Only RajniKanth Can Do This!!!

1. Rajinikanth doesn’t wear a watch. He decides what time it is.

2. Rajinikanth has already been to Mars, that’s why there are no signs of life there.

3. Rajinikanth killed the dead sea.

4. If you spell ‘Rajanikant’ wrong on Google it doesn’t say, “Did you mean Rajinikanth?” It simply replies, “Run while you still have the chance.”

5. Rajinikanth can play the violin with a piano

6. Rajnikanth once wrote a cheque, the bank bounced!

7. Micheal Jordan to Rajini: I can spin a ball on my finger for over two hours. Can you? Rajni: Rascala; how do you think the earth spins!?

8. Rajinikanth once ordered a plate of idli in McDonald’s, and got it.

9. If Rajnikant was born 100 years earlier, British would have fought to get independence from India.

10. When Rajnikant logs on to facebook.com, facebook updates its status message!

11. Rajni once killed 20 men just by saying "BANG"

12. Rajinikanth knows Victoria’s secret.

13. Rajinikanth can divide by zero.

14. Rajinikanth has counted to infinity, twice.

15. When Rajinikanth gives you the finger, he's telling you how many seconds you have left to live.

New Bird In My Neighborhood

There is a new bird in my neighborhood. It has a long peculiar tail which makes it so unique. Its head was glossy black with a black crown and crest. It had a black bill round and sturdy, and eyes were black.

Checked it on the Internet and found it to be "Asian Paradise-flycatcher". It is found from Turkestan to Manchuria, all over India and Sri Lanka to the Malay Archipelago on the islands of Sumba and Alor. The bird I saw turned out to be an adult male which develops long tail feathers upto 24 cm. Their rufous plumage moults into white with the central pair of tail feathers growing up to 30 cm long streamers that droop. The are adults called rufous-morph with rufous wings and tail but white underparts. For more detailed information on this bird, click here.

