The common tent stood at the far edge of the three-day political training camp, its canvas walls thick enough to muffle most sounds yet thin enough that the night air still slipped through the seams. Aradhya had been told this was the final test. Twelve senior youth leaders waited inside. She had spent two days listening to speeches about dedication, sacrifice, and the movement. Tonight she would prove it with her body.

She stepped through the flap wearing only a plain white kurta and loose salwar. The men sat in a rough circle on folded mattresses and thin rugs. Lantern light threw long shadows across their faces. Some were older, in their late twenties and early thirties; others looked barely older than her. All of them watched her with the same hungry patience.