20-05-2026, 01:34 PM
(CHAPTER CONTD)
BACK AT NAL AIR BASE
The engines of the troop carrier still hummed with the heat of Africa as it cut across the night sky toward Bikaner. Inside, the men of Garuda Force were louder than the turbines. Someone had managed to produce packets of sweets from a field ration crate, and laughter rolled through the cabin in bursts. Their mission in Kinshasa had ended in success, and the bigger news had set the whole aircraft buzzing—Garuda Force was now under the direct command of the Indian Air Force.
"About time" Dan shouted over the noise, knocking his shoulder against another soldier.
"Now we are totally legit!"
"You only care because now you can brag you’re Air Force" Avinash laughed.
"Exactly" Dan grinned.
But a few seats away, Hemant sat motionless.
He barely heard them. His fingers were clenched so tightly around the edge of the bench that his knuckles had gone pale. Last night, before they had boarded, the order had come. Officially relieved from Garuda Force. No ceremony. No debate. Just one line on paper for defying direct orders in Kinshasa. Every laugh in the aircraft sounded farther away than the stars outside the porthole.
"What do you think they’ll do?" Dan asked quietly, leaning toward him.
Hemant gave a dry smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
"Well, thankfully its not a court martial!"
When the aircraft finally touched down at Nal Air Force Station, the wheels struck the runway with a violent jolt that seemed to drag Hemant’s thoughts back into his chest. The rear ramp lowered. Warm desert air rushed inside.
Outside, cadets were already lined up.
"Avinash!"
Rani called first, running forward the moment she saw him. Beside her stood Vishal and Kirti. Vishal slapped Avinash on the back so hard he almost stumbled.
"You idiot, heard you got yourself taken hostage" Vishal laughed.
"And still came back prettier than you" Avinash shot back.
"Thank God you’re back" Dan stepped down next, and Rani threw her arms around him.
"Never thought I’d miss sand this much" Dan exhaled, looking at the familiar lights of Nal.
Then Hemant emerged. The conversations faltered. He walked down the ramp alone, shoulders straight, face blank. Everyone at the base knew already. The news had spread faster than the aircraft itself.
"Hemant… at least you made it back" Rani stepped toward him, forcing a smile.
"Yeah" He nodded once.
Nothing more. Kirti took a half-step forward. For a second it seemed she might say something—anything. But Hemant was already moving, walking faster, as if the runway itself was on fire behind him. She stopped. Her hands tightened at her sides.
"Leave him be Kirti....he is in both kinds of pain right now!" Dan glanced at her.
In his quarters, the silence felt heavier than gunfire. Hemant opened his locker and began packing methodically. Spare clothes. A notebook. A battered torch. A photograph he didn’t even remember keeping. Then, slowly, he removed the Garud uniform. For a moment he simply held it, staring at the insignia stitched over the chest.
A few minutes later he stepped outside wearing a simple striped shirt and faded denim jeans, the folded uniform cradled in his hands. From across the courtyard, Dan and Rani watched him heading toward the base command building.
"He looks like he’s going to a funeral" Rani said softly.
"In a way...it is" Dan replied, eyes fixed on Hemant’s back.
Farther away, Kirti stood under the shade of a corridor pillar. She watched him go, and guilt pressed like a stone against her ribs. She remembered turning him away, the brutal verbal lashout on him, his immediate disconnection, the silence after. Now he looked like someone leaving a life behind.
The office of Air Commodore Prajapati was colder than the desert outside. Hemant entered, shut the door behind him, and stood at attention. Prajapati looked older than he had before Kinshasa. Without a word, Hemant stepped forward and placed the folded Garud uniform on the desk.
"Sir" he said, voice firm.
He saluted.
"I am here to handover my uniform. Considering my removal from Garuda , protocol demands to return the uniform. Would like to cordinate with command regarding my punishment assignment"
For a long moment, Prajapati did not answer.Then he leaned back in his chair, studying Hemant with something strangely close to pity.
"You are a terrible soldier Hemant. One that questions every rules , every protocol. Good soldiers follow orders. But you seem to always like to think with your heart. And look where it got you. General Bakshi did say there will be a punishment. But I am afraid I have a feeling you might like it!"
Prajapati said at last. Hemant’s brow tightened.
"Sir?"
"I cannot defend what you did in Kinshasa" Prajapati said.
"You disobeyed orders. You crossed lines you had no authority to cross"
His voice hardened.
"But…..you are also the reason Garuda Force succeeded in its international mission"
He exhaled slowly. The room went still. Then Prajapati opened a drawer and took out a small key attached to a metal locket. He placed it on the desk between them.
"Take this"
Hemant stared at it.
"Go to Bikaner town , a few miles from here. Near the Highway. Your punishment is waiting there"
Prajapati said. Hemant picked up the locket. At first he only saw the scratches on the metal. Then he turned it over. And his breath caught.
SENTINEL.
For a second, the office vanished.
He was somewhere else—he was back in Alaska when he and Dan were present at the mission briefing of the hostage rescue. Then it shifted , he was in that oil rig. Taking down militants with precision. THE Sentinel , the very organisation that took him to unexplored waters. The organisation that gave him his recent hauntings regarding the mysterious blue Satan symbol. That Sentinel was now approaching him.
