The ambulance was rushing as if on turbo charge, on empty road as each of the lanes stayed clogged. Some wondered , "Who is travelling that cleared all streets." For five minutes no traffic controls worked, everything was jammed. Then it suddenly swung back to rhythm. The ambulance served into an ancient mansion that had clearly seen better times. The driver got down and stumbled, "Not again." Many years back he had been a twenty year old, when a blast had taken the life of an elderly man who was working on his experiments. It was one of the reasons why he Iman had never allowed his children to study science. He was glad that his grandson Rohim was an accountant too after studing astrophysics, some thing he had severely challenged. 

He was muttering to himself about travelling fifteen kilometers in five minutes in a rush hour traffic when Ira reached. It took a moment for Iman to recognise her for the young girl who had been cried the loudest that day. He had heard that she had lost her mother post that and given up everything to the aunt who had run away at eighteen with a married man. This month he was fasting and he prayed to his God for peace for the girl. Such a beautiful girl, yet such was her fate. He knew it was all the cursed subject of science. May be she also chased it. He thanked his almighty for keeping Rohim safe. 

Non religious, atheist Ira had prayed to every little living, non living, exotic beings by the time she reached. "Not Air, Not Air, anyone but him. Anyone but her brother." 

The driver of the ambulance extended a hand to her and she got down from the uber and stumbled. Unmindfully she noted that the face looked familiar, one of the agency colleagues had his picture on his desk. "Yes .. the new recruit , Rohim.. One whom Rani mentored." He had even written there, "My grandfather, my hero. " Then all thoughts disappeared as the door  opened. Inside was image of a bloody battle. Clara was crying, " Ira  finally you reach now. Your brother just lost all control and blamed everyone, William shot him. " 

Ira looked around for Air and asked urgently, "Where is he ?" 

William was standing like a rock with a revolver in hand. Clara tried to speak again, "Everything happened in a second of anger, Air attacked William and William took out the gun and shot."

Lies.. lies , Ira knew. Because that voice had shown her what was the truth.

"Where is Air ? " Ira asked again, her heart was erratic. She should have accepted the offer to wrap time and save Air. She was always this fool when it came to taking immediate decisions. Yet the physicist came forth with formula of all that could go wrong. 

"He fell there .. not anyone's fault." Clara was saying, even now pleasing everyone. But as Ira  took an urgent step forward, the world tilted. Everyone screamed. They were pushed to the walls that felt like hollow spaces. The vision blurred to nothing, even voices refused to come out, an intense pressure pulled them all together , squeezing their bones and masses and then threw them aside to far sides of the room. Then they were floating in the air.. tossed around, pushed back, crushed together.

Ira whispered as her head stuck the wall, "Worm hole.. ", unstable, tiny, nano second long moving structures, thousand times more forceful than a black hole for that briefest of brief period, pulling into it matter like a black hole but not to disintegrate but to transfer it to another point of the universe. The space time miracle she had believed possible to exist in the universe, came to the living room of their ancient home. Then she knew it had taken Air..  "Airavat.. " she cried.. A part of her soul, her blood, the last connection with mother.. her last wish, her last innocence. Rest all were irrelevant suddenly, she tried to move towards the field that had formed, though she knew it had disintegrated, what stayed was the mirage and memory. She crawled towards the sofa and yes .. there was nothing. 

Just one second, and then everything sprung back to its original shape. Everyone including the ambulance driver Iman slowly stood up. He mumbled, "Earthquake." frantically trying to call someone one a phone that had  no charge. He muttered.. "It was 99% , a moment back." 

"Where is Air ?" Clara screamed. . 

Not even the spots of blood that had splattered in a path to behind the sofa remained , its trail abruptly ending , not even the usual dust trails of any ancient house. Not even breathable air, for a few seconds then suddenly everything seemed as before. Breathing returned to normal. 

The police arrived, on anonymous call. They noted the blood patterns and believed it was a gun shot wound. The body had disappeared but they refused to believe the story of an earth quake and a strong wind that tossed all aside. No one knew what had truly happened and Ira's whispers about wormholes as tears feel down her face was listened with sympathy but ignored. They possibly did not understand what she was talking about, so Ira tried to explain again. That their agency had sent a signal out and the intelligent beings answered but their worm hole, took her brother instead of her. 

The Police looked at Ira signaling others to stay away from the distraught sister. The uber driver had explained that she had just arrived, crying all through the journey, saying her brother would be harmed. Then systematically they scanned the crime scene. Then they built their preliminary notes - Air challenged the people of the house for the property during a traditional pre Christmas dinner. He showed them proofs of all the things they have stolen. William, the sister's ex boyfriend, shot Air, when he threatened him. The Police knew it was an open and shut case. William had killed Air in a moment of intense argument and all present had hidden the body when Ira had called back Air.

