From & To Sathish #5 - Page 35

Vaanathai Pola 403

CNN's anchor and reporter for the Indian region, Mallika Kapur and her cameraman Milind both slowly managed to get their breaths under control and both continued to stare into the distance from where they had seen the monster and then looked at each other.

Slowly her mind began to fill with a fear that felt far worse than what she had just felt after seeing that huge black animal and forcefully grabbing Milind's jacket she growled, ' Man, I am in deep shit and this nightmare had to happen just when everything was just about to fall in place for my career.'

She looked at him pathetically and begged him, ' Milind, save my a..e, bro and I will do what you have been wanting from me all these years.'

Milind's jaw dropped and with it fell the cigarette that was hanging from his lips and raising his eyebrows, ' You really mean that.'

Mallika nodded, ' yes, I swear and that too on my job and my career.'

Milind's eyes went big and round like saucers and he stood thinking, ' F..k, she is swearing on her job and on her career and not on her kids or her husband. Now, this is what you call dedication ' and his eyes crinkling with a wide smile, nodded, ' Okay. deal. But, we have a problem.'

Mallika yelled, ' What now? Uh! what problem? Do you need me to blow you right now?'

Milind held up his hands defensively and at the same time protested, ' Mallika, I would love you to go down on me and blow me but that was not what I was hinting at ' and then pointed at her crotch and lit up another cigarette and began to puff away.

Mallika looked down and saw that her pants were stained and spreading and began to curse her head off.

Milind gave her the cigarette he was smoking and watched as Mallika quickly took several puffs before giving it back and then asked, ' What do I do now, Milind? The Washington desk will be going live any moment now and they will be connecting with us in a few minutes and here I am with my pants stained.'

Milind asked her if she had any spare pants and Mallika told him that she did but her luggage was in the cab which was in the parking lot, about a km away and on the other side of the airport.

Milind smiled and said, ' I will go and get it for you. But until then, hold the fort and makeup whatever excuses you can think of and I will be back before you know it.'

Mallika hugged him and planting a kiss on his lips, whispered, ' If this works out, I will do more than what I have promised' and Milind nodded and ran towards the gates that separated the Runway area from the other areas of the airport.

At the same time that Milind left Mallika Kapur to go and get her a new set of clothes, the NSG's Bomb disposal squad was just about finishing up with the huge Qantas A380 flight and a dozen commandos along with their dogs came up to Brigadier Sooryanarayanan and informed him that the plane had been thoroughly checked and they had found no bombs or explosives of any sort on it.

Brigadier Sooryanarayanan barked loudly at the head of the Bomb Disposal squad, ' Are you sure, A hundred per cent sure, Major Rajeev?'

Major Rajeev nodded, ' sure sir. Both the bomb disposal teams were used along with all the 12 dogs and we found nothing, sir.'

' Okay, at ease soldier but stay alert and ready to move at my call for this is still a very fluid situation and might develop into something nasty any moment. So, just step down from level A to B and get some coffee and sandwiches that have been so kindly provided by the airport. I will call you if I need anything.'

Brigadier Sooryanarayanan heaving a sigh of relief picked up his mobile to inform the Defence Minister Rajnath that the plane had been thoroughly checked and picked up a chicken sandwich from a tray that a corporal was holding up and was about to bite into it when he saw Major Rajeev walking quickly towards him and he barked loudly, ' What is it, Major?'

Major Rajeev saluted the Brigadier and flashing a bright and confident smile said, ' Sir, requesting permission to check the plane once more sir.'

Brigadier Sooryanaraynan glared at him, ' WTF is wrong with you, major and WTF do you want to check the plane again when just moments ago you informed me that you the plane had been thoroughly checked and had found nothing.'

Major Rajeev replied loudly, ' Just to be absolutely sure sir and also sir, because, coffee and sandwiches will make us lethargic and sleepy and we don't want that sir.'

Brigadier Sooryanarayanan looked at the sandwich that he had been ready to demolish and growled at Major Rajeev, ' Are you being smart and cheeky, Major and did you suddenly sprout a new pair of brass balls?'

' No sir, I did not and dare not for brass balls would clang and make too much noise and would be a bitch to pass through metal detectors. sir'

The noise of a sudden burst of muted laughter rippled through all the commandos and everyone's lips mouthed the word " Bravo, Major" silently and happily.

