Kiara's lips curved—soft, serene, impossibly calm.
Then she lifted her chin, and her entire being shifted.
Her spine straightened.
Her shoulders rolled back.
Her eyes softened into a goddess's gaze—still, infinite, ancient.
She raised her hands with quiet grace.
And her Trident mark ignited.
Not a spark.
Not a glow.
A blaze—white-gold fire unfurling across her skin like molten sunlight.
The flames climbed up her back, swirling around her arms, circling her like a halo.
The air bowed under the pressure of so much divinity.
A deep hum rose from the ground.
And then—slowly, beautifully, like galaxies taking shape—
seven divine arms unfolded behind her, made of pure light.
Each arm moved with sacred precision: one lifted in blessing,
one bent in protection,
one curled in command,
one extended with celestial elegance…
Yuvaan hissed and lifted an arm to shield his eyes.
The light was too bright.
Too pure.
Too divine for the polluted magic inside him.
The glow expanded—slow and radiant—spreading across the battlefield like a second sunrise.
It touched every wounded Reevavanshi.
Their wounds knit shut.
Bruises vanished.
Bleeding stopped.
Strength flooded back into their limbs, their chests, their spirits.
Weapons were lifted again—no longer trembling.
Eyes flared with hope—no longer dim.
The entire clan rose to their feet.
Kiara's divine form shimmered…
and gently dissolved, the seven arms fading like dissolving constellations…
until Kiara stood there again—
still glowing, still powerful, still divine.
She stepped forward, every movement slow, deliberate, grounded in purpose.
Her gaze pierced through Yuvaan.
"Weren't you asking," she began softly,
"how I planned to fight you?"
A pause…
the wind holding its breath…
"Then listen carefully."
She turned slightly, lifting her hand.
"I will not fight you alone."
Her family stepped forward one by one, each appearance slow and heavy with meaning.
Vinod with his double-barrel.
Aakash rolling his shoulders before gripping his sword.
Angad, Susheela, Bhoomi—all armed, all steady.
Chandrika holding baby Kiaan close, his tiny fingers glowing faintly from Kiara's healing light.
They formed a crescent around her—her first circle of strength.
Kiara continued, voice calm but filled with rising resolve:
"Besides me, I have my family."
The healed Reevavanshis marched forward, taking their positions behind her like a reborn army.
"I also have the brave warriors of the Reeva clan."
The earth rumbled.
A golden crack split open across the battlefield.
From it emerged Kajal—Swarnnaagin—her scales shimmering like liquid gold, eyes fierce with mother's pride.
Behind her, the entire Naaglok slithered, marched, and materialized in divine formations—an army of serpentine guardians.
Kiara bowed her head respectfully.
"I have my mother, Swarnnaagin Kajal… and with her, Naaglok."
A cold wind swept the air.
Shadows stirred.
Then—like a violet comet—Mishka descended, hair whipping, her half-daayan aura crackling with blue fire.
Beside her, Dilruba appeared in a swirl of purple flames—
a majestic nine-tailed fox, each tail glimmering like a phantom star.
The battlefield gasped.
Their presence shifted the energy instantly.
Kiara's voice deepened.
"I have my niece, Reeva Daayan…Mishka.
And with her—Dilruba, the Nine-Tailed Purple Fox."
A hush fell.
Kiara lifted her face toward the sky.
The clouds parted.
A warm, sacred glow descended—light that felt like creation itself breathing.
"And lastly…"
Her voice softened, yet somehow filled the entire battlefield.
"…I have the blessings of the Tridev and Tridevi."
A quiet shimmer radiated from her chest.
She pressed a hand over her heart.
"And I carry my husband's love… and his memory."
Her eyes hardened—steady, fearless.
She faced Yuvaan fully now.
"So let me tell you, Yuvaan."
She took one long, final step forward.
"I am not alone."
The ground trembled.
Yuvaan's smirk faltered.
The armies on both sides froze.
War had a new center.
A new force.
A new fire.
And she was standing right there.
A single sound broke the silence.
Clap.
Slow. Lazy. Almost bored.
Another followed… even slower.
Clap…
A third.
Clap…
Yuvaan stood very still in the center of the battlefield—fog curling around his feet, the abyss churning behind him like a living wound. His hands came together again, deliberately, mockingly, as if he had all the time in the world.
His eyes never left Kiara.
A thin smile crept across his face—one that didn't reach his eyes.
"Well…" he murmured, voice soft enough that the wind seemed to lean in to listen.
"Look at you."
He tilted his head slightly, studying her as though she were something amusing on display.
"Kiara Reevavanshi," he said slowly, savoring each syllable.
"No—Jishwa Kiara."
His gaze drifted past her, gliding over the army now standing strong behind her.
The Reevavanshis.
Naaglok.
Mishka the Reeva Daayan.
Dilruba.
Her glowing family.
The child in Chandrika's arms.
Yuvaan inhaled deeply, as if absorbing the sight.
Then his lips curved into a lazy smirk.
"You brought… all of them."
He spoke it softly, almost whispering, as though still processing the spectacle.
He let his eyes trail back to hers—slow, deliberate, unsettlingly calm.
"I must say," he continued, drawing out every word,
"I am… surprisingly impressed."
The wind shifted. Dust curled at his feet.
"You came prepared."
His tone was light, but the darkness beneath it coiled like a serpent ready to strike.
He let the silence stretch.
Long.
Heavy.
Then—almost too softly—
he chuckled.
"And here I was," he said, voice dropping to a lazy, taunting drawl,
"expecting something else entirely."
He paused, letting the suspense thicken between them.
"I thought you'd just come running down the mountain…"
He lifted his hand in a vague gesture, mocking her earlier stance.
"…with your little sermons about hope. Love. Duty. Destiny."
A dry, humorless laugh escaped him.
"But instead…"
His smirk deepened.
"…you brought a whole parade."
His fingers flexed once, and a faint pulse of darkness rippled around him like a heartbeat.
A slow breath left his lips.
"This…"
a pause—
"…might actually be interesting."
His grin sharpened.
Cold.
Cruel.
Excited.
"So come then, Kiara."
He opened his arms, welcoming her like a host inviting a guest into a trap.
"Show me what you and your… squad… can do."
The ground shuddered.
Kiara's eyes didn't flicker.
The war's first true breath had finally been taken.
To be continued…