Arya, still cloaked in her disguise, had been wandering through the kingdom when she stumbled upon a grand wedding procession. The sight was enough to stop her in her tracks. The princess, dressed in a stunning gown of shimmering gold and ivory, was radiant, her every step making the delicate fabric ripple like waves. Flowers adorned her hair, and the light of the midday sun made the jewels in her crown sparkle like stars. The entire town was abuzz with joy, laughter, and music.
Arya felt a pang in her chest as she watched the celebration from the sidelines. Memories of her own past came rushing back—back to when she was known as Tanvi, the renowned designer who created dresses just like the one the princess was wearing. Back when her name carried weight in noble circles, and her business had soared to unprecedented heights. It all felt like a lifetime ago now, lost in the whirlwind of secrets, lies, and running for her life.
"Seems like a good time for a free meal," she muttered under her breath, her stomach growling.
She joined the crowd of guests gathered near the banquet tables, easily blending in with the throngs of well-wishers. The food was plentiful, and no one seemed to mind another hungry guest. Arya helped herself to a generous portion of rice, fruits, and sweets, savoring the brief moment of normalcy.
After filling her belly, she began her quiet inquiries, moving from one guest to another. "Excuse me," she would say politely, her voice low, "have you heard of a man named Rohan? He's my older brother. I've been searching for him."
But no one had heard of him. Not the older women gossiping over tea, not the young men jesting by the bar, nor the merchants who had come from distant towns. Arya's hope dwindled with each fruitless conversation.
It wasn't until dusk began to fall that someone finally approached her. A boy—barely in his teens, skinny with unruly hair—slipped out of the crowd and tugged on her sleeve. "Hey," he whispered, his eyes darting around nervously. "I know who you're looking for."
Arya's heart skipped a beat. "You do?"
"Follow me." The boy beckoned her to a narrow alley away from the bustle of the wedding.
Suspicious but intrigued, Arya followed him, keeping a hand on the hilt of her dagger just in case. The alley was dim, the air thick with the smell of damp earth. When they were out of sight from the crowd, the boy turned to face her.
"You're looking for Rohan," he stated, his voice low. "But he never had a brother."
Arya tensed. "What do you mean?"
"He told me once—Rohan, I mean—that he had two close friends," the boy continued, "two women who ran a famous business together. I think you're one of them."
For a moment, Arya felt like the ground had fallen away beneath her feet. "You knew Rohan?" she asked, her voice shaking slightly. "How?"
The boy nodded. "I met him a few months ago. He helped me when I was in trouble. But after that... something happened."
Arya took a step closer, her eyes narrowing. "What happened? Tell me everything."
The boy glanced around again, as if expecting someone to overhear them. "He was attacked," he whispered. "By a beast."
Arya frowned. "A beast? You mean some kind of criminal? Or a soldier?"
The boy shook his head. "No. A real beast. Something... not human."
Arya stared at him, her mind racing. "What are you talking about?"
"This world," the boy explained, lowering his voice even further, "it's connected to another world. A world of beasts. Most of the time, the doors between our world and theirs are closed, but sometimes they open. When they do, creatures from their world can come here, and people from our world can go there."
Arya felt a chill run down her spine. She had heard myths and stories about strange creatures from other realms, but she had always dismissed them as mere folklore. Yet the boy's tone was serious, and his eyes were filled with a mixture of fear and urgency.
"Are you saying Rohan went to this... other world?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.
"I don't know for sure," the boy admitted, "but after he was attacked, he disappeared. I haven't seen him since. The last thing he told me was that he was going to find a way to stop the beasts from crossing over. Maybe... maybe he found one of the doors."
Arya felt her heart racing. She wasn't sure if she believed the boy's tale, but if there was even a grain of truth to it, it meant Rohan was in more danger than she had ever imagined. But why would he go to such lengths? What had he discovered?
"How do you know all this?" Arya asked, her suspicion returning. "How do you know about these doors?"
"I've seen one," the boy replied, his voice trembling slightly. "Near the mountains. It was only open for a moment, but I saw... something. Something huge."
Arya's mind whirled with the possibilities. Could this be the reason for Rohan's disappearance? Had he ventured into this mysterious world of beasts in search of answers? The thought was terrifying, but she couldn't ignore the possibility. If Rohan was out there, she had to find him—before it was too late.
"I need to see this door," Arya said, her voice firm. "Can you show me where it is?"
The boy hesitated, glancing at her with a mix of fear and curiosity. "Are you sure? It's dangerous. You might not come back."
"I don't care," Arya replied, her eyes blazing with determination. "If there's a chance Rohan's in that world, I have to go. He's my friend. I can't leave him behind."
The boy nodded slowly. "I can't maybe door is not open now." he said. "Why don't you go and take a look for yourself. But you need to be careful. The beasts... they're not like anything you've seen before."
Arya took a deep breath, steeling herself for the journey ahead. She didn't know what awaited her in the world beyond, but she knew one thing for certain: she couldn't turn back now.
She said, her voice unwavering. "It's time to find Rohan."
The mountain air was cold and thin as Arya—once known as Tanvi—stood at the peak, staring out at the endless horizon. She had been searching for hours, combing through the dense forest at the base and scaling the rocky cliffs, but there was nothing. Not a single trace that Rohan had ever been there.
Her heart sank. The boy's words echoed in her mind, and yet here she was, with no proof that Rohan had entered this so-called beast world. She crouched down, running her fingers through the dirt, hoping for any clue—anything at all. But it was futile. Rohan, if he had been there, had left no sign behind.
"Damn it," she muttered under her breath, her frustration boiling over.
