadagiri or modern day Udayagiri in Madhya Pradesh where it supposedly served as a sundial.
Vishnupadagiri is located on the Tropic of Cancer and, therefore, was a centre of astronomical studies during the Gupta period. Although the method used to prevent rusting or corrosion is now known, the pillar itself is the artefact which displays the knowledge and research of Indian metallurgists during the ancient times
,'' remarked Shonali.

The contrast of the night sky and the white moon made the iron pillar shine to its fullest glory. The commandos and Shonali circled around the pillar looking at its metal inscription while David resumed inspecting the random combination of numbers he had copied down from the paper a few moments ago. It read out to be:

1-5-1, 1-7-5, 1-10-3, 3-7-4, 3-9-4, 3-10-6, 3-10-7, 3-10-8, 4-1-4, 4-2-6, 4-2-7, 4-3-2, 4-7-5, 4-7-6,     

5-1-1, 5-2-4, 5-6-6, 6-7-1, 6-10-4, 7-6-1, 7-6-2, 7-7-1, 7-7-2, 7-7-3, 7-8-1, 7-8-2, 7-8-3, 7-8-4, 7-8-5,  

9-6-1, 9-6-2, 9-6-6, 10-12-7, 10-13-1, 10-13-2, 11-3-2, 11-3-4, 11-6-1, 11-7-2, 11-7-3, 11-8-1,

11-9-4, 11-9-5, 12-2-3, 12-5-7, 12-8-1, 12-13-2, 12-14-6, 13-1-1, 14-4-3, 14-4-4, 14-4-5, 14-10-3,

15-8-2, 15-12-1, 16-5-6, 18-3-1, 18-3-2, 18-3-3, 18-3-7, 18-5-1, 18-9-1, 18-9-3, 18-12-2, 18-12-3,

18-13-1, 18-13-2, 18-13-3, 18-13-4.

The completely meaningless list of numbers now occupied David's thoughts. He was never good with numbers, but he knew what he had to do. He had the exact man for the job: one of the Intelligence Bureau's best crypto-analysts.

''We located the inscription, but I seriously don't know how we are supposed to read it,'' reported Raghav, bringing David back to the present. David went near the pillar and saw an inscription on the centre of the pillar which was almost illegible. ''Why would he send us here to read something which we don't understand? It's written in some ancient script.''

''That is a Sanskrit inscription in Brahmi script,'' Shonali said, pointing a finger towards the left side wall. ''Maybe that stone tablet on the adjacent wall will help you understand it. It is a translation of the script for tourists.''

David thought about the situation for a moment.

''I think we are going to need Sameer’s help. Get him on the line for me.''

David inspected the stone tablets on the wall where the original Sanskrit text and the translation of the text in English were written. The text described the valour and the qualities of a king referred to simply as Chandra.

''Sir, we have Mr. Sameer on the line.''

David took the call.

''Hey, Sameer. How's the night going for you?''

''Pretty good. How come you are calling me at this hour? Got some code to crack, I suppose.''

''Sort of. I need your help right now. Would you please come over?''

''Sure. Where are you?''

''The Qutub Minar complex.''

''What are you doing at... Never mind. I am coming. Give me half an hour.''

''Actually, we are running out of time. Can we do it over the phone. I mean you can talk while you are driving, right?''

''Well, technically that would be against the law. But go on. Let's see what we have got here.'' Sandwiching the cell phone between his shoulder and his ear, Sameer put on his shoes, took his apartment and car keys, his laptop and set out for the Qutub complex.

''Let me explain to you the situation in brief. Earlier this evening, we got a message which led us here to an inscription and we were given random combinations of numbers on a blank paper which I don't know how to use. So it all sums up to this- I have a sheet full of numbers and an ancient Sanskrit inscription here.''

Sameer got into his car and started the engine. ''Go on. Read out the number list.''

''Sure. The list goes like this
1-5-1, 1-7-5, 1-10-3, 3-7-4, 3-9-4, 3-10-6, 3-10-7, 3-10-8, 4-1-4, 4-2-6, 4-2-7, 4-3-2, 4-7-5, 4-7-6, 5-1-1, 5-2-4, 5-6-6, 6-7-1, 6-10-4
....''

''You said you have some kind of inscription, right?  I think I know what those numbers mean,'' replied Sameer, pressing down the accelerator of his automobile instantly.

Chapter 27

The agents at the Intelligence Bureau kept working hard to find any relevant information, mails, phone records that could give them a clue about the events that took place earlier that night. Chief Prakash Mehta's immediate junior- Roshan now handled all the affairs. Even after pairing up with the police and a long session of questioning the servants, drivers, officials and cooks, he wasn't able to extract even a single piece of useful information. All the video records of the CCTV cameras in the Rashrapati Bhawan had been erased. It was a perfect crime.

''Sir, I think we might have something here,'' an officer working on the desktop waved at Roshan to come over. ''I was studying the circuitry of that cylindrical jammer which the team found near the tape. Although most of its components are untraceable, I traced one of the circuit boards to a standard electrical company. The circuit has a docket number printed on it. If we get access to the shipping company's records, it wouldn't be hard to find out where it was shipped to.''

Minutes later, Roshan was holding a paper in his hand with the shipping address- 302, Hotel Sundial, 11/23-A Paharganj, New Delhi. He explained his next move to his subordinates.

''Listen up. Most of the police force in the city is busy at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, on check posts and watching public places. Nevertheless, find me at least 4 police officers in the vicinity of the Paharganj area to check out this address. I also need a team of our intelligence agents to follow up this lead along with me. So Alok, Nishant and Lalit- meet me downstairs. And thoroughly check the vehicles you are driving for explosives. I don't want to lose any more of my team.''

In no time, Roshan was at Hotel Sundial, 11/23-A. Paharganj, the locality where the hotel was located, seemed completely lit up by the glow of the various hoardings and neon lights. The smell of bread
pakoda
s and chilli potatoes floated in the air, like the melodies of a flute in a classical concert. Nesting between the crisscrossed grid of small alleys, there seemed over a hundred hotels and guest-houses around that place. Hotel Sundial was also very much like a guest house in a small alley on the left side of the DB Gupta Road. A police constable walked to Roshan and greeted him with a  salute. ''I think our man is inside the building. Two of my colleagues have positioned themselves at the back exit. We have been keeping an eye on all the exits for the last fifteen minutes and no one has left since. The hotel manager in the lobby told that only one man had reserved the room 302. This is an area near the New Delhi railway station and there are a lot of cheap motels around here. The managers are not much concerned about checking the ID proofs. The suspect checked in under the name Kartik yesterday night. The manager described him as a 6'2'' hunk, carried with him just one big backpack and stated the purpose of visit as education.''