The scene shifted to the eastern part of the forest.

  "How long will the cave go?" Jatayu asked, his voice echoing faintly against the jagged walls.

  Suddenly, Aishwarya’s hand shot out, stopping them in their tracks. "Do you hear that?"

  Jatayu strained to listen. "No... I hear nothing."

  "Follow me," Aishwarya said firmly.

  As they ventured deeper, a horrible sound began to filter through the tunnels—a guttural, wet snoring that vibrated in their chests. Aishwarya, Jatayu, and Pari moved toward a ledge, hiding behind a big stone to look down.

  They saw the chaos in the cave. Cave demons were scattered everywhere, sleeping in heaps. At the center, the King sat upon a throne of obsidian, snoring with saliva dropping from his open mouth.

  "Is he the King?" Pari whispered, eyes wide.

  "I think... it is him," Aishwarya told them.

  Suddenly, Naraga's neck chain began to glow. A metallic grey light streaked through the air and reached his necklace. The vibration disrupted Naraga’s nose, and he awoke instantly. The light condensed into an orb, followed immediately by a deep blue light that attached itself to the chain.

  On the necklace, the metallic grey orb displayed a Boar symbol, and the deep blue orb showed a Cobra symbol. Naraga stared at them.

  "It’s quick..." Naraga said, his voice like grinding rocks.

  "Yes... King," his General muttered, suddenly awakened by the heavy resonance of Naraga’s voice.

  Naraga’s eyes remained fixed on the glowing orbs on his chest. "I think we are not facing the same team of vessels."

  The General stood nearby, listening intently. "You think that they have joined allies, my King?"

  "Might be... they defeated the Titans instantly," Naraga added, his grip tightening on the obsidian arms of his throne until the stone groaned. "More surprisingly... these are new Titans, and they would have not been trained to fight them."

  "Can I ask our soldiers to check for the arrival of any new vessels?" the General asked, his spindly shadow flickering against the cave wall.

  Naraga, looking into the orbs without turning his head, shook his hand—a silent, cold sign of approval.

  Up on the jagged ledge, Jatayu whispered from the shadows, "Who would have defeated the Titans?"

  "Who else. It should be one of students of Section B." Aishwarya told him, her eyes tracking Naraga’s every movement with predatory focus.

  Pari looked at them weirdly. Aishwarya caught his expression even in the dim light. "Why are you looking like that?"

  Pari turned away, his voice barely audible. "Nothing... it’s just that you are right."

  As they talked, Naraga’s head tilted back. He sniffed the air, his massive nostrils flaring as he tasted the currents. "General... did you find anything new here?"

  "No... nothing abnormal, my King."

  "It’s there.... the smell of an invader," Naraga said, his eyes beginning to scan the dark, jagged corners of the ceiling.

  The General bowed low. "That’s not possible..."

  "No... sorry," Naraga corrected, a dark, jagged grin forming on his face. "Not an invader; there are invaders."

  "That’s it... we are finished," Jatayu whispered, his breath hitching.

  "Don't panic," Aishwarya said, her eyes fixed firmly on the exit path.

  The General reached for a twisted seashell hanging from his belt. He held it to his mouth and blew a haunting, low note.

  

  The sound struck the ceiling like a physical blow. Thousands of bats—the same ones the team had seen at the entrance of the cave—reacted instantly, emitting a unique, synchronized shriek. A physical shield made of sonic waves rippled through the air, vibrating the very stone and sealing the path forward.

  "They blocked our way in," Jatayu told them, his heart sinking as he realized they were trapped between the sonic wall and the King.

  Naraga stood up, his massive shadow stretching across the stone floor like a shroud. "Whoever you are... come out; I'll let you live if you surrender on your own."

  On the outside, Mayi instantly realized something was wrong. Her spiritual connection flickered and died; something had blocked her ability to trace Aishwarya’s Heartbeat pattern. It was the sonic interference of the bats.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Her Tripundra began to glow with a fierce light—a common emergency message sent to Mona, Mia, and Subha.

  "TEAM 1 caught in the Cave of the Mythics—eastern edge of the forest near Manali town."

  At the camp, Subha’s eyes snapped open. "Guys... it's an emergency. Let's go!"

  Nuvan, Aaron, Varun, and Rohan suited up in a blur of motion. Led by Subha, they vanished into the forest, racing toward the coordinates. Minutes later, Raksha returned to the camp, her hands stained with the juices of the Sanjeevni herb. She looked around at the empty tents.

  "Where are these guys?" she muttered.

  Back at the cave:

  "I think... we have no other option," Aishwarya whispered, her hand moving toward the arrows. "We need to fight back."

  "Don't risk your life," Jatayu cautioned, sweat beads forming on his forehead. "We are outnumbered."

  "It’s me who brought you here," Aishwarya said, her voice steady . "And it’s my responsibility to protect everyone."

  But just as the team prepared for a desperate suicide charge—

  A CLAPPING!

  The sound of slow, rhythmic applause echoed through the cave.

  "Sharp senses, King Naraga!"

  A mysterious figure emerged from the deep shadows of the cave, draped in a strange, shifting cloak. He held something heavy in his hand.

  "A gift for you..." he said, casually throwing a round object across the stone floor. It tumbled and stopped at the foot of the throne.

  It was the head of the Messenger.

  Naraga and his soldiers stared at the severed head in stunned silence. "Who are you?" Naraga asked, his voice a deep, vibrating bass filled with rising anger.

