The Absconsion

The Trust

' Creator, for the event that is being conducted by the company W.I.C, a total of 349 humans have accepted the invitation out of 1103. Should we proceed to the next stage of the process? '

' That is a good count, Rasi. I want you to focus on each and everyone and learn as much as you can. The data that a living person can generate is limitless. It might not mean anything to them, but it is for us. I will inform you what to do next, so just keep an eye on them for now and make sure that everyone follows the guidelines given to them. '

' As you command, creator. '

' We do not want to disappoint the members of W.I.C as they are the reason that we got an opportunity to do all this. So, Rasi, I want you to learn as much as possible and I need you to make sure that this little experiment of ours should result in success. '

' I will do my best, creator. '

----*----

Few days pass by, and the individuals who pressed one, started to get calls from the unknown caller for the second time. It was an automated message unlike the last time, at least that was what everyone thought since it was not conversational but was more of an announcement. In the earlier call, they had asked to give the callers on the other end for responses. The automated message is as follows, ' Good Morning, I hope you have maintained your health well since the last time I called. This is the time to move on to the next task. The first step is to check your bank balance, and you will find that enough deposit has been made to buy a burner phone. The steps you need to follow before you buy the above-mentioned product are switch off your mobile and enclose it in a plastic bag, book a cab or taxi to drive 5 kilometers away from your neighborhood and then find an electronic store there to purchase your burner phone. The taxi fares are also covered in the deposit we have made. Follow these steps carefully, or else you will be disqualified and your invitation would be revoked. After you reach home, switch on your mobiles to receive further instructions. Thank you for your time. Stay healthy. '

The call got disconnected after communicating the instructions. All the individuals were so in need of money that an anonymous deposit served as a ray of hope, and they decided to make hay while the sun shines. They would have ignored this task, but the deposit has grabbed their attention, and now it started to feel like this is a real deal. More than 90 percent of the selected people switched off their mobiles before they started to buy a burner. The rest did not care as they thought what would happen if they do not turn off their mobiles or who would even notice them if their mobile remain switched on.

Rules are what keeps this society from turning into chaos, destruction, and disorder. What makes a human human is their capacity to abide by the rules and lead their life in harmony with fellow beings, but if they neglect the very thing that makes life a fair game, then those are the ones who are drawn to chaos and would like to see things burn. It is better to w**d out toxicity at earlier stages before it infects a greater proportion.

Unlike others, Jackson did not have a mobile of his own at that time, so he used to visit the telephone booth at the same time when he got a call the earlier day. The instructions were slightly different for him because in his case there is no need to switch off his mobile. He only had to pay for the cab and burner and should wait near the telephone the following day to receive further instructions.

So the selected individuals started to proceed as per the instructions by switching off their mobile phones. They did not really understand the purpose of it, yet they decided to follow them. The next thing they did was catch a taxi and asked the driver to drive to a cell phone store which was far away.

The driver in whose taxi Elly boarded was surprised about the destination because there was an electronic store at the pickup point itself, but she was instructing him to go to a farther store. He did not question her because as long as he was making more money he did not bother about the reason why. On the way to the store, Elly wondered why was she even doing all this? What if there would be people waiting for her at the store to kidnap her or something worse. She felt like she did not think it through. ' It is better to be safe than sorry, ' she said to herself and decided to stop a few meters away from the store so she could look around to spot any suspicious people or unusual activities or strange behavior of sorts. When thoughts like these run in her mind, she feels really proud of herself because the world in which we are currently living is not awake. People are not cautious as they are deluded by thoughts that nothing bad would ever happen to them. We read the newspaper, see the news on television and social media every day, where we come across many atrocities committed by psychopaths, lunatics, maniacs, and sociopaths and shower pity for the victims plus are alarmed by the assumption of what if I was in the victim's place? The guard remains for a few days, and then people are back to square one. They do not pay attention to the world around them and the possibility of threats they might face. They are prisoners of their own world, especially gadgets. The real world around them gets blurred out, and the virtual world takes over. The social feed is the shackles that bind your eyes, thereby inhibiting your senses of threat detection. While the rest of the world is living a dream in real life, Elly was one who saw the world through an untainted filter.

Elly got off a few meters before the store so she can look around before going in. The neighborhood was surprisingly empty other than a few elderly people taking a walk, some street dogs fighting over the left over meat in the garbage and the taxi driver. Elly could not sense anything suspicious, so she was now a bit relaxed and headed to the store.

----*----

Zain was still suspicious about all this stuff because he was the only person who observed scams like this first hand. If his situation was good, he would have ignored stuff like this, but his life turned upside down in an instant that, he now had to turn into a believer from skeptical kind. Also, he had nothing to lose, so it was worth a shot. Zain was not at all surprised about the burner because he exactly knew what it is and why is it generally used. ' The mysterious caller really wants to keep his identity secret and leave no trails, ' he said to himself.

When Zain was opening the door of the store, an evil assumption popped into his mind. Is Harald behind all this? Is he trying to play a prank on me and destroy me in a way that I could never bounce back and pose a challenge to him? That was a long shot, but assuming that is true, Zain did not want to back out from the game. Zain was confident that Harald could never beat him at something he mastered a long time ago. The world of technology is his home. Harald might steal his empire, but his skills are something that could never be stolen, it was his, only his. '

----*----

John was calculating how much it would cost for the taxi, to-and-fro, plus the burner, so he could understand how much deposit would remain in his account after the purchases. The reason he was doing this is that he needed to buy some medicines for which he did not have enough money, but thanks to the deposit, he could buy enough medicines for a week long. John was on the verge of completely trusting the caller since they had not demanded any money till now. He was hoping that they should not. The moment that they would ask something to invest; the hope, faith and the trust that John had built till that point would shatter into pieces in an instant. He was not an expert in cyber crimes but he knew that there are so many frauds out there in the world who try to manipulate people and extort them mercilessly not caring about the consequences they will have to face. So, all his life, John had never invested money in schemes that asked to pay upfront; not that he had money to invest in the first place, but even if he had, he would never do it.

