Chapter 3 - Espionage

It was evening, and the school was quiet. Kabir hurried to the computer lab and sat down at a desk.

"Let's see Kaliyug's records," Kabir muttered to himself as he searched for Kaliyug's name in the school database.

"Hey, Kabir!" A voice called out. It was Rumi, who startled Kabir. He quickly tried to block the screen with his body.

Rumi had become the school queen after Jeeva stepped down. Known for her kind demeanor, she was a fierce fighter with a power level of 7 out of 10.

"You scared me! Can't you see I'm busy? I need to find some juicy news for the school website, so talk to me later!" Kabir whispered.

"What kind of boyfriend are you, Kabir? Don't you care about your girlfriend?" Rumi stomped her foot in frustration before storming out of the room.

Kabir turned back to the computer, still shaken, and found Kaliyug's profile.

"Kaliyug Vishnoi? Expelled from his last school with no reason given? Why would any school do that?" Kabir read, puzzled. "And how did he even get into the top school in the city when there's nothing remarkable about him? Something's off about this guy. I need to dig deeper. I'll need Raj's help for that."

Kabir left the lab and nearly bumped into Kaliyug in the hallway.

"Sorry! I didn't see you!" Kaliyug apologized, turning to walk away.

Kabir watched Kaliyug leave, his curiosity growing. "This guy's walking around like he's fearless, even without any powers. What's his deal?"

Later that evening, Jeeva came home feeling exhausted. She lay down on her bed when Keerthi walked in.

"How was your day?" Keerthi asked with a smile.

"Tiring," Jeeva muttered, closing her eyes.

"Can I borrow your lip balm?" Keerthi asked.

"Yeah, it's in my bag. Help yourself," Jeeva replied, still with her eyes shut.

As Keerthi dug through the bag, she saw a book titled The Cursed Prince. She was startled and quickly left the room, heading to another one to call Vinoy.

"Hello, Vinoy?" Keerthi whispered.

"Yeah, what's up?" Vinoy answered.

"I think Jeeva's up to something. I saw a book in her bag called The Cursed Prince," Keerthi said, her voice tinged with worry.

"That book's banned! Don't worry; I'll talk to her. In the meantime, don't mention anything to her!" Vinoy said, then hung up.

The next day, Raj sat in an empty classroom with his laptop when Kabir entered. Seeing Kabir, Raj quickly tried to hide the laptop, but Kabir snatched it away.

"Oh, so you're trying to steal this year's unit test answers from the school website? That's breaking news!" Kabir said with a laugh.

"Keep your voice down! If anyone hears, I'll get suspended!" Raj pleaded.

"Suspended for at least a week, and your internet access will be banned too. But hey, I'll get an award for this, and my news site's ratings will skyrocket!" Kabir's eyes gleamed with excitement.

"Are you my friend or my enemy? Media people are never loyal!" Raj snapped.

"Not at all!" Kabir replied sarcastically.

"Fine, I'll do whatever you want, but don't tell anyone about this!" Raj said, his face falling.

"Okay, but you owe me one. I need you to hack the school website and open the student logins so I can find out about someone," Kabir said in a calm voice.

"That's a crime!" Raj said in shock.

"Your actions were already a crime, so just do it! You have 15 minutes to get it done, or I'll make sure your actions are broadcast on my news site for everyone to see. Got it? Meet me in the computer lab," Kabir warned before leaving.

After a while, Raj handed Kabir a laptop and walked away. Kabir opened it to find the student logins already unlocked.

"Let's see what else I can find about Kaliyug Vishnoi," Kabir muttered, opening Kaliyug's profile.

"Captain of the football team at his old school? But how can a guy with no powers be the captain? And he got into this school through a sports quota. His dad is Ajay Vishnoi, a famous writer. But why was he expelled from his last school?" Kabir mumbled, scanning the notes.

He found a note from Kaliyug's previous school: "Expelled due to violent acts."

"This is huge! Kaliyug could be the talk of my news website," Kabir said, his mind racing. "But why was he expelled for violence? Either Kaliyug has hidden powers, or someone may have hurt him, and the school expelled him to protect him. This guy's full of mysteries."

Kabir closed the laptop, standing up. "I need to get a fake interview with Kaliyug to figure this out."

Elsewhere, Kaliyug was being beaten by a group of girls. He had a wound on his head, but they continued. Kabir spotted him from a distance and rushed over.

"Alright, that's enough! Let him go, or I'll report you to the principal!" Kabir shouted, lifting Kaliyug off the ground.

The girls walked away, muttering.

"Why does everyone keep beating you up? Why don't you report them to the principal?" Kabir asked as he helped Kaliyug to an empty seminar room.

"I don't think it'll make a difference," Kaliyug said as he cleaned himself up.

"Hi, I'm Kabir, joint secretary of the school's news website. I'm writing an article about the struggles of students without powers. You might be the first in the world with no powers. Can I interview you?" Kabir asked, smiling.

"I need to get to class," Kaliyug replied, trying to leave.

Kabir grabbed his arm and pulled him back into a chair. "It won't take long."

"Okay," Kaliyug said with a sigh.

"So, how hard is it to stay at a school where everyone's more powerful than you?" Kabir asked, pretending to write in a notebook.

"It's difficult, but we have to live in this world," Kaliyug replied calmly.

"How do you get by?" Kabir asked.

"I mostly ignore the fights and stay calm so people don't notice me," Kaliyug answered.

"How did you get into this school if you're not special?" Kabir asked.

"I got in on a sports quota."

"What sport?"

"Football."

"Would you join the football team here?"

"No," Kaliyug answered quickly. "That would draw attention to me, and I don't want that."

"Don't you think it's wrong, the way the powerful keep pushing down the weak?" Kabir asked.

"It's wrong," Kaliyug said, his face darkening. "The kids here bully me, and they think they can vent their anger on me."

"Why don't you report them?"

"Nothing would happen. The powerful always protect the powerful, and I'd end up suspended," Kaliyug said bitterly.

"Does this have to do with your old school?" Kabir pressed.

"I have nothing to say about that," Kaliyug said, standing up to leave.

Kabir watched him go, shaking his head. "I thought he was different, but he's just a loser."

Kaliyug was heading to his class when someone grabbed his arm and pulled him into a room.

"Jeeva? What's going on?" Kaliyug asked, surprised.

"Where are you rushing off to?" Jeeva asked.

"Just going to class," Kaliyug replied, fixing his hair.

"Someone beat you up again, didn't they?" Jeeva asked, noticing the injury on his head.

"It's nothing. I just tripped," Kaliyug lied, trying to hide the injury.

"Who did it? I'll make sure they never mess with you again," Jeeva said, taking out some medicine to treat his wound.

"Don't get involved. I'm fine," Kaliyug said, turning away.

"I wish I could give you my powers," Jeeva said, pulling Kaliyug into a hug.

"No need for that, Jeeva," Kaliyug said, hugging her back.

"Well, school's over. Let's get some ice cream!" Jeeva said, taking his hand and leading him away.

Meanwhile, Vinoy was playing football when he noticed Kabir signaling to him. Vinoy stopped the game and walked over.

"Yes, Kabir?" Vinoy asked, giving him a curious look.

"That Kaliyug guy? He's a total loser. No powers, nothing special. He only got into this school through the football quota," Kabir said, sharing the information.

"Well, let's play football with him tomorrow," Vinoy said, glancing at the ground where Kaliyug and Jeeva were walking hand in hand.