"So you were hiding here!"
'The Hound' was a nickname given to one of the most vicious Users in all of Bharat. He was also amongst the top 3 Users of the Government.
"You traitor!! If not for you, I wouldn't have had to come all the way here by myself."
'What?'
'Hound betrayed the Union!?''
Looking at the expression and tone of the Union leader, Hound must have been in a high position in the Union.
'That explains Hounds power then.', I thought.
Union followed the Gurukul system of schooling. All the monks, saints, and other mystics on Earth, all belonged to one or other Gurukul. However, more than just a place of teaching, Gurukul is considered to be a second home to the students.
For a student of Gurukul, the Guru's legacy and Guru himself are sacred. To break the rules of a Gurukul was worse than backstabbing their own fathers.
Hound: "What traitor!! I told you to change your methods, but you wouldn't listen."
Guru: "You don't know what you have done."
Hound: "I have done the right thing. It is time for the Brahmanical rule to end. Humanity shall get rid of all the rudimentary teachings of the Gurukul system."
Guru: "If you want to fight, then fight. You are not capable of comprehending the vastness of our ancestors. You are not even at the level of a 'frog in the well', and talk about liberating humanity."
'Was their internal fighting in the Union?'
From the conversation of those two, I could tell that the reason why the Union leader himself had to lead the attack at the military facility.
'There must be some secret in this facility which is detrimental to the Union, and Hound is most probably the reason why it landed in the hands of military.'
~[Beta] listen~
[ AN: Beta: bae-ta - means son in Hindi ]
~Telepathy?~
I had already experienced telepathy in Hell, but on Earth, it was the first time.
~Yes, but listen. Take these and make a run for the northeast exit. You'll find a Warp portal there. Just go through there and ask for teacher Shishu. He will tell you what to do!~
~You sound desperate. Is Hound really that powerful?~
~Just do as I say. There is a lot you don't know, but trust me this once!~
I had heard about Union leader aka Param Guru from my father. Param Guru is not only the leader of the Union but also the most respected and powerful force of the Union. According to my father's warnings, I must give him the utmost respect, today and in future.
~Why do you trust me to follow through?~
~Boy, I have spent more time sleeping than you have spent awake. I know what I'm doing.~
~...~
I couldn't reply.
~Anyway, I knew your father, so I definitely know about you. Even though we never met while you were awake, I'm still your father's and that stupid boy Mark's teacher. Also, Kala was my daughter, and KT was my right-hand man for many years before he joined your father's team.~
I couldn't believe my ears.
I had already known that the Maiyatt team was implanted by the Union, but the fact that their existence was so deeply entangled with the leader of the Union.
Hound: "Oye! Guru ji, what scheme are you cooking? Hand over the seal right now and I might spare your life!!"
Before the Hound even finished his sentence, he had already plunged his staff in Guru's direction.
'He is also level 5?'
````
scientist: "My efforts finally paid off."
"what happened?"
scientist: "I've found a potention candidate. Aren't you happy for me, Rat!!"
"..."
scientist: "Why aren't you saying anything! This is a great step in Prana Research. Hound will soon become Level 4, one of the strongest existence in the Universe! HAHAHA!!!!"
`````
I remembered the conversation I had with the mad scientist before.
'Didn't he just reach level 4 few months back? How is he level 5 already?'
In the last 50 years, many Users had popped up on Earth. However, it was very hard for them to understand the [logs] as it was written in Sanskrit and even harder for them to gather sufficient Prana to activate their Chakra, as Prana was almost non-existent on Earth.
The first time, I had returned from Hell, I had almost suffocated myself to death because there was simply no Prana on Earth. In contrast, Hell was so rich in pure Prana, that even a broken foundation like mine, could also gather Prana there.
Just as I was immersed in so many thoughts, Guru threw two things towards me.
[ Ring of Wisdom ]
[ Seal of Samsara ]
I looked at the ring and the Mala. The ring didn't look anything special, but the Mala was made up of gold-silver beads with very small letters engraved on each bead. They were so small that, if I didn't have the third eye, I wondered if I could even notice that.
No matter how curious I was, time was of the essence. Although I wasn't on anybody's side in the war, I still favoured the Union more because of my parents and teachers.
