Season 1 – Episode 8: “A God Among the Dead”

Shivam crashed into the tunnel corridor, panting so hard his ribs looked ready to split open. He barely got the words out.

"He's here… Rahul. I saw him."

Ayush stiffened.

The others turned sharply.

"What?" Kartik stepped forward. "Rahul? Are you sure?"

Shivam nodded, still catching his breath. "It was him. He was just… standing there. Calm. Waiting. I thought he was going to kill me—but he didn't. He just let me go."

Riya's face twisted with confusion. "Why would he just let you go?"

"He looked different," Shivam whispered. "Not infected. But not… normal either."

Suraj muttered under his breath, "This day just keeps getting better."

The group exchanged unsettled glances.

And then, Ananya turned to Ayush. She knew that look on his face.

"Ayush. Who is he?"

Ayush didn't answer at first. He just stared at the cracked tunnel wall in silence. Then, slowly… he sat down.

"Sit," he said, his voice low.

Everyone hesitated.

Ayush didn't raise his voice, but they obeyed.

"I should've told you sooner," he said. "But I thought… if we were lucky, maybe this would never come up."

He looked up.

"I used to call him my brother."

They listened as Ayush told the story.

That Rahul wasn't just a school bully.

He was more.

He was Ayush's best friend. His gym partner. His shooting buddy.

And above all—his teammate in the B.S.A.One of the youngest recruits ever. Elite class. Codenamed "Hunter."

Ayush was "Joel."

Together, they were unbeatable. The top pair in simulations. The only two trainees to hit moving drone targets blindfolded. Trusted with shadow missions—covert drills designed to simulate bioterror attacks.

"He was fast," Ayush said quietly. "Stronger than me. Smarter, sometimes. We kept each other in check."

A bitter smile tugged at his lips.

"We were a perfect team."

They'd had a friendly airsoft match one day. 1v1.

A bet: loser buys dinner. Ayush won by a single shot.

They laughed it off.

After the match, Ayush suggested crashing at Rahul's place. His own parents were out of town. Rahul agreed. No hesitation.

The B.S.A. van dropped them off safely.

But when they entered Rahul's house, Aliya was already there.

Rahul had forgotten.

Ayush offered to leave, but Rahul insisted he stay. Said it was fine.

It wasn't.

"She kept looking at me," Ayush admitted, eyes down. "But I didn't encourage her. I never flirted. I didn't even want to talk to her, because… I knew Rahul cared about her."

Kartik folded his arms. "So what happened?"

"She broke up with him a week later," Ayush said. "Publicly. Violently."

Suraj raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"She said he was insecure, controlling… and that I was a hundred times better than him. She slapped him. In front of three B.S.A. members. Called him a failure."

Everyone stared at him, speechless.

"She told him I was the kind of man she'd rather be with," Ayush added. "And then she walked away."

A long, thick silence stretched through the room.

Riya whispered, "And after that…?"

"He ghosted me. Blocked me. Didn't show up to missions. Didn't come to training. I thought he just needed space."

Ananya was still staring at him, trying to find any hint of a lie in his eyes.

Kartik's brows tightened. "He didn't just walk away, did he?"

Ayush exhaled.

"No. Three days later, I got called into B.S.A. HQ. Turns out… Rahul broke into the shooting range. After hours. No permission. No orders."

He looked up, his voice cold.

"They found my picture stapled to the target board. He emptied a full mag of M4 rounds into it."

Suraj muttered under his breath, "Fucking hell…"

"The security team detained him that night," Ayush continued. "He was stripped of rank. His licenses revoked. Expelled from B.S.A. the next morning."

"And you never spoke again?" Ananya asked.

"No. Not once."

No one spoke for several moments.

Then Riya, uncertain, asked, "But… that was months ago, right?"

Ayush nodded.

"And Aliya?" Kartik said, carefully.

"I saw her," Ayush replied. "Or… what's left of her. A few days ago near the school courtyard. Same red scrunchie. Same 12th-A blazer. Eyes weren't human anymore."

Ananya flinched.

"He doesn't know that yet," Ayush said. "But he will."

Shivam shook his head. "And he thinks… you took everything from him."

Ayush nodded slowly. "His love. His career. His future."

Suraj finally spoke. "So now… he wants payback."

Ayush looked up.

"No."

The group stared.

"He doesn't just want payback," Ayush said, eyes narrowing. "He wants to make me live through what he did. Piece by piece."

On the rooftop of a half-collapsed mall nearby, Rahul stared out across the city.

In his hand, he held a torn photo.

Him and Aliya.

Smiling. Back when he believed in things like hope.

The bloodstains across her face weren't hers. They were Ayush's.

At least, in his mind.

His eyes glinted red in the twilight.

"They took everything from me."

He folded the picture and tucked it into his pocket.

"And now I'll take everything from them."