The air was thick with silence. Not peace — the other kind.
The kind before a confession. Or a storm.
Parth stood just outside the canvas flap of the medical tent, eyes fixed on the trees beyond. Aarav had returned minutes ago, quiet and unusually still. Neel sat with a thermos of black coffee, as if he hadn't just seen two realms brush shoulders in one village.
Then Parth broke the silence.
> "You already know, don't you?"
Neel looked up. Aarav didn't flinch.
> "Know what?" Aarav said, deadpan.
But Neel was already staring at him — knowing.
Parth stepped inside. The lantern's dim glow hit his face, casting gentle shadows beneath his eyes.
> "About yourselves. Who you really are."
A pause. Aarav looked away.
> "I had my suspicions," Neel said softly.
"Ashwatthama… confirmed it."
Aarav finally met Parth's gaze.
> "And the danava tonight. He told me I was Sahadev."
"And you… knew. All along."
Parth closed his eyes for a second. Then walked closer.
> "I didn't want to overwhelm you. I thought… I had time."
> "Parth—" Aarav's voice cracked, more than he wanted it to.
> "No," Parth interrupted. "Let me just say it."
He turned to Neel first.
> "Yuyutsu. You stood alone when a hundred of your brothers mocked dharma. You spoke when no one else did. You defended her—Draupadi—when even elders failed."
> "You were always the quiet protector. Even now."
Neel didn't speak, but his lips parted like the wind had been knocked out of him.
> "Thank you," Parth said. "For being you. Again."
He turned to Aarav next.
> "And you," his voice cracked, "Sahadev. My youngest brother. And I am the middle Pandava...Arjun."
> "Do you know how many nights I wondered if you were okay? If you remembered?"
Aarav looked at him, speechless. A soft shimmer misted his eyes.
> "I missed you. You were always quiet, but your presence was… grounding. And now you're here again. My chaos machine. My apocalypse meme-sending, late-night Pringles-eating, future-seeing little brother."
Aarav laughed through his tears.
> "Gods, I've been so annoying to you, haven't I?"
> "A bit," Parth smiled. "But I wouldn't trade that noise for anything."
They pulled each other into a tight, long-overdue hug. Neel watched silently, warmth in his gaze.
> "We're all back now," Parth whispered. "The world may be falling apart, but at least… we're not alone anymore."
---
✦ Scene Shift
🌙 Somewhere in a dream...
Soudamini "Sia" Bose was sleeping under the moonlit edge of the old shrine near the temple tents. Alone.
And dreaming.
---
She stood on sand. Soft. Golden.
Before her, a man with the kindest eyes in the world smiled, arms folded behind his back.
> "You've grown loud in this life," he said, amused.
She blinked. "Who—?"
> "Yogmaya," he said gently.
"My little sister."
Sia stumbled back. "Bhrata Krishna?!"
> "You remember now, don't you?"
"That pull you've always felt? That overprotective urge every time someone was in pain?"
> "You never left the battlefield, Soudamini. You were born again with a purpose."
Sia looked down at her hands. Her skin shimmered briefly — golden bangles, yellow saree, lotuses.
A name echoed.
> "Subhadra."
She gasped.
> "And him—Parth—he's…"
> "Your Rajkumar Arjun," Krishna finished with a grin. "The same one you fell in love at first sight."
> "The same one you've been bickering with since the day you arrived at the college."
Sia stared at him, horror dawning.
> "I've been insulting Arjun this whole time?!"
Krishna smirked. "You always had a flair for drama."
She looked up at him.
> "So… what now?"
> "Now," Krishna said softly, "remember who you are. And help protect what remains."
He stepped back into the light.
> "They'll need you. More than ever."
And she woke up with a loud gasp.
---
✦ Morning at Camp
The sun hadn't yet risen. But light had begun to leak through the mist.
Sia sat up, blinking fast.
Her fingers touched her heart.
> "Arya Arjun… Parth…"
She looked towards the tent.
And whispered:
> "I'm going to kill him."
Then paused.
> "But after I help him win."
---