The once vibrant garden had become a battlefield of broken bodies and shattered hopes.

The smell of blood hung thick in the air, mixing with the scent of burning leaves. Duryodhan, the once-mighty warrior, lay crumpled on the ground.

His body was bruised, his soul bleeding with a pain far deeper than any physical wound could inflict.

Every breath he took was laced with agony, but the physical suffering paled in comparison to the bitter taste of betrayal that scorched his throat.

Ayushman stood tall over him, dragging him by his hair like a predator showing off its kill.

Each step he took toward the center of the garden was deliberate, his face twisted with a sadistic satisfaction as he yanked Duryodhan forward.

Blood from Duryodhan's mouth stained the earth, but his eyes never left Ayushman, searching, begging for some explanation, some reason for this unimaginable treachery.

The others watched in horrified silence, bound by invisible chains, their minds racing, hearts pounding with disbelief.

This couldn't be happening. Not Ayushman. Not their brother, their friend.

Ayushman wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand, a sneer twisting his lips. He finally came to a stop, releasing Duryodhan's hair with a flourish, letting him collapse to the ground in a heap.

He turned his attention to Rana, who was struggling to get back on his feet after the savage attack from Duryodhan. His chest heaved as he sucked in labored breaths.

Ayushman's lip curled in disgust. "How many times have I told you not to act smart?" His voice was a low, dangerous growl. The arrogance was gone, replaced by a chilling darkness that none had seen before.

Rana spat blood, his hands clenched into fists. "I am the master of myself!" His voice shook, though he tried to maintain his bravado.

Ayushman's face darkened with rage.

He snapped his fingers again, and Rana screamed, his body writhing as unseen forces clawed at him.

The very air around him seemed to shudder, a cold wind sweeping through the garden.

The damned souls of hell-creatures born from Ayushman's dark magic-wrapped around Rana like hungry shadows, their gnarled hands tearing at his very essence.

Rana's scream pierced the night, his voice cracking under the weight of the torment.

His knees buckled, and he fell to the ground, gasping for mercy.

Ayushman's voice was dripping with malice as he stepped forward, nudging Rana's broken body with his foot. "Who is the master now?"

Rana coughed, blood splattering on the dirt. His body trembled as the dark magic drained the life from him. "Why..." he whispered, though the question was not directed at Ayushman.

But it wasn't Rana's voice that shattered the silence-it was Duryodhan's.

"Why?" The word hung in the air, thick with emotion, as Duryodhan lifted his head from the ground.

His voice trembled with disbelief, his eyes searching Ayushman's for some shred of the man he had once called friend.

His heart, already battered and torn, cracked further, bleeding from within as memories of their brotherhood flashed before him-battles fought together, nights spent in laughter, secrets shared in confidence.

"Why, Ayushman? Why would you do this to us? To me?" His voice broke, choking on the raw emotion, the betrayal that twisted his soul like a knife.

Ayushman smirked, his eyes alight with a sick joy.

"Why?" he repeated, crouching beside Duryodhan, grabbing his hair once more and yanking his head back so their faces were inches apart. His breath was cold against Duryodhan's cheek.

"Because I fucking hate each one of you. That's why."

Duryodhan's heart stuttered at the words, disbelief flooding him. This was a nightmare.

It had to be.

This couldn't be real.

The man who stood before him, this cruel, heartless creature, couldn't be Ayushman-the friend he had trusted, the brother he had fought for, protected.

"We trusted you!" Bhanumati's voice rang out, her eyes wide with shock, her body trembling as tears ran down her face. H

er voice cracked with pain, the betrayal slicing through her like a sword. "You were family to us. How could you?"

Ayushman straightened, turning his gaze to Bhanumati. His smile faded, replaced by an expression of twisted hatred.

"Family?" he spat the word like it was poison. "I was never your family! All of you-all of you-treated me like a joke. Nothing more than the comic relief in your perfect little story."

"That's not true!" Gandhari cried out, her voice desperate, her face pale as the reality of the situation crushed her spirit. "We loved you, Ayushman! You were one of us!"

Ayushman's laughter was sharp and mocking. "Loved me? Don't make me laugh. I was always less than you. Always in the shadow of your precious Pandavas and Kauravas. It was always about you. Always Kuruvanshi this and Kuruvanshi that. Do you have any idea what it's like to live like that?"

Duryodhan, still struggling to breathe through the pain, tried to sit up.

His entire body ached, but it was the wound inside him that burned the fiercest.

"You were our friend," he gasped. "We never-never made you feel like you were less."

Ayushman's eyes flared with rage. "Friend?" His voice dripped with venom.

"I never wanted to be your friend! I never wanted to stand beside you! I wanted to stand above you. And now I will. The Pandavas are dead. The great protectors of this land are gone. And now, I will kill the rest of the Kuruvanshi bloodline."

"No!" Kunti cried out, her voice breaking as her worst fears clawed at her heart. "No, please! Not my sons!"

"No!!!!!" Yuyutsu stared at Ayushman in horror, his mind whirling with the revelation. The Pandavas... dead?

It couldn't be true.

It couldn't be. His brothers-Yudhishthir, Bhim, Arjun, Nakul, Sahadev-they were undefeatable. They couldn't be dead.

"You lie," Yuyutsu choked out, his chest heaving. "You lie."

