Before reaching the mysterious location, the white car did many more things it was technically incapable of. Alas, Bhairavi was too engrossed in coming up to speed with all the information she had in front of her to notice. 

Throwing a discreet glimpse at the only conscious human occupant who was otherwise occupied, the mysterious driver stopped his efforts at keeping up appearances. He pressed buttons that shouldn't have existed on a dashboard at least a foot wider and longer than a tiny car like the Maruti 800 could accommodate. Upgrades.

He could always take shelter under that umbrella, right? 

As more and more vehicles started following them, it got increasingly difficult not to throw caution to the wind and carry the car, along with its occupants, to their destination on his back. Alas, the driver had been forbidden to take matters into his hand, literally, by the higher-ups. 

As they neared the place, Dheera felt a tingling sensation light the very core of his being. 

Jai Shree Ram! 

It had been ages since the mighty demigod had visited the place. In fact, this would be his first visit since bidding farewell to his Lord thousands of years ago. 

The world had strayed from the path laid down by his master, and now, he was all alone. The only souls keeping him bound to the mortal plane were people like Anjani and Bhairavi, who called his Lord Shree Ram's name with such purity that he had to answer their summons in his Lord's stead. 

Jai Shree Ram!

The monkey king was blessed with immortality and a free pass to enter and leave all three realms as he pleased. However, it had been long since he had stepped foot in Narka, or what the westerners called it: Hell. Why would he? Hell was empty, and all the devils were here. 

Dheera dared a peek at Bhairavi; the woman was silent, but the turmoil in her eyes and rage in her heart, if harvested, had the power to nuke kingdoms, or so the immortal being thought. 

Day in and day out, from his high perch on Anjaneya Hill in Kishkindha, present-day Humpi, the demigod had watched his Lord's temples being ruined one after the other. Though the hands that had reduced the marvelous structures to dust belonged to The Rainas, Dheera knew who the real culprit was. Unlike him, who was bound by unnecessarily strict laws, his dark counterparts, the Asuras, had been dealt a free hand. 

Not fair. Was it? 

The matter had become concerning when Roshni Raina, his devotee, lost her life. Brain cancer!? Ha! It was murder.' The monkey king snarled on the inside. She was merely trying to uncover the truth behind the deaths of the three unfortunate women who had been looking for a good time with  The Dream Weavers but had fallen into their trap. They had lost their lives as a result. When Roshni had gotten unexpectedly close, the evil woman, Sonia, had inserted her with a tumor-creating concoction on her routine check-up at the family-owned hospital. 

The trap was near perfect; the immortal one had to give it to the Asuras for placing their bets on the vilest emotions the humans of this Yuga possessed in abundance: Greed. Corrupting the minds of the high and mighty with a promise of much more, they had brought them over to their side. 

The Rainas were the tip of the iceberg. Luckily for the demigod, two pure souls had refused the deal, not in words, but through their actions.

Roshin, on her deathbed, had summoned him, begging him to watch over her son, Raghav. But there was only so much he could do without human aid. 

Luckily, the said aids, yes, he had received two: Anjani and Bhairavi, had a stronger urge to seek the truth. Moreover, them calling the name of his Lord had put him in a position where he could take a few liberties, which he couldn't otherwise.  

Jai Shree Ram!

Dheera smiled, catching the reflection of the slumbering youngsters: Raghav and Maithili, the namesakes of his Master and Mistress: Ram and Sita. His eyes drifted to Bhairavi next. 'Aunty-ji, they are meant to be; you will see it too. Very soon.'

Jai Shree Ram!

He shuddered at the thought of almost not making it in time to save them. He was strong, but even he couldn't be in two places at once. Also, it was Aunty-ji's fault! She had encouraged Bela to go to Jiddal Gaon. He couldn't let that happen, could he? So he had taken a calculated risk. Driving the lawyer woman to Jammu through a shortcut, he had left Bela stranded far away from The Raina's reach.

Naturally, the woman was mad at him for dropping her off in the middle of nowhere, but the demigod figured she would get over it once the truth was exposed. Immediately, he made a roundabout and rushed back to pick up Bhairavi, who was waiting for someone to drop her off at The Springs. 

Ha. Ha. Ha. How about…NO. 

Upon reaching the hospital, the immortal one had called upon his army of monkeys and snuck them into the lab. The excited bunch had taken care of the rest. Next, he saved Anjani. He had to, especially when she had selflessly put herself in the line of fire to save those she didn't have to: Bhairavi, Maithili, and Bhairavi's future son-in-law. 

