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 Samit Ray Chowdhury Agartala, Tripura Contents | Dressed in a black kurta and blue jeans, Somu stood on the pavement at the four-way intersection. Somu, whose full name was Soumyaprabha Basu, was only twenty-five years old, yet he had already earned a reputation as one of the most knowledgeable people in the neighborhood. Though, "scientist" would be a more fitting description than simply "knowledgeable." He worked in the science section of a daily newspaper. Studying science and carrying out small research projects was not merely his hobby; it was a passion he had been born with. Somu's grandfather had been a professor of physics. He had spent most of his life in the attic room of their house, conducting all kinds of experiments. The handmade instruments he had built, along with countless formulas and models, were still carefully preserved in one corner of that room. After his grandfather's death, the responsibility of looking after everything fell entirely upon Somu. While he was still in school, Somu had built a talking machine that won him an award from the Indian Space Research Centre. However, because he had little interest in conventional education, his school and college studies never progressed very far. He spent most of his time in the attic, immersing himself in his grandfather's unfinished work. To him, science was not just a hobby; it was a lifelong pursuit. As Somu stood at the crossroads, Noren from the neighboring locality spotted him and ran over. Noren was Somu's favorite student. He had an endless fascination with Somu's unusual ideas and bizarre experiments. Panting, Noren exclaimed, "Somu sir! I've got huge news!" "What news?" Somu asked. "I saw a ghost yesterday near the Chatterjees' pond!" Somu frowned in annoyance. "Nonsense! Ghosts don't exist. Don't tell me ghost stories." A little discouraged, Noren said, "Somu sir, yesterday evening, while I was returning home from my coaching class by the Chatterjees' pond, I saw something glowing like an enormous firefly." This time Somu showed some interest. "And then?" Encouraged, Noren continued, "Then I remembered what you always say—that ghosts don't exist, and that such beliefs are born from ignorance and a lack of knowledge." Somu felt pleased that his student had taken his teachings to heart. "But..." Hearing that, Somu asked, "But what?" Noren replied, "But I think I really did see a ghost yesterday. From that large glowing sphere, something like a ghost came out. When it heard my footsteps, it went back inside." "What did you do then?" "What else could I do? I ran for my life. That's why I was looking for you." Somu trusted Noren completely. He knew Noren would never lie to him. Still, he said, "Hold my watch and tell me your so-called ghost story once again." Somu's watch functioned as a lie detector. Whenever someone held it while speaking, it calculated the truthfulness of the statement as a percentage. Noren held the watch on Somu's left wrist and repeated the entire incident. A mechanical female voice emerged from the watch. "Truthness in the statement is ninety-nine percent." Both Somu and Noren knew that any reading above seventy-five percent was considered true, with the remaining margin accounting for mechanical error. Noren beamed with satisfaction. He had finally convinced his mentor. Somu, however, became thoughtful. What could Noren have seen? According to his description, it certainly sounded like something extraordinary. No known creature matching that description should exist in the middle of this city. Then what could it have been? Noren asked, "Shall we go and have a look?" Somu remained silent for a moment. By then evening had fallen. It was the month of Shravan, and thick black clouds had gathered overhead. A storm was on its way. Finally he said, "Come to my house. We'll make a plan there." Noren followed him. They climbed to the mysterious laboratory in the attic. Apart from Somu, Noren was the only person allowed to enter the room. Even so, only Somu was permitted to touch anything inside. No one else in the family ever entered the attic, nor did they dare to. Once, the household maid had gone in to sweep the room. She accidentally nudged a table ever so slightly, and an ear-splitting siren immediately shook the entire house. An earthquake warning device placed on the table had been activated. After that incident, no one ever ventured into the room again. The room was filled with books, scientific instruments, Somu's grandfather's handwritten diaries, piles of papers, and science magazines. In one corner stood a small bed, where Somu lay down half-reclining and closed his eyes. Outside, rain poured relentlessly. Noren quietly sat down in his designated chair. The moment he did, a sensor mounted on its right side activated. A small tray slid out from the armrest, neatly stocked with potato chips and crispy potato sticks—Noren's favorite snacks. The sensor knew exactly what he liked. A little later, when it detected that he was thirsty, a paper cup filled with water was automatically dispensed beside him. Noren happily focused on his snacks while Somu lay quietly, listening to the rhythm of the rain outside, deep in thought. For the two of them, the attic was a world of its own, a sanctuary where imagination and reality met in perfect harmony. About an hour later, the rain stopped. Somu quietly got up and said, "Let's go." "Where?" Noren asked. Slightly irritated, Somu replied, "Let's go meet your ghost." Noren could hardly contain his excitement. It had been a long time since he had accompanied Somu on an adventure. Opportunities like this were rare, and he considered himself lucky. Somu pulled out two strange plastic objects shaped like small boats from beneath the bed. Handing one pair to Noren, he said, "Stand with one foot on each and press the red buttons." Without asking any questions, Noren did as instructed. The moment he pressed the buttons, a protective plastic covering rose from the footwear, wrapping around his legs and trousers all the way up to his waist. Somu explained, "It rained heavily. The area around the Chatterjees' pond will be muddy. This will keep our clothes clean." Noren wasn't surprised. He was already