The crisis command tent just outside the factory premises was buzzing with scrolls flying, tech displays flashing, and magical sigils pulsing mid-air.

A team of elite mages from three different sects stood near the edge, arms crossed, their uniforms immaculate, eyeing Akshara with suspicion, as she sprinted from one screen to another.

Akshara pointed at the display. "Towards the south is residential area that's being evacuated. Towards the east are agricultural lands. We need strong magical suppression barriers to restrict the poisonous gas from flowing in these directions. We need to funnel it towards the barren lands in the north west." She zoomed in. "If we station our mages here, here and--"

One of the mages cut in. "We’ve trained for decades. We don’t take orders from scientists playing sorcerers."

A murmur of agreement spread through the mage cluster. Some of them even broke the protocol by removing their face masks citing excuses.

Akshara hesitated. Her mask hid the quick exhale through her nose, but her eyes tightened. She didn’t have time for pride games.

Before she could respond, a cold voice cut through the tense air.

Adhiraj stepped forward. "Is that how you repay a woman who’s saving your lands from catastrophe? It's her expertise that helped detect this problem on time. If he hadn't not only would you have lost face but also thousands of lives you rule over, who depend on you for protection."

The tent stilled. Any other day, the mages would have made a snide remark in response, about their young king's love for modern technology.

But not today. Not when they had no ground to stand.

"Follow the instructions. Or I’ll consider it a direct act of negligence." Adhiraj warned.

After a tense beat, the mages bowed stiffly and began deploying personnel as directed.

"May your knowledge prove to be strong enough to lead elite mages, Dr. Raghuvanshi." One of them added before departing.

Outside, Adhiraj strapped on protective armor, ready to join the frontline response team heading closer to the blast site.

"Your Majesty, with all due respect, you cannot." The Royal Court advisor was alarmed.

Adhiraj clipped his shoulder guard in place. "There are thousands of my people in danger. I won’t sit in a tent while they breathe poison."

"The evacuation process has started an hour ago. About half of them have already left, Your Majesty."

"What about the other half? We need powerful magic to suppress and isolate the poison. And I am the man for the job." Adhiraj strode out.

The local sects as well as royal advisors grudgingly agreed with this point. Nevertheless, they expose lose their king to poison this strong.

Veda stepped in firmly. "Let us do what we’re trained for, Your Majesty. You need to stay visible. Let the people know you’re monitoring the situation. You’re a symbol, whether you like it or not. A beacon of hope. Don't extinguish that hope by hurting youself." She held his hand and squeezed it firmly.

"I hate being a symbol." Adhiraj almost stomped his leg before realising that throwing tantrums won't do.

"You can talk to the media, Your Majesty." Lathika suggested. "That way you won't feel under utilised." She held his hand and tried to lead him towards the area where the reporters are stationed, restricted from entering.

"We have a spokesperson for that, Your Highness. Let her handle that." Adhiraj refused.

"Your Majesty." He heard someone address him with hesitation.

He turned. His expression softened just a little when he saw Akshara.

"I know what you are capable of," she said, voice even, despite the pounding in her chest. “And I would trust no one more to hold that frontline.”

"And hence?" He frowned.

"You can lead the operation from here."

"From here? How?"

"The uniforms of mages have cameras installed in them. You passed the order two years ago. Didn't you?"

"Yes. I did. But they barely use it. Some of them think of it as an insult." Adhiraj shook his head.

"They might be well within their rights to turn it off before. But not now. Not when they are working as the rescue personnel in an operation this big." Akshara pointed out. "Just command them to switch the camera on. With the feed we receive, we can construct an augmented reality of the scene, so you can get the feeling of being there without being there. And now that you are a part of the scene you can instruct the mages from here. You can tell them what spells to use, what runes to draw and all that stuff. I'm sure they will follow you."

"Will they?" Adhiraj was doubtful.

"They will. I saw the way they look at you. You are not just a mage. You are the mage."

"Alright. Let's do this." Adhiraj stood up and walked inside with purpose.

---***---

The valley slept peacefully after 48 hours of chaos. There were no alarms screaming red alert, no poison levels climbing and no ward collapses.

The drones hovered silently overhead, scanning clear skies. Medical tents bustled with survivors being stabilized. While the slow process of decontamination had just begun.