He had almost left the place before remembering what the hospital stood for and what it was aiming to create. He couldn't have that either. So, after his army successfully chased out every human inside the building, he did what he was famous for. Arson. By the time he was done, no trace of the drug was left in physical or written form. Satisfied, the immortal was finally able to rush to Bhairavi's aid. 

Yes, the monkey king had had a busy day, but it was still far from over. 

*****

Bhairavi looked up from the leaflets she had spent the last heaven-knows-how-much time going through. Her eyes held deep sorrow. Her heart ached for the ones sacrificed in this game of power and wealth, and her back hurt from… well, Spondylitis.

The desire to live forever can turn humans into demons, just like The Rainas, who, for the past decade, had spent copious amounts of money to develop a drug. When combined with hypnosis, it created a perfect puppet. A puppet that retains its consciousness till it is called to act. 

The subjects were chosen with great care from cities where the Raina group held power and owned hospitals. Once the command was issued, the subjects did what they were programmed to do, which, in the case of Koyal and the other two women, was to get morally injured. 

Since the Rainas knew when the accidents would happen, they were always first on the scene. From there, the legal and police departments took over and smoothed out any wrinkles that might have the potential to marr the Raina group's crystal clear image. 

The file contained detailed documentation of how after the manipulated subjects left the Valley, they convinced their near and dear ones about donating their organs. Once all the formalities were in place, the organization flicked the switch. 

Bhairavi shuddered. The only reason the subjects were killed within a month of their return from The Valley was that that's how long the drug could stay dormant in the body without turning into poison and killing the subject on the spot. 

The possibilities the drug could create were endless. Organ trafficking was just the beginning. 

Bhairavi felt useless, like her still-network-less phone. 

"The Rainas control the phone network as well," Dheera replied, reading her mind. 

"Makes sense." She agreed, "How long before we reach it?"

"A few minutes."

A thought occurred to Bhairavi, something she had failed to consider. "Can the car make it inside the temple premises?"

The demigod shook his head, "No. We will have to leave this fellow at The Valley's mouth. From there on out, we have to walk."

'How will we make it on foot!?' Bhairav turned around to look at the two unconscious youngsters. 'Will splashing their face with water help them regain consciousness? Oh, dear! How stupid of me! I should have splashed them with water at the hospital! I wouldn't have had to drag-'

"Aunty-ji, water won't help them regain consciousness. You should know that." He replied, forgetting that he was not to read her mind. 

Bhairavi felt her cheeks heat. "Yes, I should have." Then fixing the man who was taking a bit too much pleasure in her teasing her, she requested condescendingly, "I would appreciate it if you could stop barging into my mind."

"Ah!" It was the demigod's turn to blush. Luckily, his salt pepper beard hid it from Bhairavi's view. 

"Can you walk?" Dheera changed the subject. "You are injured."

"I am fine. I am just concerned about these two." She looked over her shoulder. "We left the gurneys back there. I was wondering, how will we-"

"Rest easy, Aunty-ji. I will take care of it. Just lead the way, alright?"

Of course! What was I thinking!? He is the God of strength! Thank you, Bhagwanta. Bhairavi threw him a thumbs-up. 

"Aunty-ji," Dheera fixed the woman with a no-nonsense expression. "Remember, everyone you see at The Valley is under The Rainas. They will try to play on your emotions, don't fall for it. Don't stop till we have made it into the temple."

Just as Bhairavi acknowledged him with a nod, the car slowed to a stop. 

Lightning fast, the demigod leapt out of the driver's seat. Dropping anything that remained of his human facade, he grew till he was more than seven feet tall. Scooping up Raghav in his left and Maithili in his right arm, respectively, the designated driver cocked a brow, "Aunty-ji, I am counting on you to lead the way. Ready when you are!"

Eyeing the vehicles hot on their tail and the Nans dashing towards them as if possessed, Bhairavi turned towards their destination. Pulling up her pants- they were sagging a little- she sprinted ahead without giving Dheera a heads-up. 

The demigod didn't complain. He should have gotten a hint when the woman had mouthed 'Jai Shree Ram!' just before taking off. 

Chapter Word Count: 1742

Word Count so far: 22769

Glossary

Asuras: Demons.

A/N: The immortal one (monkey king) has a habit of saying Jai Shree Ram or  Ram, often. You will find these words inserted at random places in this chapter, because for a little while, we are given a glimpse into his mind.