"Sir… this—" Hemant looked up sharply.
"Like I said...this is probably a punishment you will like!" Prajapati gave the faintest smile.
Hemant stood frozen, the weight of the little key suddenly greater than any medal he had ever worn. A few minutes earlier, he had walked into this room believing he had reached the end of his road.
Now he understood. It was not a wall. It was a door.
And that door was about to open.
The desert wind carried dust across the empty highway as the rickshaw carrying Hemant rolled past the faded milestone reading BIKANER – 14 KM. The engine hummed steadily, but his thoughts were louder. Every kilometer behind him felt like another piece of his NAL life being buried beneath the sands of Rajasthan.
Garud Commando Force.
The name still echoed in his head with bitterness. Suspended. Disgraced. Removed. Officially, he was no longer a soldier. Hemant tightened his grip on the passenger railing of the rickshaw. The address folded in his pocket had only one line written on it—Sector Road 8, outskirts east of Bikaner. No explanation. No sender. Just instructions. Typical military fashion.
The highway gradually emptied until civilization became little more than scattered electric poles and distant mud houses. Then he saw it. A lone modern house standing in the middle of barren land.
The rickshaw stopped at its gateway as Hemant picked up his luggage and paid the driver as he drove off. The structure looked absurdly luxurious for its location—smooth sandstone walls, tinted windows, a shaded porch, and a silver SUV parked silently outside the gate like it had been waiting for him. There were no nearby homes except for a few tiny settlements far beyond the dunes.
![[Image: Hemant-New-Place.png]](https://i.ibb.co/NgQwR7Y1/Hemant-New-Place.png)
"Not gonna lie....place is not bad!" Hemant muttered under his breath.
He scanned the surroundings automatically, old instincts refusing to die. Highway to the west. Open terrain to the north. Minimal cover. Quiet. Too quiet.
The front door was slightly open. His eyes narrowed immediately. Hemant approached carefully and pushed the door wider. The cool air inside contrasted sharply against the desert heat outside. The living room was spacious and fully furnished, with leather couches, dim yellow lighting, and a massive television mounted against the wall. And sitting calmly in the center of it all was General Arvind Bakshi. The old military head sat with one leg crossed over the other, holding a cup of tea like he owned the place.
"…Sir?" Hemant froze.
"You took longer than expected" Bakshi looked up casually.
Hemant shut the door behind him slowly.
"With all due respect, General, last I checked suspended commandos don’t usually get invited to luxury homes"
Bakshi gave a faint smirk and gestured toward the couch opposite him.
"Sit down, Hemant"
There was something unusually relaxed about the General today, and somehow that unsettled Hemant more than battlefield tension ever could. Hemant sat carefully. For a few moments, silence filled the room. Then Bakshi spoke.
"I am disappointed in you"
Straight to the point. Of course. Hemant leaned back slightly.
"That makes two of us, sir"
Bakshi ignored the remark.
"But here's the thing. I am not disappointed in just you but also in myself. Because I failed to understand where your true potential were. As a soldier you were always a liability. You disobeyed direct orders in Congo. You compromised operational command. You crossed international boundaries without authorization"
He paused and looked directly into Hemant’s eyes.
"And you nearly created a tense ground level situation inside Kinshasa"
"I could not leave Avinash at that monster's hand sir" Hemant exhaled sharply through his nose.
"You were ordered to wait for extraction"
"And you already know , that extraction would be worthless and he would've been slaughtered"
Bakshi’s stare hardened for a moment. Then unexpectedly, he nodded.
"Yes, time was our enemy at that moment. And even though you failed as a soldier at that moment , you were the person needed at that moment. You didn't walk there as an Indian Army Soldier , you walked in there to make things right. And you didn't let the brutality and savagery to stop you"
He said quietly.
"That is exactly why I expected you to do what you did"
Hemant blinked in surprise. Bakshi placed the teacup down carefully on the table.
"Because of your actions, Garud Force did not lose a single soldier in Congo"
His voice lowered.
"And because of your actions… Bosco ‘The Cannibal’ Katanga is dead.....liberating the people of Kinshasa from a Tyrant!"
The room suddenly felt heavier.
Hemant remembered the blood-soaked scrap yard. The screams. Katanga laughing while human bones burned in barrels nearby. And the mayhem that culminated. His lifeless corpse hanging over his throne. That monster deserved worse. Bakshi leaned forward slightly.
"On paper" he continued
"You have been removed from military service permanently. Forced early retirement. No command authority. No official operations"
A pause followed.
"That is the punishment the Indian government will acknowledge publicly"
"Publicly?" Hemant frowned.
Bakshi’s expression changed subtly.
"But unofficially…..you will be working for India as a Freelance Operator hired by SENTINEL....every operation you accomplish , every target you neutralize. The credit will not be given to you but Garuda Forces. For your services to SENTINEL , they will provide us intel and other defense proposals that benefit India and its interests"
He said. The General reached into his coat and tossed a black file onto the table between them. One word was printed on the cover.
