Chapter 10

Amira was ,needless to say, surprised.

She went up to her room without saying anything else.
She was given dinner in her room and while she tore into it, hungry from all the walking around, she thought about what her mother had said.

It was definitely not what she expected.
And what did her mother mean when she said they believed her? Shouldn't there be some shock involved?
How could they be so calm?
In all the TV shows she had watched and the books she had read, every time someone got some powers or found out something, there was always some shock involved.

But this... it seemed to be expected. And it creeped her out.

Finishing her dinner, she took her favorite book from the shelf.

Reading Eragon had always managed to calm her down.

Lost in the book, she did not notice the time passing by. It was only when her phone beeped signalling for bedtime that she noticed the time.
She closed the book, getting up to brush her teeth.

Returning, changing into her pajamas, she slumped onto her bed.
Pulling the blanket over her head, she fell into what she hoped would be a dreamless sleep. But she knew who was waiting for her at the other end.


And slowly falling asleep, she found herself alone, on the dark, misty road. 

Chapter 9 - The Man

She did not notice her parents standing behind the man, nor her sister.
She also did not see the look of hatred in her sisters eyes, almost as if she had taken something she deserved.


The man gently removed himself from the grasp of Amira, looking at her face, his eyes meeting hers finally.
He smiled at her, his eyes coated with a layer of tears. He stroked his bushy yet well kept beard and then took her by her hand.

They walked together into her living room, where her parents had returned to earlier.

They were seated on the white sofa at the corner. Rima seemed to be engrossed in her phone, tapping at the screen.
Her parents looked sufficiently angry and she assumed it had something to do with her being late and also the strange man she had been hugging a minute ago.

Once they both were seated, her mother looked at her.
'Explanations. Now.'

As Amira started to speak, he cut in between.'I'd like to introduce myself Mrs. Mithra.'

'Haven't we already done that, Maanav? ', her mother asked. She seemed to be annoyed.

He smiled back at her sheepishly, nodding.

She nodded at him, cold and distant and then turned her head, looking at Amira expectedly.

'Uh.. mom...', she seemed to find issue with opening up.
'Today, dear', her dad said, a faint smile at his lips.

'Mom... Dad... this is gonna sound crazy but I know him from a dream.'
Their eyes widened a bit and a look of skepticism cut through.
And she explained to them, what had happened earlier today.

They sat back, listening to each and every word she said with rapt attention.
Even Rima had stopped her annoying typing and was listening in closely.

Once she was done, her parents looked at each other.

Standing up, her dad escorted him to the front door.
They talked something in hushed tones and she heard him leave.

Her mom came up to her. Her face was blank, but the words she said contained anger in them.
'You're grounded. Until we let you, you can't leave the house'

'But Mom...', she tried to reason, pleading.
'No Buts. Have your dinner and go to your room.'

She heard Rima snigger when their mother said that. Amira paid no attention to it, even though their mother did glance in Rima's direction.

'Look I know you guys must think all this is crazy and that I'm lying... but believe me... I am not lying!'
Her frustration was understandable, because she believed that her parents did not believe what she had said.

Her mother's eyes suddenly softened, her hands caressing Amira's face.
'That's the problem my dear. We believe you.' 

Chapter 8- The Surprise

Amira stood, transfixed, unable to process what had just happened.
The old man... she could not understand who he was. The people around him, the stone at the center of the circle, everything confused her. It made her mind go wild with theories and what they could be doing there.


She walked out from the building, the door closing shut behind her on its own.
She noticed the detailing in gold on the door... it seemed to be of a language she couldn't understand.

Walking away from the building, going over everything that had happened to her in the room, Amira just knew that Something or someone was behind this and that all this was way more huge that she could imagine.


The sun had travelled his course for the day, hanging low on the horizon. He painted the sky a shade of red, a color so irresistible, that all she wanted to do was stay there forever, staring at it.

She remembered the draganoid from the other world, his horns gleaming in the sun. A sense of loss washed over her, because she sensed that she could have learnt so much more from him.

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't know her feet walking on, retracing her steps back to her home.

She found her parents cars in the driveway, the lights on in the house.

Amira knew today was going to be rough at home. She was way more late than she usually ever was. And Rima was rarely ever a help. She couldn't lie and she never would.

Ringing the bell of the house, she waited for someone to open the door. Amira could see someone walk up to the door, hesitation in every footstep.

Slowly, the door creaked open, the light from inside shining out to the front porch.

