The examinees all stood with their heads angled up at the heavens, gathered at a foot of a hill. A single signboard identified the place. It displayed a name they had never heard of in their lives. Probably all the secrecy was the reason for it, after all, few even knew about the existence of Gadiem Von.

Despite their cultural and anatomical differences, they all had to agree upon one fact- the place was magnificent. The hills were rocky with green sprouting at certain crevices and all around them were ring clouds crowning the natural hulkings. Foreign aviators speckled the skies and the place gave an ominous yet thrilling feel.

They were ready for whatever tests the Council had in mind.

Following the signboard, they found maps- each showing different locations. They were hidden behind a bush in a little chest to prevent damage from animals and the elements. From hereon they would divide. Split ways. Each examinee was on their own now.

The tests were analytical. They studied reasoning, the inner workings of the brains, the character of the examinees. Honesty, and other virtues were all mapped in the most open way, as the choices they made, showed who they truly were; one could say it as- glancing on their insides without even having to look, to draw an analogy.

Being alone, they had no influence of others so, they had none but themselves as their sole guide. Certain choices were crucial to keep on with the tests. Those who failed to make them, were simply out of it.

The tests were elaborate puzzles, situations carefully framed to study the inner workings of the minds. Completely psychological.

These tests however, were not common. They only took place when someone of The Council died.

Faramon however, didn't require to keep an eye on the examinees. If any succeeded and had taken the right choices, they'd automatically arrive at the winning place. The cave.

It was all calculated ages ago, but updated each time with a new test. The requirements stayed the same, but the tests changed with time.

Their race had reached a technological standpoint that had almost endless possibilities.

Juvo admired how these beings were making productive use of their powers. They certainly went near his ideals. He had been on the planet for only a day, but whatever he had already seen was more than enough of a taste of the true status and power of the beings. They were rulers. They got their powers from themselves, while strengthening it more with the number of their followers.

How a perfect system should be like.

And all the secrecy assured no interference to what they had established. The few trading nations of other planets were peaceful and didn't poke their noses where they shouldn't. This was really what Juvo had dreamt of achieving himself someday. And if all goes right, I will, achieve what I dream... But it will be much more grand than anything that exists now.

Juvo watched as the participants scattered in different directions, following their respective maps. He had complete audio and visual input. The faint buzz of the spy drones- the size of a fly- got mixed in the natural cacophony. There was no chance they will find out that someone was watching.

The image the Shokurat had shown him the other day was of the place where the examinees had gathered an hour ago. Juvo had sent his drones and waited out the night in his pod. Fortunately it was just the day after when the exam started. The Shokurat had revealed the date too. It was one of the big news on the planet- this test that came not so often. The public however, wasn't given access to watching the tests. Even the slightest infiltration could be the cause of the ruin of the entire set-up. They were given orders to keep out of certain places where the tests commenced. No contact or communication was allowed with the participants.

It was understandable as to why Faramon was the head of The Council. His race was the most suitable and worthy to be at the top. No other race showed the worthiness that they showed. It was the most pure way- how they recruited their members. No corruption could ever arise amidst them.

Time did not matter anymore to Juvo. He could wait eternally till these tests got over. Even if the tests did not take place for another decade or two. He would have happily waited. Because he had the plan ready. And it was flawless. So he thought.

As he watched more and more examinees come in, he sent more drones out to that location. He had enough of them to spend.

He progressed with each of them, baffling at their reasoning and their skills. Each was a strong competitor to the others. They were all promising.

Over months as the tests got harder he found some to fumble, others to find a way to cheat. Some flaws and other inconsistencies started to arise in their character. And when they took the wrong move, their map turned red. It meant their time on Gadiem Von had ended. And they respected it. However heartbreaking it was, they smiled painfully and returned to their starting point. Kept the map in that chest they had picked it up from and left the planet, probably never to come back again.

It was really quite a sight, watching it all unfold before him.

Juvo had enough rations with him to spend a lifetime. So even in his hideout, he had no problem with nourishments. His pod had sunk into the sand and was completely invisible from the outside. The rare times he went out, he found his way back, only via a tracker.

Each day he watched them figure situations on their own. Never in his life had he watched something so closely and minutely.

It was all out of one thing.

Admiration.

For these secondary Gods.

__________

After a three month period, finally, the last two were up. They were the best of the lot. Cool minded and immensely skilled. Neither knew how many of them were left.

