Whispers in the Wind
The monsoon arrived early in 2015, blanketing northern India with a relentless sheet of rain. But the storm brewing over the country wasn't just meteorological—it was ideological, political, and technological.
In a dimly lit basement beneath a nondescript building in Dehradun, Ram sat in silence, staring at the blinking console of what looked like a data terminal from the future. To him, it was primitive. But to this world, it was a decade ahead.
He had built an empire from shadows. His NGO schools were thriving, producing prodigies who were reshaping the academic landscape. His biotech and robotics firms—disguised under layers of shell companies and foreign fronts—were funneling technology light-years ahead of their time into India's growth.
But power always attracts attention.
The Intelligence Bureau had begun flagging unusual stock activities. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs had red-flagged over twenty shell companies, noting their staggering but silent growth. Even the Prime Minister's Office had taken note of a mysterious investment boom seemingly orchestrated from the shadows.
Ram read the headlines in the Indian Express:
> "Untraceable Tech Surge Behind India's Market Boom. Who's Pulling the Strings?"
He smirked, folding the paper. They were getting close. Too close.
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Perspective: Agent Arvind Malik – Intelligence Bureau
Malik rubbed his temples, staring at the corkboard plastered with maps, flowcharts, and red strings connecting digital ghosts. It was like trying to find a needle in a stack of needles.
"Sir," a junior analyst said, pushing forward a report. "We've tracked similar tech patents coming from different companies, all eventually connecting to a firm registered in Hong Kong. But the signature? It's the same code architecture. AI-based. Proprietary."
Malik nodded. "Find the origin. This… this has fingerprints of someone playing god behind curtains."
He didn't know it yet, but he was hunting Ram.
---
Back to Ram – Midnight Confessions
Deep in the forested silence of Uttarakhand, Ram walked alone. Rain dripped from the hood of his coat, and the forest floor squelched underfoot. He often came here when doubt clouded his mind. He spoke aloud—not to anyone in particular, but to the wind.
"Was it right? Using AI to manipulate elections, markets, even education outcomes? Was saving India worth becoming its unseen tyrant?"
The forest did not answer.
A call buzzed in his custom-built phone.
"Ram," said Asha, his closest aide and the AI ethics lead. "You need to see this. A hacker cell from Sweden tried to breach one of the biotech facilities. They weren't looking for patents. They were looking for… biological data."
Ram's heart stilled.
His grandmother's DNA sequence. His secret research on longevity. His minions.
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The Blackout Protocol
"Initiate blackout across Tier 3 nodes," he ordered. "Shut down external comms in Facilities 17 through 31. And activate Project Veda's AI firewall."
Asha hesitated. "That would mean global isolation for at least a week."
Ram nodded. "Do it. We can't afford exposure."
The walls of secrecy had to be fortified. And he needed more allies.
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A New Face Emerges: Nikhil Srivastava
At IIT Delhi, a name kept emerging in academic circles—Nikhil Srivastava, a math prodigy. Ram had been watching him since he was 14. Now 21, he was the perfect candidate.
That night, Ram personally visited him.
"I'm offering you a future," Ram said. "Not in academia, not in politics—but in shaping the new world."
Nikhil leaned back. "Who are you really?"
Ram smiled. "No one. But I make kings."
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Whispers Grow Louder
A journalist at The Wire, Ritu Sharma, had compiled six months of suspicious reports. School kids with near-genius IQs appearing from rural districts. Companies with no CEOs producing next-gen tech. Hospitals healing patients with biotech techniques not even in trials in the West.
Ritu's article was to be titled:
> The Ghost of India's Future – Is a Secret Messiah Among Us?
Ram read her draft through intercepted emails.
"She's good," he whispered. "Too good."
He didn't want to silence her. He wanted to recruit her.
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Chapter End: The Ghost Becomes a Myth
And so, Ram, the child from 2035 now disguised as an invisible force in 2015, began rewriting his approach. From now on, it wouldn't be about staying hidden.
It would be about becoming a myth. An untouchable force no one could trace but everyone would feel.
The storm wasn't coming. It was already here.
And Ram… was its eye.