Chapter 28 — The Last Corridor
The darkness stretched before them like an open wound.
Arjun's boots made no sound.
The air was thick, heavy, and cold — a suffocating weight pressing into his lungs.
Every breath tasted of ash and something older, something rotten.
Riya walked ahead, her torchlight barely piercing the void.
Her shoulders trembled.
Her footsteps faltered.
> "We should have never come here," she whispered, her voice breaking.
Arjun glanced at her.
She had stopped speaking of escape.
Now, she only moved forward.
As if driven by something she did not understand.
Behind them — silence.
Not peace.
Silence that screamed.
---
The Corridor That Wasn't There
They entered what felt like another hallway.
The walls were black stone, but they pulsed faintly.
The air smelled of iron and ash.
Every step felt heavier.
Arjun noticed something strange — no matter how far they walked, the corridor seemed endless.
Every turn brought them to the same stretch of black stone.
It was as if they were walking in circles.
> "We're… not moving forward," Arjun said quietly.
Riya didn't answer.
Her breathing was ragged.
Her shoulders were tense.
The whispers returned.
Low. Soft.
But endless.
They called their names over and over:
> "Arjun… Riya… Arjun… Riya…"
The sound was everywhere.
It came from the walls, the floor, the air around them.
---
Shadows of the Dead
From the corner of Arjun's vision, shadows began to gather.
They formed into shapes — familiar faces, twisted in pain and horror.
Sid. Kabir. Ananya.
Their mouths moved without sound.
Their eyes were hollow, endless pits of darkness.
Riya grabbed Arjun's arm.
> "They're not just shadows anymore… they're memories.
The fort is showing us what we've lost."
Arjun swallowed hard.
His mind burned with exhaustion.
Every instinct screamed to stop.
But there was nowhere to stop to.
The corridor stretched on endlessly.
The air thickened.
The shadows multiplied.
---
The Breaking Point
They kept walking.
The whispers became louder.
Their names repeated like a chant.
Arjun's vision blurred.
Riya's steps slowed.
> "How much farther?" Arjun asked.
She shook her head.
"I don't know… but we're close."
They rounded another corner.
Ahead was a faint light — warm, golden.
It looked like the gate they had seen before.
But something was wrong.
The light pulsed strangely.
The air grew colder.
The whispers became laughter.
Riya stopped.
Her voice was a whisper.
> "This is it… the last corridor."
Arjun took her hand.
They stepped forward together.
---
End of Chapter 28