Present Day:

The last ray of sun touched Shiva's face as he opened his eyes. He was injured, his whole body was screaming with pain. Shiva murmured, "the scroll…". "Don't force yourself to talk", said a faded lady figure "you were unconscious for 72 hours". Shiva has yet to regain his visual stability. His vision is still blurry. "Drink this, it will help you with ease the pain", said the lady. The lady came close to Shiva and poured a sweet liquid in his mouth as the lady came closer he can smell the beautiful fragrance coming from this lady, it was just like an autumn morning, when rain sprinkles over flowers, one could smell the tangling aroma. Shiva drank it and as the liquid passed his throat to the belly. His whole body started to feel a warm sensation in his blood but his skin started to feel a cold sensation, his pain started to fade away and he started to remember the past events.

2 weeks before Shiva's accident –

The pandemic engulfed the whole world, 90% of population in Earth died within one week. It was Monday, people around the world was getting ready for their job, students for their schools. I was getting ready for my work too, I lived with my parents and my younger sister. I quitted my studies when I was in college and started working to help my family. I was an average student with zero potential. All I did my whole life is watched anime and read manga to kill time and hoped to my live the rest of my life like this. But everything changed when the black mist covered the earth like a candy wrapper. I was in my office going through files when I suddenly notice the news of black mist started to appear in DigiBook, people around the globe posting videos and images of mysterious black mist. I, too, noticed the black mist outside of window. I got up from chair and headed toward the window. The whole neighborhood is filled with the black mist and can hardly see anything out there. The emergency broadcast from Government has been announced "to stay indoor and don't come out." I reached home with much difficulty; I was relieved to see my family safe.

One day passed like this, next morning I woke up from a sound, it was my mother banging my room's door, she was calling me, "Shiva, wake up, your father fell in the floor and was not responding at all. I rushed myself to the drawing room and checked his pulse was very weak. I couldn't think of anything. My mother hugged my father's body and calling his name. I called the hospital but no one received, tried another hospital but the result was same. My sister opened the TV and news channels stated "people around the globe started to fall in an unknown disease, the doctors could not identify the source of this disease."

It was chaos outside. Hospitals were filled with patients and still there were not enough beds to put the patients. The whole system shook to its foundation. Because of the black mist road transportation was invalid, only way of transport was air car. I put my father's body on my shoulder and went outside, took out my phone but the cab service was not working. I felt very helpless at that moment. After looking few more times, finally found an air car. The air traffic was too much as the roads are covered with black mist, all the people in city were using air transport. It took us over 30 minutes to reach hospital which usually took 10 minutes. One again I put my fingers in his neck and felt a very low pulse. It was crowded with people, carrying their family members who fell sick. I pushed myself in that midst of crowd with all my might and barely able to enter the hospital. I rushed toward the doctor's chamber and told her the whole incident. The doctor called for the ward boy. A ward boy came with a stretcher and took him into the ICU. I tried to follow them but the doctor told me to wait outside. I called mother and told her that father was in ICU and she doesn't have to worry about anything. But her voice was breaking. I could hear her sobbing. I tried to comfort her, "Doctors would definitely cure him, we would have a feast when he would return home." Morning passed to noon. I was getting worried with every single moment passing by, I wasn't able to wait anymore and went to doctor's chamber but she wasn't there. I asked a nurse about the patient and she said,"He was under treatment." At evening, the doctor came "sorry, I have a bad news for you, your father is no more. We tried everything we could, but we couldn't identify the reason for his disease." I fell in my knees, my legs became numb, they weren't responding at all. "Father is no more, what you are saying doctor, he was fine. We ate dinner together last night. What happened?" I felt utter despair. "We aren't sure what's the reason behind his death, but it must be connected to the black mist. Hundreds of people are dying without any reasons, and they all had the same symptoms as your father.",said the doctor. My mind went blank and I left the hospital in a trance state. I was walking in the roads that was filled with black mist. I reached home somehow. I knocked on the door and my mother opened it at once, I could tell she was waiting by the for my return. Her eyes spoke everything, her worries, her questions, I could see them all in her wet eyes. I didn't know how to give her the news. My younger sister came running from her room, "Big brother where is father? Is he still admitted in the hospital? When will they release him?"

Her innocent questions cracked my hardened mask of easiness. I hugged my mother and started crying. She kept asking me, "What happened Shiva? Why are you crying? Where is your father? Why aren't saying anything?"

