Episode 12
Before the men arrived, Zarmeena had already reached the room.
As soon as she entered, she told Molsak to follow her.
She moved aside a curtain on the wall, revealing a small door.
They both entered one after the other.
Zarmeena locked the door from the inside.
The sound of running footsteps could now be heard entering the previous room.
Perhaps those people had seen them enter through the small door—
because they came straight toward it and began trying to break it down.
They were now in a large room.
There was another room ahead that led outside the mansion.
Zarmeena gave Molsak a final, farewell glance—
as if saying, "Whoever you are, my savior, just get out of here."
But Molsak wasn't selfish.
Despite being a snake, he knew well—
you don't abandon someone helpless at the mercy of circumstances.
His only constraint was that he couldn't keep Zarmeena with him.
Still, he took her along and escaped the mansion.
It was midnight.
The villagers were locked inside their homes.
Only the mansion remained, where now a funeral-like atmosphere had taken over.
Molsak told Zarmeena to head to the snake charmers' village.
He went in the opposite direction.
Zarmeena didn't insist on going with him—
perhaps she had realized that this mysterious man called Molsak was not entirely human.
She thanked him and entered the village of the snake charmers.
As Molsak walked a short distance beyond the snake charmers' village,
he turned and looked back toward the goth (village).
He was about to leave when—
his sharp eyes caught sight of a shadow moving quickly toward him.
That figure was heading straight in his direction.
A glimmer of recognition sparkled in Molsak's eyes.
Perhaps he recognized them?
Still cautious, he moved aside.
As the figure approached, it hissed.
Molsak stepped out—
and, just as he'd suspected, it was Wasoori.
"Wasoori...?" he whispered.
Wasoori smiled and walked toward him.
"I had followed you all the way to the mansion," she said.
"I stayed hidden outside. When I noticed the chaos inside, I knew you'd begun your work.
There were guards at the main gate—four of them. I didn't leave even one alive."
"I wanted to enter the mansion, but many people were awake and running about.
I stayed hidden near the gate, waiting for you, but you never came out.
Later, many people exited the mansion and spread out. Maybe they were looking for you.
Some even came my way. Before they could reach me, I escaped—
and came straight here."
She shared everything with Molsak in detail.
A smile crept over his lips.
It felt good to know someone cared for him.
They held each other's hands—
and walked back toward their den.
---
By morning, the goth of Bheeroon was gripped by the mysterious deaths of Wadera Hukam and his seven men.
No one mourned the Wadera—
but the sight of so many coffins leaving one house filled the village with dread.
Noori, unlike the others, was not afraid.
She was happy that Molsak had survived.
She was convinced that he was the one behind the Wadera's and his men's deaths.
Zarmeena was staying in a house in the snake charmers' village.
She had told them everything—
except who had killed the Wadera.
She only said chaos broke out in the mansion when someone killed the Wadera, and in that confusion, she escaped.
The next morning, a snake charmer took her back to her home in Karachi.
Wadera Allah Dad had heard about Hukam's death.
After Hame Shah, the death of Hukam terrified him.
He didn't even attend the funeral.
He was now sure it was the same venomous man—
and he would be the next target.
To soothe himself, he told himself the goth of Bheeroon was 100 kilometers away—
Molsak wouldn't come this far.
But he forgot one thing:
Distance means nothing to death.
And Molsak was death itself.
---
Around midnight, Molsak was lying on the sand outside with Wasoori.
During the day, they stayed in their den.
At night, they would come out, roam around, or lie under the open sky.
Sometimes smaller snakes would come play with them—
they would all play together till morning, then retreat to their burrows.
Now they had no fear of the Waderas—
but they still feared the snake charmers.
Occasionally, charmers came hunting for snakes.
If they ever captured Molsak or Wasoori during the day—
and locked them in a small basket in snake form—
they wouldn't be able to change back into humans.
That's why they stayed hidden most of the day,
only venturing out when absolutely necessary.
They had often gone near Wadera Allah Dad's goth—
but thankfully, they were never caught.
If they had been captured by the charmers,
they might never have returned.
---
Meanwhile, Noori's curiosity was at its peak.
