Mughal base camp , Chandanpur vilge.

  Balwindar, disguised as a Mughal soldier, emerged from the grand tent, Priya unconscious and wrapped in a saree in his arms. Suraj and Rajesh, also in disguise, stood guard outside, their faces changing from alertness to shock.

  "Sardar," Rajesh whispered, eyes wide. "We were expecting the prince. What's with this pretty dy?"

  Suraj tried to lighten the mood. "Sardar, she's beautiful, but Shweta devi (madam) won't forgive you for this."

  Balwindar's stern look silenced them. "The Prince of Agra is dead. Don't forget there are watch posts surrounding the camp. First, we need to move these bodies lying on the ground inside the tent before anyone notices."

  "No worries, Sardar," Suraj reassured him. "Most soldiers are either in the trines or on open field duty. Also, watch posts are useless at night." He chuckled, but Balwindar's gre cut his ughter short.

  "We are on a mission," Balwindar snapped. "No slip-ups."

  Rajesh gnced at the unconscious girl. "What do we do with her, Sardar? Should we hide her in a sack?" He kicked to a nearby sack, already filled and motionless. "Like this pig," he added with disdain.

  Balwindar sighed. "She's one of the vilgers we're rescuing. I'll dress her in a man's attire and carry her out as if she's injured. You two, drag this pig in the sack and make sure he's alive. Understood?"

  Suraj raised his hands in a respectful gesture. "What's the signal, Sardar?"

  Balwindar's eyes burned with determination. "We'll set these tents on fire when we move. That's the signal. Now, clear the way."

  As Balwindar took Priya inside to change her clothes, Suraj and Rajesh noticed the blood on her hands, their expressions darkening with the realization of what might had transpired.

  "This girl... she's been through something," Suraj murmured.

  Rajesh nodded, gripping the soldier's legs to drag him. "Let's get this done and see for ourselves."

  They dragged the bodies into the tent, only to be confronted by the gruesome sight of Prince Adil Khan's naked, stabbed body.

  "Damn," Suraj muttered, his face twisted in disgust. "Let's burn this tent quickly."

  Balwindar emerged from the tent with Priya, now dressed in a man's attire, slung over his shoulder. He had also changed into the attire of a vilger, blending in with the common folk. His gaze swept over the scene, ensuring no detail was overlooked.

  "Remember," he instructed, "everyone in Mughal uniform will be considered an enemy. Now change yourselves once you are done with the burning. We need to get this done fast."

  Suraj and Rajesh nodded, their earlier casual attitude repced by a solemn determination. They let Balwindar pass as they continued dragging the remaining soldiers' bodies.

  As they moved to set the tents abze, Suraj leaned towards Rajesh and whispered, "Do you think what I'm thinking?"

  Rajesh replied, "There's nothing much to think about. This girl must be significant to have killed a royalty."

  They finished dragging the corpses into the guest tent and repced their Mughal uniforms with the vilger clothes they had hidden underneath. They hid their daggers under their sleeves and set the tent curtains on fire.

  As they made their way through the camp, they kept their heads down, avoiding any unwanted attention. The chaos created by the spreading fire provided the perfect cover for their escape.

  Suraj and Rajesh, now fully immersed in their roles as vilgers, fell into step behind Balwindar. They understood the critical nature of their mission and the importance of maintaining their disguise.

  The camp was in disarray, with soldiers rushing to contain the fire in the leadership's tent. Amidst the confusion, Balwindar and his men slipped away, their presence unnoticed. The sight of Priya, disguised as an injured vilger with a local-style turban, only added to the chaos and confusion among the Mughal soldiers.

  Balwindar, with Priya securely over his shoulder, gave one st look at the burning tent. The flickering fmes mirrored the resolve in his eyes. The mission was far from over, but they had taken a crucial step towards their next phase.

  Some where in the perimeter of vilge.

  Anil and Shaurya moved stealthily through the shadows of the Mughal camp, their heart pounding with each step. Dressed as Mughal soldiers, both approached the restricted zone of the vilge.

  He gnced at his partner, Shaurya, who nodded in silent acknowledgment. Just as Anil reached the store's perimeter, a guard approached, his suspicious eyes scanning the area.

  Anil acted quickly, feigning a stumble to divert the guard's attention.

  "Watch where you're going, soldier!" the guard snapped, irritated.

  "Apologies," Anil muttered, steadying himself. "I was sent to check on the ammunition."

  The guard grumbled but seemed to accept the excuse, moving along. Anil let out a silent sigh of relief and continued toward the store.

  Upon reaching the entrance of the house, Anil discovered the door was secured with a heavy lock. He pulled out a small pouch with tools and began working on the lock, his hands moving with practiced precision.

  "Break the lock, what are you doing?"

  Each second felt like an eternity, but finally, with a satisfying click, the lock yielded.

  "There is nothing a Rajput can't do."

  Just as he pushed the door open, Anil heard the footsteps of an approaching patrol.

  Both quickly rushed inside, pressing themselves against the wall.

  The patrol stopped right outside the door as they continued their casual banter.

  "These night shifts are the worst," one of them compined.

  "Tell me about it. Just a few more hours and we will be leaving this damn pce." another replied

  "By the way, how are you people's stomach? Today's food was worse," the third one joined in.

  "I skipped my food for prayers; luckily, Alh saved me from that cursed food," another one expressed gratitude. He further asked his concern, "Did you guys get indigestion too?"

