RRCAT, Indore Madhya Pradesh, India.
India's independent and only manalogical research hub, situated in RRCAT Indore, had an unusual visitor.
The masked man, whose red tie stood out, walked into the room, which was in a state of panic. People in white coats were frantically trying to pinpoint the location of Anomaly 37.
The room had rows of monitors lined up parallel to each other. At the moment, there were more than thirty researchers present at the facility.
As soon as the man walked in, the atmosphere of the room shifted drastically. All eyes were now fixated on this unusual guest. Having gathered everyone's attention, the man fixed his striking red tie before speaking.
"It has been over twenty-four hours. Why is it that we are not able to locate the anomaly's origin?"
Without waiting for an answer, the man spoke again as two people wearing white lab coats appeared from behind. They were wearing similar black mesh masks as the man whose presence commanded the room at that moment.
"These two are here to lend you a hand in finding the origin point of Anomaly 37."
...
14 hours ago at CERN Research, Geneva, Switzerland
The masked man, whose red tie drew immediate attention, observed intently as the researchers operated the prototype of the Manacule Gradient Graph.
The device, which outwardly resembled a black metallic plate, when activated, projected a holographic representation of the world's terrain; yet, it was not a mere geographic or topographic overview, for the display consisted of intricate compressions and rarefactions of particles in varying spectral colors, forming a dynamic pattern that was only perceptible through advanced analysis.
Through this apparatus, the ATLAS spokesperson Julia Watson managed to isolate a constrained radius exhibiting the highest statistical likelihood of containing the origin point of Anomaly 37.
"The area remains extensive," the masked man observed.
"This is because we are still distant from the source region. Perhaps if we were physically present in India, the graph would provide a more precise localization," explained technical coordinator James Gray.
Fourteen hours later, both Julia and James, along with the Manacule Gradient Graph, had been transported to India under the masked man's supervision.
...
James had already finished setting up the device. After a quick examination, they weren't able to achieve any significant improvement to the previous results. They had only managed to marginally restrict the area further; however, the isolated area was still very big.
Just then, one of the researchers of the facility approached Julia, who was busy trying to use the graph to find any further clues.
"I know you are professionals at your job, but is there anything we can help with?" The voice belonged to a man; he had a thick beard. It was Dr. Vikram.
Well, we are making no progress anyway, Julia thought. She then told the man who had a thick beard about their latest lead, along with some superficial knowledge about the manalogical instrument.
Meanwhile, James was exploring the research facility. India had not invested in manalogy research, and with the tight budget, the facility was not as fancy as CERN's research hub. India, instead, had invested in wielders and possessed the largest number of wielders. This was important as well, for the most anomalies emerged in the country, and for anomaly extermination, a large force of official wielders was required.
Dr. Vikram glanced at the device and then at the corresponding location on the map. It was then that he realized something—a potential lead!
He quickly leaned in towards the black metallic plate as if observing it up close. He had his right hand's index and middle fingers placed at the side of his forehead, a habit of his while he was deep in thought.
So close!! Julia, who was wearing the mesh mask, was startled by Dr. Vikram's sudden movements. He was leaning way too close to her! She was about to subconsciously push him away, but when she saw his face, she stopped for a moment.
His face had a very unique expression, one Julia was no stranger to. She had seen it countless times—the expression one had when fully focused, the expression one had when unaware of their surroundings, the expression of someone in flow!
Before she could do anything, Dr. Vikram had already completed his observation. He had everything he needed. He backed away, walking to the middle of the room.
"I might have a solution to this problem."
All the eyes had once again turned, but this time the one who held their attention was not the masked man; instead, it was the man who had a thick beard—Dr. Vikram.
"The area isolated using the graph is quite big, but there is a way to check for the anomaly. We can use satellite imagery."
Before anyone could say anything, James, who was also wearing a mesh mask, replied:
"Do you think we have not tried that before? There were no satellites above the isolated area when the anomaly occurred."
"No, there was one. India has some secrets of its own. The satellite conveniently covers half of the isolated radius."
Just after explaining, he quickly pointed towards one of the researchers to his right.
"Bring up the images of Sitara 1 at the time of the anomaly."
Then he pointed towards his left, commanding another researcher.
"Bring up the map."
In no time, there were multiple black-and-white images on the big screen. Beside it was the large map, with the circle of the constrained radius exhibiting the highest statistical likelihood of containing the origin point of Anomaly 37.
Sitara 1 was a very old satellite, and it was almost nearing its lifetime. The images were of low resolution. One by one, they examined every image. After a while of observing and cross-checking, they weren't able to find anything. The images did not have any possible clues of rings of fire.
One thing was clear: the anomaly was on the other half of the area, which wasn't under the coverage of the satellite. Just when the researchers were losing hope of finding any actual evidence, one of the scientists spotted something.
One of the images had an unusually bright spot. Amidst the black background, this one pixel at the rightmost edge was bright white. There was no way of explaining this, unless something big, shining with a very high intensity had appeared.
What else could it be but an actual evidence of a burning ring of fire!
With this, they were further able to isolate the area more eastwards. The new radius was already much smaller; it was one-fourth the size of the previous. This was a significant development, all because of an unknown satellite that just happened to drift by at the very moment.
"We are finally making moves."
The researchers were all motivated. It finally felt as if they could find the origin of the anomaly. And it all happened because of cooperation. The overseas researchers couldn't have accomplished it on their own, and the Indian researchers couldn't have done it either.
The masked man, who was observing the development from a corner, stood without any motion. Perhaps he was a little amused—who knows; the mask did not let any details through.
...
30 minutes later.
"How is the search going?" Vikram walked over to one of the researchers who was tasked with a particular assignment by him.
Technical coordinator James Gray was very fascinated by their current lead; he had been following Vikram around ever since after that. He was interested in how the researchers at this independant manalogical research facility worked.
"What search?" he asked.
"He is looking for the original post about the rings of fire on the internet."
"That is very unreliable."
Vikram paused for a moment. He turned to face James and said with a slight smile,
"Unreliable doesn't mean inaccurate. There are multiple posts about the rings of fire only a few minutes apart from the moment the anomaly manifested itself in the skies. However, these posts have been made from everywhere, so we believe there is an original post which we haven't been able to trace yet. The location of that post would most likely be near the origin of the anomaly."
Although this plan had many holes, as Vikram had explained, it wasn't inaccurate. If they were able to find the original post, they could track the origin point of Anomaly 37.
"Nothing yet." The researcher replied.
James, who was observing this, could not help but think why trained researchers, who were tasked with understanding the workings of manacules, were using such crude methods—methods more likely to be employed by the Ministry of Defense, the Secret Intelligence, or various different detective organizations.
Just then, a voice tore through the room, catching everyone's attention.
"A video was uploaded on YouTube a few minutes ago. A recorded video of the Rings of Fire that manifested in the sky."