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 Nandita Dutta Agartala, Tripura Contents | "This time I'm not going to fetch the ball," Tanmoy said irritably. "Why did you kick it so hard? We're playing football! Of course the ball is going to go far." "Alright, I'll go," said Shivam as he walked off at a slow pace. Rupak and Sanjiv sat down on the sandy riverbank while Tanmoy absent-mindedly scraped the sand with his foot. "It's been so long. Why isn't Shivam back yet? Don't tell me he got lost while looking for the ball!" The four of them were close friends, all students of Class Eleven. They lived in the same neighborhood and had been going to the same school together since their very first day. Shivam was calm and quiet by nature. Tanmoy questioned everything and always looked for logic. Rupam was fearless and the first to step forward in any situation. Sanjiv, on the other hand, was a bit lazy. Every summer vacation, the four friends played football on the sandy banks of the Manu River near their homes. Their families had no objections, as they studied well and were responsible. More importantly, their friendship was so strong that it had become an example not only in their neighborhood and school but even in nearby localities. Growing anxious, the three boys hurried after Shivam. They reached the bend in the river but still couldn't find him. They shouted his name repeatedly. There was no one around. The place was completely deserted. Near the bend stood a thick clump of bushes. They rarely came this far. But where was Shivam? Just as they called out once more, Shivam burst out from behind the bushes, running toward them, panting heavily. "What happened? How did you end up here? Did the ball really come this far?" Rupam asked. Without saying a word, Shivam pointed toward the bushes. "What is it? Did the ball get stuck in there? I'll get it." As Sanjiv stepped forward, Shivam grabbed his arm and pulled him back, shaking his head. "Come on, what's wrong? You can't just stay silent and expect us not to go. There must be some mystery." At this time of year, the Manu River carried very little water. Water hyacinths had spread across much of it, and here and there were small pools from which a mist, like rising smoke, drifted upward. Looking toward the bend, Shivam finally said, "Let's go. There's something there... and I still can't find the ball." The moment they climbed down, something strange caught their eyes. Hidden beneath the grass was a massive stone structure. "That's unbelievable! I've never seen this before." "How could we? We've never come this way before. But... what is it?" Without saying anything, Sanjiv hurried forward. Kneeling beside the structure, he looked at his friends and declared, "Operation Fallen Leaves!" Just giving it a name wasn't enough to begin the operation. The leaves on top were dry, but as they cleared them away, the smell of rotten leaves rose from underneath. "Ugh!" Sanjiv exclaimed, wrinkling his nose. "Who knows what's rotting under here? It smells awful!" "Don't dig with your hands. Let me see if I can find a bamboo stick," Tanmoy said. Before he could finish, Sanjiv replied, "I'm feeling something hard... like stone." Rupam knelt beside him and tried to get a better look. "Listen, forget using our hands. Let's all jump together. If we shake the ground enough, the leaves should move away and we'll be able to see what's underneath." The others agreed. "One... two... three!" All four friends began jumping together. As the leaves scattered, a large section of stone emerged from beneath them. They stopped jumping and stared at one another, their eyes gleaming with the excitement of a new discovery. "Look over here!" Shivam suddenly shouted. Far behind Sanjiv stood an enormous leaning slab of stone. Moving beside him, Rupam said, "Doesn't that look like a stone door? What do you all think?" The four of them cautiously approached it together. Just then, the massive stone seemed to move. "Did... did that stone just move?" "How could a stone move?" "Was it just our imagination? Are we getting scared?" "Never! Why would we be scared?" "But it's getting dark." "Let's head back today. We'll come again tomorrow morning." "Should we cover it back up with the leaves?" "No. Who's going to come here? No one has ever come before." "Maybe no one has ever noticed this bend in the river." "Or maybe... the bend itself isn't very old." Those who went out in boats to fish probably never