Monday, November 28, 2011

Merchant of Virus


Two kids were playing with their football. The others were on the see-saw. And there in the corner, three kids were fighting with each other on the slide. Some were playing hide and seek. And there were others playing cricket and handball and other games. The park was crowded on a Sunday evening as most of the kids came there to enjoy their one day of leisure. And there in the shades of the tree in the corner, a silhouette of a man, standing, holding a box in his hands. His eyes were scanning the entire park, children and parents busy in different sports. He was not interested in sports. He was more interested in what was going to happen to all those people. Yes something terrible. In 3 days!


The Biological Center for Counter-Terrorism (BCCT) is a clandestine research facility run by the state government. Its existence is the second best kept secret after the recipe of Coca Cola. It consists of 6 stories which are all underground covering an area of around 60 acres. The top level is car parking; the second is cafeteria, gym, recreation center and all other modern facilities. The third level is residential units for the staff. Level 4 is administrative offices, conference rooms and stores. Level 5 has animal houses and level 6 are laboratories. And the whole facility is covered by an immense ground which is considered is the largest children’s park in the city.

The vaccine division is located on level 6, the highest level of security. Dr. Adian John, at the tender age of 32, is the de facto head of the division. It was some 5 years ago when he graduated from the university and applied for a job at the Center for Biological Research (CBR), a front for this facility. After 2 years of fruitless research in this lab, he was about to give up when suddenly his immediate boss met an accident and is in coma since then. Adian was made the acting in charge of the lab. Later on, the accident would be seen as a conspiracy by many. From that moment onwards, he achieved a lot of successes and received many accolades for his novel ideas and accomplishments. Last year, he married his junior assistant, Dr. Aisha. He calls her Ash which she does not like at all but they adore each other.

Alongside many different projects the laboratory was working, there was one pet project of  Adian, the vaccine development. It was so near to his heart that he himself would work on the project in the nights. Only he and Ash were the ones having the knowledge of that project. After 4 years of hectic research, finally they got the desired results. But the government cuts the budget to the center and hence only top priority programs would be running while the lesser important ones would be put on hold. The project run by Adian was included in the list of those to be stopped. The vaccine was for a disease which mortality rate is less than one percent.  At that time of financial constraints, the center could not afford the luxury of that kind of research. But Adian was not going to give up so easily. He had to find some solution. This was his dream project which could make or break his career. His reputation as the top scientific mind of the country was at stake.

Desperate, he took Ash for a long drive over the weekend. They went to the movie. Usually he cooked for her on weekends but not that evening. He remained in his study well over midnight. What if the stakes were raised? What if the morality rate of the disease shot up to 10 or 20 percent? But what could he do? And suddenly an idea came into his mind. A plot most evil. He was awakened from his reverie by Ash when she came to the study with a cup of coffee. He wanted to discuss the plan with her but knowing her gentle nature, he was not sure and then thought against it. Early next morning he drove back to the Center even though it was a Sunday but he had access to the top security level any time any day of the year. He went straight to his lab. Rummaging through the refrigerated stores, he found what he was looking for. He took a few vials from and fed something from it in to the mosquito breeding chamber. He sat there, staring at the ceiling and waiting for the right time.

In the evening, he put a few dozens of the tiny creatures  into the box and drove to the other end of the city. Although the BCCT is just beneath the largest park in the city, he chose the second largest park situated at the other end of the city. This way no one would doubt what happened. There standing in the shadows of the trees, he left the box opened and waited for all of the mosquitoes to fly away. He took the box back and left the park stealthily. Early next morning, instead of going to the lab, he first went to the stock exchange and bought a large number of shares in the MachPel, the makers of mosquito repelling products. 


(Disclaimer: All the places, people and things mentioned in this post are fictional. Any resemblance to anybody dead or alive is purely intentional :P )

90 comments:

  1. - so we can say we have a 'dan brown, Paksitani specie' in making :-P

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  2. parhte parhte mjhe Dengue fever yad a gaya pata nae kyun :P

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  3. - and frankly, dr. Adian was very clever to change his path from research to stocks..it yeilds more money. :-D

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  4. Hello.
    Even as a work of fiction, this is chillingly dark...gave me the shivers. You wrote it like a pro! Anonymous1 said it right...you're definitely a Dan Brown in the making Israr...excellent stuff!

    By the way, thanks for attending the party at my blog. I made a video of the shenanigans & posted it here. I also posted it on Facebook & it's the talk of all the guests! If you're on FB, "friend" me so I can tag you in the video too. I'm still working on the poem & will post it on my blog & FB soon.

    My latest post is A Sweet, Spanish Flower

    Thanks again my friend...have a great week ahead!

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  5. Will this be evolving into a book? It should!

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  6. Brilliant ideas! Who would ever thought of it? I do look at the humorous side of it though I do read seriously! :p

    A very interesting post that grips my attention!