Brigadier Sooryanarayanan was lost and at the same time stuck for an apt reply and the time to punch back went away and smiling resignedly he nodded, ' Major, I don't think you need brass balls for yours seem to be hard enough and bold enough.'

Taking a huge bite of the chicken sandwich, he nodded, ' okay, get it done and do it right and if you come back with the same cheeky request, I swear on your mother that I will tie you to a missile and launch you into Pakistan.'

Pointing to the plane, ' Now, f..k off and do your job properly.'

Major Rajeev smiled, ' Sir, yes sir. F..king off right away sir.'

This punch reply choked Sooryanarayanan who suddenly began to cough as a small bone in the chicken sandwich began to mess with his throat and by the time he spat it out and looked up, Major Rajeev had already vanished from his sight.

Major Rajeev joined his team and told them to follow him and soon both the teams along with a dozen dogs approached the mighty behemoth of a plane and getting down from their vehicles, he informed them that he and his dog Chunky would go in first and that they hold their positions and wait for him to make the call.

The tired commandos were only too willing to do as they were told and watched as Major Rajeev boarded the plane with the labrador named Chunky waddling behind him.

Once inside the plane, Major Rajeev looked at Chunky, ' An apt name for a useless mutt like you, Buddha.'

Buddha's eyes glared at him, ' You get a nice name like Rajeev and I am called Chunky. F..k that guy who gave the poor animal that name.'

Major Rajeev's eyes went green as he began laughing and Buddha sat on his fat chunky arse wondering if it was possible to take a bite out of his friend and master's leg.

' Aliens and their weird alien sense of humour.'

The Boy who went into the dark and came back with light.

https://youtu.be/5A-F9qu6c_4

I Avan, Aval, Adhu 96

Ravi Kumar braked and halting his motorcycle, turned off the iginition key and getting off it, walked towards the Police booth with his helmet still on. The irritation of the two constables who were standing outside the booth was clearly evident in their faces and one yelled loudly and in a rude voice, ' Sir, no parking here sir. Go on' and suddenly realizing that the guy who was walking towards them was doing so to request pointers on how to get to The Pine forest, waved his hand and pointing straight, ' Pine forest that way. Please, you go my hand pointing.'

Ravi removing his helmet, smiled not because of the man's poor english skills but in a greeting and said, ' Manikkanum, I am here to meet Inspector Sargunam.'

Both the police constables went on full alert and mysteriously their body language changed as their large tummies were sucked in making Ravi realize that one of the main reasons for a person's belly to look more pronounced was their poor body posturing. Where before the constables had been slouching, now they stood straight and tall and then the older constable after having observed Ravi in close proximity, respectfully asked, ' Sir, you knowing Inspector sir? How knowing and how long?'

Ravi smiled and just as he was mentally debating on what to say and how far to stretch the moment, the younger constable, not much younger whispered to his older constable, ' just leave him be. Why pester him with unneccessary questions and which might lead to another shelling by the Inspector?'

Both smiled as much as their uniforms allowed them to and which was not very much and definitely not as much as they would have smiled when getting a bribe or some free gifts. Free gifts usually meant tourists who were going up to kodai to have a good time and that meant expensive booze, cigarettes and sometimes, a quickie behind the bushes. That usually involved, a few youngsters and sex workers who they had brought along for well......

Ravi deciding to have some fun, asked the constables about their Inspector and the older policeman pounced on the opening as Ravi had expected him to do and asked, ' Why are you enquiring about our Inspector? He is a very good and honest man and also very strict.'

It was obvious to Ravi that Inspector Sargunam was being a thorn in their lives and just as he was wondering what to ask next, the older policeman, Jayaseelan smiled flaunting all his crooked teeth and winked and whispered in a conspiratorial way, ' sir, I am helping you. What you wanting? Inspector not helping, bad man, always strict and honest.'

The slightly younger policeman whose name was Subburayan, nodded vigorously and stepped in, ' sir, you bike coming. most bike people come here for good ganja. illegal sir. two years and more jail. But we help.'

Jayaseelan smiled like a jackass, ' ganja not bad sir. better than cigarettes and alcohol. you buying and we helping by not checking and not seeing. okay.'

Ravi smiled happily hearing good things about inspector Sargunam and both the police constables mistaking his happiness joined in with their happiness for in their minds they were thinking " at least a 500 rs or if we are lucky, more and maybe even 5000.'

