Revenge in the clouds
Written by: Subbu Ananth
Bright and sunny it is, i thought as i peered out of the window seat of the aircraft. One doesn’t get to notice so much brightness as when you get to watch the vast concrete barren land at the airport. I was flying on a business assignment with enough work to be executed during the flight. Looked up briefly to see a stream of passengers walking in, mostly business types with little or no smiling faces to suggest a chirpy morning. Phew, maybe it is my work pressure singling out the stressed out guys around,i thought.
I didn’t realize the aircraft had taken off until a faint announcement rocked into my slumber. The guy sitting next to me was already pounding away on his laptop. Yawning, i Woke up, adjusted posture turning towards the clouds outside the window.
‘Look up here’, he said in chaste english in a booming baritone. Clean shaven, thin moustache running down the chin and wearing a brown leather jacket, the guy looked straight out of hosting a TV reality show. He had walked out of his aisle seat and was facing the rows of seated passengers now.
‘I have an agenda to complete today’, he started, while being joined by 2 others.
‘We are specialists and have come here with an intent and purpose. For long we have been called names, pushed over and have been trampled over our rights. That won’t continue anymore. Authority and power have damned the weak, weakened cohesion, made us submissive. We are going to change that forever’
‘Each one of us’, he added with suitable impact ‘are fighters trained in physical combat. So, you don’t want to risk your bones attempting anything heroic. We have a job to do and would like minimal interference from you all. We can’t assure you will be totally safe, but you could be safe if you want to by keeping quiet’
It was obvious we were under attack. And not from any brainwashed, fundamentalist radicals clouded in thought but literate geeks comfortable as much on ground as on the cloud.
It was a hijack! The geeks had hacked their way into the on-board computer with their gadgets and were attempting control of the aircraft. One of them was breaking in with a device that resembled a laptop while the other 2 kept guard.I realized they had a third one monitoring the situation from the rear.
‘What do you guys want?’ Someone was brave enough to volunteer. It was a woman in her mid-twenties. No response.
‘Where are you flying us to?’ Another question. No response.
And then the deep voice again. ‘We are now in total control of this plane. No satellite or radar can pinpoint our flight path. And no one can intercept our conversations.’
I sensed the trickle of sweat down my arm. This was too chilling to be true. Straight out of a sci-fi movie.No threats of blowing up the plane. No hostage drama. Just take it crashing down. Wherever. Whenever. And worse, no one but they can land the bird.
What now? Will they fly us into enemy territory? Will they crash the plane into sensitive sites? Will they kill us if their demands are not met? More sweat.
I saw one of the guys walking towards our seat. Pointing at me, he motioned me to step out. I almost passed out under fright. I resisted. Extending his slender muscular arm, he pulled at my tie.
I jumped up startled as i saw the steward ask – Which meal would you prefer sir, Veg or non-veg?
I had dozed off, again !