Mumtaz Begum gently rocked the sleeping infant in her lap, her old eyes clouding with a heavy, profound sorrow. "Zamana kitna kharab ho gaya hai, Haider..." she whispered, her voice laced with the weariness of a woman who had seen the world's darkest corners.

Haider stood tall by the window, his large frame casting a long shadow across the room. He remained silent, listening intently, his obsidian-dark eyes fixed on his grandmother.