šŖ Chapter 44: Rage, Regret, and Revelation
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Location: Enemy Warship ā Control Deck
General Kassim stood frozen.
His face was a twisted storm ā not just anger, but shame.
> He had been outwittedā¦ by a schoolteacher.
A former civilian had managed to cripple his ship ā without firing a single direct shot.
His fingers curled into a fist. Rage boiled in his veins.
> "How could Iā¦ lose to them?! I AM A GENERAL!"
He slammed his hand onto the console.
Papers flew. Sparks shot from a damaged panel. Even the blood-red flag of his nation drooped to the floor, half-burnt.
His fury turned blind.
> "Send word to the ground unit," he shouted.
"Those hundred soldiers ā kill them all. No more talks. No more waiting!"
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Location: Unknown Military Black Site ā Interrogation Room
A dim light flickered.
Viren sat opposite Abdul, chained ā yet still cocky.
Abdul's voice was calm but piercing.
> "Why did you betray us, Viren?"
Viren chuckled, shaking his head.
> "Don't ask stupid questions, Abdul. You know why."
> "In this country, all that matters is money. Not medals. Not merit. Just money."
> "You can dig the earth with your bare hands to plant a treeā¦ but if you don't have cash, you'll be buried in the same hole you dug."
Abdul looked at him ā disappointed, but not surprised.
> "You think money is everything?"
"There's something greaterā¦ something you're blind to ā patriotism. The reason people still believe, still fight."
> "And youā¦ you tried to burn that belief."
Before Viren could reply, a soldier entered hurriedly.
He whispered into Abdul's ear.
Abdul stiffened.
But Viren, ever alert, caught one line clearly:
> "Sir, we just received a signalā¦ from our radar relay. It's from the island range. Looks likeā¦ a missile attack happened there."
Viren's eyes widened.
> "What?! A missile attack? But the defense systemā¦?"
Abdul ordered the soldier to display live satellite footage and recorded visuals. They watched closely.
The missile ā launched from the island ā struck the enemy ship.
Viren stared in disbelief.
> "Howā¦? The defense system should've blocked itā¦"
Then he noticed something on the floor ā the file Abdul had thrown earlier. It looked red, like blood had seeped through the pages.
There ā three names circled in red:
Siddharth. Akash. Shiva.
Recently marked as missing. Last investigated by Viren himself.
Viren stood up, nearly yanking the chains from the table.
> "It's themā¦"
"It's all because of THEM!" he shouted.
> "I made the perfect plan ā no holes, no witnesses. But those threeā¦ stray dogs destroyed it all!"
He looked at the monitor now showing the satellite feed ā movement on the islandā¦ enemy troops closing inā¦
And the three teachers ā standing still.
Waiting.
> "They're going to dieā¦" he whispered, but with an evil smile.
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šļø Narrator Voice:
One man burned his soul for gold.
Another stood for something priceless.
And three teachers, once lost in warā¦
> Now stood at the heart of it.
What comes next is not just a battle.
> It is the reckoning.