He could hear them again—his family—talking in the next room. Whispers that weren’t meant to be heard.

"What will happen to us? Rahul’s the eldest son, but look at him... useless."

"All he does is fail. He’s always confused. I don’t understand him anymore."

"We need someone strong in this family. Someone to take care of things. Not him."

Rahul squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block it out. But the voices weren’t just outside the door—they were inside his head now, bouncing back and forth like a ball he couldn’t catch.

"Mad. Crazy. Confused."

The words had become labels. Sticky ones that clung to his skin no matter how hard he tried to scrub them off.

As a child, he had been different. They had loved him then. He had been the apple of his mother’s eye, the hope of his father, the big brother his siblings adored. Back then, life was simpler—he would run through the fields, dirt on his knees, a smile on his face. Everyone used to say, "Rahul will grow up to be something great one day."

But somewhere along the line, life had changed. The more he tried to meet their expectations, the more he failed. He studied, he worked, he fought for approval, but nothing ever seemed good enough. Now, at the age of 21, he was a shadow of the boy he used to be.

Rahul looked at his trembling hands. He clenched them into fists and muttered under his breath, “It’s my fault. All of it. Maybe they’re right about me.”

The air in the room felt heavy, suffocating. A strange chill ran down his spine. He looked up, frowning. The dim light seemed to flicker, and for a moment, he swore he saw the shadows move.

Suddenly, the walls creaked. The room shook slightly as if an earthquake had just rumbled through. Rahul jumped to his feet, his heart pounding.

“What’s happening?” he whispered to himself. He rushed to the window and looked outside. The streetlights were flickering, and the entire neighborhood had fallen silent. No dogs barking, no cars passing by—just silence.

Then, he saw it.

In the distance, the sky split open. A dark crack, like a tear in the very fabric of reality, appeared above the horizon. It glowed faintly, pulsing with an otherworldly energy. Rahul’s breath caught in his throat.

The crack grew wider, and from it, something began to emerge.

Huge, shifting shapes descended from the rift—creatures unlike anything he had ever seen. Their bodies were dark and formless, like shadows brought to life. They crawled down from the sky, spreading across the city, swallowing buildings, streets, and anything that stood in their path.

Rahul stumbled back from the window, his legs weak. Screams erupted in the distance. Sirens blared. The world outside was descending into chaos.

“Rahul!” a voice screamed from the other room—his mother’s voice. “Rahul, what’s happening?”

He turned and ran toward his family, his heart racing faster than his feet could move. But before he reached the door, the entire house shook violently. Rahul fell to the floor, his head hitting the edge of a table. Pain shot through his skull, and his vision blurred.

As he drifted into unconsciousness, he saw the shadowy figures crawling closer, their forms shifting and twisting unnaturally.

And then—everything went black.

---

The world around Rahul had changed in ways no one could have ever imagined. The creatures—Mrityudoots—had arrived, and with them came a new reality. Humanity, once at the top of the food chain, was now fighting for survival. The gates that connected the two worlds had opened, and with each passing day, the creatures grew stronger, more numerous, and more dangerous.

Rahul woke up in a hospital bed days later, his body bruised and battered. His family had managed to escape, and despite the chaos, they were safe. But Rahul knew the world was never going to be the same again.

The government, recognizing the need for a defense against the Mrityudoots, launched the Vanguard Academy, a training facility for humanity’s new protectors—Sentinels. Young people with extraordinary powers, granted by the radiation caused by the gates, would fight to protect the world. But for Rahul, the thought of becoming one of those Sentinels seemed impossible. He was ordinary. He had always been ordinary.

Except for one thing. His determination.

Rahul made the choice to apply to the academy. He wanted to fight. He wanted to prove that he could protect his family, his country, his world. But despite his efforts, his powers didn’t manifest in the way he hoped. His abilities were weak, far weaker than anyone else’s. He struggled in his training, never reaching the heights that his fellow students did.

And then there was Rohan.

Rohan, his younger brother by a year, had always been the golden child. Handsome, strong, intelligent, and admired by everyone, Rohan seemed to have it all. While Rahul struggled to lift a sword, Rohan was a natural—his moves precise, his tactics flawless. Rohan quickly rose to the top of his class, leaving Rahul in his wake. But despite the praise Rohan received, he always remained humble, always tried to encourage Rahul, always made sure he knew he wasn’t alone.

As Rahul listened to his parents talk about him that night, he overheard their words about Rohan.

"Look at Rohan," his mother had said softly, the pride evident in her voice. "He’s everything we ever hoped for. Smart, strong, capable. He’s going to change everything for us."

Rahul’s father nodded in agreement. "He’s the one who will lead our family, Rahul. He’s the one who will make a name for us."

The weight of those words crushed Rahul. His younger brother was the family's hope, their pride. Rohan had the potential to become a hero. He had already proven himself in the academy, showing everyone what he was capable of.

In a way, Rohan’s success hurt more than it helped. Rahul couldn’t escape the feeling that he was being overshadowed, that no matter what he did, he would never be good enough.

But that wasn’t the end of the story.

The experiment.

A government initiative that was supposed to give Rahul the powers he so desperately needed. He had volunteered for it, desperate for a chance to finally prove himself. But the experiment failed. Unlike the other students, his powers didn’t increase. His body didn’t change. He was the same. Just ordinary Rahul.

The consequences were far worse than Rahul could have imagined. The experiment had not only failed to grant him powers, but it had also drained him emotionally, leaving him numb—unable to feel joy, sadness, fear, or hope. His humanity seemed to slip away, leaving a cold emptiness behind.

And yet, despite all of this, Rahul didn’t give up. The government had a plan for him. A new mission. One that only he could carry out.

He would become a secret Sentinel, working in the shadows to eliminate the Immortal Assembly—a group of traitors who had infiltrated human society and sided with the Mrityudoots.

But there was no time for that yet. The war against the creatures raged on, and the government needed all hands on deck. Rahul’s mission would have to wait.

But Rahul wasn’t about to sit idly by. He asked the officials if he could join the war effort, and after much debate, they agreed. However, they realized that he needed something more. They needed to make him stronger. So they built him a suit—an advanced, high-tech robotic armor made from the bones of the very creatures humanity had fought and defeated. This suit was stronger than any metal on Earth and was equipped with the most advanced AI.

Rahul donned the suit and fought in the war, killing thousands of creatures, each battle making him feel more alive, more human. But despite all his victories, the emptiness inside him never truly went away.

Two years later, humanity barely emerged victorious. The creatures had suffered massive losses, their numbers dwindling. The world began to rebuild, faster than ever before, harnessing the energy of the fallen creatures to fuel their cities and advance their technology.

But the victory was short-lived. The gates were still open, and new, stronger creatures began to emerge. Humanity, battered and weary, was about to face its greatest challenge yet.

Rahul had been a part of the fight, but now, his true mission—finding the traitors in the Immortal Assembly—was about to begin. He would need all his strength, all his resolve, to succeed.

And this time, he was determined to find it—no matter the cost.