Chapter 14 — Last Light
By the fourteenth night, Bhangarh Fort had claimed them.
They were no longer explorers.
They were no longer investigators.
They were prisoners of something older than stone, older than time — a hunger that lived in shadow and spoke in whispers.
Arjun was the last with Ananya.
The others were gone.
No trace of Kabir, Sid, Riya, or Dev remained.
Only echoes of their screams.
---
The Hollow Morning
When dawn came, it brought no light.
The air inside the fort was dense, heavy with something metallic and cold.
Arjun stirred slowly, the rifle lying across his knees.
Ananya sat in the corner of the ruined chamber, knees drawn to her chest.
Her skin glistened faint gold.
She looked at him.
Her voice was quiet.
> "Tonight… it will end."
Arjun didn't answer. He could hear it — the faint chanting from deep inside the ruins.
Not outside them. Not in the air. But inside their heads.
---
The Final Descent
They moved silently, deeper into the eastern wing.
The air grew colder, heavier.
The walls pulsed like living flesh.
Every step echoed in impossible ways.
Ananya stopped suddenly.
Her golden eyes fixed on a wall carved with a symbol neither of them had seen before.
It glowed faintly, almost breathing.
She touched it.
> "It is the seal. And it is breaking."
The chanting rose.
Low. Deep.
A thousand voices.
Calling names.
Arjun's head pounded.
He clutched his rifle tighter.
> "We need to leave," he said quietly.
She shook her head.
"There is no leaving. Not anymore."
---
The Hall of Final Voices
They entered a vast chamber — far larger than anything in the fort.
The walls glimmered faint gold, covered in carvings of brides, warriors, and faces twisted in silent screams.
At the center was a stone altar. The carvings pulsed with light, and the air vibrated with the Binding Chant.
Ananya stepped forward.
Her voice was layered — her own voice and something else.
> "Arjun… the bride calls."
The walls began to bleed shadow.
Figures stepped forward — pale, hollow, whispering in unison:
> "He comes. He comes."
Arjun raised his rifle, but the shadows moved faster.
They swarmed toward them.
The air was filled with whispers of names… promises… terror.
---
The Breaking of the Last Light
Ananya screamed — not in pain, but in something deeper.
Her body twisted unnaturally.
Her voice became many voices.
The golden glow in her eyes spread like fire.
Arjun tried to pull her away, but something held him.
The air grew thick.
The walls pulsed harder.
The chanting became deafening.
She looked at him with her golden gaze.
> "One remains. The bride is coming."
Then she smiled — a smile that was not hers.
And the light went out.
---
End of Chapter 14