Dec'2024
12:00 pm
Maj. Vikram's POV -
Five days. Five brutal, relentless days since this operation kicked off, and still nothing. Not a whisper, not a trace of them. It's like they've vanished into thin air, or the ground just swallowed them whole. Every intel brief we got screamed "highly trained," but this? This feels different. It's not just training; it's a terrifying silence that's gnawing at my gut. The reports said they were good, but this level of ghosting… it's unsettling. My team's exhausted, morale's dipping, and the clock just keeps ticking.
But how long ? Each and every action we took failed infront of them ... **
I was just replaying those agonizing five days in my head, the gnawing frustration a bitter taste in my mouth, when the sudden cacophony outside ripped me from my thoughts. Shouts, a muffled bang – chaos. I didn't hesitate, spilling out of the stifling tent into the crisp Dec air. Before I could even register the scene, my comms unit blared. No time to waste; I snatched it up.
"Hello, sir!"
It was Lt. Rishab Deshmukh, our tech guru, the man who could hack a mainframe with a toothpick and a smile. If Rishab was calling, it was important.
"Yes, Rishab?"
"Sir, we have a situation! A man has a girl hostage, and he's demanding to speak with you. We've tried everything to intervene, but he's got a gun pressed right against her head." Rishab's voice was tight with urgency, cutting through the camp's sudden din.
"What? Where are you? Are you alone, Rishab?" My mind raced, trying to process the sudden shift in the situation. Hostage? Here?
"No, sir, actually... I was just doing a perimeter check, making sure everything was secure. Then I heard her scream, and I got here as fast as I could. It's about five minutes straight from the main camp."
*"Alright, hold tight. I'm on my way. Don't engage. Just maintain cover." I barked, already grabbing my rifle and slapping a fresh magazine into place. The familiar weight of the weapon was a grim comfort. Without another word, I sprinted out of the tent, heading in the direction Rishab had indicated, the distant shouts now a siren call.
I was almost there, my breath ragged, when I spotted them. A small cluster of figures near a dilapidated structure, exactly where Rishab said. But then my eyes fixated on one man, and a jolt of recognition, sharp and cold, shot through me. I'd seen him before. But where? The memory clawed at the edges of my mind, until suddenly, it hit me with a sickening force.
"Oh, God," I whispered, the name escaping my lips. It was him. One of the core members of the Hamas Group. The intel brief after the last attack flashed in my mind – his face, clear as day, among the three high-value targets. This wasn't just a random hostage situation anymore. This was a direct link.
My route instantly changed. I had to go silent, undetected. Engaging him now, head-on, would be a suicidal risk for the girl. We had to save her first. That was the priority. Everything else came second.
I hugged the perimeter, using every shred of cover, until I finally reached my vantage point, directly behind the Hamas operative. Rishab spotted me, his gaze locking with mine, and I subtly gestured for silence. No sound. No movement. My gun was out, aimed, the red dot sight a steady beacon on his spine.
Then, a flicker. A twitch of his head, a slight shift in his posture. He sensed me. He knew.
He pivoted, impossibly fast.
Before I could react, before my finger could even tighten on the trigger, the world imploded. A blinding flash, a deafening crack, and I was on the ground, the earth rushing up to meet me.
A groan tore from my throat as I tried to push up, to see, but my vision was a kaleidoscope of swirling colors and deepening shadows. My body felt like lead, every muscle screaming in protest. All I could manage was a desperate gasp as I heard his words, delivered with a calm, terrifying finality:
"This operation ends now. Abandon your pursuit. The next time, it will be… far more unpleasant."
Then, the darkness claimed me.