Arjun's stomach growled loudly, breaking the eerie silence that had settled over the trio. The three of them stood frozen in the middle of what seemed to be a bustling marketplace, surrounded by people dressed in traditional robes, their faces painted with curiosity and suspicion. The air smelled of spices, roasted grains, and something that could only be described as ancient street food.

Rohan sighed dramatically, rubbing his stomach. "Great. We’ve traveled thousands of years back in time, and the first thing my body cares about is food."

Kabir rolled his eyes. "Well, your stomach has its priorities straight. Mine’s about to stage a protest too."

Arjun ignored them, his eyes scanning the crowd. "Focus, guys. We need to figure out how to get back, and for that, we need to stay calm and—"

Grrrrrrr!

Kabir’s stomach joined in the chorus. Arjun sighed. "Okay, first we eat."

Rohan perked up. "Finally, something I can get behind!" He reached into his pockets, only to realize they were completely empty. "Uh... slight problem, fellas. No money."

Kabir frowned. "What did you expect? Our modern currency won’t exactly work here."

Arjun groaned. "Alright, alright, let’s think. We need food, and we need to blend in. We're sticking out like sore thumbs right now." He glanced down at their jeans and t-shirts, which looked absurdly out of place in the crowd of people draped in flowing robes and turbans.

They huddled together, whispering frantically. "First things first," Arjun said, "let's try the bracelets again."

All three held their wrists out, the ancient inscriptions glowing faintly under the sunlight. "Okay, on three," Arjun said. "One... two... three!"

"Akasha! Kala! Satya!" they chanted in unison, just like before.

Nothing.

The bracelets remained locked tightly around their wrists, their glow fading to a dull shimmer.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Maybe we said it wrong?" Kabir suggested, scratching his head.

Rohan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, maybe we need to do a rain dance first." He flailed his arms around, causing a few passing traders to give them odd looks. "Nope, still here."

"Great," Arjun muttered. "We’re stuck."

As they stood in despair, Rohan suddenly froze. He bent down, his eyes lighting up as he picked something up from the dusty ground. "Boys, luck is on our side!" He held up a small pouch filled with copper and silver coins.

Kabir looked at it skeptically. "You found money?"

"Yep!" Rohan grinned, jingling the pouch. "See? Luck follows me everywhere."

Arjun frowned. "You stole it, didn’t you?"

"Technically, it was abandoned. Who just leaves money lying around?" Rohan smirked. "And besides, you want to eat or not?"

Arjun sighed. "Fine. But after we eat, we figure out how to return this."

With Rohan's miraculous discovery, the trio turned their attention to blending in. They couldn’t just walk around looking like they’d stepped out of a time machine.

After a few minutes of scouting, they found a vendor selling large sheets of fabric. Arjun nudged Kabir. "Think we can pull it off?"

Kabir raised an eyebrow. "We’re basically about to cosplay ancient history. Let’s do it."

They bought a few long cloth pieces and awkwardly wrapped them over their clothes, trying to mimic the attire around them. Rohan looked down at his haphazardly draped robe and grinned. "Look at me, I’m practically royalty."

Kabir snorted. "Yeah, a royal mess."

Despite their efforts, they still looked about 50% out of place—modern sneakers peeking out from beneath the robes, their haircuts too clean, and the occasional nervous glance betraying their unease.

"Alright, 50% blending in," Arjun assessed, adjusting his makeshift robe. "That’ll have to do for now."

With their questionable disguise in place, they made their way toward a food stall, the scent of freshly baked flatbread and sizzling meat making their mouths water.

Rohan practically bounced on his feet. "Excuse me, good sir!" he said to the vendor in what he imagined was a dignified, ancient tone. "We would like... uh... food. Please?"

The vendor stared at him for a long moment, then handed over a plate filled with strange but delicious-looking food. Arjun nudged him. "You don’t have to sound like you’re in a Shakespeare play, Rohan."

"I panicked, okay?" Rohan whispered, stuffing a piece of flatbread into his mouth. "Oh my god, this is amazing."

Kabir took a cautious bite, his eyes widening. "Okay, I’m not gonna lie, this might be the best thing I’ve ever eaten."

As they ate, Arjun leaned in. "Okay, guys, serious talk now. What do we do? We tried the bracelets, and they didn’t work."

Kabir wiped his hands on his robe. "First, we gather information. We can understand the language and read the inscriptions because of the bracelets, right? So maybe they’ll help us figure out why we’re here."

Arjun nodded thoughtfully. "You're right. We can read and speak just fine, and nobody’s looking at us too weird. Maybe there's something we’re missing about these symbols."

Rohan, still chewing, grinned. "What if we’re supposed to be here? What if it’s destiny?"

Kabir shot him a look. "What if you shut up and finish your food?"

They laughed, but deep down, the tension remained. They were in an unknown place, surrounded by unknown people, in an unknown time. The reality of their situation weighed on them.

Arjun stared at his bracelet again. The rune on it seemed to pulse faintly, like it was waiting for something. "We’ll figure this out," he said, more to himself than to the others.

Rohan grinned, tapping his bracelet. "And until then, at least we’ve got cool ancient accessories."

Kabir sighed. "Let’s just try not to die before figuring out how to get home."

As they finished their meal, blending into their surroundings as best they could, Arjun felt a strange sense of purpose growing within him. Maybe they were meant to be here. Maybe this was their chance to uncover something that history had forgotten.

He looked at his friends and smiled. "Alright, let’s find out what these bracelets really want from us."