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Zayn in Ayden Chapter One

On the unforgiving continent of Citcaranta in Stearth planet, Earth's twin, where icy blizzards and rugged terrain test the limits of human endurance, Zayn embarks on a perilous quest. Hailing from a land ravaged by oppression and strife, he seeks the fabled oasis of believers who migrated there a century ago, where freedom and accountability have created a near-paradise. But his mission is to not just save Resistine from Evileyel, but free humanity from the clutches of Kazarynonian cult, while confronting formidable challenges, and darkness within himself. Dive into this gripping tale of self-discovery, courage, and the unyielding pursuit of hope.

My ‘Novel’ Account of Human Possibility

Whenever I look at my body of work of ten books, the underlying human possibility intrigues me no end, and why not. I was born into a land-owning family in a remote village of Andhra Pradesh in India that is after the British had folded their colonial tents from there, but much before the rural education mechanism was geared up. It was thus the circumstances of my birth enabled me to escape from the tiresome chores of the primary schooling till I had a nine-year fill of an unbridled childhood, embellished by village plays and grandma’s tales, made all the more interesting by her uncanny ability for storytelling. As my maternal grandfather’s grandfather happened to be a poet laureate at t...

Nameless Memory

‘What a lovely girl she is!’ thought Raja Rao, for the umpteenth time. ‘May not be the ravishing type, but surely she’s the charming kind. Above all, she’s a wifely stuff. Won’t I be able to mould her into a matchless mate? What if I propose to her? It looks like we are of the same caste and that should make matters easy. But then, what of our sub-sects? Don’t they seem progressive to mind all that. But who knows? Appearances can be deceptive, can’t they? Well, even then, one has still to reckon with the gothrams that are to be different for a match to materialize. What an irony, the custom that prescribes alliances between blood relations proscribes sagothra marriages! What�...

Domain of the Devil – A Satire on Indian Publishing

When at length, Suresh was finding his moorings at Tihar; Subba Rau was brought in to a near stampede there. Why not, the whole nation knew him by then as the man who had pricked at the Premier’s face. When Suresh enquired what the fuss was all about, Rau said it was but a ‘literary coup’. Probed by Suresh for an account, Rau unfolded the story of his life and times as an unpublished writer.In his mid-forties, Rau was seized with an urge to bring himself onto the fictional stage. So to lend scope for his boundless creativity, he chose the vastness of the ‘novel’ as the setting. And for the medium of expression, he bypassed his mother tongue, Telugu, the Italian of the East. Instead...

Absurd Proposal

Though not nonplussed at having lost her virginity, Nithya, nevertheless, began pressuring Vasu for the nuptial. Yet, his assurances to tie the knot made her give him more of her own that was till she felt he was taking it easy. When she began denying him the good time to drive home her point that only made him indignant, she could figure out the consequences of his indifference. Thus, feeling vulnerable, she forced herself to humour him even more furthering his fulfillment all the more. But even as he procrastinated over their nuptial, his seed began to evolve in her womb and things came to a head when she missed her periods.When confronted with the development, Vasu could dodge no more, an...

Swap for Nope

"Here is that fact beyond fiction," he began to narrate with a parental pride that didn't escape my attention. "What a handicap it was to be divorced, thought my son; self-service at home and harlot-solace in a brothel; what service and how much solace! Women were ever scary of even wealthy divorcees as if divorce underscores one's incompatibility once and for all, and a whore was no answer for a wife. Surely some featureless young thing could be willing and that's no choice of a wife any way; but a lucky guy could bump into a desirable dame in the blind alleys of the Cupid and that's a rarity anyway; as for affairs, they were seldom, even for the well-heeled in their prime, but as life is m...

‘Untried’ Crime

That day as Dhruva was away with Shakeel and was not expected till late in the night, Radha began scanning Mithya's closets to delve deeper into her past. Not finding any sleazy stuff therein, as she was about to give up on spying, she located a false bottom in the dressing table that led her to many unusual items. Elated at the discovery as she rummaged the shelf, she found Mithya's jottings in a leather-bound book, leafing through which, she came across a story-like entry, Untried Crime, which read thus:That was when Mithya's life was under siege; she faced the unwelcome prospect of divorce, lo, owing to her own infidelity. Barely turned twenty-eight, as she was not for losing th...

Lyra stands in her quiet village under a clear, starlit sky, gazing up at the stars. A figure made of light, Seraphis, appears before her, glowing with celestial energy. Lyra looks both awed and unsure

The Guardians of the Celestial Veil

In 'The Guardians of the Celestial Veil,' a young woman is chosen to protect the mystical boundary between realms, where ethereal guardians watch over the balance of life and death.Story:Deep in the cosmos, hidden beyond the reaches of human sight, lay the Celestial Veil—a mystical boundary between the realms of life and death. The Veil was guarded by ancient beings known as the Ethereal Guardians, whose sole purpose was to maintain the balance between worlds. For centuries, they had silently protected the Veil, unseen by mortal eyes, until one day the Veil began to falter.In the small village of Veridale, a young woman named Lyra felt a strange pull deep within her soul. Ever since she wa...