noticed it. "Alright," Tanmoy said, "let's stop arguing. We can make a plan on the way home." Tanmoy, Shivam, Sanjiv, and Rupam all agreed and started walking back. They had completely forgotten about the football. Instead, they spent the entire walk discussing where that mysterious stone structure might have come from. They decided to return the next morning at six o'clock sharp. Above all, the discovery had to remain a secret. That night, none of them could stop thinking about it. Each lay awake, lost in their own imagination. They even started a group call to discuss their plan. They decided to take a shovel with them, but what excuse would they give at home? Finally, they agreed to borrow the shovel from Tanmoy's house. Each of them told a small lie at home—they said there was an inter-school football selection camp, so they had to leave early for the field. Setting out before sunrise, they raced the cool summer breeze to the riverbank. By then, Tanmoy's shovel had changed hands and was now with Sanjiv. Taking long strides, he led the way. The strong smell of decaying leaves that they had noticed the previous day was even stronger now. Sanjiv tapped the stone with the shovel. Thuk... thuk... A hollow sound echoed from within. A wave of icy air rushed out. Sanjiv struck the stone harder. The massive slab shifted to one side. Rupam and Tanmoy leaned over to look inside. Darkness. Nothing was visible. "Cave..." Shivam whispered. "A cave. There must be steps inside." "A cave?" the other three exclaimed together. "Then we have to see it." "Let's all go together. Carefully. Don't let your feet slip." Suddenly, the dark mouth of the cave lay completely open before them. Their hearts pounded with excitement and fear. Another blast of cold air brushed against their faces, making it feel as though someone was silently watching them from deep below. Then— Thud! Someone had fallen. Rupam froze in place, almost afraid to breathe. Then Sanjiv's voice floated up from below. "Hey! Why are you all standing there? Come down! I've already made it." "Is that really you?" Tanmoy shouted. "Say the code word!" "So you'll know it's me?" "Hey! I'm not beside you anymore, so where else would I be? Just jump! Come on!" Without waiting for anyone else, Sanjiv had already climbed down. Switching on the flashlight of his phone, he illuminated the cave. Rupam, Tanmoy, and Shivam could see that Sanjiv was covered from head to toe in thick cobwebs. "Come over here," he called. "There's a narrow tunnel." The beam of the flashlight revealed a tight passageway. Its walls had been carved out of solid rock and looked incredibly ancient. The boys entered. After crawling a short distance, the tunnel suddenly opened into a large chamber. From there, several more tunnels branched out in different directions. Rupam counted. "One... two... three... Hey! There are so many passages!" Sweeping his flashlight around, Tanmoy said, "It's like a maze!" Crouching low, they slowly followed Sanjiv. The cave smelled damp and foul. Shivam, now visibly frightened, asked, "Where are we going? How are we going to get out?" "Don't panic," Rupam reassured him. "We'll find our way out. Let's keep moving. If we find another exit, great. If not, we'll simply return the way we came." The four friends pressed on, though each of them could feel fear tightening their throats. Shivam was on the verge of tears. Even after going quite a distance, Sanjiv couldn't make sense of the maze. "Let's turn back," he finally suggested. Just then Tanmoy pointed ahead. "Wait! Look over there. Another tunnel! Let's check that one." "You all go," Shivam muttered. "I'll stay here." "Hey, kid," Rupam laughed. "That won't do. Whatever happens, we stay together." Suddenly Tanmoy, who had begun crawling into the passage, stopped. "Hey... what's this?" Sanjiv shone the flashlight. It was a snakeskin. As Rupam turned to look, his head struck something hard above him. "Ouch!" Moving aside, he saw a long iron rod. "What's this?" Tanmoy asked, poking it with the shovel. After a few nudges, the object fell to the ground with a metallic clang. "What is it?" "It looks like... a trident." "A trident?" All four of them examined it carefully. Shivam couldn't help remarking, "Whoever built this cave should have made it wider. Then we'd all be able to sit together and look at it." Even in such a frightening situation, remarks like that made his friends smile. "It really is a trident," Rupam said. "And it's