The Rozabal Line Part 13

21 October 2012.

Grozny, Chechnya, Russia, 2011 Grozny's four administrative districts included Leninsky, Zavodskoy, Staropromyslovsky and Oktyabrsky. While Staropromyslovsky was the main oil-drilling area, it was Oktyabrsky that housed the industries and the economy, including the mafia. It was here that Dzhokar Raduev sat inside a luxuriously appointed house, blissfully unperturbed by the $10-million reward on his head.

Dzhokar Raduev was not merely a Chechen warlord. No. He was also a shrewd politician, a dangerous terrorist and, above all, Chechnya's most adored national hero. In his early youth, Raduev had changed his name; his new name was Yahya Ali, much more in keeping with his Islamic roots.

In 1992, when Boris Yeltsin sent his troops into Chechnya, Yahya had hijacked an Aeroflot aircraft travelling from Mineralnye Vody in Russia to Ankara in Turkey. He had threatened to blow up the flight unless Yeltsin lifted the state of emergency. Yahya had then travelled to Afghanistan, and had developed and strengthened his bonds with Al-Qaeda. Thereafter, he had moved back to Chechnya to carry on the struggle.

He now read the note from Ghalib. A smile of satisfaction spread over his face.

21 November 2012.

Bakhtaran, Iran, 2011 The truck had done its fair share of travel. From the port at Pipavav, it had headed to Jammu, where the consignment marked for the recipient had been 'officially unloaded', even though the actual machinery had continued to remain on board.

The truck had then been stripped of all its accessories and had been repainted a dirty military green. The cargo container had been covered with a khaki canvas and the licence plates had been changed to a series used by the Indian Army. A military pa.s.s was glued to the top left-hand corner of the windscreen.

The truck had proceeded in its new ident.i.ty along the inter-state Punjab-Kashmir border westwards and stopped short of the town of Rajouri on the Indian side. From here, Azad Kashmir or POK-Pakistan Occupied Kashmir-was just a stone's throw away. The truck waited at a quiet point along the Line of Control, the line dividing Kashmir into POK and Indian Kashmir. It was awaiting a signal from across the border.

Even though Indians had constructed over 734 kilometres of fencing along the Line of Control, significant portions of the border remained unfenced. This suited the Pakistan-trained militant outfits perfectly because it enabled them to send armed groups of terrorists across the border at will.

At 11 pm sharp, on observing five quick flashes of light, the truck's engine was restarted and it began the crossing. The road was non-existent and it required considerable skill to negotiate the dirt track. At 11:27 pm, the truck was firmly in Pakistani territory, and a few hours later it was in Mirpur.

A team of ten truck detailers from Rawalpindi awaited the vehicle in Mirpur. Over the next twenty-four hours, the truck would be repainted with floral designs, bright colours, and Urdu poetry. The canvas top would give way to a hardwood body with carved motifs. This would be further enhanced by little mirrors, reflectors, ornamental bra.s.s fittings and jingling bells and chains.

Truck art had become a very critical part of Pakistani folk art and this particular team specialised in what was referred to as 'disco painting' in which almost every square inch of surface area would be covered with decorations in the form of images or ornaments. Newly embellished, the truck would become part of the Pakistani landscape and would not be noticed. The new licence plates read 'KAE 5675'. The number was from a Karachi number series.

The truck now moved northwards to Muzaffarabad and from there westwards to Mansehra. From Mansehra it headed in a gentle south-westerly direction towards Peshawar in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan where it waited to cross the famous Khyber Pa.s.s.

The Khyber Pa.s.s between Afghanistan and Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province was probably the most evocative border crossing in the world. The border, the Durand Line, had been frozen by the English in 1893 and had ended up dividing the ethnic Pashtuns, resulting in the ongoing Pashtunistan issue, which had pretty much determined relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan throughout history.

The tribal areas of Pakistan continued to be mostly outside federal control, thus creating an entirely porous PakAfghan border, and a smuggler's delight.

The truck's papers indicated that it was carrying construction equipment needed for upgrading the Kabul highway. An armed guard from the Khyber Agency had been generously tipped to accompany the truck to Torkham on the border. Stamped out of Pakistan, the truck reached the small border post on the Afghan side and then proceeded to the main immigration post a further 500 metres ahead. The customs officers had already been taken care of. No checks.

The truck proceeded into Afghanistan and into the town of Jalalabad. From Jalalabad it took the road to Kabul and on to Chaghcharan. From Chaghcharan it progressed further towards Herat which, at one point in history, used to be at the crossroads of civilisations. Its north-south axis was part of the old Silk Route, while its east-west axis was the gateway to Europe. Afghanistan's border with Iran continued to remain mostly on paper and maps-the ground realities being rather different along the 900-kilometre border. The long stretches of desert sand did not lend themselves well to being policed.