----*----

Jackson, while he was on his way to the store was occupied with a diversity of thoughts. He was wildly looking for a miracle to happen, but when it did happen, he was not sure whether he should be happy or not. Would this pursuit be fruitful or just a wild goose chase that would only result in a waste of time and destruction of hope? No matter how long he pondered over these, he could not reach a conclusion. All he could do was trust in nature as he believed his mother's spirit is freely roaming around him like a charm, protecting and shielding him from all bad influences, and as long as she was around him, he was not afraid of what the world would throw against him. He was not afraid of the world, not afraid of poverty and not even afraid of death. All his worries were tied around his little brother, Aaron. Aaron's life should not be like his. The zeal to make his brother's life magical was the only thing that fires him up, the reason to keep going, the boost when he is low or down.

Everyone set out to buy a burner, but none of them really know about it. The little that they heard about it was from the movies where the actors break off their burner as soon as the work associated with it is completed. Maybe this was all just for safety, the individuals thought, to protect their(caller) identity.

Zain was the first one to reach the store. Even though, he knew all about a burner mobile, he had never purchased it before in his life. He was hesitant but finally asked the shopkeeper to show him a few burner phones.

' May I ask the purpose? ' Asked the owner casually.

' Ah, it is work-related. Our clients are a bit paranoid, you know. They feel like they are being watched and heard which makes them nervous about sharing sensitive information through mobiles. '

' Yeah, I understand. I have seen people who buy burner phones, and most of them look neurotic and are always in haste. '

Zain purchased the burner and left.

----*----

Elly also purchased a burner, and while leaving, she asked the shopkeeper to provide some information about what a burner can do and why it is used.

' Mam, a burner phone is a cheap, prepaid mobile phone that you can destroy or discard when you no longer need it. It is generally used when the owner generally doesn’t intend to use long term. These phones have traditionally been purchased with cash to avoid any kind of paper trail that would tie the phone number to an individual.

In popular media, criminals often use burner phones to evade detection by authorities. You might use a burner phone for privacy reasons, as a last resort, or during an emergency.

You might use a burner phone or a SIM to protect your identity. If you can manage to procure a handset or SIM card that isn’t linked to your real-world identity, you can use the number without the risk of being identified.

There are all sorts of reasons that someone might want to remain anonymous. Maybe you’re phoning in an anonymous tip to an employer.

Maybe you’re trying to avoid giving your main phone number to marketers who will likely send you follow-up messages—like when you’re viewing a real estate listing or looking for insurance quotes.

Since burner phones are feature phones, they are severely limited in their abilities. Most lack cameras or access to a modern browser, and are instead limited to phone calls and text messaging. Since they are relatively lightweight devices, they have excellent battery life, too.

Many such devices will last for days on a single charge, and sometimes even months if you use the battery sparingly. This makes burner phones ideal for use in an emergency. They are often found in emergency survival kits since they can be charged and turned off until they are required. A burner phone is a spare phone with a long battery life that doesn’t need an expensive cell phone plan.

I hope that this information helped. '

' Thank you so much. Yeah, the info is great. '

----*----

It was the first time Jackson went shopping for a mobile phone. He was really excited and anxious. He was expecting a lot from this burner phone, but when he looked at it, he was disappointed. It was not what he had expected. It was a small, black-colored keypad phone which looked like a poor man's phone. His eyes drifted to the iPhone that was neatly placed on the shelf, but the rules clearly stated that a burner phone must be purchased. So, reluctantly, he purchased it and left the store.

On the other hand, John did not really care about how the burner really looked like. All he wanted was to save money so he could use them for her mother's treatment.

' Can I get the cheapest burner mobile, please? ' Queried John innocently.

' Sir, this is the most basic model that anyone can provide, which has only call and text features, ' replied the shopkeeper politely.

After purchasing the phone, John thought it might be a good idea to walk home, to save some more money, but what if his mother's health suddenly degrades and if he walks home, he couldn't be around her to help her. So he decided to catch a cab instead.

----*----

The next day, Jackson waited at the same spot where he usually hangs out. He was eagerly waiting for the call to listen to further instructions. Since the money deposited by an anonymous depositor could be used to buy other stuff, Jackson began to feel what if this is not a scam and is really an opportunity for him to get his life back on track. The thoughts made him excited, and every minute he waited seemed like an hour. He was still waiting for confirmation that the money could be used on other things.

Finally, when the phone rang, Jackson lifted it before three rings itself and before he could say anything, the robotic voice said, ' Congratulations on completing your first task. Now, you can use the remaining money as you see fit. Your next instruction is to make a call through the burner to 354-453-653 and state your name and confirm your acceptance to this life-changing opportunity. Your mobile phones can be switched on now. Post your acceptance through the burner phone, further instructions would be communicated through the same device. Stay healthy. '

Some of the chosen individuals received rejection as they did not exactly follow the instructions as mentioned, such as switching off mobile phones while purchasing the burner. They got dropped down from the opportunity.

Some people wait for one such opportunity to change their lives and the ones around them. They keep waiting, but the time never comes. Others, keep wandering everywhere in search of opportunities, and they lose their way as time passes. What people don't realize is that opportunity is always under your feet, and one should just need to be able to recognize it. Opportunity knocks only once, and the ones who are ignorant and have a negative attitude, hear the knock of opportunity as noise, and the one with the right attitude and discipline opens and welcomes the chance.