In that moment, Gunny's thoughts took a sudden turn as a realization struck him. He couldn't contain his curiosity and promptly asked, "Naveen? Are you referring to Captain Naveen Singh Ahluwalia, a graduate from KMA?"
Rajveer's eyebrows furrowed in surprise as he replied, "Yes, that's him. Why do you ask?"
A sense of urgency filled Gunny's voice as he disclosed, "I had the privilege of knowing Naveen personally. As a matter of fact, we served together in Rajasthan. It was during my next posting that I sustained injuries in that bomb blast."
The gravity of Gunny's revelation struck Rajveer, leaving him momentarily speechless. The connection between Gunny and Naveen was unexpected yet profound. A mix of emotions filled his mind—surprise, curiosity, and a hint of sorrow for his late friend. "You knew Naveen personally?" Rajveer asked, his voice filled with a mix of excitement and sadness. "Please, tell me about the time you spent with him. I want to know everything."
Upon learning about Gunny and Naveen's connection, Naina quietly left the kitchen area and joined the group. She silently took a seat next to Rajveer and began to attentively listen.
Gunny's expression turned somber as he reminisced about his fallen comrade. "Naveen was an exceptional officer and a true friend. We served together in Rajasthan, and he had a reputation for his bravery and leadership skills. He was always the first to step forward and the last to retreat. Naveen had a charismatic personality that inspired those around him. But he was also super irritating at times... specially if there were good looking ladies around. He was such a flirt. Whenever we got a free moment, he would try to set me up with one of his then girlfriend's friend or roommates. He used to say that I'm a little too serious." Gunny shook his head fondly, "But one thing I could say without any doubt that his dedication to the military and our country was unwavering. He could never betray our country that much I can tell you with hundred percent certainty."
Rajveer listened intently, hanging on to every word Gunny spoke. Memories of his time with Naveen flooded his mind, reminding him of the bond they had shared. "Thank you for sharing, Gunny," Rajveer said, his voice filled with gratitude. "Naveen meant the world to me. It's comforting to know that there's someone else who also respected and remembered Naveen for his true nature than believing the falsehood spread about him."
Gunny had a sudden realization, prompting him to lean forward and pose his question urgently, ensuring his tone remained low to avoid anyone overhearing. "Mr. Campbell mentioned that you were conducting an investigation, and I was supposed to assist you. What exactly are you investigating? Is it related to Naveen's case?"
Rajveer hesitated for a moment, glancing at Naina before responding. Gunny furrowed his brows suspiciously as he observed a silent exchange between the couple before him.
Before Rajveer or Gunny could utter a word, a knock on the door disrupted their conversation, signaling the arrival of someone. Their attention turned towards the doorway, revealing the presence of five members from the super six, awaiting Rajveer's permission to enter. Rajveer warmly inquired, "Come in, guys. Where have you been? I've been waiting for all of you."
"Rajveer sir, my mom called, and I got engrossed in a chat with her. It took some time to catch her up on all the notifications since our networks reconnected after a while," Pooja explained, grinning.
"I was performing my Zuhr prayer, which caused a slight delay. Apologies, sir," Ali apologetically informed.
"I have no excuse. Sorry," Alekh admitted nonchalantly, shrugging.
"Sir, my sister went through a breakup and called me in tears. It took some time to console her before she could hang up," Yudi shared with a grimace.
Upon Yudi's statement, Rajveer's gaze shifted to Alekh, understanding the reason behind his recent melancholy. Not wanting others to pick up on it, Rajveer redirected the conversation to Huda and asked, "And what about you, Cadet Huda? What's your explanation?"
"I was admiring the pretty girls in the freshman year, sir ji. By God, each one is more beautiful than the next. But I swear, no one is as stunning as our Phoolan," Huda shamelessly replied. Alekh promptly smacked the back of Huda's head, while Pooja and Ali rolled their eyes, Yudi looked intrigued, and Naina facepalmed.
Rajveer merely shook his head, accustomed to Huda's flirtatious behavior. "All of you, come inside and close the door," he ordered, finding amusement in their playful antics.
Following Rajveer's instruction, the cadets entered the room and closed the door behind them. Rajveer proceeded to introduce Gunny to all the cadets while simultaneously assisting Naina in preparing lunch. Alekh and Ali joined them in the kitchen, assisting with carrying the food items to the living room area where Raina had arranged a buffet. Once everything was ready, everyone helped themselves to lunch. The girls and Gunny took seats on the couches, while Rajveer and the boys opted for the floor. As they enjoyed their meal, they engaged in casual conversation, discussing various topics. Gunny took advantage of this time to familiarize himself with his new cadets and learn more about them.