SENTINEL
Hemant stared at it silently.
"SENTINEL is a multinational covert military unit" Bakshi explained.
"Off-record operations. International crisis intervention. No flags. No politics. No bureaucratic chains"
He gave Hemant a long look.
"Which makes it the perfect place for someone like you. You will have complete freedom , no burdens of responsibility or orders over your head. You can carry out your missions with your input. Though the downside? We will not acknowledge you....you are one of the unknown for Indian Defence...but as a deal towards SENTINEL right now....you have been designated HVI (High Value Individual) to NAL Air Base as an asset to Indian Defence's interest. That is the only protection you'll get here in Bikaner!"
"Interesting presidential treatment" Hemant let out a dry laugh.
"But let me be clear" Bakshi replied immediately.
"You are a terrible soldier"
Hemant actually smiled at that.
"You are reckless, rebellious, insubordinate, and an administrative nightmare"
Bakshi stood up slowly.
"But you are effective. You have the right attention , most importantly , you do the right thing."
He walked toward the window and looked outside at the desert horizon.
"People in Kinshasa are sleeping peacefully tonight because you killed a savage that even governments feared touching. And you didn't face him as a Garud commando. You faced him as yourself. That is your world Hemant , a world where you can shift the balance and bring order to the world. A Perfect Warrior!"
His voice remained calm, but every word carried weight.
"You function better without the uniform, Hemant. This is your path. The Path of a warrior!"
Hemant looked at the file again.
SENTINEL.
A new gateway. New challenges and adventures in the horizon. Bakshi turned toward him one final time.
"This house belongs to you now. The SUV outside is yours. SENTINEL will provide you with every resource you require"
Then his eyes sharpened.
"And every victory you earn from this point onward will quietly strengthen the reputation of Garud Force"
"The Higher Purpose" Hemant said softly.
"Exactly. You are strengthening this nation's defense in a unconventional way"
Bakshi nodded once. The General walked toward the exit before stopping near the door.
"I will be watching your progress carefully" he said without turning around.
"Just don't reshape the world during your first month"
"No promises, sir"
That finally earned a small chuckle from the old veteran. Then he was gone. The sound of the SUV engine faded into the distance, leaving Hemant alone inside the massive house. For the first time in months, there was no mission briefing waiting for him. No commanding officer barking orders. No uniform hanging nearby.
Just silence.
Hemant slowly walked through the house, taking everything in—the polished kitchen, the weapons locker hidden behind a sliding panel, the upstairs balcony overlooking the desert highway.
He stepped out onto the balcony as the evening sun sank into the dunes, painting the horizon orange and crimson. The warm desert wind brushed against his face while trucks thundered far away on the highway below.
His duties at Nar Air Base was done. But a different kind of commitment and responsibility is engraved on him now. One that is beneficial to not just this nation , but to the world. His GARUD life had ended at the gates of Nal Air Force Base. But something far more dangerous had just begun.
The next morning, after moving the last of his belongings into the house outside Bikaner, Hemant found himself driving back toward the familiar gates of Nal Air Force Base. He hadn’t planned it. At least that’s what he told himself. But some part of him needed one last look—one last reminder that the place where he had slept, laughed, and guarded still existed, even if he no longer belonged to it.
The guards at the gate recognized him instantly and waved him through without question. Inside, the base felt strangely hollow. The tarmac shimmered under the desert sun. A few ground crew moved about lazily, but the usual noise was missing. No Dan yelling at cadets. No Avinash complaining about drills. No sarcastic remarks from the younger recruits. No sign of Kirti striding toward the hangars with that cold, impossible confidence.
Hemant walked slowly past the parked aircraft, hands in his pockets. For the first time since Congo, he felt truly alone.
"You look worse than when you came back from Kinshasa"
The voice made him stop. He turned. It was Rani, standing beside a maintenance trolley with grease on one cheek and concern in her eyes.
"That obvious?" Hemant managed a tired smile.
"You landed here with the best brooding look I've ever seen"
Rani stepped closer. She tilted her head.
"What happened?"
Hemant stared past her toward the runway for a few moments.
"I did what I thought was right" he said quietly.
"I killed a savage monster and got 'punished' for it. Its actually more complicated than that!"
"Try me" Rani folded her arms.
He exhaled slowly.
"I got upgraded"
"Upgraded?" she repeated.
"To SENTINEL"
Her expression changed immediately.
"The global operations unit?" she asked, almost disbelievingly.
Hemant nodded.
"I’m with them full time now. Off the books. No uniform. No official military ties"
He let out a dry laugh.
"Only condition is… whatever I achieve out there gets credited to Garuda Force"
Rani stared at him for a second, then smiled faintly.
"That sounds less like punishment and more like they’ve unleashed you"
"The general said something similar too" Hemant muttered.
His eyes drifted around again.
"Where is everyone?"
Rani followed his gaze.
"Oh...Command gave most of the recruits and Garuda squad a day off" she said.
"Some of them were pretty shaken up after Congo. Especially after everything that happened in Kinshasa"
Her voice softened.