99 Rajini One-Liners

1. Rajinikanth killed the Dead Sea.
2. When Rajinikanth does push-ups, he isn't lifting himself up. He is pushing the earth down.
3. There is no such thing as evolution, it's just a list of creatures that Rajinikanth allowed to live.
4. Rajinikanth gave Mona Lisa that smile.
5 .Rajnikanth can divide by zero.
6. Rajinikanth can judge a book by it's cover.
7. Rajinikanth can drown a fish.
8. Rajinikanth can delete the Recycle Bin.
9. Rajinikanth once got into a fight with a VCR player. Now it plays DVDs.
10. Rajinikanth can slam a revolving door.
11. Rajinikanth once kicked a horse in the chin. Its descendants are today called giraffes.
12. Rajinikanth once ordered a plate of idli in McDonald's, and got it.
13. Rajinikanth can win at Solitaire with only 18 cards.
14. The Bermuda Triangle used to be the Bermuda Square, until Rajinikanth kicked one of the corners off.
15. Rajinikanth can build a snowman out of rain.
16. Rajinikanth can strangle you with a cordless phone.
17. Rajinikanth can make onions cry.
18. Rajinikanth destroyed the periodic table, because he only recognizes the element of surprise.
19. Rajinikanth can watch the show 60 minutes in 20 minutes.
20. Rajinikanth has counted to infinity, twice.
21. Rajinikanth will attain separate statehood in 2013.
22. Rajinikanth did in fact, build Rome in a day.
23. Rajinikanth once got into a knife-fight. The knife lost.
24. Rajinikanth can play the violin with a piano.
25. Rajinikanth never wet his bed as a child. The bed wet itself in fear.
26. The only man who ever outsmarted Rajinikanth was Stephen Hawking, and he got what he deserved.
27. Rajinikanth can talk about Fight Club.
28. Rajinikanth doesn't breathe. Air hides in his lungs for protection.
29. There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Rajinikanth lives in Chennai.
30. Rajinikanth kills Harry Potter in the eighth book.
31. Rajinikanth does not own a stove, oven, or microwave, because revenge is a dish best served cold.
32. Rajinikanth has already been to Mars, that's why there are no signs of life there.
33. Rajinikanth doesn't move at the speed of light. Light moves at the speed of Rajinikanth.
34. Rajinikanth knows Victoria's secret.
35. Water boils faster when Rajinikanth stares at it.
36. Rajinikanth can throw the Thackerays out of Mumbai.
37. Rajinikanth kills two stones with one bird.
38. Google won't find Rajinikanth because you don't find Rajinikanth; Rajinikanth finds you.
39. Rajinikanth gave the Joker those scars.
40. Rajinikanth leaves messages before the beep.
41. Rajinikanth once warned a young girl to be good "or else". The result? Mother Teresa.
42. Rajinikant electrocuted Iron Man.
43. Rajinikanth killed Spiderman using Baygon Anti Bug Spray.
44. Rajinikanth can make PCs better than the Mac.
45. Rajinikanth puts the 'laughter' in manslaughter.
46. Rajinikanth goes to court and sentences the judge.
47. Rajinikanth can handle the truth.
48. Rajinikanth can speak Braille.
49. Rajinikanth can dodge Chuck Norris' roundhouse kicks.
50. Rajinikanth can teach an old dog new tricks.
51. Rajinikanth calls Voldemort by his name.
52. Who do you think taught Voldemort Parseltongue? Rajinikanth did.
53. Chuck Norris once met Rajinikanth. The result - He was reduced to a joke on the internet.
54. Rajinikanth got small pox when he was a kid. As a result small pox is now eradicated.
55. Rajinikanth’s calendar goes straight from March 31st to April 2nd, no one fools Rajanikanth.
56. Rajinikanth grinds his coffee with his teeth and boils the water with his own rage.
57. The last time Rajinikanth killed someone, he slapped himself to do it. The other guy just disintegrated. Resonance.
58. Rajinikanth once had a heart attack. His heart lost.
59. Rajinikant is so fast, he can run around the world and punch himself in the back of the head.
60. Rajinikanth can run at speed of light around a tree and screw himself.
61.Rajinikant can lick his elbows.
62. Rajinikant once ate an entire bottle of sleeping pills. They made him blink.
63. Rajinikant does not get frostbite. Rajnikant bites frost.
64. Rajinikant doesn’t wear a watch. He decides what time it is.
65. Rajinikant got his drivers license at the age of 16 seconds.
66. When you say “no one is perfect”, Rajinikant takes this as a personal insult.
67. In an average living room there are 1,242 objects Rajinikanth could use to kill you, including the room itself.
68. Words like awesomeness, brilliance, legendary etc. were added to the dictionary in the year 1949. That was the year Rajinikanth was born.
69. The statement "nobody can cheat death", is a personal insult to Rajnikanth. Rajni cheats and fools death everyday.
70. When Rajnikanth is asked to kill some one he doesn't know, he shoots the bullet and directs it the day he finds out.
71. Rajinikant can give pain to Painkillers and headache to Anacin.
72. Rajinikanth knows what women really want.
73. Time and tide wait for Rajinikanth.
74. Rajinikanth sneezed only once in his entire life, that's when the tsunami occurred in the Indian ocean.
75. As a child when Rajinikanth had dyslexia, he simply re-scripted the alphabet.
76. Rajinikanth collects Honey from his private Moon - HoneyMoon.
77. Rajinikanth can answer a missed call.
78. Rajinikanth doesn't need a visa to travel abroad, he just jumps from the tallest building in Chennai and holds himself in the air while the earth rotates.
79. Rajinikanth's brain works faster than Chacha Chaudhury's.
80. Rajinikanth doesn't shower. He only takes blood baths.
81. To be or not to be? That is the question. The answer? Rajinikanth.
82. The quickest way to a man's heart is with Rajinikanth's fist.
83. Where there is a will, there is a way. Where there is Rajinikanth, there is no other way.
84. Rajinikanth's every step creates a mini whirlwind. Hurricane Katrina was the result of a morning jog.
85. Rajinikant doesn’t bowl strikes, he just knocks down one pin and the other nine faint out of fear.
86. Archaeologists unearthed an old English dictionary dating back to the year 1236. It defined “victim” as “one who has encountered Rajinikant”.
87. There is no such thing as global warming. Rajinikanth was feeling cold, so brought the sun closer to heat the earth up.
88. Once a cobra bit Rajinikanth' leg. After five days of excruciating pain, the cobra died.
89. Rajinikanth is a champion in the game "Hide n' seek", as no one can hide from Rajinikanth.
90. Rajinikant proves Newton wrong all the time. Every time he performs an action, he simply eliminates anything and everything that can provide the reaction.
91. Rajinikant is a weapon created by God to use on doomsday to end the world.
92. Aliens do indeed exist. They just know better than to visit a planet that Rajinikanth is on.
93. We live in an expanding universe. All of it is trying to get away from Rajinikanth.
94. If at first you don't succeed, you're not Rajinikanth.
95. Rajinikanth's first job was as a bus conductor. There were no survivors.
96. Rajinikanth does not style his hair. It lays perfectly in place out of sheer terror.
97. When Rajinikanth plays Monopoly, it affects the actual world economy.
98. Rajinikanth is the only man to ever defeat a brick wall in a game of tennis.
99. Rajinikanth's house has no doors, only walls that he walks through.

Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre

A Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre for animals has been established near the zoo on a 100-ha area nearly a decade ago. The centre, particularly for lions and tigers rescued from circuses, is home to about 45 lions and 7 tigers.

Aahaa Enna Rusi - YouTube Video

The House Sparrow

Photographed by me at Munnar - May 16, 2010

The House Sparrow (commonly known as kuruvi and also known as chittu kuruvi in Tamil Nadu) was indeed one of the commonest urban birds in India when I was a little boy. The recent years have witnessed a perplexing decline in the number of the House Sparrow in many parts of the country.

March 20, 2010 was observed as World House Sparrow Day (WHSD) to focus on raising awareness about the decline of the common House Sparrow. Many reasons are attributed for their apparent “disappearance”: The introduction of unleaded petrol is one, as the combustion of which produces compounds methyl nitrite, which is highly toxic for small insects that forms a part of a chick's diet.

Old houses had eaves and tiles that were comfortable perches to build nests on. External wirings and framed pictures too were “habitats”. But sleek modern concrete structures no longer have these and so “feathered neighbors” lost their habitats.Mushrooming supermarket culture in urban areas, replaced the old fashioned grain shops which offered their spills as feeds.

Urbanization has done away with home gardens, which had worms and insects for the young sparrows. Besides extensive use of pesticides have proved lethal for their survival. The most recent reason for their disappearance is the mobile phone towers, the waves from the tower, it is said, are capable of destroying the life in the eggs.Attempting to bring back the House Sparrow to our cities may prove futile. It is wiser to conserve the sparrow in suburban, agricultural and hill landscapes, where it is still common.

Save the House Sparrow at least in the suburban areas for our next generation!

EPOCH

Chapter – 1

Mike, a 25-year-old young man was looking for a job. It had been two months since he left his last job. Mike couldn’t work for more than a couple of months.Mike had no vehicle and no one to give him a ride into the city. So looking for a job, he started walking on the highway. He carried with him some cans of beans, a can opener, pocket knife, sleeping bag, and a lighter. It had been 2 days since he started to walk. His legs could hardly move any more from his sore muscles. Mike looked back and forth expecting a vehicle for a lift but not a single car stopped.

As dusk settled in, he decided to call it a day. Finding a small area far from the highway, he unpacks and sets up a fire, opening his last source of energy, and a can of beans. Once finished, Mike slipped into his sleeping bag. He heard a distant engine noise. Looking toward the direction of the sound, it soon suppressed. He thought he hallucinated so he laid back down looking into the twilight. Just as he did, Mike saw a shooting star.

The signe of it brought him memories of his childhood when he once made a wish on a shooting star. Mike made a wish that he would soon be picked up by a kind stranger to drive him into town. He began to close his eyes making the wish; when he again heard an engine sound and opened his eyes. This time he was sure that it was the sound of a car engine. He quickly races out of the sleeping bag and stood up, eagerly looking around.

