The girls were still walking through the orphanage halls, their footsteps echoing, when suddenly a thick, grey smoke began to roll along the floor.
Misbah coughed. "What… is this smell?"
Sadiya waved her hand in front of her face. "It stinks… like burning plastic and blood!"
Yumna pulled her scarf over her nose. "Don't breathe it in!"
But it was too late. The smoke slithered up around them like living snakes.
Minahil gasped for air. "My chest… it's burning!"
Amna screamed. "My eyes… they're on fire!"
One by one, the girls fell to the ground, clutching their throats. Their eyes rolled back. Their bodies twisted as if in pain.
Zanib tried to crawl toward the door. "No… we… have to… fight it…"
But the smoke was too strong. Dark tendrils of it wrapped around them like chains. Their screams echoed through the empty orphanage.