Neel Dervin and the Dark Angel (44 page)

 

At the last second, Neel jumped. Flying high into the air, he pulled back his arm. Using
every bit of strength he had, he brought his fist down on the monster‟s head.

 

The monster staggered back a few steps, shaking his head. But then it regained its
balance and roared again.

 

Neel was stunned. This was the only time that he had used his full strength, which would
undoubtedly have knocked out an elephant, yet the monster had not even fallen down.
As he stood frozen in shock, the giant bounded towards him with surprising speed,
smashing into him head on.

Neel
flew back into Divya‟s cage, breaking the front wall of the room and slamming into
the back wall, making a crater shaped hole. Divya barely got out of the way in time.
The entire area shuddered, but the building had been constructed to withstand earthquakes. It
did not break.

“Okay, he‟s a lot stronger than me.” Neelgrunted, picking himself up. “Think of
something fast, I need help.” He ran once again towards the monster.

 

Divya dialed Arjun‟s number, praying he could help. At the first ring, Arjun picked up.
“Divya?” he said urgently over the phone.

 

“Yes, it‟s me.” Divya said hurriedly, listening to the sounds of battle coming from
outside. “Listen, Arjun. I‟ve found out who the traitor-”

 

“I know its Doctor Fahim.” Arjun interrupted her. “Mehta told me everything. Divya,
you need to get away from there. Mehta‟s monster is going to wake up at any second.”

 

“It‟s already awake.” Divya said frantically. “Neel‟s fighting it right now. But that thing
is too strong. Neelcan‟t win this fight.”

 

Arjun swore loudly. “Okay, I‟m sending the police over immediately.”

 

“There‟s no time. Neelis going to die if we don‟t help him.” Divya shouted. “I need to
know how Mehta controlled his monster.”

 

“He used a depressant to keep it sedated.” Arjun said. “I‟m going to Phlicer complex to
try to find the drug. Divya, listen”

But Divya had already hung up. She ran to the pile of equipment Doctor Fahim had
smuggled out of Phlicer complex to help him in finding a cure for his son. Praying the
sedative was also there, she started opening boxes feverishly and looking through the rows of
bottles.

Neel was worried. His speed was helping him avoid the monster blows, but his punches
were having little effect on the giant. He knew the fight might come down to who could stay
on his feet the longest, and if he made the slightest mistake and the monster caught him, his
opponent would be merciless.

“Hurry up, Divya.” he shouted.

 

Divya looked at the rows of bottles containing liquids of every shape and size. She
forced her mind to remember her chemistry books, trying to identify the sedative.

She rummaged desperately through the boxes, finding only steroids and other
supplements.Mehta‟s researches into nuclear fission were horrifyingly evident among the
mass of strange new drugs. She continued searching frantically for the one that was needed.

And finally she saw it. In a separate box, at the bottom of the pile of boxes, a single drug
was kept in twenty separate bottles, along with a syringe.

 

Divya guessed one bottle was for a single dosage, but it was no time to take risks. She
emptied three bottles, putting as much of the drug as she could into the syringe.

 

“Neel, you need to get this drug inside hisbody.” she shouted over the sounds of the
battle.

Neel turned to look at her, and that was his fatal mistake. He did not even see the punch
connect with his head. The monster‟s fist drove him to his knees. Another punch flattened
him against the ground. The monster‟s punches rained down unceasingly, driving Neel
deeper into the earth, every punch sending shock waves across the ground.

Divya watched in horror. Soon, Neel
‟s body would break. He was in too much pain to
try to get away. She ran to the monster, trying to stay out of its line of vision. She clutched
the needle in her hand and drove it as hard as she could into its back. Even then she could not
have pierced his skin if the syringe hadn‟t been prepared specially for his hide. The monster
howled, turning around, huge arms swinging. One hand connected with Divya, sending her
flying twenty feet away. She slammed into the wall, feeling excruciating pain as three of her
ribs cracked.

The monster lurched, fighting the drug, and came towards Divya. But the sedative was
taking effect. It took a few trembling steps, and then fell to the floor with a deep crash.

Divya got up slowly, biting her lip to stop from screaming as the pain ripped through her
stomach. She walked past the monster, and gazed in horror at the unconscious body of Neel
Dervin, lying embedded several feet deep into the ground.

* * *

Neel opened his eyes, his mind sending confusing flashes of memory to him. He sat up
slowly and gazed blearily at his surroundings. The vague figure of Divya sitting in a chair
near him came slowly into focus. As his eyes searched the surroundings he groaned, taking in
the white bed he was lying in, while machines noted the various activities happening in his
body.

“This is becoming a very bad habit.” he told Divya.

 

“At least you always come out of here in one piece.” Divya remarked with a smile.

 

“I feel so lucky.” Neel muttered. Slowly, his mind was recalling what had happened.
He sat up, examining his body. “How long was I out?”

“
Twodays.” Divya replied. “You recovered remarkably well, considering how badly
you were hurt.Your mother was given a slightly different version of your accident. She‟s
waiting downstairs.” Divya paused. “It might a while before she lets you step foot out of your
house again.”

“And what happened to… to…” he couldn‟t bring himself to say the name.