very old. Look how badly it's rusted." "So that means someone once lived here," Tanmoy concluded. "Maybe a hermit." "Oh, here you go again," Rupam teased. "Already making up stories? Can you tell anything else just by looking at a trident?" "If there's a trident," Tanmoy replied with a grin, "there could be wooden sandals too." "Enough," Rupam said firmly. "Let's keep moving." "Shouldn't we take the trident with us?" "No. Not now." The smell inside the cave had grown stronger. "It smells like bats," someone said. The stale, musty odor was becoming unbearable. "We can't understand much in this darkness," Tanmoy said. "We should head back today. Tomorrow we'll come prepared and explore the cave properly." "Agreed." "But we don't tell anyone about this yet." Everyone accepted Rupam's decision. They retraced their path, crawling at some places, sliding at others until they finally reached the spot where they had climbed down. "Now how do we get back up?" someone asked. "The walls are almost straight." "I'm thinking," Sanjiv replied, shining his flashlight upward. "See if there are any uneven spots. We'll climb toward the light." Meanwhile, Tanmoy was running his hands along the cave wall. "Wait! There are three grooves here!" "Maybe we can climb using these." He carefully placed his feet into the grooves and looked higher. "There are more of them farther up!" "Shivam, you go first." Shivam's eyes had filled with tears. He was trembling with fear. From below, Sanjiv said, "Step on my shoulders. Then climb toward Tanmoy." Watching Tanmoy's footing, Shivam slowly climbed up. Then came Rupam. Finally Sanjiv. One by one, they emerged from the cave. The moment they reached the outside, they looked at one another in disbelief. Throwing their arms around each other, they exclaimed, "We're alive!" "That was terrifying!" Then reality struck. "Our families must be wondering where we are." Just then Sanjiv's phone rang. An unknown number. "Whose number is this?" "Let's see." He answered. "Hello?" "What? You don't have my number?" came the voice from the other end. "I'm your geography teacher." "Sir! It's you..." Instinctively, Sanjiv bent forward as if to touch his teacher's feet in respect. Seeing this, the others burst into laughter. "Who are you bowing to?" Sanjiv gestured for them to keep quiet. "Yes, sir... yes, sir..." he stammered repeatedly. After hanging up, he smiled. "This is what they call getting rain without asking for clouds." "What do you mean?" the other three asked eagerly. "I'll tell you everything." "Let's go home first. Have a bath, eat lunch, and then we have to be at the Natmandir of the Radhagobinda Temple by three o'clock." "What does sir want?" "He asked us to come." "You all are coming, right?" "Look," Shivam suddenly said, pointing at Rupam's heel. "Your foot is bleeding." Rupam looked down in surprise. "I didn't even notice. It must have happened just now." The three friends bent down to examine the wound. Tanmoy plucked the tender tip of a colocasia plant from the nearby jungle, crushed it, and applied its sap to the cut. "Wait a bit. Let's stop the bleeding first." After a few moments, Tanmoy said, "We need to find out where that cave leads... and who built it." "We will," Sanjiv replied. "Ranita Madam has done a lot of research on the Unakoti hills. She even has a team that explores the mountains." "But listen," he added seriously, "we're not telling anyone else about this. We'll speak only to sir. After that, we'll decide what to do." The others agreed. The bleeding had stopped. "Let's go." "But why do you think there's another exit?" the geography teacher asked later. "You've only explored a little. Maybe that's all there is." "No, sir," one of them replied. "There are many openings. Huge stone slabs have collapsed inside." "So you've actually discovered something?" the teacher asked, intrigued. "An old palace? A temple? What did you find?" "Sir... there's definitely something there! Why hasn't anyone found it all these years? The Manu River bends there before flowing into Bangladesh. That entire area is covered with dense jungle. Has no one ever gone there?" "Sir," another asked, "people say there used to be an old royal palace somewhere around here. Where exactly was it? And when?" The teacher smiled. "So, you've abandoned school football and become explorers now?" (To be continued...) |
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KISHOR BARTA | E-mail : kishorbarta.eng@gmail.com |