The realization changed everything.
For the last several days, they had been treating the possession like a battle happening in the real world. Every strange incident, every missing memory, every nightmare and whispered voice had pointed them in the same direction.
Fight the spirit.
Protect Shristi.
Survive.
But standing inside that abandoned prayer chamber, staring at the thing wearing Shristi's face, Wick finally understood what had been bothering him from the beginning.
The spirit was too strong.
Not because it was powerful.
Because it wasn't fully there.
They had been trying to drag down a shadow while the thing casting it stood somewhere else entirely.
And judging by the sudden change in the entity's expression, he was right.
The confidence disappeared from its face.
Only for a moment.
But Wick saw it.
So did Prishka.
---
"What are you talking about?" Deep asked.
His voice remained steady, but there was concern behind it now.
Wick didn't answer immediately.
His eyes remained fixed on Shristi.
Or rather, on the thing looking through her eyes.
"It's connected to something else," he finally said.
"The body isn't the source."
Dipanshu frowned.
"Okay, great. I understood absolutely none of that."
"The spirit isn't here," Prishka said quietly.
The moment the words left her mouth, the room grew colder.
As if something had just confirmed an uncomfortable truth.
Wick nodded.
"It's somewhere else."
The entity laughed again, though this time the sound carried less confidence than before.
"You know nothing."
"Then why are you afraid?" Wick asked.
The question landed harder than any threat.
The thing inside Shristi's body immediately went silent.
The spirit certainly knew it.
Because the moment the conversation began, it became noticeably more aggressive.
Almost desperate.
"You don't belong there."
The entity's voice cracked through the room.
"You won't be able to come back."
The warning wasn't directed at everyone.
Only Wick.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Rain hammered against the shattered windows while thunder rolled somewhere beyond the mountains. The storm outside felt distant now, almost insignificant compared to what was happening inside the room.
Wick slowly stepped backward.
Not away from the spirit.
Away from the confrontation.
Away from the fight.
Deep noticed first.
"What are you doing?"
"Trying to take control."
Before anyone could ask what that meant, Shristi suddenly lunged forward.
This time the attack wasn't directed at Wick.
It was aimed at Prishka.
The distance between them vanished instantly.
One second Shristi stood near the altar.
The next she was almost on top of her sister.
---
Deep reacted without thinking.
He stepped directly between them.
The impact threw him backward into one of the wooden benches, splintering old timber across the floor.
"Deep!" Dipanshu rushed toward him immediately.
"I'm fine," Deep growled, pushing himself upright.
He was lying.
Everyone knew it.
But he was still standing.
That was enough.
While the others focused on Shristi, Wick moved toward the corner of the room where something had fallen during the struggle.
A silver chain.
His chain.
The necklace he had once given Shristi.
Wick thought that this might be it.
Making shristi the necklace again might help.
But the Spirit was more powerful than them to make it possible.
A deafening crash echoed through the survey house.
Then another.
The sound of splintering wood.
Shattered glass.
A scream that didn't sound entirely human.
The noise carried through every hallway of the building.
Outside the prayer chamber, footsteps thundered up the staircase.
The door burst open.
Kritika right behind him.
Then Varsha.
Dev.
Sonal.
For a moment, nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Because the scene in front of them didn't make sense.
Aryan fully exhausted but fighting.
Deep was hurt in his shoulder.
Dipanshu was struggling to stay on his feet.
The room looked like a hurricane had passed through it.
And Shristi—
Shristi was standing in the middle of the destruction.
Smiling.
The wrong smile.
The one none of them ever wanted to see again.
"What the hell happened?" Dev whispered.
Nobody answered.
Because at that exact moment Shristi's head snapped toward the doorway.
Toward them.
The smile widened.
Prishka felt her negative energy so bad.
The spirit had noticed them.
All of them.
Immediately, Wick stepped between Shristi and the doorway.
His voice came out sharper than anyone had ever heard.
"Aryan."
Aryan looked at him.
For once, there was no joke ready.
No sarcastic reply.
Just understanding.
"Yeah."
"Get everyone out."