The wind howled around her, as if mocking her futile efforts. She pulled her cloak tighter around her shoulders and began descending the mountain, her thoughts racing. Every person she had questioned in the villages below had confirmed it: the stories of a beast world were not just rumors. The gates to this other realm did open—but their timing was unpredictable, their locations even more so. No one knew for sure when the doors would appear, only that they always did during the rare moments of a solar eclipse.
And that was when the realization hit her, hard.
She had been walking in the wrong direction the entire time.
Arya stopped dead in her tracks, her breath catching in her throat. She felt a wave of heat rise to her face, a mix of anger and embarrassment. How had she been so blind? How had she let herself wander so far off course? She had heard rumors, followed leads, but they had all taken her in the opposite direction of where she needed to go.
"No," she muttered, shaking her head. "I can't believe I've been this stupid."
Furious with herself, Arya fished out the map from her satchel and spread it across the ground. She knelt down and began tracing her fingers over the lines and markings, her heart pounding as she tried to focus. The solar eclipse… it was the key. She remembered reading something about geographical locations where the alignment would be most visible. Her hands trembled as she reviewed the notes she had hastily scribbled earlier.
There it was—a location far south from where she was now. She had been moving north this whole time, following false leads and misguided rumors. She cursed under her breath again, wanting to scream out her frustration into the open air.
"How could I be so reckless?" she hissed. "I've wasted so much time."
She crumpled the map in her hands, feeling the weight of her mistakes pressing down on her. Every step she had taken, every moment she had spent in search of Rohan, had been in the wrong direction. She had been walking in circles while the answer had been right in front of her all along.
But now she knew. The beast world gates only opened during solar eclipses, and the next one was in two days. She had to be there—at the right place—before it was too late.
Arya stood up, her jaw clenched, determination surging through her veins. She couldn't afford to waste another moment. She had to turn around, retrace her steps, and make her way to the southern plains, where the eclipse would be most visible.
Taking a deep breath, she folded the map and shoved it back into her satchel. There was no time for self-pity, no time to dwell on her missteps. If Rohan was out there, she would find him. She would cross through the gate if she had to, face the beasts, and bring him back.
Without looking back at the mountain, Arya began her descent with renewed purpose, her pace quickening as she moved toward her new destination. The thought of the eclipse ticking closer filled her with urgency.
The dim light of dusk had already begun to settle over the town as Arya made her way through the winding streets, her cloak pulled tightly around her. The poster of her former identity—Tanvi—seemed to be everywhere. The guards were still looking for her, so she had to remain cautious. She had slipped out of sight, moving like a shadow until she finally reached the small alley where she had arranged to meet the boy.
He was there, sitting on a worn crate, looking nervous and fidgeting with the hem of his tunic. When he saw Arya approach, he straightened up, his youthful face lighting up with both hope and fear.
"You came," the boy said, his voice trembling slightly. "I—I wasn't sure if you would."
"I'm here," Arya said, her voice steady, though her mind was still racing. "We don't have much time, so let's talk quickly. You said your brother once went into the beast world, but he never came back. Tell me everything."
The boy, whose name was Vikram, nodded and began to speak, his words tumbling out in a rush. "My brother… it was three years ago. There was a solar eclipse, and he went up to the mountains. He had been hearing stories about the gate to the beast world for years, but that day, he swore he felt something. He left without telling anyone, just disappeared. When we realized he was gone, we searched everywhere, but no one saw him after that. No body, no tracks, nothing."
Arya listened carefully, her brow furrowed in concentration. This wasn't the first story she had heard of people disappearing into the beast world, but it felt different this time. There was something about Vikram's desperation, his belief that his brother might still be out there somewhere, trapped in the parallel world.
"And you've been checking the mountain ever since?" Arya asked.
Vikram nodded again, looking down at the ground. "Every time I hear word eclipse, I go up there and wait. I watch for anything—any sign that the door might open again. But nothing ever happens. I thought maybe this time, with the eclipse coming… maybe it will be different."
Arya stared at him for a long moment, weighing her options. He was just a boy, reckless and naïve, but he was also her only lead. She had no one else to trust, and she couldn't shake the feeling that Vikram's brother and Rohan might be connected somehow. The beast world was a dangerous place, but if there was even a small chance that Rohan had gone through the gate, she had to follow the lead.
"You want to come with me, don't you?" Arya said finally, her eyes narrowing as she studied the boy.
Vikram looked up, startled. "I—I know the way. And I can help. My brother… if he's still out there, I want to find him. And maybe we can find your friend too."
Arya sighed, rubbing her temples. She didn't want to drag a child into something so dangerous, but she also knew she couldn't do this alone. The path ahead was uncertain, and if they were heading into the unknown, it might help to have someone who had been there before—or at least knew the stories well enough.
"Alright," she said, her voice firm. "You can come with me. But you listen to me, and you do exactly as I say. This isn't going to be easy, and I don't have time to babysit you. Understood?"
Vikram's eyes widened with a mixture of fear and determination, but he nodded quickly. "I understand."
"Good. We leave at first light," Arya said, turning away. "Get whatever supplies you need, and be ready. This journey could take days, and we might not find anything. But if the gate opens during the eclipse, we have to be there."
Vikram stood, visibly trembling but filled with resolve. "I'll be ready."
As Arya walked away from the alley, her heart pounded in her chest. She had no idea what awaited them on this journey—whether they would find Rohan, Vikram's brother, or even the gate itself. But she couldn't turn back now. The path was set, and she would walk it, no matter how dangerous it became.
When she reached the edge of the town, she pulled out her map once again, tracing the path they would take through the mountains. The solar eclipse was fast approaching, and they didn't have much time.
"Rohan," she whispered into the night, "if you're out there, I'm coming. Just hold on."
With that, she folded the map and set off to prepare for the journey ahead.