Nine: Vengeance of the Warrior by Shobha Nihalani

of people. The Nine are strong and have to protect those whose minds are weak, their destinies are prewritten. I advise you to stay away or it will not be good for you.’

    ‘You cannot tell me what to do!’ Anita hissed. ‘I’m not afraid of you.’
    The man stared at her. ‘You don’t want to know about the Nine. It will only bring you grief, Anita. Stay away from them.’
    ‘Why should I listen to you?’
    The man suddenly grinned. There was blood on his teeth. Then he raised his hand and pointed, the nails were long and twisted with age. Anita felt a scream catch in her throat. The man’s face had shrivelled up. Anita blinked rapidly, her pulse racing. He spoke again. ‘Be careful. Don’t delve into the world of the unknown, you don’t know what evil lurks beneath.’ And then, as if by magic, the strange being walked back into the wall.
    Anita sank back, trembling. ‘The Nine unknown men,’ she mumbled to herself as she stumbled back to her seat. It was a crazy warning. They must have done the same to her grandfather. Still unnerved by the strange incident, Anita quickly packed up her books and notes and slipped them into her bag. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. And more determined.
    Anita fumed and murmured obscenities. She was one woman who had carved out a successful journalistic career on the power of her inquisitiveness. If she didn’t know or understand something she hammered it out with research, slammed questions and hit hard with reasoning. Yeah, she had a reputation—not that great, though—because while men were seen as ambitious when they got ahead, women were termed bitches for being overly pushy. Chasing history was like detective work, sometimes one would find evidence of a story and sometimes one would have to accept the bizarre links. This incident was linked to her research, it convinced her that even the spirits knew she was getting closer to the truth.
    She headed out of the hall and walked through the shadowy corridors fearlessly. The librarian was at her desk, whispering on her mobile. Anita didn’t want to mention the incident, it was pointless. Instead, she waved and hurried out of the building. The face of the man from the library was going to haunt her for a long time, probably forever.
    The Senior Six
    ‘The Nine must always remain unknown. It is the primary truth of the Ashokan legacy. The identities of those who work to benefit mankind must remain invisible.
    ‘Mankind has evolved but their minds are disconnected from the universal truth. They live on the strength of superficial senses. Their ego is far stronger than the energy of their soul. The power of the Nine is sought after and if history repeats itself again, like it did thousands of years ago, like the lost civilizations of Atlantis and Rama, this world will be close to annihilation.
    ‘The protectors have been informed about the woman. They have instilled fear in those who are too inquisitive. For the benefit of mankind, they must not know of the Navratnas, the Nine gems of this world. They must not interfere in their destiny, or affect it in any way.
    ‘Anita is a good soul, her motives are not evil, and precisely for that reason, she must not probe any more. Like her grandfather, she has been warned. I did that today.
    ‘The Kalingan has risen again. He will possess a human and it will be another karmic debt to fulfil. The world has found solace in negative energies. I must guide the Three. Violence is justified in their minds and, indeed, it is necessary to overpower the Kalingan. The gems are pure and perfect, but to survive in this world they must be tarnished.’



9
Raakin
    Raakin was early. The morning sunshine filtered through the windowpane, casting warm rays on the stone floor. Besides him, Jake was usually the early bird. It gave him time to review incoming reports from the electronic surveillance systems that patrolled the Internet, focusing primarily on Nine-related research