Woman's World

Chapter 1 - The Dead Agent

12th Dec 2040, 9:57 PM

Churchgate Graveyard.

Digital diary entry number 20,

Today is mom’s 20th death anniversary and I am standing here like every year placing flowers on her grave.

The only thing that’s changed is that the grave isn’t empty anymore.

I've never been happier.

Not even when I told you that my crush finally asked me out.

And remember when dad beat the crap out of him because he thought that we were making out but he was only getting something out of my eyes.

Not even when I got married to him.

I've never been happier.

We finally found her body.

My mother's body.

We finally uncovered the mystery, the mysterious deaths of all those influential women.

This is my final entry in the diary.

They're coming for me.

I've already been shot twice and bleeding horribly but I wanted to die near my mother's grave where she finally lies.

This is the place where I'd like to tell the world, how the life they've been living is fake and how a single woman influenced their mind and soul to make them believe that women should rule the world.

That Woman should be the only ruler of the entire world.

How a woman named Sridevi Padmanathan, fooled the entire world into believing that it's a woman's world.

As soon as I end this recording, it'll be automatically delivered to the investigation department and erased from this recorder permanently.

You'll find all the evidence at the designated place.

And this is to a father from his daughter - "I am sorry, Papa. I couldn't make it to the dinner today as well. Please tell Ajay that I love him and that I was expecting our baby in 5 months time. I wanted to tell him that once all this was over. I was so close. So close.

I am sorry, Papa. I love yo... "

More shots were fired, more bullets pierced Undercover Agent Nivedita's heart as she pushed the send button, threw the recorder away and fought till her last breathe.

Killer 7 men with a 0.38 cal revolver having only 2 bullets and a knife.

And that day, Indian Intelligence lost one of its best officers but won the battle they've been fighting with this woman. Padmanathan's Era of reign over the world was going to be over.

Chapter 2 - The Sad News

12th Dec 2040, 10:16 PM

Intelligence Secret Operations Hideout, Mumbai.

People at the intelligence were stunned. They didn't know how to react. Whether to laugh or to cry. Whether to celebrate or to mourn.

Sitting in the center of the room and listening to the last recording of his subordinate was this man, Mr. Rajveer Singh, Chief of Intelligent, Father of Nivedita Singh and husband of the late former chief of Intelligence, Shirisha David Singh.

Holding his tears back, he cleared his throat and said in a really calm but still commanding voice "Dispatch two teams at once. One for the Churchgate Graveyard, and the other one for the dockyard to grab the Evidence."

With a little stammer in his voice, he gulped and further said: "I'll be going to the graveyard, Ajay you go with the Dockyard team and get the evidence analyzed so that we can take some legal actions."

Ajay Saraswat, Nivedita's HUSBAND and Senior Forensic Inspector at the intelligence, who already broke into tears but had no expressions on his face replied "Yes sir." and then they head out.

Chapter 3 - The Grieving Father

12th Dec 2040, 11:00 PM

Churchgate Graveyard

Rajveer stood in front of his Daughter's dead body, lying beside the grave of his late-wife which was freshly dug and then refilled.

He could see the trail made of Nivedita's blood as she dragged herself while bleeding frantically from various places to reach her Mother's Grave.

And there were other seven bodies he identified as Sridevi's Personal Boduguards. Seven people, her daughter took out before letting them reach her or her mother.

He was sad and horribly sorry for putting her daughter through this nearly impossible task, but somewhere inside, he felt proud, proud of the daughter he raised.

The sad part is that no one could know about it. What she achieved, what she did for the world.

It'll always be a closed file. A forgotten history.

And just when he was about to sit on his knees to hug her cold, dead body, he saw something written on his wife's grave in blood.

It said, "Please bury me with Maa, Papa.".

Rajveer broke down completely. He cried and cried and cried while being on his knees holding his dead daughter's body and his head on his deceased wife's grave as the rain started falling on the family that's not there anymore.

Chapter 4 - The Determined Husband

13th Dec 2040, 12:00 AM

Churchgate Graveyard

Another hour passed but Rajveer still couldn't leave his daughter and wife alone but a hand reaches out for his shoulder.

It was Ajay, standing there, still crying and said "Let's go get that evil witch, sir."

He paused for a second, looked into Rajveer's eyes and said "No, not sir. Papa."

He then continued "The more we delay, the more she'll be ready for us. We have all the evidence and all the analysis ready. I have personally handpicked a task force to take down S.T.I.G.M.A once and for all."

Rajveer, who's a lot more stable than before said in his deep regretful voice "There's no need for that. We don't need a task force. It's just you and me who are going down there. She's a smart woman, she'd know when it's game over for her. She won't resist."

He further added "Also, I have some questions which that woman needs to answer. I want to ask her about those personally. Let's head to S.T.I.G.M.A"

Chapter 5 - The Guilt

13th Dec 2040, 2:00 AM

S.T.I.G.M.A Headquarters, Central Mumbai

On the roof of 176 floors tall S.T.I.G.M.A building stood Sridevi Padmanathan, adopted sister of former Chief of Intelligence Shirisha David Singh.

