Chapter 44 – Ankita’s Oath
"You don't need gods to make a vow. You just need something worth dying for."
The courtyard was silent.
Ashes from the last attack still covered the ground.
Ankita stood barefoot in the dust, staring at the rising sun.
She had not slept.
Not since Rishav's memory was taken.
Not since the Devourer.
Flashback – Army Days
She remembered the oath she once took:
"To protect the Republic, even at the cost of life."
But the Republic was gone.
The flag torn. The medals worthless.
What remained?
Only broken people.
And the ones who still stood.
Yash watched from the roof.
He said nothing.
Ankita had asked him once:
"Why don't you give orders?"
He'd replied:
"Because pain doesn't follow commands."
That morning, she gathered everyone.
Twenty-eight survivors.
Each with scars. Each carrying ghosts.
She held a blade scorched in Vira fire — a relic from a duel.
And said:
"I am no Vira."
"I have no god mark. No divine power."
"But I swear, on this blade — I will protect this clan."
"Not because I was chosen… but because you chose to stay."
The people listened.
Some nodded. Some cried.
Khushi stepped forward, holding a thread of red cloth.
She tied it around Ankita's wrist.
"Now you're one of us," the child said.
"Our kind of warrior."
Mira logged the event:
"Subject: Ankita Singh"
Status: Non-Vira oath
Effect: Unknown spiritual anomaly detected
Later that night, a Rakshasa shadow approached the gates.
Before anyone could call Yash, Ankita stepped outside —
Alone.
And the creature stopped.
Watched her.
And… turned away.
"What happened?" Mira asked.
Yash smiled faintly.
"She made a vow without a god."
"And maybe, that's even stronger."