The Truth

The valley stretched before me, bathed in the golden glow of the setting sun. The air here was unlike anything I had breathed before—clean, untouched, almost sacred. This place seemed like something born straight out of miracle, something that came out of a beautiful painting.

I’ve been here for a while now, long enough to stop counting the days, long enough to realize that the world I knew is nothing but a shadow of what truly exists. Though I am completely ignorant compared to the person who brought me here and the people who live here, I can claim to know more than all the population of the world. I have been told just enough to satisfy my heart and bind me to this place, and this information is just the tip of the iceberg, I think.....

After the accident near Antarctica, after watching my comrades die, disappear from my sight in an instant, turning into something unimaginable, I should have died too. But somehow, I didn’t. I got saved. I somehow ended up in a coast city in my country, thousands of miles from where I was supposed to me. Mr OM, found me near the coast dragged me out of my grave, eventually bringing me to this place. I should be grateful to him. Maybe I am. But that doesn’t change the fact that everything I believed in—everything I thought was real—has been torn apart.

When I arrived here, I was even more ignorant than I am now. I knew nothing about the anything. I agreed to come here because Mr. Om said that I could extract revenge on the man who slaughtered my friends, that was the sole reason I followed him, to find a way to kill Raktraka. But what I found out from these people completely shattered my belief system and my view of the world.

Raktraka—the man I saw during my voyage, the one who tore through my unit like we were insects—was no human. He was an Asura.

I had never heard the word before. Even now, it doesn’t sound real.

Diatas, the old man draped in orange robes, was the one who explained it to me. He said Asuras were an ancient race, powerful beings from Patal Lok, a realm beyond our understanding. He told me that they were evil, that they had returned to Earth, and they had to be stopped at any cost to prevent the destruction of the entire world.

At first, I thought they were just senile old men telling stories to cope with whatever madness had consumed them. It was easier to believe that than to accept the alternative. I tried to rationalize what I had seen—maybe Raktraka was some failed experiment, some genetically engineered monster that had escaped a black-site lab. That made sense. That fit within the world I understood.

I argued with him for a long time, trying all logics to deny whatever he was saying and explain Raktraka with my view, the view which would seem more believable to anyone than what Diatas was saying. It proved to be bad idea, my constant argument made me the recipient of Ram's wrath. He would have crushed me under his palm if Diatas, Ash and Om had not begged him to stop. My life was spared but then he did something that actually made them beleive there words.

The massive, muscle-bound elder crushed a boulder ten times his size with a single punch. No tricks, no technology—just raw, unexplainable power. I saw it with my own eyes, felt the tremors beneath my feet as the rock shattered like glass.

"You think you know everything? That your knowledge is sufficient to explain all that occurs in this universe?" Ram thundered. "Don't be a fool brat! You know nothing and you will never learn anything if you are not ready hear and understand what others are saying! You saw it for yourself! How your friends turned into a pile of meat in an instant and you couldn't do anything but stand there, frozen with horror. We are not running some fools show here and playing pranks on you. If you want to accomplish why you came here, then you have to believe what you are being told or else you can keep dreaming of avenging your comrades." His words struck all my weak points, rendering me unable to bring forth any argument.

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One thing that I realised after hearing his words was that I do not know anything.

And now, more people have been brought here by Om and Ash, for the same reason as me - To participate in the upcoming struggle against the Asur race.

Lord Diatas just dropped a bomb on them, mostly due to the impatience of Lord Ram and now they are completely thrown into a spiral of confusion with no way out and it's completely clear from their facial expression. They have no understanding of what they have heard just now.

"Varun", he looks at me, can I count on you to make them understand the situation. I nod in agreement. He probably thinks it would be easier for them to believe from someone who is same as them.

"Please follow me" I say, addressing four of them.

All of them start walking behind me immediately, probably out of terror of Lord Ram, completely understandable given his behaviour in the past few minutes.

Two boys, two girls. I take my time observing them, breaking them down the way I would new recruits.

The first boy is built like a fighter—broad-shouldered, strong, confident. He carries himself like someone who has seen combat, or at least believes he has, doesn't seem very intelligent though. And honestly, I don't want to count his wrestling skills and experience as combat knowledge given the enemies he might face of He continues on this path, even the skills taught in army were completely useless against that monster, and there are probably more of his kind in the enemy camp. This guy introduced himself as Balram. He’ll be easy to work with, I hope.

The second boy, called Anil is the complete opposite—lanky, almost skeletal, his dark eyes restless, constantly shifting like he’s searching for an escape route. There’s something about him that puts me on edge. He’s not afraid, not in the way he should be. Instead, he looks like he’s playing along, waiting for an opportunity to turn the situation to his advantage. He’s going to be a problem.

The girls seem more neutral. The first has sharp, intelligent eyes. She listens intently, analyzing every word. The second girl is harder to read, but she seems calm. Normal.

I straighten my stance, speaking clearly. "My name is Varun," I tell them. "I was in the military before coming here. I was the same as you when I arrived. I had no idea about what was to come and I was not prepared at all. I just came here to fulfill my personal desires. I am curious as to why you agreed to come here too but we can save that talk for later, first I should make you aware about the situation you are in." I speak as softly as possible, to let them know that I am not very different from them.

They listen carefully while walking behind me.

"The reason you’re here is simple. As Lord Diatas already told you, oh, he is the lean man in saffron robe, in case you are confused. You have been brought to participate in a armed conflict against a powerful foe of which, I don't have much of understanding myself." I remind them what they were just told and let the words settle before I continue.

"I know you still can't understand what I am saying or should I say your brain is simply not accepting what your ears are hearing but what Lord Diatas said and what I am going to say is absolutely true." I keep going on to supress the doubts that might be taking birth in their minds.

"We are to be the part of the team that has to fight this Asur race and stop their advance. You must have already heard about Antarctica somewhere or the other and the strange things happening around it, right?" I put up a question while providing them with crucial information. "Everything that is happening here is due to these Asura."

I really don't think they will beleive me so easily, I expect resistance. Doubt. Skepticism. But to my shock, Vrishti, one of the girl says that she believes what I am saying. "I have experienced some supernatural things too, so what you are saying is quite believable to me." She says without a trace of doubt and hesitation in her eyes. Her words have drawn the unbelieving eyes of both the boys but the other girl seems to debating with herself wether to accept what I am saying or not.

"They’re an ancient race. Not human. Not from this world. They possess abilities beyond anything we can understand—strength, speed, intelligence that surpasses anything we’ve ever encountered. For centuries, they were sealed away in Patal Lok." I continue.

The lean boy tilts his head, smirking slightly. Of course. He doesn’t believe a word of it. The other one seems completely clueless.

I ignore them. "Somehow, they’ve broken free. And they’ve already started moving. I have personally encountered one of them. His name was Raktraka. I fought him."

I don’t mean to clench my fists, but I do. "And I lost."

That gets their attention.

"He massacred my team. Not with weapons. Not with technology. With his bare hands. I tried to fight. I should have died there."

I take a step forward, locking eyes with each of them. "You think this is insane? That it’s impossible? I thought so too. Until I saw it with my own eyes." I seem to be losing control of myself as I tell them my own experience. I have to end this before my nightmare swallows me.

"That's about all you need to know about your situation. What you want to do next is completely on you." I conclude my education session.

"As for me, I have decided that I will stay here and fulfill my purpose. You decide what you want to do."

" Will you stay here and fight to save the world and fullfill the role decided for you or will you go back living your life, at the cost of many more?"