The hotel restaurant was quiet that morning, with golden sunlight filtering through sheer curtains, casting warm pools of light on the cream-colored tablecloths. The scent of cardamom and fresh flatbread lingered in the air as Iris stirred her tea absentmindedly.
Sean was already halfway through his second cup of coffee, his tablet propped up against a water jug, displaying detailed maps and sketches from the excavation file. His hair was still slightly tousled, as if he'd just rolled out of bed—but he was already in full "mission mode."
"Alright," he said between bites of paratha, "our site is in the Alwar district, just outside the Bhangarh Fort perimeter. According to the notes, this is a relatively untouched zone."
Iris nodded,and then let out a dy remark"I guess its hunted ?" Sean rolled his eyes ."Seriously ? You're buying into local ghost stories now ?"But Iris's eyes remained distance as she stired her tea in slow repetitive circles.
"Are you not going to drink it ?"he asked raising a brow at her."Is it the nightmares ?"
She looked up, startled. "I didn't say anything."
"You didn't have to. You've got that look like you're still half in it." He leaned back, watching her closely.
She hesitated, fingers tightening around her teacup. "Sean… do you remember seeing the name 'Nefira' in any of those documents?"
He blinked. "Nefira?" He swiped through the tablet files quickly, scanning. "Nope. Sounds... Egyptian? Why?"
Iris looked down, then back up, trying to brush it off. "Just something from my dream. It felt... familiar. Like it wasn't just a dream."
Sean gave her a skeptical look. "First you're tearing up envelopes mid-flight, now you're dreaming about random names? You sure you're okay?"
"Honestly? I don't know," she said quietly. "But something about all of this feels... bigger than us."
Sean raised a brow, but didn't press. Instead, he tapped on the tablet. "Well, whatever this is, we'll figure it out once we reach the site. If there's something buried there—literal or metaphorical—we'll dig it up."
Their breakfast continued in silence, broken only by the clink of cutlery and the occasional turn of a digital page. Outside, Rohan in his dusty jeep waited by the curb, engine humming like a tired animal already bracing for the heat ahead.
The journey began along the cracked highways snaking through Rajasthan's arid plains. As they left the city behind, civilization slowly peeled away—noisy horns fading into silence, roadside shops giving way to thorny shrubs and the occasional camel trudging past in the distance. The land stretched out like a faded scroll, ancient and waiting to be read.
Iris sat by the window, watching the world blur into copper dust and dry hills. Every so often, domed temples or centuries-old havelis would emerge like ghosts from the landscape, whispering of kingdoms long gone. Sean, in contrast, leaned back in his seat, half asleep but occasionally snapping pictures with his phone, too lazy to hide his tourist spirit.
After nearly three hours of rough, sun-blasted driving, the terrain began to shift. The road narrowed and twisted upward, flanked by looming rocky cliffs and overgrown trees. As they neared the Aravalli hills, a strange stillness hung in the air—an unnatural quiet that grew thicker with every mile.
Finally, the ruins of Bhangarh Fort emerged like a mirage: jagged stone walls cradled by hills, with an eerie grandeur untouched by time.
"Welcome," Rohan said as he killed the engine, "to Bhangarh and this is where i will stop ,I shall not take any steps further into that cursed place ." Sean looked at Rohan ,puzzled "What do you mean_ hunted?"
"I told you ,"Iris chimmed in, stepping out of the jeep with a slight smirk."Haunted ."
She planted her feet on the ground. The air was dry and still, and yet her heart pounded like she had stepped into something ancient and unfinished. Something pulled at her—a whisper under her skin.