The New Blooming

SEVEN YEARS LATER

Vidiyaloor, once the frozen, sterile heart of the cancerous Blizzard, is now unrecognizable. It has been systematically rebuilt into a sprawling, sunlit fortress of the Elite Flower Storm while the Blizzard has gone defunct. The heavy gates stand open, and the air carries the scent of the ocean and blooming flora, rather than the bite of liquid nitrogen.

Vikram, the first Chieftain of the Vidiyaloor branch of the EFS, clad in his EFS uniform, stands on the balcony of the command spire. He is no longer just a Ghost; he is a “king” who has brought fire to the wasteland. Below him, in the central courtyard, a newly appointed combat trainer named Parasuram runs a squad of fresh EFS recruits through close-quarters combat drills. The rhythm of their strikes is flawless.

Vikram is now a married man. Behind him shows up Vikram’s wife who is none other than Ponnila, and she is also clad in her EFS uniform.

Along with Ponnila comes their five-year old son Bhairavan alias Bhairu, who is clad in a cadet uniform consisting of charcoal gray half-handed cargo shirt, a deep midnight blue cargo pants and a beret, and a pair of jungle sneakers.

(Note:- Please assume that the shoes are clean.)

VIKRAM (voice low with an excited smile): Bhairu!!!!!!!

Bhairu smiles and runs to his father, but stops just short, executing a perfect, miniature EFS salute. Vikram salutes back and then he kneels down so that he can hug Bhairu. Both the father and the son share a warm hug.

A few seconds later

The hug breaks. Ponnila then calls Bhairu.

PONNILA: Bhairu, can you come to your Amma?

Bhairu nods his head and walks towards Ponnila.

Ponnila unbuttons her uniform shirt and her inner tactical vest is knotted around the diaphragm, proudly exposing her rock-hard midriff to the morning sun—the ultimate symbol of the autonomy the EFS bled for. And her midriff is now rock-hard thanks to years of elite training. And thanks to the Vallarai Velvet Balm invented by Puneeth, the Alchemist, there are no stretch marks on her tummy.

Bhairu removes his beret, places it in his left epaulette, and then places his right little hand on his momma’s taut, unyielding tummy. And some of the fingers are touching the navel, albeit only its contours rather than its inner walls.

Ponnila closes her eyes, absorbing the warmth of her son’s touch.

PONNILA (in a soothing tone): Do you feel that, my dearest Bhairu? This is our center. Our strength. The bad guys tried to make us hide it, to make us ashamed of our own fire. But we own it. You will never have to hide who you are.

BHAIRU (nodding his head seriously while pressing his hand a little further into his momma’s bare tummy): May you always shine bright, Amma. Just like the golden moon, so Appa and I never get lost in the dark.

PONNILA (smiling softly and placing one of her hands on the very hand of her son that rests on her bare tummy): Thank you, my dearest Bhairu. And may you always be the gravity that keeps me grounded, Bhairu. As long as I have you, my light will never fade.

Both the mother and the son remain in this position and smile at each other for some time. Vikram watches this with a satisfied smile because this is what he has risked his life for. And this is what Dheena and Harish died for.

1 min later

Both the mother and the son free themselves each other’s grip. And Ponnila unknots her inner vest and then rebuttons her uniform shirt up.

And Bhairu doesn’t have a tutor. Ponnila directly homeschools her son, passing down the iron-clad discipline and tactical brilliance of the vanguard straight into his developing prefrontal cortex.

MEANWHILE, AT THE HEADQUARTERS IN DURGAPATTINAM

The heart of the EFS is thriving under the rule of Nivi and Lux. The war room has been converted into a massive logistical and strategic hub.

At the massive circular table, Nivi sits at the head, radiating stoic authority. Beside her is Lux, the Deputy Leader. They were currently listening to a supply line report from Saghayam. Seven years ago, Saghayam was a captured Blizzard agent who spilled Loki’s massacre plans. Now, completely reformed by the truth and fairness of the EFS, he leads the entire logistics team. He has replaced Lux in the role, executing the supply drops with a mechanical precision that rivals the founders.

SAGHAYAM (reporting respectfully): Dear comrades, the new harvest from the agricultural wing is exceeding projections.

Saghayam is referring to Puneeth’s masterpiece. The EFS scientist has pushed bio-engineering to the limit, creating hyper-nutritional fruits and vegetables that grows rapidly in the coastal soil. The mess halls of Durgapattinam are a testament to the ultimate autonomy: massive platters of Puneeth’s bio-engineered crops sat right alongside roasted meats and eggs. The forced, sterile diets of the Blizzard are gone. Vegans and non-vegetarians sit at the same tables, sharing meals and laughing. Nobody forces their views on anyone else. It’s the purest form of freedom.