Silence.
"Aryan—"
"I heard you."
The response was immediate.
Firm.
Serious.
Wick nodded once.
"Take Them downstairs and you too stay their."
"What about you guys?" Kritika asked.
The answer came from Deep.
"We'll handle this."
Even injured, his voice carried absolute certainty.
Dipanshu pointed toward the hallway.
"Move."
Nobody argued.
Not after seeing the look in Shristi's eyes.
Aryan immediately stepped forward.
"Everybody with me."
Sonal hesitated.
Varsha hesitated.
Almost everyone hesitated.
Then another violent scream erupted from Shristi.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
That was enough.
Aryan grabbed Dev's arm and pushed him toward the corridor.
"Move. Now."
One by one they backed away.
The last thing they saw before leaving was Wick taking a slow step forward.
Toward Shristi.
Toward the spirit.
Toward the fight.
The door slammed shut behind them.
Now only five people remained inside the chamber.
Wick.
Deep.
Dipanshu.
Prishka.
And the thing wearing Shristi's face.
The spirit moved first.
Not Shristi.
The spirit.
A wooden chair lifted from the floor and hurtled across the chamber.
Deep barely ducked.
The chair exploded against the wall behind him.
"Fantastic," Dipanshu growled. "Now it's throwing furniture."
Another object flew.
This time a broken candlestick.
Wick caught it out of the air and threw it aside without taking his eyes off Shristi.
Shristi's body launched forward with terrifying speed.
Dipanshu met her first.
The collision nearly knocked him off his feet.
"What the hell—"
Before he could finish, she twisted free.
A movement no human body should've made.
Deep intercepted her next.
She slammed into his injured shoulder.
Pain exploded through him.
His vision blurred.
Yet he refused to let go.
"NOW!"
Wick moved.
Fast.
Focused.
For the first time since entering the room, something changed in him.
The uncertainty vanished.
The frustration vanished.
Only purpose remained.
His eyes never left Shristi.
Never left the spirit.
The room felt different.
Even Deep noticed it.
Even Dipanshu noticed it.
Wick wasn't angry.
He wasn't panicking.
He was concentrating.
Completely.
Utterly.
Every movement became precise.
Every step calculated.
The spirit noticed too.
Because for the first time—
It stopped smiling.
Shristi lunged again.
Wick caught her wrist.
The impact echoed through the chamber.
For a second neither moved.
The spirit pushed.
Wick pushed back.
The floor beneath them cracked.
Rain hammered against the broken windows.
Thunder shook the building.
Neither cared.
The spirit's eyes narrowed.
As if realizing something.
Then it attacked harder.
Deep grabbed one arm.
Ignoring the fire burning through his shoulder.
Dipanshu grabbed the other.
"She always this strong?" he shouted.
"No!" Deep shouted back.
"GOOD!"
Together they forced her backward.
Not winning.
Not even close.
Just surviving.
The spirit screamed.
A horrible sound.
The walls trembled.
Dust rained from the ceiling.
Dipanshu nearly lost his grip.
Deep nearly collapsed.
But Wick didn't move.
Didn't bend.
Didn't yield.
For the first time since the fight began, the spirit was being forced back.
One step.
Then another.
Then another.
All three pushing together.
All three exhausted.
All three running on pure stubbornness.
The entity's smile finally disappeared.
Rage replaced it.
Ancient.
Violent.
Terrifying.
"LET HER GO!"
The voice exploded through the room.
Deep felt blood trickle from his nose.
Dipanshu's ears rang.
Even Prishka staggered.
Yet somehow—
Wick held.
The spirit looked directly into his eyes.
And for the first time...
It looked uncertain.
Not afraid.
Not yet.
But uncertain.
As if it had expected them to break.
And they simply refused.
Prishka moved.
Straight toward Shristi.
Straight toward the thing all of them struggling against.
Before anyone could stop her, she placed one hand against Shristi's forehead.
Closed her eyes.
And began chanting.
The spirit's expression changed instantly.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
The only sounds inside the abandoned house were the storm outside and everyone's heavy breathing.
