"Aarav…"
This time—
It wasn't distant.
It wasn't monstrous.
It was… weak.
Aarav froze.
His chest tightened painfully.
"…Dad?"
Mira grabbed his arm instantly.
"Don't."
Aarav didn't look at her.
He couldn't.
Because that voice—
"I heard it," he said quietly.
Mira's grip tightened.
"That's how it traps you."
"It didn't sound like that thing," Aarav replied.
"It doesn't need to," she snapped.
Silence.
Then—
The whisper came again.
Closer.
"Help… me…"
Aarav's heart shattered.
"…He's still in there."
Mira shook her head immediately.
"No. That's what it wants you to believe."
Aarav finally turned to her.
His eyes burning.
"You said it yourself."
Mira hesitated.
"He went inside."
Silence.
"…Which means he's still there."
"That doesn't mean he can be saved."
"Then what?" Aarav's voice cracked."I just leave him like that?"
Mira didn't answer.
And that was enough.
Aarav pulled his arm free.
"I'm not running anymore."
The moment he said it—
The building reacted.
The walls trembled.
The air turned cold.
Like something had just heard him.
And smiled.
🚪
The corridor appeared again.
Not the normal one.
This one was wrong.
Longer.
Darker.
Alive.
The six doors stood open now.
Pitch black inside.
And at the end—
The Seventh Door.
Waiting.
Aarav walked toward it.
Slow.
Determined.
Mira followed quickly.
"You don't understand what you're doing!"
"I understand enough," he said.
"No, you don't," she snapped.
"If you open it again, it won't just take memories this time."
Aarav didn't stop.
"Then what will it take?"
Mira's voice dropped.
"…You."
Aarav paused.
For a moment.
Then—
He continued walking.
"…Then I'll go willingly."
Mira's breath caught.
"…Are you insane?!"
"No," Aarav said quietly.
"I'm done being afraid."
⚫
He stood in front of the Seventh Door.
Up close—
It felt worse than before.
The wood pulsed.
Like skin.
The symbol on it—
Moved.
Slightly shifting, like it was alive.
Aarav raised his hand.
The mark on his skin burned instantly.
Matching it.
"…So that's how it works," he whispered.
The door recognized him.
Accepted him.
Mira stepped forward urgently.
"If you open it—"
"I know," Aarav cut her off.
He looked at her one last time.
"…If I don't come back…"
Mira's expression changed.
For the first time—
She looked… afraid.
"…You won't," she said.
Aarav gave a faint, broken smile.
"Then I'll just have to prove you wrong."
Click.
The door opened.
🌑
Darkness exploded outward.
Stronger than before.
Heavier.
Hungry.
It wrapped around Aarav instantly—
Pulling him in.
Mira grabbed his hand—
"AARAV!"
For a second—
Their eyes met.
Then—
He was gone.
⚫
Inside—
There was no ground.
No sky.
No direction.
Only darkness.
Endless.
And voices.
"He came back…""The chosen one…""Break him…"
Aarav clenched his fists.
"Where is he?!"
Silence.
Then—
A figure appeared.
Slowly forming from the darkness.
A man.
Broken.
Distorted.
Aarav's breath stopped.
"…Dad…"
The figure stepped closer.
Half his face was normal.
The other half—
Consumed by shadow.
His voice came out in two layers.
One human.
One… not.
"Aarav…"
Aarav stepped forward.
"I'm here. I'm getting you out."
The thing smiled.
"…You shouldn't have come."
"I'm not leaving without you."
Silence.
Then—
The darkness shifted violently.
Chains.
Black.
Made of shadow.
Wrapped around his father's body.
Holding him in place.
"YOU CAN'T TAKE HIM."
The voice came from everywhere.
Not his father.
Something else.
Something massive.
Something that owned this place.
Aarav looked around.
"…Show yourself!"
The darkness pulsed.
And then—
It spoke.
"HE IS THE PRICE."
Aarav's heart pounded.
"…Then take me instead."
Silence.
Even the whispers stopped.
The entire void froze.
Mira's voice echoed faintly from somewhere far away—
"DON'T SAY THAT!"
Too late.
The darkness moved.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
"YOU WOULD TRADE?"
Aarav didn't hesitate.
"Yes."
His father's human eye widened.
"…No… Aarav… don't…"
Aarav stepped forward.
"You did it for me once."
Tears filled his eyes.
"…Now it's my turn."
The darkness laughed.
Deep.
Ancient.
"THEN COME."
The chains tightened around his father—
And began to release.
But at the same time—
New chains shot toward Aarav.
Faster.
Sharper.
Wrapping around his arms.
His chest.
His soul.
Pain exploded through his body.
But he didn't scream.
He just looked at his father.
"…Go."
For a moment—
The shadow on his father's face cracked.
Like something inside him was fighting back.
"…Aarav…"
Light flickered in his eyes.
Just for a second.
Then—
The chains snapped.
His father collapsed—
Free.
And Aarav—
Was pulled deeper.
Into the darkness.
⚫
Mira stood outside the door.
Watching.
Frozen.
The door began to close.
Slowly.
"…No…"
Her voice trembled.
"…Not again…"
And just before it shut—
She heard it.
Aarav's voice.
Soft.
Fading.
"…Don't… let it… win…"
SLAM.
The Seventh Door closed.
Silence.
The corridor returned to normal.
Six doors.
No seventh.
Mira stood alone.
But something was different.
The mark—
On her wrist—
Began to glow.
And for the first time—
She whispered his name.
"…Aarav…"
But this time—
The building whispered back.
To Be Continued… 👻🔥