[Author's Note: Heyyy!! Really glad to see y'all again! :D
As I promised, there is your Nikhil :P Please gimme your views on him though :) And all of my lovely readers know that I indeed AM really really very sorry!
Dedication? How can I miss that?
Again, I have two people for that... one, ZaynMansuri... the true inspiration behind me introducing Nikhil.... so a BIG thank you to him... :)
Two, YashShetye... why? Are you a history freak?? If you are, there is a perfect novel for you, "The Fall". A beautifully illustrated love story in the world of Bastille :D
So, now how many hands up for Nandini?? ;) Give me another 30 comments, like this time, as a positive response, and there, you will meet her :P
I'm sorry, again it's a long Author's Note :/
Now, are you even interested in the story or you'll keep looking up at him? ;) Just kidding... I'll start :D ]
It was an understatement if I said that I panicked.
No. Suddenly the dinosaurs came into existence and started fluttering in my stomach and making me believe that something is really, really wrong! Not only that, after I checked Nandini's pulse and came to know it had stopped being normal, I started patting her cheek and trying to get her back...... she was losing life!
"Nandini?"
"Nandini no!!"
No response...
I laced her fingers through mine.
"Nandini please be okay?!"
I lifted an eyebrow of hers upwards to see if she could manage to open her eyes. But as soon as I left it down, it didn't open again.
"Shuck! Nandini, respond damn it!"
I tried it with the other eye.
"Nandini please be okay, please be okay, please be okay, please be okay, please Nandini!"
I started chanting uncontrollably and my mother started rubbing my back. I shoved her hand off. I didn't know why, but I was really mad at her.
I know that it wasn't her fault, but seeing Nandini I couldn't help but be pissed at her.
I lifted her chin upwards.
"Please be okay Nandini! Please be O-freaking-kay!" I shouted the the last sentence out.
My head dropped on her hand, "No!" It came out as a faint whisper.
"We have to do something. I cannot let her lose life... and I need your help." I looked at my mother who eagerly nodded in agreement.
"Where are the others?" I asked.
She looked a bit confused.
"Don't you know?"
I gave her a questioning look.
"Actually, I lost my way... and I thought that all of you'll were together? The statue..."
She opened her mouth and closed it again. I could see her juggling with words to speak.
But, an explanation wasn't required. My mother and I were pulled into hallucination.
But that was when it struck me, if it is hallucination, how could Nandini possibly be here, along?
This game was getting smarter and confusing at the same time.
But I was certainly back in my senses and so was my mother. Nandini was lying on my lap and I could see her arm bleeding.
My mother was hallucinated.
I was hallucinated.
And this hallucination lead my mother to cut Nandini's wrist.
So Nandini's wrist being cut was not imaginary.
Oh. Crap!
"Come forward." I told my mother. She did as a told her to.
"Here, place her head on your lap carefully. I'll go and fetch some water."
She looked shocked but I didn't bother responding to that. It was relevant and essentially essential.
"Could I come along?" My mother asked.
"Mom, have you gone bananas?"
"Uh huh?"
I just rolled my eyes.
"Please wait here. I'll be back soon."
She nodded reluctantly and placed her hand on Nandini's forehead stroking her hair, as I noticed a drop of tear sleek down her cheek, again.
I looked at Nandini one last time before leaving.
I wasn't surprised about the fact that searching for water would take probably all the time of the day. But it didn't seem to matter, because it wasn't moving forward and we all were stuck in the ghostly hour that didn't seem to budge.
I couldn't simply stop because water was necessary of course, but somewhere at the back of my head I knew that I had to hurry, no matter what. Someone was on the verge of losing life. And that someone, was something to me.
I couldn't let that happen.
Wiping the beads of sweat from my upper-lip, I walked forward when I noticed a well.
No, not an ordinary well. Even though it looked like one, looking at it gave this huge "stay-away" sign.
Gathering all the guts, I moved forward.
I wanted water for now, and just by an intuition I wouldn't just stop, stare and walk off.
The leaves that were surrounding the well were getting crushed under my feet and the only source of light that I had was the moon, until, I thought of pulling my phone out.
Not easy.
The battery was dead.
"Damn it!" I knocked the screen and shoved it into my pocket with frustration.