Shristi lay unconscious on the wooden floor.
Motionless.
Silent.
After the chaos of the, the silence felt unreal.
Dipanshu was the first to speak.
"What."
He looked at Prishka.
Then at Shristi.
Then back at Prishka.
"What was that?"
Prishka stared at her own hand.
"I have absolutely no idea."
Prishka blinked.
Then looked at her own hand.
"Okay."
A pause.
"I genuinely didn't expect that to work."
Deep slowly lowered himself onto a nearby chair.
His shoulder was throbbing from where the flying chair had hit him.
"You're telling me you just... did that?"
"I told you."
Prishka looked genuinely confused.
"I read psychic books for fun."
Dipanshu blinked.
"You defeated a ghost with homework."
"I wouldn't call it defeated."
"Okay."
He pointed toward the unconscious Shristi.
"You mildly inconvenienced a ghost with homework."
Despite everything, Deep laughed.
A short exhausted laugh.
The first real laugh anyone had managed all day.
Then Wick's expression hardened again.
The humor disappeared immediately.
"No."
The room grew quiet.
"No what?" Deep asked.
"We didn't stop it."
Everyone looked toward him.
Wick knelt beside Shristi and carefully checked her pulse.
Steady.
Normal.
For now.
Then he looked at Prishka.
"What exactly did you do?"
Prishka thought for a moment.
"I don't know."
She rubbed the back of her neck.
"Honestly? I panicked."
"That's reassuring." Dipanshu muttered.
"I remembered something from one of those books."
"You actually read those?" Deep asked.
"Obviously."
"I thought you bought them ironically."
"I bought them ironically."
A pause.
"Then I accidentally read them."
Even Wick almost smiled.
Almost.
Prishka's expression slowly became serious.
"The thing is..."
Everyone waited.
"I don't think I pushed it out."
The room fell silent.
"I think I interrupted the connection."
The words immediately caught Wick's attention.
"What connection?"
Prishka looked toward Shristi.
"The spirit isn't here."
Deep frowned.
"Again you're saying this
...What does that mean?"
Before Prishka could answer, Wick spoke.
"She's trapped."
Three pairs of eyes turned toward him.
"What?" Dipanshu asked.
Wick stared at the storm beyond the broken windows.
"I think she's trapped somewhere else."
Nobody spoke.
Because the statement sounded insane.
And yet...
Nobody dismissed it.
Not after everything they'd seen.
Finally Deep folded his arms.
"Explain."
For several moments Wick remained quiet.
As if deciding whether or not to say it out loud.
Then he sighed.
"A long time ago..."
Prishka immediately looked up.
"When Shristi was having those nightmares?"
Wick nodded.
Deep frowned.
"What nightmares?"
Prishka looked toward him.
"Ahh… Before the Tournament."
The room grew quiet again.
Wick continued.
"She got trapped in one."
Dipanshu immediately raised a hand.
"Pause."
Wick ignored him.
"I don't mean emotionally."
"Thank you for clarifying." Dipanshu replied.
"I mean literally."
Deep looked at him.
Then at Prishka.
Then back at Wick.
"You both hear how insane this sounds, right?"
"Absolutely."
Prishka answered immediately.
"Continue."
Wick shook his head.
"I don't remember most of it."
That was the truth.
Fragments remained.
Dreams.
Dark places.
A feeling of searching.
A feeling of finding her.
Nothing complete.
"But I remember bringing her back."
The storm crashed against the building.
Thunder rolled overhead.
And for some reason...
Nobody laughed.
Because everyone believed he believed it.
Prishka slowly nodded.
"She told me."
Wick looked at her.
"What?"
"About her dream."
A faint smile appeared.
"She said someone found her in dream."
The smile vanished.
"And she always thought it was you."
Silence.
For the first time since the possession began, uncertainty appeared on Wick's face.
Deep finally stood.
"Okay."
A pause.
"I don't understand any of this."
"Neither do I." Dipanshu agreed.
"But we're way past normal explanations."
Nobody argued.
Then Prishka looked toward the floor.