Outside, on the Durgapattinam training grounds, the legacy of the founders is taking shape.

Roy, having replaced Vikram at HQ, is barking out orders to the advanced combat units, his massive frame moving with practiced ease. High above him, in the sniper’s nest, Divya adjusts her scope. She is the new leader of the sniper team, watching over the perimeter with the same eagle-eyed lethality Nivi once had.

In the garden sector, the next generation is blooming.

Tulsi, the primary tutor, is walking a line of children while she sings rhymes along with them. There is Roy and Divya’s four-year-old daughter, Roja, holding hands with Dr. Ajay and Dr. Varsha’s six-year-old son, Rudran. Walking right behind them are Lux’s seven-year-old twin boys, Satish and Avinash.

Those children are in the same cadet outfit the little Bhairu wears.

Lux walks out into the garden, taking a brief break from command, with her midriff exposed.

The moment Satish and Avinash saw her, they break ranks and sprinted toward her. Lux drops to her knees. The boys throw their arms around her, their hands pressing against her strong, exposed midriff. Lux smiles, feeling the profound, biological completion of Harish’s legacy. He died before they were born, but his fire is alive in their hands.

SATISH (pressing his hand to the left side of her tummy): May your fire always keep us warm, Amma…

AVINASH (pressing his hand to the right side, finishing his brother’s thought): …so the ice can never come back to freeze our bonding.

LUX (pulling both of them in close, her voice thick with fierce, protective emotion): My fire comes from you two. Your Appa left his courage right here inside both of you. As long as you stand strong, the ice doesn’t stand a chance.

2 mins later

Lux frees her twin sons from her grip.

LUX: Okay. Both of you attend the class. Your Amma will get back to you in the evening.

The twin boys agree and they get back to Tulsi. Tulsi, along with her other students, saw the intimate bonding of the twin sons with their momma. And instead of mocking, they chose to respect their boundaries and privacy irrespective of where the boys and their momma are having such intimate session, this maintaining utmosf respect for the core values of the EFS.

A short distance away, under the shade of a massive Banyan tree, sits Deepak who is now 15 years old. And he is in a khakhi cadet uniform.

He is no longer the crying eight-year-old boy by the funeral pyres. He is a teenager forged in iron. He is across from his dedicated tutor, Sushmita—known to everyone as “Sishu”—deep in a complex discussion about macro-logistics and EFS philosophy.

Nivi watched her son from the command balcony.

The war is truly over. The cost had been great, but looking out at the rebuilt cities, the thriving supply lines, and the unbreakable bonds of the children, she knew the thermodynamic exchange had been worth it.

And a few hours later, it’s meal time where the EFS members gather to dine, both in Durgapattinam and Vidiyaloor. And the meat and the eggs are back on the menu. Nivi, Deepak, Lux, her twin sons, the doctors Ajay and Varsha, their little son, Vikram, Ponnila, Bhairu, Sishu, and several other unnamed members start consuming eggs and meat again while Roy, Divya, Roja, Tulsi, and some of the other unnamed members remain vegan. And no one forces their views on one another, thus promoting Unity in Diversity of diet habits.

After the meal is over, the educational session resumes for the children, including the teen Deepak.

A few hours later

It’s evening. The sun has set. The class is over. And the EFS members are in civilian clothes.

At the home of the doctors Ajay and Varsha, the latter is in a yellow blouse and a red saree.

Ajay is in an orange t-shirt and black jeans.

Then comes the little Rudran who is in an outfit just like in the pic given below.

(Note:- Please ignore the sunglasses.)

Rudran walks towards his momma and places his hand on her tummy though it’s covered in the pallu of her saree.

VARSHA (with a smile): Please wait for a moment.

Varsha then removes Rudran’s hand from her tummy, slides her pallu to bare it, and then places his hand back on it.

Varsha’s grip on the very hand of her son that rests on her bare tummy gets a bit tighter. And she closes her eyes to absorb the warmth of her son’s touch.

RUDRAN (pressing his hand against her tummy although not too hard): May you always have the strength to heal the world, Amma, just like you heal us.

VARSHA (opening her eyes, her voice warm and soothing): The best medicine I have is right here, Rudran. The warmth from your soft touch makes me stronger than any of my science.

Varsha and Rudran remain in this very position for sometime. Ajay watches this with a satisfied smile as his hardwork to save the very person who risked his life to normalize such intimate bonding between momma and child (especially son), who is none other than Vikram, has been paid off.

Thus, the Blizzard is defeated and now it’s defunct. Now the EFS soldiers just have to make sure that the Blizzard doesn’t sprout again.