CH 4: This is War

Capt. Manasa contacted The New Dawn in hopes of more Intel on the "Devolved" people situation. The New dawn was an organization whose goal was to stop this phenomenon from spreading, investigate its cause and if possible then cure it without killing anyone. After talking to The New Dawn Capt. Manasa had a little clear vision of the situation. According to the new Intel that Capt. Manasa has, every victim was manipulated by a voice with unknown origin. After the communication, all three of them started to discuss their future strategy. "Should we take the risk of traveling so far?" asked Capt. Manasa. "I don't think there is much risk. Like we are in these dense woods, we have all the food supplies, all the medical supplies, and if anyone attacks, we have guns now." Replied Dr.Raghav. " So we are going to kill people now?" said Purva with a concerning look on her face. " I'll be completely honest with you, right now we are in a kill or get killed situation. So if we wanna live and see another day, we might have to kill." Said Capt. Manasa in a calm voice. Purva nodded in agreement while a tear rolled down her eye. Everyone started to pack essential supplies for the trip. Capt. Mansa was waiting for everyone at the entrance of the cave. " Hey, looks like we have a punctual one among us." Said Dr.Raghav jokingly to lighten the mood. Capt. Manasa gave Dr.Raghav an annoyed look and went back to staring into the distance. Dr.Raghav sighed and asked, " Why did you save Purva?" in a serious tone. " Purva wasn't just any target. She was the first person to Devolve, she had a lot of intel on her, but when I encountered him back in the Asylum, I saw the sadness in her eyes. That's why I decided to help her. But the worst part is that she remembers all of her victims, even her mother, and her boyfriend." Replied Capt.Manasa in a sad voice. "Get a room you pervs!" said Purva while making her way out of the cave. "It does not like that you creep!" said Dr.Raghav while blushing. " Wasn't it like that doctor?" Said Capt. Manasa while flirting and blushing. Purva smiled for the first time in a long time, Dr.Raghav and Capt. Manasa looked at each other, both were clearly relieved.

                                                                     After Traveling for a few hours the group decided to take a quick break to rest and have some food. Dr.Raghav was eating food while Purva decided to sleep, but Capt. Manasa decided to keep a watch, just in case anyone attacks. Dr.Raghav was staring at Capt.Manasa in a dream-like state. Capt. Manasa was a tall woman with brown eyes and short but silky hair. She clearly had a tough body, she always had her Military badge on. " Seems like you really have a connection with that badge." Said Dr.Raghav. " This isn't my badge. It's my brother's. Major Karthik Nair, he was KIA (Killed in action) during the war of the hills. He was shot in the head right in front of me." Replied Capt.Manasa. "I am so sorry, I had no idea." Said Dr.Raghav regretting that he ever said that.Before Capt. Manasa could reply anything, they heard a man screaming not so far from their location. There was a man being attacked by a devolved. Dr.Raghav woke Purva up, Capt. Manasa started to move slowly in the opposite direction, but she never took her eyes off of him. The group started to pack their supplies and food quietly. " Shouldn't we help him?" asked Purva as quietly as she could. " That man is a lost cause, no matter what we do. It's better we save our skin." Replied Capt.Manasa. The group successfully escaped the incident and started to rush to the HQ. Their new goal was to reach before the sun goes down. Dr. Raghav grabbed Purva's hand and started to walk at a slightly faster pace to keep up with Capt. Manasa. Capt. Manasa was on full alert mode and was carrying a pistol in her hand. Purva was visibly scared, so Dr. Raghav looked at her and said, " Don't worry kid, all three of us are going to make it there.", Purva smiled nervously. Soon Capt. Manasa realized that someone has been following then, she turned behind to check on Dr.Raghav and Purva. She stood still with her eyes wide open, as there was a 7ft man with an ax ready to strike Purva down, Capt. Manasa shot the man in the head without any warning. His blood and brain "spilled" all over Purva and Dr.Raghav, Purva started to scream ad cry in a panic. Dr.Raghav covered her mouth and held her against his chest to calm her down, Purva instantly stopped screaming and was now just crying. "We're all gonna die," She said in a depressed tone. Capt. Manasa and Dr.Raghav just started to move again without uttering a word.

                                                                       The group was finally at the HQ, they entered the building, it was a small building of three floors modified as a bunker. The moment they stepped in, a huge machine with a large light started to flash bursts of light on them. "Welcome to the new dawn" A voice from the machine welcomed the group. " This was a test to make sure that you weren't devolved and you guys passed." Dr.Raghav sighed in relief as he was worried about Purva. Soon all the lights were turned red and a siren was set off. " We are under attack, be ready to defend, this is not a drill. Any new members should proceed to the safe room on the third floor. The group started to rush to the third floor, that's when they saw that thousands of devolved were attacking the HQ. They realized that this wasn't any normal attack, this was a war.

TO BE CONTINUED

-Ritik Varhade,