"They’ve gone to a lake camp not far from here. A much needed break from their heavy turmoil"
The words landed harder than Hemant expected. A day off. A lake. Laughter. Friends. And somehow he was outside of it now. He nodded once, but said nothing. Rani caught the shadow passing over his face.
"Hemant…"
He forced a smile that fooled neither of them.
"If Dan comes back before I see him" he said, turning away.
"Tell him where I’m staying"
He pulled a folded slip from his pocket and handed it to her.
"My new address"
Rani took it carefully.
"You could still go to the lake" she said quietly.
Hemant shook his head.
"No , I've caused enough trouble for them with Congo. Let them write their own adventures"
He said. By late afternoon he was back at the house. The silence inside felt heavier than before. He dropped himself onto the couch and stared at the ceiling, but his thoughts refused to stay still. He imagined the lake. Dan was probably already making an idiot of himself trying to impress some female cadets. Avinash would be pretending he wasn’t still rattled from being held hostage. The younger recruits would be retelling the Congo operation for the hundredth time, exaggerating every gunfight.
And Kirti…
That thought hit harder. He closed his eyes. He could almost picture her there by the water, hair loose in the evening wind, laughing in a way she never laughed around him. And Vishal beside her. The golden boy of the base. The ace pilot. The man everyone admired. He remembered the cadets whispering about them. Best among the best. He clenched his jaw. For one ugly moment his imagination betrayed him—Kirti leaning into Vishal’s shoulder, both of them somewhere beautiful, far away from blood and dust and war. He opened his eyes immediately, irritated at himself.
"Enough" he muttered.
His phone buzzed. A message. From Will. Hemant sat up.
First official assignment confirmed. Kazakhstan. Transport lands tomorrow morning at Nal Air Base.
Be ready.
He read it twice. Kazakhstan. First mission. The first step to another world. The thought cut through everything else. Nal was behind him now. Garuda was behind him. Whatever came next belonged to SENTINEL. And deeper than duty, deeper even than the thrill of action, was the thing that truly sharpened his focus—
AZRAEL.
The hidden syndicate. The unseen faces moving wars from the shadows. For the first time that day, Hemant felt something close to purpose. By evening, the doorbell rang. Hemant opened the door and nearly laughed. Dan stood there in civilian clothes, staring past him at the house.
"You bastard , what is this?!!!!" Dan said.
"Come in" Hemant stepped aside with a grin.
Dan walked inside, eyes widening. He looked at the polished floors, the leather couch, the staircase, then through the window at the silver SUV outside.
"I cannot believe this!" he declared.
"I’m sleeping in a glorified concrete box at HQ while you’re living like a smuggler king"
"High risk....high rewards!" Hemant chuckled.
Dan dropped onto the couch. Then his grin softened.
"They made me lead commander"
Hemant looked at him.
"Garuda Force?"
Dan nodded.
"Since you were relieved. They saw me as the perfect replacement. Avinash has jumped to my former rank"
For a moment there was no humor in either of them. Then Hemant crossed the room and handed him a mug of coffee.
"Then they have the right choice who can lead Garuda Force in its glory!"
"Says the man who got promoted to an international black-ops unit" Dan snorted.
Hemant sat opposite him.
"Sure...but its not easy as you think"
Dan raised an eyebrow. Hemant explained the arrangement with Bakshi. When he finished, Dan let out a low whistle.
"So every time you take out a bad guy, Garuda gets the medal" Dan said,
"Looks that way"
"General Bakshi. That old fox." Dan lifted his cup.
They drank. After a while, Hemant said.
"You know you should stay here. You can take advantage of these amenities for me!"
Dan shook his head immediately.
"No chance. I need to be at the base if I’m running things now" He looked around again.
"Though I hate to admit it… this place is far better than HQ"
Hemant smiled faintly.
"I went to the base this morning" he said.
"Couldn’t find anyone"
Dan nodded.
"Yeah. Command sent most of them off for recovery. Congo hit some of the boys harder than they’re willing to admit"
He looked down at his coffee.
"Avinash especially. What happened at the scrap yard… that messed him up"
Hemant nodded slowly. Then, almost casually, he asked,
"And Kirti?"
Dan’s head snapped up. A grin spread across his face.
"You’re still stuck on her"
Hemant rolled his eyes.
"Just asking"
Dan leaned back smugly.
"Relax. Kirti and Vishal got called to Delhi this morning. Some special training sortie...for the upcoming Air Force Day or something"
Hemant blinked.
"Delhi?"
"Yeah. Flew out right after the orders came"
For reasons he didn’t want to examine too closely, Hemant felt some of the tightness in his chest ease. So the lake had been only that. A lake. Not whatever his mind had invented. But the relief was incomplete. Because Kirti was still with Vishal. Still somewhere beyond his reach. He hid the thought behind another sip of coffee. Dan noticed anyway, but wisely said nothing. Instead, he lifted his mug.
"To new duties"
Hemant looked at him. Tomorrow morning, a transport would land. Tomorrow, Kazakhstan. Tomorrow, SENTINEL. He raised his cup and tapped it against Dan’s.
"To the future" Hemant said.