Inside the base, Akshara sat alone near the edge of the medical compound. Her coat was stained with ash, her hair still braided from the emergency scramble, and her eyes... exhausted.

Her tablet buzzed.

BREAKING NEWS: Young Scientist Saves Thousands. Who is Dr Akshara Raghuvanshi?

Crisis Narrowly Averted. Unknown Researcher Becomes National Hero.

King’s New Advisor?

She turned it off.

A few journalists had already arrived outside the tent perimeter. Cameras floated on drones. Someone had tried to shove a mic in her face. A question about how it felt to be the woman who saved the country. She hadn’t answered. Luckily she was summoned by some higher official that precise moment. She never left the tent since then, lest she be surrounded for interviews again.

She wrapped her arms around her knees and rested, her head down, trying to disappear into the quiet. Minutes stretched into hours. But she still couldn't muster enough strength to stand.

A shadow fell over her. She looked up.

Adhiraj stood there, still dressed in field uniform.

He didn’t say anything at first. Simply crouched beside her, hands resting on his knees.

"Your Majesty." She tried to stand but he gestured her to sit.

"Overwhelmed?"

"I didn’t sign up for this," she muttered. "I just wanted to fix a calculation error."

"You did," he said. "And by doing that, you fixed everything else."

She glanced at the growing cluster of reporters. "I don’t want this attention."

"I know," he said gently.

"I'm so sorry. I shouldn't complain. Not to the person who is always under scrutiny."

There was a pause.

Then he stood, eyes narrowing slightly as he looked towards the press drones. His voice sharpened. "Clear the perimeter. No interviews. No footage."

The spokesperson flinched. "But, Your Majesty, Princess Lathika has ordered for media interviews of everyone involved in the rescue operation. The people--"

"The people can be informed without crowding those who haven’t slept in two days," he said coldly.

Akshara blinked. "You didn’t have to do that, sir."

He offered a faint smile. "I did. Because I know what it feels like to carry something alone and then be expected to put on a performance."

She looked at him, really looked at him, and for the first time since the explosion... she allowed herself to breathe.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

---***---

The air was cooler here. Moonlight washed over the distant hills, quiet now after the chaos. Veda stood by the railing, arms folded, her eyes tracing the glow of containment wards still humming softly in the distance.

Adhiraj joined her, two cups of coffee in hand. She took one wordlessly.

"She’s remarkable," she said, sipping.

He didn’t answer immediately.

"You’ve been watching her," she added, more gently.

"She saved thousands of lives," he replied. "I think we all noticed."

"That’s not what I meant," Veda said with a knowing smile. "I saw you during the simulations. Every time she spoke, you listened like the rest of us weren’t in the room."

He exhaled, aiming for nonchalance. "She’s brilliant. I value brilliance."

"You kept checking if she’d eaten. And you glared at the press like they were attacking you personally."

"Are you accusing me of improper conduct?"

She leaned on the railing, facing him. "Invite her to dinner."

He gave her a look. "Dinner? I’ve barely spoken to her outside of meetings and tactical decisions."

Veda shrugged. "Then speak over food. I’d like to know her better. We would."

He tried to wave it off. "You’re awfully invested in a woman you only met once."

Veda smiled wider. Her brother could try a hundred ways to divert her from this subject, but still wouldn't succeed.

She took a last sip of coffee and set it down. "Dinner. You’ll thank me later."

He sighed in relief when she left. He shook his head at the absurd idea of dinner with someone he met two days ago.

Absurd how? A voice in his head asked. Inviting for dinner is like showing gratitude.

He shook his head once again and busied himself in studying the reports. He strolled aimlessly with his tablet in his hand and paused when he heard a familiar voice.

"I appreciate the thought, really. But no, thank you. I can't go out for coffee with you."

He looked up.

A young scientist from the eastern zone, stood a few feet from Akshara, visibly flustered by her gentle but unwavering refusal.

Akshara, calm as ever, offered a polite smile. “I’m not looking to... socialize right now. I hope you understand.”

The man awkwardly excused himself, and Akshara turned away completely unbothered.

He raised an eyebrow. So she was turning people down. Just walking up to her with 'Want to have dinner?' might now seem obvious. Or worse, suspicious.

He reluctantly erased the thought from his mind.

---***---

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