"You are the reason they fought like idiots!"
Adi was telling Vachi and Vachi wasn't having any of it.
"What do you mean I'm the reason? They were going to fight anyway. They made me the reason."
"Same thing," He said.
She realised that it was futile trying to argue with him, a person who was bedridden.
"How are you hurt? That day, you fought on a level higher than this, and I didn't see your hair out of place."
Adi smiled. Vachi had to admit that villains look cool when they smile. And that's how you make reasons that are really scary. Vachi would definitely not do this because she wasn't that courageous.
"You could have acted. There was no need to get really hurt, right?"
"You are still naive. People here have dog noses. So please never act. Do the real thing."
Weird suggestion. Vachi was not going to take it.
"Why did you call me? I had to scale walls to come here."
"Did you notice anything in the fight? Anything strange?"
So this was a questioning session. She clearly hadn't prepared for it.
"I didn't see anything out of the ordinary."
Adi sighed.
"You haven't found how the sidekicks are more powerful than superheroes this year."
"How could that be? If sidekicks are more powerful than superheroes, shouldn't they be superheroes and superheroes now would be the sidekicks? Isn't that very wrong and most improbable situation?"
"Well, that's what we have to investigate. The things are same everywhere else. Why would someone want the superheroes to be weaker than sidekicks?"
Yes, why?
"To control, right? Sidekicks controlling superheroes, no one would know. Then if someone else controls sidekicks, the whole heroes can be easily controlled."
Adi had a twinkle in his eyes. Vachi felt like he was out of some kind of comic. The characters who are good but also bad but you just can't seem to hate them. He was like that. She didn't know how right she was but she felt that way.
"You know what, I know that we aren't close or anything and we just met, but I still want to ask, can you tell me your purpose? I really didn't like you at first because you wanted me to work for you and you also acted like a jerk."
Adi wanted to interrupt her but Vachi stopped him.
"No, first listen to me. It's okay for me to work for you. But first, we have to be partners, not subordinates and leaders. And second, you keep me safe, I will help you."
"You realize we aren't at a safe place to discuss stuff like this. Anyone can eavesdrop here."
"I know and this is to stop that."
The system turned from the ball had changed into a shield now so she was not worried.
Adi raised an eyebrow which was really cool. She couldn't do that till now.
"So what do you say?"
"Deal. I want your help too. I will give you some stuff. You go through that and you will get the basic idea."
That's how Vachi landed with ten huge books and a small pamphlet. Adi had a mini space. He was so rich. Mini spaces weren't handed over to common people, not even some superheroes. And Adi had given one away for free. This proved how rich he was.
The ten books made Vachi want to slam her head against the wall. So she started with the pamphlet. The pamphlet was folded into six parts.
The tree spirit is formed when a family worships the tree for ten generations with faith and love. The tree spirit is a guardian. The tree spirit is the life of the family in crisis. And the tree spirit can bring the dead back to life.
Well, that looked like a story. Vachi was immensely interested in this. She turned the page.
The lineage of Adhir has been thinning and there are only hundreds left in the clan. The tree spirit is slowly dying and the future looks grim.
This was written in a sloppy handwriting and the font was very classic. People didn't write that way now or even a hundred years before.
Vachi slowly looked at the next page.
I'm writing this for the descendants of my clan. The next two generations will decide if this family can survive. The tree spirit is now a mortal and enemies are surrounding us.
Wait, what? Is this a diary of sorts? Vachi was getting nervous now.
I, Dev Adhir, twenty first head of Adhir family give up my position and appoint Taru as my executor.
It looked like something tragic had happened at this juncture.
To my twin sons, mother will fall asleep now. Your father is still missing and our bond is weakening. I hope you find each other and the day you recognize your identities, you will become the head of Adhir family again. Your family loves you.
The last page was blank.
Why did Adi give her this? Did that mean he was from this family? And he was young. So he should be one of the twins. He had told her that he was searching for his brother. So this was the situation in his family.
She had so many doubts but she had no one to ask. So she slowly took one of the books to read.
The book was actually a record of his industries. It was really cool that he managed all this in his free time. The other books had stuff about his magic abilities, current superheroes, villains and even info about the academy students.
It was all sealed in these biomemory books.
But this all made Vachi very sad. At least her life was okay. She had no business to inherit and no feud to take care of. But maybe her future was worrying. She couldn't figure out the problem in her future sent message yet. And she had not mastered her ability too.
But anyway, her future had changed. She didn't make the choice to exhibit her powers so a major shift should have occurred.
In the distant future, cracks were forming. A man held a woman in his arms and cried.
"I would have found a way. You don't have to sacrifice everything. Why don't you trust me?"
The woman smiled. Her eyes had a deep melancholy but her smile never wavered.
"You know we don't have time. Only I can do this. And I have to do this."
Seeing her firm eyes, he hated everything. He hated her perseverance, her hope and himself.
"But you will die. No one will remember you. The one in your past will not become you. Your past self will not know you. No one will know you. I will forget you. Why do you have to do this to me? Why?"
Seeing his heartbreaking cry, the woman paled.
"You have to be strong. I cant afford being selfish. I only have you. Promise me you will not die. You have to end this. You remember me till you can. And if my past self asks, please help her."
The man cried and slowly light left her eyes. She died.
At the same moment, in the past, Vachi felt a shock. Her chest hurt and her mind buzzed. She felt like she died. But she was alive. She felt that something was leaving her bit by bit. She tried to catch it but it slipped her fingers.
Vachi fell down and the books all fell beside her. The pamphlet fell on her palms and she fainted.
The man looked at the woman disappearing before him and cried. He could only try to hug her but he didn't succeed.
She left him for the world. She loved him but she couldnt live with him. She was really cruel. Asking him to live for her and asking him to forget her. How could he not hate this?
Someone came behind him and then kneeled before him.
"Shes gone."
The man didn't answer.
"If mother was here, she could save her. You know, our lives are lifetimes of missed opportunities and perfectly bad timing."
"She could have stayed but she sent a message back in time. Her past changed and her future will also change. But this change is not approved by the will of the world and she will die for this correction. She knew this, Mani. She never told me. I knew this too. I was finding a new way. She didnt wait for me. She just left me. She took my desire to go after her too."
"Maybe some miracle will happen. You don't lose hope. She is saving everyone. God will not abandon her."
The man said nothing.
Vachi didn't wake up for six hours.
The system that was staying quiet suddenly lit up.
"New Time Traveler"
"Presence detected"
"Presence disappearing"
Vachi did not know the changed but the world knew that everything was changing.
The tilted balance was righting itself.