  Two identical, pale-skinned creatures stepped fully into the dim light.

  "Myself Neon, and he is my twin brother, Vana," the first one introduced. He smiled, showing teeth that were a little too sharp. "We are sorry... for taking the head of your messenger. He told us to leave."

  “I was the one who ordered that!” Naraga roared, standing from his throne.

  Pari whispered, “These are the twins Raksha told us about.”

  Without looking away, Aishwarya replied, “Then our two missions just became one. Thank me.”

  “For what?” Pari asked quietly.

  “For my decision to explore the cave,” Aishwarya said. “That’s how we encountered the twins.”

  Jatayu cut in sharply, his voice tense. “Stop it… they’re going to hear us.”

  The scene continued in the cavern.

  Neon’s smile only widened. "King Naraga... what’s the point of being a King if you cancel a meeting on the very day of it? We came all this way from Munnar to Manali to speak to you, but you rejected us. You didn't even appear before us. You sent a messenger... so I brought his head in return."

  Naraga’s eyes burned with a dark fire. "This is my place... and you are talking like this in front of the King of the Cave-Demons?"

  "King Naraga... we have no intention to hurt any of your comrades," Vana’s voice drifted through the cave, soft and chilling like a winter mist. "Our only intention is to have a smooth deal with you."

  "Smooth deal? Uhh..." Naraga’s laugh was a harsh, guttural sound that rattled the loose stones on the ceiling. "After what you did to my messenger?"

  Naraga’s eyes burned as he looked at the twins. "Fine. Let's keep it smooth. Duel me. If you survive, I will listen to both of you."

  Naraga reached up and tore away the worn, heavy towel covering his shoulders. His massive, broad muscular arms became visible, mapped with scars from decades of warfare. He stood from his throne, rising to his full ten-foot height, and stepped down into the center of the hollow. Each footfall was a heavy thud that shook the earth.

  "What do you say?" Naraga challenged.

  "Fine," Neon said, stepping forward with an effortless, predatory grace.

  Naraga looked at the lone twin and scoffed. "Ask your brother to join you in the fight."

  Neon tilted his head, a smirk playing on his lips. "I think it won’t be necessary."

  "That’s wrong, boy," Naraga growled, his fists clenching until his knuckles turned bone-white. "You two were born at the same time... your death should also be at the same time."

  Neon’s eyes glinted. "If you say so... Vana?"

  Vana stepped in, moving in perfect synchronization with his brother. The contrast was terrifying: on one side stood the ten-foot-tall Cave-Demon King, a mountain of raw, ancient power; on the other stood two six-foot-tall young pure-blood vampires, lean and radiating a lethal, refined energy.

  The cave demons held their breath as the two sides prepared for battle.

  Naraga didn't wait. He roared, leaping into the air with surprising agility for his size, and launched a massive double-handed smash aimed directly at the twins. The earth shattered where they had stood a split second before, but Neon and Vana escaped the attack by a narrow hair’s breadth.

  Neon took to the air, leaping across the jagged rock faces to evade Naraga’s follow-up swings, while Vana maintained a low-key approach. Vana stepped in close, landing a lightning-fast punch into Naraga’s gut—but there was no impact. It was like hitting a wall of solid rubber.

  "Your hands are smaller," Naraga mocked. He reached out with a hand the size of a shield, grabbed Vana by the arm, and threw him back across the cavern floor.

  Neon saw his chance and dropped from the ceiling, landing on Naraga’s broad shoulders to strike at his neck. But Naraga reacted fast; he reached up, caught Neon by the leg, and threw him away with a flick of his wrist. Neon tumbled, landing right beside his brother.

  "Weak," Naraga grunted, his shadow looming over them.

  Neon stood up, walking a few steps forward. He didn't look angry; he looked focused. He glanced back at Vana and signalled something with a subtle shift of his eyes.

  The twins split. Neon circled to Naraga’s back while Vana stood directly in front of the King. Naraga snarled, lunging forward with a punch backed by a violent, bone-crushing force.

  The punch stopped dead. The Cave-Demon crew gasped; the entire cavern went silent. Naraga’s eyes widened in shock. Vana had blocked the strike with his bare palm.

  Roaring in frustration, Naraga swung his other hand—but Vana caught that one too, his smaller fingers locking around Naraga’s massive knuckles.

  "How did you become so powerful?" Naraga hissed, his voice trembling with effort. "You were weak... before!"

  While Naraga was paralyzed by shock, Vana locked both of the King's hands in a grip of iron and landed a brutal head-to-head hit. The headbutt sent a shockwave through Naraga’s skull, forcing him back.

  Instantly, Neon moved. He launched from the shadows behind and used his powerful legs to lock around Naraga’s thick neck in a vice-like grip. Naraga thrashed, reaching up to rip the vampire off his back, but his hands were still pinned by Vana’s relentless hold.

  Naraga was completely locked. The 10-foot King began to suffocate, his face turning a dark, bruised purple as he gasped for air. The cave-demons watched in absolute horror; their King was being dismantled by two boys.

  Suddenly, Neon released his neck lock and flipped backward. Vana let go of the King's hands at the same moment.

  Naraga collapsed to one knee, breathing heavily. He coughed violently and looked back at the twins with a new sense of dread.

  "Shall we speak now?" Neon said, his voice as calm as a summer breeze.

  Thanks for reading.

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