He found a beam of light moving on top of the trees over to the hills on the other side of the highway. Mike quickly realized that it was the head lights of a vehicle and began to run towards the middle of the road. He stopped right on the middle of the road waving, jumping, and shouting at the distant light. The vehicle was about half a mile in front of him. Suddenly the head lights of the vehicle turn off and back on. This happened again and again until the vehicle was about 200 meters away. The lights switched off once more, however, the sound of the engine didn't stop. Mike heard the sound of the engine get closer and closer. Then out of the blue he saw the headlight of the vehicle switch on again – BUT IT WAS TOO LATE! He was standing right in its path. The vehicle, a car crashed into him at full speed, throwing him quite a distance into a sand dune.

Chapter – 2

After 4 Months.

Mike opens his eyes and finds himself lying on a bed. He tries to remember what had happened to him. He saw visions of the speeding car, as if it crashed into him again. The thought of the crash made him shout aloud. Hearing his cry, a group of people entered the room. From that group an elderly man comes closer towards Mike and begins to examine him. Another man from the group spoke, “how’s he now, Doctor?”

The man examining replied, “he’s back!”

The man who enquired moved towards Mike and explains to him that he (Chris*) was the head of the town and was the one who drove the car that crashed into Mike. Chris apologizes and shakes his hand with Mike. Chris further elucidates that the headlight of his car had failed on that night and he couldn't see Mike on the road.

*Chris would become 50 next month. He loved his wife, Clara. She was a beautiful and charming lady. They had a son Smith and a daughter Lucy. They were one happy family.

The doc interrupts to tell Mike that he had only suffered a couple of fractured ribs and a broken leg, which he stated that Mike was extremely lucky taking into account the intensity of the accident. As the doctor told Mike this, Mike began to feel his band-aided ribs and leg. The doctor added, “the fractures are healing fast and you will be able to get back to normal in a week or two.”

Chris knew that Mike was homeless and had no place to stay. Chris apologized once again and requested Mike to stay with them till he recovered, to which, Mike agreed.

Chapter – 3

A Week Later.

During his stay at Chris’s house, no one ever talked to him. Food and medicines were brought to Mike by Chris to the guest room bed. Only Chris talked to Mike. Chris’ family was afraid of someone who was homeless because he was a stranger. Even then when Chris spoke to mike, was sometimes then only a few words.

One day Mike found that there was no one at home and decided to go out and walk through the town. As he walked, he noticed that there were only 12 houses in the whole town. All the 12 two-storied houses looked identical in respect to color and structure.

Mike was astonished at its likeness. As he walked he found a man sitting on the porch of one of the houses. He walked towards the man, greeting him. But that man asks Mike to leave his house immediately. Mike backs away from the angry man’s home. Mike notices all roads lead to a dead-end and there’s no way out of the small town. As he moves on he notices that all the people stood staring at him. Mike looked around trying to remember what the roads looked like coming in. Then he remembered he was asleep when they arrived in town. Suddenly out of nowhere, Chris’s car pulls up, “Mike, get in!” Chris shouted in a rush.

On their way back Mike tells Chris how the people in the town reacted seeing him. Chris listened to every word that he spoke. Once Mike had finished Chris asked him to leave town immediately as he had fully recovered from his injuries.

Mike replied that he would like to stay for another week or two. He didn’t feel 100% better.

Hearing this Chris became outraged. The car meanwhile in motion stops in front of Chris’s house and in a harsh tone, Chris said, “You should leave town by sunrise.”

Mike was taken back from the tone of Chris’ voice. Chris asks Mike to start packing and be ready to leave at the break of dawn. Chris also tells that Mike would be blind-folded and escorted by two men out of the town. He further adds that he would be taken to the same place on the highway, where the accident occurred.

Mike was surprised and asked Chris why he needs to be blind-folded. Chris ignored Mike’s questions and left the room.

