Summer Lockdown Arc
Winter had finally let go.
The air felt heavier now—thicker, slower, as if it resisted movement itself. Two days remained before summer vacations officially began, and for the first time in weeks, life almost felt normal.
Almost.
Scene 1 — Classroom
Vaibhav stepped into the classroom and paused for a moment.
It's been a while, he thought.
Maybe everything really has settled down.
The room looked the same—desks scratched with names, sunlight slipping through dusty windows, fans spinning lazily above. He spotted Shlokh sitting near the window and smiled.
"Long time no see, brother."
Shlokh looked up, confused.
"Have you lost it?" he said. "We met yesterday."
Vaibhav blinked.
Yesterday?
For him, it felt much longer. Days stretched strangely now, bending in ways he couldn't explain.
"…Forget it," Vaibhav muttered, shaking his head.
"Anyway, we're definitely getting homework today."
Shlokh smirked.
"Obviously."
The first period bell rang.
Outside, heat crept in quietly. The classroom fans struggled, pushing warm air around without relief. Near the staff room, a thermometer blinked faintly.
31°C.
Summer was arriving early.
Shourya
Shourya leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling.
Why did Veere say that?
The memory surfaced again—not clearly, never clearly. Just fragments.
You'll have to be ready…
Come there on—
Static.
Nothing beyond that.
He felt a strange ache—not sharp, not physical. More like something tugging inward, deep inside his chest.
"Pain bhi hua," he thought dryly,
"aur dil bhi toot gaya."
He almost laughed at himself.
Dramatic much?
But the voice echoed again—faint, distorted.
…you'll have to be ready…
The rest dissolved into silence.
Somewhere beyond them, the Voice of Creation watched.
Not intervening.
Not correcting.
Just noting—
That heat didn't always arrive as fire.
Sometimes, it came as pressure.
Scene 2 — AID
Somewhere else.
Deep underground.
Inside a bunker where light never stayed still.
Veere stood quietly, his fingers resting against a cold metal table. The walls hummed softly—machines breathing, systems alive. His voice was low, thoughtful.
"If the one with the eye… and the one with resonance understand what's happening," he said,
"they will come. And they won't come alone."
He paused.
"They'll bring the one bound to the Kaal Crystal as well."
Behind him, the man in the black mask shifted uneasily.
"Master," the masked man asked, hesitant,
"if they fail to survive this… will the crystals vanish?"
Veere smiled.
Not kindly.
Not cruelly.
He ignored the question.
A thin layer of Riddhox energy formed around his fingers—deep red, unstable. Before the masked man could react, Veere pressed his thumb gently against the top of his head.
The energy flowed in.
For a second—
The masked man saw fragments of the future.
Not clearly.
Not fully.
Screams without sound.
Cracked skies.
Stones glowing too brightly.
And one figure… standing alone.
The masked man collapsed instantly, trembling.
"S–sir…" he whispered weakly.
"What I saw… was something else…"
His body went still.
Veere looked down calmly.
"Hm," he muttered.
"Then maybe it won't be brutal."
A pause.
"…But it will still be deadly."
Back to the Trio
The three stood near the school gate, heat hanging heavy in the air.
"I'm not coming to school tomorrow," Vaibhav said suddenly.
Shlokh nodded casually.
"I already submitted my leave application."
Shourya shrugged.
"My class teacher is practically family. Rakesh sir doesn't even notice when we're absent."
Vaibhav exhaled.
"Anyway, vacations start day after tomorrow."
He looked at them.
"Come to my place."
They exchanged glances—then nodded.
📍 At Vaibhav's House
The house was unusually quiet.
Shlokh glanced around the living room, his voice low.
"Where's aunty?"
"Village," Vaibhav replied.
"Grandma's place."
"And Raghav bhaiya?" Shourya asked, leaning against the wall.
"Out with friends."
Silence settled.
Not awkward.
Heavy.
Vaibhav stood still for a few seconds, then spoke—quieter than before.
Vaibhav:
"There's something wrong with me."
He hesitated.
"And I don't think it's staying hidden anymore."
Shourya frowned.
Shlokh didn't blink.
Vaibhav slowly unbuttoned his shirt.
At the center of his chest—
a blackish stone, streaked faintly with red, fused into his skin.
The room seemed to contract.
Shlokh's gaze didn't leave the stone.
Shlokh (softly):
"…As predicted."
Shourya scoffed instinctively.
Shourya:
"Bro, relax. I'm not gay."
Then he noticed it properly.
The blur.
The pulse.
His expression changed.
Shourya:
"Okay… that's not normal."
Before anyone could say more—
Shlokh's throat vibrated violently.
A sharp, distorted sound tore out of him.
At the same moment—
a thin stream of yellow-black fluid slipped from Shourya's left eye.
Vaibhav's stone responded.
Brighter.
Hotter.
Unstable.
The air warped.
The room bent inward like paper under pressure.
And before any of them could react—
They were torn out of the space they stood in.
Gone.
Scene 3 — STONIC RUMBLE
Veere stiffened.
A sharp burning sensation tore across his back—not pain, but a signal.
"The cycle begins," he said.
And the world folded.
Vaibhav
Vaibhav crashed into silence.
A vast black chamber stretched endlessly—no walls, no ceiling, no floor he could define. The Kaal Crystal throbbed violently.
Then—
Heat.
Blinding heat.
The darkness shattered into a burning desert. Endless sand. Scorching wind. A sun far too close.
"This isn't real…" he whispered.
But the heat said otherwise.
Shourya
Shourya landed hard.
A green-lit chamber surrounded him, glowing softly—almost alive.
For a moment, calm.
Then the ground trembled.
The green light fractured.
And suddenly—
A volcano.
Lava pulsed beneath him.
"So this is how it starts," he muttered.
Shlokh
Shlokh opened his eyes.
A crimson chamber surrounded him.
And standing right in front—
Veere.
Calm.
Watching.
Waiting.
"You brought us here," Shlokh said quietly.
Veere only smiled.
Somewhere beyond them all, the Voice of Creation whispered—
"Now… things become interesting."
The stones resonated.
Reality trembled.
And the cycle moved forward.
END OF CHAPTER 16:HEAT WAVE: FATUITY.