Deepak staggered back, clutching his chest. A sudden wave of heat surged through his body, as if his blood had caught fire. His breath came in sharp gasps, and within seconds, his entire body was drenched in sweat. His skin glistened unnaturally, and his face turned pale beneath the sheen of perspiration.
Then came the pain.
It radiated from his hand, where the strange spiral mark had appeared after the letter burned into ash. The skin around it turned an angry red, and the veins in his arm bulged like something beneath the surface was moving—alive.
"Aaahhh... what's happening to me?!" Deepak gasped, stumbling to his knees.
"Deepak!" Kapil rushed toward him, but stopped short, shocked by what he saw. "Your hand… bro, it's glowing!"
Lalit leaned in, his eyes wide with horror. The spiral mark was now lit with a pulsating golden light, like liquid fire coursing through Deepak's veins. The glow throbbed in sync with Deepak's racing heartbeat.
Suddenly, the sky rumbled.
Above them, dark clouds gathered in unnatural formation, as if summoned by the pain itself. The air grew heavy and electric, thick with pressure. Within seconds, the light faded from the fort ruins. Darkness swallowed the land as a massive bolt of lightning split the sky, followed by a deafening crack of thunder that shook the ground beneath their feet.
Lalit and Kapil both jumped.
"What the hell is going on?!" Lalit shouted, his voice barely audible over the wind that had begun howling around them.
Then, Deepak screamed.
Not like before.
This time, it was primal—a roar of agony, so loud and raw it echoed across the broken fort like the cry of something ancient awakening.
Kapil grabbed Lalit's arm. "This is bad. This is really bad! We need to get out of here—NOW!"
Lalit nodded, his face pale. "Help him. Get him up!"
They each grabbed one of Deepak's arms, struggling to lift him. He convulsed in their grasp, his body resisting, trembling like he was being electrocuted from the inside. Then, the rain came—sudden and violent. Cold, hard drops pelted the earth, the sky crying out as if mourning something terrible.
The three of them were soaked in seconds.
"Move!" Kapil shouted, half-dragging Deepak toward the car they'd parked outside the ruins. Mud splashed beneath their feet, and thunder rolled again—closer now.
As they reached the car and pulled open the door, Lalit paused—a strange feeling creeping over him, like they were being watched.
He looked back at the fort.
Something was there.
Just at the edge of the crumbling archway, partially hidden in shadow—a figure. Tall. Still. Watching.
No eyes.
Just hollow sockets.
And a grin that stretched far too wide.
"Kapil…" Lalit whispered. "We're not alone."
Kapil turned, but the figure was gone.
He pushed Deepak into the back seat and slammed the door shut. "Drive! Drive now!"
Lalit jumped into the driver's seat and turned the key—the engine sputtered. Once. Twice.
Nothing.
"Come on, come on!" he growled, slamming his palm against the steering wheel.
Behind them, the wind howled louder. The ruins groaned like they were breathing.
Then, with a roar, the engine came to life.
The headlights flickered on—and something darted past their beam. Pale. Fast. Inhuman.
Lalit didn't wait. He hit the accelerator and tore down the muddy path, wheels spinning and spraying water behind them.
Inside the car, Deepak moaned again. His voice was barely audible, but the words sent a chill through both of them.
"They're watching me… I hear them… from the dark... they know the letter is awake."
Kapil turned slowly. "What did you just say?"
Deepak's eyes were still shut, but his mouth moved on its own.
"They're coming… for all of us".
The road ahead was barely visible—a winding blur of black and grey, soaked in a torrent of rain. Dark clouds followed them, thick and swirling unnaturally low, chasing the car like a curse given shape. Lightning forked across the sky, illuminating the twisted, dying trees on either side of the road for a split second at a time before plunging everything back into pitch-black gloom.
Inside the car, Lalit gripped the steering wheel tight, his knuckles white. The windshield wipers were useless against the storm.
"I can't see anything!" Lalit shouted, squinting through the glass. "What the hell is this?! It's like the night itself is following us!"
Kapil leaned forward, eyes darting between the mirrors and the rain-smudged world beyond the windshield. "Don't stop! Whatever you do—don't stop. Something is behind us!"
Suddenly—BANG!
The car jerked violently. A metallic crunch echoed through the vehicle as it came to a screeching halt, tires sliding through the mud. Everyone was thrown forward in their seats, seatbelts straining with the force.
Kapil's heart pounded in his chest. He looked around, his voice trembling. "Lalit... what happened? Why'd you stop?!"
"I didn't!" Lalit said, panic creeping into his voice. "I swear! I didn't touch the brakes—it just stopped on its own!"
"Try again. Start it. Get us out of here—NOW!" Kapil's voice cracked, fear rising like bile in his throat.
Lalit twisted the key.
Click.
Click-click-click.
The engine made a strained, grinding sound—but wouldn't catch.
"Try again!" Kapil said.
"I'm trying!" Lalit snapped. "It's not working!"
In the back seat, Deepak stirred. His eyes were still shut, but his lips moved as if trapped in a dream.
"Go…" he mumbled, barely audible. "We have to go… something's coming…"
Kapil reached back, shaking him. "Deepak? You're awake?"
Deepak's head lolled to the side, sweat still streaming down his face. His breathing was shallow. But then he said, louder this time—"Move. From. Here. Something dangerous is coming for us..."
Lalit turned the key again.
Click. Click.
Nothing.
Then Kapil saw it.
In the side mirror—just for a moment, lit by a flicker of lightning.
A shadow.
Tall. Twisted. Impossible to define.
It stood in the middle of the road behind them—arms long, body unnaturally thin, head tilted in an inhuman way. Its form flickered, like it wasn't fully real. Like it existed halfway between the world of the living and something much older, much darker.