The village square, once peaceful, is now chaotic as villagers argue and fight in the rain over their newfound wealth and abundance. Dark clouds hover over the village, symbolizing the greed and tension

The Parable of the Wishing Well

Story:Once upon a time, in a small village nestled between rolling hills, there was a mysterious well hidden deep in the forest. Legend said that the well could grant any wish, but only to those who approached it with pure intentions. For years, the villagers heard stories of its power but never ventured into the forest, fearing what might happen if their hearts were not true.One dry summer, when the crops were failing, and the village was on the brink of starvation, a young farmer named Elen decided to find the wishing well. She believed that a single wish could save her village. With hope in her heart, she journeyed into the woods, following a trail of whispers and old tales until she fina...

Sophie plays a haunting melody on the piano in a dimly lit room.

The Song of Echoes: A Melody of Memories

Story:For as long as anyone could remember, the town of Silverridge had been a quiet place, tucked away from the noise of the world. But something strange was happening—a forgotten song was beginning to echo through its streets. It wasn’t coming from any musician, and yet, it lingered in the air, stirring the hearts of those who heard it.Chapter 1: The First NoteSophie, a pianist who had lost her passion for music years ago, first heard the melody while walking home from her job at the bookstore. The tune was soft and haunting, like a distant memory just out of reach. It followed her all the way home, filling her with a strange mix of nostalgia and sadness.Unable to get the song out of h...

Jacob and Lila discover shocking family secrets in their father’s study.

A Fragile Thread: A Tale of Family and Secrets

Story:Life in the small town of Silverlake had always been predictable for the Whitman family. But beneath the surface of their seemingly perfect lives, old secrets were festering. When patriarch Daniel Whitman is suddenly hospitalized with a mysterious illness, the family must confront not only their personal struggles but also the dark truths that threaten to tear them apart.Chapter 1: The IllnessIt began with fatigue and a cough. Daniel Whitman, a proud man who had built his family’s legacy from the ground up, was diagnosed with a mysterious illness that baffled doctors. His children—Jacob, a successful lawyer, and Lila, an artist who had distanced herself from the family—were force...

Detective Alex Hart studying a cryptic note late at night in his office

The Case of the Midnight Cipher

Story:Detective Alex Hart had seen his fair share of strange cases, but nothing compared to the mystery that landed on his desk on a stormy Friday night. A small envelope, unmarked, containing only a single sheet of paper with a strange cipher, was delivered to his office. The note was simple but chilling: "Solve this before midnight, or they die."Chapter 1: The First ClueHart quickly realized this was no ordinary case. The cipher on the note was sophisticated, beyond anything he had seen before. The clock was ticking, and lives were at stake. With no time to lose, Hart enlisted the help of an old colleague, Sophia, a cryptography expert. As they worked to decode the message, it became clear...

Claire leads survivors through a desolate town overrun by zombies.

The Last Stronghold: A Zombie Survival Tale"

Story:The zombie apocalypse started with a cough. In the town of Greystone, a virus transformed the dead into flesh-eating creatures, and society quickly collapsed. Claire Dawson, a former paramedic, fled with a small group of survivors, seeking refuge in the Last Stronghold—a fortified city said to be humanity’s final hope.As Claire’s group journeyed through zombie-infested highways, they encountered terrifying new threats, including the "Evolved," a faster, smarter breed of zombies. Their survival became even more complicated when they discovered that the outbreak was no accident—it had been engineered.Chapter 1: The First OutbreakThe outbreak hit Greystone like a storm. The infect...

Zaira travels through the cosmos aboard her starship, venturing into the unknown.

The Starbound Voyager: Legends of the Celestial Nomads

Chapter 1: The Birth of the Star NomadsLong ago, before the stars were named and the galaxies formed, there was a race known as the Star Nomads. These celestial beings traveled the universe aboard massive ships crafted from the remnants of dying stars. Guided by the light of ancient suns, the Nomads were protectors of the cosmic balance, weaving tales of creation and destruction into the very fabric of the universe.The legend tells of Zaira, a young Nomad with a heart full of curiosity. Unlike others of her kind, who followed the established paths of the stars, Zaira longed to explore the unknown—places where no light had yet touched.Chapter 2: The Song of the Starry SeaOne night, while ch...

Elara discovers a glowing ancient manuscript in a dimly lit archive.

Time Weavers: The Threads of Destiny

In a world where time is not a river but a tapestry, a secret society known as the Time Weavers silently guards the threads of history. These mystical beings are not born but chosen, their task to mend the fraying edges of time when reality bends or breaks.Chapter 1: The Unraveling Elara, a young historian from the small town of Veridale, stumbles upon an ancient manuscript during a routine study in her university’s archives. The text describes a forgotten time—a period that never existed in any known history books. Intrigued and perplexed, she begins to notice strange anomalies around her: forgotten buildings appear overnight, and people she’s known for years suddenly vanish, their ex...

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Categories

Zayn in Ayden Chapter One

My ‘Novel’ Account of Human Possibility

Nameless Memory

Domain of the Devil – A Satire on Indian Publishing

Absurd Proposal

Swap for Nope

‘Untried’ Crime

The Guardians of the Celestial Veil

The Parable of the Wishing Well

The Song of Echoes: A Melody of Memories

A Fragile Thread: A Tale of Family and Secrets

The Case of the Midnight Cipher

The Last Stronghold: A Zombie Survival Tale"

The Starbound Voyager: Legends of the Celestial Nomads

Time Weavers: The Threads of Destiny

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