After the lunch was done, Rajveer stood up and asked Yudi and Ali, "Naina told me you two heard something. Tell me what you've heard... word by word."
Yudi and Ali told him word for word of what they've heard. Rajveer nodded before turning towards his super six. "What have you decided to do about it? I know you guys always have a plan." he asked.
"Major Nair is the Armory in-charge of KMA, Sir. according to my knowledge, every three months he sends out weapons for maintenance in exchange for new weapons. The upcoming date for this occasion is in four days." Naina informed.
"We decided that some of us would take a look at the log books of the past transactions while the others stalk mustache." Huda added in.
"Mustache?" Gunny inquired, puzzled why they would be stalking someone's mustache. At his question, super six winced as they had forgotten that Gunny was also a faculty member. And while Rajveer didn't scold them for the name calling, Gunny would not.
"They nick named Major Nair as 'Mustache'," Rajveer explained with an amused smirk.
"One, you should respect your seniors." Gunny told the cadets sternly, "and two, those are some good plans," he added with a nod.
"I think I should inform my commandant officer of Major Nair's suspicious activities. Because if what we're suspecting is true, then we'd need official orders from higher ups to arrest Major Nair," Rajveer stated.
"That would be the logical way to go about this matter," Gunny agreed.
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ACADEMY'S ARMORY.
23:00 hours
That night as decided previously Rajveer snuck into the academy's armory with Alekh, Gunny snuck into Major Nair's office with Pooja, and the rest of Super six started stalking Major Nair. They were also tasked with keeping Nair busy in case he started going towards the armory.
Rajveer and Alekh, dressed in black tactical gear, carefully made their way through the dimly lit corridors of the academy's armory. They approached a heavy metal door marked "Restricted Access."
Rajveer whispered to Alekh, "This is it, Alekh. The armory. Let's find those weapon log books and see if there's anything fishy going on."
Alekh nodded, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. Rajveer took out a small lock-picking kit from his pocket and started working on the door's lock. It was taking too long though. Alekh rolled his eyes and tapped Rajveer on his shoulder. At Rajveer's questioning look, Alekh took the lock-picking kit and after a few tense moments, the lock clicked open, and they slipped inside.
MAJOR NAIR'S OFFICE
23:00 hours
Pooja led Gunny through the empty hallways of the main academy building. As she had been Nair's protégé, she knew where everything in his office were. They approached the closed door of Major Nair's office. Gunny discreetly checked if the coast was clear before producing a set of lock-picking tools.
"Stay alert, Cadet Ghai. We need to find any suspicious paperwork that could link Major Nair to our suspicions." Gunny whispered to Pooja.
Pooja nodded, gripping her flashlight tightly. Gunny deftly picked the lock, and the door swung open without a sound. They stepped into the dimly lit office, scanning the room for any signs of incriminating evidence.
ACADEMY TRAINING GROUNDS
23:00 hours
Outside, the remaining members of Super Six- Naina, Huda, Ali, and Yudi, moved like shadows, their eyes trained on Major Nair's every move. Pooja had informed them that Nair had a habit of night time jogging. Everyday he would go for a two-hour long jog a few hours after dinner. Super six hid behind trees and bushes, ensuring they weren't seen as they kept their eyes trained on Nair.
Naina reminded her friends in whispered tone, "Remember guys, our primary objective is to keep Major Nair busy. If he even made a slight move towards the armory, we intervened."
"Got it, Naina ji. Let's stay focused, everyone." Ali stated firmly.
Half an hour passed and Nair kept on jogging. This bored the cadets and the humans started yawning. Naina also mimicked them as yawning was contagious.
Suddenly, Yudi cursed under his breath. "Damn it! Naina, Major Nair is heading towards the armory." he alerted the rest of the group. They watched as Major Nair exited the training grounds and began to stroll towards the armory. The team tensed, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice.
"I'll stop him. Huda, go and alert Team-A." Naina ordered before heading towards Nair. They had named their three teams so that if anyone overheard them, they couldn't know who else was involved in this.
Naina started panting, acting like she just rushed to Major Nair in her desperation. She quickened her pace, catching up to him as he started going down the lane that led to the academy building. The armory was located at the basement of the academy and was heavily guarded with security measures.
