**That night - Samiul's Dream**
He finds himself in the same position, bound by ropes. He starts pulling against the restraints and realizes he can move them slightly.
The monsters attack him again, cutting him in half and torturing him.
After repeated cycles of torture, when one of the monsters pulls Samiul and prepares to bite his head, Samiul slips away and starts running towards the portal.
One of the monsters catches him again, dragging him back and resuming the torment.
---
In the dream, Samiul's desperation turns into determination. He focuses on the slight movement he achieved earlier. With each cycle of torture, he uses the pain to fuel his efforts, tugging at the ropes harder each time.
As the monsters prepare for another round of torment, Samiul takes a deep breath and channels all his energy into one final pull. The ropes loosen just enough for him to slip free.
He sprints toward the portal, his heart pounding. The monsters roar in anger and give chase. Just as one of them lunges to grab him, and again starts torturing.
**That night**
A man and a woman were walking down an empty, dark road.
"It's soo late . I feel scared, Ujal," said the woman.
"Don't worry, Athoi. We're almost there. It's the train's fault. If it hadn't been delayed, we would have gotten here earlier," Ujal reassured her.
"I think we're going the wrong way. I don't remember this place," Athoi said, her voice tinged with anxiety.
"Yeah, I think so too. Wait, let me check the map," said Ujal, pulling out his phone. He tried to see the map but found there was no network.
"Oh no, no network. Okay, let me find a spot with a signal," Ujal said, frustration evident in his voice.
"Do whatever you need to, but do it quickly," Athoi urged.
Suddenly, a male voice came from behind them. "Mister, you won't get any network here. This place isn't safe."
"Who's there?" Athoi asked, her voice shaking.
"We? We're just some good people here to entertain you," one man said, a sinister tone in his voice.
"What do you mean?" Athoi asked, fear creeping in.
"I don't know who you are, but can you tell us how to get to Mittagong?" Ujal asked, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Yeah, sure," said another man.
Before Ujal could react, a man with a metal bat struck him on the head. Ujal fell to the ground, unconscious.
The man with the bat started dragging Ujal towards a tree.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Athoi cried, trying to stop the man.
Three other men approached and began pulling Athoi away.
"What are you doing? Help! Help!" Athoi screamed.
The man with the bat tied Ujal to a tree while the others began to tear Athoi's clothes off.
"No! No! Help! Please, let me go!" Athoi screamed, but her cries were met with cruel laughter.
"No one will hear you, sweetheart," one of the men said.
The men threw themselves on her, tearing her clothes further and one guy pulled her pants off and pushed his penis on her vagaina . Athoi's screams filled the night, but there was no one to hear.
They started to rape Athoi from all side and all way possible. Athoi screams and her weak body cant do anything to stop their torture.
After they finished, one man asked, "Should we kill her?"
"What else can we do? Kill her and throw her in the jungle ?" another man said.
The man with the metal bat grabbed a knife and stabbed Athoi in the head. She screamed one last time before dying instantly.
"I wanted to do another round," one of the men said, disappointment in his voice.
"She's dead, so what? As long as there's a hole, there's a way," another man said, laughing.
The men continued to rape Athoi's lifeless body.
**The next day**
In the house, a middle-aged man was watching TV.
The news anchor began a grim report: "The rape rate in Bangladesh is increasing day by day. Yesterday, we reported two incidents of rape, and today, only a few hours into the day, we have another tragic case. Police have discovered the body of a raped woman and a man's body in a tree bush. Through their phones, we identified the victims as Athoi and Ujal. It's believed Athoi's family had forcefully arranged her marriage, leading her to flee with her boyfriend. They were headed to Mithagonj but took a wrong turn, ending in their deaths. In a shocking twist, the perpetrators first raped Athoi, then killed her, and continued to violate her lifeless body. Police are working tirelessly to find the criminals responsible."
"Oh my god, what's happening every day? The world is becoming unlivable," the man muttered.
A girl walked in from another room and picked up the remote. "Dad, why are you watching this kind of stuff? I've told you many times to avoid such news," she said.
"Zara, I know. Every time I see these reports, it reminds me of your sister. But you can't deny the world isn't safe," he replied.
"Where is brother?" Zara asked.
"That idiot is sleeping in his room," the man said with a hint of affection.
Zara walked to the door and started putting on her shoes. "Dad, I'm going for a walk. I won't be back before 7 am," she said.
Zara glanced at the clock and saw it was 5:48 am.
"Zara, I think you shouldn't go outside alone," her father cautioned.
"Big brother is sleeping, and besides, don't worry. Nothing will happen to me," Zara reassured him before leaving the house.
**Outside**
Zara stepped into the early morning light, the streets still quiet. She felt the cool breeze against her skin and took a deep breath, trying to shake off the unease from the news report.
**Outside**
Zara walked up to the small mountain beside her town. She stopped in front of a dirt path that circled the mountain. A crow with a purple ribbon perched on a nearby tree spoke, "Well, today you need to run 2 kilometers extra, making your total 44 kilometers."
