Neel Dervin and the Dark Angel (38 page)

Another step, and he felt some of the strength return to his legs. His nails were digging
painfully into his palms. But he wasn‟t stumbling anymore. He bent forward, bracing his legs
against the ground, just as he had done so many times in the open field at Swan Labs.

And suddenly, he was running at berserk speed. He passed the reporter, and ran straight
towards the car. Using every ounce of strength he had. Running as if the demons in his head
had finally emerged into the real world to give chase and drag him down forever. The car
grew bigger and louder as he neared it, and in the instant before the impact, he saw his own
reflection in the shiny steel bumper.

The next second, they collided.

The impact was incredible. Cold steel met hardened
flesh, and the car‟s hood was
crushed like paper. Neel‟s overwhelming momentum hit the car like a giant hammer. The car
flew back, lifted literally off the ground, and crashed again onto the road, knocking its
occupants unconscious. An air bag exploded inside the car, and then silence.

The reporters had reached the road, along with the spectators. The screaming was too
mixed to be understood. The photographers were clicking madly, surrounding the black clad
figure.

And Neel Dervin stood in the middle of the road, breathing heavily, blinking away the
tears streaming down his eyes. In the heart of the crowd, yet separate from them. The feeling
building up inside him so deep, so intense that he felt faint. Slowly, he raised his arms in
triumph, and the crowd went insane.

* * *

Inside Swan Labs, a hushed silence permeated the lobby. The only sound coming was
from the television. They saw Neel disable the robbers in the bank, and come outside. Then
they saw him jump onto the middle of the highway.

All eyes were concentrated on the figure on the road. Arjun was gripping the back of a
chair so hard his knuckles were whitened. Divya had a hand over her mouth and the doctor
stood motionless, his heart hammering.

The black clad figure was looking extremely small and vulnerable. The car roared
towards him at full speed.

But then the figure moved. He took a step, then another. Then suddenly his speed
increased, and in the next second he had crashed into the vehicle in a blur of motion. It was
over in less than a second.

The camera shook at the moment of the impact, and the people in the room shuddered as
though they too had felt the icy hard metal smash into their bodies.

 

An earth shattering explosion, the scream of the crowds. And then it was all over.

The silence was more deafening than the explosion, the people on the street and the
people in the room not quite being able to believe what had happened. But then the spell was
broken, and the crowd was swarming over the road, shouting, and Neel had raised his arms in
victory. They closed in around him. But one more giant leap, higher than any he had taken
before, an incredible movement of pure joy, and he was gone.

Doctor Fahim stood staring at the TV.Tears were flowing down Divya‟s face. She lifted
her head and met Arjun‟s gaze, who grinned fiercely, and strode over to hug her.

Over his back she saw the doctor. His face was buried in his hands, and for a moment
she thought he was crying too. He looked up, and she saw a mixture of emotions on his face.
Wonderment and disbelief, and something less easily identifiable. The next moment he stood
up, looking happier and prouder than he had ever done before. He met Divya‟s gaze and
laughed; mouthing a word she had no trouble understanding.

“
Extraordinary
.”
* * *

At Phlicer lab, Malik Saket had been rushed to a TV monitor by one of the night guards,
and now stood watching the news with a stony gaze. He had hoped the assassin had been
killed, or at least badly wounded since his visit to Phlicer lab, and his disappearance for more
than a month had almost made him believe it. But he had been wrong. Malik wondered if
Mehta was watching this too.

The impact occurred, and the assassin stood on the road, arms uplifted.

 

Out in the open at last.

 

Malik‟s phone rang. He switched it on andheard Mehta‟s voice, brief and to the point.

 

“Start evacuations ASAP.”

 

CHAPTER 16: K

Neel sauntered out of his room the next day and made his way down to breakfast. He
had had a deep and restful sleep the previous night and felt refreshed for the first time in
weeks. His mother noticed the change in him immediately.

“What is going on with you?” she asked. The transformation in his manner had been
evident ever since he had returned last night in a curiously happy daze from Aryan‟s house
with a confused,“He didn‟t have my copy. I forgot, I‟d already submitted it.”