Standing behind her were Rajveer and Ajay, with guns in their hands and sadness on their faces. The sadness of losing someone they loved. The sadness of not being there when Nivedita was being shot and stabbed.

"It took you two longer than I thought." Sridevi turned around.

Even the blind could feel the remorse in her eyes. It was like she was emitting an aura of sadness.

"Why did you do this, Sri? Didn't you love her? Wasn't she the only family you had?" said Rajveer who started to break down again. It wasn't a case for him anymore.

He lost his wife 20 years ago and now his daughter for the very same cause. It was all meaningless for him now. He didn't want to talk about the case, he just wanted someone to comfort him, tell him that it's going to be all right.

And that's what Sridevi did. She moved towards him, as Rajveer was mumbling nothing which made sense anymore.

A sorrowed father couldn't make much sense of anything anymore. Ajay had his gun pointed towards her but she wouldn't care, she went to Rajveer and hugged him.

Tears of sorrow and guilt ran through her cheeks, but they weren't crocodile tears. They were as genuine as those of Rajveer's.

Still crying harshly, and saliva dripping from his mouth, Rajveer maffled something in her ears which sounded like "Why did you go to such lengths Sri. Why?"

To which, she put her hands on his shoulders and pushes him out a little so that he'd stop lying on her shoulder and see her face and said: "Do you remember what happened in 2006, Rajveer?"

Chapter 6 - The Backstory

25th May 2006, 2:00 PM

S.T.I.G.M.A Institute of Mental Health and Education

Standing on the door of the head of the research department of S.T.I.G.M.A, Dr. Vikrant Trivedi, was this young and beautiful 27 years old Sridevi.

She knew that this might be her last chance to go from an intern to a full-time researcher in one of India's most prominent research Neural Research Institutes.

"Professor Vikrant, may I come in. I have something really important to tell you. This is going to change my life. S.T.I.G.M.A's life." said very excited and enthusiastic 27 years old Sridevi.

"Ohh, here comes the girl who thinks she can change the world" said Vikrant under his breath.

"I don't have time for your hocus pocus and factless talks."

"You're here only as an eye-candy Sri. Accept the fact and bring us coffee and we might consider making you a permanent researcher here. We only got you as an intern to get us coffee instead of an arts graduate beauty as we have to justify the higher-ups and your grades were sufficient to shut them up. " said Vikrant in a very irritated voice.

"But it's really important. I have finally achieved "The Mind Map". The Cingulate Gyrus is the key. " replied Sridevi.

"How many times have you come to my room, running and claiming that you've achieved something which the actual scientists have not been able to achieve. Last time it was Memory Transplant, now it's Mind Map " said Vikrant in a plain, blunt voice.

She knew that she might be in trouble here if she tells him the truth about the research she's conducting behind his back but that's the only way she could think of to get his attention.

"I've been conducting a few experiments behind your back." her eyes looked down towards the floor.

"And I've results, enough results to get myself a lot of money and a lab to conduct further experiments. I'd not have come to you but as an Intern, I need your signatures on my research documents to get them published." She added further.

Vikrant, enraged, flustered looked towards Sridevi with all the deep red hatred in his eyes.

"How dare a lowly woman like you use lab equipment to conduct experiments without my permission. HOW DARE YOU?" said that Vikrant snatched the research papers from Sri's hand and called for the Security.

"Rakesh, throw this low-life of a human out of the facility right now and do not let her enter the facility ever again at any cost. Do not let her take anything from the lab. It is our property now." completed Vikrant as he watched Rakesh drag Sridevi out of the research facility.

Chapter 7 - The Confession

13th Dec 2040, 2:02 AM

S.T.I.G.M.A Headquarters, Central Mumbai

There was complete silence for a couple of minutes, which was then broken by Sridevi herself.

Now, sitting on a chair, with a table in front of her.

She said "Ajay, you might want to turn the recorder on now as it isn't going to matter if I go to jail or not. I might not be able to experience the whole phenomenon but you two, you'll watch the world unfold in front of your eyes."

Following her words as a command, Ajay pulled the recorder from the top left pocket of his coat and put it on the table in front of Sri after turning it on.

The sky wasn't clear anymore and the rain starts pouring with frequent lightning but the three wouldn't care anymore.

Sri, who was sitting now, with her hands on the table and water dripping from her hair, started speaking.

"Rajveer, do you remember what happened to Dr. Vikrant?"

Rajveer, who somewhat came back to his senses replied with a curious tone "He was killed in a car accident in 2008, right?"

Rajveer and Ajay can now see the vibe of this whole scene changing drastically.

The guilt from Sri's tone is gone and her eyes do not emit remorse but are giving away vibes of someone who's content with what they've done, they've achieved.

"I killed him. I was driving that car" she said that with a straight face but her voice seemed as if she was proud of it.

"And guess what happened a couple of days later? I got a call from S.T.I.G.M.A asking if I'd like to join them as the head of the research department." she kept speaking in that proud voice.

