Ashen vale vanishes

1. The Valley That Should Exist… But Doesn’t
Kedar stood alone under a burning-red sky.
Moments ago, Ashen Vale felt like a battlefield.
Now…A sudden wind storm swept across the dunes — hot, heavy, unnatural.
When the dust settled…
Kedar froze.
The entire vale was gone.Wiped clean.No melted glass.No claw marks.No scorch trails.No communicator.
Just untouched, ordinary sand.
Kedar whispered:
“…What… what kind of power erases a whole place?”
Even Karkotak, a monstrous king, could not do this.
Something inside the earth pulsed faintly — a lingering trace of wind prana twined with fire.
Kedar:“Shakti… Aryan… I will find you.”

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2. The Burned Footprints That Defy Logic
He walked deeper into the dunes, searching for anything. Minutes turned to hours.
Finally, near a lone dead tree, he saw them—
Footprints.But not human.Not animal.Not prana-born.
Each step burned several inches into solid rock.
And beside them…
Familiar imprints — two pairs.
Shakti’s lighter step pattern.Aryan’s heavier boots.
The three sets of tracks moved together……until they reached a cliff wall.
Then the human footprints stopped.
The burned monstrous footprints continued upward —
—straight up the vertical stone.As if gravity didn’t matter.
Kedar clenched his fists.
“A creature that carries people… and walks on cliffs……this is no normal prana beast.”

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3. Village of Echoes — Dwija-Pur
Night fell as Kedar reached a small village at the edge of a ravine — Dwija-Pur.
The place was quiet. Too quiet.
A few old clay houses.A dried-up well.Wind chimes made of bone swayed eerily.
As he entered, villagers peeked from behind doors… terrified.
An elder stepped forward, trembling.
Elder:“Are you… from the Ashram?”
Kedar nodded. “My friends were taken. I’m tracking something—”
The elder interrupted, shaking violently:
“Do not speak of him at night!His wings wander after sundown.”
Kedar blinked. “Him…?”
The elder shut his mouth immediately.
A woman rushed from a hut and pulled the elder back.“No more! He listens!”
Kedar could feel it — the entire village was on edge. Fear hung in the air like dust.
He lowered his tone.“Please. Anything you know. Anything at all.”
After a long silence, an old child — no more than 6 — tugged Kedar’s sleeve.
Boy (whisper):“He took my father too…The one with burning wings.”
Kedar’s heart dropped.
The villagers gasped.“Child! Don’t—!”
But it was too late.
A sharp gust of wind slashed across the village — not natural wind.It stung like tiny blades.
Kedar’s eyes widened.
A warning.
He was near.

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4. The Forbidden Stone Marker
The elder, frightened but resigned, pointed toward the ravine.
Elder:“If you truly wish to follow the creature…there is a marker on the cliff path.We villagers… we never cross it.Those who cross… never return.”
Kedar bowed.“Thank you. I’ll come back with my friends.”
The elder whispered as Kedar left:
“Boy… when you find him…don’t look into his eyes.They say he sees the weakness in your soul.”
Kedar shivered.

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5. The Path of Carved Wings
Moonlight spilled over the ravine.
Kedar climbed the worn stone path until he found it:
A giant boulder carved with wings —the left wing made of scorched stone,the right wing etched in swirling spiral patterns like wind.
A symbol.
A warning.
Maybe… a claim of territory.
As he stepped past the winged boulder, the temperature instantly dropped.
The wind died.
The desert went silent.
Then—
HSSSHHHHH—
A feather made of fire-wind prana sliced past his cheek, embedding into the rock behind him, melting it like wax.
Kedar’s breath hitched.
From above, a deep voice echoed through the canyon:
> “Why do you pursue me, little flame?”


Kedar’s heart pounded.
He turned slowly…
But the figure was already gone — just a ripple of heat in the air.

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6. The Cliffhanger
Kedar stood alone on the canyon ledge.Wind whistled.Sand danced.Everything felt like a battlefield waiting to happen.
Then he noticed something wedged in the rocks:
Shakti’s hairpin.Snapped in two.Still warm.
Kedar’s eyes hardened with resolve.
“I’m coming for you.”
He pocketed the pin…and walked deeper into the canyon.
The wind shifted behind him — almost whispering:
> “Grow stronger… before I break you.”
To be continued.....