At Herat, the truck underwent another cosmetic surgery. The images were removed. The garish colours were painted over with dull shades of grey. The Urdu poems were replaced by Persian proverbs of religious hue. The new licence plates were yellow and read 'THR 77708', a Teheran registration number.

No one gave a second glance to the truck as it crossed the border from Afghanistan into Iran. It was simply a truck carrying a miniscule part of the materials needed for a $38-million road construction project. Having reached Iranian territory, the truck headed southwards to Zahedan, from where it started a westward sweep through Kerman, Yazd, Esfahan and Arak till it reached Bakhtaran, which lay just across the IranIraq border from Baghdad.

The driver was tired, but he forced himself to stay alert. He had yet to cross Iraq and Syria before he reached his final destination. Ghalib decided to take a short nap. His friend, El-Azhar, would take up the watch while he slept. He needed to be prepared for the final act on 21 December 2012. Eleven other events would precede it, one each month. And each event would wreak havoc.

The Sheikh's Master would have the last laugh. The world had been waiting for this day since 500 B.C.

21 December 2012.

Guatemala, 500 B.C.

The royal astrologer was looking up at the heavens from his observatory, which formed part of the temple honouring Kukulcan.

He was looking rather worried. He had determined the exact end of the great cycle of the Long Count Maya calendar, a 26,000-year planetary cycle. The date would have ma.s.sive repercussions. It would coincide with the geomagnetic reversal of the poles of the earth, having last occurred 780,000 years ago! The date was definite; an extremely close conjunction of the winter solstice sun with the crossing point of the galactic equator and the ecliptic path of the sun. More commonly known to Maya civilisation as the Sacred Tree.

21 December 2012.

Langley, Virginia, USA, 2011 The compa.s.s had sixteen points, and it symbolised the search for information from all over the world. This information had to be brought back and centralised at one place where it would be stored, catalogued and a.n.a.lysed. The compa.s.s rested on a shield-a shield that was meant to defend America. This was the familiar crest that welcomed visitors to the Central Intelligence Agency's headquarters in Langley.

Hidden within the miles of corridors was a small office that housed the SAS, or the Special Activities Staff. A division of the Directorate of Operations, the SAS handled covert paramilitary exercises which the American Government did not wish to be publicly a.s.sociated with. Members on missions strictly avoided carrying anything on their person that could even remotely link them to the United States Government.

The division had less than a few hundred personnel, most of them former operators of Delta Force and Navy SEAL teams, although, on occasion, they were known to employ civilians for paramilitary activities. The division used RQ-1 Predator Drones equipped with high-resolution cameras and AGM-114 h.e.l.lfire ant.i.tank missiles as part of their wide a.r.s.enal. The division was known to be a major part of the US's unconventional war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The real strategic advantage of the SAS was ADA, or Agility, Deniability and Adaptability. More often than not, SAS agents would operate individually and all alone, undercover, and that too in inhospitable areas behind enemy lines. They would carry out all types of a.s.signments including counter-intelligence, espionage, handling hostage situations, deliberate sabotage, and targeted a.s.sa.s.sinations.

One of the SAS's most prized agents was simply known by the agency nickname of 'CIA Trois'. He was of ArabAlgerian stock and a devout Muslim. His areas of operation were Afghanistan, Pakistan and Kashmir and since he was equally familiar with all three regions, he had the nickname 'Trois', or 'Three'.

Stephen Elliot, head of the SAS, was his controller. Stephen was one of the brightest stars within the agency. He had been recruited into the intelligence service during his final year at Yale, the same year he 'tapped' Terry Acton for the Skull & Bones membership.

Elliot was at the SAS headquarters deciphering the encrypted message that had reached him from CIA Trois. It read simply: N 45:50 E 6:52 S 11:00 W 66:00 N 31:00 E 112:00 N 51:07 E 1:19.

N 3:09 E 101:41 N 32:59 E 74:57 N 33:20 E 44:30 N 44:98 W 110:45.

S 06:09 E 106.49 S 33:00 E 146:00 N 43.2 E 45.45 N 31:34 E 34:51.

It ended with: Q 17:16.

The N, S, E and W obviously meant North, South, East and West. Trois had provided the locations. The Langley computers quickly looked up the coordinates and spat out the results.

