After refreshing themselves and washing the dirt off from them at the stream, the trio headed to the nearby hollow tree trunk. They walked through bushes, creepers, dead leaves, broken twigs and stones to reach the trunk. They laughed at each other if their leg or hand got stuck in some plant. The ever-resourceful Leena guided pointing out poisonous or itchy plants and insects. So, they found a safe path.
They gathered some more fruits as they walked. It was still daytime over the canopy of trees with the sun setting under the hills. Inside the canopy, light danced through in patches.
"Are we going to sleep on earth?" Leena shot a puzzled look.
"No, of course not. We shall pluck lots of large banana leaves and put them on the floor. We can use doctor or chemist toy sets for sharp objects to use for plucking." Lisha replied.
"Sounds good. Let's do." Leena replied.
Soon, there was a make shift banana leaves floor inside the hollow trunk.They planted fallen down sticks into the mud at the mouth to fence off animals and tied the end of the dupatta to the twig. It was dark and as large as a room. Without a torch or mobile, they took turns in napping and waited for the night to glow.
As soon as the fireflies glowed, guided by the rustling of waters, holding hands and walking, they arrived at the stream in pitch black night. Moonlight was thinner than sunlight and shone through the canopy like dazzling white needles.
Fireflies emitted dazzling yellow light and their reflection on the stream glowed up the entire place. So, the trio walked on.
Back at the van, they had exited the ghat roads and decided on a longer route due to the broken window. The adults decided to travel on beaten mud paths through villages and mangroves instead of the concrete roads.
The three teenagers had just regained their senses. Tina blinked and widened her eyes in horror.
She heard some mumbling.
"Doctor ji, we ride trucks. Where do you get your car repaired? We will replace window there," the driver said, adding, "the boss will be uncontrollably angry, otherwise."
She shot him a very sceptical look, thinking, "Oh, he is a doctor and didn't he know that we will suffocate without oxygen! Or was he good in bio but bad at math not dividing "Oxygen Available time" by 6?
Or did he copy and pass his medical exams? Which school did he study in? Where does he work? I will never go there.
Leena would be so disappointed thinking that even before I take med entrance, here lies a specimen who has utterly tarnished my field and discouraged me to pursue…"
She was gagged, her hands and feet tied up with rope. Her eyes were big and round giving the doctor a very sceptical look. She could not speak.
The doctor was a conductor in their journey. He turned towards her –"What? Scared? Nothing will happen if you sit quietly."
Raj and Nishit were completely alert, unable to fathom her mind. They thought that she was more scared than usual! If they had telepathic ability to read her thoughts, despite their circumstance, they would have giggled.
"Doctor ji, do you need help?" The toll booth person stepped inside.
"No no, it is fine. We must get them some food. You want proper package delivery in sound condition, isn't it?" The doctor replied. He continued, "If anything happens to them, your boss will have problems."
The toll booth person was sharp, "Doctor ji, you are very soft. This is our business line. You must learn if you want to get paid. Our package will escape. Seeing them as humans, will make your job hard. Don't!"
The driver said, "We too will not eat."
The conductor cum doctor replied, "How about eating fruits in the jungle? Or purchasing food parcels and eating them in jungle?"
The toll booth person sat with the teens and the doctor now. He offered, " Motel Veloster in Holestarf has readymade food packets. Let's get them."
"Good idea," the driver said.
Silence ensued as the van slowly and soundlessly moved along the mud path overlooking paddy fields. In the night, they had good strong headlights. The van did not want to attract the attention of all the villagers as they would be found out. Some part of their turf would be compromised, if police came questioning.
Some in the police were loyal to Promdhu extremists group whereas others were on the side of justice. If the just policeperson's superiors were supporters of Promdhu extremists, then some or all their work would be fruitless. Sometimes, a Promdhu extremist supporter with a just boss needed to sacrifice a lower ranked pawn or turf to keep their position intact. The policeperson would have notified the Promdhu extremist leaders and would act as per their directive.