Over a week they made many difficult choices, enough to give Juvo life lessons. But on a certain day, one failed. Juvo could never have guessed it. Even after watching the both from the start he never spotted this quality in this participant. Yet it was there. An imperceptible glimmer of greed. And that caused this examinee to fail. However smart any of them were, they all succumbed to the destined fate of the tests. For each test had been perfected. Unknown to any of them, their actions did run parallel to their minds. However they tried to control and make the right choices, they were always leaning towards a certain unseen hidden quality inside them. A quality that doomed their possibility of ever making it out as the winner.

Had Juvo been a kid in a stadium watching this massive show. He would have hollered, cried, cheered and jumped up and down. But the mature Juvo smiled and only learned. He was past the expressive emotions. The admiration he felt for these secondary Gods was truly unparalleled. And to his dying day, would he have respect for them in his heart.

Looking at the monitor to his right, it was clear to him that the winner had been chosen.

He saw the map of the surviving examinee blip green. A smile fell across her face. Belonging to the X73 solar system, she was akin to Drio. The most virtuous female he had ever seen. After months of all these tests, she deserved to be the winner. Juvo couldn't agree more with the results. Such brilliance was beyond comparison.

Now in her map, the positions and markings changed. Juvo understood. It showed the way to the place where Darp had been to. The cave. Juvo still remembered the fuzzy image of it.

Evidently, all made sense now. The mentioning of clues that Darp had said while upon the influence of the Shokurat were of these tests. Juvo had understood that. And abiding to this, the proof was received when he had interrogated his latest Shokurat victim.

There was a straight answer. No faltering. Meaning he was right on mark.

And now he knew what came next.

This was the moment he was waiting all this time for.

He got up.

"Come on!" he said to his followers. "It is time. Get the LAAVs out."

They followed the orders. The pod mildly fired the thrusters. The sand convexed and fell as fine powder at the sides as the ship emerged from within the desert floor. Once it was stable on ground, the LAAVs were taken out of the cargo hold. Then the ship again descended underneath.

__________

Now, Juvo followed on a course set by a device attached on his LAAV, the other following him on his tail. It showed the location of the female. The drone was still there, tracking her whereabouts.

In no time, they closed in on her location. Now, from behind bushes, they followed her ever so slowly, making all effort to mask their presence. From gaps between the leaves they kept an eye on her as she followed her map.

A galactic hour passed. They were in a rocky terrain now. The greenery had receded and was replaced by the familiar scrubs found in Juvo's hideout- the vast desert area.

The terrain was now covered with volcanic red soil. And then the caves came in. Juvo was getting excited, as were the rest of Vengeance.

This was so similar to that picture. Juvo could see the same colour scheme deep inside the caves.

In no time, would he have the knowledge, finally being able to transcend...

...into Afterlife!

The winning examinee stood before the cave, awestruck by the situation that she was in, what she had actually accomplished.

She had done it! She had made it into The Council.

So much honour... she hadn't felt in her life. And making it to the very end only deepened her emotions.

She rubbed her eyes.

But she couldn't tell this to anybody. This had to remain a secret. It was a bit of a pain that she had to endure for the rest of her life. But in her heart, she knew what she had achieved. She smiled and resumed her walk, now heading inside the marked cave.

It had algae grown all over the interior. Small patches of barren rock peeked through some spots, but otherwise, the padding of greenery was smooth and consistent.

She brushed her hand over it, as she went deeper, smelling the scent of the foreign botany. So far, there was no artificial structure that she could spot. The spotlight attached to her head illuminated the dark tunnel. Though at some places the sky came through the ceiling, it was relatively dark to even properly place a footing.

She stopped, slung her backpack over to her chest and lifted a bottle. Draining one-fifth of it, she felt rejuvenated. Her supplies were almost depleted now. Occasionally she had to purchase from nearby villages. There was a special discount given to her as she was an examinee. However it felt odd that she could spot none of the inhabitants. There were only robots operating in the shops.

Putting the bottle back in its place, she regained her trudge. Gradually the cave became more and more vast. The ceiling towered so high above that even her headlight dimmed when it fell on the very top.

She stopped.

There it was. A house.

Her face brightened up and she ran towards it.

Knock knock knock.

No answer.

"Hello?"

Again, no response.

A minute or two elapsed.

