22. Fightback by Arsh but was it enough???

Things were not easy for Arsh either. One day Simran called and told him

‘I admired the person, for whom everything in his life was his country. A person who cried when an innocent person (absolutely unknown to him), died in an attack by terrorist. I had accepted this life, to live even in your absence when you would have been trying to swipe off all those people who harmed your country. I know that you are not able to walk because of your injured leg, but then…

I have always known you as a person who governed everything in life and not as one who was being governed. I have always been with you and still be with you but.... something's wrong I don't know what, but I'm feeling more helpless than probably you are feeling.’

Whether it was the right time or not for Arsh for these words, but certainly it stirred him from within. There were three things which didn’t let him sleep now.

First, his self-respect had been shattered after hearing those words. Secondly, whenever any of his friends died in the battleground infront of him, he just said these words before dying ‘from now you’ll kill these bastards on my behalf!!!’ and now he himself was unable to protect his country from perpetrators. And lastly, he could not sit infront of TV, see militants come and do damage to his country and just wait, keeping his hands folded expecting something to happen.

Whenever he was alone in his room he stopped using wheelchair and tried walking. It was extremely difficult and painful. He fell many times while trying to do so and hurted other parts of his body too. But now he pledged that he won’t talk to Simran till the time he was back on work for his nation. Whenever her call came, he used to reject the call. Now, there was even bigger reason for him to start all over again, he didn’t let any of his injuries to stop him further. He used to move between his room and balcony on his legs. It pained like hell but he never let anyone else in his family know about what he was upto.

One day, while he was trying to put stress on his legs, which were not able to take that and he felt on floor thereby bruising the wound of bullet. Suddenly at that very time, Harleen came rushing to his room out of excitement in order to inform him about something and she was bewildered seeing him lying on floor and blood around. She was about to shout when Arsh jumped up and stopped her from doing so.

‘What’s all this, bhaiya?’ (surprised) Harleen asked.

‘Nothing, I was fed up of living a life dependent on some wheelchair, without which I could not move. So, I started trying to walk few days back.’

‘And you are standing on your legs!!! What’s that blood?’

‘Ohh, nothing I just slipped and see don't to tell anyone else about this, please… don’t.’

‘Bhaiya, but this is going to harm you, I can’t let it happen’

‘You have to trust me. I’ll manage, believe me. See its required and its required soon, please try-n-understand. Life is not going to wait for me, I’ll have to be back on my legs as soon as possible. You have known me naa, and you are seeing what’s going on, I have to resume my service as soon as possible, they are killing my people and I’m just hoping for my legs to get fine. I can’t.’

After explain Harleen about all this, he finally convinced her and from then she also became a part of his comeback. She took him to some distant ground and helped him open-up. She helped him in running, whenever he felt she was there to give him support to stand once again. She became his greatest strength and with her help he recovered fast and within 4 months he could run again, not as effectively but then he was fit enough to resume his service.

He finally went back home one day, on his legs. Seeing him everybody in his home was surprised, happy as well as millions of questions arose in their minds as to how was it possible so soon. Arsh and Harleen explained everything to them. Soon after that Arsh contacted his senior in army informing about his present state and recovery status. He said that he was also ready for any test that was required to be passed in order to serve his country again as a soldier.

The major was really impressed with Arsh’s commitment and appreciated his feeling to work for his country but as it was matter of defence, he didn’t want to take any risk. He denied Arsh, saying that it maybe really harmful for his health, and he wont be able to sustain the harsh climatic conditions where the soldiers were posted.

Arsh had come a long way and far enough, to be stopped by these words of his Major. He left for the headquarters and met all the people he could and asked for anything that he could do to prove his fitness. After being pursued so much by him, some of his known seniors accepted his request and took a fitness test to determine whether he could resume his service or not. They could see the desperation in his eyes to prove himself and get back to work.

He had to climb a mountain, pass through a running river, cross a forest and report back to headquarters before 5 pm in the evening. He started at 7 am, and was a bit late than planned to climb the mountain, and in a hurry had again hurt his legs, but didn’t stop. His legs started paining because of the force of flowing water, still he managed to cross it, again being late by 10 mins. Before starting the forest he was already very late, but fortunately he had been through the forest before and knew the way very well and just had to run at his topmost speed, but the pain had increased with time and now he was unable to run at his best speed. He reached headquarters 30 minutes late. Even his seniors were surprised to see how could he even complete that task but then as was the rule, he couldn't reach on time and he was barred from resuming his duty as army couldn't go with an unfit soldier as it was the question of country in this case. 

Though his efforts were taken into consideration and for next few months instead of posting him, he was taken into planning and strategy department as he had been victorious in many of his missions just because of this talent of his.

He was not even posted for whole year, but only was called whenever some serious movements were observed by terrorists or army of opponents. Though he had been used to working in those conditions so much that at times he skipped going back home. He had been living with a resident of Kashmir whom he met during one of his mission and they were great friends since. 

Once he heard of an attack by terrorists at some civilian market. He never thought that he was no more a soldier, and rushed to that spot and only after reaching there he realised that now he had no arms to fight with terrorists. Now he was just a civilian and he had to fight as a civilian for those civilians. He had been sick of being a lame viewer of television, now he had an opportunity infront of him to show to terrorists how a civilian can also give them a proper reply. 

Though police had sealed the area, he searched for and picked up a steel rod lying the road and went into that area from backside(this area was now 2nd home to him and he knew every corner of this market, moreover he confirmed that with a person native to that place). There were 5 of them(terrorists). He had been a mastermind in making plans. He decided to hunt them one by one. He reached closer to the one on bottom-most floor and threw a can on his right side and banged his head. Then he asked people to evacuate the place slowly. By then army had arrived and encounter had been started. He saw 2 terrorists dying in the encounter but other 2 had made human-shields and were hiding. He took the gun of dead terrorist and went to a postion inside the market from where he could aim on those terrorists. As terrorists were busy handling the army outside, they didn't care of anyone attacking from inside the market. Arsh was trained enough not to miss any such opportunity. As he killed one of them in just one shot, the other one went mad and when he started firing in random directions. One other civilian rose up to stop him, Arsh rushed towards him and killed that bastard too with other gun-shot. 

Though Arsh was questioned a lot regarding his careless attitude but he just said 'At that moment, I knew nothing, I was fighting as an Indian, just a normal civilian, how could I let people die if I knew I could help them.' 

He got his permanent posting back after few questioning but there were enough facts in support of him.