Her desire to see Molsak and know his truth had consumed all her senses.
One morning, she took her friend Bano and headed into the desert.
At home, she told them they were going to visit a friend in another village—
and would return in a few hours.
After the old snake charmer's words and the mysterious deaths that followed,
Noori was now certain Molsak was somewhere nearby.
They walked deep into the desert, but found no trace of Molsak—
or even another soul.
They wandered in a different direction—still no one.
The sun climbed higher.
Their mistake?
They hadn't brought any water.
Bano cursed the day she became friends with Noori.
They were now extremely thirsty.
There was no sign of water or shade.
When the sun was directly overhead,
their shadows disappeared under their feet.
Their throats were so dry they could barely speak.
Suddenly, they saw water—
a small pond in the distance.
They ran toward it.
But as they reached it—it vanished.
Disheartened, they looked at each other.
Then—again—they saw the pond a short distance ahead.
They ran again—
and again, it vanished.
They wanted to cry out—
but their throats were too dry.
Their bodies too dehydrated for even tears.
Once again, the pond appeared farther ahead.
Now they realized—
it was a mirage.
When the desert decides to claim a life,
it does so with such illusions—
until the person collapses—
and is swallowed whole by the sands.
That's the reality of the world too.
It distracts us with false mirages.
And when we collapse from exhaustion—
it simply buries us.
If instead, we chase truth—
nothing in the world can harm us.
And that ultimate truth... is God.
Noori, holding Bano's arm, began walking slowly toward the village—
ashamed for dragging her into this.
Their strength gave out—
and they both collapsed, unconscious.
---
Noori regained consciousness as she felt water splashed on her face.
A man was sprinkling water on her.
At first, she thought even the water was a mirage—
but then she opened her eyes fully—
and sat up.
Beside her, Bano was sitting and staring in disbelief at the men who had saved them.
They were three elderly shepherds from Goth Bheeroon.
Noori had seen them before in the village.
They gave them water—
and as it entered their bodies, life returned.
"What were you girls doing here?" one of the men asked.
"Our goat ran off, Baba Saeen. We came to look for it," Noori quickly lied.
She couldn't tell them she was looking for the venomous man—
a man who had killed Wadera and Hame Shah.
"You shouldn't come to the desert without water," the man warned.
Noori asked,
"But Baba Saeen, how did you find us?"
"We were crossing the desert with our goats when we saw a large snake—
standing still, staring at us.
We tried to kill it to save our lives and the goats, but it fled.
We followed it, but it stayed ahead.
Oddly enough, when we stopped—it stopped.
When we moved—it moved.
We realized it was leading us somewhere.
Eventually, it passed right by you two—
and vanished that way," he pointed.
"When we reached you, we saw snake trails all around you—
as if it had circled you for a while before going off to bring help."
Strangely... that snake didn't harm you—
it saved you."
Noori was stunned.
She hadn't even thought of Molsak.
She had no idea—
that Molsak was, in truth, a snake.
The men gave them a bottle of water and sent them back to the village.
Noori and Bano returned—
but their minds were filled with a question:
Why would a snake save them instead of biting them?
That mystery lingered.
---
That afternoon, Molsak ventured out alone.
He often did.
Wasoori remained back in their den.
Soon, he spotted two human bodies lying on the sand.
As he approached, he recognized one of them—
the same girl he once saved at the Makli graveyard.
Noori.
"What is she doing here?" he wondered.
She had once vanished from his life—
now here she was, unconscious in the desert.
He felt restless—wanting to help—
but he was in snake form.
What could he do?
He circled them a few times—
then had an idea.
He walked toward a path where he sensed three humans approaching.
He intentionally made himself visible—
and led them toward the girls—
then disappeared into hiding.
Only after the girls were safe did Molsak return to his den.
---
That evening, the shepherds shared the story—
and word soon spread to the snake charmers' village.
By morning, many snake charmers gathered at the spot—
determined to capture the old and mysterious snake that had long been sighted in the region.
Back in their den, Molsak and Wasoori suddenly heard the sound of a flute (been)—
and exchanged worried glances.
To be continued...
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