The rain was pouring down relentlessly. Nancy and Davis had already left the hospital, but they weren't alone Nova was with them. She was the only one who could help them, and in return, they were her only hope for survival. Since Nova was the only living person to have seen the intruder's face and survived, he would surely come for her once he realized she was out in the open. That was exactly why they had taken her with them.
Nova remained profoundly silent, her eyes fixed on the rain and the flashes of lightning outside. She had been trapped in that dark hospital room for far too long.
"What else do you know?" Davis asked, breaking the silence.
"What exactly are you expecting from me?" Nova replied softly.
"We aren't expecting much. We just need to know if he is the one behind all of this. No one has ever seen him and lived to tell the tale except for you, Nova. You are the only one alive who has looked into his eyes."
Nova looked out at the dark, overcast clouds.
"I am like these dark clouds now, Doctor. I long for the light, but it feels so far away from me. I didn't choose to be alone; I was forced into it." She turned to look at them. "It has been so long since I knew what peace felt like. There is a constant ache inside me, wondering when my time will come."
"Don't think like that anymore, Nova," Nancy comforted her. "He is not the one who decides your time or anyone else's."
They were heading toward the villa, which was located somewhere near Nova's home village.
"How do you know Shino?" Nancy asked, watching her closely.
"That..." Nova paused for a moment of silence before beginning to recount another haunting incident from her past.
(Flashback): One night, Nova was lying alone in her bed. It had been nearly two weeks since Nimmi went missing. Nova lay there, consumed by the guilt that she was the reason her sister was gone. Suddenly, she jolted awake. It sounded like someone was throwing something against her window.
Despite the fear gripping her heart, she slowly got out of bed and approached the window. It was raining heavily outside.
Tack!
Something hit the glass again. Nova slowly pushed the window open.
Woosh...!!!
A cold blast of wind surged into the room. Cold raindrops splashed against her face. After wiping them away, she peered into the darkness. And then she saw her... Nimmi, standing there, drenched in the rain. Her body was covered in wounds. Nova gasped in shock.
"Nimmi!!" she whispered to herself.
Nova hurried out of her room and stepped outside. The torrential rain soaked her instantly, and the cold was biting. She began walking toward Nimmi, who stood just ahead of her.
"Nimmi, don't leave me!!" Nova kept pleading internally as she moved forward.
But no matter how fast Nova walked, Nimmi seemed to drift further away into the darkness. Yet, Nova kept walking, deeper into the storm.
As Nova drew closer, it felt as though Nimmi was drifting further away into the gloom. Nova stood frozen, unable to comprehend what was happening around her.
[A DEAFENING CRACK OF THUNDER]
A bolt of lightning so bright it blinded her flashed across the sky, accompanied by a bone-shaking roar of thunder. Nova collapsed to the ground, shielding her eyes.
A moment later, she opened her eyes and stood up. The rain had ceased; the thunder had vanished. Everything was unnervingly still. Nova looked around, surrounded by a heavy, suffocating silence.
"Nova..." Nimmi's voice drifted through the air.
Nova spun around. Nimmi was now standing by the window of their house, drenched in blood.
"Nimmi!!!!!!!!!" Nova screamed at the top of her lungs.
She tried to bolt toward her, but her body refused to move. Her arms and legs felt as though they had been frozen solid.
"Nova... please help," Nimmi pleaded in a sobbing voice.
"Nimmi!" Nova struggled, but she remained paralyzed.
Suddenly, an invisible force yanked Nimmi backward into the shadows.
"Nimmi!!!" Nova shrieked.
Powerless to move, she could only stand there and wail in agony. In the exact spot where Nimmi had stood, he appeared.
"Nova," he called out, his voice a low, terrifying rasp.
"Nimmi..." Nova sobbed.
"I know your pain, Nova. I understand just how much you love her."
"What do you want?!" Nova screamed in a fit of rage.
"Shinova..." he whispered.
Nova stood confused, the name echoing in her mind. Suddenly, another crack of thunder shook the earth. She instinctively shut her eyes. When she opened them again, the figure was gone and her body was free. But as she turned to run, he appeared instantly, grabbing her by the throat and hoisting her off the ground.
"If you want to escape, if you want your Nimmi back... you must help me, Nova," he hissed, tightening his grip. "You will do exactly as I say. You have no other choice."
As the pressure on her windpipe increased, Nova managed a desperate nod. "I'll do it... I'll do it!"
She had no other way out.
"Good," he chuckled darkly.
For reasons unknown, he suddenly tightened his grip again. Nova's lungs burned; she began to kick her legs wildly, clawing for air. In those fleeting seconds of near-death, images and information about Shinova her face, her very essence flooded into Nova's mind.
The moment he released his grip, everything returned to normal. Nova collapsed into unconsciousness.}
Returning to the present, Nova finished her story and stared out the car window.
"I don't know how I'm going to do what he asked," she whispered, tears streaming down her face. "I don't know how I'm ever going to bring Nimmi back."