Chapter 18 - Chapter 18 – Paths in Darkness

The forest grew heavier with each step into shadow. Thick branches clawed the night sky, tangled roots rose like serpents from the earth, and fractured bones and torn banners marked forgotten battlefields. Darkness crept, suffocating and absolute.Jiya moved cautiously, blade drawn, aura pulsating softly, eyes sharp for every flicker of movement. Behind her, Ashish's footsteps slowed; fists clenched so tight his knuckles bled faintly. His silence pressed between them like a tangible weight, carrying unspoken storms.Finally, Jiya broke it. "You've been quiet too long. What's in your head?"Ashish's jaw tightened, gaze dropped. "It's… nothing.""Nothing that makes your fists bleed?" Jiya's tone was firm, catching sight of fresh cuts across them. "Talk."He stopped, shoulders shaking. Meeting her eyes, voice cracked raw. "I ran. When Veer and Suriya told me to escape—I ran. I wanted to fight with them... but they made me go. Now… now they're gone. Because of me."Jiya's heart clenched—she saw not just a fighter, but a boy torn by guilt's cruel claws. She sheathed her blade, gripping his shoulder steady. "If they asked you to leave, it wasn't cowardice. It was trust—the deepest kind. They believed you'd survive."Ashish shook fiercely. "But I should've stayed! I should've—""You should've survived," Jiya cut gently, voice sharp but eyes soft. "Survival demands more courage than battle. Don't let their sacrifice die with your shame."Her words struck deep. For the first time, Ashish let his tears fall. Jiya held his shoulder until his trembling eased."Thank you," he whispered, hoarse but steadied.Jiya smiled faintly. "Good. You'll need your fire burning—for what's next."Unaware, their path wound closer to that broken promise: the orc prison where Veer and Suriya waited.Far away, Aditya Roy trudged through the blackened ruins of a village. Charred timbers and muddy corpses spoke of brutal endings. The acrid stink of blood and smoke pressed thickly into his nostrils.Each step toward the shadow looming over the land pulled heavier—the orc king. The weight of the threat thickened like fog.At a fire-blackened well, his reflection wavered in the sullen water—a tired man wearing the mask of unyielding resolve.He remembered his daughters—Jiya's fierce eyes, Veer's reckless grin—the warmth of home now distant as nightmare."I won't lose them," he breathed, knuckles white as they gripped the well's edge. "Not to monsters. Not to fate."Straightening, he marched onward—steadfast toward the coming storm.Under a sky veiled by smoke, three dark paths stretched forward.Jiya and Ashish—unaware—walking toward imprisonment.Veer, Suriya, and Anika—bound, but planning revolt.Aditya—brooding, carrying the weight of father and warrior—marching to confront the Orc King.Each step, each breath, each choice wound inexorably toward a collision that none yet could see.