The final day passed like a taut wire stretched between frantic preparation and suffocating stillness.
Kunal's apartment, once his sanctuary, now felt like a launchpad into the unknown depths of hidden mysteries.
The atmosphere around everyone was thick with unspoken fears and the cold weight of inevitability.
Abhishek had been a whirlwind. Doing everything which was needed, securing transport, triple-checking blind spots, taking as much safety measures as needed.
A small, nondescript fishing boat would slip Kunal out towards Elephanta.
Pickup point: an abandoned jetty south of the main docks.
Timing was precisely mapped to dodge patrols.
Abhishek's final briefing was short, sharp.
"Minimal gear. Dark clothing. No metals. This burner stays here," he tapped the compromised phone. "Take this one," handing Kunal a fresh burner.
"Comms check every fifteen minutes after you're off to the island. If shit goes south, three rapid clicks on the panic key. We'll have eyes on the water. Limited, but something. You hit the signal, you don't wait. Just start running without looking back."
Kunal nodded, slipping the clean phone into his inner pocket.
The go-bag was already packed: water, med supplies, encrypted drive, a dense polymer blade, flashlight.
---
Ananya had loaded every scrap of research materials onto the drive which they have gathered till now. Archaeological layouts, legends stitched from broken languages, maps of tidal shifts around Elephanta Island.
She said little now. Was lost in her own world taking subtle glances towards Kunal with trembling hands time and time again.
She only watched him, like she was imprinting his every moment deep in her mind.
Kunal caught the flickers.
The small hesitations.
The things she didn't say.
He didn't know how he should react. He also wanted to steal glances but he didn't want to get caught by her.
However these little hints grounded him more than any tactical plan.
---
He tried to steady his shallow breaths, forcing them slow and deep. Keeping himself focused while his mind was running on steroids.
Catching and analysing everything around him however right now it was just analysing Ananya's each and every moment.
Her unconscious glances towards him, trembling hands, twitching fingers. Time and time again her parted lips which wanted to say something but no words were coming out of them.
However he decided to take any action about it for now, will think about it later if he returns.
Then he tried to tune into whatever memories had started awakening inside him. The visions, the glimpses, the fragmented pieces of information. His mind tried to connect the dots.
Combat Awareness. Fleeting Thought. Prince's Resolve. Even the Prince's deep love of his wife which he has started pushing towards someone close to him already without knowing. The pain which was changing something deep inside him.
The new concepts floated in his mind like sparks, but refused to solidify.
Only the Resolve pulsed steadily and slowly, the iron resolve which kept refusing to run away from it's enemies.
He would not crawl into darkness. If he has to gaze at the abyss then he wage war against it. What of if it gazing at him back. He will just thrash and conquer it.
This sudden unnatural pride even confused him but he was liking it. It looked like this was always a part of him which was missing and now it's making him whole again.
If he has to walk in it then he will walk into it with his eyes wide open and head held high.
---
Night dropped like a dark curtain over Mumbai.
When the scheduled time came.
They gathered at the apartment door.
Abhishek checked the street one last time, then nodded. "Clear."
Ananya stepped forward towards Kunal however stopped herself from reaching for his hands and said in a low, urgent voice:
"There are many old things buried in those ancient caves. Not just gods."
A deep breath. Like she was stopping herself.
"Be careful. We will be waiting. Come back safely, please!"
"I will," he said. Their eyes locked for a heartbeat longer than necessary.
Abhishek's voice was rough. "I still don't agree with all of this. You going there all alone without knowing the identity of the inviter. But we are already over that. Just promise me, if you end up a ghost, send it back here so I can kick its ass for breaking this girl's heart."He said all of this while laughing trying to lift the heavy mood in his own way.
Which made Ananya's face deep red with shame while she kept her head down hiding her eyes from Kunal while eyeing Abhishek angrily while murmuring some curses, he was sure going to get a beating of his lifetime very soon.
Kunal looking at him strangely and towards Ananya awkwardly.
He just shook his head with a half-smile and walked out.
---
The night outside smelled of salt and petrol and something mysterious, crawling up from the sea.
He pulled his hood low, blending into the alley shadows.
He stopped and looked towards his apartments balcony where Ananya and abhishek were standing. He took a deep breath and started moving again.
Every step away from the apartment was heavier than the last.
Not just from fear.
Something inside him was moving. Slow, massive, like an ancient beast stretching after a long time of sleep.
Above, the city lights drowned out the stars.
But he didn't need to see them to feel it.
The cold pulse of the red star.
And its blood-crimson twin. They looked more alive with each pulse.
Watching.
Waiting.
---
He was no longer just Kunal Garg a simple analyst. He was becoming something else now.
He was the sum of countless forgotten battles.
Lost thrones.
Broken empires.
Which even he was unaware of.
And tonight, he would take his first step back.
Toward Elephanta.
Toward his lost destiny.
And toward the storm waiting to claim him.
To be continued...