Chapter 2 - "The Doppelgänger

It was midnight, and the rain was lashing against the windshield as Vikram and Ajay found themselves stranded near an abandoned guest house on a deserted hill station. "Vikram, I don't like this place, it feels like we aren't alone," Ajay whispered as they locked the heavy wooden door of their room, but Vikram just laughed it off, telling him it was his imagination before collapsing onto the bed to sleep. Ajay couldn't rest; he stood by the window watching the lightning illuminate the twisted trees outside when suddenly he felt something cold and wet brush against his ankle. He looked down and saw a trail of dark, fresh blood droplets leading directly underneath the bed where Vikram was lying. Heart racing, Ajay hissed, "Vikram, get up! There's something under the bed!" but Vikram didn't move an inch. Shaking with terror, Ajay grabbed his flashlight and shone the beam under the bed frame, and his heart nearly stopped when he saw Vikram—the real Vikram—bound and gagged, his eyes wide with pure agony as he desperately signaled for Ajay to run. Ajay froze, his blood turning to ice as the 'Vikram' lying on top of the bed slowly sat up with a bone-cracking sound, its face identical to his friend's but its eyes were nothing but hollow, black pits. The creature grinned, stretching its jaw unnaturally wide as it whispered in a voice that sounded like grinding stones, "He should have warned you, Ajay—this room only has space for two, and I've already decided who is leaving." Before Ajay could even scream, the candle flickered out, leaving only the sound of a struggle and the wet thud of something heavy being dragged into the darkness.