Ayushman smirked, leaning down, his face inches from Duryodhan's once more.

"Ask your older brother. Come on Duryodhan tell them. Tell them how you went to rescue your brothers and how you were too late."

Bhism gazed at Duryodhan, "Tell me he is lying!" He roared in agony, mentally begging him.

"Yes son. Tell us, he's lying." Begged Kunti.

"Why are you quiet?!" Gandhari screamed.

"Duryodhan! Answer us!" Dhritrashtr roared, fear thrumming in his words.

But the oldest son of Gandhari stayed quiet.

Bhism's world shattered. His mind screamed in denial, but somewhere deep inside, the truth was settling in, festering like a wound that wouldn't heal.

The pain was unbearable. His sons-his family-gone.

Yuyutsu bit back his sobs, the man who had stood beside him all this time, the man he had trusted with his life, was the one to deliver this devastating blow.

"You bastard!" Bhanumati screamed, tears streaming down her face as she struggled against her bonds. "You'll pay for this, Ayushman! I swear to the gods, you'll pay!"

Ayushman's smile didn't falter. "You think your threats scare me, Bhanumati? You're all as good as dead."

He turned back to Duryodhan, his expression darkening.

"You've all always been the golden children. Yudhisthir the great leader. Bheem and you great warrior. Arjun, who everyone looked up to. The twins are great scholars inspiring everyone. But not anymore. I will be the one to stand at the top. I will be the one with the power."

Duryodhan gritted his teeth, fighting through the pain. "You're nothing but a coward, Ayushman. A power-hungry coward."

Ayushman's face twisted with fury. "Coward?!" he spat, his voice rising. "You dare call me a coward?" He kicked Duryodhan in the chest, the sound of cracking ribs echoing through the garden.

He gasped, blood filling his mouth as he struggled to breathe.

His vision blurred with tears-tears of pain, of betrayal, of loss. His heart ached, not from the physical wounds, but from the shattering of everything he once believed in.

Ayushman stood over him, breathing heavily, his eyes wild with rage.

"You think I cared about being your friend? About being part of your precious family? I used you, Duryodhan. I used all of you. And now, I'm going to make sure you all suffer."

He turned toward the others, a cruel smile curving his lips as he snapped his fingers.

Instantly, screams erupted from the bound Kuruvanshis as their bodies were pierced by unseen forces, twisted and contorted by the dark magic Ayushman commanded.

Thousands of invisible needles stabbed at their skin, pulling them apart piece by piece.

"Stop it!" Bhanumati screamed, her screams mingled with those of the others as the invisible needles continued their relentless assault.

Her voice was raw with agony, her tears flowing freely. "Stop it, please!!" She looked down at Ayushman with desperate eyes, hoping for some semblance of mercy.

Ayushman's face was a mask of cold satisfaction as he watched the chaos unfold.

The agony of the Kuruvanshis was music to his ears, each screaming a note in his symphony of vengeance.

He walked among them with a predatory grace, each step deliberate, each movement calculated to maximize their suffering.

Kunti, bound and suspended in the air, her face a pale mask of shock and horror, cried out for her sons.

"Yudhishthir! Bhim! Arjun! Nakul! Sahadev!" Her voice cracked as she repeated their names over and over, her pleas falling on deaf ears.

"Why, Ayushman?" Gandhari's voice trembled as she fought against her bonds.

"What have we ever done to you? We trusted you!"

Ayushman's eyes flared with dark amusement.

"Oh, Gandhari, you still don't get it, do you? It's not about what you've done to me. It's about what I've done for myself. All these years, I was nothing but a footnote in your story, a laughable sidekick. But no more."

The garden was now a place of pure torment.

The Kuruvanshis were writhing and crying out in pain, their bodies contorted in unnatural ways.

Ayushman's laughter echoed through the night, a chilling sound that made the hairs on the back of everyone's neck stand on end.

Duryodhan, lying on the ground, his body battered and broken, stared at Ayushman with a look of utter disbelief.

The friend he had trusted with his life had become his tormentor.

Each new wave of pain that crashed over him was a reminder of how thoroughly he had been betrayed.

"Why?" Duryodhan managed to croak out, his voice a mere whisper now. "Why did you do this? Why betray us like this?"

Ayushman's face darkened with hatred.

"I told you. It's because I hate each and every one of you. You all had everything. The power, the glory, the love of your people. And what did I have? Nothing. I was nothing. And now, I will take everything from you."

The Kuruvanshis' suffering was a spectacle of agony and despair.

The invisible needles continued their merciless work, their screams mingling in a cacophony of terror.

Each family member's face was etched with pain, their bodies twisted in unnatural ways.

The night was filled with their cries, a testament to the horror that had befallen them.

He smirked.

"Ayushman! Let them go!" Duryodhan roared, fury marring his features, as he stumbled up.

Ayushman pouted, "Of course I can do that for my old friend." He snapped his fingers, and a grave silence followed, as everyone breathed heavily, reeling from the pain that they had just experienced.

Their minds numb from pain. As they tried to get over what agony had just shot down their bodies.

"You will pay Ayushman. Every last one of you will." Swore the oldest Kaurav, glaring at Ayushman, who chuckled.

"Dream on Duryodhan...dream on." He added, rolling his eyes.

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