The hardened mask finally fell apart, "Mother, I couldn't save father, he is no more." Mother moved away from my arms and locked herself in her room. My sister started crying, "Big brother when is father coming back? Why did you leave him in the hospital? Please bring him home." all I did was hugged her tightly. At night I called mother but she wasn't responding to my call, then she opened her door and said, "I am going for a walk to freshen my mind". Four days had been passed, mother didn't return from walk, I looked for her but couldn't find her anywhere. I did lodge a missing report but the police were indifference in this situation. My younger sister stopped talking, forgot to smile.

Scientist confirmed that the black mist is an unknown kind of slow poison, 90% of population died due to this. The whole civilization on earth was on brink of extinction. What is the source of this mist? Is it some kind of natural gas? No answers had been found in this matter.

On the seventh day, a miracle happened, the black mist started to disappear because of a force wave. With that, the death of people ceased. People were relieved, but what they didn't know that it was just the beginning of what coming next.

On the eighth day, around the globe mysterious ruins started appear out of nowhere. The outer shape of these ruins were like a tomb. It had underground buildings linked to it. Archaeological teams went inside for survey. They said it was some kind of ancient temple. But it was filled with black mist. So it was not possible for them to go deeper. Special equipments were made specially for the survey to deal with the black mist. They archaeological team again tried to enter the ruins but this no one returned. Next, the Special Forces of country entered to explore these ruins but the outcome was the same, not a single soul returned. At the same time, people discovered their body went to few changes. Their strength had increased more, they were now more agile. I, too, experienced this transformation. I noticed my iris colour is changed from brown to blue. People were amazed and astonished with this transformation. Life was coming back to normal; the loss of 90% of population was unimaginable. People started to smile again and hoped everything will be fine from now on. But this happiness didn't last long.

On the eleventh day or rather the doom day, the ruins started to glow and I was in my room, when I felt an unimaginable attraction toward the ruins. It was like someone was calling me there, and I had to go no matter what. When I reached the site, people crowded around it to see the magnificence of it. Armed forces were deployed to prevent civilians from entering the ruins and ordered the civilians to back off. But no one moved a single step. Everyone was spellbound by its glow, it was like rainbow coming out from a torch light. Someone glued our feet on the ground and hypnotized with this glowing light. On a sudden the ruins stopped glowing, a strange noise came from it, it sounded like a beast noise with a big roar. Then there was a long pause, again the sound came, this time it was more louder. Creatures that we had never seen before crawled out from the ruins and started to slaughter everyone. They had lower bodies of a spider and upper body face of an ox. Crowd started screaming and ran for their lives, armed forces started firing but it didn't have any effect on them. My feet were trembling with fear, I felt a soft touch in my hands, I turned my face and it was my younger sister when did she come here? She held my hand tightly. People were screaming, "Please don't kill me, go away, someone save me please!" I grabbed my sister's hand and started running blindly, (*/* - thoughts) *I have to run away from here, have to protect my sister*and ended up entering the ruins but one of those creatures noticed and chased us, it was dark inside, luckily the equipment brought by archaeological team, the black mist was no more but I wasn't able to see anything. But I didn't stop, I kept running with tightly holding her hands and I saw light coming out from a room.

We entered the room, there was a big round ring floating in the air in the middle of the room. It was like a portal that I read in manga. There are huge statues in the corners of the room. They looked like warriors with bow-arrow and swords, spear. The statues were big enough to hide behind them. We hid behind one of the statue. The creature entered the room and was looking for us. But the darkness of the corners helped us to conceal ourselves. The creature made a noise and 3 more creatures came out from the floating ring. It made signs and those creatures followed his command and spread. I was clueless. I didn't know how to deal with them. All I knew that I had to protect sister. They were coming near our statue, my heart froze with fear, my mind went blank. I pinched myself hard to regain my consciousness. I saw some stones on the floor, slowly stretched my hand and picked up a stone. I had to distract them and threw the stone on the other side of the room, with the sound of the stone touching the ground, I was successful able to get their attention. As soon as their focus diverted, I told my sister to make a run for the exit. And my plan worked she successfully escaped but by then they already discovered my location, I knew I was going to die but I was able to save my sister. The creatures came near me, with every steps they were taking my heart beat was getting faster. The thought of my mother came in my mind, "Mother, are you safe? Sorry, I was not able to say Good Bye." The creatures surrounded me but I didn't want to die, *my sister was out there. I have to go out and protect her. I have to find my mother* I made a run for the exit but I slipped and fell on the floor. Yes, I slipped what a foolish way to die. Before I could realize anything, a spider leg pierced my heart and I felt pain growing in my chest, I was dying slowly.

But I didn't, as the vision in front of me becoming darker by every second, I felt a strange sensation in my adam apple. The last thing I heard, "So you are the 'Neelkanth', the successor of the Samsara Scroll."