Amira was, to say the least, pleasantly surprised to see the person behind the door. She ran in, hugging him, a huge smile plastered on her face. Her eyes showed tears, her laugh echoing throughout the house. He hugged her back, his arms holding her, a strained smile at his face.

Chapter 7- The Escape

With his aid, she walked out bit by bit. 

His smiling face seemed to not take into consideration the looks of hatred the other men and women were giving him. 

Guiding her out safely, the door shut on her face with a resounding thud. He severed the connection with her mind, his mind controlled enough to not let his true self or feelings out. 

Once he was sure she couldn't hear them, In a thick, rough voice, he said,'That's enough for today'. His voice imbibed with energy, barely concealing the anger in his mind. The dot on his forehead grew larger, his irises returning to a pale green shade and then to dark brown. 

The dots on the foreheads of the crowd around him suddenly decreased in size, turning into a pin point and then vanishing. Their eyes returned to their normal colors but the crowd seemed displeased at their leaders actions. 

But their eyes betrayed the fear in their minds and one by one, the crowd around him disappeared, vanishing into smoke. 

The old man walked back to a room hidden behind the marble covered walls, covered in black except for a huge statue in marble at the center. 

It was a unique statue, it's eyes devoid of irises and a huge black dot on its forehead. It's features were rough, his face kind. His left hand was clenched into a fist, his right hand open, outstretched. His legs crossed over the throne, as if engrossed in meditation. What seemed to be an apple was placed on his right fist, not a bite taken out of it, as if offering it to his followers. 

Seated On his marble throne, he gazed down on his followers with kindness.  

The old man knelt down at the base of the throne, his tears falling into the floor. His voice filled with happiness, he said,' She has arrived, my Lord.'

He looked up at the kind face and continued,' After all this while, she has returned to our world' 

A light shone from the black dot and the statue moved. 

From the marble mouth, in a gravelly tone he said,' Take care of her. Recruit her', before returning to his immovable form.

Chapter 6 - The Mind

Waking up from her dream or what was another reality, she slowly came back to her senses. She could feel the minds of many pressing against hers, trying to find a loophole in her defenses, some way to gnaw their way into her mind. 

She thought of the naked draganoid from the other world and smiled. She remembered him, how he had been and what his voice had been like. She remembered what he had taught her and decided to use it, or rather, test it against them. 

Her red eyes seemed to throw the old man off guard. He seemed to be shocked at her eyes. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, almost as if it was what he wants to see.  

Her red eyes staring down on the men and women on the floor, they seemed to grow uneasy with each passing second. She felt the force on her mind increase and their chants increase in speed. 

Sharpening her mind to what was a pencil point, focusing only on her memory of him, she walked out. Cautiously, carefully. Walking backwards was not a skill she had mastered. She cursed herself for not playing along with Rima when she had tried to do it. 

The crowd seemed to be get agitated as her resistance continued. Their chants became frantic, their mouths foaming at the corners and spit flying out. Their eyes seemed to burn with intensity, not that she could see their irises. 

She felt a smile appear on her face, which turned to confusion when she glanced at the the old man. He seemed surprised at her resistance, which soon turned to.. Happiness? 

He seemed happy for her. 

Distracted momentarily, she suddenly felt a mind slip past into her defenses,  closing the path along the way. 

She could feel the mind. It seemed to be layered, each level hiding behind another, Its voices young and vibrant, much as that of a young man. His every thought was hidden at first, but he opened up and let go of his defenses for her to see. She was shocked at first by the depth and quantity of memories it stored. Every thought, emotion and memory he had ever felt and experienced, laid out open for her to see and use as she willed. An act of trust maybe. One of the voices started speaking and all at once,hundreds of voices filled her mind. She could only understand bits and pieces of what he(it? They?) said. 

She understood that it was the old man. His name, age, where he came from nothing she could understand. The chaos was too much. 

Then she felt his mind probing hers. She tried to pull up her defenses when she realized that he was trying to communicate something through the chaos. She felt horrified and then confused. The feeling emanating from his mind was pride. He felt pride in what she had achieved. And yet, there was a familiarity in his mind that quite didn't make sense to her. 

Chapter 5- The Block

Flying down to the ground, He set her down on the floor, ever so gentle. He took a wayward strand of hair and tucked it back into place. 

His nakedness bothered him, as did hers. She wished to be clothed, that even the robe she had on before seemed like a blessing. 

And suddenly, She was clothed. And so was he. And fashionably too, in a pair of shorts and a snug tshirt. 