Chapter - 4

“Mike - Wake Up. It’s time to leave.” Mike was woken up by Chris’s voice.

As he woke up, he saw the same group of people standing in front of him as was at the hospital. Mike stepped out of this bed and took his bag of belongings with his sleeping bag. Chris said, “these two will accompany you.”

As Chris said this, two men came forward and blind-folded Mike, barely getting a glimpse of their faces, as the other people in the group watched. Then the two men guided Mike out of Chris’s house.

After walking blinded a few yards, Mike heard Chris’s voice whispering in his ears, “You’re lucky. Forget about us if you wish to survive.”

Hearing this, Mike felt a chill run down his spine. Next, Mike could feel that he was hurried into a car and made to sit in-between two people. Then, sounds of the engine began. The car began to move steadily on rough roads. Mike began to record the various sounds, in his mind. No one ever spoke while they drove; he could only hear the engine roar. After about an hour’s drive, the car engine stopped.

Mike was made to get off his seat and walk for a few hundred yards. All the time he was walking, his mind went through the whole episode of the accident and the incidents after that. He was still confused about the village, and couldn’t figure out why he was blind folded.

Then a voice said, “enough!”

Mike was made to stop walking further. The same voice that said “enough” ordered Mike to sit on the ground. Mike obeyed the order. He then heard footsteps. The sound of the footsteps slowing diminished. After some time, he didn’t hear the footsteps. There was calmness all over. He could only hear his own breathing.

He called out, “Is somebody there?” There was no reply. He couldn’t sense anyone standing around him, but the car never drove away.

Even though his hands were not tied, Mike didn’t remove the blind-fold.

Again he called, “Hello! Anybody there?”

Again there was no answer.

He could feel the warmth of the sun, as it ascended into the morning sky.

Then, mustering courage he slowly started to remove the blind-fold. He removed the blind-fold and saw that there was not a soul around. He looked around and recognized the place. It was the exact spot where he was lying down watching the sky on that night of the accident.

The mystery of the town and its people began to haunt Mike. Mike had a lot of questions that were unanswered.

‘Who are these people?

Why are they living in that strange place?

Why did they blind-fold me?

Why are they hiding from the outside world?

Will I ever get to see them again?’

He could barely walk with so many unanswered questions in his mind His legs were shaky as he tried to begin walking. He sat back down, puzzled and took a stone and began engraving a “X” mark over a larger stone. He then dug up a hole with his bare hands and then half-buried the large stone, with the “X” mark above the soil. After he buried the stone, he as if he had buried all those unanswered questions haunting him. He felt better now. He then started walking, as he did a few months back before that accident. His legs were no longer shaky and he was no longer nervous.

Chapter - 5

Twenty Five Years Later.

Mike was married to Marie, who he had lost a few years back to cancer. His two sons Joel and Sam were in New York. They have not visited him for nearly 7 years. He was a loner again.

Mike started life 25 years back working in a gas station, which he owns now. He would be turning 50, this August.

Although 25 years have passed and so many things have come and gone in Mike’s life, he still couldn’t forget the mystery town and its people. He always kept thinking about it every now and then. He had never said a word about the mysterious town even to Marie during their time together, or even to their kids.

Still haunted by the mystery town, one day Mike finally decides to go out in search of it. Only, he really didn’t need to search. He remembered clearly of what happened and where he was the day of the accident.

The next morning he drove out in his car looking for that spot where he was dropped by the two men from the town. His eyes lit up when he remembered the he had buried a stone marked “X” which would possibly help him in his search.

Mike drove almost non-stop for two days. He reached a place that he thought would be the place he had buried the stone. He moved down from the car and walked on the dunes for a few yards in search of the stone. Mike couldn’t find it. He was baffled whether it was the place he was looking for or was it somewhere else. Mike was tired of walking and finally gave up the search. He felt thirsty and exhausted. He began to retrace the path back to his car to reenergize himself with a cool drink. When he reached there he couldn’t find his car. Mike was sure that he had parked it there. Mike could even see the car’s tire tracks. He searched his pocket for the keys, but then remembered he had left the keys in the car. Now Mike understood that somebody must have stopped by and seeing the keys in the car must have stolen it.

