The Shadow Before Sunrise

The forest was silent after Aghori disappeared.
Only the sound of the wind moved through the broken trees.
Dust still floated in the air like tiny white feathers.

Rudra stood quietly, staring at the spot where Aghori vanished.
His fists were shaking.
His heartbeat was fast.
Inside him, he could still feel the cold emptiness of Vaitarak — the monstrous form he became.

Hiroshi slowly walked to him.

“Rudra… are you okay?”

Rudra took a deep breath before answering.

“I… I don’t know. I still feel something inside me. Like someone is watching me from inside my own body.”

Valmiki, sitting weakly against a tree, nodded.

“That is Vaitarak’s leftover energy. It will not disappear easily. You must learn to control it.”

Rudra turned to Valmiki, worried.

“But the bracelet is broken. I cannot transform now. Aghori will attack again soon!”

Valmiki closed his eyes and smiled faintly.

“That bracelet was only the beginning. You, Rudra… your body has already opened the path to more powers. But you must be careful. Power without balance becomes destruction.”

Rudra felt scared.
He looked at his own hands.

“Will I… turn into a monster again?”

Valmiki didn’t answer immediately.

Hiroshi stayed beside Rudra and said, “We will help you. No matter what happens.”

Rudra felt a small smile return to his face.

Valmiki stood up slowly, using a stick to support himself.

“We must leave this forest. Aghori is planning something terrible. I can feel the dark energy building far away.”

Hiroshi asked, “Are more monsters coming?”

“Yes,” Valmiki said. “Many more.”

Rudra and Hiroshi helped Valmiki walk through the broken forest.

After some distance, they reached the end of the jungle path.
A soft white light appeared in front of them — Valmiki’s magic portal.

“Go home, Rudra. Your body needs rest. Today, you fought a monster inside your own heart. That battle is the hardest.”

Rudra nodded and stepped into the portal.
Hiroshi followed him.
Valmiki came last.

Suddenly — WHOOSH!
They appeared near Rudra’s town.

It was night.
The streetlights glowed.
The world looked peaceful, like nothing happened.

Rudra felt strange.

“How can everything look normal… when a war is happening somewhere else?”

Valmiki placed a hand on his shoulder.

“That is why we fight. So the world can sleep peacefully.”

Rudra looked up at the stars.

“Will it stay peaceful?”

Valmiki shook his head.

“Not for long.”

Rudra reached his house.
The door was open a little.
His father’s shoes were outside.

Rudra whispered, “Dad must be home.”

Hiroshi said, “I’ll go home too. My parents will be worried.”

Rudra smiled. “Thanks for helping me today. You were brave.”

Hiroshi replied, “We’re friends. I’ll always help you.”

He ran off.

Rudra took a deep breath and entered his house.

His father, Detective Aryan Singha, sat on the sofa with files and photos spread everywhere.
Pictures of Agni, Rakshasa, and destroyed streets were scattered on the table.

Aryan didn’t notice Rudra enter.

He was staring at a report and whispering:

“These monsters… what are they? Something is wrong. Something huge is coming.”

Rudra’s heart stopped for a moment.

His father was investigating everything.
If he discovered the truth…

Rudra could be in danger.

He quietly walked to his room.

When he reached his bed, he collapsed on it, fully exhausted.

His body hurt everywhere.
His mind was blurred.
His eyes were closing slowly.

Before sleeping, he whispered:

“Please… don’t let me turn into a monster again…”

Within seconds, he fell asleep.

While Rudra slept, Valmiki walked far from the town and entered an old abandoned temple.
Inside, candles lit automatically with his presence.
A large ancient circle was drawn on the floor.

Valmiki sat in the center.
He folded his legs, closed his eyes, and began to meditate.

He whispered:

“The time is near… Aghori will strike soon. I must be ready.”

Golden energy slowly covered his body.

But suddenly…

A deep wound on his back opened again.
Blood fell on the floor.

Valmiki groaned.

“That fight with Vaitarak… it took too much energy. If I don’t heal soon, I won’t be able to face Aghori again.”

Still, he forced himself to continue meditating.

Candles around him flickered.
The wind inside the temple grew stronger.
Magic symbols started rising from the floor.

He whispered:

“I must gain the strength of the Seven Sages again… before the dark army rises.”

Outside the temple, something moved in the shadows.

A pair of glowing red eyes watched Valmiki from the darkness…

Far away, in a deep underground cave filled with smoke and fire, Aghori stood in front of a giant black cauldron.
Fire surrounded him.
Monsters’ skulls hung from the walls.

He lifted both hands and laughed.

“Valmiki saved the boy again. How long will he protect him? The child will fall soon.”

His servants knelt before him.

One said, “Master, the dark energy is almost ready.”

Aghori’s eyes glowed.

“Good. Bring me the Shadow Blood.”

They brought a metal bowl filled with thick black liquid.

Aghori poured the liquid into the cauldron.

Suddenly—

SPLASH! BOOM!

Black smoke exploded from it.

From inside the smoke, a creature slowly rose.

A large demon, eight feet tall, with chains around its arms, glowing white eyes, and a mouth that opened sideways.

Aghori smiled.

“Welcome… Zarvak. My new soldier.”

The monster growled loudly, shaking the cave.

Aghori touched its forehead and said:

“You will bring me the boy. The boy has the key. The boy has the gate. The boy has the path.”

Zarvak roared.

Aghori laughed loudly.

“The war is coming, Rudra. And this time… even Valmiki won’t save you.”

That same night, Rudra tossed in his sleep.

He was dreaming.

He saw a dark world.
A broken sky.
Fire rising from the ground.
Monsters everywhere.
And in the middle…

Himself.

But not normal.
Not human.

He saw himself as Vaitarak again… only stronger, larger, and more terrifying.

Rudra (in the dream) shouted, “NO! I won’t become this!”

But the monster version of him smiled wickedly.

“You already are.”

The monster reached out to grab him—

Rudra woke up suddenly, breathing fast.

Sweat covered his face.

His heart raced.

“What is happening to me…?” he whispered.

A faint glow appeared on his wrist where the bracelet used to be.

For a moment… he saw a shadow mark on his skin.

A mark shaped like a demon’s eye.

It faded after a moment.

Rudra stared in fear.

“Am I… changing again?”

Rudra couldn’t sleep again.
He sat near his window and watched the night sky.

Far away, in the forest, he saw a strange black light rise into the air.

He whispered:

“Aghori…”

He didn’t know that the monster Zarvak was already on the way…

And Valmiki, weak and bleeding inside the temple, sensed it too.

The war was coming faster than anyone expected.