Uneasiness in the Heart

Shapra couldn't ignore the strange feeling in his heart. The way his mother had changed—it reminded him of the mysterious person in the photo with his grandparents. But he chose not to ask his parents. Not yet.

Instead, he made a plan.

The temple!!

That's where the Poojari had looked at him like he knew something. If there were answers, they had to be there. But going alone wasn't a good idea.

So he called Anmol.

"Hey, want to go on an adventure tonight?" Shapra asked, trying to sound casual.

"Adventure? At night? I don't trust you," Anmol said suspiciously.

Shapra smirked. "Come on, listen to this—"

He quickly made up a story.

"This temple isn't just a place of worship. A long time ago, a secret chamber was hidden beneath it, sealed by ancient sages. It holds something powerful, something only a chosen person can unlock. And guess what? I think we're the ones meant to find it!!"

Anmol raised an eyebrow. "Bro, you watch too much anime."

"So what? It could be true!" Shapra said excitedly. "Don't you want to find out?"

Anmol sighed, shaking his head. "Fine. But if this turns out to be fake, you're buying me five plates of momos."

"Deal!"

That night, they sneaked out and reached the temple. It was quiet, with only the flickering oil lamps lighting the stone walls. The air was chilly, and the place felt… different.

They started looking around.

Near the statue of Lord Shiva, Shapra noticed something odd—a small, round hole in the statue's forehead. It looked like something was supposed to fit inside.

That's when it hit him.

The gem.

The one he had swallowed.

He stared at the hole and whispered, "This… this is the same shape as that gem. I got it—the gem must have fallen from here when I crashed into the statue's feet!"

But as he looked closer, he noticed something inside the hole 'a tiny sensor'.

"A sensor? In a temple?" he muttered, confused.

Meanwhile, Anmol was inspecting the iron bars around the statue when he found something, a lever.

"Oi, Shapra, I found something!"

Shapra ran over, and together, they flicked the lever.

Nothing happened.

They exchanged glances. "Did we break it?" Anmol asked.

Shapra turned back to the statue. As he stepped forward, his foot slipped.

THUD!

He crashed into the statue's feet.

RUMMMMBLE.

The ground shook as the massive statue started to tilt forward!

But instead of falling, it stopped at a 60-degree angle, revealing something underneath,

A hidden underground passage.

Shapra and Anmol stared, their mouths open.

Before they could think further, the sound of footsteps made them freeze.

The temple doors creaked open.

A shadow stood in the entrance.

The Poojari.

His eyes locked onto them.

Shapra felt his heart race.

They were caught.

To be continued…