Shlokh — Dominion
Same time.
Same place.
Same house.
But the boy was different.
Shlokh did not go to school that day.
Not because he was ill.
Not because he was afraid.
He was practicing.
He rose slowly from his bed and stood in the center of his room.
His hand moved to his throat.
Focus.
A sharp internal shock ran through him.
Not pain.
Recognition.
His Resonance no longer vibrated randomly.
His Authority no longer reacted instinctively.
Something new was forming between them.
Dominion.
A faint influence over matter itself.
The air around him thickened.
Dust particles slowed, as if time had grown heavier.
The temperature shifted — not in the room, but around him.
He concentrated harder.
A white, transparent structure formed before him.
Not stone.
Not light.
Something between both.
A block of controlled space.
It pulsed softly.
Shlokh stepped inside.
For a moment—
He held it perfectly.
Then he tried to step out.
Nothing happened.
His control slipped.
The structure trembled.
Thin cracks spread across its surface.
Then it collapsed into nothing.
Silence returned.
Shlokh exhaled slowly.
"This is incomplete."
Time passed.
The Voice of Creation murmured somewhere beyond perception—
"This was after Vaibhav's incident."
"Before the consequences fully arrived."
The house was empty.
His mother was at the dance academy.
His father at work.
The afternoon air hung heavy.
Then—
Ding.
The doorbell.
Shlokh ignored it.
A few seconds later—
Tan. Tan. Tan. Tan.
Repeated.
Rhythmic.
Unnatural.
He frowned.
The air near the main gate felt wrong.
Wet.
But heated.
Like steam rising from invisible fire.
Shlokh walked toward the entrance.
Each step careful.
His Resonance tightened in his throat.
Authority sharpened behind his breath.
He reached the gate.
His hand hovered near the latch.
Before touching it—
A golden wave passed through him.
Scanning.
Measuring.
And then—
A vision.
He saw himself opening the gate.
A golden spike forming mid-air.
Instant.
Precise.
It pierced straight through his chest.
No reaction.
Just death.
The vision was green.
Not gold.
Not red.
Not his.
Shlokh slowly withdrew his hand.
He did not open the gate.
The bell stopped.
But the heat outside remained.
Waiting.
At the same time — during Vaibhav's clash
The first encounter.
No… the first real physical threat for him and his friends.
Rain kept falling.
Steam rose from the heated ground.
Veere stood calmly in the middle of the street.
"This is your first test from me."
Vaibhav nodded.
Suddenly—
One of the golden statues fired.
Thin golden crystals shot forward like needles.
They struck Vaibhav again and again.
Chest.
Shoulder.
Arm.
But he barely reacted.
Vaibhav smirked slightly.
"I've felt worse pain when my pant zip catches skin."
Veere flicked a single drop of blood toward him.
The drop touched Vaibhav's chest.
Immediately the wounds began healing every few seconds.
"Focus," Veere said calmly.
Around them, the statues continued moving.
Veere vanished—
Then reappeared across the street, shattering statues one by one with bursts of Riddhox.
Fragments of gold scattered everywhere.
Then he brought one statue directly in front of Vaibhav.
A red circular barrier formed around them.
A stonic horizon.
A fury-like field.
Veere spoke slowly.
"Concentrate."
"Imagine the statue breaking… from inside."
Vaibhav closed his eyes.
Focused.
The rain intensified.
Wind began spinning around him.
Pressure built in the air.
Then—
A sharp crack.
The golden statue exploded from within, splitting apart violently.
Fragments scattered across the wet ground.
Veere smiled slightly.
At that moment—
Another presence arrived.
Vidhaan.
Watching silently.
Final Scene
Vaibhav looked at the shattered statue pieces and laughed lightly.
"Easy peasy, Veere."
Veere shook his head.
"These statues are nothing," he said calmly.
"They're only a sign of destruction for us."
"The real purpose…"
He paused.
"…is to let us know that she is watching every step we take."
Rain continued falling.
Steam still rising from the heated ground.
Veere spoke again, without turning—
"Vidhaan… you can come out now."
A faint distortion formed nearby.
Vidhaan stepped forward from the shadows.
Vaibhav looked at him, confused.
Before he could ask anything—
Vidhaan raised his hand.
And Shourya appeared beside them again, pulled back into reality.
Vaibhav frowned.
Nothing made sense yet.
But one thing was clear—
The game had already begun.
Chapter Ends.