Divya gazed at
him sadly. “Doctor Fahim is dead.” she said quietly. “His neck was
broken beyond repair. His body has been buried.” She hesitated, but then continued. “I‟ve
been appointed the new head of project Alpha.”

“Congrats.” Neelsaid. “I‟m sure you‟ll do a great job.”

 

“I hope so. And when you come back to Swan Labs” Divya began.

“I‟m not coming back.”
Neelbroke in quietly. He avoided looking into Divya‟s eyes,
trying to hide his ownemotions. “I‟m quitting the project.” He struggled to keep his voice
from shaking. He was not going to cry again. He was done crying now.

Divya‟s heart sank. She had been afraid of this.

 

“Neel, I know how you must feel about Doctor Fahim, but you can‟t let what he did
make you forget why you joined the project in the first place.” she said softly.

“He never believed in me.”
Neel said, fighting to keep his voice frombreaking. “I
trusted him completely, and all the time he was counting on me tofail.” DoctorFahim‟s
words were echoing through this mind.
“He had no qualifications for the job other than his
complete and total ordinariness... An only child, Father dead, mother away from home for
long periods, and so having had a neglected childhood.... showed no brilliance in either
studies or games... Had no hobbies or any qualities which could set him apart as special or
gifted...The perfect boy for my purpose...”
all the insecurities and complexes that had been in
Neel‟s mind since childhood had been examined pitilessly and used to validate his failure.
For a long time he had felt as though there was a disembodied voice in his head telling him
he would never be rid of his PTSD condition. Now he knew who that voice had belonged to.

He looked up at Divya, and his eyes werewet with tears. “How can I go back to the
placewhere the people I trust the most would stab me in the back?”

“
Neel, you know that is not true.” Divya said forcefully, trying desperately to reach the
hurt she saw in his eyes. “Arjun risked his life to rescue you from Mehta that night in Phlicer.
General Bakshisent the entire police force to save you from Mehta‟s creature. You have
friends who would put their lives on the line to help you, because you yourself would do the
same for them. You were able to overcome your phobia because you wanted to save the
reporter who had fallen in front of you. And that care you show for others is your biggest
strength.” Neelstill said nothing. Divya reached out and took his hand in hers. “Don‟t you
see? Doctor Fahim had picked the perfect person for the job, and his plans failed because you
proved that you were much stronger than he had supposed. Neel, you have survived more
near death experiences in the last one year than most people face in their lifetime. But if you
quit now, DoctorFahim‟s reasons for picking you will be proved true. And you have
overcome too much to give in now.”

“I need some time to think.”Neel said in a quiet voice.“I need time to figure out if I still
want to do this.”

 

Divya stood up. “You might need time, but there are others who need hope.” She walked
over to the television and turned it on, flipping through the news channels.

One channel showed an area where a bomb blast had occurred. The road was littered
with dead bodies. On another, a father cried for his missing son. A reporter discussed the
possibility of the police helping the criminal elements of the city.

Strikers being forced to retreat in front of police force. Workers demanding their rights.
People screaming for help.

 

Genocide… chaos… despair.

Neel stared at the screen for a long time. There was a pounding in his heart. He had
known… even while he had been talking, in his heart hehad known… it was not going to be
so easy to just walk away from it all. He turned to face Divya.

“So what happened to mymask?”

 

EPILOGUE…

“Hey
!” Aryan called out as to Priyanka and Neel as the three walked down a busy
marketplace one day. The other two turned. He pointed towards a television in a store, which
was tuned to a news channel. A reporter was showing an artist‟s sketch of a black clad and
masked figure. They were discussing, yet again, the mysterious bank robbery and the
subsequent alleged sightings.

“Think he‟s real?” Aryan muttered as the other two came to stand next to him.

 

“If he‟s really as good as they say he is, I hope so.” Priyanka said fervently. “The streets
feel a lot safer now.”

“Yeah, but what‟s the deal with
that
guy
?” Aryan said. “He just shows up out of
nowhere and then he disappears. And nobody knows anything about who he is or why he‟s
doing this.”

Neel shrugged as the other two looked at him. “
Whatever the deal is, it seems to be
working.” he said as he turned away from the shop.“Maybe he doesn‟t really have answers,
either. Maybe he‟s just trying to figure it all out as he goes along.”

Night time.

It was the time of shadows that the criminal elements of the city felt most comfortable
in. A time to carry out their business unseen and undetected, and to prey with ease on any
people unfortunate enough to capture their attention.

But now the criminals are not as secure as before, because a different shadow stands
over them, as insubstantial and elusive as the air they breathe, but just as undeniable.

He is a ghost, some whisper. Other call him a curse. A demon, or perhaps a vengeful
spirit sent by the gods. Some say he can fly, some say he can read minds and move faster
than the wind. But no one knows more about him than the rumors.

A figure moves through the darkness.

Impossibly fast, it travels as much through the sky as on the ground, effortlessly
bounding across impossible terrains. A small, deceptively slight figure that seems to exist
more in urban legend and spook stories than in the real world. Little is known about him, and
even less of it is true. But that doesn‟t stop the endless speculations.

And so being named by the popular press, the Dark Angel soars through the sky.