They took custody of William, who had not denied any charge or even spoken a word. He still stood like a rock. 

They wanted to also question the others including Ira. As they sealed the house, Taffy broke into tears.

"Mamma you should have never taken possession of this house. It's a cursed dwelling. Immediately give it back to Ira. " The Police was paying attention so the aunt who tried to hush Taffy. Ira noticed absent mindedly that her Aunt's perfect knot had blown open and some hair were standing like antennae.  

"Even now you have greed ? " Taffy shouted and then suddenly she vomited blood and fell on the ground unconscious. Mayhem broke as everyone started shouting at the same time. Ira stood silent seeing it all play infront of her. She had chosen to forget all the memories of her aunt forcing her to sign off her legacy to her all the properties, all the lands, even this one which was her grandfather's, she had ignored Clara her sister-in-law taking away her last piece of jewelry that her father had left for her when he left. She had tried to tell herself that they deserved it for caring for her and her brother. Today she felt disappointed at herself for her lack of courage to confront people. 

Then a hope entered her heart, the intelligent beings who took Air would definitely save him. She tried to contact that Voice in her mind. But there was nothing, not even an echo. In her desire for worm holes and Jessica's opening the signal to earth, she had indeed managed to contact someone in space. Just that she did not know if it was the Voice or another form, further away. Yet it did not cause any joy, rather a disgust at her pitiful abilities. Why did she not join the lunar mission and keep Air safe and happy. Jan had been correct, was wormholes truly deserving of the risk she had taken. 

Where-ever that intelligence stayed in the vast, dark, expansive Universe, Air would be there, if he had survived the travel at speeds unimaginable to light. If the travel lasted even few seconds longer than human tolerance, Air would be molecules when he reached the exit. The only hope and prayer she had to all God unknown was that the travel was simple and brief to fractions of a second, so that it ended before Air felt the crushing gravitation. "Please please wherever you are, please save Air." As if on that note, her bracelet fell from her bag. "How.." she wondered before putting in round her wrist. "Jan where are you, I need your advise." Came a thought. But then Jan was travelling to exotic lands for the next month.  

The Police took details of each of their version of the truth in the Police Station. Ira felt an intense pull to return to the agency and look through the telescope Durasha. She had to search for Air and Durasha was the only hope as the telescope worked to its own music. A premonition of something major happening now in the agency filled her soul. "Air, hang in there, I will save you." She said under her breath, possibly not quietly as the entire police station turned to her and shook their head mutual grief for her. 

To the Police she told the truth of the phone call but also added the back ground of the years of syphoning of funds, of greed for more. She asked them to look at the registration office for registrations of all the property was transfereed in her aunt's name. Only this residence was one which she had dragged her feet, to appear for the registration. May be it was the reason her brother had realised what had happened. He had never known the wealth they had in the family and what was left to both of them. Her mother had chosen to give Ira the responsibility with a reminder that "Airavat is not the brightest of boys from practical perspective, Please protect him well." In her limited, impractical intelligence, she had thought when her aunt started becoming greedy and punishing Air for small mistakes that if she gave off everything, then Air would be safe. That foolish boy of her mother went onto become a decorated Lieutenant with the army, yet Ira never shared on time to stop this catascope.  

That night, her tired lonely body wanted nothing but a time to grieve, but she dragged herself to the agency, after all the interrogations were done. She requested Durasha for her magic, but the telescope stayed stoic working as an ordinary old telescope. Looking at the room she realised that indeed someone had worked post she had left, tiring Durasha. 

Was it Jessica ? But had she not left prior to Ira. She dialed Jessica on her phone as a worry creeped into her head, but Jessica answer in the first ring. She sounded pleasantly surprised. "Ira..? Thank you for your wishes. You remembered my birthday. You have a great Christmas and holiday too and thank you again, we are cutting the cake just now. So need to run please. Speak soon. "

Jessica was here on the earth, celebrating , a relief and a grief shook Ira. The telescope had now focused on Alkaid. Ancient Sanskit called Alkaid , Marici, the name of a sage. Are you sage like Alkaid, she asked? Would you not show where my brother went? Alkaids nearest inhabitants turned and looked at this mini Jessica. Then they closed their eyes in an ancient ritual of sustaining life on the universe in its purest form. Sounds as ancient as the creation of the universe, reverberated, soothing the curvatures caused by space and time.