And far away near a square building made out of steel and concrete, stood emotionless. The caravan rolled to a stop in front of this towering structure—an ugly mix of concrete slabs, metal ribs, and thick pipes that pumped cooling water 24/7.
" Why did he ask to come here of all places." Asked the playboy guy.
" To bury you probably, Samir." Said glasses wearing guy, which in response, Samir gave him a middle finger, and continued.
Samir—the playboy idiot—fanned himself with one hand, muttering about "sauna vibes."
The guy with glasses loosened his collar, already sweating through his shirt.
Neither of them spoke much as they stepped onto the industrial lift. The platform groaned as it descended, dropping them deep below ground. The ride took too long going deep in the ground.
When the lift finally clanged to a stop, they walked into a massive cavern, formed by nature. The temperature shifted, cooler and humid, and the air shook with the constant grind of drill machines working somewhere in the edge. Lights lined the walls, flickering off the moisture.
They passed guards posted at every door and exit—too many for a simple operation. Eventually, they reached an open cavern where a bright blue liquid glowed in a metal vat the size of a huge bathtub. In front of it… a lake. A real lake, carved out of the cavern floor, glowing dark in the darkness. Water was pouring into it from thick pipes above. Workers drilled holes in the perimeter, even the inside of the lake was lit with lights, people planting charges like they were defusing a bomb in reverse.
And in front of the lake, hands behind his back, stood a man in a perfect three-piece suit.
Roy.
He didn't even turn as he spoke, voice slow and steady like he was about to monologue.
"Where did it all start?" He asked himself. And Samir looked at Glasses' guy with a look, which he ignored.
" A huge empire that spammed all over India covering both black and white, where did it all start?"
" It started with one man's vision. One man's plan. One man's money. And one man's brain. This empire wasn't built by chance—but by steps. By caution. By precision."
Samir leaned toward Glasses Guy and whispered, "He loves monologues, man. He practices these in the mirror."
Glasses said nothing. He didn't even blink.
Roy finally turned his head, just enough to catch them in his peripheral vision.
"We built this with care. Not with reckless abandon."
Glasses Guy's spine straightened instantly. Samir barely reacted.
Roy stepped toward them—calm, but his eyes carried a faint red-tinged anger.
"Do you two have any idea what you've done?"
Samir lifted his hands like it was no big deal. "Relax. It was quick money. No one got hurt."
"It was the end of us," Roy replied flatly. "What happens if the government finds out? Or worse—Krish? Tell me, Samir… what part of that equation can you think you or even we can handle?"
Samir scoffed. "But nothing happened."
Roy didn't argue. He simply reached into his blazer and pulled out a checkbook.
Glasses Guy whispered under his breath, "Oh no… he's mad."
"What's this for?" Samir said, annoyed.
Roy's voice stayed perfectly steady. "We reached this point because of luck, Samir. Not because of you. How much did you make from selling the Elixir to terrorists?"
Samir's jaw clenched. "Why are you angry? It was a mistake, okay? I won't do it again. And besides—pull-water's almost empty now. There's hardly any left. They're planning their move anyway, we have only a bathtub worth of elixir left ."
Roy stopped writing. Slowly closed the checkbook, calming his anger.
"You're right," he said.
"And wrong."
He turned toward the giant lake glowing faintly blue. Workers were backing away from the edges now, bombs planted in a neat grid beneath the surface.
Glasses Guy swallowed. "What… what are you doing?"
Samir took a step back. "You're not planning to bury us here, are you?"
Roy didn't bother facing them. "Just watch."
Steam rolled across the cavern as he spoke.
"We don't know where this came from. We don't know how it forms. We don't know if more exists. For all we know, this lake is the last drop on Earth. But humans… we scratch the surface and think we understand everything."
He tilted his head at the cavern ceiling.
"What if Krish and Carl hadn't destroyed the city? How long would this treasure have stayed hidden under our feet? A substance so potent a single drop can power a city for years."
A splash sounded—one of the divers climbed out of the glowing lake, peeling off equipment.
Above them, a speaker crackled to life:
"Charges armed. Detonation in sixty seconds."
Samir's eyes went wide. "You're insane," he snapped, turning and running.
Glasses Guy stumbled after him.
The workers scattered.
Only Roy stayed.
He watched the divers leave, watched the waves settle, watched the blue glow pulse under the surface.
The countdown hit zero.
A chain of muffled explosions rippled through the water—dozens, maybe hundreds. The lake blew upward in a towering column, but the water arced around Roy like the world politely avoided touching him. He didn't flinch. He didn't blink. He stood at the center of a storm of pressure and roaring steam like he was watching fireworks in his backyard.
When the last explosion faded and the cavern quieted, a deeper blue light began glowing from beneath the lakebed—brighter, stronger, spreading like fire through crystal. Something was emerging from underneath the lake.
Roy stared at it, unblinking.
Then, calm as someone announcing the opening of a shop, he said,
"..Let's start the business."