Strange Occurrences!

Prakash knocked on the door. His restless feet were tapping lightly, and he was extremely out of breath after all this running.

A few seconds later, an old man came out of the house and bowed a little and said, "Namaste! Hello! How can I help you?"

He bowed too and smiled a bit before replying, "Namaste! I am Akshay's father. I wanted to take him home. Can you please call him out?"

The old man raised his eyebrows.

"He went away half an hour ago. Our Ananya also went with him. Isn't today his birthday? He took her out on that pretext!"

Prakash's heart stopped for a second.

"No-no. It's his birthday today. Well, you see, I came home today after several days. So, I thought I would pick him up. Thank you! And don't worry, I will drop your daughter off before it's too late."

"That's too nice of you."

And that old man went inside and closed the door.

Prakash stood there unfazed, unmoved. His movements had calmed, but he lacked what we call 'peace of mind'. He was thinking out loud: Where did he go? Where should I find him? Which teams were assigned for this mission? How do I save him!?

Actively trying to be collected, he took long breaths to maintain his blood pressure so as not to mess up his decisions.

Akshay left here half an hour ago, and his house is not too far to take more than fifteen minutes to reach. So, there were two possibilities- one that he had gone somewhere to wander, or two that he had seriously gotten caught.

How?

How will they find him?

Are there teleportation devices!?

Ah- Yes! There are teleportation devices. The devices used by the Chimeras leave unidentified very tiny radio particles.

If I can trace their devices, I can find my son!

As soon as the idea hit him, Prakash wasted no time. He took out his phone and called Leonard. The call started ringing until—"Hello!" —a deep, rough voice came from that side.

"Hello! Leonard? Can you find the location of their teleportation devices? Tell me the most recent trace."

"I have that data in my hand."

"Really? Then please send it to me immediately."

"But there's no point in that. You already know what they are after. Once you go, it all will go downhill. So, you should-"

"DON'T GIVE ME THAT FUCK!? JUST TELL ME THE GODDAMN COORDINATES! I.." Tears flowed from his eyes like a stream. The feelings and anxiousness that he was trying to hide started to come out, like, "Please.. I.. I.. will not be able to show my face to my wife if I lose my dear son. Please! I beg you!! I don't care about anything."

"..."

"Please, Leonard! Please!"

Leonard had too many arguments planned, but once he noticed his partner's vulnerability, he gulped them down and said, "Okay, fine! Just don't do anything rash. Leave as soon as you retrieve your son."

"..."

"170 metres south-east from your current location."

"How do you know my location?!"

And Leonard cut the call.

Prakash then dashed off from there, racing at his highest power, desperate to reach there instantly. He fell, stood up, got bruised, but continued his search.

Encompassing himself amidst the crowd, he took some long breaths and sped up to the desired location.

At last, he found himself in an untouched alley, even unknown to him, who had lived in this small district for all his life. He searched for his son, looking left, right, and center. His eyes never blinked. He was feeling the high of the moment, yet his son was nowhere to be seen.

And on the back of his mind was the girl whom he also had to save.

After enough searching, he stopped and dropped himself over the wall.

His legs had lost the reason to continue aimlessly.

Now what? What should I do? he asked himself.

Eyes filled with tears, he wiped them with the sleeves of his coat. Suddenly, his watch came into view. He stared at it blankly and then clenched his fist and stood up again.

'It's not the time to be dejected. The 'unexpected situation' had come. I am ready! I am ready for my death! No more running away from it! I will accept it and face it now!'

Then he took out his coat and placed it on the ground. Clicked the button on this mechanical watch three times, and a small needle came out of it. He took the needle and pinched it in his arm. A few drops of blood were dropped on the ground and immediately evaporated. The needle instantly dissolved, and no scar was left on the arm.

His nerves started stimulating, which brought a surge of pain to him. A thousand thunders fell on him as he cried in pain. His whole body levitated in the air, a few feet above the ground, while a black-white demon mask formed over his face, his hands got covered in a thick puff of cloud which transpired them in like a demon's hand.

But then suddenly, he felt something weird.

"What!? What is happening!?"

The pain in his body got more tense, and then instantly, he was thrown straight to the wall. His shoulders clashed directly with the wall, which sent a huge shock to his head.

As he fell to the ground, he felt his consciousness fade.