Its face was a blur of nothingness. Eyes hollow. Mouth wide.
Kapil's blood ran cold.
"MOVE! MOVE!! HE'S BEHIND US!!" Kapil screamed, pointing at the mirror. "He's coming!"
The creature stepped forward, one jerking motion at a time—and the car's engine let out a strained whine.
Suddenly, Deepak's hand began to glow.
The spiral mark on his palm blazed to life—not just golden now, but burning with strands of crimson, like threads of sunlight and blood twisting together. The glow flashed, lighting the inside of the car with a divine pulse.
And with that light—the engine roared to life.
"GO!" Kapil shouted, nearly climbing over the seat in panic.
Lalit didn't hesitate. He slammed his foot on the accelerator. The tires squealed and kicked up mud as the car launched forward.
In the rearview mirror, the shadow shrieked.
Not a sound made by any human voice—it was something older, hungrier, echoing like a curse spoken in a language lost to time.
The creature didn't run. It simply melted into the fog, dissolving into tendrils of black mist that chased the car like a wave of ink.
Inside the vehicle, Deepak jolted upright.
His eyes were glowing faintly now—not gold, not red—something deeper. Cosmic. Ancient.
He looked at Lalit and Kapil, and when he spoke, his voice echoed, like more than one voice was speaking through him.
"It has begun."
The car sped through the broken countryside, tires slicing through puddles, windshield blurred with raindrops still clinging like frightened memories. The storm had quieted, but not fully gone. The clouds above moved alongside them—a living ceiling of dread, still swirling as if watching.
Kapil sat in the passenger seat, drenched and trembling. His eyes darted from mirror to mirror, unable to shake the memory of that shadowed figure—the thing that had stared back at him from the road. Its eyeless face. Its silence. The way it moved without motion.
He couldn't breathe normally. His throat was dry, his voice cracked.
"It saw us," Kapil whispered. "That shadow… it saw us. It was right there. It'll kill us if it catches us."
In the back seat, Deepak stirred—his body weak, but his mind now clearer. He raised his head slowly, eyes still haunted by something he had seen long before he collapsed.
"I told you…" he muttered, his voice rough and heavy with dread. "I saw it… when I fainted. It wasn't a dream."
Lalit glanced at him through the rear-view mirror, concern written all over his face. "What the hell is going on, man? What are we even dealing with? This isn't normal… this is dangerous. This is—this is something else!"
Kapil clenched his fists. "It all started with that damn well. That letter. The second we found it, everything changed."
They all fell silent for a beat, each one of them playing back the events in their heads—the echo of the ancient ruins, the burning parchment, the golden flame, the whisper:
"You chose to open it..."
Deepak lifted his right hand and stared at the mark burned into his palm—the spiral symbol that had glowed, burned, and now felt like it was pulsing with something alive inside it.
"What about this?" he asked, voice cold. "This mark… It's like it's alive. It did something to me. To us."
Before anyone could answer, the clouds above began to thin. The darkness that had been chasing them seemed to lose its grip. The wind eased. The shadows melted into soft gray, and light returned to the sky.
Within minutes, the storm was gone.
The sun began peeking through, its golden hue spreading across the wet landscape. Raindrops sparkled on the car's windows. The trees looked calm again. The air lost its heavy weight.
It was peaceful.
Lalit let out a sigh, slumping slightly in the driver's seat. "Finally… it's over. For now."
Kapil leaned back, heart still pounding but glad for the relief. "We're safe. Just keep going. Let's get as far away from that fort as possible."
Even Deepak managed a tired smile. He looked out the window, the mark on his palm now quiet. His breathing slowed. The silence inside the car was broken only by the soft hum of the tires on wet road.
But peace never lasts.
CRACK!
A loud, metallic impact shattered the calm—like a hammer slamming against steel. The sound came from beneath them.
The entire car jolted.
Skid. Bounce. Swerve.
Lalit gasped, yanking the steering wheel to keep the vehicle on the road. "Something hit us!"
The car tilted sideways, scraping against gravel. Kapil gripped the dashboard, knuckles white. "LALIT?!"
"I didn't hit anything! It came from underneath!"
Deepak's eyes flew open. He sat up straight. The peace had vanished like smoke. His chest tightened.
Then—from the side mirror—
The shadow returned.
Only now, it wasn't standing still.
It was running, long limbs stretched, keeping pace with the car. Its body flickered like a faulty image—half smoke, half form. Its face melted in and out of shape, eyes hollow, mouth open in a silent, hungry scream.
Kapil saw it too.
"IT'S BACK!" he shouted. "DRIVE FASTER!"
"I CAN'T!" Lalit cried. "THE CAR'S NOT RESPONDING!"
The creature lunged from the side, and with an unholy force, slammed into the car's rear.
BANG!!
The car twisted, tires lifting. Lalit lost control.
"BRACE!!" Kapil screamed.
They hit the ditch—hard.
The vehicle flipped once.
Then again.
Metal groaned, glass shattered, and the world became a violent blur of motion and chaos.
The car rolled over and over, smashing through mud and stone, before finally slamming roof-first into a tree with a deafening crash.
Silence.
Only the creaking of metal and the soft hiss of steam rose into the air.
Inside, everything was still. The windshield was shattered. The doors twisted. One of the mirrors dangled uselessly. Blood mixed with rain across the broken dashboard.
Deepak lay upside-down in the back seat, barely conscious, his mark glowing faintly once more—like a warning that had come too late.
And outside… just beyond the wreckage…
The shadow stood watching.
Unmoving. Unblinking.
Waiting.