The cottage was alive with laughter, soft chants, and the warm glow of lamps as the Reevavanshi clan gathered to celebrate the birth of their chosen child. Divya cradled the tiny gudiya in her arms, tears threatening to spill from her eyes as she smiled down at the delicate face of her daughter.
A priestess, robed in silver and gold, moved around the child, murmuring blessings and sacred chants. The little one stirred in her mother's arms, then let out a sharp cry that cut through the otherwise serene room.
"Arrey… arrey, gudiya… why are you crying?" Divya whispered softly, bouncing her daughter gently, her voice a mixture of worry and affection. "Don't cry… don't you know everyone's here to celebrate you?"
But the child's cries grew louder, shrill, urgent.
Outside, the sky, once painted with soft morning light, darkened unnaturally fast. Shadows crept across the walls as clouds swallowed the sun, turning the world into a pale, ominous gray.
The clan paused, sensing the shift. Torches flickered. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Seer Tabeezi, standing slightly apart from the gathering, her eyes narrowing and her staff trembling slightly in her hand, muttered, her voice sharp with unease, "The Daayans are coming…"
Avinash, startled, frowned. "Daayans? How… how could they find the way to Reevavanshi? They've never been able to reach us here."
Tabeezi's eyes widened, pupils sharpening. "They know now. She is here. They are coming for the Rivanshi."
Divya's grip on her daughter tightened instinctively, her voice trembling. "Gudiya… oh no… this means… she's in danger."
The sky above the clan darkened further as the lunar eclipse began. The sun's golden light vanished behind the red shadow of the moon, and a chill swept over the Reevavanshi grounds. Even the trees seemed to lean closer, as if listening.
Tabeezi turned toward them, her voice rising with urgency. "They are hundreds… thousands. The daayan horde approaches. From every corner of the darkness, they come, drawn to the light that has been born today."
Avinash stepped closer to Divya, his face set with determination but tinged with fear. "Then we must protect her… whatever it takes. They cannot touch her. Not today… not ever."
Divya's eyes glimmered with both tears and resolve as she looked down at gudiya, the tiny hand curled around her finger, unaware of the storm forming beyond the walls.
Tabeezi's gaze drifted upward, toward the reddening sky. "The eclipse empowers them. Their darkness will be at its strongest. But she… she is the lightbearer. The Rivanshi. And this is the first test of her life."
A silence fell over the cottage, broken only by the soft, uneasy cries of the newborn. Every face reflected fear, awe, and determination.
Divya whispered again, almost to herself, clutching her daughter tighter: "My gudiya… they won't touch you. I swear it. I'll protect you with everything I am."
But even as she spoke, the wind howled louder, carrying with it a distant, dreadful wail—the approach of a dark force, ancient, relentless, and hungry for the light that had dared to enter the world.
Tabeezi's eyes, deep and unwavering, scanned the darkening horizon. Her staff trembled slightly in her hands as she spoke, each word heavy with urgency.
"We cannot hold them off for long," she said, her voice echoing against the walls of the Reevavanshi clan grounds. "This is no ordinary attack… they are coming for the Rivanshi. You must take her away. She cannot stay here… not now. If she is not taken, the daayans will succeed."
Divya's fingers tightened around her daughter, clutching her tiny body protectively. "Take her… away?" she whispered, fear rising in her chest. "But where? How… I can't leave her!"
Avinash pulled her aside into a shadowed corner of the room, lowering his voice, eyes fierce and resolute. "Listen to me, Divya. You must use the secret exit. It's the only way. You take her and vanish before they reach us. Before the darkness swallows everything we've built."
Divya's eyes widened, panic mixing with disbelief. "And you? You… you won't come?"
Avinash's jaw tightened, a flicker of pain crossing his face. "No," he said firmly, placing his hands on her shoulders, feeling the tremor in her body. "I cannot abandon Reevavansh. The clan needs me here. But you… you must protect our daughter. She is the lightbearer. Rivanshi. Everything depends on her surviving, growing… and learning to fight."
Divya swallowed hard, tears brimming in her eyes. She pressed her cheek against Avinash's shoulder, feeling the weight of the world on her. "I will… I swear I will protect her. But… it's so dangerous…"
Avinash cupped her face, forcing her to meet his gaze. "Divya, look at me. You are her mother. The one who will guide her. She will need you. She will need your love and courage more than anything else. Go now… take her. Run. Live for her."
Divya nodded, trembling but resolute, wrapping her shawl tightly around the child. Gudiya's small fingers twitched against her mother's chest, sensing the tension and urgency in the air.
Outside, the shadows deepened, the first signs of the daayan horde slipping through the darkness. Their cries, distant yet unmistakable, made the walls shudder and the hairs on Divya's neck rise.
"Go… now," Avinash whispered again, pressing a final, protective hand against her back. "Remember… you are her shield. Nothing else matters."
Divya swallowed, steeling herself. With one last glance at Avinash, she turned, holding her child close. Her heart pounded in her chest as she approached the secret exit, hidden behind the roots of an ancient tree, the only way to save the light that had been born into this shadowed world.
The first wails of the approaching daayans echoed through the trees. Time was slipping, the darkness closing in.
Divya exhaled sharply, whispered to her daughter, "Hold on, gudiya… Mama's got you. We will survive this. I promise."
And with that, she disappeared into the undergrowth, the child cradled tightly against her heart, leaving the safety of Reevavansh and the protection of Avinash behind… for now.
To be continued…