And knowing that Param Guru was also my grand-teacher, I could not bring myself to ignore his request.
'What would my teachers say, If I don't help Guru Ji here?', I sighed internally.
As soon as the things landed on my hands, I made a run for the northeast corridor.
As I exited the room, I briefly noticed the figure of Hound that had turned towards me. There was an expression of bewilderment on his face as if he had seen a ghost.
'Oh right! I hid my presence! He must have just noticed me.'
Out of habit, I was using Kala's secret [Mantra]. Even though I was only level 1, my Prana reserves were as large as Level 5s, not to mention, my level of Prana control which was honed in 200 years was almost at the level of Union leader.
'No wonder he could see and converse with me without effort. He is Kala's father after all!'
Although both the Hound and Guru Ji were level 5 right now, there was a vast difference in their knowledge and insight.
Unfortunately, I was still weak to take part in their fight. Being able to have proper motor functions even after twenty years of imprisonment was already a marvellous feat.
Ignoring the very loud sounds of walls breaking and things getting destroyed, I left the room and reached the end of the northeastern corridor.
------
'Ok! I'm almost there.'
Just as I reached the door, beyond which was my route to freedom, I sensed a great threat approaching me from behind.
(*BAM!!*)
The thrust of the staff carried by Hound had more speed than my reaction. Before I could turn and guard the incoming attack, the staff's end had landed straight in between my packs.
(*crack...*)
With the faint sound of my bones cracking, I felt a surge of pain rising from my chest to my head.
(*whoosh .. BAM!!*)
My weakened body was nothing compared to a full-fledged attack of a level 5. If it was 20 years ago, things might have been different, but right now I was the weakest even amongst all the level 1 Users.
Hound: "Give me the seal!!"
"What seal? I don't have anything!", I refuted.
Hound: "Don't bullshit me, old man. I'm giving you a chance, why do you want to die meaninglessly?"
He wasn't lying. To kill me was easier than killing a fly with those fancy electric rackets.
I was an old man with a weak body and if not for my experience in Hell and the third eye's awakening, I could not have survived more than 80 years of age.
Although I was stagnant being caged as a lab experiment for the last 20 years, it was still a great feat for me to be alive and kicking after reaching 100 years of age.
'Wait a second? Why doesn't he simply take the seal away from my hand!', I thought.
"Hahahaha...", I grabbed my stomach due to laughing excessively.
Hound: "Have you gone crazy, old dog! You are already on your death bed. Why are making your life difficult!"
"Haha! Oh My Rudra!! I haven't laughed so hard in decades!!"
I could see the veins popping up on Hound's forehead.
The reason why he didn't kill me right away was probably that the seal cannot be forcibly taken. It must be passed onto someone and even that required strict conditions.
The reason why Param Guru said "I finally found you", must have meant that I satisfied those condition.
"Are you worried that I'll die before passing on the seal to you?"
Hound: "If you already know then hand it over. If you do I'll help you and you can spend last day's of your life in peace."
"Peace? Where were you when I was prisoned for the last two decades. What does a human life even mean to the government?"
Hound: "Old man, take note of your age, don't go senile already. I'm giving you a chance of your lifetime."
"My life is already over, I don't need sympathy from someone who is so disgusting that he would betray his own family."
As soon as I mentioned his betrayal, Hound lost all the sense of patience he was showing earlier. Even if he was a traitor, his intentions were not to betray but to usher humanity into a new age.
Hound: "You don't know the reality of this world. If I can unseal this world everything would be over. It would be better for humanity to go back to its roots."
I could sense pain in his sentence, even though we were mortal enemies right now, I also knew that if he was selected by the Union as a Guru, he must have had his good qualities in the past.
'So what reason would make an highly respected Guru deviate from his path?', I was gaining sympathy. This was the side-effect of old age.
"Don't bullshit me, boy. I haven't got these white hairs for nothing. What are roots without morals, If human's were to really go back to those supposed root, what would it achieve!"
Hound: "I'm done talking to you."
As soon as he finished, came the last blow that he had been holding off trying to convince me to hand over the only thing saving this world from destruction willingly.
[*raises stick to attack*]
(*clang....*)
The two staff collided with each other with vigour so extreme that it was enough to faint any normal humans out of his wits.