Operation Chaos: A Gripping Action Thriller (22 page)

''Maybe they were some special guards who always protected King Ashoka or were entrusted to guard his precious object.''

''No, Sameer,'' Shonali interrupted Sameer curtly. ''I have a different theory. I think this object was passed down to King Ashoka. The object or the artefact must have existed long before it was handed down to Ashoka and that is why we found the
dhvaj
at Sariputra's stupa. Sariputra preceded King Ashoka by almost two centuries.''

''But there is also the possibility that the artefact may have been hidden long after Sariputra's death. The stupa has been there since the time of Sariputra and the cult of monks could have hidden it any time since then,'' Sameer interjected.

''That is a possibility, yes. But this painting above us depicts Lord Buddha and not King Ashoka. If it was Ashoka who owned the artefact, then why would he write a message suggesting the artefact is guarded by his four guards on these caves? Anyway, it is not of importance who had the object or to whom it was passed down. The question we should focus on is who were the notable guards of King Ashoka and how are we going to unlock this damn cube?'' Shonali came to the point.

''After the massacre at the battle of Kalinga, when King Ashoka embraced Buddhism, he was drawn deep into it. He understood the Buddhist principles and felt that it was his duty to make people know about Buddhism. So he sent his messengers and monks from his kingdom in all four directions, to advocate Buddhism and to preach the noble path shown by Gautama Buddha. He had ministers nominated for this task. Maybe those ministers are being referred to as the guards,'' said Shonali.

She tried to search the internet for any help on King Ashoka and his guards. Meanwhile, Sameer concentrated on finding any numbers or combination of numbers hidden in the painting or in the text above and below it.

Not very far away, Ranjeet had just got into a flight that was ready to take him to Biju Pattnaik airport in Bhubaneswar from where a chopper would finally transport him to the Dhamara base of the NSG soldiers. The mission ahead involved a great deal of risk. Fear was mounting up in Ranjeet's mind as the flight passed through turbulence in the clouds. He had never handled a live situation on the field anytime before and he knew he would go nuts at the sight of cross-fire and blood. He felt a chill run through his spine and his hands shivered as he tried to imagine himself trying to hack the enemy servers as bullets passed by- just inches away from him. He shut his eyes tightly and locked down his brain. Ranjeet tried to think of something good, something soothing in his mind and only one thought crossed his mind- Shonali. He knew it was something more than just a crush.

Maybe before I left, I should have talked to her- At least I should have wished her a goodbye.

Shonali was the only thing that kept his hands from shivering.

6 kilometres east of his secret bunker, President Ajaysingh was waiting on a plane for David and his team to arrive. Their arrival was scheduled in forty minutes. The flight seat was comfortable, the cabin temperature was ambient and President Ajaysingh had not rested for a long time. It did not take him long to drift off into a deep sleep.

Chapter 58

Project Testing Site, Pokharan

Operation Shakti

18 April, 1998

Time: 6.30 am

It was the first combined meeting of all scientists at the Pokharan project site. After months of hard work, the project was finally nearing completion. The work had gone smoothly and no suspicious activity had been tracked, no documents were stolen after the incident at A.K. Das's office. That incident was covered up the same night and the Indian Army soldiers made sure that nothing was leaked out. Everyone believed that the spy had probably fled from the facility or was perhaps too shaken and afraid to do anything now. Assistant Project Co-ordinator A.K.Das addressed the audience in the hall.

''Good morning, Gentlemen. This program dates back to 1945 when Dr. Homi Bhabha established the Institute of Fundamental Research. Since then, this nuclear program has seen many ups and downs. Many times the governments in India decided to shelve and halt this program with the fear of inviting international criticism. But this time we had an unconditional support from our government. We have tentatively decided to carry out our tests in the first week of May.''

The crowd applauded as the assistant project co-ordinator A.K. Das handed over the mike to the Chief Project Co-ordinator Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam.

''We overcame a lot of hurdles to reach this point. American satellites had detected our test preparations in 1995, hence these tests required complete secrecy to avoid detection by other countries. I appreciate this entire planning which was done just by a small group of scientists, military officers and politicians to ensure that the test preparations would remain behind the curtains. Even some of the senior members of the Indian cabinet are not yet informed of our ongoing preparations. On the diplomatic front, we have adopted a policy of nuclear ambiguity. To ensure that we are not internationally criticised or questioned, statements are being made by our politicians and diplomats which imply that our country's nuclear status is undecided as of now. This has bought us some time and I hope by the first week of May, we would be in a position to complete the tests. You will have put your sweat into this now. Only a final push is all that is left- I hope that we see India in the list of the countries with nuclear arsenal in the coming millennia.''

Dr. Kalam's words were like a moral boost to all the scientists present in the room. Everyone clapped and cheered but Ajay and Shashank. Sitting in one corner of the room, they donned a worried look on their faces. On the other corner of the meeting hall was the person who Ajay had thought of as his friend- Jacob. But since the incident at A.K. Das's office, Ajay had started to suspect Jacob of being involved in something dangerous. And slowly, it became evident to Ajay that what he knew about Jacob was totally wrong.