"Yeah, I know. I can run at a speed of 1.5 kilometers per minute, so it won't take long," Zara replied confidently.
"It will take you about 29 minutes and 30 seconds," the crow, Lu-01, calculated.
"Alright, Lu-01. I'll start my run. This time, I won't stop. If you see any humans nearby, use your hallucination magic."
"Don't worry about that," assured Lu-01.
Zara thought to herself, "The path is a cycle. Each lap is 1 kilometer, so I need to do more than 44 laps."
She began her run, maintaining a steady pace as she circled the path. Time passed, and Zara ran continuously for 30 minutes.
"Your challenge is over. You've completed 44 kilometers," Lu-01 announced.
Still running, Zara said, "I'll do 6 more kilometers."
Four minutes later, she completed 50 kilometers. Exhausted and sweating, she finally stopped and sat on a boulder to catch her breath.
"Wow, you ran 50 kilometers," Lu-01 remarked.
"Yeah, now I just have poison, reflex training, and underwater training left," Zara said, sweating.
**Samiul's Training Place - Day 02**
Samiul lay on the ground, exhausted. "It's too much, Smoke. Yesterday it was 1000 punches, now you're telling me to do 1500. It's too much."
"Not just punches. Every day, your training will increase. Your poison endurance, kicks, and all the other exercises will increase the same way," Smoke said sternly.
"Ahh... That's too much," Samiul groaned.
"Stop complaining and get up," Smoke commanded.
Samiul reluctantly stood up. Smoke pulled a feather and dropped it on the ground. It transformed into a three-meter tall box-like object.
"What's this?" Samiul asked.
"It's the reflex attack training weapon," Smoke explained. "It will throw poison-tipped feathers at you at full speed, and you have to dodge them. If one hits you, you'll feel extreme pain. Yesterday, you were supposed to do 50, but today it's increased to 80."
"Oh," Samiul said, thinking, "So I have to dodge attacks. Seems easy enough."
Smoke summoned three more boxes around Samiul. "Now dodge," Smoke instructed.
The boxes started spinning rapidly.
"What the...?" Samiul started to say, but before he could react, a feather shot from the box behind him and struck his back.
Samiul screamed in pain as the other boxes began shooting feathers at him from all directions. He couldn't dodge any of them, and each hit made him cry out in agony.
After the onslaught ended, Samiul collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain. Smoke landed beside him and began pulling the feathers out one by one.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch," Samiul whimpered with each feather removed.
Smoke worked quickly but carefully. "You need to improve your reflexes, Samiul. This is just the beginning."
"I can't... I can't do it," Samiul gasped.
"You can, and you will," Smoke said firmly. "You're stronger than you think. Now, get up and let's try again."
Samiul took a deep breath, his body still trembling from the pain.
Zara's Training -
In an empty space on the mountain, Lu-01 created four identical boxes around Zara.
"Alright, this time there will be 740 reflex attacks," Lu-01 announced.
"Yah, I am ready," Zara responded confidently.
The feathers started attacking Zara. She easily began dodging them, her movements swift and precise. Suddenly, one of the feathers struck her, but she remained unfazed. The attacks continued, and Zara continued dodging, displaying remarkable agility. In the process, she got hit by seven of them, but she persevered.
As the training ended, Zara started pulling the feathers from her body. Her clothes magically repaired themselves, fixing all the cuts caused by the feathers.
"It was hard today. Maybe because I was tired after 700," Zara remarked.
"Still, you did a good job," Lu-01 praised her.
They began walking down from the mountain.
Both Samiul and Smoke stood in front of a natural river nearby.
"Now, open your clothes and go underwater for the breathing exercise," Smoke instructed.
"Wait, it's cold," Samiul protested.
"It doesn't matter, you have to do it," Smoke insisted.
"No, just do what I said,'' Smoke continued, casting a spell that removed all of Samiul's clothes except his underwear.
"What are you doing?" Samiul exclaimed.
"Now go, or else I will drop you in the water," Smoke threatened, pocking Samiul's head.
Reluctantly, Samiul walked toward the river, feeling scared. Suddenly, Smoke forcefully pushed him, causing Samiul to fall into the water.
"Now, do the underwater breathing," Smoke commanded.
"Alright," Samiul replied, shaking, as he dove underwater.
He held his breath for 50 seconds before trying to resurface, but Smoke stood on top of him and pushed him back underwater.
"Push yourself, or it won't count," Smoke urged.
----------
---
20 million years ago ---
Two figures are locked in combat, wielding swords of gleaming gold.
One figure, with white hair, clashes blades with the other, whose hair is yellow.
Their swords collide with such force that the fabric of space itself quivers.
Swiftly, the figure with white hair launches a surprise attack from behind, driving the sword through the back of the yellow-haired figure's head and cleanly severing it.
With that the reality around them fractures, a tremendous explosion erupts.
To be continued...