"Hey, I am the last examinee! I made it! Please open up! Anybody there?"

Silence.

She sighed. It was of no use. She tried the doorknob. Surprisingly, for such an advanced civilisation, they still used ancient doorknobs.

Even the house was something out of a history textbook, only different in style.

The door opened. Perhaps, it's left opened and not locked as nobody would expect to find a house in such an outlandish location. She snorted.

After entering, she closed it behind her and looked around.

Pretty plain looking. No striking features.

Oh, there's a board... with a message! She looked on the far right wall that went into a drawing room. Long steps took her there before it in two seconds and she had no doubt that the message was for her.

Evidently, Faramon, the one who was to officially name her a member of The Council and give her all the information, was not at home. It said he'll return the next day. She knew the fact that his kind educated less developed races. She smiled. She didn't mind waiting a little more. Her job was done. She stretched her arms out and went searching for a bedroom. A rest was much needed.

Juvo and the others were just outside the cave, hidden behind a pillar of rock.

"My lord, how would we manage to stay hidden and spend days out with nowhere to stay? It doesn't look like Faramon is here!" one said.

"We have to endure some hardships, manage something. There can be no complaints. Gather whatever you can to lay for the nights to come." Juvo's voice was solemn. He was single-mindedly fixated on the girl and constantly kept checking the feed.

The crew scattered out in search of a shelter. There were many caves. But they needed to stay close to the target. After all, it was quite deep inside the cave that she was located. If something quick were to be carried out, they would be at a disadvantage otherwise.

__________

As night fell ever so slowly, the heavens softened in a purple hue and the trees swayed in the evening breeze, sending the aviators back to their nests, while setting the predators wandering in search for their nighttime meals.

Inside a small cave close by, they had secured a shelter. Racks of large fern-like leaves fastened by vines were makeshift pillows and the lights of the LAAVs served as night lamps, gleaming in the hollow space and creating gigantic shadows on the surrounding walls.

Occasionally, they would hear the cries of animals in the forest; howls and screeches of yet others. The two moons, crescent in form and almost touching each other in the night sky, complimented the mystical feel of the land. An imperfect shining 'W' in a violet sky was sure an attention grabber.

Vengeance retired for the night. They knew not when the time would come. It was like the part two of their waiting was due. Juvo did not let his mind hover on that petty detail. He enquired what day of the Gadiem Von week it was. One of his men got up reluctantly and contacted the ship.

After a bit of conversation, it was clear that they had to wait for two days. The Gods came back only after that long and Faramon was not an exception.

"Okay, move it out of orbit and head in any direction, but get out of Gadiem Von's proximity. By tomorrow I need the ship out of this solar system," Juvo ordered the Sinturvs in charge. They complied.

"Tomorrow we inspect the house to make a way in when the time comes, early in the morning. Be ready when I wake you all up!" he gave weight on his words and a bit of a volume.

"Yes, my lord!" The response was muffled with drowsiness.

"Now get some sleep!" Juvo said, as he closed his eyes and made himself comfortable under the large leaf that he used for a blanket.

Soon, they were all snoring.

__________

Morning broke gradually, casting huge shadows before the caves as light from the old star managed to somehow keep up with its 'daily', chore, and Juvo woke up just a tad while before the others.

It was an important day.

The drones did provide the video and audio input quite well but their field of vision was too narrow to properly map the whole house. It was better on feet.

Juvo figured the girl to be still sleeping. They had to carry it all out behind her back, and there could be no mistakes.

Rays of sunshine licked the mouth of the cave in drops of dew, frost of the night melting in the warmth of dawn.

Outside, the world was still not ready for the day. Everything was almost quiet, except the natural alarm clocks- diurnals signalling the new beginning to the daily transition of night into day with trills, cheeps and other primal calls.

Juvo and the others treaded outside and beheld the beauty of the morning, then made way towards the cave of the target wasting only a moment.

The cave was much bigger than theirs. It went a great ways deep and one couldn't tell if it was day or night from within.

The soft padding of algae on the rocks muffled their footsteps from echoing in the closed cavernous space as they advanced deeper inside.

They arrived at the door of the house in about ten minutes of walking. It was an old looking wooden structure of two floors and had no roof. There were windows but what was the use? It wasn't like they could see the beautiful world outside from here in almost total darkness.

But one thing could be deduced- where the windows were located, they faced directions in which the cave had branched out. Perhaps it was a giant network of tunnels, and possibly others lived here?

