The Gall of Gammon

Prolouge

The Gall of Gammon

Disclaimer: This story is my humble attempt to write a fanfiction of the epic Mahabharata. My intention is not to hurt anyone's sentiment.

Aum Namah Shivay!!

Prologue

Year = 2019

Date = Classified

Time = Midnight

Place = Classified

Two army helicopters just took off to the sky from a classified airfield. Both the helicopters were containing thirty Indian Para Commandoes. They were now going to a top secret mission.

In the first helicopter, the soldiers were checking their weapons, and chatting in a low voice. Not exactly chatting, a young Captain was telling stories of Mahabharata, and the others were listening to him. The Captain was telling about Arjun's vow to kill Jayadrath and how with the help of Sri Krishna, he accomplished the feat.

"The arrow of Arjuna then cut off Jayadrath's head. But there is a catch. Jaydrath's father gave him a curse...not actually a curse...but still it was. The curse was that whoever is responsible for falling Jayadrath's severed head to the ground; his own head would be blasted into pieces. So the arrow took the severed head with it and landed it into the lap of his father. His father was so shocked when he saw his son's head on his lap, tried to stand up. The head rolled on the ground, killing Jayadrath's father instantly."

"Wow! Sir, the arrow had so much power in it.", a Jawan (private) sitting beside him said.

The Captain nodded. He was trying to say something, when he heard their CO's voice. The Colonel, who was silently listening to the story, said

"You have a keen interest in the epics, son."

"Yes sir." The Captain replied. Then suddenly he said,

"Sir, with your permission, can I ask you and all of us a question?"

The Colonel nodded. The Captain then asked

"Suppose, if you get a chance to live as a character in the Mahabharata, whom would you choose? CO Sir, you are the highest rank present here, so you should answer first. Then, row wise all of you give me your answers. "

The Colonel smirked. Then he said

"Well, I always admired Gangaputra (The son of Ganga) Bhishma a lot. I would like to live as Devvrat Bhishma. What is your answer Captain?"

"Arjuna, sir. The mighty hero, the greatest archer of the world, Arjuna." The Captain answered. Then he looked at the front of the opposite row.

"Major Sir, what is your answer?"

The Major was sitting with his eyes closed. The Captain asked again

"Major Sir?"

The Major slowly opened his eyes. He looked at the Captain

"Let the others' answer first, Captain. Then I would give you my answer."

The other soldiers were now giving their answers. Some of them wanted to be Arjuna, some other wanted to be Karna. Some said Bhima, Nakula and Sahdeva. A few of them gave the name of Dronacharya, Satyaki, Kripacharya, Yudhisthir and Abhimanyu.

After everyone gave their answers, the Captain again looked at the Major for his answer. The Major was wiping his sidearm with a piece of cloth, put it back again into the holster, when suddenly the alarm beeped.

The thirty commandoes stood up. The crew members fixed the rope in front of the door. The Colonel stood up and addressed his soldiers.

"The time has come boys. I want you to pass your victory message soon. You guys have twenty minutes to complete the mission and eliminate all of the targets. I will pray for you guys. Bharat Mata Ki Jay!!"

The commandoes then started rappelling. Now the mission started.

After twenty minutes, the Colonel was impatiently walking in front of the camp. He was tensed for his boys, who were fighting for the country. The radio operator was sitting in front of him. The Colonel was praying to the almighty when he heard the radio beeping.

The radio operator took the receiver," This is tiger's den. Pass your message, over."

The Colonel literally jumped and snatched the receiver. He heard from the other side,

"Panther calling tiger, panther calling tiger....can you hear me? Over." it was the Mahabharata enthusiastic captain's voice.

"This is tiger. Pass your message, panther. Over."

"Sir, the party is over. I repeat, the party is over."

For this mission, 'the party is over' was the code word for victory. The operation had been successful.

"Good work panther. Now proceed to the extraction point. The choppers would be there in fifteen minutes. Casualty report? Over."

The Captain was silent for a moment.

"Speak up panther. Give me the casualty report. Over."

The Captain sighed, "We lost the cobra sir! I repeat, we lost the cobra! Over."

The Colonel felt his heart is literally pierced by hot bullet. The cobra was the code name of the Major, who gave his life for the motherland.

"Okay panther; reach out to the extraction point. Over."

"Sir, the cobra gave his last message for both you and me. Should I pass the message? Over."

"Pass it immediately, over."

"He gave me the answer of the question I asked. Over."

"What was his answer, panther? Over."

"Duryodhana, sir. Over."

The Colonel heaved a sigh. He wiped out the lone tear which somehow escaped from his eye.

"Okay panther; now reach out to the extraction point. Over and out."

"Over and out."

So this is the first chapter. Please read, vote and comment.