N 45:50 E 6:52 Rhone Alps, France S 11:00 W 66:00 Riberalta, Bolivia N 31:00 E 112:00 Hubei, China N 51:07 E 1:19 Dover, England N 3:09 E 101:41 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia N 32:59 E 74:57 Katra, Jammu & Kashmir, India N 33:20 E 44:30 Baghdad, Iraq N 44:98 W 110:45 Wyoming, USA S 06:09 E 106.49 Jakarta, Indonesia S 33:00 E 146:00 New South Wales, Australia N 43.2 E 45.45 Grozny, Chechnya, Russia N 31:34 E 34:51 Tel Megiddo, Israel.

But Q 17:16? Elliot pulled out of his desk an English pocket Qur'an and looked up Chapter 17, Verse 16. It read: 'And when We wish to destroy a town, We send Our commandment to the people of it who lead easy lives, but they transgress therein; thus the word proves true against it, so We destroy it with utter destruction.'

Elliot was confused. He knew about the first eleven locations, but how had Megiddo entered this plan? He needed to discuss this one on one, with the President.

Megiddo, Israel, 2012 A hill near the modern settlement of Tel Megiddo was made up of twenty-six layers of ruins of ancient cities. Megiddo, however, was famous for another reason. The New Testament's Book of Revelation had prophesied that the final military showdown of the world would happen in Megiddo. Soon, the word 'Megiddo' had become synonymous with the end of the world. In fact, the word 'Armageddon' was derived from the name 'Megiddo'.

Ghalib's truck was on its way there. Ghalib asked El-Azhar for his Thuraya satellite phone and began dialling a number in Pakistan: +92 51 . . .

Chapter Seventeen.

Mumbai, India, 2012 Swakilki had followed Vincent from London to Mumbai via Delhi. Indian Airlines flight IC-887 had ferried her from New Delhi to Mumbai within one hour and fifty-five minutes. The Mercedes-Benz S350L sent by the Taj Mahal Hotel to receive her at the airport quickly wove its way through the notorious traffic snarls and deposited her at the waterfront paradise of the luxury hotel.

George Bernard Shaw had commented that after staying at the Taj Mahal Hotel, he had no longer felt the need to visit the original Taj Mahal in Agra. Swakilki was staying in the Heritage Wing, where individually themed high-ceilinged suites made one imagine an era when personalities like Somerset Maugham and Duke Ellington had rested their heads on soft pillows in the city's best hotel.

The discovery of the Bom Jesus doc.u.ment given by Terry to Vincent had resulted in endless discussions with Martha. The doc.u.ment seemed to indicate that Jesus had survived the crucifixion and that he had settled in India. Vincent's own past-life regressions in which he had seen Jesus had seemed to confirm the theory that Jesus had indeed survived the ordeal. They had finally decided that they needed to distinguish fact from fiction. The only way to do this necessitated a visit to India.

Upon their arrival in Mumbai, Martha and Vincent had taken a cab to the Taj Mahal Hotel. They were put up in the business-like Tower Wing of the hotel. They did not observe the young j.a.panese woman who checked into the adjoining luxurious Heritage Wing.

The Taj Mahal Hotel had something else that was more interesting than the themed suites. Besides the usual 'house doctor' for medical emergencies, it also boasted a 'house astrologer' for far more urgent counselling from the heavens. Vincent had decided to take an appointment. He had noticed the bit about the 'house astrologer' while leafing through the hotel's extensive services directory. Even though he was sceptical about the occult, his last experience with the world beyond, in London, had opened up his mind to newer concepts.

He dropped in at the hotel's reception to book an appointment with Pandit Ramgopal Prasad Sharma, the world-renowned astrologer who practised his art and science from the hallowed portals of the Taj every alternate week. The receptionist was happy to give Vincent an appointment for 3 pm.

Pandit Ramgopal Prasad Sharma turned out to be a wise old man of eighty-one, who spoke wonderful English, not the crazy, half-naked fakir that Vincent had imagined.

'You see, Mr Sinclair, my childhood and growing-up years were spent in the picturesque fields of Hoshiarpur in Punjab. Surrounded by the splendour of nature, I became fascinated with the concept of destiny. This led me to the question: is everything preordained in life? It was this question that led me to the study of the occult, Hindu astrology and philosophy,' explained Pandit Ramgopal Prasad Sharma as he poured two cups of lemon tea, one for Vincent and one for himself.

Pandit Ramgopal Prasad Sharma's father had been a professor of science and mathematics but had remained perpetually absorbed in subjects such as astrology, palmistry, mysticism, and spiritualism. With twenty-four-hour access to his father's texts and scrolls, Ramgopal had read, re-read, absorbed and understood each of them with a voracious appet.i.te. He had become so curious about the metaphysical that he had begun to delve deeper and deeper into the subject. Very soon, there was a perpetual line of waiting visitors at his father's house. People had begun to believe his uncannily accurate predictions. This had led to more enthusiasm and deeper research, eventually resulting in Ramgopal becoming one of the most sought-after astrologers in India and abroad.

