As the creature lumbered out of sight, they both finally exhaled.
Vishwa grabbed a bundle of clothes nearby and tossed them in the opposite direction, hoping to create a noise distraction. Then he took Priya's hand and ran.
They found another shop—doors rusted shut.
He slammed into them, forced them open, and shoved himself and Priya inside, locking it behind them.
Inside were two people.
A girl, maybe twenty.
And her father.
The girl stepped forward, eyes wide with panic.
Girl: "Who are you? What do you want?"
Vishwa: "Shh… just let me secure the door."
Girl's Father: "No. You're not welcome. Get out."
Vishwa: (breathless) "I get it. You're scared. But please… I have a child with me. She's hurt. She needs help."
He looked down.
Priya was unconscious.
She hadn't made a sound since they saw the orc. That was when she fainted—right before the clothes trick.
Girl: "There's a hospital about two miles from here. But with her condition…"
(she hesitated)
"I don't think she'll make it. I studied nursing. If she doesn't get proper treatment within 46 hours, she'll die."
Vishwa gently laid Priya on the ground and turned to the girl—eyes pleading, hands shaking. Then he grabbed her collar.
Vishwa: "Tell me where. Please. A map—directions—anything."
Girl: "Who is she to you? Your niece?"
Vishwa: "No… she's my daughter."
His voice cracked.
Vishwa: "Please. Just help me save her."
Girl: "There might not even be doctors there. And those things—they're everywhere. You'll get killed."
Vishwa: (softly) "I don't care. I've wasted too much of my life thinking only of myself. She deserves better."
A long silence.
Then the man spoke.
Girl's Father: "I'll take you."
Girl: "Dad—no. He's going to get you killed."
Girl's Father: "If it were you lying there… I'd want someone to help. So I will."
Vishwa collapsed to his knees.
Vishwa: "Thank you. Thank you. I swear I'll do whatever it takes."
Girl: "Fine. I'll help. But only until the hospital. After that—you're on your own. Got it?"
Vishwa: "That's enough."
Girl: "I'm Rekha. This is my father, Jai."
Jai: "We'll leave in a few hours. I have a car."
Vishwa: "Thank you. Is there a room we can rest in?"
Rekha: "Come with me."
She led them to a small back room. Dusty bed. Cracked walls.
Vishwa laid Priya down and cleaned her wounds with whatever he could find.
Rekha slipped out without a word.
---
That day…
I should've known.
Never trust anyone.
---
An hour passed.
I gathered our things, lifted Priya gently in my arms, and stepped into the hallway.
Me: "We're ready. Let's—"
The hallway was empty.
No Rekha.
No Jai.
No voices.
No car.
I walked faster. Confused.
At the entrance—
The food bag.
Gone.
I peeked out the door.
There they were.
Driving away.
Me: "HEY!"
I grabbed a rock and hurled it.
She caught it.
And threw it again—not at me.
At a nearby orc.
Rekha (screaming): "You're a fucking idiot, Vishwa. You should've died with that girl."
My breath caught.
The orc turned its head.
Eyes locked onto me.
She didn't just leave us.
She offered us.
---
The orc stomped forward.
And that's when something inside me… clicked.
I looked up at the sky.
Red. The kind of red that looks painted in blood.
The moon? Even darker.
The orc was enormous. Muscles coiled like rope, face twisted with hatred.
But it was slow.
All this time—I hadn't noticed.
Not because it wasn't true.
But because I was too scared to see it.
If I stayed calm—if I moved smart—
Maybe I had a chance.
I tightened my grip around Priya and ran.
Not to escape.
But toward something.
The knife shop.
---
THUD.
Another orc.
Same one from the train station.
It grabbed me by the head—lifted me like I was trash.
Its grip was loose. It wasn't trying to kill me yet.
It was playing.
Letting me know who had the power.
I felt the pressure building in my skull—like a balloon about to pop.
Me (barely whispering): "You like games?"
I twisted just enough to slide the knife from my pocket—
And jammed it into its eye.
The orc shrieked. It dropped me.
We both hit the ground. Hard.
Me: "Priya… you okay?"
She blinked. Stirred. Saw the monster.
Screamed. Sheer terror.
Me: "Priya—listen to me. You see that knife shop? Run there. Don't stop. Don't look back."
Priya: "But what about—"
Me (shouting): "GO!"
She ran.
I turned back toward the orc. It was roaring, clutching its eye.
Then it picked up a weapon.
A jagged, rusted baton.
It swung.
I ducked—barely.
The wind from it stung my skin.
Me (thinking): Big swings. Wide arcs. Gaps in between.
It howled again.
I ran in and stabbed the other eye.
More screams.
More blood.
I remembered Rishab's body.
Sohib's headless corpse.
I clenched the knife with both hands—
And kept stabbing.
Its face.
Its jaw.
Its throat.
Over and over.
It tried to swat me. Grab me.
But I ducked. Slipped under.
And stabbed again.
Until it stopped moving.
Until it was just a twitching heap of meat.
And then—
It fell.
A horrible, wet thud.
I dropped to my knees. Gasping.
I didn't feel like a hero.
I wasn't even sure I felt alive.
I didn't win.
I survived.
---
I turned back to Priya.
But then I stopped.
Because—
We weren't alone anymore.
A dozen orcs.
Maybe more.
Standing in silence.
Watching.
Eyes full of hate.
I had killed one of their own.
Now they wanted blood.
Mine.