The tale of the sacred mountain

By Shivanshi Saraswat

“Ring-Ring-Ring,” Thomas woke up to a sudden phone call from an unknown number. He glanced at the wall clock, astonished, and wondered, ‘Who would be calling me at 4 am on a Sunday?’ Frustrated, he picked up his cell phone. A harsh voice spoke, “Your mom is in my custody. If you want her alive, then meet me at the sacred mountain.” Bewildered, he asked, “Is this some kind of joke?” The caller replied with a menacing laugh, “Well, I hope this tells you what this is.” On the line, he heard his mom shouting in agony.

Thomas was now scared and stuttered, “P…Please don’t hurt her. I will do as you say.” The voice on the line said, “And if you try to outsmart me and call the police…” Before he could finish, Thomas said in an alarmed voice, “No, nothing of that sort will happen. Please don’t hurt my mom.” The mysterious caller then replied, “Meet me at the sacred mountain by 12 am tomorrow.” “But, where is this sacred mountain?” asked Thomas. The line was already dead.

Thomas now sat up straight in his bed. He wanted to cry but could not find tears in his eyes. Then he started thinking about a place named ‘sacred mountain.’ He couldn’t think of anything except his mom’s painful cry. He closed his eyes for a minute, taking deep breaths and trying to calm himself down. He went to take a hot shower and was ready by 5 am.

It was snowing outside. Thomas’s winter vacation had just begun, and he had a flight to the Maldives with his friend, Amelia, later that night. They were going to stay there for three weeks. Thomas loved Amelia and planned to confess his love with a surprise date night on the beach. Now, it all seemed like a mere dream. Thinking about Amelia, he called her. After hearing everything, she was surprised that Thomas hadn’t called the police yet. She understood from his voice that he was frightened and needed a partner. So, she empathetically calmed him down and drove to his place.

When Amelia arrived, Thomas cried her shoulder. He stared into the distance, thinking about the chain of events that had taken place, while Amelia searched the internet for any references to ‘the sacred mountain.’ As she scrolled through the browser, she suddenly noticed a site with the description, “Mt. Kailash is known as the sacred mountain by four religions: Hinduism, Bon, Buddhism, and Jainism.”

Excited, she showed it to Thomas, but he was still not pleased. He said, “I already thought about that, but with the raging winter, the mountain would most probably be closed.” Amelia’s face didn’t show any disappointment; instead, she happily said under her breath, “Idiot!” “I heard that,” said Thomas. She then chuckled and said, “We live in Tasmania, and right now, it’s the month of June. In June, Indian regions face the summer season.” Thomas’s face suddenly lit up, and he thanked Amelia and began to book a flight ticket to India. Amelia insisted on going, and so, Thomas agreed.

They boarded the flight at 6 am, and fortunately, there were no delays due to snowfall. He suddenly realised that his mother’s captor hadn’t asked him to bring anything with him, not even money. Amelia was partly surprised and partly amused when she heard this news. She simply replied, “Maybe he wants some military information.” Though her reply was subtle, they both exchanged nervous glances.

Thomas was 24-year-old with a well-built, 6 ft. 5-inch body. Amelia, on the other hand, was a beautiful 5 ft. 8-inch young woman with shoulder-length black hair, a perfectly-toned, muscled body, and fair skin. Thomas was skilled with cars but Amelia did not know how to drive. Both Thomas and Amelia were well-known spies of MI6 working in Tasmania as undercover agents. They had met during an assignment in Canada.

Now, they understood the reason why Thomas had been called. He had recently signed a document containing classified information. The problem was that only Thomas and the President of the United Kingdom knew what was in the document. It was rumoured to contain the names of police officers, politicians, and other influential leaders who had committed minor crimes that threatened national security. However, this information was meant only for MI6. Thomas said, “But no one outside MI6 knew about that.” “Seeing the information provided by the document, the person himself could be a MI6 agent or had been tipped off by an insider,” replied Amelia. Now, Thomas’s heart was racing.

He was relieved that he had agreed with Amelia’s insistence on carrying weapons, but his heart sank again as he had chosen a pistol. Amelia smiled, as if reading his mind, and whispered, “Don’t worry. I have come prepared.” Thomas weakly smiled back. “Everyone, please put on your seatbelts as we are landing in another five minutes,” announced the flight attendant. Thomas woke up from his 15-minute nap, his head aching as he tightened his seatbelt.

After landing at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, Thomas and Amelia grabbed a quick snack from the airport restaurant as they waited for their flight to Tibet. When they arrived in Tibet, it was already 10 pm. They now had only 26 hours until the deadline.

Thomas then called the unknown number once again and informed the caller that he had reached Tibet and wanted to know the kidnapper’s exact location. The caller chuckled and said, “You didn’t understand the meaning of ‘the sacred mountain,’ did you?” Thomas was now dismayed at this comment. Before he could say anything, the line went dead. The phone was on speaker, and Amelia had the same reaction as Thomas.

