As Rexel guided his sister along the dusty road, his eyes were glued to the American jet cutting through the sky. He was so focused on the strange sight that he almost missed the line of fire that shot up from the hills towards it.
He stopped suddenly, pulling his sister close. An explosion tore through the air, a loud boom that echoed everywhere. Rexel watched, his heart pounding, as the jet's wing exploded in a ball of orange fire. The huge plane stumbled in the air, like a wounded bird. It spiraled down, disappearing behind the sharp mountain peaks. A moment later, a tower of thick, black smoke rose from the deep forest where it crashed.
The crash was so violent that it seemed impossible anyone could have survived.
But someone had.
Deep in the tangled woods, in the middle of the smoking wreckage and the smell of burnt metal, a figure stumbled out of the flames. He was an American teenager with torn clothes and a face smudged with soot, but he was alive. His name was Izan.
He and his father, a detective, were on a secret mission in Kashmir to investigate some new threats. They were also there to look for business opportunities. Now, his father was killed in the crash. Plan A was ruined. Izan was alone, hurt, and stuck in a foreign country, but his father had always taught him to have backup plans. He was already thinking three steps ahead.
There was no one to help him. All he had was a small pack with a bottle of water and enough food for maybe three days. He was in the heart of the most dangerous forest in all of Azad Kashmir—a dark, thick maze that most people never came back from.
Despite the pain and sadness, Izan didn't lose hope. His father was a man who trusted facts more than feelings. He had taught Izan not just how to survive, but how to be strategic—to study every situation with a clear mind and a strong will. This training now guided him as he began looking for shelter, pushing through the thick bushes and plants for what felt like hours. Exhausted, he finally leaned against a tree to catch his breath.
He wasn't alone.
A deep, growling snarl broke the silence. From the heavy branches above, a huge black bear dropped to the ground, its eyes locked on him. It let out a threatening roar and charged.
Panic screamed in Izan's head, but his strategic mind instantly took over. Analyze, don't react, his father's voice echoed in his memory. Black bear. Aggressive, not hunting. Don't run. Don't play dead. Intimidate. Fight. As the animal jumped at him, Izan didn't run. He stood his ground and grabbed a sharp piece of metal from the crash. He fought back hard, using his smaller size to dodge its powerful paws and aiming for its weak spots, like its face and eyes.
The bear, which probably expected an easy meal, was surprised by how hard he fought back. After a few more pretend charges and angry roars, it gave up and disappeared back into the dark forest.
Breathing heavily and aching all over, Izan pushed onward. His quick thinking and his belief in his own careful plans had saved his life. Finally, through a gap in the trees, he saw it—a faint, distant glow. The lights of a city. Hope, small but real, filled him. But he knew better than to trust the simple promise of light. Those lights meant people, and people were wild cards he couldn't control. He didn't trust anyone right away. He would be extremely careful, trying to get answers and understand the situation before letting anyone know he was there. He set his sights on the light and began the long, strategic walk towards the city.