The loss of the water resource hurt him more than the car been carjacked. He felt too tired to even stand. Dehydrated, Mike felt as if the world around him spun. He couldn’t take it anymore; he fell on the road, unconscious.

Chapter - 6

Sometime Later That Day.

Mike opens his eyes and finds himself on a bed and a young man (aged around 25 years) standing beside him. Mike saw that the young man was smiling at him.

Mike asked the young man, “Where am I?”

The young man replies, “You’re back!”

Surprised by the young man’s reply, Mike asks him, “what do you mean, I’m back?”

The young man laughs aloud and replies, “You seem to grow a lot older, MIKE”.

(MIKE) “Did I hear MIKE? “, he thought.

Mike was confused as to how the young man knew his name.

Mike questioned the young man, “how did you know my name?”

The young man replied, “Don’t you recognize me?”

Mike said, “NO”.

The young man replied, “It’s me, Chris”.

Mike didn’t recognize the young man and further replied, “No, I don’t know you”.

The young man laughs loud and tells him that he was the one who had crashed into Mike 25 years ago.

The whole episode of the old accident goes through Mike’s mind once again.

“The Chris he knew would be much older by now, in his late seventies, if alive”, he thought.

The young man asks him to close his eyes. With some hesitation, Mike closes his eyes.

Mike hears a whisper in his ears, “You’re lucky. Forget about us if you wish to live”.

Mike remembered that voice. He could never forget that voice, which has been haunting him for so long. Mike opens his eyes to see the young man whisper into his ears.

Mike cries, “Chris, it is you!”

Mike couldn’t believe that the young man was Chris. Mike felt his head spinning.

Chris calls out aloud, “Clara!”

Mike remembered that name, Clara.

Clara was Chris’s wife. Mike looked towards the door expecting to see Clara. A few seconds later, a young woman (in her early twenties) walks into the room. The young woman comes and stands right beside Chris.

Mike remembered that Chris had a son and a daughter, Smith and Lucy.

Mike murmurs, “LUCY” looking at the young woman.

Both Chris and the young woman began to laugh. Mike couldn’t understand why they were laughing at him.

Mike asked, “Why are you laughing?”

Chris replied, “don’t you recognize her?”, pointing to the young woman.

“Yes, of course. I do,” said Mike.

“It’s Lucy, isn’t it,” said Mike.

Chris and the young woman start to laugh once again. Mike couldn’t control his anger and shouts, “stop that!”

Chris controlling his laughter replies, “Mike, this is Clara, my wife”.

Mike couldn’t believe what he was seeing and hearing.

“How can that be?” Clara must also be at the late seventies by now and the woman in front of him was in her early twenties.

Now Chris called aloud, “Smith - Lucy, come here”.

He was bewildered and looked at the door, not knowing what to expect next. Two persons, one man and another woman both in their late forties entered the room and stood beside Chris and Clara. Chris introduced them both to Mike as Smith and Lucy.

He couldn’t take it anymore. He thought that he must be dreaming or be dead or in some kind of fairyland. From all the confusion and déjà vu, Mike passes out on the bed.

Chapter - 7

Mike woke up and saw Chris, Clara, Smith and Lucy seated in front of him. He finally realized that he wasn’t dreaming or dead, but was in the real world.

Clara came forward and gave Mike a cup of hot coffee, as Chris began to speak.**

Chris had completed college and was working as a security guard in a secret government research center at an undisclosed place. The people working there used to call the place – *Epoch.

*Epoch - a moment in time chosen as the origin of a particular era

Chris at first never knew what was going on inside the research center. No person working in the center, including doctors and technicians were allowed any contact with the outer world and were made to live inside the center. All essentials required were airdropped once every month. Chris was working there for about two years and had never seen anyone come or go out of the center. Chris sensed that there was some kind of obscured activity going on inside the center. As far has he’s paid well, he had no problems.

