Location: Mirage Convoy – Sector 9, Near Border Forests
Time: 1:03 AM
Rain hammered the armored van.
Shabd's wrists were chained to the walls, blood dripping from the bullet wound that still burned in his side. The tranquilizer had worn off—but something else had woken up with him.
Memories.
The lab. The tests. The numbers burned into his skin. And her—
> "Vashti," he whispered. Not as a memory. But as a promise.
Then he heard it—
A low whir… then an explosion.
---
Location: Outside the Convoy
Vashti stood like a storm.
Hair wet. Coat torn. Eyes blazing.
Behind her, Arya handled the final detonator, smirking.
> "One way in. One way out. Ready to raise hell?"
> "I was born for it," Vashti growled.
She charged through the chaos as Arya covered her with smoke bombs and electric darts, disabling guards in seconds. One man tried grabbing Vashti—
She punched him in the throat, slammed his head into the truck, and kicked the door open.
> "SHAABD!"
Inside, he looked up. Blood on his lip. Smile on his face.
> "You're late."
> "Shut up," she whispered, eyes wet. "Don't die."
She cut the cuffs, and the moment his hands were free—
A Mirage commander lunged at her from behind.
Shabd caught his blade midair, twisted his wrist, and slammed the man into the wall like he was made of air.
They fought side-by-side—every strike like choreography. When one dodged, the other struck. When one bled, the other roared.
They were chaos. They were symphony.
They were unstoppable.
---
Five Minutes Later — On Top of the Van
The last guard fell.
Vashti and Shabd stood alone under the rain, breathing hard.
Arya's voice crackled in the earpiece.
> "World just watched the whole thing. You're free. All of Mirage's data? Leaked."
> "And Shabd?" Arya asked.
> "Still standing," Vashti said, "and somehow—still mine."
He looked at her.
> "You never gave up on me."
She stepped closer.
> "You tried to ghost me like seven times. I should punch you."
> "You already did."
They laughed.
Then—he took out something from his jacket. A ring.
Burnt at the edges. Bent. But real.
> "It was supposed to be fake… then real… then fake again."
Vashti froze.
> "What… what is this?"
> "It's the only thing I remembered wanting—when I didn't even know who I was. You."
He knelt in the rain, soaked, bloodied, smiling.
> "Vashti Dhiman… firecracker, chaos queen, doctor of impossible dreams… Will you marry me?"
She stared, heart crashing like thunder.
Then dropped to her knees with him, cupped his face, and said—
> "If you try to run again, I will kill you."
> "Is that a yes?"
> "It's a forever."
---
One Year Later — Outside A New Hospital: "V&S Neurocare Centre"
A golden plaque gleamed in the sun.
Children ran across the lawn. Nurses laughed. And Vashti—now Dr. Dhiman-Heer—adjusted her white coat, then looked up at Shabd, who wore his ring now like it was part of him.
> "So… are we done with fights?" he asked.
She smirked.
> "With the world? Maybe."
> "With each other?"
She kissed him, slow and certain.
> "Never."
---
End of Final Chapter — "The Last Scar"