Friendship,
Love, and War
Chapter
1
Pratap really really didn't like shopping... And he
disliked malls... no scratch that - he HATED malls. Especially the massive malls
where it was so easy to get lost!! He was going to strangle Chak and Ven when
he met them.
Initially, when his friends suggested this trip to Dubai,
Pratap was all for it. After completing their year of education and grueling
training at the Rajput Defense Academy , a vacation sounded perfect. BUT... he
should have known better than to travel to Dubai with his friends to a place
like this - he knew he should never have agreed to split up when Chak suggested
it -
Flashback
(3 hours ago)
Chak
- Oh My!! Look at all the games... this is heaven, I tell you... heaven!!!
Pratap
- What? Where?
Chak
- Arrey... I was talking about the video games
selection... It's amazing!
Pratap
- NO! No.. no ... no ... (shaking his head) absolutely not!
He had just noticed the
massive banner declaring this spot to be the entrance to the World Gaming
Convention in big bold letters.
Ven
- Oh come on Bhaujiraaj... just for a little while... We won't be long, I swear...
Chak
- Ven is absolutely right (patting Ven on the back and nodding his head
vigourously)... Besides bhaujiraaj, you can always go to level 5 and enjoy at the
gaming arcade. There's LOADS of physically challenging activities that you can find
there. I know that's the one thing you miss the most from our gurukul (he said
smiling). Pratap and his friends had started referring to their school as
Gurukul ever since their first day at the Academy.
Pratap
(with irritation) - Chak, Ven - So this is why you suggested we come to Dubai
and now to this Dubai Mall... it was because you knew they were having a video
game convention. Why didn't you tell me?
Ven
(sheepishly)- Because we knew you would never fly with us all the way to Dubai
for a video game conference ...
Pratap
- Great! Now what am I supposed to do while you drool over all the different consoles
and new gaming tech??
Chak
(with a wide motion of his arms) - Go ahead and explore the mall!! (as if he
was encouraging Pratap to explore the world)
Pratap
looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
Chak
drops his hands and straightens up. - I promise we will only be here for like
half an hour and will catch up with you as soon as we have had a look at a
couple of the games...
Pratap
(giving in) - Fine... whatever. Call me. As soon as you are done. You know I hate
shopping...
~~~flashback
ends~~~
Pratap sighed in irritation. Half hour they had said...
30 MINUTES? It was now 3 HOURS since they went into the massive convention hall...
He had walked through the mall multiple times and found nothing that he could
buy for his Ma.
AND his
friends were nowhere to be seen! What was it about video games?? Why did all
his friends go crazy over them? He himself enjoyed playing a game or two once
in a while but preferred the actual experience of physical play to virtual gaming.
It was for this reason that he trained in MMA, sword fighting, horse-riding,
and Krav Maga at his gurukul. Pratap smiled at the memory of his training
sessions and suddenly realized that he had been walking, lost in thought, in no
particular direction. Amidst his irritation towards his friends, the confusing
displays at the MILLION shops, and his memories of the gurukul, Pratap Singh
had managed to get himself completely lost in the Dubai Mall. This is precisely
why he HATED malls and shopping... they caused him to go brain dead!! 'Uggghhh!!!!'
thought Pratap.
Chapter
2
As he whirled around to take in his surroundings, he
suddenly realized he had been walking down a corridor where there were no
shops. No one was in sight. He could only see white walls and abandoned or 'under
construction/repair' signs around him. 'Just my luck' thought Pratap and was
about to turn around when he heard several voices and laughter through a door
somewhere in the middle of the hallway. He cautiously walked towards the door
hoping that he might find someone to help him but as he got nearer, he realized
the voices had suddenly died down like someone had shushed the people who had
been talking so loudly. The door was set inside an archway that was ornately
carved. This is probably another one of the new shops that are still
unfinished', thought Pratap. Suddenly, as he looked across the almost-shut door
he noticed there was someone standing on the other side of the archway... no wait...
the person was not standing... They were hiding... yes.. they were definitely
hiding. Suddenly Pratap felt the need to hide himself as well, his instinct
told him he needed to do what the other person was doing, he needed to make
sure that the people inside did not see or hear him.
As he quickly hid himself behind one side of the
archway, he looked through the carvings to see big brown eyes, lined with
kajal, wide with fear. They held so much worry and fear that Pratap was
compelled to try and hear what the people inside were saying, so he quietly
looked through the carved archway and a gap through the door.
He could only
make out the outline of two men sitting with their backs to the door. A single
bulb was lighting up the space where the men sat. One of them whispered "..You
fools!! This is no laughing matter! You are not discussing a game!! The news
Hukum Singh has brought us is extremely alarming. The Rajput Intelligence Agency has been poking their nose around us for months. They have foiled so many of our plans. We have had to come so far just to have a meeting because their spy network is so wide-spread. If they have already
got their hands on any evidence against us or our plans, we are in deep
trouble! We may have to re-plan the whole attack on the Rajput cities!! No
matter though... Uday Singh may think he has all the information, but I'm Shums
Khan... he will never catch me red-handed. Our next meeting will now happen in
Rajputana, India." Pratap could barely breathe... Uday Singh? This man was
talking about his father???
Pratap looked up at
the person on the other side and was sure that his eyes clearly showed the
shock he felt in every cell of his body. The girl, he was sure, it was
girl on the other side, looked back at him with the same shock and fear.
Suddenly, they heard the group inside winding up and getting ready to leave.
Pratap realized the girl had covered her face with a dupatta and was now
backing up slowly through the other end of the empty hallway. For some reason,
that he couldn't understand, he felt as though she was pleading to him, as he looked,
he suddenly heard a voice in his head "Go!
Run! LEAVE!! Get out of here! Or we will be caught!" He suddenly realized, she was RIGHT! He needed
to get out of there!! Immediately he started backing out and ran out of the
hallway as quietly as he could, right through the way he came in. Before he
turned, he looked back one last time, to find the end of a blue and gold
dupatta disappearing on the other end of the hallway and then, Pratap ran.
So what do you guys think? Should I continue?
- Love and creativity
RuVa
comment:
p_commentcount