Nov 11–Nov 30, 2015
"The First Contract"
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The Calm Before the Meeting
Delhi in late November carried a strange mood. The city swayed between two seasons: mornings still heavy with mist rolling over the Yamuna, while afternoons baked with an unseasonable heat. The MC stood on a quiet balcony of a rented bungalow in Chanakyapuri, sipping tea as the first horns of traffic carried through the still air.
He wasn't truly there — at least not in the way the world would know. Arjun Rao, the android, was being prepped in the basement below, his synthetic skin polished, suit pressed, voice calibration tuned to its most natural baritone.
The MC let his gaze wander across Delhi's skyline — government buildings rising behind canopies of old trees, cranes standing over half-finished flyovers, Metro tracks stretching like concrete veins. A city hungry for progress, but starved of speed.
"This is the moment," he whispered to himself. "The seed becomes visible."
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Scene – North Block Meeting
The great sandstone walls of North Block loomed like an empire's fortress. Behind them, in a sterile conference hall with humming air conditioners, the first closed-door meeting between Bharat InfraWorks and top officials unfolded.
Arjun Rao sat at the head of the long teakwood table. He wore a charcoal-grey suit, understated but commanding. His manner was deliberate: pauses in speech, a faint smile, the weight of silence.
Across from him were men who had spent decades in bureaucracy — secretaries, joint secretaries, engineers in stiff khadi jackets. Most had perfected the art of nodding without committing.
Arjun broke the silence with a slow, calm tone:
> "Gentlemen, India's geography has always been our challenge. The Himalayas wall us in. The Northeast remains connected by a narrow corridor, vulnerable and inefficient. What Bharat InfraWorks proposes is not just tunnels — it is arteries for the nation's growth."
He slid a file across the table. Inside were simulated blueprints — 3D models of mountain tunnels complete with traffic flow, reinforcement systems, and energy-efficient lighting powered by embedded arc reactors disguised as geothermal systems.
One official frowned, flipping pages.
> "Mr. Rao, forgive me, but we have seen many such proposals before. They remain on paper. The Himalayas are not forgiving."
Arjun's synthetic eyes narrowed slightly, the way the MC had programmed him to convey measured patience.
> "On paper, yes. But Bharat InfraWorks has already demonstrated proof."
He tapped a button on the projector. A screen lit up with images from Arunachal Pradesh: the tunnel cut clean through the mountain, walls gleaming like polished marble, villagers standing in awe.
Gasps rippled across the room.
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Side POV – The Skeptic
At the far end of the table, R.K. Mehra, Additional Secretary for Infrastructure, scribbled in his notepad. He had spent thirty years rejecting outlandish proposals, from floating bridges to maglev trains. His pen pressed hard enough to tear the paper as he wrote:
> "Too advanced. Technology origin unknown. Possible foreign influence? Vet thoroughly before approval."
Yet even as he doubted, his heart betrayed him. He had traveled through the Northeast, seen roads washed away by monsoons, villages cut off for weeks. If this machine was real, if this company could deliver… it could change everything.
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Media Pressure Mounts
Outside, in Lutyens' Delhi, rumors already swirled. A few journalists had caught wind of Bharat InfraWorks' mysterious demonstration. One headline on a digital portal read:
"Unknown Firm Cuts Tunnel in Days — Faster Than BRO's Decades."
Another speculated:
"Is India's Next Billionaire Industrialist Hiding in Plain Sight?"
The MC watched these articles spread from his hidden console, fingers drumming the desk. Aarya highlighted embassy traffic: encrypted cables from the US, China, and Japan, each flagging Bharat InfraWorks as a potential "strategic disruptor."
The MC allowed himself a thin smile. "Let them worry."
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The Decision Room
On November 20th, a second meeting convened — this time with a smaller circle, chaired by a cabinet-level minister. The room smelled faintly of sandalwood polish and strong coffee.
The minister, a sharp-eyed man in his sixties, asked the question that mattered most:
> "Mr. Rao, what exactly do you want in return for this technology?"
Arjun's answer was simple, carefully rehearsed by the MC:
> "Nothing extraordinary, sir. A limited pilot contract. Arunachal Pradesh, one project, monitored jointly by Bharat InfraWorks and your agencies. If we fail, you lose nothing but time. If we succeed, India gains decades of development in years."
The silence that followed was thick. Finally, the minister leaned back, fingers steepled.
> "One project. Strict oversight. No media exposure until we decide otherwise."
The deal was struck.
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Side POV – Clerk's Diary
That evening, in a cramped apartment near Karol Bagh, a low-level clerk who had carried the files into the meeting wrote in his diary:
> "They shook hands today. Something about tunnels in the Northeast. But I swear, when I touched Mr. Rao's hand, it felt… too smooth. Not like skin, but like something crafted. Maybe I am imagining things. Still, my bones say this man is not like us."
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Signing the First Contract
On November 29, 2015, beneath the muted lights of a government guest house, the first official contract was signed. It was modest in wording — "Pilot Infrastructure Development Agreement" — but monumental in implication.
The MC, standing invisibly in the corner, felt a surge of quiet triumph as Arjun Rao's pen glided across the paper. Decades of Indian bureaucracy, all condensed into one decisive signature.
He whispered under his breath:
> "The door is open."
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Closing Scene
Later that night, the MC stood at India Gate, watching the eternal flame flicker against the cold sky. Families strolled, children chased balloons, soldiers posed for photos. Life moved as it always had.
Yet, in the MC's mind, the world had shifted. Beneath the surface of these ordinary days, a hidden empire had taken root.
2015 was ending with a victory not measured in wealth or headlines, but in foundations laid — tunnels through mountains, contracts on paper, and the first threads of influence weaving into the nation's core.
And as the clock ticked toward midnight, he thought of what would come next: semiconductors, AI, and the inevitable gaze of the world.
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