The cups clinked softly in the quiet house. And for a little while, between old wounds and new wars, that was enough.
(TO BE CONTD)
The engines of the troop carrier still hummed with the heat of Africa as it cut across the night sky toward Bikaner. Inside, the men of Garuda Force were louder than the turbines. Someone had managed to produce packets of sweets from a field ration crate, and laughter rolled through the cabin in bursts. Their mission in Kinshasa had ended in success, and the bigger news had set the whole aircraft buzzing—Garuda Force was now under the direct command of the Indian Air Force.
"About time" Dan shouted over the noise, knocking his shoulder against another soldier.
"Now we are totally legit!"
"You only care because now you can brag you’re Air Force" Avinash laughed.
"Exactly" Dan grinned.
But a few seats away, Hemant sat motionless.
He barely heard them. His fingers were clenched so tightly around the edge of the bench that his knuckles had gone pale. Last night, before they had boarded, the order had come. Officially relieved from Garuda Force. No ceremony. No debate. Just one line on paper for defying direct orders in Kinshasa. Every laugh in the aircraft sounded farther away than the stars outside the porthole.
"What do you think they’ll do?" Dan asked quietly, leaning toward him.
Hemant gave a dry smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
"Well, thankfully its not a court martial!"
When the aircraft finally touched down at Nal Air Force Station, the wheels struck the runway with a violent jolt that seemed to drag Hemant’s thoughts back into his chest. The rear ramp lowered. Warm desert air rushed inside.
Outside, cadets were already lined up.
"Avinash!"
Rani called first, running forward the moment she saw him. Beside her stood Vishal and Kirti. Vishal slapped Avinash on the back so hard he almost stumbled.
"You idiot, heard you got yourself taken hostage" Vishal laughed.
"And still came back prettier than you" Avinash shot back.
"Thank God you’re back" Dan stepped down next, and Rani threw her arms around him.
"Never thought I’d miss sand this much" Dan exhaled, looking at the familiar lights of Nal.
Then Hemant emerged. The conversations faltered. He walked down the ramp alone, shoulders straight, face blank. Everyone at the base knew already. The news had spread faster than the aircraft itself.
"Hemant… at least you made it back" Rani stepped toward him, forcing a smile.
"Yeah" He nodded once.
Nothing more. Kirti took a half-step forward. For a second it seemed she might say something—anything. But Hemant was already moving, walking faster, as if the runway itself was on fire behind him. She stopped. Her hands tightened at her sides.
"Leave him be Kirti....he is in both kinds of pain right now!" Dan glanced at her.
In his quarters, the silence felt heavier than gunfire. Hemant opened his locker and began packing methodically. Spare clothes. A notebook. A battered torch. A photograph he didn’t even remember keeping. Then, slowly, he removed the Garud uniform. For a moment he simply held it, staring at the insignia stitched over the chest.
A few minutes later he stepped outside wearing a simple striped shirt and faded denim jeans, the folded uniform cradled in his hands. From across the courtyard, Dan and Rani watched him heading toward the base command building.
"He looks like he’s going to a funeral" Rani said softly.
"In a way...it is" Dan replied, eyes fixed on Hemant’s back.
Farther away, Kirti stood under the shade of a corridor pillar. She watched him go, and guilt pressed like a stone against her ribs. She remembered turning him away, the brutal verbal lashout on him, his immediate disconnection, the silence after. Now he looked like someone leaving a life behind.
The office of Air Commodore Prajapati was colder than the desert outside. Hemant entered, shut the door behind him, and stood at attention. Prajapati looked older than he had before Kinshasa. Without a word, Hemant stepped forward and placed the folded Garud uniform on the desk.
"Sir" he said, voice firm.
He saluted.
"I am here to handover my uniform. Considering my removal from Garuda , protocol demands to return the uniform. Would like to cordinate with command regarding my punishment assignment"
For a long moment, Prajapati did not answer.Then he leaned back in his chair, studying Hemant with something strangely close to pity.
"You are a terrible soldier Hemant. One that questions every rules , every protocol. Good soldiers follow orders. But you seem to always like to think with your heart. And look where it got you. General Bakshi did say there will be a punishment. But I am afraid I have a feeling you might like it!"
Prajapati said at last. Hemant’s brow tightened.
"Sir?"
"I cannot defend what you did in Kinshasa" Prajapati said.
"You disobeyed orders. You crossed lines you had no authority to cross"
His voice hardened.
"But…..you are also the reason Garuda Force succeeded in its international mission"
He exhaled slowly. The room went still. Then Prajapati opened a drawer and took out a small key attached to a metal locket. He placed it on the desk between them.
"Take this"
Hemant stared at it.
"Go to Bikaner town , a few miles from here. Near the Highway. Your punishment is waiting there"
Prajapati said. Hemant picked up the locket. At first he only saw the scratches on the metal. Then he turned it over. And his breath caught.
SENTINEL.
For a second, the office vanished.
He was somewhere else—he was back in Alaska when he and Dan were present at the mission briefing of the hostage rescue. Then it shifted , he was in that oil rig. Taking down militants with precision. THE Sentinel , the very organisation that took him to unexplored waters. The organisation that gave him his recent hauntings regarding the mysterious blue Satan symbol. That Sentinel was now approaching him.
