Tokyo at night. Aarav walked slowly, the sound of his footsteps fading into the city noise as he left the gym.
"…I stayed. But this isn't enough."
His hand still gripped the racket, fingers trembling. In his head, his brother's voice echoed.
> "One feather… one shot at a time, Aarav."
Behind the school was a small, old gym. Its door was half-open, the inside silent.
"…What is this place?"
Inside, one machine glowed in the dark — a training unit designed to push human reflexes to their absolute limit.
Aarav stepped forward. "Alright… let's see."
Beep… beep… beep…
The shuttle blasted out at high speed.
"Khhh—!"
Instinct took over. His racket sliced the air, shock running through his arm.
"Not yet… not enough…!"
Sweat hit the floor as his breath grew ragged.
The speed climbed higher. His eyes struggled to follow.
CRACK!
A shuttle grazed his fingers, blood trickling down his hand.
"…Hurts… but I'm not stopping!"
He clenched his teeth and swung again.
The machine's hum became a roar.
"Faster… even faster…!"
His brother's smile. The small cracked court back home.
"I can't lose… not now!"
His entire body screamed, but he kept moving.
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CLANG!
The final shuttle hit — sparks burst inside the machine.
"…What?"
A second later, the unit died, smoke filling the room.
Aarav dropped to his knees, laughing through his ragged breathing.
"…I broke it…"
He stared at his bloodied fingers.
"…One feather… at the cost of everything."
Silence. The broken machine. The night air.
Aarav looked up at the sky.
"Bhai… you see this? I'll survive here."
Moonlight washed over the court.
He gripped his racket tightly and stood
.
"Tomorrow… I'll move even faster."
His eyes burned with a light beyond human limits.