Ravi looked at the roadsign that screamed 1 km to pine forest and with a concern voice asked both policemen, ' you are posted here in a godforsaken place. How do you expect to make money on this road that leads only to the pine forest? If you had been posted in the city, then maybe...'

Jayaseelan replied in a sad voice, ' very true boss. Town more money, good food and daily booze and guaranteed collections. Here, dry and useless.'

Subburayan jumped in, ' yes sir, only see money when shootings come here. But that is only once a month and sometimes once a year. All cinema people going outside to foreign places. Pine forest boring location, 50 years of shooting and only trees, trees and yes lot of biting monkeys. bad monkeys.'

Ravi smiled grimly and then hearing the sound of a jeep coming towards them removed his helmet looked in the direction of the vehicle. In the few moments it took for the jeep which was the official vehicle of The Inspector of Police, Sargunam to reach the booth both the policemen looked at him with threatening eyes and Jayaseelan told him in a threatening voice, ' not a word about what we just discussed if you know what is good for you.' The police jeep stopped and the Inspector, a lean, dark complexioned and tough looking individual got out of the vehicle and looked in their direction. The moment he caught sight of Ravi standing there he appeared to visibly undergo some transformation for he ran towards him. It was not like a cop running towards his quarry but more like a calf running towards its mother and more like a student racing towards his favourite master in the world. Inspector Sargunam was in uniform but that did not stop him from bending down and touching Ravi's feet and looking up with tears of joy sparkling in his eyes and in a gruff voice choked with emotion said, " master sir, what a wonderful surprise' and hugged Ravi tightly. Ravi hugged him back and whispered, ' Guna, how are you doing?' Inspector Sargunam replied, ' iyaa, why didn't you call and inform me that you were here?' Constable Jayaseelan looked at Constable Subburayan and both knew that they had just dug themselves their own graves not with their hands but with their corrupt gobs.

Vaanathai Pola 404

While Azhagan in the form of Major Rajeev from the bomb disposal squad along with Buddha who in turn had taken the form of a small lab were boarding the Qantas A 380 plane for one last check of the plane, the original Major Rajeev and his dog Rani were fast asleep behind a thick group of bushes. If any person happened to stumble upon them, their first thought would have been " Death" for Azhagan had used his mind to put both man and dog to a deep, zombie state of stupor like he had done with all the passengers on board the hijacked plane.

Azhagan switching off the mic on his headpiece told Buddha, ' We have very little time to go through the plane. So, get working before they find the original us and then it will be too much to handle. Even for a team that is as good as both of us.'

Buddha who was not his usual massive self shook his head and growled and said, ' look at me. Just take a good look at what shape I am in and tell me how am I supposed to motivate myself when I am given the role of a female dog called Rani.'

Azhagan shrugged casually, ' comeon, you know I had no choice in this and what can I do if this major Rajeev has a female dog for a companion.'

Buddha yawned and then stretched himself and whined, ' Boss, why do these Labradors pile in so much fat on themselves? I am not even able to stretch my front limbs and my rear body seems to have its own mind. OMG! what have I got myself into.'

Azhagan's eyes flared briefly and Buddha now as Rani the plump labrador bomb sniffing dog realized that the man meant business and closed his eyes ( her eyes) and began to concentrate on all the smells that were in the huge plane.

There is a reason why Azhagan had brought along Buddha into the plane and both masquerading as members of the Army's elite Bomb disposal squad and all that had to do with Buddha's nose and the power of his Doggy brain. For, although Azhagan had been blessed with supernatural alien powers, the power of his smelling was nothing when compared to what Buddha's doggy nose could sniff out.

What do dog noses have that humans don't? They possess up to 300 million olfactory receptors in their noses, compared to about six million in us. And the part of a dog's brain that is devoted to analyzing smells is about 40 times greater than ours. Dogs also have something called neophilia, which means they are attracted to new and interesting odors.

Dogs possess a sense of smell many times more sensitive than even the most advanced man-made instrument. Powerful enough to detect substances at concentrations of one part per trillion a single drop of liquid in 20 Olympic-size swimming pools. With training, dogs can sniff out bombs and drugs, pursue suspects, and find dead bodies. And more and more, theyre being used experimentally to detect human diseases like cancer, diabetes, tuberculosis, and now, malaria and from smell alone.

Dogs' noses also function quite differently than our own. When we inhale, we smell and breathe through the same airways within our nose. When dogs inhale, a fold of tissue just inside their nostril helps to separate these two functions.

