"The Red Room Ritual"

Jiya (smirking): "Did you really think I’d fall into your trap? Don’t be stupid, Rudra. Where were you last night?"

Rudra’s grip on the clothes tightened. He took a hesitant step closer, his voice trembling.

Rudra: "I... I was in my dorm."

Jiya (snapping): "LIE!"

She yanked out her phone and shoved it in front of him.

Jiya: "I saw you. Last night. At the basketball court. Look!"

She played a grainy video — He was killing the security guard. Noa lay motionless, already dead. She stood frozen in shock. Rudra went pale, his lips parting as if to speak, but no sound escaped.

Jiya (voice rising, eyes wild): "No words now? I saw everything, Rudra. After all, the headache and confusion led me to take action, huh? So, I just installed a few hidden cameras. You with Tina. Then Sneha. And Noa. You led them all to the alley like it was some twisted routine."

Her breathing grew ragged.

Jiya (frustrated): "What are you doing? Are you behind this? Are you... killing them?"

She took another step forward, her hands trembling and grsaps his collar.

Jiya: "And why don’t I remember anything from last night? What did you do to me? Did you erase my memory?"

Her eyes darted around. She snatched a nearby pen, her fingers white-knuckled around it.

Jiya (smirking, darkly): "You shouldn’t be alive. You need to be killed."

The clothes slipped from Rudra’s hands to the floor as Jiya lunged. He caught her wrist mid-air.

Rudra (desperate): "Jiya! Wake up!"

Jiya (screaming, unhinged): "I am awake! You killed them! Noa… the guard… everyone!"

She broke down into tears, her fists hammering his chest weakly.

Jiya (sobbing): "You need to die. You... monster."

Rudra gritted his teeth, his eyes flashing with panic. With one hand, he restrained her. With the other, he reached into his coat, pulling out shimmering, rune-covered pages that sparkled faintly under the light.

He began chanting in a low, foreign tongue—ancient and powerful. The air shimmered around them.

With a swift motion, he tossed the enchanted pages onto Jiya. The light from the spell burst outward.

Jiya’s eyes rolled back. Her body relaxed as she collapsed into his arms, unconscious, her head resting against his chest. After some moments.

Jiya blinked slowly, her vision adjusting to the eerie glow around her. The room was drenched in shades of deep red, empty and echoing with silence.

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She tried to move—but couldn’t. Her arms were bound tightly behind her, wrists roped to a cold stone pillar, stretched in opposite directions.

Her breathing grew sharp with panic.

From the shadows, footsteps echoed.

Rudra emerged—dressed in a deep red cloak, black pants, and a half-buttoned white shirt. His glasses were gone, hair tousled, his face unreadable. He looked... different. Dangerous.

He walked slowly toward her and, without a word, tossed shimmering dust over her bound body.

Jiya (screaming): "AHHH! Why are you doing this?! Are you going to kill me?!"

Rudra’s eyes remained shut as he muttered under his breath, chanting in a language ancient and guttural. He moved closer, grabbed her hair, and yanked her head back.

In an instant—

SPLASH.

She was no longer in the red room but plunged into deep, icy water. Her breath caught.

Jiya (gasping): "Huff—!"

She surfaced, choking on air. In a blink, she was yanked back to reality.

Jiya (shaking, angry): "STOP IT!"

Rudra pushed her again—another violent submersion.

Jiya (screaming): "DON’T DO IT!"

Again—thrust into the water. Her screams echoed across planes.

Jiya (broken, pleading): "STOP! I’ll do whatever you want!"

Silence followed. Rudra’s chants stopped. He stepped close, his eyes now open, glowing faintly with fury.

Rudra (stern): "Then leave her body."

Jiya coughed hard, struggling to hold composure.

Jiya (dark voice): "Why should I?"

Rudra: "She has nothing to do with you."

Jiya (voice twisted, not her own): "She came to me first. But she wasn’t my target… It was her friend."

Rudra (gritting teeth): "Did you possess her friend?"

Jiya: "No."

Rudra: "Then leave Jiya quietly. Or I’ll force you."

Jiya (growling): "If I let go, he will find her. And kill her. You have no idea how hard it is to stay in her body. Her energy… it’s too strong."

Rudra (calm but firm): "Then I’ll make sure he never gets to her."

He resumed his chant. The air grew thick. He threw more glowing dust over her, grabbed her hair one last time, and shoved her back beneath the invisible surface.

SPLASH.

Jiya shot upright in a bathtub, gasping for air. Her skin was drenched in blood-red water. The tub was placed perfectly at the centre of a five-pointed star etched inside a circle, surrounded by black ritual papers, red thread, and deity idols.

Her breath heaved. She rubbed her face in disbelief, water dripping from her fingertips.

Rudra was quietly cleaning up the ritual items.

Jiya (weakly): "Rudra…?"

He turned to her, walking toward the tub, calm but watchful.

Rudra: "How do you feel now?"

Jiya (confused, dazed): "Drained… What… What was I doing in there?"

Rudra: "Something was inside you. But it's gone now… at least for now."

She blinked slowly, her head heavy.

Rudra (softly): "Go change. We’ll talk once you're ready."

Without another word, Jiya stood up shakily, left the bloodied tub, and walked toward the bathroom.

Jiya stepped into the room, now changed into dry clothes. Her eyes wandered, taking in the space before her.

In the corner, portraits and statues of deities formed a quiet shrine, radiating a strange but peaceful aura. Two guitars hung on the dark, maroon walls. A sleek black piano rested beneath them. A large couch sat in the center, facing an open balcony that revealed a burning sky of red and gold. The room was soaked in aesthetic tones of red and black, elegant and strangely... haunting. One adjacent room extended from either side.

Jiya’s eyes widened with awe.

Jiya (surprised): “Wow… This is where you live? Wait— Is this your flat?”