| 𝔉𝔢𝔞𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔢𝔡 x 2 |
Book 1 in the FORTRESS series
Spirits. Ghosts. Apparitions.
Rudra Sharma doesn't believe in any of it.
He has always been a Science buff. Majoring in Physics, hoping to become an IAS officer one day and solve the practical p...
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Another bolt of lightning shone above them while the trio rubbed their palms together to generate enough heat to keep them warm in the dipping temperatures. Their clothes were damp and muddy and their teeth clattered in the chill. The moon was still visible in the sky, casting enough illumination to light up the paths and narrow routes within the fortress, but the sanctum of the temple was bathed in darkness. Rudra had laid Shravani in one corner of the temple as they discussed their next course of action. Ishita was certain the lady in red would not be able to enter the fortifications of the temple's invisible power force, but that didn't mean they should risk staying the night inside the citadel. As Shravani had elucidated in the letter, Kalavati had ensured Raghuveer, alias Rudra, would not be able to escape the fort via the traditional exits. So, no matter whether they waited for morning to arrive or attempted to leave at that very instant, Rudra wouldn't be able to cross the threshold.
Ishita took her phone out of her sweatshirt's pocket to turn the torch on, but much to her displeasure, the battery had drained despite it being at eighty percent only thirty minutes ago. "Dammit!" she cursed under her breath. "Rishabh, turn on the torch on your phone."
Rishabh huffed. "Dead."
She clicked her tongue. "How did both the phones die?"
Rudra said, "Mobile phones emit RF energy." When the other two gaped at him, he took the hint and expounded further. "Radio frequencies. Electromagnetic waves."
Ishita frowned. "Why are you telling me that now?"
Rudra rolled his eyes. "You are the one saying that these spirits and ghosts are nothing but energies, right? These two kinds of energies interfere with each other, and the more negative one clearly wins, drawing all the power from the mobile phones and assimilating it within themselves."
Ishita's brows shot up. "Oh."
Rishabh scrunched his nose. "What was that smell earlier? The strong odor... something putrid."
Ishita shrugged. "I didn't get any smell."
"Neither did I," Rudra said.
Rishabh huffed. "I can still smell it. And my head hurts, my stomach hurts, I am shit scared, and my legs hurt too."
"I told you not to come in," Ishita shrieked.
"I wouldn't have left you alone," he yelled back. "I am not even complaining. I am just saying that these spirits are highly negative. They are making me sick. That's all."
She glowered at him. "Then why the heck did you come in?"
He groaned. "Didn't you listen to me a moment earlier? I couldn't leave you alone."
Rudra stepped back for a moment, reflecting on the situation and disregarding the couple's banter. He recalled the anecdote Shravani had narrated to him the other night in the crematorium. When she attempted to leave all those centuries ago, her mother and brother met with a gruesome death with blood oozing out of their eyes and their organs bursting from within. He quivered at the mere thought and comprehended what Ishita meant by being unable to leave the premises. Kalavati had the means to torment Surya's spirit. He could only imagine the torture she was capable of putting him and his family through if he were to go back on his words. "I should go back," he mumbled. "She will harm my family if I break the barter."
