Rays of sunlight shined through the window upon his body as he slept on the mattress. After returning back, he had taken a shower and changed into new clothes while lamenting the fact that another one of his sets was destroyed. Changing had not even been on his mind that time when he had so rashly ran into the dungeon.

The clouds slowly covered the sun as the time passed causing the temperature to quickly drop because of the open window. Still in sleep, he tucked his head inside the blanket like the rest of his body while shivering from the cold. The heater was off because the sun had been so comfortable and also because it had never been in his mind. He had just laid down to rest but the sun had felt so relaxing on his skin that it made it hard to open his eyes. Now though, the weather slowly worsened and as winds picked up, causing the outside to become darker and colder. Even his room was now filled with darkness and roused him from sleep.

Saaaaaaa

The wind noise caused him to get up. His body shivered as the warmth drained from his body and into the cold and dark surroundings. His eyelids were still heavy, wanting to close down and sleep some more. He stood there in this state of semi-consciousness for a while until his alarm started ringing. He dismissed the alarm after solving the math equation. This caused him to wake up some more as the irritating sound did not stop until he had solved the equation.

A bit more conscious now, he performed ablution and took out the keys, he was going to the archery range and then the gym. Just as he was leaving he remembered the video that he saw, it felt as if that was ages ago, and made some jam sandwiches. As he approached the ground floor, sandwiches with him, he started hearing noises of kids. Normally, he left quite early if he had to go somewhere so this was the first time he saw the kids playing. Their smiles were radiant, free of any worries. That was what he felt when he saw them from afar.

Greeting the guard, he started driving towards the archery range and after a long while enjoyed the true traffic. It was very tame here in Islamabad and it was one of the reasons he chose this location.

He pressed the accelerator not wanting to be stuck due to the traffic signal but just when he was going to cross the signal, it turned red. He grumbled a bit and stopped there. The beggars came from the footpath as soon as the cars stopped. One of them came towards the car to his left and started knocking on the window. He observed the kid wearing rags on such a cold day.

"God bless your family, uncle. Please give me some money. It's cold and I am very hungry."

Just at that moment, the wind blew causing the kid to shiver making the scene even more pitiful. The window lowered and he could see the kid being handed 10 rupees.

"Thank you, thank you, may God bless your family and children."

After that, the kid turned towards him and as their eyes met the kid started walking towards him. Taking out a sandwich he lowered the window and before the kid could say anything he handed it out to him and closed the window returning his attention towards the traffic signal. The signal was still red and as he waited the kid knocked the window but his head did not turn. There was nothing that he could really do for him.

Just a few years ago when he could finally go outside the house his heart always bled when he looked at these sights but they were so common that over time his heart slowly hardened itself making it possible for him to ignore them.

After knocking for a while the kid went away and as soon as the light turned green, he pressed the accelerator and went on his way. Along the way if he was unfortunate enough to be stuck in the traffic, he gave out the sandwiches to the few beggars that he saw on the road. The weather had gotten worse and it seemed even they were returning to whatever place they called home.

The archery range looked even more intimidating today as the lights and shadows played around. He pressed the bell but it took some time for the door to be opened. He wanted to greet the person but there was no one to be seen. Thinking about the different powers that the dungeon bestowed he tensed a bit but then a head suddenly popped up from behind the door. A pair of small, curious eyes stared at him and he stared at them. Unconsciously, he took out a sandwich and held it out. The child eyed it and extended a hand to grab it. Both continued to stare at each other while the child took a nibble or two in the process.

“Inaya, who is at the door?”

Only when the voice of the instructor sounded out did both of them break eye contact.

"Assalam o alaikum, sir."

He nodded while greeting.

"Mr. Azaan, you are late today and you have arrived at the wrong time."

Soooooo

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

"But come on in."

The winds created sharp sounds as they blew through the area causing the nearby trees to flex their flexibility. Seeing that, Zeeshan allowed Azaan to come in. He left his sandals and as his feet connected a shiver traveled through his spine all the way up to his head. He peaked at the feet of the child and felt revealed seeing the pink colored socks.

"Wear these."

Azaan caught a pair of thick white socks that the members here wore and followed the instructor inside, though it was a question whether he could be called that because Azaan himself had not actually learned much from him.