Now, it suddenly dawned on him, the real meaning of ‘the sacred mountain.’ Excited, he looked at Amelia and shouted, “I know it! I had known it all along!” Confused, Amelia looked at him, searching for an answer. He then explained, “MI6 headquarters! When I joined MI6, I was told that the code name for the headquarters is ‘the sacred mountain.’ In fact, every officer knows the codename.” Amelia realised that he was right. They quickly booked a flight to London, wasting another 10 hours.

While on the flight, Thomas thought about the intelligent codename. It had been given to facilitate the founder of MI6, who had given many speeches in Ladybank Masonic Hall. The initiation into MI6 was code-named as an initiation into ‘the sacred mountain.’ In Freemasonry, the sacred mountain was where their ancient treasure was hidden, a treasure said to be very valuable and capable of giving a person god-like power. Thomas compared the information in MI6 headquarters to the ancient treasure.

When they entered the headquarters, they had exactly 14 hours and 30 minutes left until the deadline. Thomas phoned the mysterious man, who said, “So, you found ‘the sacred mountain.’ Now, bring me the document you just signed to the storage room in the basement of the headquarters, and in exchange, you can take your mom.” Thomas sighed and agreed. The man added, “Make sure you come alone. If you bring your beloved Amelia, who has been with you till now, then you know the consequences.” In the background, he could hear a woman sobbing, a sound he recognised. He was even more agitated now and followed the man’s instructions blindly.

As he set off alone, Amelia insisted on coming along but he refused. They negotiated, and Amelia accompanied him to the door of the storage room. When Thomas reached the storage room, the door was already open. Inside, he found a tunnel in the wall, which he had never seen before. An arrow made of blood pointed towards the tunnel, and Thomas’s heart began to race as he started running. At the end of the tunnel, he found himself in a brightly lit room. His gaze turned to the right, and he saw his mother sitting in a wheelchair, breathing weakly. Next to her was a cage, and inside it, he saw an unconscious Amelia. He couldn’t believe his eyes, and he wished it was a dream. As he heard footsteps behind him, he turned to see another Amelia. She removed a wig and a mask, revealing a completely different woman. Thomas heard laughter. When he turned back, his boss stood in front of him.

It was too much for Thomas. He took out a pocket pistol and pointed it at his boss, but he felt a gun cocked against his neck. Slowly, he dropped his own weapon and placed his hands on his head. His boss asked him to show the document to confirm that Thomas wasn’t bluffing. To Thomas’s horror, there was nothing written in the file; it only had Thomas’s and the President’s signatures. “What is this? You tried to outsmart me even after two warnings. Now, this woman will pay the price,” shouted the man.

Before Thomas could react, the man shot his mom in the head, and she collapsed in the chair, lifeless. “Nooooo! James, you will pay the price for this,” shrieked Thomas in a mix of sadness and anger. From the storeroom’s gate, six men and a woman entered, all carrying efficient AK-47s. They handcuffed the fake Amelia and aimed their guns at James, who was now shocked by the sudden turn of events. In just half an hour, Thomas had become the dominant party, and James was hopeless and helpless. Both kidnappers were taken for interrogation.

James angrily asked, “How did you trick me!?” “You KILLED my mom!” replied Thomas, ignoring his question. “She deserved it,” James said simply. This reply fueled Thomas’s inner emotions, and he slapped James. The blow was stronger than he had intended, and James still laughed at him. Thomas then began to explain.

“You want to know how you lost, right? Then listen to me. I had my suspicions when Amelia ‘drove’ to my place. She could never drive, and especially not on snow. So, I started keeping an eye on her. Then, while we were on the plane, she was continuously on the phone, texting you. I was a bit surprised at this. Then, I got my confirmation. While on the plane, we were discussing what you wanted, and she replied so subtly that you wanted some ‘military information.’ That’s when I took the liberty of calling the proper agencies.

And, not only that, I never signed a document. It was all a trap to find the person who had been leaking confidential information. What do you think? The President would choose me? The woman you killed was never my mom; she was just another spy wearing a mask, and she never died. We filled the mask with fake blood, knowing you would shoot her in the head because you enjoyed your ego. And you got slapped because you tortured her.”

The rest of the interrogation was conducted by another officer. Thomas went to the infirmary room to check on Amelia. She was much better now and wanted to accompany Thomas out. As they were leaving the headquarters, James was in handcuffs, passing by them. He pressed a button on his watch, and a bullet shot towards Amelia. Thomas jumped in front of her, taking the bullet in his waist. He fell unconscious to the floor while the guards quickly tranquilised James. Thomas was escorted to the nearest hospital, where the bullet was removed.

Amelia had tears in her eyes when she asked Thomas why he had jumped in front of her. Thomas replied, “I would do anything to be with the love of my life.” Amelia was delighted with this response, as she had always had a crush on Thomas. She kissed his forehead and smiled happily.

A week later, Thomas and Amelia were in the Maldives, enjoying the sun. James, on the other hand, was in prison, eating the worst food imaginable.