𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙊𝙛 𝙃𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙨 | a saga of four life's

Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Female intro
(Trigger Warning: Violence, Loss, Trauma)

Background Score: "Judaai" by Sunidhi Chauhan & Arijit Singh

Two weeks ago...

"SIYA! RUN!"

The desperate cry tore through the chaos, piercing the cold night air like a shard of glass. "For my sake, Siya, run! Go, go, GO!"

Her breath hitched. The world spun.

Draped in a crimson lehenga, shimmering under the moonlight, Siya stood frozen, her delicate frame trembling, her heart fracturing with every passing second. 

The heavy gold jewelry on her body felt suffocating, no longer an adornment but shackles tying her to this nightmare.

Tears streaked her face as she looked ahead—her family, her protectors, locked in a battle for survival. Her mamu. Her brothers. The men who had shielded her from the darkness all her life, now drowning in it.

The streets, once familiar, were now a battlefield. The sound of gunfire cracked through the night, accompanied by screams of agony and desperation.

 The scent of blood hung thick in the air, mixing with the smoke from burning cars. Shadows flickered against the walls, bodies clashing, fists landing, weapons slicing through flesh.

She wanted to fight. She wanted to stand beside them. But fear rooted her in place.

"Mamu..." The whisper barely left her lips, a silent plea swallowed by the chaos around her.

Then, the shot rang out.

A single, deafening crack that shattered everything.

Time stopped.

Her mamu's body jerked violently before he collapsed to the ground, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

"Avinash!" her aunt's voice broke into a wail, the name carrying the weight of immeasurable sorrow.

Siya's legs buckled. A scream tore from her throat, raw, agonized.

Her protector. Her father in every way that mattered. Gone.

Because of her.

The world around her blurred as the horror unfolded. Blood seeped into the cracks of the pavement, painting the earth with the cost of revenge, of loyalty, of an endless war she never wanted to be part of.

A hand yanked her back. "Siya, ja hum dekh lenge!" her aunt begged, urgency thick in her tone. "Ja, beta! JAA!"

Her best friend. Her brothers. Everyone screamed for her to leave. To run.

To live.

But how could she, when her world was crumbling before her eyes?

Yet, her mamu's final words, his dying wish, echoed in her ears.

Run.

So she did.

Barefoot, broken, she fled. The cold ground beneath her sliced into her feet, but it was nothing compared to the gaping wound inside her. She stumbled, her vision blurred by tears, her breath coming in desperate gasps. 

The night stretched endlessly before her, every shadow a threat, every sound a reminder of the life she had left behind.

She didn't know where she was going, only that she had to get away.

Away from the blood.

Away from the pain.

Away from the ghost of her mamu's last breath.

A train station.

The fluorescent lights flickered above as she staggered onto the first train she saw. Manali. A place she had never been, but it didn't matter.

She clutched her bridal purse, its contents meager—a few rupees, her phone, and nothing else but grief.

The station was nearly empty at this hour, the hum of distant voices drowned by the pounding of her heart. A vendor eyed her suspiciously, 

an old woman muttered a prayer as she passed, but no one stopped her. No one questioned the disheveled bride with haunted eyes.

As the train lurched forward, the world outside blurred, just like her vision.

Her fingers fumbled for her phone, and as the screen lit up, an old family photo greeted her.

Her mamu's smiling face. So full of life. So full of love.

A sob choked her.

Her fingers trembled as they traced his image, a whisper escaping her lips.

"It should've been me, Mamu... I'm unlucky... a curse... I destroy everything I touch. I'm sorry."

The weight of guilt pressed against her chest, suffocating her. She could still hear his laughter in her mind, the way he would ruffle her hair, call her his "Siya beta," promise that nothing could ever hurt her.

But something did.

And now, he was gone.

She curled into herself, exhaustion and sorrow pressing against her chest, suffocating her.

The rhythmic chug of the train became a lullaby of sorrow, rocking her into a restless slumber.

Her dreams were haunted.

Visions of bloodstained hands.

The echo of gunfire.

The last breath of the man who had saved her more times than she could count.

Somewhere in the distance, she could still hear his voice calling her name, gentle yet urgent.

Then, silence.

She woke up gasping, drenched in cold sweat. The train had stopped.

Through the foggy glass of the window, the first light of dawn painted the mountains of Manali in a soft, golden glow.

But there was no warmth in her heart.

Only the weight of a heart too shattered to mend.

The cold air bit at her skin as she stepped onto the platform, the chill seeping through the torn fabric of her lehenga. Her bare feet ached, her body trembled, 

but none of it compared to the emptiness that had settled deep inside her.

She took slow steps, her eyes scanning the unfamiliar surroundings. Strangers bustled around her, oblivious to the storm raging within her.

 A world so untouched by the bloodshed she had escaped from.

She pulled her dupatta closer around her, seeking warmth she knew she wouldn't find. Every breath she took felt heavier, as if the air itself carried the weight of her grief.

With nowhere to go, no plan in mind, she sat on a wooden bench at the far end of the station, watching the world move on while she remained frozen in her pain.

She had lost everything.

And yet, she was still here.

Still breathing.

For what?

Her fingers clutched her phone once more. She opened the gallery and scrolled through old memories—photos of her childhood, laughter-filled evenings, 

festivals where her mamu had carried her on his shoulders. A different life. A life she could never return to.

Tears slipped down her face as she whispered, "Mamu, what do I do now?"

The wind howled in response, offering no answers.

She was truly alone.

And for the first time in her life, she had no idea where to go.

to be continue.... 

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