''Do you think he could be the mole amongst us? The spy?'' asked Ajay one afternoon to Shashank in their room while Jacob was still working in his lab. He told Shashank about the incident that had happened in A.K. Das's cabin.

''No way. Jacob can't be...'' Shashank stopped in the middle of his sentence as his face gave away an expression of awe. Shashank quickly rose up from the chair and walked towards Jacob's bed. He bent over and tried to feel the underside of the bed with his hand. A couple of seconds later, he found what he had been looking for. Shashank withdrew his hand from under Jacob's bed to reveal a small locked steel box to Ajay.

''I saw it about a couple of weeks ago when I returned from my shift an hour early. Jacob was on his bed working on his laptop, reading out something from this steel box next to him. He was perplexed when he saw me and hurriedly covered it up with his sleeping blanket. Also, I find him awake most of the times - even after his heavy work shifts!'' Shashank recounted his experiences with Jacob to Ajay.

''So should we report it to Mr. Das or the security head?'' Ajay asked Shashank.

''We don't have a solid proof against him except that glove story. I think we should search his baggage and office. We may find some proof there,'' Shashank suggested.

The next day Shashank and Ajay took a day off from their work and went through Jacob's belongings while Jacob was at work.

''He has a wide collection of books!'' Shashank said, opening Jacob's cupboard with the key he had carefully slipped out of Jacob's key ring the earlier night.

''He doesn't read much. So why these many books?'' Ajay questioned himself. Soon enough, Ajay found a map hidden under the books on the middle shelf. It was the map of the entire Pokharan Project Testing site with accurate locations of the shafts where the explosions would be carried out along with the security checkpoints and watchtowers. Only the security team of the facility had the access to such maps. That day Ajay was almost convinced that he was living with a spy.

It was he who attempted to kill me that night. I have been living with him for so long. The only reason why I may still be alive is that he didn't see my face that night.

Since then, Ajay and Shashank had moved out from their combined room and had started living separately. Jacob didn't ask for any reasons or justifications.

The assistant co-ordinator A.K. Das took over the mike after the energetic speech made by Dr. Kalam. He decided to unveil the plan of action to the scientists.

''From today we work together, integrating all our work which was fragmented earlier. DRDO has set up three laboratories to manage
designing, testing and producing components for the test, like advanced detonators, the implosion systems and high-voltage trigger systems
.
We would also have to look into weaponization, systems engineering, aerodynamics, safety interlocks and flight trials. You would be assigned your respective sections today. As soon as we are ready for the tests, the nuclear devices would be sent from BARC.
''

The work was distributed and it was decided that the first group would be tested on 11th May and the second group on 13th May. The first group consisted of the thermonuclear device - codenamed Shakti I, the fission device: Shakti II, and a sub-kiloton device: Shakti III. The second group consisted of the remaining two sub-kiloton devices Shakti IV & V.

Ajay and Shashank had decided to keep their eyes open for any sign of trouble from Jacob. They used to secretly search his room and office for more clues but found nothing solid.

That bastard is one hell of a spy. He sure knows how to hide his identity
, thought Ajay.

The scheduled date for testing the first group of devices was approaching fast. There was barely a week left when Ajay found a note in Jacob's office. The note was typewritten and was cleverly hidden in Jacob's table drawer. It read- BE READY TO STRIKE ON 10
^TH
.

That's one day before the day of the tests
!  Ajay was stunned. He knew he had to report this to his superiors. He took the note, closed the drawer and turned around to walk towards the door. He was
about to grab the doorknob when the door opened from outside and Jacob stood before him staring right at the note in his hand.

Chapter 59

Ajanta Caves,

Outskirts of Aurangabad

Time: 5.09 hrs

''
Dhritarashtra, Virudhaka, Virupaksha, Vaishravana
!'' cried out Shonali, hoping that she had the answer to the riddle on the painting. The NSG commandos were startled on Shonali's reaction.

''Do those names mean anything?'' Sameer asked without looking up, intently working to open the curious puzzle box.

''The guards- The guards of the four directions. That might be the answer to the clue on the painting!''

Sameer still had a puzzled look on his face. He had no clue what Shonali was talking about.

''
The Four Buddhist Guardian Kings:
Dhritarashtra- King of the East, Virudhaka- King of the South, Virupaksha- King of the West, Vaishravana- King of the North
are the protectors of the four cardinal directions and are almost always found at the entrance to monasteries and temples. They are dressed in the ornate armour, clothing of a warrior king and may be depicted either sitting or standing
.
I think these are the guards that the painting may be referring to!
'' said Shonali.

''But what does it have to do with King Ashoka? The painting refers to the guards of Ashoka - Not just any guards. And there is the flower-
go find your destiny resting on a flower
. Also, your theory of the guardian kings does not lead to any place,'' Sameer said.

The smile on Shonali's face faded as she realised that her interpretation was not a very good one. She looked at the paper where Sameer was working with some numbers.

''I will give it another try. What are those numbers, by the way?'' Shonali asked.

''I am trying to see if the combination is some kind of magic square. The pattern of the cube gives me a hunch that the key must be some kind of magic square,'' Sameer said as he drew a 3 by 3 grid on the paper and filled some number in each cubicle.