'Now, I take it that you do not have a janam-kundli, in which case I will need to make one for you.'

'What is that?' asked Vincent.

Pandit Ramgopal explained patiently. 'A janam-kundli is a birth chart. It indicates the planetary positions when you were born. I will need your date, time and location of birth.'

Vincent supplied him with the relevant data: 1 July 1969; 7:15 am; New York City.

The pandit referred to a musty old tome from which he derived the lat.i.tude and longitude of New York City. Lat.i.tude 4029'40'N to 450'42'N and longitude 7147'25'W to 7945'54'W.

Master craftsman that he was, he then started filling in the planetary positions in Vincent's birth chart. Chart duly completed, he looked at it carefully as if he were admiring a work of art.

'I will tell you a few things about your past. Please tell me whether I am right or wrong. This will ensure that the chart I have before me is indeed accurate.'

Vincent meekly nodded his a.s.sent.

'You are an only child. No brothers or sisters.'

'Yes.'

'Your parents are dead. They died around the same time. Rather violently and suddenly. An accident?'

'Yes.'

'You are not married.'

'Yes.'

'Even though you are not married, you love children. You work with children in your career. A schoolteacher or paediatrician perhaps?'

'Yes.'

'You are deeply religious. In fact, your work is spiritual in nature.'

'Yes.'

'That's fine then,' said Pandit Ramgopal rather matter-of-factly as if all his accurate readings about Vincent's past meant nothing.

He then became very serious. 'The ascendant of your horo-scope is Pisces with the moon in Pisces,' he said.

'Huh?' said Vincent.

Pandit Ramgopal carried on, 'What it means is that in this life you are at the end of your multiple cycles of birth, death and rebirth. This is your final lifetime before you merge with the divine. This is a wonderful horoscope. I am honoured to read it.'

'What does that mean?' asked Vincent.

Pandit Ramgopal replied, 'It means that you have been through several lifetimes in which you have learned various things. In this final lifetime, your soul will have learned whatever there is left to learn. After this, you will not need rebirth. We Hindus call it moksha.'

'What else can you tell me?'

'There are three supreme forces in your life. You will need to recognise them before you can attain moksha.'

'How?'

'The first force has Saturn in the ascendant. But in this horoscope the ascendant is Libra, not Cancer. Saturn has its highest power in Libra, driving this person to the very top of wealth and power. Furthermore, the conjunction of Venus and the moon in the second house is a Raja Yog, the astral bounty that has kept this person in public prominence always.'

'Who is this person?' asked Vincent.

'That I cannot tell you. But wait, hear me out. There is a second force which has what is called a Paap-Katri Yog or a Vish-Kanya Yog. The moon is afflicted and is surrounded by malevolent planets such as Saturn, Mars as well as Rahu-Ketu. This makes the person almost maniacal. This person will not hesitate to kill.'

'What can I do?' asked a visibly shaken Vincent.

'Well. This second force has Rahu in the sixth house and Ketu in the twelfth house. This makes the person holy and very religious. Unfortunately, the person's ascendant is a combination of Saturn and Mars. This makes him or her violent and b.l.o.o.d.y. Thus there is a spiritual side to this negative force.'

'What do you mean by Rahu and Ketu?' asked Vincent.

Pandit Ramgopal answered, 'In Hindu mythology, Rahu is the snake that swallows the sun or the moon, thus causing an eclipse. From the astronomical point of view, Rahu and Ketu denote the point of intersection of the sun and the moon as they move. To that extent, they are the north and south lunar nodes, hence eclipses are bound to occur at these points.'

'So how can I neutralise this negative force generated by Rahu and Ketu?' asked Vincent.

'Use the third force to neutralise the second. This third force has a Gajakesari Yog in the ninth house. Both Jupiter and the moon are without blemish here. There is no aspect of any planet on it, nor any conjunction. This is a person of wisdom and knowledge. Let them cancel each other out!' he commanded as he thumped the table in front of him.

Martha and Vincent were sitting in the Sea Lounge of the Taj, one of the city's favourite tearooms. They had just returned to the hotel after a hectic day of sightseeing and were enjoying the restaurant's specialty, Viennoise coffee.

Vincent had been left rather shaken by the predictions of Pandit Ramgopal Prasad Sharma, and it had taken him a day to recover. In the morning, Martha had suggested that they spend the day seeing a little more of the city.