Chapter 4: Voices in the Fog

The moment they stepped onto the Whispering Trail, the atmosphere changed.

Nobody said it out loud, but everyone felt it.

The air seemed colder.

The forest seemed quieter.

Even the sunlight struggled to reach the ground through the thick canopy above.

For the first few minutes, nobody spoke.

Only the sound of their footsteps filled the silence.

Crunch.

Crunch.

Crunch.

"This place is giving me bad vibes," Riya whispered.

"Everything gives you bad vibes," Sana replied.

"No, seriously. Look around."

Everyone did.

The trees here were different.

Their twisted branches stretched across the path like giant claws.

Moss covered almost every surface.

And despite it being afternoon, a thin fog hung between the trunks.

Aditi pulled her jacket tighter.

Something felt wrong.

Very wrong.

About twenty minutes later, Aarav stopped suddenly.

"Wait."

The group froze.

"What happened?" Tanya asked.

Aarav pointed toward the ground.

There, pressed into the mud, was a footprint.

Then another.

And another.

The missing student's footprints.

"They definitely came this way," Naina said.

The trail continued deeper into the forest.

Before anyone could move, a faint sound drifted through the trees.

A voice.

Everyone heard it.

A soft whisper.

Far away.

Almost impossible to understand.

"What was that?" Mehak asked nervously.

Nobody answered.

The whisper came again.

This time clearer.

"Hello..."

The group stared at each other.

"Did someone just say hello?" Kabir asked.

Sana immediately shook her head.

"It's probably another search team."

But even she didn't sound convinced.

The voice hadn't sounded nearby.

It had sounded as if it was coming from everywhere at once.

As they continued walking, the fog grew thicker.

Soon they could barely see a few meters ahead.

Kiara nervously grabbed Mehak's arm.

"This is officially not fun anymore."

"No kidding."

Suddenly, Riya stopped walking.

Everyone nearly crashed into her.

"What now?"

Riya's face had gone pale.

"I heard someone."

"What?"

"My brother."

The group stared at her.

"What are you talking about?" Sana asked.

"He just called my name."

Silence.

Riya wasn't joking.

For once, there wasn't even a hint of laughter in her voice.

"You're imagining things," Sana said.

Before Riya could respond—

"Aditi..."

The whisper floated through the fog.

Aditi froze.

Every muscle in her body tightened.

The voice had called her name.

Slowly.

Clearly.

The others looked at her.

"You heard that too?" she whispered.

Nobody answered.

Because they had.

A sudden gust of wind swept through the forest.

The fog shifted.

For a brief moment, something appeared ahead.

A figure.

Standing on the trail.

Motionless.

Human-shaped.

Watching them.

"There!" Tanya shouted.

Everyone looked.

The figure disappeared instantly.

As if it had never been there.

"What was that?" Kiara whispered.

No one knew.

No one wanted to know.

The group continued moving forward, sticking closer together now.

Nobody dared wander even a few steps away.

Then Aarav noticed something hanging from a tree branch.

A piece of blue cloth.

His eyes widened.

"It's from the missing student's jacket."

The group rushed forward.

Sure enough, it matched the jacket the student had been wearing.

Hope filled them.

They were getting closer.

Then Naina noticed something carved into the tree beside it.

The letters were old and uneven.

As if someone had scratched them using a knife.

HELP US

The words sent chills through everyone.

Below them were more carvings.

Dozens of names.

Some were faded.

Some were almost unreadable.

And at the very bottom was a date.

"These aren't recent," Aarav said quietly.

Aditi stared at the names.

Students.

Every single name belonged to a student.

"Guys..." Mehak whispered.

"What if these are the people the guide was talking about?"

Nobody responded.

Because deep down, everyone was thinking the same thing.

How many people had disappeared here before?

And why had nobody ever found them?

Suddenly—

CRACK!

A loud sound echoed through the forest.

Something had broken nearby.

The group spun around.

Silence.

Then came footsteps.

Running.

Fast.

Straight toward them.

The sound grew louder.

Closer.

Closer.

And then a terrified voice burst through the fog.

"HELP ME!"

It was the missing student.

To be continued...

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