At the necklace.
The silver chain lay exactly where it had fallen.
Something about it bothered her.
A thought.
A memory.
Something she couldn't quite grasp.
Wick followed her gaze.
Then slowly walked over and picked it up.
The moment his fingers touched the chain, something stirred.
Not in the room.
Inside him.
A strange familiarity.
Like remembering a dream moments before waking up.
Prishka noticed his expression immediately.
"What?"
Wick looked at the necklace.
Then at Shristi.
Then back at the necklace.
"This might be it."
Nobody understood.
Wick slowly closed his hand around the chain.
"The last time..."
He hesitated.
"The last time I reached her..."
His gaze remained fixed on the necklace.
"I think I had this."
Deep looked confused.
"You're basing a rescue plan on a dream?"
"At this point?"
Dipanshu shrugged.
"I've heard worse."
Prishka suddenly stood.
A realization had begun forming.
"You think this thing lets you cross over."
Wick nodded slowly.
"I think it protects the person wearing it. And perhaps the Spirit itself was afraid when we accidentally mentioned the Other side."
"And if you're right?"
Wick looked toward Shristi.
"Then she's somewhere I need to go."
Across the room, Prishka saw the realization forming in his eyes.
She immediately knew what he was thinking.
And she hated it.
"No."
Wick looked at her.
"No?" he repeated.
"Whatever you're planning."
Prishka shook her head.
"No."
For the first time since entering the room, Wick actually smiled.
A small one.
The kind that usually meant he'd already made his decision.
"That's unfortunate."
"Wick."
"We don't have another option."
The answer hurt because it was true.
Everyone in the room knew it.
The storm seemed louder now.
The room darker.
The reality of what he was proposing settling over everyone.
Finally Deep sighed.
"I hate this plan already."
"That's because it's my plan."
"Exactly. That's why it involves risk of life, lot of adrenaline rush and Victory."
For the first time, Wick actually smiled.
Then his expression became serious again.
"Plan A."
---
The words instantly changed the atmosphere.
Everyone straightened.
Because when Wick started naming plans...
Things were usually bad.
"Deep."
"Yeah?"
"Get rope from the bus."
Deep didn't ask why.
He simply nodded.
"And keep everyone calm."
That earned a laugh.
"You realize Aryan is out there."
"That's I said keep them calm."
"You're asking for miracles."
Even Prishka smiled at that one.
Within minutes Deep disappeared into the storm.
The others carefully moved Shristi onto a sturdier section of the floor.
When Deep returned, they secured her wrists and ankles.
Not because they wanted to.
Because they remembered what happened when the spirit fought back.
Once everything was ready, only three people remained in the room.
Wick.
Prishka.
Dipanshu.
The storm raged outside.
Thunder shook the building.
Dipanshu folded his arms.
"I still think this is insane."
"It is."
Prishka replied.
"Good."
A pause.
"Just making sure we're all aware."
Wick sat cross-legged beside Shristi.
The necklace resting in his palm.
Then he looked toward Prishka.
"There might be some chant to access different dimensions?"
"There is but it never worked."
"Do them again… On Me"
Prishka stared.
"Wick."
"I'm serious."
"So am I."
She pointed toward Shristi.
"I got lucky. It worked accidentally"
Wick shook his head.
"No."
His voice remained calm.
Certain.
"Not everyone can do what you just did. And perhaps it didn't worked before because you didn't had the necklace and someone who could access."
Prishka looked away.
Because part of her knew he was right.
Finally she sighed.
"Fine."
Dipanshu immediately stepped backward.
"I would like it officially recorded that this is a terrible idea."
Nobody disagreed.
Prishka sat opposite Wick.
Closed her eyes.
And began chanting softly.
The air inside the room changed.
The pressure returned.
The same pressure everyone felt when she'd touched Shristi.
---
Wick gripped the necklace tightly.
---
Then everything went dark.
---
When he opened his eyes—
The storm was gone.
The abandoned house was gone.
The world was gone.
---
And he was standing somewhere else.
---
Alone.
---
The Other Side.
To be continued…