The White Feather- A story of infinite worlds

Chakra

“The chakra in gang’s name is a circle. It symbolizes that the gang starts and ends on the one who has no name. The gang is obeyed and feared under his name (irony). It is said that he sees everything and hears everything, so no one dares to talk foul about him or cross him. This is one of the many reasons that no one has ever found him. Many have tried, but instead of finding him they were found by him and put to rest in order to avoid any inconvenience. Most of the people in this city have joined the gang out of fear and power lust. At least one member in each household works for The Chakra.” Amanda said after they reached the restaurant at which they were booked to eat.

“How do you identify the members?” Thomas asked while looking around for any suspicious figures.

“Well, for starters, they have a Swastika stamped on their left hand with red hot iron. And they also have a short haircut, if that helps.” Amanda said and called for the waiter.

After placing the order, Thomas thought for some time before opening his mouth again.

“What kind of weapons do they use?” he asked.

“Depends on the class. First class use SMG’s and automatic rifles along with nades (grenades), second class use pistols and third class use whatever they can get their hands on in these streets. There is also a controversial class, which consists of spies.”

“How are the classes chosen?”

“Thas is never disclosed. But the parameters are same in all the gangs- loyalty, experience and discipline. First class are used to protect the leaders and important locations. They constitute around 10% of the total members. Second class are used to protect hotels and are trained to act in special scenarios like an all out war. They constitute about 20%. The rest are used to increase influence and kill anyone who seems like a threat. They constitute a massive 70% of the total strength. The extremely strong networking and cautious leader is what makes this gang virtually impossible to defeat, even for you.” Amanda said.

“Why are you helping me? What is it you want?” Thomas finally asked.

“What most people want in this city…justice!” Amanda said with fiery eyes.

“They all want peace, but no one is ready for the war to bring piece. They’re all too dead to do anything. But I see hope.” She said again after some time.

Thomas laughed so hard that his stomach pained and tears fell out of his eyes. Amanda was furious.

“You think this is a joke?” she hissed.

“I do, no offence.” Thomas said, still laughing.

“I would like to see you laugh when your father’s head arrives at your home in a paper bag because he saved a woman from being r***d by a gangster. And your mother, who had gone to the market with him, never returns.” Amanda said and stood up, kicked the chair and thundered out of the restaurant.

Thomas was desensitized. The waiter lifted the chair and placed it in its original place. People stared at him and thought vivid things. Someone was whispering to her partner and one of them tried to ask him what happened. But Thomas just sat still like a rock in the middle of a storm.

The thing about pain and suffering is that no matter how many times you see it, it never stops affecting you. There is no getting used to it. The only people who are not affected by this are psychos. And Thomas was no psycho, not till now.

After a few seconds, Thomas got up and went out of the door in a flash. He found Amanda on the road, smoking a cigarette. Her face was pink and swollen like someone who had just cried. She didn’t notice (or at least she pretended not to) Thomas when he came up to her and stood against the wall beside her.

“I’m sorry, I guess.” He said after she finished her cigarette and got ready to go.

“Dosen't matter; you'll get what you want, and I hope I’ll get what I want.” She said and signaled him to follow her.

Thomas was delighted on hearing this. But some part of his mind was also scolding him for being insensitive and being selfish instead of understanding someone’s pain.

“So what? No one truly cares, they only pretend. At least you are real.” He thought to himself.

“Really? You're not even being honest to yourself, and you think you are different from them? That’s a shame.” The same voice echoed inside him.

“Whatever dude, only person who is that good is called god. And I have no intention of becoming a god. So shut the f**k up and let me do my job.” Thomas said and ended the conversation with…well, no one.

“There! That is the place where the drug racket is controlled from. The boss of that place goes by the name of Madhav. He is one of the pillars of this empire.” Amanda said in a low voice. She was surprisingly cool and was acting like nothing happened in the last thirty minutes. Thomas was surprised and at a loss of words in the present moment.

“Where can I find him?” Thomas asked in a stuttering tone. He didn’t understand; he was never this unconfident. Why was this happening now? Was something different about this one?

There were a million questions, but there was only one answer. And Thomas knew that answer but simply didn’t want to face it. She was the strangest woman he had met in the last 175 years.

“They are not like your fancy warlords. He has clearly instructed his chosen leaders to work on ground level. Even the biggest leaders live within the poor population. This way, they get every news and rumor flowing through the streets and crush any potential competitors. You will find Madhav in that shop only. He comes in on a random day every week and stays for a few hours, speaking to the employees and customers.” Amanda said.

Thomas was now out of the strange feeling and concentrated on his primary goal. He observed the shop in a quick motion. The shop was three storey tall and had a wooden board hanging from the first floor window which said ‘Madhav’s weed company- offering the best at the cheapest price’.

For the very few of you who don’t know this, weed is illegal everywhere. So when Thomas came across this board, he was very amused.

“So this is what the future will be when weed becomes legal. Well, it’s not so bad after all.” Thomas thought and smiled to himself.

He then saw seven guards on the eleven feet wide entrance. They were not the same as the ones he encountered in the hotel. No, they were more sophisticated, better trained and more powerful. Each of them seemed to be tailor made for this job. Same height, same dimensions and even the exact same skin tone (not being racist, but they were white). They had black shades on so that no one knows what or who they are looking at.

“I can easily break in there. This is child’s play for me.” Thomas said proudly.

“I think Madhav is here today.” Amanda said, ignoring him.

“And what makes you think that?” Thomas asked, still looking for possible ways to break in.

“There are usually seven guards protecting the building’s entrance.” She said.

“There ARE seven guards guarding the structure.” Thomas was confused.

“Are there? Look around you.” Amanda said, staring at a coffee shop.

And then he saw it. There were people in black shades everywhere. Sipping coffee, reading the paper, walking with a dog, talking to a policeman, asking for an address; they were countless. All of them were in civil clothes. Only the black shades gave away their identities. A drop of sweat appeared on Thomas’ forehead.

“You were saying something about breaking in?” Amanda asked.

“Yes. I said I can easily break in.” Thomas said. He couldn’t stop his voice from becoming shaky. What was supposed to be a roar came out like a squeal.

Amanda smiled. As the smile got wider, Thomas felt like someone was slowly cutting through his bones and inserting an ice cold dagger in his heart. Instincts soon took over and Thomas’ head was clear as ever.

“You're sure that Madhav is in there?” he asked in a calm tone.

Amanda was startled and afraid by his calm voice and determined eyes.

“Y…yes. Why?” she asked.

“Get hold of a car for our getaway. Stay out of sight and call me from this phone if there are reinforcements.” Thomas said and handed over a phone to Amanda.

“What in f**k’s name are you doing?” Amanda said. Her eyes were wet and her legs were shaking.

“Just do it. We may never get the chance again.” Thomas said and unbuttoned his coat.