Juvo took a quick glimpse of the girl in his flex tech, which he wore like a wrist watch. She was still asleep. Good.

He eyed the front of the house. Faramon would enter from this door so we need to find a different opening to get in. Or perhaps we can stay hidden somewhere inside the house. When the time comes we'll have no problem that way.

They started looking. First they tried the front door.

No lock.

Open.

Then they tiptoed inside and searched the place for possible hideouts. The ground floor had drawing rooms and other large spaces. Not suitable for hiding. The girl was sleeping in the first floor. There were two other rooms on the floor but they were not suitable either. It would make too much noise if they opened the doors. The doors were old and definitely creaky from the looks. Faramon would never miss the sound and they would surely get caught in the act.

Just when they thought there was no way they could hide inside, one of Juvo's crew whispered to him in hushes audible to a few metres. Juvo spotted what he was showing. An open narrow door leading somewhere up. Perhaps there was a room hidden from the outside.

They went up.

And then grins flashed! Victory insinuated from aside for it was not far off now.

A perfect hiding place lay just before them.

It was a store room.

__________

The girl yawned and sat up. Clicking her mouth she roughly grabbed her flex tech and blinked it on. It was well past morning according to the planet's time. She slept in late. And it was nothing but obvious. After months of tough tests and hiking through difficult terrain, this was the first time she got a decent place to rest. And she had made the most out of it.

She looked side by side then got down from her bed. Walking softly to the door, she opened it. Is he here yet?

An audible noisy creak echoed beyond her room as she opened the door. She went down the stairs and checked the ground floor. Nope. He hasn't arrived yet. Well, today is the day. I checked last night. She sighed. Maybe it'll take a few more hours. Yep. He is coming home from work and he probably needs rest too, before handling me. She smiled faintly and sat down in the drawing room floor. It was carpeted.

Just when she was going to pull out her flex-tech and get updated with the world, the front door opened. The sound reverberated through the entire volume of the house.

Placing quick steps, she found Faramon at the door.

Delight overtook her and her face flashed with it as she went to greet him.

But Faramon fell down on the floor, something at the side of his neck. A puncture. An ever so small hole. And it was fresh.

It occured to her. She took a look behind, her breath caught up in her lungs. To her horror, a long sniper was aimed directly at her.

She ducked just in time. The projectile smashed its contents on the wall beyond. She screamed. And then made a run for her life.

She shot out of the door.

"Get her!" She heard someone yell from behind. And then she heard rushing footsteps. Ever so close. But just out of reach.

Juvo knelt by the side of Faramon. He couldn't believe it. He had actually made it.

He brought out his Shokurat and turned it on, placed it by his side and removed the headset from the top. Then gently placed it over Faramon's massive head.

Within a minute, the device was ready.

Juvo could now finally get hold of information he was seeking for so long. He would finally be able to meet the Gods. And change everything for good.

__________

After an hour, he was satisfied. As he backed away and began to prepare for departure, voices in the distance caught his attention. He peered out of the door. It was his crew.

"My lord, we are terribly sorry. She escaped. We couldn't find her. Searched the forest far and wide but there was no trace of her."

He was mildly displeased. "It's okay. She won't be any trouble. We have gotten what we came for." He smiled. "Now let's move out. The future of the Multiverse depends in our hands! I hope you understand the weight of the statement."

"Yes, my Lord!" They saluted.

"Okay then. Let's get going."

They exited the cave.

Exited the forest.

Then came to the desert.

The LAAVs were put back into the cargo hold of the pod as it came up.

And then he used the teleportation device.

It had enough charge for one cycle. Maintaining the teleportation device was very expensive. It took nearly half of the fuel his ship required. And each filling gave only six cycles. When Juvo had gotten his hands around the device it had four cycles left. He had used it three times already and so this was going to be the last. Such a shame for the pod.

He clicked a switch in the control area of the pod. Gave the command to hide the pod again in the desert area to the in-built AI.

Then he and his crew teleported.

Arriving in his ship moments later. He felt bad for the pod he had left behind. But it was a small price he had to pay.

Back on Gadiem Von, the pod buried underground exploded.

And all proof of their arrival got destroyed with it.

Juvo now gave coordinates to the driver bot. The engine roared, spacetime curled, and the ship shot forth in warp drive... towards the centre of a galaxy!