Naina made sure her power of illusion was working made Nair see her with flushed face, and trying to catch her breath. "SIR! Major Nair! I'm glad I found you. Sir, I saw someone entering the girls hostel with a can of gasoline. I think there might be trouble." she told him urgently.
Major Nair's eyes widen in alarm, immediately sensing the urgency in Naina's voice. "What?! Are you sure, Cadet?"
"Yes, sir. It was a man dressed in an all black outfit. I saw him through my window. By the time I got down, he wasn't there. I thought it was best to inform the authority right away." Naina lied perfectly.
"This is a serious matter. We need to act quickly." Nair stated seriously.
Naina nodded, maintaining her concerned expression.
Major Nair's expression hardened with resolve as he sprinted towards the security room, and Naina trailed closely behind, exchanging a silent nod with her concealed partners. Nair swiftly entered the security room, where he proceeded to review the CCTV footage from the girl's hostel. It was situated in a direction opposite to the academy building, where the Armory was located. Meanwhile, Naina skillfully conjured an illusion that deceived both the security personnel and Nair himself. They witnessed, on the CCTV feed, a man carrying a gallon of gasoline entering the girl's hostel. Downstairs, Naina, feigning concern, scanned her surroundings before making her way to the ground floor to seek assistance.
Seeing this footage, Nair, Naina, and the security rushed towards the girls hostel, Major Nair relaying information through the radio, requesting the security team's immediate response. They burst into the girls hostel, their eyes scanning the area for any signs of suspicious activity. The security team arrives swiftly, their expressions serious and ready for action. S.M. Lolita Sen arrived hearing the commotion. Nair instantly told her what was going on. The security officers split up, conducting a thorough search of the premises, checking every room and corridor.
"Cadet Campbell, why didn't you inform me first?" S. M. Lolita asked suspiciously.
"I did knock on your door, ma'am. But I think you were deep asleep or maybe in the bathroom as you didn't response to my knocks. I though I should alert someone else as I wasn't able to get to you." Naina replied feigning innocence.
S. M. Lolita nodded. "Good job." she told Naina reluctantly.
After a tense few minutes, the security team reports back to Major Nair. "Sir, we've searched the entire hostel. There's no sign of any suspicious activity or gasoline." they said.
Major Nair's face darkened, his gaze narrowing as he turned towards Naina. He opened his mouth to scold her when they all heard the sound of a door slam. Everyone followed the sound and upon reaching the rooftop, they all saw a man dressed in all black outfit climbing down from the building with the help of the water pipes. Naina smirked as everyone got busy chasing the creation of her illusion.
ACADEMY ARMORY
23:35 hours
Back in the armory, Rajveer and Alekh quickly went through the meticulously organized shelves, searching for the weapon log books. They found a row of thick, leather-bound volumes and started flipping through them, their eyes scanning for any irregularities.
"Keep an eye out for any missing or undocumented weapons. If Major Nair was up to something, there might be a pattern." Rajveer told Alekh as he started leafing through the pages.
Alekh nodded, his fingers moving rapidly across the pages. Suddenly, he stopped and pointed to an entry. "Sir, look! This log book shows that several rifles went missing two weeks ago. No records of their transfer or disposal," he informed Rajveer in hushed tone.
"That's exactly what we were looking for. Major Nair has some explaining to do," Rajveer smirked, feeling excited at finding some proof against Nair.
MAJOR NAIR'S OFFICE
23: 42 hours
Meanwhile, Gunny and Pooja meticulously searched through the office, opening drawers and scanning documents. Gunny's eyes widened as he found a folder marked "Confidential." in the false drawer of Major Nair's desk.
"I think I found something. Let's see what's inside," Gunny whispered to Pooja urgently.
Pooja joined him, and they carefully opened the folder. Inside, they found photographs, maps, and detailed reports of the weapon delivery, all pointing to suspicious activities within the academy.
"Gunny sir, these documents connects Major Nair to some sort of shady weapon dealings... especially if these entries doesn't match the entries on the log books. I think we've hit the jackpot." Pooja stated excitedly.
"Let's hope you're right, Cadet Ghai," Gunny told her as they quickly snapped photos of the evidence with their smartphones, ensuring they had a record of everything on their phones. Once they were done, they arranged the room to be as it was and then heading out.