  "Don't ask me, man, by Alh's grace I am alright now," the second one replied.

  Anil held his breath, praying they wouldn't notice the unlocked door. After a few tense moments, the patrol moved on.

  "Hurry up, they are gone now," Shaurya urged.

  "Shut up! I am not sleeping now," he retorted back in a low voice.

  He exhaled slowly and turned to the crates of gunpowder inside. He further requested, "Now help me set this thing, sky high."

  Shaurya put quick work as he strategically pced the barrels in order to have them blow at once and unfurled all the extinguishable at one pce for maximum impact. Anil lit a big fuse he had borrowed beforehand from Prince Aditya's forces, pcing it strategically among the gunpowder barrels.

  He gnced out the window and saw a sudden fre of fire crackling from a nearby tent; the signal for phase two of their pn. It was time to act.

  Shaurya nodded, his eyes on the burning fuse. "We need to move, now!"

  They slipped out of the ammunition store just as the fuse reached the gunpowder.

  'BOOM!'

  The ground shook with the force of the explosion, a deafening roar that sent plumes of smoke and fire into the night sky.

  "What was that sound?"

  "Look, the ammunition store, bring water fast!"

  Chaos erupted in the camp as Mughal soldiers scrambled, trying to contain the bze and understand what had happened.

  Amidst the confusion, Anil and Shaurya discarded their Mughal disguises and blended into the attire of sve vilgers fleeing the scene, both smeared dirt on their faces and clothes, completing their transformation into ragged sves.

  As they made their way through the camp, they faced another guard patrol; a group of panicked Mughal soldiers were searching everyone frantically.

  Anil's heart raced as a soldier grabbed his arm, suspicion in his eyes. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

  Anil lowered his gaze, adopting the demeanor of a beaten sve. "Hazur, just trying to get away from the fire; we were on our way back from defense construction," he mumbled in a broken voice.

  The soldier asked his concern. "Where are the soldiers supposed to be following you?"

  Shaurya replied in haste, "Hazur, they were busy quelling the fire; since there is a ck of water, they sent us to fetch water from the well."

  The leader of the patrol pondered for a moment before he assigned two of the soldiers to be sent alongside them.

  After reaching a safe turn, both took out daggers hidden in their sleeves and slit the throats of those leading them to the well.

  Shaurya sighed in relief as he cleaned the bloodstains off the dagger from the soldier's cloth, "Let's rush to the entrance. It's almost time."

  Somewhere at outskirts of the vilge, mughal's stables.

  Mukesh in disguise as vilger, blended into the shadows near the Mughal stables. He felt tensed for being te to reach their as he misjudged in changing his disguise earlier. His eyes fixed on the horizon as he waited for the signal . Suddenly, a massive explosion shook the ground; the ammunition store had been ignited. It was time for his part of the pn.

  He sneakily approached the stables and saw two soldiers standing guard at the entrance. He needed a distraction. Spotting a pile of loose stones, he picked one up and hurled it into the bushes opposite the guards. The rustling noise drew their attention.

  "Did you hear that?" one guard said, turning towards the noise.

  "Probably just an animal," the other replied, but they both moved to investigate.

  Seizing the opportunity, Mukesh slipped past them and into the stable.

  Inside the stable, the horses were already restless, likely sensing the chaos from the explosion. Mukesh moved quietly, trying to calm them. He needed to set them free without causing a stampede prematurely. He approached the first stall, whispering soothingly to the horse as he untched the gate in silent steps.

  The horse snorted but remained calm enough for Mukesh to lead it out. He repeated this process, guiding several horses towards the entrance.

  Just as he was about to set the few remaining horses free, Mukesh heard footsteps approaching. The guard entered, eyes widening in surprise at the sight of Mukesh.

  "Hey! What are you doing there?" the guard shouted, brandishing his sword to charge forward.

  Mukesh panicked, took out the concealed dagger from his back and threw it at him, knocking him to the ground in one shot. He didn't bothered to see if the man was actually dead or still alive gasping for breath. He hurried to the remaining horses and freed them as the time was passing by.

  With all the horses freed, the torch was lit which had been prepared earlier by him. He tossed it into the hay as it caught fire quickly, spreading fmes rapidly in all directions.

  The horses, now panicked by the fmes, bolted from the stable, adding to the chaos already gripping the camp. Mukesh ducked low in the cover of fleeing horses and slipped out amidst the confusion.

  "Shit! the stables on fire"

  "Arm the commander. be quick, bring the water!"

  "Damn, these horses! stop them!"

  As he made his way through the camp, the chaos reached a fever pitch. Soldiers were shouting, trying to control the panicked horses and douse the spreading fmes. Mukesh kept his head down, moving with the flow of nearby terrified vilgers fleeing the scene.

  He was almost at the vilge entrance, the designated meeting point, when a soldier with suspicion stopped his path. "Hey you! stop right there. Where do you think you're going?"

  Mukesh feigned panic, gesturing towards the fmes. "The stables are on fire! I'm being told to fetch water from well."

  The soldier narrowed his eyes. "The well is on that side. Who are you trying to fool?" He unsheathed his sword.

  "You are too smart for a Mughal. Come meet your maker."

  Mukesh clicked his tongue as he poised himself to fight unarmed.

  It was pity he was too close to completing his mission and now there is a fight he had to fight with no weapons. Will he make out alive ?