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  7. nice little story of husband and wife and research work but ending up in STOCKS INVESTMENT.

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  8. I was holding my breath until I read the last line. Hi, this is Munir over here at Focus. Your story seemed so realistic that I would not be surprised if it would actually happen Just Pray.

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  9. WoW! You did it again, Israr ~ pulled the wool over my eyes all the way to the very end! :P Only brilliance can produce such a believable writing ... I truly thought it was a real life story! excellente writing and nice to see you posting again on this blog!

    Have a great week :)

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  10. impressed....:-)

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  11. This is stark reality, I m told by experts in biotechnology who have suffered major personal and professional losses, just because they tried to implement projects for mosquito elimination via larvicide.
    Great job, Israr and your disclaimer solidifies that it really does happen, unknown to the layman's eyes!

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  12. oh my god,
    you just nailed it. nailed it , nailed it, nailed it
    i hope you get it, don't you??
    i mean until i read that line that everything is fictional. duh i thought like a fool that every damn thing was factual, real , and and yeah you get the picture, right?
    okay so here comes my cute compliment
    mr awesomely mohd israr, you wrote an awesomely superb story with awesomely fictional details which i awesomely and foolishly took as real ones.
    and yeah awesome hai . sab kuch.
    :)
    tc

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  13. All decisions are made for a reason. Fiction.. Hmm.. Rings reality no? Sigh. As always, well written. :-)

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  14. :'( i left such an awesome comment where the hell did it go??
    *sob-sob*
    check in your spam thing shayad waha ho.
    anyways i wrote something like
    ---------------------------------------
    mr awesomely mohd israr
    you nailed it, nailed it , nailed it and you nailed it hard
    and oh my god *rolling eyes* this was superbly crafted to give me the best experience of narrative description and i had no clue and no clue and i was about to GOOGLE it when i read that little font line that every thing is imaginary dude you just stole the show and the appreciation.

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  15. Hello Israr.
    Just a quick note to let you know the collaboration poem has been finalized & is now on my blog together with the Party video. You can find it here...

    Also, if you have time, please feel free to read my newest poem A Trembling Flower And You

    Thanks for participating, my friend. Hope to see you soon!

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  16. wow israr! i too agree with anon above... u r a dan brown in the making...
    :)

    this was written so wel....
    u cud easily write an entire novel out of this piece..... u shud, i'd say.
    :)tc:)

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  17. I would get back Israr! Right now I am not prepared to have this! I would love to read something by you and I want a leisure read to do justice to your brilliant writings:)Regards for now:)

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  18. A chilling, clever tale Israr! Love it! Part two please!

    Anna :o]

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  19. Haha I love the first comment. You should seriously believe and consider Anonymous' comment. You are too too freaking good and you beat yourself every time, TRUST ME. You are one of the few sci-fi guys i read after Dan Brown. Really :O

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  20. great. this is my first visit and i'm impressed with the story.
    keep it up bro.
    assalam :)

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  21. Oh I want to read on! What a wonderful story idea - I sure hope you will make it onto a book. I would want to see a puzzle or riddle for readers to work out too you can then wait for publication offers...And we on this blog will say we spotted you first ...

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  22. Loved it! And now for the next part pls.

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  23. thats really really awwwwsome blosom Israr !
    you are now giving the real taste of professional author in your writing style. i enjoyed each and every word till last line it was the most interesting post for me ;) :P
    and this is my favorite most post too among your all post i will ranked it as number 1 alwaaaaaaaaays in my award list :)))
    and being a science person i am thinking to join Dr.adian as he had such a wonderful set of ideaz by using science to get in economicz :P

    keep writing and sharing your views with us :)

    best wishes :)

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  24. I will continue it: One of those mosquitoes bites him and the center gets a new head :)

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  25. Brilliant writing. Nice post. :)

    http://www.iredeem.blogspot.com/

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  26. Superb write - and just cynical enough to be prophetic! (Let's hope not.)

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  27. This is acceptable for the computer that has been adulterated and not adequate by anti-virus software.

    Norton 360 for small business

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  28. Oh my God! You convinced so much to the end (as you always do):) Brilliant idea! Enjoyed:) Regards Israr:)

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  29. hahahahahahahhaha Mistereo u r matchless, Just after finishing the pipeting Marathon I never can be in a reading mood,,,,but the title force me to go through without a pause and it really energize me like a double redbull doze,,,, for me the funniest part was the character and title ,,, coz I was thinking abt VK,,,, but thanks God,,,,, the end was pretty sure to discriminate otherwise in his case it was an IF 2.4,,,,,lolzzzz

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  30. Oooh, what a sinister and creative mind you have! This is wonderfully written and you have the strong foundation for something truly exciting in literature. Others have said it could be a book and I agree, and then it could be a movie! I have chills from this.