With every step I took, it felt like I was being watched.
I had this dire urge to look behind. But I didn't.
When Nandini and I were getting better on friendship terms day by day, she would love sharing a few spooky stories with me. I would give her all my attention and listen to the way she adorably narrated those. That glint of excitement on her beautiful face is what I could never forget.
In one of those, she mentioned something superstitious which said that looking behind, when you feel that someone is following you, in a place where you think the vibes that it gives, is not comfortable, we should never attempt to look behind.
It would bring in bad omen.
I laughed it off that time, but I guess it was now, that it was making sense.
It's simple human psychology. If we're afraid of something, all the thoughts related to that would run through our heads, making it even more difficult.
By this time, I wanted to shove away all the those thoughts. But it was something obvious that wouldn't happen.
I was afraid, that the well would be a hallucination. I was afraid about the incident that happened days ago where that driver died. He died in a well. I was afraid, that I might find something apart from water in there or then someone or something would pull me in.
But the steps that I took forward didn't seem to stop.
No. No, I wanted to stop.
I did make a decision that I should stop for a moment and check what was that was following me.
I tried to stop!
But, I couldn't.
I was moving closer towards it, and it would end any moment.
The tip of the fingers of my feet had touched the edge of the well.
I was expecting myself to stop!
What the hell was happening?
Holy goodness! The next thing I knew was that I was climbing on top of it. Damn it.
My eyes were widening. I was astounded.
I clutched on the border of the well, to stop myself.
I applied all the force possible to ground myself and pull the legs down.
I was succeeding. Well, was I?
I was hoping to. The external force on my legs was reducing.
I stood there, or rather, hung there for a few minutes to avoid any peculiar thing, which could have a possibility to take place.
When I was satisfied, I slowly loosened my grip and got off the edge.
I heaved a huge sigh of relief.
But, I needed water. I was too shocked to see whether the well had some of it or not, initially...
Nor could the ripples of the water in this well be heard as well.
It was silent, dead silent out there.
I could feel my heart race and I could hear my sharp and heavy pants.
Even a pin being dropped there, could be heard easily.
And what made my stomach growl with fear, was that... I was all alone.
All of a sudden a jumped on my feet and gasped with shock.
I heard something.
Something that could be described as a moan, a groan or a cry.
But I would term them as plurals...
They were moans, groans and cries.
Not from one, from many.
And not one, but many.
I couldn't believe my ears.
I looked behind with a snap. There was a presence that I felt behind me.
But there were only dry leaves that rustled in the silent night.
Another sharp cry. I placed my hand on my heart trying to reduce its pace.
I wanted to run away, but I needed water. Nandini was more important.
I took a careful step towards the well.
I covered my mouth to stop the sudden breath of shock that would escape past my lips.
The voices were coming from the well.
The more I listened to those voices attentively, trying to figure out where were they coming from and whom they belonged to... the more I found them growing shriller, echoing throughout the well.
But I couldn't believe my ears blindly, I had to check that myself. All I wanted was water and there was a well right in front of me.
But what made this chill sprint up through my spine, giving me the spooky jerk, making the tiny hair on my neck rise; was this uncertainty, of these voices belonging to human beings.
I couldn't remain oblivious to the fact that I had already had such experiences, and that I was standing in such a place... where even the expected could happen unexpectedly.
It was the Bhangarh Fort. And this time, the brutal King Mahanandan's, haunted Bhangarh Fort.
However, I wasn't carrying that effrontery up my sleeve to face the innumerable and painful souls... alone.
But again, all I needed was water.
That was one of the most important necessities for Nandini's life that I wanted.
So, drowning myself in all the risk that I could take, I pulled the bucket out of the pulley and made an attempt to drop it in the well.
That was the first step to see whether the well was filled with water, or rather... being this an unexpected situation... some sort of liquid, or not.
But when I heard the bucket make contact with the dry ground beneath, my heart sank in the chest.
Ignoring those horrendous voices and trying to calm my heart down which was finding its way out through the bony rib cage, like a wild beast trapped inside.... I started rubbing the back of my neck as a sign of nervousness and fear.
I took a single step backwards and felt a massive pull at the end of the rope, which was still intact in my hand.