He seemed amused at what she had done for him. She could hear his laugh echo through the pathways of her mind. 

'Being clothed is nothing to laugh at', She said, even as his laugh continued. 

'I am happy the way I am. But if this is how you wish to see me, so shall it be' he said, his voice breaking from the strain of not laughing. 

She turned and walked away, hoping to get out of this place and return to her world. 

'You could have said that there was a hole behind me before' she said, her voice accusing him. 

'I was under the impression that you knew' he said. 

After an awkward silence in their minds, he decided to break it. 

'You didn't ask what you wanted to know' 

She was shocked when he said that. His voice had turned serious, the mirth in his eyes long gone. 

'I do not want to know anything. I don't even know why I am here' 

He must have understood she was saying the truth, because he walked closer to her. She tried to walk backwards and allmost tripped. 'Careful' he said, letting go of her hand. And then, with his index finger, touched her forehead. 

And suddenly, she could feel another world, a world where she was standing frozen in place, her mind trying hard to stop the swarm of minds around her. 

His eyes turned sad as he seemed to understand what was happening. 

He took a step back, his eyes downcast. 

'I realize that I am just a block for you' he said,' Something to stop those people from entering your mind' 

He continued, telling her about he was surprised that she had been able to do this. 

He didn't know that she was surprised at what she had done as well. 

He told her to imagine him and walk out of the room, stabbing at anyone who dared approach her with their mind. He thought her a few things, which she seemed to grasp quickly. 

She seemed to not notice the time passing in this world. But soon, she understood it was time to leave and get back to her reality. 

As she walked away from him, what he said stuck in her mind. She hoped with all her might that she may meet him again one day. 

He seemed to have understood what she was hoping for, as he shouted 'Till we meet again', as she left his world. 

A quick glance back showed him, waving his hand at her, smiling, the horns on his head shining in the light of the rising sun. 

Chapter 4 - Reality

Alone. Alone!!! 

The dark surrounded her. The cool wind light on her skin, the mist wetting it. She seemed clothed in a robe, her hair and head covered by a hood. 

She felt alone. She knew she was alone. For the moment at least. 

The pressure seemed to have faded away, held momentarily at bay by someone or something. 

Suddenly, a human burst into her view. Through the mist, through the wind. 

It held a spear in its hand, but she knew that it was afraid of her more than she was of it. She did not question how she knew that, accepting it as a tool for survival. 

But what she failed to see was the being behind it. 

As she moved towards the human, her hands in the air, a pair of red eyes stared back at her from the shadows. 

Mesmerizing in it's uniqueness and powerful in its hue, it seemed to talk to her. 

She saw as it gained height so that she couldn't even see where it's eyes where anymore. 

And all of a sudden, it shrinked in size. 

Brushing apart the foliage in front and the human at its feet,as if it were a mere worm, he walked up to her, It's eyes at level with hers, a low snarl forming at its lips. 

A guttural noise emanating from its throat, it's eyes filled with an expression she couldn't understand. 

A pair of wings stood attached to it's back, proud of its existence. And as she saw the being in its entirety, she understood that it was a male. And that he was nude. He seemed humanoid, with features of what seemed to be a lizard. And it dawned on her that he was probably a dragon in a human form. 

He seemed none too pleased about his nudity though. But he moved forward, a clawed finger pointed at her. 

She moved back to fall into a hole, only to understand that he had been pointing at it all this while.

While she fell down, nothing seemed to matter anymore. Several hands tried to catch her, but all they succeeded in doing were ripping her clothes off. 

And suddenly, from the relative light of above, a flying being descended. 

She extended her hand towards him, hoping that he could see and hoping that he would catch her. 

He came close to her, caught her mid fall and hoisted her up. 

Flying into the sky above, she could feel his genitals pressed against her bare skin. 

He smiled and then roared into the sky. 

The wind blowing, caressing her skin, raising goosebumps along the way. 

And in her mind, a rough voice said...'Mine'. 

Chapter 3 - The Stone

She, cautious and curious in equal measure, walked into the room. She could hear chants of some sort from the room. It seemed to pulse with power, electrifying the surroundings. She could feel the hairs on her arms stand up, as if to signal danger to her. 
 What she saw inside was a sight that truly baffled her. A huge room,the floor and walls covered in marble. Etched in the stone were a language she did not understand and statues of men and women. Their eyes seemed to be alive, staring her down, sizing her up. 

The ceiling resembled a stormy night covered with dark clouds, the moon peaking out from behind the shadows. Dark, yet bright.  

