Ishaani – The Indomitable Spirit

Ishaani's father, Balbir Singh, is a renowned Military Commissioned Officer. Due to the transferable nature of his job, Balbir brought his family three months ago from Punjab to the 'Chicken's Neck' region of West Bengal, specifically Siliguri. Ishaani is currently studying in the eleventh grade at an Army Public School. She has made many friends, including Hema Chowdhury.
Hema's father is a Navy Officer holding the rank of Lieutenant Commander, and they reside in a military bungalow. This bungalow is often used for important BSF (Border Security Force) meetings and small-scale functions. Hema's bungalow is situated at the very end of the road, about one kilometer straight from the Three-Bigha Corridor gate (which marks the West Bengal-Bangladesh border).
Hema's birthday party, to which Ishaani and her family are invited, is set to take place at the bungalow two days later.
                              .......
Today marks Hema’s birthday. From the evening, about 50 guests began arriving at the bungalow's large garden. Among them were five or six Army and BSF officers (including Balbir), six or seven caterers, a person disguised as a bear, and a clown. Ishaani suddenly felt suspicious of the latter two, especially the sinister smile on the clown's face, which filled her with dread. Yet, Ishaani tried to rationalize it, thinking these were just mere imaginations.
Suddenly, a BSF officer shouted—"A guard from the Three-Bigha Corridor just called me and informed me that five suspicious individuals attacked them, leaving two guards seriously injured by gunfire. That guard is the only survivor and managed to call me. They, those five men, have targeted our bungalow. Please enter the bungalow as quickly as possible. They have a vehicle and could arrive any moment."
Terrified, everyone rushed inside the bungalow's drawing-room and shut the massive wooden door.
A staircase leading upstairs was located in the center of the drawing-room. As a few guests began ascending the stairs, the sound of gunfire and sharp screams were heard from outside—"We give you 15 minutes! If you do not comply, blood will be spilled!"
Everyone looked at each other, scared and contemplating their impending doom.
As Hema reached into her frock pocket to pull out her phone, the person disguised as a bear swiftly kicked it out of her hand. He pulled a pistol from his black pajamas and aimed it at her head. Simultaneously, the clown and three of the caterers, who were actually terrorists, pulled out shotguns. The remaining four caterers froze. When one of the actual caterers tried to run up the stairs, two bullets were fired at his back, killing him instantly. A few women covered their mouths, screaming at the sight.
The clown spoke in a grating voice—
"No one try any smart moves, or this will be your fate... Those who are upstairs, come down immediately. If our objective is not achieved, we will be forced to open fire. And yes, no calls, no Facebook Live."
Ishaani smiled faintly and said—"If you order me to, I can collect all their phones and hide them locked away in an upstairs room."
Balbir almost shouted—"What kind of crazy..."
But his words were cut short. The second caterer-turned-terrorist delivered a hard slap to his neck, pressed a gun to his ear, and Balbir immediately dropped to his knees. The terrorist addressed everyone, saying—"Everyone, hands up!" Then, to Ishaani—"Hey kid, no funny business! You 'Kaffirs'..."
Ishaani said boldly —"You're doing your job, I'll do mine. When your work isn't being hindered, there's no point in hindering mine.Though if I collect the phones from them and keep them away, they might be safe for a while. Even better, no one will be able to secretly viralize anything about you on social media."
As the terrorists gave the order, Ishaani began collecting everyone's phones into a plastic bag.
The bear-disguised man pressed the gun to Ishaani's ear and began speaking—"We had no intention of torturing you this way, but your father's forces have detained some of our friends, whom you all consider hardened Bangladeshi terrorists. So, this is payback... Now, girl, where are these phones going..."
"Up the stairs and into the kitchen at the end of the left side."
He almost pushed Ishaani toward the kitchen.
Inside the kitchen, Ishaani suddenly began coughing violently. Just as the bear-disguised man moved his gun away to fetch her a glass of water, she unscrewed the lid of a chili powder jar lying on the table and threw the contents straight into the terrorist's eyes. Then, she smashed the empty glass jar on his head. The man sank to his knees, clutching his head, with blood dripping. The gun fell to the ground. Ishaani grabbed the gun with one hand and continuously speed-dialed '100' on almost 10 phones through 'Emergency Call' with the other.
The terrorist said in a pain-filled voice—"There will be consequences for this, girl! You will die!"
Ishaani pressed the gun against the man's head and dragged him towards the stairs. Everyone present watched Ishaani's audacity in astonishment.
Ishaani shouted at the terrorists—"Everyone drop your weapons on the ground and kneel! If you don't obey me, your accomplice will be killed!"
The terrorists complied with her words. However, the bear-disguised man swiftly let out a loud whistle–as a signal, snatched the gun from Ishaani's hand, pressed it against his own chest, and pulled the trigger twice. His lifeless body tumbled down the stairs. Simultaneously, the doors burst open with loud thuds, and five more terrorists rushed in, followed by ear-splitting sounds of gunfire. This sudden turn of events was something Ishaani had not anticipated. Now, Balbir and the other officers began fighting back with the guns dropped by the terrorists for self-defense. Guests ran up the stairs; some were injured by gunfire. The clown shot Ishaani in the elbow. The gun flew out of Ishaani's hand, and she fainted due to the immense pain.
That night, the local police tracked the phone calls and reached the bungalow, arresting the injured terrorists. Ambulances were immediately called to transport the injured, including Ishaani. Ishaani was on rest for about a week after the bullet was removed.
A few days later, Ishaani was awarded a prize for 'Intelligence and Courage' by the Inspector General of the Army Officer, at her school.Watching the fiery spirit instilled in Ishaani,Balbir gave a proud smile.