When we exhale through our nose, we send the spent air out the way it came in, forcing out any incoming odors. When dogs exhale, the spent air exits through the slits in the sides of their noses. The manner in which the exhaled air swirls out actually helps usher new odors into the dog's nose. More importantly, it allows dogs to sniff more or less continuously.

We can't wiggle our nostrils independently. Dogs can. This, along with the fact that the so-called aerodynamic reach of each of their nostrils is smaller than the distance between the nostrils, helps them to determine which nostril an odor arrived in. This aids them in locating the source of smells. we've all seen dogs on an interesting scent weave back and forth across its invisible trail.

Azhagan stood still and watched as Buddha sniffed the air for a minute or so and then began to walk towards the front portion of the plane and then glanced towards him and went up the stairs that lead up to the upper deck and towards the cockpit area and paused outside the small room that was meant for the cabin crew to rest or even take a nap when on long trips which usually meant trips that were between 10 and 20 hours.

The small room had been cleared where previously, it had housed the six hijackers who had boarded the plane when it had landed in Singapore to fill their fuel tanks before flying off to London nonstop and that usually took 13 to 14 hours.

Buddha walked towards a small cupboard and whispered to Azhagan, ' This is it.'

Azhagan nodded and going to the cupboard, used his fingers to feel around its interior panels and felt a small edge sticking out and grabbing it peeled it back to reveal four small glass containers nestling in a cradle of wires and in the middle, he saw a small digital screen filled with red zero's. The red zeros appeared malvolent in its potential and sat there ominously and as if it was waiting for someone's orders before it could start its countdown.

Vaanathai Pola 405

Buddha was no ordinary dog and like his master and friend Azhagan had a different set of DNA in every cell of his body. His senses were even more powerful than that of Rani, whose guise he was in while the real Rani, a fat female labrador dog was fast asleep next to the real Major Rajeev and both lay there in the midst of thick bushes.

Buddha growled and Azhagan taking the cue stepped back and watched as his friend stood sniffing the air around the glass tubes and then sat down and closed his eyes. To anybody else, he would have been mistaken for a fat, lazy dog taking a nap.

But, Azhagan knew better and watched grimly as his friend Buddha went through his extensive memory banks in an attempt to identify the threat that lay inside the four glass vials.

Azhagan felt Buddha's energy vibrate and hum all around him and he counted the seconds as they crossed the minute mark and then slipped into the second and third and realized immediately that something was wrong, really wrong and that the evil that lay inside those glasses posed a deadly threat to all mankind.

The vibration fell away and Buddha opened his exhausted eyes and looked at Azhagan and said, ' My lord...'

Azhagan's first reaction was that of surprise and which was soon taken over by fear for Buddha never addressed him in such a way and only did so in the event of battle and great danger.

He fell to his knees and looked into Buddha's eyes, ' I guessed it was bad but your eyes tell me this is beyond that.'

' My lord,' and turning to the glass tubes, ' what is inside them is beyond even my powers of recognition for they have genetically mutated and created this monster that lies inside those glass tubes.

Azhagan turned and looked worriedly at the four glass tubes and asked, ' what is in there, my friend?'

Buddha's eyes grew large with fear as he said, ' Some of the worst killers known to mankind, my Lord and the creators have brought them together and have given birth to a new enemy.'

Azhagan's heart quickened its pace for he knew now that time was of the utmost essence and he hurriedly asked Buddha the most important question, ' have the pathogens been released? Are they free?'

Buddha shook his muzzle, ' No and that is the million-dollar question, my Lord.'

Azhagan's eyes glared at the four glass tubes and he whispered, ' I think the time has come to answer that question and we know who can help us in that matter, Buddha.'

Buddha stood up, ' My lord Azhagan, he is but a man and even though he is a formidable specimen among his kind, he still remains a human and will be defenceless against these pathogens and does not possess the powers that our kind have.'

Azhagan grimly acknowledged Buddha's observation, ' point noted but only he can play the game for he is the one who is in charge of this operation and that means he is the only pawn left in our arsenal that we can use to move forward in our plans to dig out the enemy who is the cause behind all this.'

Raman slowly placed the now cold hand of his boss V.K.Singh's back on his chest and arranged both of them so that they rested on his chest and gave an appearance that he was fast asleep and not lifeless and dead to the world.

His open eyes lay still and fixed on Raman and feeling guilty that he had gone back on his word, he turned away feeling guilty and unable to face the questioning look of the eyes of his boss and then his mobile phone rang and after letting it ring for a few times, he finally answered it.

