(A/N):
Drop a meme here that you find funny. Or reflects your mood.
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With their discussion finished, the group finally prepared to leave Angama Bali's Gurukul.
The evening sky above the forest had already begun turning darker, painted with deep shades of blue and orange as cold winds moved through the ancient trees.
Several disciples respectfully bowed as Rudra and the others departed from beneath the massive banyan tree.
Even though Rudra himself never acted arrogantly, the Astra users of the Gurukul still treated him with immense reverence.
After all—The wielder of the Brahmastra was not someone they could look at casually.
As the group walked back through the forest path, Junoo stretched lazily before glancing toward Rudra.
"So… Hyderabad next?"
Rudra nodded calmly.
-Nod!
"We need to find Vedha before Mahabir's people do."
Amirtha quietly added,
"And if he truly is connected to the Scriptures …he's already in danger."
Mohan Bhargav, who was walking ahead while checking his phone, suddenly spoke up.
"I already booked the tickets."
Junoo blinked seeing the man besides her adjust his coolers.
"That fast?"
Mohan gave a helpless smile.
"When the Brahmastra bearer says we leave immediately, you don't exactly delay things."
Junoo chuckled softly.
-Chuckle!
"Fair point."
A few hours later…
The group arrived at the airport.
Unlike the hidden Astra world buried inside forests and ancient Gurukuls, the modern world felt strangely loud and chaotic again.
Announcements echoed constantly.
People rushed through terminals dragging luggage behind them.
Children cried. Phones rang endlessly.
Junoo looked around with visible disappointment.
"…I already miss the forest."
Amirtha smiled faintly.
"You say that now. But if we stayed there for few days you would start complaining about insects."
Junoo immediately pointed at her.
"Because the insects there are built like mini demons."
Mohan nearly laughed hearing that while Rudra simply walked ahead quietly.
Even amidst the crowded airport, his thoughts remained elsewhere.
Vedha. Mahabir.
The Scriptures.
Everything was moving faster now.
Soon the boarding announcement arrived, and the four finally entered the flight.
Because the tickets had been booked at the last minute, none of their seats were together.
Mohan and Junoo went toward the back rows while Amirtha sat across another section.
Rudra silently checked his boarding pass before walking toward his assigned seat near the middle row.
He placed his small bag above and calmly sat down.
Then—He froze.
Because at the exact same moment, the woman seated beside him slowly turned her head toward him.
And her eyes widened instantly.
Rudra blinked once in genuine surprise.
"…Isha?"
It was none other than Isha.
For a brief second, she simply stared at him as though her brain had stopped processing reality.
"…Rudra?"
Her voice carried the same disbelief he felt.
Neither of them had expected this.
Not here. Not now.
Out of all the flights. Out of all the seats.
The universe had somehow shoved them together again.
Junoo, who was still searching for her own seat further back, noticed Rudra sitting beside a woman and immediately narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"…interesting."
Amirtha, seeing Junoo's expression, already understood trouble was about to begin.
Meanwhile, beside Rudra, Isha was still visibly stunned while trying to process the situation.
"You… what are you doing here?"
Rudra leaned back slightly before letting out a small sigh.
"I could ask you the same thing."
For a moment, silence awkwardly settled between them while passengers continued boarding around them completely unaware of the strange tension forming between the two Astra users seated side by side.
And deep inside Rudra's mind—Only one thought echoed.
'This… definitely wasn't part of the plot.'
The flight had long since taken off.
Outside the small oval windows, clouds drifted beneath the aircraft like endless silver waves under the moonlight.
Inside the cabin, most passengers had either fallen asleep or buried themselves in their phones while the soft hum of the engines filled the silence.
For a while, neither Rudra nor Isha spoke.
The sudden encounter had caught both of them off guard.
Especially Isha.
She still occasionally glanced sideways at Rudra as if confirming he was actually sitting there and hadn't magically disappeared again.
Finally, unable to hold it anymore, she crossed her arms lightly and looked directly at him.
"Do you know how long I've been trying to contact you?"
Rudra blinked once before giving an awkward cough.
"…that long?"
Isha immediately gave him an unamused stare.
"That is not the correct response."
Rudra chuckled softly while rubbing the back of his neck.
-Chuckle!
"Okay, fair. I deserved that."
She let out a small sigh before leaning slightly back into her seat.
-Sigh!
"I even went to your hotel in Ooty."
That finally made Rudra look properly surprised.
"You went there?"
"Yes."
"I thought you actually lived there."
"Well…"
Rudra smiled awkwardly,
"…technically I do. Sometimes."
Isha stared at him for a second.
"…'sometimes'?"
Rudra looked away toward the airplane window like the clouds outside might rescue him from the conversation.
"I was busy."
Isha narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"That sounds incredibly vague. It is incredibly vague."
That earned him another look.
But eventually her expression softened slightly.
Even though she still didn't fully understand Rudra or the strange world surrounding him, she had seen enough during their previous encounter to realize one thing.
Rudra's life was anything but normal.
The memories of that village still lingered clearly in her mind.
The strange happenings.
The ghost haunting her grandparents' village.
And Rudra arriving almost out of nowhere to deal with something nobody else could even comprehend.
At the time she thought it was impossible.
Now—Even through she dont know what he was doing—She wasn't so sure anymore.
"You really do strange jobs, don't you?"
She asked quietly.
Rudra glanced at her.
"That depends on your definition of strange."
Isha immediately pointed at him.
"You hunted a ghost."
"That qualifies."
Junoo, seated several rows behind them, suddenly leaned slightly into the aisle just enough to overhear that part.
Her eyes widened dramatically.
"You told her that you are a ghost hunter?!"
Amirtha immediately pulled Junoo back into her seat before she could lean further.
"Stop spying."
"I'm not spying,"
Junoo whispered loudly.
"I'm gathering emotional intelligence."
Amirtha sighed in defeat.
Meanwhile, up front, Isha blinked after hearing the distant voice.
"…was that your friend?"
Rudra closed his eyes briefly.
"Unfortunately."
A soft laugh escaped Isha before she could stop it.
For the first time since the flight began, the awkwardness between them eased slightly.
Then she looked at him again.
More seriously this time.
"When you disappeared after that village incident …I honestly thought something happened to you."
Rudra's expression softened slightly hearing the sincerity in her voice.
"I'm fine."
A brief pause followed. Then he added honestly,
"I just got caught up in things."
Things involving Astras.
Worlds. Being a hero. Teaching the future heros.
Psychopaths trying to become gods.
But obviously he wasn't about to explain all that inside an airplane.
Isha slowly nodded.
-Nod!
Even if she didn't know the full truth—She understood enough.
Rudra belonged to a world hidden behind normal reality.
A dangerous one.
And somehow…
Every time their paths crossed, she found herself getting dragged closer to it.
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(Author's POV)
(A/N):
Guys My New Fic name is:
-->Karuppan: King of Openings.
Check it out... I hope you will like it
Whats your thought's guys.
Thanks for reading the chapter!
Please give a review!!! And power stone too!!!
Guys it will motivate me more?