Zain: "Oh, wow! The bathroom is way better than the last time I came. I can't wait to see what they did with the toilet seats." Opens the door "Wow, they look so pretty and modern. I can't wait to enjoy myself in there!" Sit's on the toilet seat "Ahhh… They are so warm and relaxing. This feels like heaven." Say's with extreme happiness
As Zain was enjoying the time of his life on the toilet seat, Hitesh, on the other hand, wasn't having such comfort.
Hitesh: "Finally, all the guests are here." He say's while stretching his arms "Man, Organizing this party drained me. Setting up the security was particularly challenging." He say's while reflecting the security cost "I can't believe Aarav convinced me to have such tight security for this party. But when he made that request, he seemed as scared as when he returned from school a few months ago.
He even begged me to withdraw him from school in the middle of the academic year. I can't believe he even asked me to not invite Mr. Revansh's family! What was he even thinking back then? I don't know what he's up to. Boys these days just don't share anything with their parents anymore." He say's with a bit of disappointment.
Overwhelmed by his thoughts, Hitesh decided to take a walk before the food service to clear his mind.
Hitesh: "Too bad I couldn't admire the beautiful starry night properly." Heads towards entrance "Well, I can spare a few minutes." Looks up "Wow, the sky is exceptionally luminous tonight. The brilliant stars have lit it all up! Well now all that's left is the arrival of obsidian and the party will go smoothly"
He desired to enjoy the sight for a few more minutes, but destiny had other plans for him.
Hitesh: Notices a guard lying motionless on the ground "Huh? Why is he on the floor?"
His voice came out as a barely audible whisper carried over by the noise of the party. His confusion quickly turned to concern as he realized no one seemed to be attending to the fallen guard "Why isn't anyone helping him?" His concern turned into fear as he saw a slow stream of dark red liquid seeping from nearby, drifting away from the guard.
A shiver started going down his back as he walked towards the guard on the ground. Each step felt like eternity. His heart beat fast and loud in his chest. His hands got sweaty, and he felt cold sweat on his forehead as he got closer. He was scared and worried about what he might find.
As he drew closer, the dim light revealed the guard lying in a pool of crimson, the metallic scent of blood thick in the air. Hitesh staggered back, his breath catching in his throat. "What the..." His words trailed off into a strangled gasp as he took in the gruesome sight before him.
The guard's uniform was soaked through with blood, he appeared as pale as the moon looming overhead. A sickening sensation stirred in Hitesh's stomach, bile rising in his throat. He pressed a trembling hand to his mouth, his entire body trembling with shock and horror.
"OH SHIT!!" The expletive escaped his lips involuntarily, punctuating the air with a sharp intensity. His mind reeled with disbelief and terror, unable to comprehend the gruesome scene unfolding before him. "What the hell happened here?" His voice cracked with fear, the words barely audible over the pounding of his heart.
He glanced around frantically, his gaze falling upon the other guards scattered across the ground, each one lying still in their own pool of blood. Dread coiled in the pit of his stomach, a suffocating weight pressing down on him. "Why the hell are all the guards..." His voice trailed off, choked with horror and disbelief. The realization of the magnitude of the situation washed over him like a tidal wave.
He attempted to rush back to the venue to alert the guests and the security stationed inside, nearly stumbling due to his trembling legs, a result of the fear instilled by the gruesome sight he had just witnessed. Little did he know, he was the next target.
Hitesh: "I have to..." Breath's heavily "I have to go back." He muttered trembling with extreme fear "My family! I have to protect them!" "Ouch! Ahh..." "What was that?" He reached up to check what had bitten him, his fingers finding a small needle. "Huh? Such a small needle? Where did this came from?" He shook his head, pushing aside the distraction. "I don't have time for this. I have to go back and protect my family and warn Miss Neha about the situation." He sprinted towards the venue
As Hitesh sprinted back into the venue, his mind raced with thoughts and questions. "Aarav...did he knew? Was that why he insisted on Obsidian's protection? And the Revansh family - why did he beg to exclude them?" He wanted the answers as badly as he wanted to live, but his first priority was to save his loved ones.
Hitesh burst through the venue doors, He scanned the sea of faces, searching for anyone he could trust, anyone who could comprehend the nightmarish reality he now faced.
But as he scanned the crowd, his heart sank. How could he possibly convey the brutal slaughter he'd witnessed without inciting sheer panic? He had to act, had to raise the alarm, but revealing such grisly horrors carried its own terrible risks.
Then, like a lifeline, he spotted Neha by the buffet table.
"Neha!" He half-shouted, then reined in his voice to an urgent whisper as heads turned his way. "Neha, we have to get out of here. Now."
Neha turned to him with a concerned expression. "Hitesh, what's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."
He grabbed her arm, pulling her close to murmur in her ear. "It's Aarav...I think he's involved in something terrible."
Neha: "Involved in what? You're not making any sense."
Hitesh's gaze danced around the room, seemingly checking for eavesdroppers before responding in a tremulous voice. "The guards...outside...all dead. Butchered."
Neha paled, her eyes going wide. "What? How...?"
"I don't know, but we can't stay here a second longer." Hitesh started gazing around looking for his children and wife, his movements furtive. "Where are your kids? We have to find them right now."
Neha resisted, planting her feet. "My kids? Hitesh, tell me what the hell is going on this instant!"
Hitesh: "The guards... they're all dead," he whispered, his voice trembling with fear. "I found all of them outside, sinking in their own blood. And I think... I think we might be next."
Neha's hand flew to her mouth in horror. "Dear god...you think Aarav had something to do with this?" she gasped out. "But why?"
Hitesh: "I don't know why," Hitesh said grimly. "But one thing's for sure - we are not safe here. Not anymore"
Neha: "That's not possible! Don't tell me even Obsidian is...?" Her voice trailed off, not daring to finish the thought.
Hitesh: "No, he's still not here! And that's the problem!" Hitesh's eyes widened with urgency. "There's only 10 minutes until his scheduled arrival. But at this rate, I don't know if we'll even..." He doubled over, wracked by a sudden, violent coughing fit. Gasping for air between ragged hacks, he clutched at his chest.
Neha: "Hitesh!" She rushed to his side, steadying him with trembling hands. "What's happening? Why are you coughing like this?"
Hitesh tried to speak, to reassure her, but the words never came. Instead, a torrent of crimson erupted from his lips, splattering Neha's hands, her dress, the floor around them.
His eyes met hers, wide with shock and horror as the blood kept pouring out in thick streams. Within seconds, soon his organs followed too. He soon crumpled to the floor, lying in a rapidly expanding scarlet pool.
Neha's scream cut through the din of the party, silencing the crowd. All heads swiveled toward the gruesome scene - Hitesh's blood-soaked body trembling, Neha covered in blood, every guest stunned, watching in absolute fear.
With his last strength, Hitesh gazed toward the entrance. There, framed in the doorway, stood a figure under the moon light that drained every ounce of color from his face. The monster - the single man who struck fear into the hearts of the entire country, the single man who had the power to annihilate the whole country. The Black Death had arrived!
Now it was horrifyingly clear to Hitesh why Aarav had so desperately sought Obsidian's protection.
Meeting him is a faith worse than death! As realization blazed in Hitesh's fading eyes, the last thing he witnessed was the embodiment of his worst nightmare made flesh.
The massacre, it seemed, had well and truly begun from within the venue's walls.