Captain Rajveer's room
00:00 hours
Rajveer's room became the gathering place for the teams, each armed with the information they had gathered. Rajveer and Gunny accumulated their findings, while Huda and Ali joined them, meticulously examining the log book entries spanning several years. Yudi successfully hacked Nair's phone, and together with Pooja, they delved into its contents for further clues. Meanwhile, Alekh and Naina closely examined the confidential file's photographs and engaged in an ongoing discussion about the potential implications. It was Ali who first noticed the discrepancy.
"Sir, at first glance, it may appear that only a few guns go missing every few months. However, after Huda bhai and I counted and reviewed these log book entries, we discovered that over the past six years, more than 2000 guns and ammunition have gone missing. Not only that, items like bulletproof vests have also disappeared," Ali informed.
"In addition, according to the log book, the academy received top-of-the-line vests and rifles last year... Wait, I believe it was just before the rifle broke in Naina's hand," Alekh recalled, remembering the incident.
Naina's eyes widened. She alone knew the true reason behind the rifle breaking, which had nothing to do with its quality. However, since everyone was present, she couldn't divulge anything to Alekh or Rajveer.
"So, when the rifles broke and were sent for maintenance, a complaint was filed regarding the provision of subpar weapons. However, the seller claimed to have supplied good rifles. They had no clue as to how their rifles were malfunctioning," Alekh concluded.
"I have a feeling that there's something missing, something we haven't considered yet," Rajveer murmured, deep in thought.
"Shahrukh? I mean, Rajveer sir, what if Musta...um... Major Nair was deliberately replacing the good weapons with defective ones to sabotage the performance of female cadets?" Pooja proposed.
"That would certainly make sense," Rajveer nodded in agreement.
"What if he's selling the good weapons on the side and substituting them with faulty ones? Remember, Eagle's weapon trafficking network is connected to this academy as well," Naina reminded the team. Gunny stared at Naina, wide-eyed, taken aback by the casual mention of the notorious terrorist Eagle's name.
Rajveer cursed under his breath. "Damn it! That means Major Nair? I have to inform Colonel Shakti about this," he declared, reaching for his phone on the coffee table.
Rajveer dialed Colonel Shakti's number and relayed all the information they had uncovered so far. He also reminded Colonel Shakti about Thomas's earlier tip regarding Colonel Bajaj's involvement with Eagle. Colonel Shakti assured Rajveer that he would keep this information confidential within his team and began preparing an arrest warrant for Major Nair. He advised Rajveer to catch Nair red-handed, as it would strengthen their case. Otherwise, Nair might find a way to easily escape the charges.
"Perhaps it would be best to wait for the next delivery to apprehend him," Gunny remarked nonchalantly. Rajveer and the rest of the team nodded in agreement. "Alright, cadets. It's time for all of you to head back to your rooms. We mustn't arouse any suspicions," he added, casting a glance at the cadets.
"Gunny is absolutely right. We will discuss this further tomorrow. But for now, it's best if all of you disperse... Oh, and guys? Today, you all proved without a doubt that you truly are my Super Six. I couldn't be prouder of each and every one of you," Rajveer expressed, a proud smile illuminating his face. The Super Six beamed with joy at the heartfelt praise. Before Rajveer realized it, they enveloped him in a spontaneous group hug. Laughter filled the room as Rajveer joyfully reciprocated the embrace, feeling the warmth of their deep bond radiate through every fiber of his being.
Gunny observed the heartwarming scene with undivided attention. In all his years of service, he had never witnessed such a profound bond between a senior officer and his juniors. Furthermore, he had never encountered a senior officer who would shower such praise upon mere cadets. As he witnessed the admiration and affection shared between Captain Rajveer and his team, Gunny understood why the cadets held such deep admiration for their leader.
Captain Rajveer's approach was unique and refreshing. His friendly demeanor, kindness, affection, and open-mindedness created an atmosphere of security and trust among the cadets. Gunny himself experienced a similar sense of comfort and respect in the presence of Captain Rajveer, despite having known him for only a single day. It was clear to Gunny that Captain Rajveer embodied the qualities of an exemplary army officer, and more importantly, a truly exceptional human being.
Gunny found himself deeply inspired by Captain Rajveer's extraordinary character. A newfound aspiration took root within him, fueling his desire to learn from Rajveer and adopt some of his admirable qualities. Gunny was acutely aware that having Captain Rajveer as a role model would not only elevate his abilities as an army officer but also facilitate his personal development as a compassionate individual. With a renewed sense of purpose, Gunny set his sights on becoming a better version of himself, guided by the shining example set by Captain Rajveer.
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A/N:::