The golden urn — the Maan Kalash — sat on the marble table like a silent riddle. Its ancient runes glowed faintly, pulsing with a rhythm that matched no human heartbeat.
"Let me try," Shyom said, his fingers trembling as he entered the sacred code carved on the urn's base. The symbols flared… then fizzled out.
A low hum filled the air. Nothing happened.
"Step aside," Sharda said firmly, her tone motherly but urgent. She pressed her palm against the surface, chanting the family mantra she had learned from her ancestors. The Kalash glowed briefly, then turned dark once more.
Veena tried next — tears glistening in her eyes as she whispered prayers between attempts. Dadi followed, her wrinkled hands steady despite the tension. Yet, with each touch, the Kalash refused to open.
Finally, Gauri stepped forward. Her fingers brushed the cold surface. "Come on," she murmured. "You're his soul… let me reach him."
For a heartbeat, the runes flickered — a faint blue shimmer danced over the metal. The family gasped. But then, just as hope rose, it died.
The light vanished.
And then — a distant rumble.
From the stairway, water began trickling down. First a thin stream… then a flood.
"The water!" Gauri shouted. "He's coming through the water!"
She turned to the others. "Keep trying to open it! If we unlock it, we can bring Vihaan back!"
Without waiting, she ran toward the hall — toward the sound of crashing waves and a guttural growl that made the chandelier tremble.
---
The Hall — The Return of Makasur
The air was thick, heavy with moisture. The walls dripped. The mirrors cracked.
And from the center of the living room floor, Makasur rose — his form twisting and reshaping, half-human, half-beast. His voice echoed like a thousand drops of poison.
"You dare… trick me?" he hissed.
Gauri's breath hitched. The false Kalash lay shattered on the floor beside her.
"Stay back!" she shouted, gripping the nearest lamp like a weapon. "You've got your treasure—"
"That was no treasure," Makasur growled, taking a step closer. His form shimmered and shifted — first into a mist, then into the shape of Vihaan himself. "You tricked me with illusion. Now, I'll take your life instead."
Gauri stumbled backward, but her foot caught on the carpet. She fell hard, pain shooting up her arm. Her phone slid across the marble floor, skidding to a stop near Yug.
"Yug!" she screamed. "The phone—check the recording!"
Makasur loomed over her, his claws gleaming wetly. "No more games."
Yug, shaking, grabbed the phone and hit play.
From the speaker, Vihaan's voice filled the air:
"Fine! I took Makasur's treasure! Are you happy now?"
The words thundered through the hall like an accusation from heaven itself.
Makasur roared, his rage shaking the very walls. "You!" he bellowed. "You!"
He turned away from Gauri, his molten eyes burning with fury. Yet even in that moment of distraction, he swung his arm toward her — ready to crush her in vengeance.
Gauri screamed, eyes squeezed shut. "Vihaan!"
---
A Blaze of Light
Before Makasur's claws could strike, a flame erupted between them — bright, searing, divine.
From the corridor, a figure emerged — tall, cloaked in heat and shadow. His eyes glowed crimson and gold, his hand blazing with celestial fire.
"Sarvansh…" Gauri whispered, tears of relief and terror flooding her eyes.
With a flick of his wrist, the flame shot forward, wrapping around Makasur like chains. The monster writhed, howling, as the fire consumed him.
"Burn in the light you feared," Sarvansh said coldly.
He extended his arm — and with a violent surge of power, hurled Makasur straight through the window. The creature crashed into the courtyard and disintegrated as the first rays of sunlight struck him, dissolving him into mist.
Silence.
Only the faint hiss of evaporating water filled the air.
---
Aftermath — The Bitter Truth
The family rushed into the hall — eyes wide, breaths heavy.
"Vihaan!" Veena cried, running to him. "You're back—"
He stepped back sharply, fire glinting in his eyes. "Stay away."
His voice was not Vihaan's. It was Sarvansh's — cold, distant, laced with restrained fury.
Gauri's lips trembled. "But… you saved me…"
"I didn't save you," he said, turning away. "I destroyed my enemy."
The family froze. Veena's tears stopped midstream. Yug looked down at the still-glowing Kalash and whispered, "It's still locked."
Sharda's voice broke the silence. "Then… Vihaan hasn't returned."
Sarvansh looked up — his expression unreadable, almost human for a second. "Vihaan," he said softly, almost mockingly, "is gone for now. And if you value your lives, you'll keep the Jalpanchi far from me."
He turned, walking away — leaving a trail of ash and sorrow behind him.
Gauri watched him go, clutching her heart, her whisper barely audible over the crackle of extinguished flames:
"Then I'll bring him back… even if it means facing the fire myself."