One morning, Chris heard a chopper and looked up to see one coming towards the center. The chopper landed close by and a group of people got down and walked towards the center. As Chris and other guards were about to stop them from entering the center, two men from inside the center came out and shook hands with the group and took them inside. One of them was Dr. Patrick, the chief scientist of the research center.

A couple of hours later, the group of people who had landed were led out by the same two men to the chopper. The group boarded the chopper and the chopper took off into the clear sky. This was the only time in his time there he saw someone from outside enter the center. Neither he nor his colleagues knew what was happening.

One Night.

Chris was sleeping (off duty), when he heard the sound of shots being fired. He woke up and checked the clock; it was 2 in the morning. Quickly, Chris put on his pants and shirt and grabbing his gun and ran out towards the main block.

He could still hear shots being fired but could see no one. He looked at the entrance and saw that the guards on duty were down. He ran towards them and felt for their pulse but it was too late, all were cold dead.

He panicked. He gathered courage and ran towards the main block, where the main lab was located. He could still hear shots being fired. He cautiously moved in. He found bodies all over the place. The sound of the firearms suddenly stopped.

He quickly hid himself behind a pillar. He heard footsteps at some distance. He waited a little longer for the footsteps to come closer. He thought that he could use the element of surprise to overpower the assailants. He began to hear the sound of the footsteps louder and louder. When he thought he heard the footsteps just ahead of him, he sprang out from behind the pillar pointing his gun at the direction of the footsteps shouting, “Freeze! Drop your weapons!”

He saw five men dressed in black wearing masks and with Kalashnikovs. Chris had taken them by surprise. There was a stand still for a few seconds and suddenly one of the men began to raise his Kalashnikov.

Immediately Chris fired.

Click, Click, Click. Click, Click, Click…

There were no bullets in his gun. In the rush, Chris had forgotten to load his gun.

The five men looked at each other. Chris could hear them laugh. One of them walked up to Chris pointing his gun at him.

He shot Chris – Point Blank.

Chapter - 8

Chris opened his eyes. He found no one around. Chris remembers that he was shot by one of the assailants. He felt his chest and found that the bullet hadn’t pierced him.

“He was wearing his bullet-proof vest.” He had forgot to load his gun but not forgotten to wear his bullet-proof vest.

Chris then stood up dazed and looked. None of the assailants were to be found. He gathered some strength and went into the main lab in search of survivors. Entering the main lab, he found Dr. Patrick lying in a pool of blood. He stooped down and felt for his pulse. He could feel a faint pulse and tried waking him.

Dr. Patrick opened his eyes slowly and looked at Chris, recognizing him; Patrick muttered something, which Chris could not understand. Patrick began to point towards a safe at the right side of the room.

Patrick murmured faintly, “7-2-5-0-9-1-4-0-6-7”.

Chris immediately understood that it was the combination to the safe that Patrick whispered. Memorizing the combination, Chris rushed to the safe and opened it and found an ampoule containing a green-colored liquid and a diskette. Turning towards Dr. Patrick and he found that Dr. Patrick was nodding at him and made gestures as if he wanted Chris to bring the ampoule and the diskette to him.

Chris picked them up and ran towards Patrick and gave them to him. Patrick pushed both the ampoule and the diskette back into Chris’s hands and said, “Epoch, Epoch, Epoch…” As he said these words Chris noticed that Patrick’s head fell to the ground. He felt his pulse and found none. He knew that Patrick was gone.

Chris couldn’t understand what Patrick meant. He ran out of the lab holding on to the ampoule and the diskette looking for survivors. Chris found 16 other survivors.

Chapter – 9

One Year Later.

Chris and the other 16 survivors had moved far away from the research center and built a small town. They used the materials found at the research center for its construction. Clara was one of the survivors and Chris was always fond of her. One fine day he proposed to her and they finally married. Not the formal wedding but had a small ceremony. Four other survivors had taken Chris’s path and married their counterparts of choice, while the others lived separately.

Eleven Months Earlier.

Chris was curious of what the ampoule and the diskette contained. He couldn’t suppress his curiosity for long; he used the system at the center to check out the diskette. He was startled by what he found.