"Turned out that he made a breakthrough in the mind mapping using my research and they wanted me to continue the work as he was not....." Sri stopped abruptly and looked towards Rajveer. This is the second time her expressions had changed in the last few minutes.

She had eyes full of hatred now, full of rage and with a voice matching the same, she said "Do you know the problem our world had back then? It was a man's world. Us women were secondary, in each and every field. We were just the vessel for "Man's" kids for 9 months and that's all the world had expected of us."

She was so enraged that she stood up and stomped her hand on the marble table that even the recorder stumbled and then she continued "Ask anyone about the best batsman, they'll name a man. Ask someone about a scientist who changed the world, they'll name a man. For being a well-renowned name, you have to be exceptional as a woman but mediocre as a man. And it wasn't a modern phenomenon. We were oppressed and our expectations were suppressed since the Sat yug."

"That doesn't justify you killing a per......" before Ajay could finish his sentence, Sridevi interrupted him as she put a finger on his lips and "Shhhhhh!" him.

"Let me speak, Ajay. Why don't you listen to what I have to confess like your father-in-law." those were the last words she spoke while looking towards Ajay.

It was now an eye contact between Rajveer and Sri as she continued speaking.

"That wasn't the only murder I committed. I was behind the abduction and murder of 95% of influential women who vanished mysteriously from the world and countless men who could have caused me trouble" stopped for a second as if something was stuck in her throat and she was trying to bring it out.

And then she spoke again "The death count includes my younger sister Sirisha and my niece Nivedita."

Sri could see the hatred burning up in both the men's eyes, so, she said "If it wasn't essential for the Woman's World Rajveer, I wouldn't have done it. It was part of the sacrifice which was needed to be done by me to achieve the ideal world for Women."

Chapter 8 - The Masterplan

13th Dec 2040, 2:02 AM

S.T.I.G.M.A Headquarters, Central Mumbai

"Woman's world, you say? Nivedita was speaking of it in her final diary entry as well. What is it?" asked Ajay.

Sridevi, who was as excited as a small kid who's about to show his first drawing to his parents, turned towards Ajay.

"Memory mapping is a way of implanting one's way of thinking to another person's brain. I'd not go into details as my detailed research papers are there to be found in room number 302 of this building and you can have a look for yourself there."

Sridevi stopped and went to the water dispenser to have some water and then started speaking while pouring some water into the cup.

"Simply put, you can give a person other person's way of thinking. Facing the same challenge, their brains would work the same way. I've always said that it's all in the head and it actually is."

Sri drank the water and then turned around towards the city of Mumbai.

"You have no idea what this world is going to change into. The first lot of girls I experimented on are about twenty years old now. And many of them have already been making a boom in the world."

She then turned her face to a little left so that he could talk to Rajveer.

"Rajveer, the girl you hired a couple of years ago when she was 20. Isn't she smart? Like too smart for her age? I mapped Sirisha's brain onto hers."

Rajveer was surprised, numb at the first sight of it. He'd always tell Ajay that something is odd about the girl, that something makes her special.

Sridevi continues, "I wanted to see a world where women perform better than men in any and all the fields. Where women are superior and no one would make fun of them or doubt their capabilities."

She then takes a deep breath and said: "And it's about to happen Rajveer, it's bound to happen. You might put me down now, but you can't put down the idea. This world is going to be upside down in a decade from now and no one can do anything about it."

Rajveer stood up and pulled the handcuffs from his jacket.

Put them around the hands of his sister-in-law while Ajay turned off the recorder and put it back in his jacket.

They both were clueless and helpless. All they could think off doing in putting Sridevi under arrest and away from any external contact so that she could do no more harm to the external society.

Chapter 9 - The Call

20th Dec 2040, 10:00 AM

S.T.I.G.M.A Safehouse, Goa

It's been 7 days since Sridevi confessed.

And it's been 5 days since she died in an isolated prison due to a brain hemorrhage.

What caused it was still unknown.

Rajveer and Ajay went to the supposedly S.T.I.G.M.A Safehouse in Goa which is the last one they know of.

It is a big building with an old-fashioned telephone receiver placed at the center of the hall.

As soon as the entered the hall, the phone started ringing.

Ajay picked the phone up.

The girl on the phone said, "Hi, can I talk to Mr. Rajveer Singh?"

Ajay, baffled, gave the phone to Rajveer.

Rajveer said "Yes. Whom am I speaking to?"

The girl replied "I told you Rajveer, ideas do not die." and then she disconnected the call.

Chapter 10 - The Woman's World

The year 2060

It's been 20 years since the phone call..

Rajveer retired 5 years ago.

Ajay now works for RAW.

The intelligence was dissolved after all the Sridevi's assets were ceased.

But the world isn't what Sridevi was hoping for.

There's equality among gender. Both respect each other and there's no more discrimination.

Life's good.

Yes, Women are running the place. But it's like a home now. They're as caring as a mother and wouldn't discriminate between their kids.

It's actually a Woman's world which we needed in the first place.

This is actually "The Woman's World" which Sridevi should have hoped for.