' Raman here. Who is this and how did you get my number?'

' Sir, I am Major Rajeev, head of the bomb disposal squad that is part of the SPG ( Special Protection Group) and I was given this number by Mr V.K.Singh himself in case of any emergency.'

Raman did not know what to say or how to react to this statement and growled angrily, ' Haven't you heard, Major, that my boss is dead.'

' I know sir and I am really sorry for your loss. Please accept my condolences. But, this could not wait for you are in charge of the operation now sir.'

Raman sniggered, ' Why call me? WTF happened to that old dog of a Brigadier who is your boss and what happened to the Defence Minister, Major Rajeev? Why don't call them instead of me?'

The voice of Major Rajeev's changed and Raman heard the deep voice of the stranger called Azhagan say, ' Because this concerns you, my friend and it concerns your best friend Radha Krishnan and his father and the case of the missing Brigadier Prakash Malhotra.'

Raman jumped up to his feet and yelled, ' where are you right now?'

' In the room that is just outside the Cockpit. Hurry, please.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYWfy3e3x1A

Avan, Aval, Adhu 97

It is not every day that one sees a ranking police officer touching the feet of anyone, leave alone a civilian dressed casually and both the constables Subburayan and Jayaseelan having seen this speculated that the civilian must be an elder brother or some senior family member for although the age difference between their Inspector and the stranger was not too much, it still remained.

Grade 1 constable Jayaseelan looked at Grade 2 constable Subburayan and both their expressions took on the look of their favourite actor " Vaigai Puyal Vadivelu" who constantly and naively finds himself in sticky and dangerous situations.

Jayaseelan mumbled to his colleague, ' I think both our butts are going to get kicked from here to Madurai head office. Of all the people in the world we had to go and threaten and beg for a bribe from this man and who just happens to be the Inspector's family member.'

Subburayan shook his head and replied, ' Well, I know one thing for sure and which is we will be starting our night shifts from today and will remain on night duty until our retirement.'

Jayaseelan whispered in a despairing voice, ' I should have trusted my instincts and should not have started a conversation with this stranger. I knew from the way his eyes sparkled that he was an educated man and more importantly a highly intelligent man and yet our greed for a few hundred rupees has now got us into trouble.'

Subburayan with huge eyes asked, ' Oh, I did not know that. So, education and intelligence makes a difference in our eyes' and slowly turning to Jayaseelan, ' what do you see in my eyes?'

' Last night's booze along with the stealthy look of a criminal who is our for a fast buck' Jayaseelan answered and then cursed viciously, ' I have been finding myself in trouble from the time you got posted here in this station.'

Subburayan's head swam with filthy but silent curses, most of which were aimed at his colleague and a few at himself and both stood staring pathetically at Inspector Sargunam and the stranger who were chatting like old friends.

Inspector Sargunam glanced at the Enfield bullet and with a smile, ' Master, so, you are still doing this yearly Pilgrimage to whispering rocks?'

Ravi smiled, ' Yes, Guna but it has been more than a year now since I have been this way.'

A shadow fell across Inspector Sargunam's eyes and Ravi seeing it, understood that an old memory had crossed over from his student's soul and the same was now reflecting in his eyes and smiling sadly looked away unable to face him.

' Master, not a day goes by without me thinking about you and praying for your welfare' and pointing to the motorcycle, ' Whenever I heard that bike's thumping exhaust noise, my own heart used to beat along with it for I and the others knew that you were going away for a few days and sometimes a whole week. Those days were the most painful times in all our lives for none of us including our families could stand being away from you.'

Ravi nodded, ' I knew then and I know it now ' and looking at his student, confessed openly, ' but Guna, I too am a human and I too need some time off from my life. For sometimes, life becomes too much to bear and even my heart can only take so much of....'

Sighing, he smiled and Inspector Sargunam thought a cloud, a dark veil had been lifted away from his Master's aura and smiled back and asked, ' Iyaa, how long will you be staying in Whispering Rocks?'

Ravi's look was his reply and so Inspector Sargunam who was well versed with his moods and expressions continued, ' It will be a great honor and will also give me great pleasure if you joined me and my family for either for lunch or dinner.'

' Sure Guna. I would love that and I have been wanting to meet your child' and looked at his old student, ' He must be nearly three years now. Am I correct?'