Saaa

Saaa

As they moved inside, the child on the instructor's shoulder, Azaan started to hear the now-familiar sound of arrows being shot. He wondered who else was here on such a gloomy day. It was much better to be with the family having some tea along with sweets while enjoying the weather. He thought about going to visit his mother today after leaving this place. Entering the door towards the right he saw two new people standing there. Both of them were very young and both of them were very good as they hit every shot at 100 meters of distance even with the strong winds. The younger one was a boy while the older one was a girl. The boy glanced at them but the girl continued shooting one after another appearing to be completely focused.

“You did not bring your bow, Mr. Azaan.”

“Yes, it broke during an accident.”

“You can use the spare ones then.”

“Thank you.”

He took a bow from the storage and a quiver that was left beside the wall. He stood in front of a ten meter target. Shifting into the correct form that was taught to him, he slowly took in a breath while pulling the string back. Once it was fully taut, he released the arrow and it flew towards the target. He took another arrow with his free hand while his eyes kept following the arrow. Normally this shot would have hit dead in the center because he had been focusing all month on the accuracy but today the wind changed the direction and the arrow went completely sideways. He fixed the arrow on the bow and this time pulled the string even further back, something that he was unable to do before because of insufficient strength. Even still, as he held the string while trying to find the optimal time to fire, he felt his muscles tremble. He waited for the wind to calm down but the wind blew faster and more furiously. He fired another trail shot and the wind blew it from the center to nearly out of the target.

Just as he was going to shoot again.

Saaa

Saaa

Sounds echoed out and his head turned towards the two as their arrows tore through the wind and struck the target that was at the end of the field. The entire field was a bit more than a hundred meters in length which caused him to wonder how the instructor was able to buy such a big chunk of land in the capital city and in the more expensive and scenic area at that. He looked at both of them, their young faces locked forward in concentration, and then pulled his own bow.

When he usually came here in the morning there were light winds and he had become accustomed to them but today the storm made everything that he had experienced before seem like a child's play. After adjusting his aim he tried again a few times and then stopped for rest. The heavy winds required each shot to be fired at full force and complex angles to just hit the targets which he was exhausting to do.

He watched them from the side as they took their time before releasing the shot and from what he could see, they had not missed even a single shot. He then turned towards the instructor who was teaching the little girl. She was pulling a small pink colored bow while the instructor helped her. After it seemed that she got the hang of it, the instructor proceeded to place a target at the door. As she tried to hit the target the instructor came and sat beside him.

“Have you rested enough?”

Azaan shook his head while he moved his arm and felt the muscles strain from such a basic activity. He looked forward while ignoring the gaze of the instructor who was observing him.

“How long have you been going to the gym?”

“About 20 days.”

After feeling that his arms had regained their strength, he stood up and walked towards his position with the instructor following him from behind. As he pulled back the bowstring the instructor started giving him advice, sometimes correcting his posture or the angle or how to fire in the wind. As he followed the advice, he felt the difference when the arrow shot out. It still looked as if it would be blown away but instead of nearly missing the target, it hit near the center. The instructor looked on from the sides as he tried again. After multiple shots, he got a hang of it and nearly all the shots hit the target.

He continued the practice and during the rest time, he watched as he gave the sandwiches to the instructor and the quiet little girl who had returned to his side. It had been hilarious watching her get angry at not being able to hit the target though he was surprised at how quietly she transmitted those feelings.

After seeing the sky darken even more and the weather showing no signs of getting better he offered asar prayer and then left the archery range and started driving towards his family house. The big mansions in the area, most of them with not even a single light turned on, made the whole journey creepy as there was little traffic on such a stormy day. The winds were strong enough now that he could feel the car being pushed aside by its force so he took a turn and rode along with the wind. As he was passing, he saw a signboard starting a care house for the mentally disabled was coming ahead.

He scowled seeing that. These things were more of prison from what he knew. They were used by the big families, rich and influential to dispose of people and bribed the officials to keep them here. From what he knew some even became mentally disabled while they were locked in these prisons.

As his car was passing by the care house, he saw some people on the street waving towards him forcing him to stop. Forcing him because the big weapons they carried left him no other choice.