'Kalki wishes to have dinner with you.'
Kalki was seated at the head of a huge oak table, which seemed to be laden with platters heaped with fresh fruit and hot breads. He motioned for Aaditya to sit down on the chair to his right. Aaditya found his stomach grumbling at the sight and smell of the food, not having eaten anything all day.
'We grow our own bread and fruits, so these are as fresh as it gets. But the best is yet to come.'
He snapped one of his giant fingers and two daityas came in, holding aloft platters of grilled prawns that were bigger than any Aaditya had ever seen. Kalki smiled, his scaly skin stretching back as he did so, making him appear even more hideous.
'There are some advantages to being at the bottom of the sea.'
For a few minutes, they ate in silence, but as delicious as the food was, Aaditya's mind was full of questions. Finally Kalki wiped his fingers and looked at Aaditya.
'So, tell me, having spent so much time with the Devas you must have lots to share that I don't know. Where shall we begin?'
'How about my father?'
Kalki chuckled.
'You, my friend, have very little bargaining power, but let me respect what your father did for me. When we first heard that a human had suddenly become so involved, I was intrigued, but look at how fate works-when we ran your name, turns out you were none other than Ghosh's son.'
Aaditya put the bread down on his plate and looked straight at Kalki. 'What really happened to my father? Is he still alive?'
Kalki met his gaze.
'We picked him up to learn more about the aircraft and its capabilities, to aid us in our plans. You see, after I was cast away by the Devas and spent years in exile, I did not have access to all the developments the Devas brought in their technology and also I was surprised to see how fast humans developed their own technologies after they recovered that Deva drone at Roswell. As you've seen for yourself, our vimanas are not really a match for the Devas and barely ahead of the best human fighters. That was why I was trying so hard to learn more about their technologies and tactics to create a fleet of unmanned drones modeled on human fighters to combat the Devas. But when he began to learn more about who we were and the nature of the struggle we waged, he chose to side with us.'
Aaditya's skepticism must have shown on his face, so Kalki stopped.
'You don't believe me.'
'Look, I know my father better than you and I can't understand why he would ever choose to side with you.'
'Tsk, tsk, the Devas have indeed brainwashed you well. Good and evil are so easy to understand when you think of them as black and white concepts, but reality consists of so many shades of grey. The Devas want to rule over you as gods. All I wanted was to give humans the freedom to choose. Call me a capitalist and them benevolent socialists. That's all the difference there is between us.'
Seeing that Aaditya was still not convinced, Kalki continued with his account.
'So he acted as my adviser on how best to both reach out to humans and how to defeat my adversaries in the air.'
'What happened to him? If he served you so well, why is he not around?'
Kalki looked at Aaditya, surprise in his eyes.
'You mean you really think I killed him? The ones who killed him are your beloved Devas.'
Aaditya's mind refused to believe that. He began to get up, but Kalki held his wrist with a vice-like grip.
'That's why I wanted to meet you. If nothing else, I hoped that you would want to avenge your father and help me against the Devas.'
As suddenly as he had gripped Aaditya's wrist, he let it go.
'The choice is yours. Now, sleep over it and let me know what you choose tomorrow morning. I do hope you choose to cooperate.'
There was no menace in Kalki's tone of voice, but the burning embers in eyes made Aaditya shudder. He was walking back to his room, escorted by Maya, when suddenly a loud siren rang out. Maya grabbed his hand.
'Run, come on!'
Maya dragged him along the corridor till they reached his room, and then faced him as the door slid open.
'Something's going on. You get inside your room and wait till I come for you again or Kalki sends for you.'
With that, Maya was gone, sprinting down the corridor. Aaditya was about to enter his room when it struck him. In his hurry to get away to deal with whatever had happened, Maya had forgotten to put Aaditya inside the room and lock the door. Aaditya was now standing at the threshold. If he walked inside, the door would close behind him. He thought about it for a second and then stepped back out into the corridor. Aaditya would explore for himself what exactly went on in this underwater world that Kalki had created for himself.
THIRTEEN
'Help me! For God's sake, please help me!'
Aaditya had been nearly knocked off his feet by the man who had run into him and before he could recover, the man was holding on to his hand, pleading with him.
Aaditya had been exploring the corridors of Kalki's fortress when he had stumbled upon a steep spiral staircase that seemed to lead deep underground. A good thirty minutes of climbing down the stairs led him to a narrow corridor then to a brightly lit area. He was about to return to his room when the man had stumbled into him.
Aaditya pulled the man into the shadows and in the dim reflected light of the, he got his first good look. The man was emaciated, as if he had not eaten well for days, his ribs sticking out prominently through the thin white vest he wore. His eyes looked desperate, even crazed. His white hair was matted with sweat and clung to his scalp.
'Are you one of them? Are you one of them?'
The man kept asking Aaditya the same question over and over again. Over his shoulder Aaditya saw two shadows moving across the corridor ahead. He flattened himself against the wall, clamping his hand over the man's mouth to keep him shut.
He peered around the corner to see two daityas, each carrying large axes, walk into view. One of them paused just a few feet from Aaditya.
'Looks like he got away. Maya will have us skinned alive if he gets to know.'
The other daitya shrugged.
'Where the hell will he go? Sooner or later we will get him.'
As they disappeared from view, Aaditya removed his hand from the man's mouth. Realizing that he was safe for now, the man slumped to the ground. Aaditya sat down next to him, and turned to look. The man was white, and when he spoke, Aaditya realized that he was most likely American.
'Where the hell have you come from? I haven't seen a man as well fed as you in years.'
Aaditya didn't quite know where to begin. Why was this man running free in the heart of Kalki's fortress? He answered with a question of his own.
'Who are you?'
The man stood up straight, and Aaditya realized that he stood as tall as him.
'I am Colonel James Lafferty, United States Air Force. You can call me Jim.'
'You're an US Air Force Officer? What the hell are you doing here?'
The man put his hand to his lip, motioning for Aaditya to lower his voice.