' Yes master. My son just completed three years a few weeks ago.'

Ravi smiled and shaking his head in wonder remarked, ' My God, time indeed flies very quickly.'

He looked at Inspector Sargunam with gentle eyes and said, ' Imagine that, it feels as if only yesterday you were sitting in front of me as a tiny tot and here you are a father to a three-year-old child.'

' Master, I was nearly seven years old and you were only 22 years old' Guna answered and Ravi looked at him and said, ' Maybe Guna, but in my eyes, all of you were like my own kids and even now the feeling is the same. I guess I came into this world as an old man.'

Avan, Aval, Adhu 98

Ravi Kumar looked at his watch and smiled and his student, Inspector Sargunam noticing this asked him if he was in a hurry and that he could take him in his police jeep if he so desired.

' Thank you Guna but no and you know me better ' Ravi politely refused and raising his watch, pointed to it and said, ' Didn't realize that nearly twenty minutes had passed by since we began chatting and catching up with old times.'

Guna nodded and looked at his master with pure devotion, ' It used to be the same for all of us when you came to teach us English, Moral Sciences and Tamil. I and the others would all be charged up and eagerly awaiting your arrival, and you would come and cast a spell on us and before we knew it, the class would be over and we would be left wondering where the 40 minutes had gone and when you would come back.'

' No Guna, it was not any spell that I cast on all of you. You were all brilliant students and all of you worked hard, really hard to get where all of you are right now.'

' Master, even you who I personally consider, to be one of the most intelligent souls on this planet have to agree to the fact that not all students of any given class and in any given year can be brilliant. But, almost all the students who studied under you have fared well both in their personal lives and professional lives.'

He looked at his master and said, ' Iyaa, I have been wanting to talk to you about this for a few years now.'

' what is it, Guna? Do you need my help in anything?'

Inspector Sargunam nodded, ' I guess so in a roundabout way' and smile and then his eyes turning serious, he continued, ' Master, I and my wife have been wanting to donate money to our school and have also been thinking about starting a fund that will help select students to pay their education fees starting from school right until they have finished with their college education.'

Ravi smiled and stared at his student who now stood majestically in his police uniform, ' Good idea. Come and visit me and mother in a few weeks time and we will talk more ' and then hesitated and looked away as if he was feeling a bit shy and uncomfortable to say what was in his heart and this prompted Guna to say, ' Master sir, Whatever I am today is because of you and only because of you. So, please, I beg of you, tell me and share with me your thoughts without hesitation.'

Ravi smiled shyly and Guna thought to himself, ' My master for whom I would do anything and willingly sacrifice everything and here he stands before me blushing like a small kid.'

Ravi Kumar whispered softly, ' It would be a great honour and privilege if you could join our school in one of our morning prayers and then address all the students and spend some time with them.'

Inspector Sargunam's heart felt like it was about to burst open and overwrought with emotions, he gently took Ravi's hands in his and spoke in a choked voice, ' Master, I don't know if you remember the number of times, you fed me and the others and the number of times you wiped the tears away from my eyes but I have not. Thousands of students have passed through your soul and I know that all of them are special and you treat all of them as your own children. But, for me, you are the only master I have and want to have. It will be my privilege to be a part of any function or meeting that you order me to join.'

Ravi Kumar protested, ' No, Guna. Come only when it is possible and, please when you come.....'

' Master, I beg of you, don't ever use the word please when you are talking to me. I would rather that I was deaf so as not to hear that word from your mouth.'

He looked at Ravi, ' Tell me master what was it that you wanted to say or rather what you want me to do?'

' Guna, can you please be in uniform when you visit our school like you are right now for that will help motivate our students to do better ' and then hurriedly added, ' only if it is okay and does not violate any rules and regulations of your Police Department.'

Sargunam smiled, ' Even if there were such rules, I would gladly break them for you master. But, there are no such restrictions and maybe seeing me in Uniform might just motivate some of the students to join the department.'

Ravi glanced at his bike, ' all right, then, I will call you in a couple of days and we will work out if it is going to be lunch or dinner? Is that okay with you, Guna?

' Perfectly okay master and I am really looking forward to spending time with you.'

Inspector Sargunam stood watching his master go to his bike and while Ravi was doing this, Constables Subburayan and Jayaseelan slithered like reptiles towards their senior officer and politely enquired about Ravi.

Guna looked at them, ' That is my master, my guide and so much more but more than all that he is the most decent and honest person in this world.'

