The acrid smell of smoke filled the air as the merchant district burned. Flames licked the sky, casting an eerie glow over the capital. Arjun rode into the chaos, his mind racing. This was no accident—it was an attack, a calculated move to sow fear and undermine his authority.
"Get the fire brigades here now!" Arjun shouted to his guards. "Evacuate the people and protect the nearby buildings!"
Soldiers and civilians alike scrambled to douse the flames, forming long chains to pass buckets of water. The blaze was relentless, devouring everything in its path. Arjun dismounted his horse and joined the efforts, his presence inspiring others to fight harder.
Priya appeared at his side, her face streaked with soot. "The fire is spreading too quickly," she said. "This wasn't natural. Someone set this deliberately."
Arjun's jaw clenched. "I know. This has Nadira's handprints all over it. She's trying to cripple the city's economy and turn the merchants against me."
---
As the fire raged, Raghav and his spies moved through the chaos, searching for any sign of the culprits. Near the outskirts of the district, they found a group of suspicious figures attempting to flee.
"Stop them!" Raghav barked, drawing his sword.
A brief but brutal skirmish ensued. The culprits, clearly trained in combat, fought with desperation. But Raghav's men overpowered them, capturing three alive.
"Who sent you?" Raghav demanded, his blade pressed against the throat of the ringleader.
The man sneered, blood trickling from a cut on his lip. "You think killing me will stop this? We are everywhere."
Raghav's eyes narrowed. "You'll talk, one way or another."
---
By dawn, the fire had finally been extinguished, but the damage was immense. Half the merchant district lay in ruins, dozens of lives had been lost, and hundreds more were left homeless. Arjun stood amid the wreckage, his heart heavy.
Priya approached him, her expression grim. "The merchants are demanding answers. They've lost everything, and they're looking to you for solutions."
Arjun nodded, his mind already racing. "We'll compensate them for their losses. Use the royal treasury if necessary. And start rebuilding immediately. I want this district restored within the month."
Priya hesitated. "That will strain our resources, especially with Vikram still threatening the borders."
"I know," Arjun said. "But if we don't act now, we'll lose the trust of the people. This is exactly what our enemies want—to divide us and make us weak."
---
In the palace dungeon, Raghav interrogated the captured arsonists. The ringleader remained defiant, but the others cracked under pressure, revealing fragments of Nadira's plans.
"She's targeting your allies," Raghav reported to Arjun. "Nadira wants to isolate you by turning the nobles and merchants against you."
Arjun's eyes burned with determination. "Then we need to strike back. If we can't find her, we'll dismantle her network piece by piece. Start with the sympathizers in the city."
Raghav nodded. "Already on it. But there's something else. One of the captives mentioned a safe house in the western slums. It might lead us to Nadira."
"Good," Arjun said. "Prepare a team. We move tonight."
---
That evening, Arjun, Raghav, and a group of elite soldiers infiltrated the slums, moving silently through the narrow, twisting alleys. The safe house was well-hidden, but Raghav's informants had provided accurate directions.
Inside, they found a cache of documents, weapons, and coded messages. Nadira wasn't there, but the evidence was invaluable.
Priya examined the documents later that night, her brow furrowed in concentration. "This confirms it," she said. "Nadira is working directly under Vikram's orders. They're planning more attacks—on the grain stores, the water supply, even the palace itself."
Arjun's fists tightened. "Then we can't just play defense anymore. It's time to take the fight to them."
---
Over the next week, Arjun's forces cracked down on Vikram's agents within the city. Dozens were captured, their operations dismantled. At the same time, Arjun personally met with the merchants, nobles, and commoners affected by the fire, assuring them of his support.
Slowly but surely, the city began to recover. The merchant district buzzed with activity as reconstruction efforts progressed. Arjun's decisiveness and hands-on approach won him new allies, but the threat of Vikram and Nadira still loomed large.
As he stood on the palace balcony one evening, gazing out at the city, Arjun felt a renewed sense of purpose. His enemies might be cunning, but he was determined to outsmart them.
The battle for Karmapura was far from over, but Arjun was ready for whatever came next.