Tejas was the first to stand.
For a second, the world felt… wrong.
Too quiet.
Too still.
"…Okay," he said, though it sounded more like he was trying to convince himself. "No one panic."
No one responded.
Diya was helping Mia sit up, her hands gentle but firm. Kiara brushed dirt off her clothes, irritation already showing on her face. Anish stood slightly apart, his gaze moving—not randomly, but carefully—taking everything in.
Tejas swallowed.
"We just go back," he said. "The way we came."
Kiara nodded immediately. "Yeah. Obviously."
Mia wiped her eyes, still shaky. "Y-yeah… we just go back…"
Diya gave her a small smile. "See? It'll be fine."
---
"I don't think that'll help."
Anish's voice was quiet.
But it didn't get lost.
Tejas turned. "Why not?"
Anish didn't answer right away.
His eyes moved across the trees… then the ground… then the space between them.
"…Just a feeling," he said.
Kiara let out a dry laugh. "A feeling? That's what we're going with?"
Tejas exhaled slowly. "We'll try anyway."
---
They started walking.
---
No one spoke.
---
The forest pressed in around them.
The trees were too tall—stretching endlessly upward, their branches tangling together like they were trying to block out the sky.
The ground felt soft beneath their feet.
Wet.
Each step made a dull, heavy sound.
And that was the only sound.
---
No birds.
No insects.
Nothing.
---
After a while, Diya slowed.
"…We should've reached it by now," she said softly.
Tejas didn't answer.
Because he knew she was right.
---
Mia looked around, her fingers tightening around her phone.
"We didn't go that far… right?"
Her voice was small.
Uncertain.
---
Kiara frowned. "No… we didn't."
---
Anish stopped walking.
---
It took the others a second to notice.
---
"…We're not going back," he said.
---
Tejas turned sharply. "What do you mean?"
Anish crouched, pressing his fingers into the ground.
He rubbed the soil between them.
"…It's wet," he said.
"So?" Kiara snapped.
Anish stood slowly.
His eyes moved upward, tracing the height of the trees.
"They're too tall," he said. "Too dense."
A pause.
"…This isn't the same place."
---
Something cold settled in Tejas's chest.
"Then where are we?" he asked.
---
Anish hesitated.
Just for a second.
"…It's closer to a rainforest."
Silence.
"…Like the Amazon."
---
The word didn't feel real.
---
"That's not possible…" Diya said quietly.
"Yeah, no kidding," Kiara muttered, but her voice wasn't as sharp as before. "So what, we just magically ended up here?"
No one answered.
---
Mia shook her head quickly.
"Maybe we should just stay here," she said, almost pleading. "Someone will come looking for us… right?"
---
No one spoke.
---
Then—
"That's… not likely."
---
Tejas looked at Anish. "Why?"
---
Anish met his eyes.
"…We're not on the mountain anymore."
---
"…What?"
---
The words echoed in Tejas's head.
But Mia—
She heard them differently.
---
Her breathing hitched.
"No…"
Her hands started shaking as she pulled out her phone again.
"No, no—"
She tapped the screen again.
And again.
And again.
"No signal…"
Her voice trembled.
"There's no signal…"
---
"Mia—" Diya reached for her.
---
But it was already happening.
---
"What do we do…?" Mia whispered.
Her chest tightened.
The air felt wrong.
Too heavy.
Like it wouldn't go in properly.
---
"What do we do?!" her voice cracked. "What do we do?! Our phones aren't working—we're lost—we're lost—!"
Tears spilled down her face.
"I don't wanna be here…"
---
Diya pulled her into a tight hug.
"Mia, hey… look at me," she said softly. "It's okay. It'll be alright."
Her voice was steady.
Even if her hands weren't.
"We have each other. We'll figure this out."
---
Mia clung to her.
Like if she let go—
Something worse would happen.
---
Tejas ran a hand through his hair.
Think.
Just think.
"Does anyone have a map?" he asked. "Of the mountain?"
---
"That's not going to help."
Anish didn't even look at him this time.
"…We're not in a mountain."
---
Kiara let out a sharp breath.
"This is stupid."
She turned to Tejas.
"How did we even get here? Where did the temple go?"
"I don't know," he snapped.
"Well, you're the one trying to lead, aren't you?"
"At least I'm trying to think!"
"And how's that working out for you?"
---
"Stop it," Diya said.
But her voice was small compared to theirs.
---
"Great leadership, Tejas," Kiara continued. "Really impressive."
"Oh, and you running into that temple was smart?"
"At least I did something!"
"You got us here!"
---
"Enough."
---
Anish's voice cut through them.
Low.
Firm.
---
And then—
A sound.
---
It didn't echo.
It pressed into the air.
---
Deep.
Heavy.
Wrong.
---
Everyone froze.
---
Mia's grip tightened instantly.
"…What was that…?" she whispered.
---
The forest went silent.
Not normal silence.
The kind that felt like something was waiting.
---
Then—
A shadow moved over them.
---
Slowly.
---
Tejas looked up.
---
And his breath stopped.
---
Wings.
---
Massive.
Stretching across the sky.
---
A creature soared above them.
Too large.
Too real.
Its wings cut through the air with a force they could feel.
For a moment—
It circled.
---
"…That's not…" Kiara whispered.
Her voice barely there.
---
Mia let out a soft, broken sob.
---
The creature roared.
---
Louder this time.
Closer.
---
The sound hit their chests.
Like pressure.
Like a warning.
---
Tejas's throat felt dry.
His mind blank.
But his body already knew.
---
"…Don't move"
---