“What?”
Neelasked innocently, smiling after what seemed like years to his mother. “I
had a good sleep last night, and I feel great.” He stared at her for a moment, then rose and
walked up to her slowly. As she stared in amazement, he wrapped his arms around her and
gave her a hug. “I‟m really sorry about the way I‟ve been acting these last few days.” he said
quietly. “It won‟t happen again.”

His mother stared down at him, feeling touched and intensely relieved. She cupped his
face in her hands and looked at him closely. “So you‟re feeling better now?” she asked. “You
don‟t feel stressed or anything?”

“No way,that problem is definitely over.” Neel said confidently, grinning.

“You don‟t know how glad I am to hear that
, sweetheart.” she said fervently, giving him
a tight hug and a kiss. “That medicine Doctor Fahim gave you must be working. He told me
your depressionwas only temporary. Now relax and eat your meal.”

Neel sat down and glanced around to see if the newspaper had arrived yet. He saw it
lying on a chair and reached out for it.

He had returned home last night around nine to find his mother on the phone with a
reporter friend and surrounded by an excited group of neighborsincluding Priyanka‟s mother
and other women who lived nearby who had come to talk about the news. The TV was still
tuned to the news channel, which showed in a never-ending loop the images of the
miraculous foiling of the bank robbery.

“
To say that his sudden appearance was a shock would be an understatement.” the
reporter said, and the scene of Neel throwing the bank robbers against the bank wall played
again, caught on a security tape. “He neutralized a situation which would certainly have
ended in a lot of innocent people getting hurt in a matter of minutes. But the news of this
rescue absolutely pales in comparison to the astounding way in which the rescue was carried
out.” The stupidity of the reporter who had been lying in front of the car without trying to
move away had earned him the most sought after recording in the country. The video showed
Neel leaping over the bank wall, and then slamming into the car head on.

“Who is this masked enigma?” the reporter asked in a tense voice. “His height and build
suggests a youngster. But how is it possible for him to do these incredible things? To break
free of the bounds of the earth and soar to such amazing heights? To move faster than the eye
can follow? To have such extraordinary strength? This mysterious person has not only
stopped a robbery, he has given the world quite possibly the biggest story of the year.”

And on and on along similar lines on every news channel. The Alpha soldier had become
an overnight celebrity.

Now Neel opened the newspaper to the front page, and saw his photo from last night,
arms raised in victory, surrounded by a screaming crowd, and underneath it, in bold captions
“THE MYSTERY PHENOMENON!”

There followed a full account of what had occurred at the bank last night, with
interviews from several witnesses, including the hostages and the police on the following
pages.

“I won‟t forget that
scene for as long as I live.” said one of the bank employees who had
been trapped inside the building. “He was like a shadow. We could barely see him move. He
threw those robbers into the wall like they were made of cardboard. It‟s still got a mark where
they hit it. He saved us all. The police was useless.”

The same thought seemed to have occurred to the police. The chief of police had this to
say, “I don‟t know who that boy was, or man, or whoever he was, but his method was entirely
wrong. He risked the lives of the civilians. Any one of thosebullets could‟ve hit the hostages
while he was jumping around. If he continues this type of behavior it will get him in trouble
someday. If he‟s got some kind of specialpowers, he should join the police.”

Neel smirked a
s he read the last line. “
Maybe he already has.”
He began to get ready for
school with a light heart. It amazed him how changed the world seemed since last night. The
colors appeared brighter, the sounds of the birds were no longer grating, but seemed lively
and cheerful, and even the air seemed cleaner. For the first time in a long time, he hummed a
low tune as he put on his school uniform.

Of course, even at school, there was only one topic of conversation. Everyone had seen
the news about the robbery, and it was the only thing they could talk about. There were many
speculations about the masked figure, from students who stated positively that he was an
alien, to teachers who thought it might all have been a huge and elaborate publicity stunt for
some new superhero movie.

“Pretty weird deal about the bank robbery thing, huh?” Neel said to Aryan as the class
waited for first period to begin.

 

Aryan nodded and started rummaging around in his bag without saying anything.

 

“I‟m sorry, man.” Neel blurted out suddenly and awkwardly. “I acted like an idiot at
Priyanka‟s party. I shouldn‟t have said all those things.”

“Dude, we‟re
best friends.” Aryan said, finally straightening up to look at him with a
slight frown. “Something is seriouslybothering you, and you won‟t even tell me what it is.
When did you start keeping things from me?”

