The air inside the hospital smelled of antiseptic and quiet fear.
Parth stood beside his father as they walked through the corridors. Most of the lights were dim — power rationing had begun even here.
Patients lined the hallways; some coughed, some shivered. One or two just stared blankly at the ceiling, whispering to themselves.
But no one attacked anyone. No one screamed.
It was almost too normal.
> "You see?" Dr. Avir said, adjusting his mask. "Rumors spread faster than the disease."
Parth didn't answer. His gaze drifted to the emergency ward — the one that had received the "bite victim." The bed was empty now.
> "They said he was delusional," a nurse muttered nearby. "Claimed someone tried to eat him. But the injuries looked human…"
Parth's eyes darkened. "Human," he repeated under his breath.
His father didn't catch it. They finished the check-ups, signed some reports, and left by afternoon.
For now, the world still pretended it was holding together.
---
By evening, Parth met up with Aarav and Neel near the old market. The city lights were dim, and the street vendors had long vanished. Only a few stalls sold what was left of grain at triple the price.
The three stood quietly by the tea stall that wasn't even serving tea anymore.
> "Anant's gone," Aarav said softly, kicking a pebble. "Feels like that letter was a warning."
Neel's jaw tightened. "It obviously was."
Parth looked at both of them, then at the horizon that was turning blood-red again.
> "We'll meet here every day. Until the next sign," he said.
They nodded.
Then, by chance — or perhaps not — he saw her.
Sia.
She was crossing the street, hair tied up, a notebook in her hand. She looked tired, but not afraid. When she saw them, she waved faintly.
> "You're staying alone?" Aarav asked, surprised.
> "Yeah," she said. "My home's too far. I got a small apartment near here. Don't worry, I'm not scared of shadows."
> "You should be," Neel murmured.
She just smiled.
---
The world decided to fall apart a few seconds later.
A scream ripped through the evening.
Sharp. Desperate.
Everyone froze.
Down the narrow alley behind the closed grocery shop, a young boy was being pulled by someone — a man, filthy, wild-eyed, clutching the child's arm with inhuman strength.
> "Let him go!" Parth shouted, running forward.
The man turned.
His lips were cracked, his teeth yellowed, and his eyes — empty. But his grin stretched unnaturally wide.
> "I asked for a bit of food politely," he said in a hoarse whisper that somehow echoed. "But selfish humen always shooed me away. Now they will understand my pain… by becoming my food."
He laughed — a horrible, guttural sound that didn't belong to any sane creature — and then bolted into the shadows, vanishing like smoke.
Aarav doubled over, gagging. "What the hell—"
He couldn't finish the sentence.
Neel stood frozen, his eyes flickering — as if fighting some vision.
> "He's not… human anymore," he muttered.
Parth knelt beside the trembling boy. "You're safe now," he said softly, brushing dust from his hair.
Before he could say anything else, Sia was already beside him — kneeling, holding the boy's face gently, whispering something calm, motherly.
Her voice didn't even shake. Not once.
Parth stared.
After what they had just seen — blood, madness, that laugh — she should've been terrified.
But she wasn't.
She was steady. Kind. Still.
Too steady.
He suddenly got Flashback of the day,when she kind of stopped the earthquake,just by touching the ground...
When she looked up at him, their eyes met — and for an instant, Parth's breath caught.
He saw her. Not Sia.
Subhadra.
The same eyes. The same quiet fire.
The same soul. Just not so sane appearance.
Sia blinked, confused by his expression, but said nothing.
---
They took the boy home, to a small cluster of houses at the edge of the lane. His mother cried and thanked them, but Parth barely heard her. His mind was elsewhere.
He turned to Sia.
> "We need to talk," he said quietly.
Something in his tone made Aarav and Neel exchange a glance.
Neel sighed. "We'll head back. Text us if anything happens."
Aarav hesitated. "Be careful."
> "Always," Parth replied without looking away from Sia.
As their friends disappeared into the foggy street, the world around them seemed to hold its breath.
Sia stood still, her eyes unreadable, waiting.
Parth took a slow step forward.
> "Tell me," he said softly, almost pleading, "who are you really?"
---
Author's Note:
Hunger. Fear. Recognition.
Three things that strip away civilization — one layer at a time.
And when all three walk together, destruction is nearby.
— Your author