The Hidden Hand
April 18, 2010 – 8:15 AM
Location: Aritra's Villa, Jadavpur
The faint smell of freshly brewed tea drifted through the villa's open living room window, mingling with the distant scent of the early morning street-side snack stalls. Aritra sat cross-legged on the carpeted floor, his back against the sofa, eyes fixed on his phone screen, even as sunlight slipped through the curtains and dappled the floor.
Katherine, fresh out of the shower, her damp hair tied back into a loose ponytail, leaned against the doorway, arms crossed.
"Morning," she said, her voice still thick with sleep.
Aritra glanced up briefly, offering a faint smile. "Morning."
Katherine stretched, her fingers brushing the doorframe. "You've been glued to that thing since I woke up. What's so important today?"
Aritra's thumb idly flicked through Omnilink's live dashboard, which was currently displaying the WarFall in-game qualifiers leaderboard.600,000 squads had registered globally — 10-player teams from every corner of the world, from backyard hobbyists to organized esports clans.
He set the phone down beside him. "The qualifiers."
Katherine stepped closer, her bare feet padding softly against the wooden floor. "Already worried about who's going to represent India?"
Aritra's smile didn't quite reach his eyes. "Something like that."
He waited a beat, then casually asked, "Would you… be interested in managing a team? Just one."
Katherine's brows arched slightly. "Me? Manage a team? I know you've been dragging me into your tech empire, but esports isn't exactly my thing."
"It's not work." Aritra leaned his head back against the sofa, eyes half-closing. "Just a side project. One team — handpicked. I figured, if someone's going to help them navigate sponsorships, tournaments, contracts — it might as well be you."
There was no hint of the real reason in his voice.
Katherine, curious but unaware, shrugged. "Sure, why not? As long as they're not a bunch of loud teenagers."
Aritra's lips curled faintly. "They won't be."
Because he had already chosen every player.
—
March 2010 – One Month Earlier – The Selection
The Legendary System's Talent Store had opened the moment the in-game qualifiers were announced — offering a new category specifically tailored for WarFall: Dominion.
It wasn't an endless list.It was curated, offering only a few dozen elite players — people who would become legends if they were dropped into the game world.
Aritra had no intention of rigging the entire competition. That would kill the natural momentum. The organic rivalry between India's tech-savvy university squads, rising amateur clans, and professional gaming hopefuls — that was where the real spectacle would come from.
But one team — just one — would be his.
He scrolled through the available players, each profile overlaid with:
Reflex Speed (Milliseconds)Tactical Processing EfficiencyAdaptability IndexCommunication Fluency (Languages & Speed)Magic Proficiency (Spellcasting Coordination)Combat Consistency (Kill/Death Ratios Over Simulated 10,000 Matches)
They weren't just good.They were crafted.
The first player he purchased cost him $920,000 in System Credits — a tactical commander with near-instant map processing ability, capable of orchestrating a 10-man squad's rotation across a 20-square-kilometer battlefield without losing positional awareness.
The second player — a magic-weapon specialist with an intuitive grasp of elemental interactions — cost slightly less at $780,000.
The sniper — an Indian-origin player from the United States, raised in Atlanta's competitive scene but with no public reputation — cost him $850,000. His visual acquisition speed was so fast, the system had listed it as "borderline superhuman."
One by one, Aritra assembled Team Vajra.
10 players. Total purchase cost: $8.2 million in System Credits.
It was by far the most expensive team in the world, though no one would know.
Each player's memories were seamlessly rewritten to believe they had formed naturally — strangers who had met in-game, clicked during a few practice matches, and registered together.
To the outside world, they were just another squad.Even to Katherine, they would seem like lucky nobodies hoping to break into the big leagues.
But in reality, they were Aritra's perfect weapon, created to ensure India would have at least one squad capable of crushing global competition.
April 18, 2010 – Present Day – Katherine's New Project
Katherine, perched on the edge of the dining table, scrolled through her phone as Aritra handed her a tablet with Team Vajra's basic dossier. None of their system-enhanced stats were visible — only their public-facing bios.
"They seem… competent," Katherine said, eyes narrowing slightly at the clean formatting. "They've got decent experience, though they're pretty unknown."
"That's why they need someone to help them," Aritra said.
Katherine exhaled through her nose. "Alright. I'll manage them — but don't expect me to play babysitter if they start acting like celebrities."
Aritra's smile was soft. "I wouldn't dream of it."
She stood up, stretching. "So — what's the goal? Just qualifying?"
"Qualifying is step one," Aritra said quietly. "After that — we'll see."
April 22, 2010 – 9:00 PMLocation: Aritra's Villa, Jadavpur
The muted glow of Aritra's phone screen was the only source of light in the darkened study. His back leaned into the plush chair, the faint hum of the central air conditioner providing background noise. The system's real-time feed displayed a map—each glowing dot a squad that had crossed the threshold into the regional qualifiers.
Out of the 600,000 squads that registered for WarFall: Dominion's global in-game qualifiers, only 10,000 squads—one thousand per region—had emerged victorious.
It wasn't just a competition now.
It was history.
The Final Roster – Regional Qualifiers
North America Region (NA): 1,000 Qualified Teams
CloudVortex Gaming (CVG) – reigning FPS kings from New York, known for dominating tactical shooters.
Redline Legion – Los Angeles-based esports juggernauts, boasting some of the highest earnings in competitive gaming.
Astralis Rift – a surprise entry from a small Canadian esports house, but rapidly gaining respect for their high-pressure strategies.