The blood drained out from both the constable's faces and hearts and breathless in fear they looked at each other and thanked their stars that Ravi was leaving.

Ravi started the bike and then slowly drove towards Inspector Sargunam and said, ' Guna, by the way, I forgot to tell you something very important that happened some time ago.

Inspector Sargunam excitedly asked Ravi, ' What happened Master?'

Ravi pointed to both the constables, ' both these gentlemen so kindly tried to help me buy the best Ganja available around these parts ' and in a wondrous voice said, ' Can you believe that they were willing to do that for just a 500 rupees bribe. Such kind and helpful police officers. I bet you will have a long conversation with them about the quality of Ganja and where one can procure the best.'

Inspector Sargunam stood watching the bullet of his master roar up the mountain and then slowly turned to face his two constables. Imagine that and imagine their plight.

Avan, Aval, Adhu 99

Dayanidhi had sworn off alcohol after the death of his father. It had been three months since his last drink. The withdrawl symptoms that he had suffered had been excructiating and yet he had borne it patiently and willingly and was now well on way to a normal alcohol free life. Dayanidhi had started drinking when he was 17 years old and that meant he had dropped out of high school and then dropped out of life totally. His father a watchman had tried his best to get his son back on a normal track but had failed and it took its toll on him and finally took his life.

It is said that certain events in one's life brings clarity and meaning to the problems they are facing and his father's death certainly did that and in the most painful way. Standing there over his old man's frail dead body and hearing his mother wail, ' he has been suffering from liver cancer for the past three years and yet went to work and the reason for that was to put food on the table for you and me and yet here you are, totally drunk and insane ' had done something, broken something in his mind and that was it.

Two months had gone by and then he had finally found work in a cab company for whom he had been driving for the past month and had been doing a pretty decent job at that.

The cab company owner hollered, ' Daya, Daya' and rushing to the office cabin he was handed the trip to Kodai.

' Single passenger. High level and also, that young man Ganesan told me that she is a family friend of Master sir' his boss Murugan told him and Dayanidhi looked at him for being in madurai, he had not heard about this master sir.

His boss Murugan waved his hand, ' Forget about sir. Drive carefully and treat the passenger like a VVIP. This is very important. Now go and call me once you have reached Kodai and I will see if I can get you another fare from there, so that you can be back home by nightfall.'

Dayanidhi had been pleasantly surprised when the lady passenger had greeted him warmly and had introduced herself as Gayatri and he in turn had mumbled in his broken english, ' Me, I dayanidhi' and they had set off towards Kodaikanal.

The road sped past behind them and at the same time also seemed to speed past ahead of them and Gayatri's mind slowly began to fill with fear and dread. A bit of the old Gayatri, remnants of the soul that had been before she had met Ravi, whispered, ' what do you think you are doing and what do you expect by going to him? Have you thought about what will happen to you if he says no and don't you know that in all probability that is what is going to happen? If he had any feelings for you then he would not have walked away from you and fled to Kodaikanal and that too without even leaving a message to you. Think about it you stupid woman. You are not a child to just follow your hearts whims and fancies but a grown up, adult woman and that too on the verge of middle-age. What about your pride and ego? Have you forgotten how you swore to never get trapped in a relationship like the previous one and which nearly broke you into pieces?'

While Gayatri was drowning herself and suffocating in her own questions and searching desperately for answers, Dayanidhi had made short work of the 116 kms distance that separates Kodai and Madurai and was fast approaching the foothills of the Blue mountains when he felt a gentle pat on his shoulder and slowing down turned and asked his passenger, ' Madam, what you wanting?'

The usual reasons for a passenger or passengers requesting the driver to stop the vehicle is a full bladder, a smoke break, take some pics or just stretch their legs at a tea stall but this passenger looked at him and asked if there was any temple on the way up the hills.

Dayanidhi thought hard for a few seconds and replied, ' Amma, there are many temples on the way up but right now, just a few kms ahead there is a small but ancient Vishnu temple at the foothills. Do you want to go there?'

Gayatri smiled sadly, ' Yes, please. It really doesn't matter what temple or for a matter of fact even a church will do for all I want to do right now is to pray.'

Dayanidhi answered, ' Don't worry ma'am, this vishnu temple which is called Sadaya perumal is a guardian god for all travellers and many stop here and pray to him before going up the hills.'

https://youtu.be/HOP98XEzzNc