Cosmic Fables: A Princess Odyssey

9. Cloak of Malevolence

When they regained consciousness, a startling realization dawned upon them - they were all blindfolded and tightly bound, unable to move their hands or legs.

Vani's voice broke the silence, "Is there anyone else here?" Advait quickly responded, "Vani, are you there?"

Arsh added, "Guys, where are we? Are we tied up?"

Shwet chimed in, confirming, "Yes, and we're blindfolded too."

Avi questioned, "Are we all present? Is anyone hurt?"

Concerned, Vani spoke up, "I haven't heard Aashi and Shrisha's voices. Are you guys here?"

Avi adds," Aashi are you there? Are you ok?" Then he adds,"Shrisha?"

Shwet says too," You guys there?"

Aashi's voice reassured them, "Yeah, I'm here," while Shrisha echoed, "Yeah, me too."

Arsh pondered, "How did we end up here?"

Avi admitted, "I can't remember anything. I recall glimpses of a purplish planet, and then everything went black."

Vani added, "That's all I can recall as well."

Aashi's voice conveyed a sense of familiarity with their predicament, "Looks like someone has abducted us again..."

Shwet expressed confusion, "What has happened to us?"

Shrisha, also feeling the restraints, questioned, "And why am I tied up?"

Arsh concurred, "I'm tied up and blindfolded too."

Advait summarized the situation, "It seems we're all tied up and blindfolded."

Vani's voice grew more frantic as she speculated, "Are we on a different planet once more? Are we not inside the spaceship?"

She shouted desperately, "Cosmo? Is anyone there?"

Trying to calm her down, Advait assured, "Stay calm, Vani. We'll find a way out of this."

Avi's voice alerted them, "Guys, I can hear footsteps approaching."

Shrisha confirmed, "Yes, someone is coming."

Raising her voice, she demanded, "Whoever you are, why are you keeping us here?"

Shwet added, "What do you want from us?"

Suddenly, a voice responded, "I don't want all of you. I only want Ira."

In an instant, their blindfolds were removed, and they blinked, adjusting to the sudden burst of light.

As they surveyed their surroundings, they noticed they were inside a cave, illuminated by a mysterious blue glow on the ceiling.

They found themselves seated near their spacecraft, a few meters away, with all of them still bound. The voice spoke again, "So, will you guys tell me where Ira is?"

Confused, they exchanged glances and replied, "Who is she?"

The voice expressed surprise, "You don't know her?"

Advait demanded, "Reveal yourself! Why are you hiding?"

In response, a menacing growl resonated through the air, and suddenly, a fox leaped out from behind them.

Standing tall at five feet, it had brown fur and five tails with white fur, on its underbelly. Its golden and red eyes gleamed as it growled at them.

The fox spoke, its voice tinged with an otherworldly quality, "Now that I'm in front of you, tell me, where is Ira?"