Since the battle with Alok, and Varun had barely had time to breathe. After crushing Alok's heart and watching him collapse lifeless, Varun escaped the chaos of the collapsing Merryweather building with one final prize — a heavily damaged hard drive, a crucial piece of data linking Kunal Khandelwal, the man behind Merryweather, and Alok Nath. Varun was sure it contained all the information he needed to bring Kunal down.
But the hard drive was damaged beyond repair, or so it seemed at first. Varun had no choice but to send it off to a contact who specialized in recovering data from seemingly hopeless cases. He told himself he could be patient, but the waiting gnawed at him like a slow, dull ache.
Varun sat on the couch in his living room, leaning back with his hands behind his head, the faint hum of late-night news buzzing in the background. Veena, his girlfriend, was standing near the window, sipping tea and staring out at the dark cityscape of Greater India. The tension in the room was almost palpable, but it wasn't anger—it was a quiet, unspoken exhaustion that they both shared. Their lives had been anything but peaceful lately.
"I sent the hard drive out for repair," Varun finally said, breaking the silence. "But until then, I'm doing everything I can to track Kunal down."
Veena turned from the window and gave him a small, understanding smile. "You'll find him. You always do."
"Yeah, but he's a slippery bastard. Like Alok was," Varun muttered, his voice colder than usual. His tone always softened when it came to Veena, though, and to Kaju, the six-year-old boy he'd rescued not long ago. Kaju was sleeping in his room down the hall, the faint sound of his soft breathing comforting Varun in a way he didn't often admit.
Veena moved closer, sitting beside him on the couch. "I know you won't rest until you have Kunal where you want him," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "But for tonight, maybe... you should rest."
Varun looked at her with a tired but amused smile. "Rest? You're saying that to me?"
Veena chuckled softly. "I'm saying it because you need it. We both do." She leaned in slightly, her eyes playful. "Besides... I wouldn't mind if you, you know, stayed in my room tonight."
Varun's smile vanished as he blinked, his demeanor instantly shifting to one of awkward discomfort. "Uh, Veena... we've been over this."
Veena raised an eyebrow, half-amused, half-annoyed. "Oh come on, Varun. Really? After everything we've been through? We're practically married already!"
"Practically doesn't count," Varun replied, crossing his arms firmly. "We're not actually married yet. And you know how I feel about... that."
Veena groaned, rolling her eyes. "Seriously, Varun? We've been together for over 3 year! You've killed people, infiltrated enemy bases, fought off some of the craziest powers out there... and you're still hung up on this?"
"Those are different things," Varun said, standing his ground, despite Veena's increasingly pointed glares. "And it's not about being hung up. It's about... doing things the right way."
"Right way, my ass," Veena muttered under her breath. She stood up abruptly, throwing her hands in the air in frustration. "Fine. Have it your way, stubborn ass."
She stormed off to her room, but Varun could hear the smile in her voice despite her exasperation. He sighed, leaning back into the couch, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. Moments like this were almost refreshing, as close to normalcy as his life ever got.
The next morning, Veena was in a strangely upbeat mood. Her frustration from the night before had completely vanished, and instead, she wore a bright, cheerful expression as she bounced around the kitchen making breakfast.
Varun eyed her cautiously, still sipping his tea. "You seem... happy."
Veena grinned. "Oh, you'll see why soon enough."
"Should I be worried?"
"Absolutely not," she said with a wink, carrying a tray of food over to the table.
After breakfast, Veena insisted on taking Varun somewhere "special," and despite his initial skepticism, he went along with it. She led him through the streets of Greater India until they arrived at an old, traditional temple, hidden away in a quiet corner of the city.
Varun frowned, confused. "A temple?"
Veena's grin widened. "Not just any temple."
As they entered, Varun noticed several familiar faces waiting inside. The priest greeted them warmly, and Varun realized with growing surprise that Veena had arranged everything—the traditional Indian marriage ceremony was all set up, and everyone from their close-knit circle had gathered to witness it.
Varun blinked, completely caught off guard. "Veena... what is this?"
Veena smirked, crossing her arms. "Well, you didn't want to... you know... because we weren't married yet. So I thought I'd take care of that little detail."
Varun stared at her for a moment, then laughed, shaking his head. "You're... something else."
"I know," she said with a wink.
The ceremony was simple but beautiful, and for the first time in what felt like ages, Varun allowed himself to relax. He and Veena were finally married, and the joy that radiated from her was contagious. It was a rare moment of peace in their otherwise chaotic lives.
That night, back at home, Veena leaned against Varun, content. "So... no more excuses now, right?"
Varun chuckled softly, wrapping an arm around her. "No more excuses."
Four months flew by, and life settled into a temporary calm. Kaju's birthday had come, and they celebrated it with cake, presents, and the warmth of family. Kaju, ever the shy child, smiled timidly as he blew out the candles, his small voice barely audible as he whispered his wish.
Later that evening, as the celebration wound down, Varun received a call. The hard drive had finally been repaired.
Varun wasted no time plugging it into his computer, his eyes narrowing as the data began to load. It was a treasure trove of information—encrypted files detailing Alok's dealings with Kunal.
"Got you, you bastard," Varun muttered under his breath.
As he scanned through the files, his expression darkened. It was worse than he'd thought. Alok had been working with Kunal to arm a private militia, funneling weapons and soldiers into the Upper State, preparing for an attack on Rao Corp.
"This... this is war," Varun whispered, clenching his fists.
But before he could dig deeper, a sudden alert popped up on his screen.
VIRUS DETECTED.
Varun's eyes widened. "Shit!"
He slammed his fingers on the keyboard, trying to isolate the infected files, but it was too late. The virus spread like wildfire, infecting every system in Rao Corp's network.
In mere seconds, everything went dark.
Varun stood frozen in disbelief as his entire system crashed.
The silent alarm had been triggered.