"Sir… this—" Hemant looked up sharply.
"Like I said...this is probably a punishment you will like!" Prajapati gave the faintest smile.
Hemant stood frozen, the weight of the little key suddenly greater than any medal he had ever worn. A few minutes earlier, he had walked into this room believing he had reached the end of his road.
Now he understood. It was not a wall. It was a door.
And that door was about to open.
The desert wind carried dust across the empty highway as the rickshaw carrying Hemant rolled past the faded milestone reading BIKANER – 14 KM. The engine hummed steadily, but his thoughts were louder. Every kilometer behind him felt like another piece of his NAL life being buried beneath the sands of Rajasthan.
Garud Commando Force.
The name still echoed in his head with bitterness. Suspended. Disgraced. Removed. Officially, he was no longer a soldier. Hemant tightened his grip on the passenger railing of the rickshaw. The address folded in his pocket had only one line written on it—Sector Road 8, outskirts east of Bikaner. No explanation. No sender. Just instructions. Typical military fashion.
The highway gradually emptied until civilization became little more than scattered electric poles and distant mud houses. Then he saw it. A lone modern house standing in the middle of barren land.
The rickshaw stopped at its gateway as Hemant picked up his luggage and paid the driver as he drove off. The structure looked absurdly luxurious for its location—smooth sandstone walls, tinted windows, a shaded porch, and a silver SUV parked silently outside the gate like it had been waiting for him. There were no nearby homes except for a few tiny settlements far beyond the dunes.
"Not gonna lie....place is not bad!" Hemant muttered under his breath.
He scanned the surroundings automatically, old instincts refusing to die. Highway to the west. Open terrain to the north. Minimal cover. Quiet. Too quiet.
The front door was slightly open. His eyes narrowed immediately. Hemant approached carefully and pushed the door wider. The cool air inside contrasted sharply against the desert heat outside. The living room was spacious and fully furnished, with leather couches, dim yellow lighting, and a massive television mounted against the wall. And sitting calmly in the center of it all was General Arvind Bakshi. The old military head sat with one leg crossed over the other, holding a cup of tea like he owned the place.
"…Sir?" Hemant froze.
"You took longer than expected" Bakshi looked up casually.
Hemant shut the door behind him slowly.
"With all due respect, General, last I checked suspended commandos don’t usually get invited to luxury homes"
Bakshi gave a faint smirk and gestured toward the couch opposite him.
"Sit down, Hemant"
There was something unusually relaxed about the General today, and somehow that unsettled Hemant more than battlefield tension ever could. Hemant sat carefully. For a few moments, silence filled the room. Then Bakshi spoke.
"I am disappointed in you"
Straight to the point. Of course. Hemant leaned back slightly.
"That makes two of us, sir"
Bakshi ignored the remark.
"But here's the thing. I am not disappointed in just you but also in myself. Because I failed to understand where your true potential were. As a soldier you were always a liability. You disobeyed direct orders in Congo. You compromised operational command. You crossed international boundaries without authorization"
He paused and looked directly into Hemant’s eyes.
"And you nearly created a tense ground level situation inside Kinshasa"
"I could not leave Avinash at that monster's hand sir" Hemant exhaled sharply through his nose.
"You were ordered to wait for extraction"
"And you already know , that extraction would be worthless and he would've been slaughtered"
Bakshi’s stare hardened for a moment. Then unexpectedly, he nodded.
"Yes, time was our enemy at that moment. And even though you failed as a soldier at that moment , you were the person needed at that moment. You didn't walk there as an Indian Army Soldier , you walked in there to make things right. And you didn't let the brutality and savagery to stop you"
He said quietly.
"That is exactly why I expected you to do what you did"
Hemant blinked in surprise. Bakshi placed the teacup down carefully on the table.
"Because of your actions, Garud Force did not lose a single soldier in Congo"
His voice lowered.
"And because of your actions… Bosco ‘The Cannibal’ Katanga is dead.....liberating the people of Kinshasa from a Tyrant!"
The room suddenly felt heavier.
Hemant remembered the blood-soaked scrap yard. The screams. Katanga laughing while human bones burned in barrels nearby. And the mayhem that culminated. His lifeless corpse hanging over his throne. That monster deserved worse. Bakshi leaned forward slightly.
"On paper" he continued
"You have been removed from military service permanently. Forced early retirement. No command authority. No official operations"
A pause followed.
"That is the punishment the Indian government will acknowledge publicly"
"Publicly?" Hemant frowned.
Bakshi’s expression changed subtly.
"But unofficially…..you will be working for India as a Freelance Operator hired by SENTINEL....every operation you accomplish , every target you neutralize. The credit will not be given to you but Garuda Forces. For your services to SENTINEL , they will provide us intel and other defense proposals that benefit India and its interests"
He said. The General reached into his coat and tossed a black file onto the table between them. One word was printed on the cover.
SENTINEL
Hemant stared at it silently.
"SENTINEL is a multinational covert military unit" Bakshi explained.