familiar with Somu's strange inventions and gadgets. Owning countless bizarre devices was perfectly normal for Somu. Somu picked up his backpack. Noren didn't bother asking what was inside. Together they headed toward the Chatterjees' garden. By then, dusk had deepened into almost night. The garden was secluded even during the day, and few people ever came there. Hidden beneath the shadows of tall trees, it looked even more mysterious in the darkness. The garden lights cast only a faint glow, making everything around them appear hazy and indistinct. The boundary wall was not very high, but it was covered with climbing vines. As they climbed over it, something suddenly rustled inside a nearby bush. Noren froze. Turning around calmly, Somu said, "Scared? It's nothing. Nothing's going to happen. I'm here. Come on." The two of them climbed over the wall and entered the garden. All around them, the only sounds were the relentless chirping of crickets and the occasional soft rustle from the bushes. Somewhere in the distance, a dog barked. In the middle of the garden stood a large mango tree. The darkness beneath its canopy was so deep that it seemed as though someone was hiding there. Noren whispered, "Somu sir, are we doing the right thing?" A strange smile spread across Somu's face. "We are. Just stay quiet and follow me." The air in the garden felt cold. The shadows of the trees seemed to slowly shift, as though they were watching the two of them. Silently, they made their way through the dense vegetation. After a short distance, Somu whispered, "Wait a moment. Let's stay here for a while and figure out what's going on." "It's completely dark now," Noren whispered back. "Even the streetlight by the pond has gone out. I think there's been a power cut. I can't see anything." "We can't use a flashlight here. Here, put these on. They're night vision glasses." As he spoke in a hushed voice, Somu took a pair of glasses out of his backpack and handed them to Noren, then put on another pair himself. Noren was amazed. Through the glasses, he could see perfectly well in the darkness, though everything had a faint green tint. A moment later, Somu pulled a small device out of his bag. It looked like a tiny drone. He launched it with the press of a switch, then took out his mobile phone and began watching its screen. "What is that, Somu sir?" Noren asked. "It's a scanner. If there's any moving object within a five-hundred-meter radius that isn't a living creature, it'll appear on my phone's screen. The scanner contains a DNA database of every known species on Earth. If it detects something moving that doesn't match any living organism in its database, it'll identify it." Most of what Somu said went over Noren's head. He simply nodded and murmured, "Hmm." Just then, rain began pouring down. Quickly, Somu pulled two small button-like devices from his pocket. He clipped one onto his own chest and the other onto Noren's, then pressed them. Instantly, the raindrops began falling around them instead of on them. "This is a vacuum umbrella," Somu explained. "It creates a vacuum layer around your body, so you won't get wet." Just then, Somu's phone began beeping. A red marker flashed on the screen. "I've found it," he said. Noren asked eagerly, "The ghost?" Without replying, Somu quietly walked to a bush beneath a large tree beside the pond and crouched down. Not understanding anything, Noren crouched beside him. Only one question kept circling in his mind. What exactly is Somu sir doing? Somu seemed to be waiting for something. A few moments later, a brilliant green light appeared some distance away. Within the glowing light, a large egg-shaped object gradually came into view. Then, something emerged from it. It looked like a strange creature. Its skin was pale gray. Its head was oval-shaped, and its large eyes glowed like fireflies. Each hand had three long fingers. It wore no clothing, and the way it moved was unlike anything Noren had ever seen. At first, Noren couldn't even process what he was looking at. Then he began trembling. Terrified, he whispered repeatedly, "Ram... Ram... Ram..." As the creature took another step toward them, Noren nearly fainted from fear. Somu, however, remained perfectly calm, staring at the being without blinking. It felt as though this very moment was the culmination of years of waiting. Watching Noren panic, Somu said irritably, "Quiet! It's an alien—an extraterrestrial. That's exactly what I suspected. My scanner confirmed it. I've already sent them a welcome message." By then, the mysterious extraterrestrial had come to stand right in front of them. A mechanical voice began speaking through Somu's phone. The device was a translator, capable of converting the alien's language into human speech. "Which planet are you from?" Somu asked. The translator replied, "Our planet, Orbiter, is located in the galaxy next to your Milky Way. It is only three hundred and fifteen light-years from your planet." The alien itself made no audible sound. Noren suddenly remembered something Somu had once explained—that humans could hear only within a limited range of sound frequencies. Anything outside that range was inaudible. Perhaps that was why they couldn't hear the alien directly, while the translator could interpret its speech. Somu asked another question: "How long did it take you to reach Earth?" The translator answered, "We can travel at speeds far greater than what your civilization considers possible. We can arrive almost instantaneously. We have already gathered all the information we need about your planet. However, we do not communicate with humans. There is too much disease here, too much violence. Humans are extremely violent creatures." "Then why did you come here?" Somu asked. The translator continued, "We were passing near Earth. My companion landed on the opposite side of your planet, in Mexico. Some humans saw him there. His craft developed a mechanical fault, forcing him to land on Earth. As for me, I accidentally ended up on this side of your planet." At that moment, a news report Noren had read in the newspaper flashed through his mind. There had been reports that an extraterrestrial had been spotted in Mexico. |
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