Draupadi

Srikanth's reverie of nostalgia was broken by the soft, hesitant voice of the girl he had fed earlier.

She had been calling out to him for a while, but his mind had been elsewhere, lost in its own thoughts. Now, her small, timid voice pulled him back to the present.

"Thank you… for the food," she said, her tone filled with gratitude but also uncertainty.

Srikanth turned his attention to her, seeing her clutching the empty clay bowl as if it were a precious treasure. Her one good eye looked up at him, wide and innocent.

She was so young—too young to be left alone in the world.

Her naivety was glaringly obvious, making her an easy target for manipulation.

He took a moment to compose himself, masking his intentions behind a calm and measured demeanor. "Why were you there in the first place?" he asked, his voice gentle but probing.

The girl fidgeted with the bowl, her gaze dropping to the ground. "I… I didn't have anywhere else to go. The priest and the others… they were taken. I was left alone. I prayed, but… nothing happened. Not until you came."

Her voice was fragile, filled with a kind of hopelessness that Srikanth recognized instantly. She was vulnerable—perfect for someone like him to influence. He knew how to read people, and this girl was no exception. Her desperation made her ripe for manipulation.

"You could stay with me," Srikanth offered, his tone soft and sincere, though his mind was already calculating how to use this situation to his advantage. "I have food, shelter. You wouldn't have to be alone anymore."

The girl's face lit up with hope, her single eye widening.

She didn't question his offer, didn't consider the implications.

Her need for safety and stability blinded her to his true intentions.

"Really?" she asked, her voice trembling with a mixture of fear and hope.

Srikanth nodded, his expression steady. "Yes. You can't survive out here on your own. Come with me, and I'll take care of you."

After a moment of hesitation, the girl agreed. "Okay," she whispered, her voice barely audible. Her decision was driven by necessity, not trust.

They soon arrived at a modest house, which Srikanth had "borrowed" from its previous owner.

The place belonged to the woman who he had killed alongside the British Officer.

The house had been left abandoned, its previous occupants now a distant memory. It suited his purposes perfectly.

Srikanth made sure no one saw them entering.

He kept to the shadows, guiding the girl to the back entrance.

The house was quiet, the stillness a stark contrast to the chaos outside.

Inside, Srikanth led the girl to a

corner where a cot was set up.

"This will be your place for now," he said, gesturing to the cot. "There's food in the kitchen, and you're safe here."

The girl looked around, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings with a mix of apprehension and relief.

Srikanth watched her carefully, knowing that her innocence and desperation made her an easy target for manipulation.

He had targeted her because of her vulnerability, but he would also need to make her believe that he was her only chance for survival.

Before leaving her to settle in, Srikanth turned to her and asked, "What's your name?"

The girl looked up, her gaze meeting his. "Draupadi," she said softly, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"No last name?" Srikanth inquired, though he knew the answer already.

She shook her head. "No."

Srikanth nodded, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Well, Draupadi, you're safe now. I'll take care of you."

As Draupadi settled onto the cot, Srikanth's mind was already racing ahead.

He would mold her into someone useful, someone loyal to his ambitions.

For now, she was a valuable asset, and he intended to use her to his advantage.

---

A few weeks after Draupadi's arrival, Srikanth turned his focus to a critical experiment.

Given the primitive technology of 1857, acquiring copper and zinc had been a challenge, but he managed to source the materials through a combination of bartering and scavenging.

He meticulously assembled several Daniell cells, connecting them in a series circuit.

Each cell was a glass jar filled with copper sulfate and zinc sulfate, linked together by thin, makeshift wires.

In the dimly lit lab, illuminated only by the flickering oil lamps, Srikanth prepared for the experiment.

His body was a perfect superconductor, able to control the electric output due to his enhanced biology.

But ,he needed to integrate electrical energy within himself to manipulate charges and maintain his abilities.

As he completed the circuit, the reaction was immediate and intense.

The zinc in the cells rapidly dissolved, and copper deposited itself, creating a burst of energy.

The moment he touched the assembled array, the zinc dissociated violently, and copper began to deposit as the cells spontaneously depleted themselves.

Srikanth's body absorbed the energy, reacting as if he were an addict finally getting a fix.

His body, still in the form of a child, was overwhelmed by the influx of electrical energy.

His eyes flared with a bright purple glow, the first manifestation of his powers since his rebirth.

His mouth open.

Glowing veins traced across his skin as the energy surged through him.

The intense rush was both exhilarating and consuming.

His muscles tensed and spasmed, and his entire body felt like it was being set ablaze from within in a good way.

The wires connecting the cells to his hands melted under the immense heat, but Srikanth was too absorbed in the experience to notice.

He arched his back, nearly in ecstasy, as the electric energy coursed through him, filling the void left by his earlier limitations.

The sensation was overwhelming, almost like a long-awaited high.

His child's body, still developing, was less equipped to handle such a massive influx of energy.

The experience was more intense than he had anticipated, and he was momentarily lost in the sensation.

His mind, though mature, was temporarily overwhelmed by the flood of power.

Once he regained control, he assessed his progress.

This burst of energy had invigorated him, but he knew that he would need to repeat the process one more time to fully harness the power of nature.

By drawing from storms and natural forces, he could achieve a level of energy that would allow him to maintain this loop.

Reflecting on his past, Srikanth lamented how his previous life had ended.

The accelerated aging had depleted his strength, and he had lost his spark long before his death.

In fact his retirement was the reason he was in Gwalior at all.

The very power he sought to control had become a liability when his body could no longer sustain it.

His regeneration abilities had faded, leaving him vulnerable.

With the new energy at his disposal, Srikanth was determined not to repeat that failure.

He was committed to manipulating this power, ensuring that his control over charges would not only be maintained but also significantly enhanced.

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