"Off-record operations. International crisis intervention. No flags. No politics. No bureaucratic chains"
He gave Hemant a long look.
"Which makes it the perfect place for someone like you. You will have complete freedom , no burdens of responsibility or orders over your head. You can carry out your missions with your input. Though the downside? We will not acknowledge you....you are one of the unknown for Indian Defence...but as a deal towards SENTINEL right now....you have been designated HVI (High Value Individual) to NAL Air Base as an asset to Indian Defence's interest. That is the only protection you'll get here in Bikaner!"
"Interesting presidential treatment" Hemant let out a dry laugh.
"But let me be clear" Bakshi replied immediately.
"You are a terrible soldier"
Hemant actually smiled at that.
"You are reckless, rebellious, insubordinate, and an administrative nightmare"
Bakshi stood up slowly.
"But you are effective. You have the right attention , most importantly , you do the right thing."
He walked toward the window and looked outside at the desert horizon.
"People in Kinshasa are sleeping peacefully tonight because you killed a savage that even governments feared touching. And you didn't face him as a Garud commando. You faced him as yourself. That is your world Hemant , a world where you can shift the balance and bring order to the world. A Perfect Warrior!"
His voice remained calm, but every word carried weight.
"You function better without the uniform, Hemant. This is your path. The Path of a warrior!"
Hemant looked at the file again.
SENTINEL.
A new gateway. New challenges and adventures in the horizon. Bakshi turned toward him one final time.
"This house belongs to you now. The SUV outside is yours. SENTINEL will provide you with every resource you require"
Then his eyes sharpened.
"And every victory you earn from this point onward will quietly strengthen the reputation of Garud Force"
"The Higher Purpose" Hemant said softly.
"Exactly. You are strengthening this nation's defense in a unconventional way"
Bakshi nodded once. The General walked toward the exit before stopping near the door.
"I will be watching your progress carefully" he said without turning around.
"Just don't reshape the world during your first month"
"No promises, sir"
That finally earned a small chuckle from the old veteran. Then he was gone. The sound of the SUV engine faded into the distance, leaving Hemant alone inside the massive house. For the first time in months, there was no mission briefing waiting for him. No commanding officer barking orders. No uniform hanging nearby.
Just silence.
Hemant slowly walked through the house, taking everything in—the polished kitchen, the weapons locker hidden behind a sliding panel, the upstairs balcony overlooking the desert highway.
He stepped out onto the balcony as the evening sun sank into the dunes, painting the horizon orange and crimson. The warm desert wind brushed against his face while trucks thundered far away on the highway below.
His duties at Nar Air Base was done. But a different kind of commitment and responsibility is engraved on him now. One that is beneficial to not just this nation , but to the world. His GARUD life had ended at the gates of Nal Air Force Base. But something far more dangerous had just begun.
The next morning, after moving the last of his belongings into the house outside Bikaner, Hemant found himself driving back toward the familiar gates of Nal Air Force Base. He hadn’t planned it. At least that’s what he told himself. But some part of him needed one last look—one last reminder that the place where he had slept, laughed, and guarded still existed, even if he no longer belonged to it.
The guards at the gate recognized him instantly and waved him through without question. Inside, the base felt strangely hollow. The tarmac shimmered under the desert sun. A few ground crew moved about lazily, but the usual noise was missing. No Dan yelling at cadets. No Avinash complaining about drills. No sarcastic remarks from the younger recruits. No sign of Kirti striding toward the hangars with that cold, impossible confidence.
Hemant walked slowly past the parked aircraft, hands in his pockets. For the first time since Congo, he felt truly alone.
"You look worse than when you came back from Kinshasa"
The voice made him stop. He turned. It was Rani, standing beside a maintenance trolley with grease on one cheek and concern in her eyes.
"That obvious?" Hemant managed a tired smile.
"You landed here with the best brooding look I've ever seen"
Rani stepped closer. She tilted her head.
"What happened?"
Hemant stared past her toward the runway for a few moments.
"I did what I thought was right" he said quietly.
"I killed a savage monster and got 'punished' for it. Its actually more complicated than that!"
"Try me" Rani folded her arms.
He exhaled slowly.
"I got upgraded"
"Upgraded?" she repeated.
"To SENTINEL"
Her expression changed immediately.
"The global operations unit?" she asked, almost disbelievingly.
Hemant nodded.
"I’m with them full time now. Off the books. No uniform. No official military ties"
He let out a dry laugh.
"Only condition is… whatever I achieve out there gets credited to Garuda Force"
Rani stared at him for a second, then smiled faintly.
"That sounds less like punishment and more like they’ve unleashed you"
"The general said something similar too" Hemant muttered.
His eyes drifted around again.
"Where is everyone?"
Rani followed his gaze.
"Oh...Command gave most of the recruits and Garuda squad a day off" she said.
"Some of them were pretty shaken up after Congo. Especially after everything that happened in Kinshasa"
Her voice softened.
"They’ve gone to a lake camp not far from here. A much needed break from their heavy turmoil"
The words landed harder than Hemant expected. A day off. A lake. Laughter. Friends. And somehow he was outside of it now. He nodded once, but said nothing. Rani caught the shadow passing over his face.
