That night, after the long journey through the temples, Rudra fell into a deep, mystical sleep. In the void of his subconscious, a familiar, glowing figure appeared. It was Grandpa Prasad.
"Grandpa!" Rudra cried out. "You're speaking to us from the womb, but why are you here now?"
Prasad's expression was grave. "Rudra, my boy, listen carefully. My soul is not yet complete. When I passed, my essence was shattered into four parts. Only one part is currently in Isha's womb. Until you find the other three parts and bring them together, the body in the womb cannot fully form. The four-year pregnancy is not just for growth—it is the time you have to find my missing soul shards."
Rudra felt a weight drop in his chest. "Where are they? And how will I fight the enemies guarding them?"
Prasad waved his hand, and three legendary weapon ranks appeared in the air like constellations:You must seek these ranks of weapons," Prasad continued. "The Infinity (\infty) enemy has already claimed one of my soul parts and is using a corrupted Mahastra to guard it. You have four years, Rudra. Find my soul, master the Rudrastra, and protect your family."
Rudra woke up with a start, his Ancestral Ring burning with a new light. He looked at Isha, who was sleeping peacefully, and then at the pet Kamal, who was alert and watching the door. The hunt for the Soul Shards had begunInside the dream, Grandpa Prasad's image grew even more intense as he revealed the final, most forbidden rank of weaponry.
"There is one more, Rudra," Prasad whispered, his voice echoing like thunder. "The Kalaastra. It is the weapon of the Primordial Time. While others break bodies and spirits, the Kalaastra breaks the flow of existence itself. Since you have already touched the power of Rudra Time, only you have the potential to wield it."
He explained the hierarchy clearly:
Mahastra: Weapons of Mass Destruction (Army-level).
Divyayudha: Weapons of Divine Grace (God-level).
Rudrastra: Weapons of Chaos and Demon Strength (Overlord-level).
Kalaastra: The Ultimate Weapon of Time (Universal-level).
"The Infinity (\infty) enemy fears the Kalaastra the most," Prasad continued. "Because even his eternal life can be erased by the blade of Time. One of my soul shards is hidden in a temple that can only be opened by a Mahastra, but the shard itself is being used to power a prototype Kalaastra by the enemy. You must take it back."
Rudra woke up, sweat dripping from his forehead. He realized that the war wasn't just about strength—it was about who controlled the Clock of Life. He looked at his hands; the black aura from his 11% transformation was gone, but a faint, golden-black shimmer of "Time energy" remained.
He called his brothers—Sai, Jaswanth, and Kamal (the human). "Prepare yourselves. We aren't just waiting for a baby anymore. We are going on a hunt for the shards of a God. Our first target: The Mahastra of the East.".The winds at the Bay of Bengal turned icy as Rudra stood staring at the horizon. The weight of his grandfather's dream pressed heavily on his chest. Isha approached him, her hand resting gently on her womb, sensing the turmoil within him.
"Rudra," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Your eyes... they look like a storm is brewing. What did Grandpa tell you? Is our child safe?"
Rudra turned, taking her hands in his and placing them back on her stomach. "Isha, our son is a legend waiting to be born. But he is incomplete. Grandpa's soul was shattered into four shards. Only one is here, with you. The other three are lost in the dark corners of this world. Until I find them, he cannot take his full form. I won't let my son be born weak. I will hunt every corner of hell to bring him back whole."
Rudra suddenly unsheathed the Bama Kali Sword and drove it deep into the earth. The ground groaned, and black smoke spiraled up, forming the terrifying shapes of Ancient Demon Spirits.
Rudra (Voice booming): "Guardians of the Abyss! Hear me! I seek to forge the ultimate weapon—the Kalaastra. Tell me the price! Tell me the ingredients of the weapon that kills Time itself!"
The demons shuddered, bowing so low their heads touched the dirt. "Great Master," the eldest spirit hissed. "To forge the Kalaastra is to commit a sin against creation. It requires materials that do not belong to the earth:
Blue Material: To bind the flow of Time.
Purple Material: To pierce the vacuum of Space.
Red Material: The King of Metals—to command Space, Time, and Death as one.
But that is not all," the demon continued, its eyes glowing red. "The forge needs a soul's anchor. You must sacrifice your own blood, the power of your two Ancestral Rings, and the Spiritual Spinal Bone of your Great Grandmother Isha. Only then will the Kalaastra breathe life!"
Isha gasped, but Rudra's face remained like stone. "If blood is the price, I will drown the world in it. If my ancestors must be the foundation, so be it."
Suddenly, Karthik (Chandan) arrived, breathless and covered in mystical dust. "Rudra! Stop! I've found it. The first soul shard is not just hidden; it is being guarded by the dead. It is inside the Bhoota-gana Maheshwara Temple! The temple is a fortress of ghosts, led by the spirit of a fallen God!"
Rudra didn't hesitate. He whistled, and the pet Kamal leaped into the air, transforming into a massive, gold-and-black bird whose wingspan eclipsed the sun.
Rudra: "Isha, stay within the circle of the Elite. Karthik, watch over her. I am going to the gates of death. If the ghosts stand in my way, I will make them die a second time. Kamal... To the temple! Let us claim what belongs to my son!"
As Rudra soared into the clouds, a tiny, vibrating pulse came from Isha's womb. A voice, clearer than before, echoed in Rudra's mind. "Dada... be careful. The shadows in that temple... they have been waiting for you for a thousand years."