I'd always felt different from others, but I couldn't quite pinpoint when it began.
Maybe it was that day — the day I lost her.
That memory is seared into the depth of my mind, as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.
I was only four years old...
——————
"Grandma, we'll go home soon. Just wait a little."
I said, clutching her hand with my tiny
hands as we struggled together to escape the burning car. Smoke coiled around us, thick and acrid, clawing at my lungs. My eyes stung, my chest tightened.
"Vedu, more force." I urged myself. My voice trembled with a mixture of fear and fierce determination.
Summoning every ounce of strength in my little body, I strained against the seatbelt that trapped her frail frame. My arms burned. My tears streamed down my face.
But I refused to give up. Every muscle in my tiny body ached, but the thought of leaving her was unbearable.
"Don't be scared, Vedki. Grandma is alright."
Old Madam Narayan whispered. Her voice was gentle and comforting, but weak — weaker.
She was trying to reassure me. Maybe even herself.
Her words felt like a lullaby clashing against a nightmare. The flames danced closer, the heat growing more intense.
"Please! Help me!" I cried out, begging for more assistance. Desperation clung to my words like a heavy weight, echoing in the empty surroundings. "I want to save her! I want to save my Grandma!"
Her breathing grew labored as she spoke again, her words trembling. "Nanhi Veda, get out of the car if you need help."
"Call your parents."
"No!" I protested, shaking my head vehemently. My vision blurred with smoke and sorrow.
But I refused to leave her side.
"There's someone there — the driver... and a man who looks just like you, Grandma! They should be able to pull you out of the car!" My childish voice was filled with naivety I didn't yet understand.
Her eyes widened in shock. Her frail hands gripping mine tighter.
"What... what did you say? A man... who looks like me?" Her voice carried astonishment, and tears began to well up.
I nodded, confused and frantic by her reaction. "Yes! But... why aren't they helping? Why!" I shouted, the frustration in my tiny voice barely masking my fear.
In that moment, something shifted in her eyes — a flicker of realization... and sorrow.
"Vedika, listen to me," she said, voice urgency and trembling. "You must leave. Only your parents can help you escape this pain."
"But Grandma—" I hesitated, torn between her words and the fear gripping my heart.
"Go, my dear. If you want to save me... go." Her voice trailed off. Her words laced with a sense of resignation, a knowledge that I couldn't comprehend back then.
But in the end, I obeyed.
I ran as fast as I could, my tiny legs stumbling over gravel and ash.
The world around me blurred as tears streamed down my soot-covered face.
I gripped my phone tightly, its cracked screen was a testament to the chaos that had just unfolded. Despite the damage, it still functioned.
I dialed with shaking fingers. My heart raced with fear and urgency.
"Why are you late?" A voice came on the other end of the line and asked.
But before I could respond —
BOOM!
A deafening explosion erupted the air.
I dropped the phone.
My scream echoed across the ruins.
"GRANDMA!"
That moment shattered something inside me.
——————
A month later, the impossible began.
Ghosts appeared. Not in dreams. In reality.
Their forms shimmer like fragments of another world.
Some were clear as a day, others like a faint whisper caught in the sunlight.
I could see them. Hear them.
Souls were trapped, burdened with unfulfilled wishes, tethered with this world.
And for reasons I couldn't explain — I was the only one who could see them.
———————
"Ved..."
The voice was soft at first, like a whisper tugging at the edges of a dream, but a bit familiar, and it grew more persistent with each passing time.
"Ved, darling... wake up!"
It felt like someone was shaking me vigorously, their voice piercing my drowsiness as they shouted...
"Wake up!"
A sudden jolt woke her — Vedika Narayan — from her slumber. Her mouth was still agape, and drool clung to the corner of her lips as she lurched upright.
"Mmm..." She murmured, her voice husky from sleep. She rubbed her eyes, trying to shake off the haze. "Did we reach... our destination, Sumeru port, Shivangi?" She asked, her eyes slowly focusing on the girl in front of her.
Shivangi Goenka stood across from her, arms crossed. An exasperated look on her face.
Her milky fair skin glowed with a soft radiance, complemented by her rich, dark chestnut hair that cascades down her back in loose, luscious waves.
Her intoxicating blue eyes are like a deep ocean, drawing you in with their mesmerizing depth. If you gaze into them, you'll feel like you're being swept away into the unknown, lost in the depths of a boundless sea.
Her piercing blue eyes locked onto Vedika with mock disapproval.
"Not yet. Another hour to go." Shivangi replied, shaking her head. "But seriously — how do you fall asleep in the middle of our project?" She frowned, her voice tinged with mock annoyance.
"Project? Slept in the middle?" Vedika mumbled, still half asleep, rubbing her eyes to clear the haze.
Her gaze fell to the table in front of her, where scattered wires and chips lay.
Panic set in as she noticed a small puddle of drool dangerously close to the centerpiece of their work.
"Oh crap!" She grabbed a tissue and wiped the table. "Whew. It didn't reach the chip. We're safe." She exclaimed, wiping the sweat from her forehead.
Shivangi let out a dramatic sigh before her expression brightened. "So, is it done? 'The God Chosen and Four Princes'?"
Her eyes sparkled like the moonlight in the ocean waves, shining bright with enthusiasm, and her entire demeanor radiated excitement.
She leaned forward, practically bouncing. "Tell me it's done!"
Vedika's gaze slowly shifted to Shivangi, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. "Almost..." She began, her voice trailing off, inviting Shivangi's curiosity.
She slid the chip into her wrist-top device. Her fingers danced across the interface, tapped a series of commands.
A soft hum. Then —
The projector in the middle of the table sprang to life — a burst of light illuminated the space.
Holograms emerged:
Floating castles. Cloaked warriors. Mystical beasts. Glowing portals.
A living, breathing fantasy realm unfurled before their eyes.
Shivangi's eyes widened in awe. "Oh my God. This is... beyond words!" She leaned closer.
Her eyes were wide with awe as she watched her novel brought to life in full Virtual Simulation Scenario Reality — VSSR.
"As expected of the top youngest computerized genius of geniuses on the planet. You nailed it!" She continued to praise Vedika's imaginative vision and dedication to bringing the game to life. "Your art and work are top-notch!" She gushed. "You've perfectly captured everything — the medieval, the regal, the chivalrous, and the mysterious — elements I wanted. It's perfect!"
Her words made me smile. For a moment, the heavy weight of my memories lifted. Shivangi's joy was contagious — a bright contrast to the shadows that often haunted me.
Vedika leaned back in her chair, her gaze fixed on their creation dance in the air. She let her smile linger.
This project — born from Shivangi's story and my skills — was more than just a creation — felt like a tangible reminder of what I have achieved — of how far I'd come since that fateful day.
But deep down, I knew that incident in my past was never far away. It lingered — waiting in the periphery of my vision. The fire is a constant reminder of what I had gained, and what I had lost.
And somehow — I felt certain that this was only the beginning.
Shivangi clapped her hands in excitement. "This is going to be a hit!"
Vedika beamed with Shivangi's pride, her cheeks flushed like fresh red tomatoes.
"Thank you — thank you so much!" Shivangi said, her honey-sweet voice filled with gratitude.
Vedika gently traced the edge of her wrist-top device, a silent promise forming in her heart:
No matter what comes next... I will face it head-on.
Because even in the darkest memories, there was light to be found —
And I am determined to find it.