"Hemant…"
He forced a smile that fooled neither of them.
"If Dan comes back before I see him" he said, turning away.
"Tell him where I’m staying"
He pulled a folded slip from his pocket and handed it to her.
"My new address"
Rani took it carefully.
"You could still go to the lake" she said quietly.
Hemant shook his head.
"No , I've caused enough trouble for them with Congo. Let them write their own adventures"
He said. By late afternoon he was back at the house. The silence inside felt heavier than before. He dropped himself onto the couch and stared at the ceiling, but his thoughts refused to stay still. He imagined the lake. Dan was probably already making an idiot of himself trying to impress some female cadets. Avinash would be pretending he wasn’t still rattled from being held hostage. The younger recruits would be retelling the Congo operation for the hundredth time, exaggerating every gunfight.
And Kirti…
That thought hit harder. He closed his eyes. He could almost picture her there by the water, hair loose in the evening wind, laughing in a way she never laughed around him. And Vishal beside her. The golden boy of the base. The ace pilot. The man everyone admired. He remembered the cadets whispering about them. Best among the best. He clenched his jaw. For one ugly moment his imagination betrayed him—Kirti leaning into Vishal’s shoulder, both of them somewhere beautiful, far away from blood and dust and war. He opened his eyes immediately, irritated at himself.
"Enough" he muttered.
His phone buzzed. A message. From Will. Hemant sat up.
First official assignment confirmed. Kazakhstan. Transport lands tomorrow morning at Nal Air Base.
Be ready.
He read it twice. Kazakhstan. First mission. The first step to another world. The thought cut through everything else. Nal was behind him now. Garuda was behind him. Whatever came next belonged to SENTINEL. And deeper than duty, deeper even than the thrill of action, was the thing that truly sharpened his focus—
AZRAEL.
The hidden syndicate. The unseen faces moving wars from the shadows. For the first time that day, Hemant felt something close to purpose. By evening, the doorbell rang. Hemant opened the door and nearly laughed. Dan stood there in civilian clothes, staring past him at the house.
"You bastard , what is this?!!!!" Dan said.
"Come in" Hemant stepped aside with a grin.
Dan walked inside, eyes widening. He looked at the polished floors, the leather couch, the staircase, then through the window at the silver SUV outside.
"I cannot believe this!" he declared.
"I’m sleeping in a glorified concrete box at HQ while you’re living like a smuggler king"
"High risk....high rewards!" Hemant chuckled.
Dan dropped onto the couch. Then his grin softened.
"They made me lead commander"
Hemant looked at him.
"Garuda Force?"
Dan nodded.
"Since you were relieved. They saw me as the perfect replacement. Avinash has jumped to my former rank"
For a moment there was no humor in either of them. Then Hemant crossed the room and handed him a mug of coffee.
"Then they have the right choice who can lead Garuda Force in its glory!"
"Says the man who got promoted to an international black-ops unit" Dan snorted.
Hemant sat opposite him.
"Sure...but its not easy as you think"
Dan raised an eyebrow. Hemant explained the arrangement with Bakshi. When he finished, Dan let out a low whistle.
"So every time you take out a bad guy, Garuda gets the medal" Dan said,
"Looks that way"
"General Bakshi. That old fox." Dan lifted his cup.
They drank. After a while, Hemant said.
"You know you should stay here. You can take advantage of these amenities for me!"
Dan shook his head immediately.
"No chance. I need to be at the base if I’m running things now" He looked around again.
"Though I hate to admit it… this place is far better than HQ"
Hemant smiled faintly.
"I went to the base this morning" he said.
"Couldn’t find anyone"
Dan nodded.
"Yeah. Command sent most of them off for recovery. Congo hit some of the boys harder than they’re willing to admit"
He looked down at his coffee.
"Avinash especially. What happened at the scrap yard… that messed him up"
Hemant nodded slowly. Then, almost casually, he asked,
"And Kirti?"
Dan’s head snapped up. A grin spread across his face.
"You’re still stuck on her"
Hemant rolled his eyes.
"Just asking"
Dan leaned back smugly.
"Relax. Kirti and Vishal got called to Delhi this morning. Some special training sortie...for the upcoming Air Force Day or something"
Hemant blinked.
"Delhi?"
"Yeah. Flew out right after the orders came"
For reasons he didn’t want to examine too closely, Hemant felt some of the tightness in his chest ease. So the lake had been only that. A lake. Not whatever his mind had invented. But the relief was incomplete. Because Kirti was still with Vishal. Still somewhere beyond his reach. He hid the thought behind another sip of coffee. Dan noticed anyway, but wisely said nothing. Instead, he lifted his mug.
"To new duties"
Hemant looked at him. Tomorrow morning, a transport would land. Tomorrow, Kazakhstan. Tomorrow, SENTINEL. He raised his cup and tapped it against Dan’s.
"To the future" Hemant said.
The cups clinked softly in the quiet house. And for a little while, between old wounds and new wars, that was enough.
(TO BE CONTD)
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