Epoch – was a secret project carried out by the government. Even the head of state, the President himself had no knowledge about the project’s existence. (Someone had to know about it in order to exist, wouldn’t they? May need or want to add something about that)It was a research conducted to alter the growth gene in human beings, in order to halt a human being’s aging process. The research team at Epoch had succeeded in modifying the growth gene in humans to stop the aging process. He further discovered that when a person was injected with it would not age above 50 years and the process of aging would start to reverse. That is, when a person turns 50, he or she will start to age in reverse and reach back to the point of age at which they had been injected.

THIS PROCESS OF AGING BACK AND FORTH WOULD GO ON FOREVER!!!

Chris informed the other survivors about his findings. Some of them jumped in joy and while others were perplexed.

“It’s God’s wish that we should live forever,” said one man.

“We shouldn’t act against nature,” said another.

“No, we must use it and live forever,” said a woman.

Suddenly a war of words broke between the two factions. Chris stood watching them silently and when he knew they were getting out of control, he shouted aloud, “STOP!”

There was dead silence once they heard Chris. Chris came in front of the group, raising his hand gesturing them to stop.

Facing them, “listen, this is no time to fight. We must regroup ourselves and live united. This is what God wishes,” he said.

He said that he wanted to take a vote to decide whether to use the vial and change the lives forever or destroy it. A vote was held and the persons who opted to use the vial were in majority. Only a handful of them were not willing to go against nature. So Chris finally announced that they would use the vial that makes them immortal. He began injecting the people who opted for it.

Chris said that they should all live together forever and never should let out the secret to the outside world. He also said that the people who hadn’t taken the injection should also live along with them and they may take the injection whenever they chose.

Chris was chosen as their leader. They decided to build a small town and raise funds by selling out the things found in the research center. With the funds they would start a farm and be self sufficient. If the need arises, a person from the group would go out into the outer world and get whatever is required and return back.

Chapter – 10

Present Day.

Chris finished narrating the story and lent back on the chair. Mike couldn’t believe what he had just heard. He didn’t know whether to believe it or not.

He started asking questions.

“Are you all really immortal?”

“Yes,” said Chris.

“But…” Chris continued.

“We are vulnerable to diseases and accidents. The miracle injection could only reverse our aging process but doesn’t protect us from death due to diseases and accidents,” he explained.

Mike put forth his next questions.

“Why did you leave town at the time of the accident, 25 years back?”

“I was on my way back after purchasing some essentials from the city, when I crashed into you,” replied Chris.

“How did I get back here the second time?” enquired Mike.

“My son, Smith was on his way back from the city after buying some medicines, when he saw you lying on the road unconscious. He recognized you and immediately brought you here,” said Chris.

Before Mile could ask another question, Chris interrupted.

“I think that you should know another secret,” said Chris.

”What’s that?” enquired Mike.

“At the time of your accident and when you were with us…” Chris hesitated.

Mike said, “go on!”

Chris continued, “we decided to give you a shot from the ampoule and WE DID.”

Startled, Mike replied, “Do you mean that, I’m immortal too?”

“Yes, you are,” said Chris.

Chris told Mike the shot he received was the last of it and all the people in the town were now injected. Chris told Mike that he had a gut feeling that he would return back to them one day and the feeing had turned true that day.

Chris and his family left the room, leaving Mike submerged in his thoughts. Mike closed his eyes, and began to play back all the incidents that happened during the last 25 years in his mind, one more time.

Final Chapter

One Year Later.

Mike could see and feel the reversal of the aging process taking its effect. He had turned 50 last August. He had started living with Chris and the people of the town to live forever

One day Mike was sleeping on bed, when he heard the sound of an alarm that rang loud. He could hear Chris shouting, “Mike, Mike, wake up, wake up.”

Mike woke up, startled by Chris’s distressed voice.

He found Chris standing in front of him. But it was not the Chris from the town who was standing in front of him, but -

“IT WAS HIS FATHER (Christopher Reeve), WAKING HIM.”