    (I see in your profile that you like Spielberg movies, which reminded me of the interesting tidbit of info left a few down from your comment at my Cat post, the comment by twinkly sparkles...)

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  31. hahahahhaha - its a super doper hit :)
    loving you & your ideas - ahem ahem
    em jealous :p

    chaaaa gy ho tussi :)

    love x

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  32. end was really unexpected and creative....the story is realy good....

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  33. this is so brilliantly written Israr.
    so hard to believe this post was just fiction but at the same time, ironically, sad to realize that maybe this is the actual reality which we never see. the ending was chilling

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  34. brilliant tale... it clearly shows how sometimes insanity can take over in a person's mind n play havoc.

    Awesome read !!
    Thanks to gods it was a fiction :P

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  35. It's really nice you are good. :)

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  36. @ALL...

    sorry for late reply.. having problems with internet access and also lazy :)

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  37. @anonymous...

    i was thinking more of Robin Cook :) but i would take your compliment :)

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  38. @Aliza Khan...
    you are right ... it is somehow related to dengue ...

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  39. @anonymous...

    actually he did not change paths... rather his vaccine research would be having more demand after the outbreak... killing two birds with one stone?

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  40. @andy...

    ah..you are always kind with your comments... yes anonymous can say anything :) and i am glad that you think the same way..maybe now i should take my writings seriously :)

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  41. @secret agent woman...

    well i wrote this as a short story but then had to cut some parts to fit it into one post... lets hope i write a novel ..it will be a publisher's nightmare :)

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  42. @Balquis...

    thank you...i am glad you liked it... yes only an evil mind can think of such evil posts...ha ha ha :)

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  43. @Tariq mian...

    thank you dear..i am glad you liked it :)

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  44. @Munir at Focus...

    thanks you liked it... well i guess may be it usually happens without us being aware of it...

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  45. @Lady Fiona...
    i am glad you liked it :) you are most generous in your praise... *blush* hope the story does not happen in real.... well i like to post more and more but work keeps me busy for some of the time and for the rest of the time, the plan to avoid work keeps me busy :p

    have a nice week :)

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  46. @anonymous...

    im glad i could impress you :p

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  47. @pygmalion...

    yes sure it does happen even though we might now have any knowledge of this happening but never the less it does... lets hope something terrible like this does not happen to us only because of some personal interests...

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  48. @Suvaiba...

    thank you, thank you, thank you :)

    never mind... i meant it to be this way...looking real...i m glad you bought it :)
    i did not get ur picture, u mailed it? :P
    u are generous in ur praise especially considering how good fiction you write yourself...or maybe it is not fiction :P

    take care :)

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  49. @Zeba...

    yes you are right...every decision is made for a reason... yes it is fiction but not far away from the truth..lets hope does not materialize into something real... i am glad to receive such a compliment from a writer like you :)

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  50. @Suvaiba...

    dont be sob suvaiba :p your comment was in SPAM...maybe you were so late in giving your comment that blogger thought it would be SPAM :P

    i am glad you liked the narrative and enjoyed it...and i think you should have googled it...maybe some thing would have come out of it :P

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  51. @Andy...

    read the poem and commented there...as always superb by a super poet :)

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  52. @Jalpari...

    well i was thinking of writing a novel in collaboration with anonymous above..lets see when it materializes... :)

    i am glad you liked it as being a doctor yourself you can understand the epidemics of the modern world...

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  53. @Nasin...

    yes sure take your time... reading can only be enjoyed when one is really feeling relax and free...afterall its not something of a syllabus :)

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  54. @hypercryptical...

    thanks you enjoyed it... i was thinking of something before this one and maybe i could use that as a part2 ..lets see...

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  55. @Ayushi...

    haha...yes i am thinking of anonymous comment and will be happy to write something in collaboration with anonymous :P

    i am glad you enjoyed it...well i cannot beat anyone else so had to beat myself :P i am glad you consider me of that calibre.... i am glad dan brown does not read my blog or he would have started another job long ago rather than being compared to someone like me :P

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  56. @Inspector saahab...

    w.salam...welcome to our blog...i am glad you liked it...keep visiting :)

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  57. @Jenny Woolf...

    i am glad you liked it that much...thank you... i do hope i will write a book in the future... rather a novel... and yes your idea is great..i never thought of that... a puzzle would be really interesting...lets hope i find someone who would be ready for the publishing suicide of publishing my book :)

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  58. @Ria...

    im glad you liked it... lets see if something comes into my mind about part 2...

