| 𝔉𝔢𝔞𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔢𝔡 x 2 |
Book 1 in the FORTRESS series
Spirits. Ghosts. Apparitions.
Rudra Sharma doesn't believe in any of it.
He has always been a Science buff. Majoring in Physics, hoping to become an IAS officer one day and solve the practical p...
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Ishita exchanged a confused glance with Rishabh before peeking back at the panting and perspiring Rudra. "One way for what?"
Rudra heaved a deep sigh. "To defeat her. To render her powerless. To confine her."
Ishita clapped her hands in exuberance, and she and Rishabh ambled closer to Rudra, bathing the sweating and exhausted guy in the pearly-hued circle of light. "That's amazing news. How do we trap her?"
Rudra wiped his mouth with the back of his palm and stood up straighter, his gaze darting across the length and breadth of the well. "No geographical limits on the spirit. That should've happened, but it didn't. She was trapped," he muttered to himself. "But only until I visited. Then she could venture out. Blood... nails... bones...hair..."
"Rudra?" Rishabh said, placing a hand on the boy's shoulders. "Dude, are you okay?"
Rudra rubbed his palms over his face. "She was trapped here not because she had restraints on her powers but because she was affected by the curse on Bhangarh. She dropped dead like the rest of the townsfolk, but when she was able to unbind herself partly, there was no geographical constraint. Even when it was partial...Not all powers... She had... all... blood... bones... hair..." He let out a shallow breath and peered at Rishabh. "I have never been better, buddy." Grinning, he said, "I am gonna save us."
Ishita huffed. "How?"
"Kalavati was trapped here because of the curse, but when she was able to free herself partially, she could roam to as far-flung a place as Delhi. Her powers heightened once every fifteen days, i.e., on a full moon or a new moon night. Hence, her capabilities weren't unbridled every moment of every day but peaked twice a month. Sacrificing my soul would've ensured all her powers, and even more, would be retained, and she could live in the supernatural realm for the rest of eternity, right?"
Ishita bobbed her head. "That's what we have garnered so far, yes."
"That means... well, from what Raghuveer could comprehend back in the day..."
"Go on," she urged when he hesitated.
"That means a part of her still lives on. Even in death. As she actively practiced the occult, doing so would've worked in her favor. If we can sever the last connection she has with the mortal world, i.e., dispose of the last remaining bit of her body," Rudra beamed, "voila! She will have nothing to tether her to this plane. She will be a spirit, oh yes, but she will remain trapped all over again in the haunted fortress of Bhangarh despite the curse being lifted. No way out. No matter who tries to free her. Geographical limitations aside, she will be coerced into staying put only within a highly restricted area—the locale where she took her last breath. She wouldn't be able to achieve any of her objectives, and neither would she hold the power to free anyone from this fort because she would herself be restrained within the walls of the citadel. She can leave but only if she finds peace."