Inside the room at the Centre, a black stone was kept. It seemed to be a deity of some sort. Not any that she recognized though. 

Around it,in circles, men and women clothed in white were seated. A huge black dot on their forehead,their eyes rolled back into their sockets, not seeing anything, chanting a mantra,in unison, that was not known to her. They seemed to not notice her entry or the fact that she was witnessing a ritual of theirs. 

Inside one of the circles she recognized a man. He was clothed in white just like the rest. But something made her notice him. 

But what puzzled her was the fact that She had never seen him before.

His iris invisible,the black dot on his forehead pulsing, growing and decreasing in size along with the mantra. His unkempt hair,dirty from many years and his beard, lying on the ground like a gray rope. He stood up, his long beard dragging on the floor and looked in her direction and smiled,extending his hands as if to welcome her into the group.

At the same time,she felt the minds of hundreds,if not thousands of men and women pressing against her mind. Her soul felt a power surging into her body and she felt in horror as her eyes turned red.

Chapter 2 - The Walk

Gasping for air, she woke up from her sleep. Her sister, sleeping in the other bed woke up startled by the noise. 

She gazed around, still in the clutches of sleep. 

'Drink some water and sleep Amira... Don't think of anything else' she said. ' You can tell me the details tomorrow morning' 

She was smiling a bit now, probably seeing the panicked expression on her face. 

'I can't sleep Rima... I just can't. What I saw today... I have not ever seen before.' 

'Shh... It's OK. Sleep. Tomorrow morning, let it be a fresh start' 

Saying this, she returned to bed, curling up. Amira didn't switch off the light, not because of fear of dark, but of what the dark might say to her. 

And a broken night's sleep later, she woke up to a beautiful day. Rima had woken up earlier. 

Her bed made up, all neat and tidy. She hated that. 

And she got up out of bed, left it the way it was, brushed her teeth and combed her hair. 

'Mommy rules suck' she said under her breath. 

She wore her most comfortable pair of denim shorts and a white tank top. 

Went down for breakfast and found an egg Sandwich ready on the marble table top. 

Rima was down in the hall, watching some trashy TV, munching on some chips.

Their parents had already left for work. 

And now came the exciting part. Walking around the town. It was always her favorite part of the day. The warm light... The breeze with the smell of flowers. Her parents had asked her not to go out alone for sightseeing and the excitement of breaking a few rules added to the appeal.

Wearing her sneakers, she bid bye to Rima and walked out from home. Rima had waved back at her from the couch, a concerned expression on her face. But before she could ask her anything, she had closed the door behind her.

This town had always seemed welcoming for her. Almost like her home, safe. The people were nice, the kids cute and not snobby and even the dogs were not afraid of her. Most animals, except for cats,shied away from her usually. Big or small, they seemed afraid of her. The cats however wanted to be close to her. Be it small cats or the big ones. And she had no idea why.
Growing up, her parents had been forced to relocate from town to town, mainly due to her. 

They never said a word, even though she knew they worried. Probably scared even.

Even during school, she was the weird kid. The one girl no one ever wanted anything to do with. They shunned her, didn't talk to her, didn't include her in games and was forced to sit alone, in a corner.  Many stories floated around about her and before it could reach momentum she had usually changed schools.

And she had remained alone for a large portion of her childhood, until she had reached this school, at the threshold of adulthood and a plethora of experiences. 

Still, she maintained her distance, falling back into what was comfortable for her. 

And as it must happen, one guy tried to get smart with her. And that was the day that he saw her red eyes. That incident had shocked her as well, even though she didn't show it at that time. His expression was priceless though. But something had seemed off about..

Suddenly she tripped on a brick, breaking her thoughts. She used her hands to steady herself, almost falling on her face.
'Gotta watch where I'm going' she muttered, bending down to check her shoes.  

She looked around, clearly not recognizing the neighborhood. In the distance, she saw a glittering building. It seemed the odd one out, not at all similar to buildings around it.

Waking towards it, almost as if in a trance, she could feel waves of energy floating off its walls. 

It acted as an amplifier for a power it seemed... The eerie silence was creeping her out. She was about to turn and leave, when she heard chants coming from inside the building. 

It seemed to ebb with a strange power, something that awoke a powerful part in her. 

Walking into the beautiful building past the ornately carved statues and arches, she found herself in a circular lobby of sorts. 

