The violet pillar of light still pierced the night sky above Delhi.
Even from miles away, it looked like a divine spear tearing through storm clouds.
Phones buzzed.
News alerts flooded the city.
Mysterious Light Seen Across Delhi
Panic in Old Delhi
Authorities Investigating Strange Energy Beam
But inside the ruined underground temple, only one thing mattered.
Kurukshetra.
Aarya stood near the broken staircase, his violet-lit gaze fixed upward as if he could already see beyond the city.
The battlefield from his dreams.
The place where his past life had fallen.
The place where this life's destiny waited.
Beside him, Arya Malhotra helped Rudra steady himself.
Rudra winced and adjusted his torn coat.
"I would like to officially file a complaint."
Arya gave him a cold look.
"You nearly died."
He managed a weak smirk.
"And yet somehow that is not the worst thing that happened tonight."
Karan Veer Rathore closed the old leather journal with a quiet snap.
His silver eyes remained grave.
"The red moon rises tomorrow night."
Aarya turned.
"How long do we have?"
"Less than twenty-four hours."
Silence settled over the chamber.
Aarya's jaw tightened.
Then he looked at Arya.
"We leave now."
She met his gaze for a moment.
Then nodded once.
No argument.
Only trust.
A small thing.
But Aarya noticed it.
And for some reason, it stayed with him.
The storm had weakened by the time they emerged from the ruins.
The city still shimmered with rain.
Streetlights reflected in pools of water like molten gold.
The black SUV cut through the sleeping roads of Delhi.
Aarya sat in the passenger seat, watching the city lights fade behind them.
His shoulder still throbbed faintly beneath the Shadow Mark.
The dragon mark on his chest pulsed every few minutes.
As if sensing something ancient waiting ahead.
In the back seat, Karan read through the journal.
Rudra rested with his head against the window.
For once, even he remained silent.
The highway stretched ahead.
Dark.
Wet.
Empty.
Then Arya's eyes sharpened.
In the rearview mirror, two headlights appeared.
Fast.
Too fast.
She lowered her voice.
"We're being followed."
Aarya turned.
Two black SUVs.
Closing in rapidly.
Karan's face hardened.
"Not police."
The first vehicle pulled up beside them.
The rear window rolled down.
A rifle barrel emerged.
"DOWN!"
Gunfire shattered the silence.
Bullets slammed into the side of their SUV.
Glass cracked.
Rudra cursed and ducked.
Arya swerved sharply.
The tyres screamed against the wet road.
The vehicle fishtailed across the highway.
Aarya's eyes narrowed.
Silver serpent insignia.
The Naga Order.
The first SUV moved closer.
Trying to force them off the road.
The second accelerated ahead.
Trying to box them in.
A memory flickered.
Ancient battlefield manoeuvre.
Flanking formation.
His voice came sharp.
"Arya—brake in three seconds."
She glanced at him once.
Then nodded.
No hesitation.
That trust again.
"Three…"
The black SUV edged closer.
"Two…"
The gunman leaned out.
"One—NOW!"
Arya slammed the brakes.
Their SUV jerked violently.
The pursuing vehicle shot past them.
At that exact moment—
Aarya rolled down the window.
Dark violet flames ignited around his hand.
The gunman's eyes widened.
Too late.
Aarya thrust his palm outward.
A blast of shadow-fire tore into the enemy SUV.
The vehicle spun across the wet highway.
It slammed into the divider and flipped.
Flames erupted behind them.
Rudra stared.
"Okay…"
His voice came breathless.
"I definitely have questions."
But the second SUV was still coming.
It rammed into them from the side.
Metal screamed.
Arya fought the steering wheel.
Karan cursed under his breath.
"We won't outrun them like this!"
Aarya's gaze sharpened.
Then he saw it.
An old service road splits off the highway.
A memory surfaced.
A battlefield route.
Flanking terrain.
He pointed.
"Take the left!"
Arya swerved hard.
The SUV shot down the narrow mud road.
Fields stretched on both sides.
The second black SUV followed.
Closer.
Faster.
Then lightning split the sky.
For one heartbeat, the land ahead was illuminated.
Ancient stone pillars.
Broken memorials.
Ruined battlefield markers.
Karan's breath caught.
"We're here."
Aarya's pulse skipped.
Kurukshetra.
Even from a distance, the land felt different.
Ancient.
Heavy.
Sacred.
The enemy SUV accelerated.
It was going to ram them.
Aarya opened the door.
Arya's eyes widened.
"What are you doing?"
His voice came calmly.
"Ending this."
Before anyone could stop him, he jumped.
He hit the muddy ground and rolled.
The enemy SUV swerved toward him.
Headlights blinding.
Rain pouring.
Aarya slowly stood.
The dragon mark blazed.
Shadow flames spiralled around both arms.
The vehicle charged.
He raised one hand.
The world seemed to slow.
His voice echoed with ancient power.
"Dragon Art: Shadow Fang Strike."
Violet fire exploded.
The blast hit the SUV head-on.
Metal crumpled.
The vehicle flipped across the field and slammed into one of the ancient stone pillars.
Silence.
Only thunder.
Aarya stood in the rain, breathing hard.
Then—
His gaze slowly lifted.
Beyond the battlefield ruins…
A crimson moon had begun to rise.
Not full.
But close.
Very close.
And at the centre of the field—
beneath the storm and red moonlight—
stood a woman in silver armour.
Long silver hair flowed in the wind.
Her eyes held centuries of memory.
Princess Vanya.
She was real.
And she was waiting for him.