Chapter 11 — The Binding Chant
The fort never slept.
At night, its stone walls seemed to breathe softly.
At night, the whispers grew into a chorus.
And at night… they called.
By the eleventh chapter of their nightmare, the team was unrecognizable.
They were no longer explorers.
They were prey.
---
The Morning After
Morning came without sun. The sky was gray, heavy with silence.
The camp was hollow. No one had slept.
No one wanted to speak.
Kabir was sharpening his knife again. Sid was gone.
Ananya sat at the edge of the camp, eyes fixed on nothing, muttering softly in a language only she seemed to understand.
Riya was gone. Dev was gone. Sid was gone. Only four remained.
And the fort still whispered.
Arjun studied them all.
The weight of the curse pressed upon him.
He knew they were running out of time.
---
The Chanting
At midday, Ananya finally spoke.
Her voice was distant, monotone.
> "The chant is breaking. The seal cannot hold forever. Tonight… it will break."
Kabir spat into the dust.
> "What does that mean?"
She didn't answer.
Her eyes glowed faint gold.
She looked toward the eastern ruins, where the chanting was louder now — a deep, rolling sound that seemed to come from inside the fort itself.
Arjun turned his recorder toward her.
> "Ananya, tell me what you know."
Her lips moved slowly, as though translating something inside her head.
> "It is the binding chant. To keep him in. To keep him waiting. Once it ends… the bride returns."
Arjun's voice was grim.
> "Then we're running out of time."
---
Fractures Deepen
That afternoon, the group split again. Kabir and Arjun would investigate the eastern ruins. Ananya stayed behind, silent.
The air between them was heavy with mistrust.
As they moved deeper, Kabir finally broke the silence.
> "We're not getting out of here alive, are we?"
Arjun didn't answer.
---
The Chamber
The eastern ruins opened into a vast chamber carved from stone.
The air was thick with chanting, low and endless.
The walls pulsed faintly, carved with figures bound in golden chains.
At the center of the chamber stood a stone altar. It was covered in blood — dried and blackened. Symbols glowed faintly beneath the surface.
Arjun's breath caught.
He stepped forward.
The chanting rose louder.
Kabir stopped him.
> "Don't touch it."
Arjun ignored him.
He raised his recorder.
The chanting was inside his head now.
It spoke his name.
> "Arjun… Arjun…"
---
The Binding
The moment his voice echoed aloud, the air changed.
Shadows spilled from the walls.
Kabir's knife clattered to the stone floor.
An unseen force pressed them down.
Arjun's recorder began to crackle. The sound was a chorus of voices.
Ananya's voice — and Sid's voice — and others they had lost.
Ananya appeared suddenly in the chamber. Her eyes glowed gold.
> "It is time."
She stepped toward the altar.
Her body moved unnaturally, her limbs twisting.
The chanting rose to a deafening crescendo.
Kabir fired his rifle blindly.
The shot echoed forever.
Ananya didn't falter.
She touched the altar.
The chanting stopped instantly.
---
The Aftermath
Kabir and Arjun staggered back.
Ananya stood still, her eyes completely golden.
She smiled — but it was not her own smile.
> "One is bound. The rest will follow."
Arjun's heart sank.
He knew she was right.
The curse was no longer waiting.
It was hunting.
---
End of Chapter 11