Seize Her And....

Chapter : 31

The Olive Skinned Warrior.

The room is thick with darkness when he wakes up. The cold is intolerable but that never stopped him. The habit has grown with time. Nowadays, however, the lack of sleep has started to take a toll on him. The alertness has reached its maximum range.
He moves his hand beside his pillow in search of his glasses and wears it. He then walks towards the lantern and turns it on. The deem light illuminates the room.

After completing his morning routines he walks towards the kitchen to get something to eat. He finds the box filled with homemade sweets by his mother and eats some before walking towards the main door.

But the very moment he opens the door his eyes widen.

On the stairs of the entrance door lies a figure wrapped in a shawl which has zero ability to protect anyone from the bone chilling cold that's present in the air.

Aniruddha bends down to call the man feeling curious. Who on earth will choose these stairs as their shelter, knowing how cold it gets at this early in the morning?

But he didn't need much effort because the moment his hand touched the person's body, the person jolted awake. His shawl fell to the ground as his brown eyes looked back at the now shocked grey eyes.

"Ashok?!" Aniruddha utters out of pure bewilderment. The man keeps standing without uttering a single word.

"Come inside. Please. It's way too cold outside." He adds.

Ashok gets inside a little hesitantly as Aniruddha keeps observing him and his body language. His brown hair is dishelved and undoubtedly has not been combed for ages. His brown eyes are hypervigilant and they have huge bags under them. His usually clean shaved face has grown some stubble.

"Take a seat." Aniruddha urges Ashok pointing towards the sofa situated at the center of the drawing room. He then takes a deep breath before speed walking to the kitchen and bringing a glass of water and a few sweets from the box he ate a few minutes ago.

He places them on the small table infront of the sofa but Ashok keeps looking straight at the wall ahead of him. As if his body is here but his mind is somewhere else.

"Ashok, what's the matter?" Aniruddha asks carefully. Ashok's eyes remain fixed at the wall. He takes a few seconds to answer.

"There isn't anything left to matter anymore. My life has no purpose, no one to hold on to. I am done with it." He says and finally turns his head to face Aniruddha.

"You said you needed men like us. I have no one to look back at, no one to look out for me either. If I die no one will ask for me. So.... so will you take me in? Can I do something worthwhile before getting released of this body?" He asks desperately as Aniruddha furrows his eyebrows. He feels this weird sadness looking at this man that his heart clenches from within.

He raises his chin up a little as his face becomes stern. As if a totally different person is taking over his natural personality.

"I need my men to live, that's the first priority, dying is not what I want from them. If that's what you're planning then my team might not be the best option for you." He says. Ashok looks worriedly into his eyes.

"But if you truly want to serve the people who have been wronged and are being wronged everyday, I can consider. That'll need your hundred percent attention and dedication, also a lot of training and hard work. If you agree to do that you can come join us from tomorrow." He explains as Ashok's face brightens.

"There are two very strict conditions that you have to follow though. First, be alive. Second, keep yourself fit and healthy. Do you think you can do that?" He asks confidently. Ashok's eyes tear up as he looks at this man with sheer awe. A smile forms on his lips as he says.