Under the bright moon, the battlefield slept in silence. Fires burned low, casting flickering shadows across rows of tents. The groans of the wounded drifted in the night air, but most of the warriors—exhausted beyond measure—had surrendered to sleep.
Midnight struck.
A cloaked figure moved through the darkness, stepping with careful purpose. He reached the edges of Parashar's camp, stopping before the guards who immediately raised their spears. The figure did not flinch. One guard signaled for others as they surrounded the man, weapons drawn.
"State your name and business," barked the captain of the watch.
The man raised his hands slowly. "I need to speak with the twins. Or Arya. Now. It's urgent."
The guards did not move. One of them vanished into the camp, returning moments later with Rudra and Raghav, both half-awake but alert. As their eyes adjusted to the moonlight, Rudra narrowed his gaze at the stranger.
"What are you doing here? You left the city weeks ago," Rudra said cautiously.
"I have something important to tell you," the man replied, his voice strained.
They stepped closer. The man pulled back his hood.
"Rohak," Raghav whispered, a wide grin blooming across his face. "You're alive!"
Rohak offered a tired smile. "Alive, but barely. Undercover work isn't as thrilling as you'd think. I've been in Sharvanagar for nearly a month. I didn't find much at first... until now. I had to come myself."
Rudra ushered him inside quickly, past the guards. Inside the tent, Rohak discarded his cloak and took a deep breath.
"Sharvas will try to end the war tomorrow," he began. "He's made a move that changes everything."
Raghav and Rudra exchanged a look.
"What do you mean?" Raghav asked, already sensing the weight of what was coming.
"Sharvas sent a letter. A request for help. That letter has been answered. Someone is coming to join his side—and they're dangerous," Rohak said.
Rudra leaned forward, tense. "Is it a state? A state head? Someone from the Ashtaraj or Jangala Mandala?"
Rohak shook his head. "No identity revealed. But I spent days with one of Sharvas' messengers, slowly gaining his trust. He said the response came from outside the Ashtaraj kingdom."
The tent fell silent.
Rohak continued, "That alone should worry us. You know what that means. Beings from outside... even a handful of them can tilt the balance."
Raghav paced. "We have the Kaalraths, though. That must count for something."
"It does. But it's also why the letter was sent. Sharvas' spies confirmed the Kaalraths were fighting for us. As soon as he knew, he started reaching out. Not everyone replied. But the ones who did—those are the ones we should fear."
Rudra rubbed his temples. "Do we know who replied?"
"No," Rohak said. "The messenger didn't know, or wouldn't say. He only mentioned that the response was positive. Reinforcements will arrive tomorrow."
Raghav stopped pacing. "We need to alert Arya and the warlords. Now."
Within minutes, they were all gathered in the tent. Arya sat closest to Rohak, eyes locked on him, absorbing every word.
Parashar crossed his arms. "If what you say is true, then we have a serious problem. The beings from outside are not ordinary fighters. We've avoided their involvement for a reason. They don't come cheap."
Savignya nodded grimly. "And with the current sanctions, where would Sharvas get the coin to buy such strength? This level of power isn't within his reach—unless someone else is backing him."
"That's the real question," Parashar said, leaning back in thought. "It's not just about who is coming. It's about who paid for it. Who wants this war to end tomorrow?"
Arya looked at Rohak. "Did the messenger say anything about timing? Will they arrive before the battle begins?"
"He didn't know for sure," Rohak replied. "But Sharvas expects them by first light. That's why I ran. I didn't stop to sleep. If I had waited any longer, it would've been too late."
Dhanudanda's face was stern, his injured shoulder wrapped in fresh cloth. "If this is true, then tomorrow's battle won't be like today's. It will be brutal. Sharvas won't hold anything back."
"Can the Kaalraths help again?" Arya asked.
Parashar nodded. "They will fight if asked. But they aren't many. Ten, maybe eleven. If the enemy sends five beings of power, we could hold. If they send more, we may need more than Kaalraths."
A long pause followed. Rohak sipped water quietly, watching the warlords digest the information.
Outside, the night pressed on. Men moved through the dark with torches, tending to the wounded, wrapping the fallen in cloth for burial. The moon hung low now, slowly descending toward the western hills.
Inside the tent, the silence was broken only by the crackle of fire.
"Rest while you can," Parashar finally said. "We ride toward hell tomorrow."
Rohak looked at Rudra and Raghav. "It's good to see you again. I hope we all survive what's coming."
Arya stepped outside first, staring at the moonlit sky, his blade still at his side. He had killed today. He would kill again tomorrow. But now, the rules were changing.
If an outsider had joined the war, this was no longer a local conflict.
It was something far more dangerous.
And the price of failure would be far greater than defeat.