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  59. @Maria almas...

    thats a really awesome comment from you ... being an awesome writer yourself, i am much obliged...
    i am glad you enjoyed it till the end...
    and where is the award then? i would prefer cash please :p

    and sharm karo...how dare you would want to join dr.evil and help him in his evil designs to destroy the world? :@

    keep reading and writing here :)
    have a nice week :)

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  60. @Es...

    ha ha... you killed all the plans for a part 2 :)... will actually dr.adian was not the head of the center..he is head of only one lab... :)

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  61. @Shreya...

    welcome to our blog...i am glad you liked it :)

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  62. @Dave king...

    i am glad that an awesome poet has complimented my writing...yes lets hope it does not become reality...

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  63. @Stephencollines...

    yes sure.. :)

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  64. @Nasnin...

    welcome again...i am glad you enjoyed it till the end... thanks :) keep reading... have a nice week :)

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  65. Israr@
    sorry i m so late:p..... u know my problm very well, today my principal is on leave so i have a chance to use internet easily... u told a biter reality in such an impressive way... i liked it, when i was reading it seems to be a real incident but thank God it was a fiction.... keep it up....

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  66. @adian...

    ah man... i now realized you have the same name as the lead character in this story..what a coincidence :)

    im glad that you read it even though you were that much tired...
    i hope you would not follow the same path as this dr.adian for your personal gains :)
    oh come on man... i should maintain a certain standard of this blog or the fellow contributors would kill me off :)
    hahahahaha...that idea never came into my mind before you mentioned it... or the end could have been a bit different but thanks God it it not :)

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  67. @Lydia...

    i am really glad that you liked it especially given that what a creative writer you yourself are... :)

    yes i am thinking of writing some book only if a publishing house would be daring enough to commit a publishing suicide and then a director to commit a cinematic suicide... :) lets hope it materializes into something :)

    yes i like spielberg movies especially the jurasic park and the idea of dianosaurs... :) yes i read the comment by twinky stars on your post there... :)

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  68. @Shama...

    welcome back after a long long time...i am glad you liked and enjoyed it... :) ahem ahem...read only the first half of that line :P

    take care...have a nice week :)

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  69. @guilty conscience...

    welcome to our blog...i am glad you liked it and enjoyed...thank you...keep visiting :)

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  70. @Sujatha...

    thank you ..i am glad you liked it...yes maybe this not so fictious after all... but we never realize it...

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  71. @jyoti mishra...

    thanks ...i am glad you liked it... yes this is a fiction and lets hope it does not become a reality ....greed can lead men astray...

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  72. @mayen...
    welcome back after a long time...i am glad you liked it...thank you :) have a nice week...

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  73. @kiran...

    no problem...everybody here knows you have internet problem... i hope your principal does not catch you using lab internet :P

    yes this is a bitter reality.... sometime we humans become too obsessed with our own personal interests and can go to any extent to achieve these....

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  74. Hey dude,

    What are you upto?? I dont wanna see you behind the bars so better be careful.

    Fantastic piece of work....sorry that I read it quite late as I m busy in my own research project for which the budget is fortunately not yet put on hold :)

    take care

    AMIGO.....!!!

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  75. wasay Israr you really think there is any truth in these conspiracy theories about Dengue being spread out by some virus? I had the same theory but then I thought I should have more proofs about it..so My Scientist friends..mery ko smjhao :p

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  76. @Abid Ali Khan...

    hey dear... ok man i will be careful :P

    thanks for appreciating this little piece of work... commander robert bellamy will be impressed :P

    its good that you are busy in your project and no problem of funding :) wish you luck :)

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  77. @Mishi...

    surely i do think so... i had a theory about aids and now this dengue also ... well one cannot have proofs of these sort of things but circumstantial evidence points to :)

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  78. true... it makes a man monster !!

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  79. @Jyoti Mishra....

    yes..infact i would rather say it awakens the savage living inside all of us...

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  80. as usual ths s superb to read and ended up ah thz shocking!!!!

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  81. @Nisha...

    thanks ... i am glad you liked it...yes the end is bit shocking...but fortunately its only fiction :)

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  82. This is a superb piece of writing and also very scary. Its seems straight out of a science fiction movie! :)

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  83. @thegirlatfirstavenue...

    thank you for liking :) yes it is very scary but fortunately its only a fiction :) im glad you think its like sci fi movies :) im flattered :)

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  84. @inspector saahab...

    most welcome :)

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  85. Thanks God it was fiction.

    very nice post bro as usual

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  86. ah! yet again. i am amazed by your writing skills. seriously guys in Pakistan are mostly dumb asses who don't even know how to cross there ts and dot this Is.but seeing you i guess I'll have to change my opinion. hats off to you Mohammad. this was brilliant:)

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  87. @Basharat Ali...

    yes it is fiction..lets hope does not become reality :)

    thanks for liking...

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  88. @the butterfly effect...

    welcome back after a long time...

    hahaha...becharey gusy in pakistan... don't know what will be their reaction to this :P

    i am glad you changed your opinion :) and i am glad you like my writings :) keep reading :)

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