I screamed at the top of my lungs.
It was too late before I could react.
I was dragged down in the well with a huge thud and I yelped as my elbow ached with the sudden pain caused.
I could do nothing but to squeeze my eyes shut and close out all those unbearably shrieky voices that were deeply penetrating through my ears... sending a direct effect to my brain, which would burst out at those awful sounds.
The pain that I could feel in those voices, that were clearly begging for help, were piercing my heart.
As I continued to lie on the ground, trying to adjust the hurt elbow.... the groans started to turn into screams and my stomach did a flip.
I quickly brought my hands up to my ears and tried to block those sounds away.
But they were so disgustingly loud, that pressing my ears shut would do nothing.
Simply, nothing.
The screams that sounded a bit muffled, now grew sharper, as soon as my palms lost contacts with my ears.
It was getting beyond limits. I would probably go deaf if those screeches didn't stop.
I decided to explore this myself.
With a heart pacing at the speed of a race car, a shaking body with fear... with the sweat glands getting hyper and a lump stuck down my throat, I got up.
My legs felt like jelly and I was finding it hard to balance on them.
I dusted my shaky palms at the back of my jeans, trying to get rid of the dirt and blood.
Thats when I sucked some courage into my body and took a step forward towards those sounds.
I could hear them... I could hear whoever it was. It whispered.
It whispered.... my name!
"Nikhil."
Again! I was called for, again.
"Nikhil come here."
I went numb. My senses were hard to be fetched for. My life was definitely in danger.
"Nikhil help us!" He groaned.
I stood dead in my tracks. The movement in my body stopped.
All I could do was to think about how to run away, but I couldn't move. I just couldn't move as I heard him calling me out sharply.
"Nikhil come here..." I could sense the impatience in his voice. I could see a glint of anger in the tone. I could feel the inhumanity in the voice. I could judge the worst consequences... coming closer.
I looked to my left, and then to my right.
I was thirsty. My throat was going dry. It seemed like I could pass out any moment.
Licking my sudden dry lips, I heard another phrase.
"No time."
My eyes widened with shock and fear.
I saw a small rusted gate towards the right hand side and without thinking twice I limped up to it.
It leaded to a den, a dark room that probably gave out one of the worst odours. I was about to throw up when I realised it smelt like rotten dead bodies.
Pulling a napkin out of my jeans' pocket I bent forward and peeked in, through that small gate.
Pitch dark.
I sat down on my knees and pushed my hand outwards to feel what was there inside.
I concrete surface, and an edge. Another concrete surface, another edge.
They were steps. It had a staircase.
There was certainly something down in there.
It could have water. But what disgusted me was that odour. I couldn't breathe in at all. That smell was choking me.
I didn't realise when all those groans and cries came to an end, until I heard them rise to full volume again.
They came from this gate.
I fell behind on my back when it struck my ears. It felt like several needles were picking my ears and I could do nothing about it.
But I had to get in anyhow.
I looked up and prayed to the almighty to keep me safe.
Mumbling a few stanzas of the Hanuman Chalisa I bent down and stepped in.
The gate was too small to accommodate my body easily.
I had to almost curl myself up into a ball and sit down on the very first step.
The gap between the ceiling and the staircase was too less. My neck ached keeping it bent for a few minutes while I tried to decide about what should I be doing.
I took in a deep breath and commenced.
The deeper I went, the space between the staircase and the ceiling increased.
And what I saw at the end of the staircase made my jaw drop to the ground. I was flabbergasted!
There was a long row of prisons. Jails filled with skeletons, stains of blood, rotten meat and flesh.
How much ever I tried I couldn't get that picture out of my head. It was a nightmare. A nightmare that looked like it had come true.
I was speechless. The rotten odour could kill my nose any moment.
Those voices didn't stop and I could see no one but only the broken skeletons throughout the Jails.
I spun on my heels and was about to run out when I heard my name again.
I was shell shocked because it wasn't only my name.
"We were slaves here!"
It felt like I was shot at the back with a bullet. I gulped down hard and turned around.
He spoke in a voice that looked like it was a mixture of pain, agony, anger, helplessness and echo.
"We were all under Mahanandan's ruthless rule."