The doors around her were closed. Into them were carved many shapes and figures. It all seemed to be of a person, telling a story. She could see a black door in front of her, plain, open. Something beckoned her, asking her to enter, as if it was waiting for her to arrive. 

Chapter 1: The Road

Mist surrounded her. She was walking on a road, a road she now knew led nowhere. In the beginning it was just her, the mist and the sound of someone following her.

A faint light seemed to illuminate her surroundings, showing her the beautiful shrubs and trees beside her. 

Fear had conquered her the first time she had been here. Unable to move, she broke down and sobbed into the night. She stayed there, till her mother woke her up. It took a long time for her to open up to her parents about this. And even much more time before she could even stand and move around. 

She did not stop walking. A sense of purpose shone through her. And it showed itself in every step she took. She did not speed up, even as the footsteps behind her continued to follow in pace. 

She had never bothered to look back in fear of what she might see. But tonight, coaxed by her parents and her therapist, she finally summoned the courage to turn around. 

And she was greeted by darkness. The light seemed to stop at her. The moment it reached where she was, it disappeared. 

No one stood in front of her. Even the mist seemed to be afraid of what was following her.  

She stood there for a while, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness around. And she was able to make out the faint outline of a being far away. A human perhaps? 

She walked towards it and it walked forward, it's dress rustling in the silence of this grim world. 

As it walked closer, she could finally see what had been following her for so long. 

She saw a hood pulled over its head, it's long dark robes stained. Unable to see its face, she walked closer. 

Closer and closer... She walked till she reached in front of it. At this point, she was positive that 'it' was a human being. 

And finally, face to face, she dared to grab hold of the hood and reveal the face behind. 

The face behind it sent through her waves of shock and exhilaration. 

Her gasp, an unwelcome visitor to this world, reached the ears of the being in front of her. It's eyes seemed amused by the sound, almost laughing at her shock.  

She took a few steps back, her mind spiraling down into an abyss. She did not know how to respond, for in front of her, stood a being that resembled her. If she did not know better, she would have called it her twin. An evil, ugly and monstrous twin. 

It's blood red eyes, pointed ears and sharp teeth reminded her of vampires seen in movies. Even the blood dripping onto its robes and it's thick tongue slithering out from her grinning mouth and her frizzy hair sticking out from her hood ensured her that this being was not even human, let alone alive. 

It's webbed and clawed hand stroked her face, ever so gentle and caring. She recoiled at its touch, but it seemed to not notice it.  And then, in a silky, mesmerizing voice it said...' Soon'

It's tongue slithered around her face, leaving behind it a trail of foul smelling saliva. It noticed her flinching at each movement it took. And suddenly, the laughter in it's eyes vanished. Cruelty took its place, It's smile vanishing.  It's hand turned into a fist and pushed her away, turning and walking away. But instead of the ground greeting her, she felt herself falling into an abyss Unknown. Her breath knocked out of her, she gasped for air even as a drop of black ink fell on her from above. 

Prologue

Staring at the pictures on the wall, he couldn't help but smile a little. He smiled at the picture of him and his wife, when they were pregnant with Amira.
He still remembered the day she was born. Vividly.

It started out as a normal day would, he leaving for work, visiting her at the hospital on the way to work. 

She seemed happy. Ecstatic even. She pestered him to go for work, even when he said he would take leave.

A couple of hours later, he got a call from the hospital. She had gone into labor. He took leave from work, his co workers seemed happy. His boss smiled at him, wishing him luck.

He rushed towards the hospital, taking all shortcuts he knew, trying to reach before she gave birth.
He reached in record time and waited outside the labor room. Some time later, a nurse came out and told him that it was a girl child. Her smile seemed too stiff, but he pegged that down as her being tired. 

After sometime, he was let into the room. 

He saw his wife, exhausted and happy, but something was wrong about her face. He couldn't put a name to the expression. He just knew that something was off. 

He smiled at her, happiness filling out of him like the rays of the sun. 

He took a glance at his daughter and took a step backwards, horrified. 

A huge black dot adorned her forehead. It seemed to ripple with some unknown energy, mesmerizing him. He extended his hand to touch her forehead, when his wife made a disapproving noise.
He withdrew his hand instantly, but the damage had been done.

He could see that the noise had woken her. She was stirring, her tiny hands moving, her tiny mouth opening and closing. And finally, she opened her eyes.
As a reflex, he recoiled due to fear. Her tiny eyes contained in them blood red irises.  None could have guessed her tiny, beautiful eyes could hold such horrors.

She smiled at something he couldn't see, up and above him, and dozed off again.