“It‟s over now.” Neel said quietly. “Yeah, I was dealing with some stuff, but it wasn‟t
anything you could‟ve helped me with, trust me. But it‟s really over now, and you know
something? I‟m feeling better today than I have for months.”

“You‟re sure?” Aryan demanded. “You‟re completely all right now? Because I will rat
you out to your mom if I have to.”

 

“Absolutely fine. I promise.”

They stared at each other a second. Then Aryan mutely extended his hand. They shook,
and a grin appeared on both their faces. Neel sat down next to Aryan as Mrs. Khurana entered
the class.

* * *

 

Arjun met him in the car that day. There was a smile on his face as he opened the door
for him. Neel grinned back happily.

 

“Someone wants to talk to you.” he said before Neel could say anything, extending his
mobile as he climbed in beside him. Neeltook the mobile. “Hello?”

 

“Great job, kid!” And “Congratulations!” Burst through the phone at the same time, and
Neel laughed as he recognized Negi and Premi. “Thanks, guys.”

 

“I knew you could do it.” Negi said jubilantly. “Didn‟t I tell you, you could do it?”

 

“It was amazing, Neel.” Premi said. “The failed bank robbery is all anyone can talk about
today. I couldn‟t believe it when I saw the news.”

 

“I never could‟ve done it without the help all you guys at the lab gave me.” Neel said
fervently. He looked up at Arjun. “So thanks a lot.”

 

“I‟m sure this incident will make General Bakshi rethink his decision to pull you off the
project.” Premi said.

 

“Yeah, you wait, kid. They‟ll want you rightback on the job after this.” Negi said
confidently.

 

Neel nodded. “I really hope so, too. I guess I‟ll find out soon enough.” They
congratulated him once again before wishing him luck and hanging up.

Arjun smiled and extended his hand as Neel handed him back the phone
. “You‟ve done
us all proud, Neel. I wish there was a better way to celebrate your victory, but would you
settle for an ice cream before we go to Swan labs?” Neel grinned as heshook Arjun‟s hand.
“Sounds great.”

When they entered the main building at swan labs, Neel saw Doctor Fahim and Divya
standing at the back, huge smiles on both their faces. Neel grinned in response as he walked
towards them. The doctor laughed, pleasure and satisfaction echoing in his voice, and
extended his hand towards Neel.

“Well, it‟s obvious
we were all wrong about you.” he said, shaking Neel‟s hand warmly.
“You aren‟t extraordinary just because of your powers. Fate gave us the right person for the
project.”
“Congratulations, Neel.” Divya added warmly, giving him ahug. “I knew you could do

it. What you achievedlast night was nothing short of a miracle.”

 

“Thanks.” Neel said as they all walked towards the control room.“So does this mean I
can go backon the assignment?”

“Yes
, Neel, the way you overcame your fears and saved all those people at the bank
showed us that you are the right person for this job, after all.” DoctorFahim said. “Now you
are going to finish your assignment.‟

“And the General and Mr. Rai approve of this decision?” Neel asked uncertainly.

“Th
eyrequested for you personally after watching last night‟s news.” Dr Fahim said
“Especially since we need to hurry now.” His smile faded as his expression became grave.
“Mehta has finished preparations to leave India tonight, and we cannot legally stop him.”

“So what do I do?” Neel asked.

“You will break into the
Phlicer complex, go to the heart of his building, and extract the
concrete evidence thatwe need to stop him.” DoctorFahim paused. “I need hardly tell you it
will be extremely dangerous, but I don‟t think that is going to stop you now, is it?”

“No, sir” Neel said, as his voice took on a grim tone. This time there would be no
mistakes.

 

* * *

Neel paced around his room, feeling hyper. It was five in the evening. His mother was
working overtime at her office on the bank robbery story, and would return after eight. In an
hour he would leave for Phlicer, where Mehta had already shut down the complex and was
rapidly transferring everything out of the buildings. The building they were interested in was
to be evacuated last, which meant he would find what they needed more easily, but the
security would be extremely alert. Twice in less than a year he had fallen apart. Yesterday, he
had felt overwhelming despair. Now he was back. The whole year felt like an emotional
roller coaster ride where he had had far too many turns. As if getting thosepowers hadn‟t
been enough to make his life complicated already.