THE SHADOWS OF THE PAST

80 31 43
                                    

As the villagers gathered in horror at the grisly sight before them, Nandini stood frozen, her eyes wide with shock and tears streaming down her cheeks. The brutal murder of her brother Abhay had sent shockwaves through the festival adorned village. The air was heavy with a mixture of fear and disbelief as they struggled to comprehend the brutality of the act.

Rajiv Verma, the village head, stood stoically beside the remains of his son, his normally stern face now a mask of anguish and rage. Whispers of suspicion and fear began to circulate among the crowd. Who could have committed such a heinous crime? And why?

 Who could have committed such a heinous crime? And why?

Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.

The body of abhay looked mutilated. With head chopped-off to half as the cerebral matter from him was falling out like honey from the bottle,his limbs were cut-off to half,the abdomen part was totally blood-shrouded as it was mutilated and the internal organs were missing and the worst part is his genitals were cut-off.

 With head chopped-off to half as the cerebral matter from him was falling out like honey from the bottle,his limbs were cut-off to half,the abdomen part was totally blood-shrouded as it was mutilated and the internal organs were missing and the w...

Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.

The festival's vibrant energy was instantly replaced by a thick fog of dread. The villagers gathered, their faces pale with fear as whispers of ancient evils circulated. The air was heavy, the joyful beats of drums now silenced, replaced by gasps and murmurs.

Harshit and David stood at the temple's entrance, their hearts pounding. Nandini's scream still echoed in their ears. The body, unrecognizable and brutalized, lies in a pool of blood, surrounded by ritualistic symbols carved into the stone floor. Harshit knelt beside it, his stomach turning as he examined the marks more closely.

"These symbols..." Harshit muttered, tracing them with a shaky finger. "They're similar to those found near the site of my father's death."

David, standing rigidly, tried to suppress the surge of old trauma. His face was ashen, eyes wide with a mixture of fear and determination. "Do you think it's connected?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.

Harshit's eyes met David's, a silent understanding passing between them. "I don't think it's a coincidence," he replied.

Nandini, her face pale but resolute, joined them. "We need to find out who did this and why. The answers might lie in the village's history-our history."

 THE ANTHROPOPHAGUS Where stories live. Discover now