Though the three adults were on the fringe of Promdhu extremist group, yet they were very skillful. So, the Promdhu extremist group would never offer them as pawns.
The minivan had good headlights manoeuvring through the night with the glowing fireflies scattered like loosely hung stars in 3 D space. Back in the jungle, the number of fireflies had exponentially grown and the reflection in the rustling stream seemed like a million stars glowing.
Leena was half amused and half spooked walking in the night. She had never done this before... she was in awe!
Shreyas asked, "These fireflies… can we not hear them?"
"No, we cannot. They produce ultrasonic clicks outside human hearing range." Leena replied.
"Ok, that is sad." Lisha responded.
By now, the minivan had stopped at their decided tiny motel. They got the food packets. The vehicle slowly moved in the night like a caterpillar. They stopped on an empty road with a single water tap nearby.
The water tap was meant for paddy workers to clean themselves in the evening, before retiring to their homes. Now, there was a dull silence broken by the open door of the minivan.
The adults switched on the light, refreshed themselves outside and ate their food first. The teens were growling in hunger. After they had dinner, they freed up one hand and their mouths.
Immediately, Nishit screamed, "Help, help us. I am being killed."
Tina cried. Only Raj held himself together.
The driver and the toll booth person roared in laughter.
The driver asked, "Who can hear you?"
They patted themselves for not feeding them in a crowded area.
Later, they were allowed them to wash their hands through the open window pane. Tina sobbed and ate her food in silence as hunger pangs tore her body.
When Nishit started gulping down his food, then Raj reminded him, "Eat slowly when starving. Let us eat less. Otherwise, we cannot digest."
"Oh, I am sorry. You did not have lunch or snacks. It is dinner time.We would be caught if…" The doctor felt guilty.
The driver spat out, "Doctor ji, you are soft. Please stop."
After dinner, the minivan moved faster and hit the concrete roads again.
Inside the jungle, even if anyone was drowsy, they still kept going. They nudged each other, loyally repeated their slogan and washed their face in the stream to march ahead. Their slogan was– "March, march. Save our friends."
The quacks of the ducks kept them alert too! Sometimes, they munched fruits and fed them to the ducks along the way. Very soon, dawn broke on them.
They looked up to see a clear sky. The canopy was not over the stream anymore. On both sides of the stream, the canopy stretched on and on, slightly less thick.
Suddenly, the vigilant Lisha exclaimed, "The direction we are headed is upstream. Look, polluted white foam. People upstream must be washing their clothes. Some dirty polythene and bits of fabric. Oh!"
Hearing this, Shreyas immediately climbed up to the top. Her surveyed the land and came down.
"Monkey, monkey, what do you see?" Lisha asked.
This time, Leena also joined her. "Monkey, monkey, what do you see?"
"Dear chimpanzees, no human civilization can be seen yet. Can we swing now?" Shreyas replied.
Lisha said, "Yes, my feet are very sore. We are walking for hours."
Leena requested, "Teach me, I can swing on my own too."
She put on the gloves from her bag. Shreyas and Lisha taught her to swing. With the dupatta of ducks tied to his ankle and the giggling girls, after 5 minutes of swinging, Shreyas spotted a culvert and the road.
They reached the road and stayed hidden.
Lisha took charge, "We do not know if they have sent other people to kidnap us. Shreyas, you stay on top and V-signal to us if you find a bus or government jeep. Both of us will show our hands and ask them to stop."
Lisha tied up the ducks at a distance from them.
Leena added, "Only hand, no mouth, okay?"
"Alright." Shreyas climbed up again.
Several small groups of people passed them by, but they kept quiet. Several hours passed by.
Leena whispered, "The more we wait, the more danger our friends are in!"
Lisha said, "I understand that. But it will definitely do no good to fall into the enemy trap's again." She paused, "Our ending will be much worse when they feel outsmarted."
Leena sighed.
The trio hoped and waited for a familiar local bus to show up. To rescue them which, in turn would lead to their friends' rescue, they hoped.