EchoStrike Syndicate – one of the fastest-growing mixed-discipline teams, merging former MOBA pros with FPS experts.
Immortal Horizon – Texas' pride, known for aggressive, relentless playstyles that break defensive lines.
Europe Region (EU): 1,000 Qualified Teams
Fnatic Vanguard – London-based, carrying the legacy of their world-renowned esports legacy into WarFall's brutal arenas.
G2 Dominion – known for their bold recruitment strategies, they entered WarFall with a hybrid roster of veteran shooters and younger talent.
Nordic Phalanx – a Scandinavian powerhouse, built around extreme coordination and near-perfect communication.
Empire Esports – a Russian organization infamous for developing sniper specialists who dominate long-range maps.
Hellfire Battalion – Germany's no-nonsense military-sim experts, now aiming for a new crown.
South Korea Region (KR): 1,000 Qualified Teams
T1 Shadow Corps – the first WarFall squad officially launched by the T1 organization, already seen as favorites in Korea.
DragonForge Elite – built around a core of former StarCraft pros transitioning into this new hybrid genre.
Genesis Phantom – specializing in spell-combat and creative magic usage, they're pioneering unconventional strategies.
SKT Omega Division – merging talents from both League of Legends and PUBG divisions into a superteam.
Seoul Steel Wolves – a wild-card squad known for adapting faster than anyone to new patches and mechanics.
Japan Region (JP): 1,000 Qualified Teams
Team Black Sun – Tokyo-based tactical geniuses, famous for turning disadvantages into victory.
Samurai Nova – sponsored directly by a major tech firm, combining corporate backing with street-level grit.
Akihabara Death Parade – veterans from the fighting game community experimenting with squad tactics.
Kyoto Stormcallers – a squad that blends modern tactics with mythology-inspired aesthetics, giving them a unique edge in spell-heavy maps.
NeoTokyo Titans – trained in both VR combat simulators and traditional FPS—hybrid experience.
India Region (IN): 1,000 Qualified Teams
Team Vajra – unknown on the surface, but perfectly sculpted under Aritra's quiet hand.
Chakravyuh Raiders – formed from Delhi's biggest gaming café champions.
Hyderabad Hellcats – ex-CS stars pivoting to WarFall.
Mumbai Phoenix – led by a former Army officer turned gamer, known for disciplined tactics.
Bengaluru Nightcrawlers – aggressive and chaotic, balancing close-quarters and magic-based combat.
Other Regions & Global Qualifiers
South America (SA): 1,000 Teams
Australia/New Zealand (ANZ): 1,000 Teams
Middle East & North Africa (MENA): 1,000 Teams
Rest of Asia (SEA): 1,000 Teams
China (Special Case): No official teams, but underground tournaments already drawing millions of spectators through proxy VPNs.Global Reactions – Esports Shockwaves
Omnilink Live Forum – Top Posts
[Pinned] – WarFall's Top 1000 Squads Announced – Your Region's Best Warriors Revealed!20,000 Comments | 150,000 Shares
FnaticVanguardOfficial:"We are ready to crush. Europe belongs to us."💬 75,000 Likes | 22,000 Replies
T1ShadowCorps:"We've been training in silence. Time to speak with our gameplay."💬 92,000 Likes | 33,000 Replies
Team Vajra (Official, Managed by Katherine):"We are humbled to represent India on the world stage. See you in the Arena."💬 47,000 Likes | 19,000 Replies
HellfireBattalionDE:"German precision will rewrite the meta. Our reign begins."💬 50,000 Likes | 21,000 Replies
Gaming News Network – Breaking Segment
The camera cut to a bright studio, a holographic globe floating behind the anchors, each glowing region representing the top qualified squads.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is unprecedented. A mobile game—on hardware no one even had a year ago—is rewriting the very DNA of global esports."
The screen flickered, showing split feeds of teams from South Korea, North America, and Europe training in high-tech facilities. Each squad was wearing Omnilink AR Visors, watching holographic replays of their past matches directly in the air around them.
"We have confirmed that some of these teams are investing in custom training facilities, full-time coaching staff, and even tactical psychologists. WarFall isn't just a game anymore. It's an economy."
The anchor's voice grew sharper.
"And for the first time, India isn't just a spectator."
The screen cut to an interview clip with Katherine, speaking from Echelon Holdings' Mumbai office.
"Team Vajra's goal isn't just to qualify. It's to prove that Indian players—our talent, our tactics—deserve to be recognized at the global level."
The feed returned to the anchor, smiling faintly.
"The underdogs are here. And they have teeth."
Inside Aritra's Villa – 11:45 PM
The dashboard flickered again, a new report sliding into view.
Registered Viewers for Regional Qualifiers Broadcast (Omnilink Exclusive):
Europe: 310 Million Expected Concurrent Viewers
North America: 290 Million Expected Concurrent Viewers
South Korea: 100 Million Expected Concurrent Viewers
India: 375 Million Expected Concurrent Viewers (Highest)Global Total: Projected 2.3 Billion Viewers Across All Regions
Aritra leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled, his phone resting face-up on the table beside him.
The next phase was about to begin—and with every step, the myth of WarFall grew larger, until even those who had never held a Nova Prime knew the name.
The final numbers from in-game qualifiers had solidified.
Total Registered Squads: 600,000Surviving Squads for Regional Qualifiers: 10,000 (1,000 per region)
And at the center of it all, behind the scenes, invisible but inevitable, was Aritra Naskar.