I looked all over but I couldn't see anyone.
"W-why can I... not erm, s-see any-one here?" I stuttered as I asked and realised how bad my voice was sounding.
As soon as I spoke those words I started hearing sharp cries, groans, screams. They pricked my ears and I couldn't take it.
"Nikhil, you should not speak. Listen to what I have to say. If you speak, all of them will get angry... really angry at you. They respect me and they cannot bear the sight of me being interrupted by anyone."
He spoke with anger evident in his tone.
I sucked in a breath and waited for him to continue as my body started to shiver under the creaking dark.
I quickly mumbled an apology and he continued.
"If you see us, you won't be able to forgive yourself. You will curse yourself for having eyes."
I gaped in shock at this.
"I don't have any intentions.... or I would rather say, we don't have any intentions to hurt you, because we all were, and are against Mahanandan."
He continued as his voice started getting calmer with every sentence.
"Saying that he treated us brutally was an understatement. We were given food only once in a week. It was 102 of us. Two plates. That was all he gave. One dish filled with rice, the other with six chapattis that were even harder than rocks. It was a little tumbler of water that was given and we all, we all... the hundred and two of us had to accommodate and adjust with it."
I placed my hand on the mouth. Their conditions were pathetic. How could he be so heartless!?
As I heard him continue, my heart twisted with pain.
"We all were filled with venom against him. But we could do nothing. Even to pass our excreta we had a bucket and nothing else. It wouldn't be cleaned at all. We had to eat, live, sleep with every unhygienic thing. Sleep? Hah!"
He let out a short laugh.
That creeped me out but he continued again.
"Sleep was just a... dream to us. We couldn't sleep. And now even after our deaths, our souls aren't here in peace."
I heard cries filled with agony across the room.
They stopped at an instance.
"When we got to know that Queen Rajwanti had come back, hope was filled in our souls. We are completely against Mahanandan, but-"
He let out a dejected sigh....
"We are his slaves."
I looked down at my feet. I hoped that he could help us.
"I cannot lead you to every path. We're forced to kill each and every one of you. But we know that if we do that, it would be the biggest mistake that one could ever make."
I nodded.
"I am one of the most oldest slaves here. All of them respect me and they would all listen to what I would say. We all want to help you. But we cannot. I could only try to lead you to the correct path.....Well, now you could speak if you want to."
My eyes shrank from being panic-stricken to pitiful and with gratitude.
"You have given us hope." I started
"I'm really sorry for all that has happened with you, but I promise from Nandi- err... Queen Rajwanti's side that if we succeed in defeating the beast, we will help all of you all out. You will not have to live trapped in here since what I guess are 200 whole years. It has become too late. As told... we only have this night. If we cannot make it, God forbid we can start losing lives. Rajwanti's life is in dange-"
"Nikhil!" He shouted.
"Uh yes?" I gulped down.
"Talk with respect! It is Queen Rajwanti. She holds a designation." He growled.
"Uh... I'm sorry! Y-yes, Queen Rajwanti." I bit the cheeks from inside.
"Go and take water from that pot to your left hand side. It is not normal water. This water will give her back her strength and life."
"I am really grateful to you!" I gave a sad smile.
"Long live Queen Rajwanti. Long live King Jaswant!"
They all chanted together.
"Long live Queen Rajwanti. Long live King Jaswant."
I smiled and whispered nodding my head.
"Long live Queen Rajwanti. Long live, King Jaswant."
I was shown my way to a canal in front of me that would directly take me out on the other side of the well.
Pushing the iron cover off the canal I was out of that cave.
"The great Almighty, you are the only one who can save us."
I looked up to the sky and closed my eyes.
"Mahanandan, this curse will definitely be broken."
And with that I went away, walking back towards my Nandini.
[Author's Note: I have never written such a looonnnngggg chapter EVER! Gah! I'm so proud of myself ;) :P
But of course, it wouldn't be possible without all of y'all.
The end is near. Any suggestions? If yes, Please inbox me? :(
Let's hope that I come back the soonest possible with a mind blowing ending. Thanks a billionth ton to ALLLLLLLLLL of you.
Hope you liked it.
Lovely lovely love
-Mansi :D ]