Another life changing innovation, developed by MunvAr were the Magnorails. Also known as, Magnos, they resembled a pipe that remained suspended in air in the tunnels and moved without the help of wheels. An idea as to how they worked were again held by a selective few, however the integration of magnetic fields and electro-cylindrical tunnel made out of the mysterious element were the only known constants. Magnos took me to my neighbourhood from the office in 6 mins which would otherwise be a 40 mins walk, and therefore, was one of the few transport systems I often used, despite my distaste for them.

  The scanty apartment's lights clicked on, as I walked towards my room, my faint reflection made visible on the translucent glass wall clock, displayed at 7pm. The reflection looked tired and exhausted.

  It was a small apartment, the front door connected to a small corridor leading to my room, which was usually left open. Closer to the right to the front door, stood the kitchen and further up left, in the corridor, was the bathroom. The kitchen was spacious but the bathroom was cramped, however, since it was right next to my room, I didn't mind.

  Placing my Rilet on the bedside table, I headed to the bathroom.

  After a shower, I slipped into my shorts and shirt, took the towel and started wiping my wet hair.

  That was when I heard it.

  Clank crack sssssshs...

  That iconic sound my bedroom window made each time it was opened.

  It startled me, making the hair on my body stand. I broke into a cold sweat. This was the 18th floor of a 20 storey old apartment complex, where I had been the only tenant on the floor. Was it the wind? No, that noise is only made when it is pulled open completely. No one there would have been present to open that window, except me. But If it wasn't me then......Who was it?

  Thack! Wham!

  Someone was in my apartment.

  Who and why would anyone break into my apartment?

  In that eerie moment, a memory of the manager flashed before my eyes. An unfamiliar scene where he was sneering at me, sitting on an unfamiliar bed.

  Something about that image didn't sit well with me; Something was off.

  Manager? When? Where? My head started ringing.

  Creak...

  The noise brought me back to reality. This was not the time to be concerned about an odd memory. Someone was in my apartment! My knees felt weak, but I knew I had to regain composure to think logically. Gathering my leftover courage, I pressed my ear on the door.

  There was nothing but silence now. I didn't move a muscle scared frozen, still listening keenly for any noise in my room.

  Silence.

  Strangely, not a single word nor any noise could be heard. Was it my imagination? My ears started ringing.

  A

  fter a while I concluded that I would go mad if I weren't able to gauge the situation at hand, as it could have just been my imagination. I detached the metal mopstick as silently as I could, and decided to venture out of the bathroom.

  Slowly and quietly opening the door, I tried to look around. Nothing was visible through the gap except the wall on the other side and the rough concrete floor. Ah, the floor was a pain to walk on without slippers, when was the landlady going to fix it?

  Gulp...

  Poking my head out the bathroom door, I peeked at my room. I could see the cupboard there.

  Silence.

  I opened the door more and more, looking around, but couldn't feel anyone's presence. Apart from the kitchen door being wide open, there wasn't anything out of place. Was it really my imagination?

  As quietly as possible I made my way towards my room. With each step I took, my heart banged harder at my ribcage. Tension sprung throughout my body and my palms started sweating profusely.

  I tightened my grip on the stick in my hand.

  Reaching the door near my bedroom, I entered it with a swift movement. My heart was pounding out of my chest, while beads of sweat rolled down my forehead.

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  There I saw...

  ...............no one.

  The room was empty and gloomy. And just like that all my built up tension faded away. So, it was my imagination!

  Sigh!

  My grip on the stick loosened, and my cowering knee gave up. I fell to the ground in relief.

  I think I had become complacent then, to think I missed something so obvious.

  As I blankly stared at the floor, it hit me. The manager was supposed to be here, it slipped my mind completely.

  What was the time? I looked up at the glass plate displaying the time.

  7:43 pm

  .

  .

  7:44 pm.

  The reflection on the glass however wasn't mine.

  Someone swung a heavy ceramic bowl at my head.

  Wham! Thud!

  I lost consciousness for a few seconds. After a while I could hear a ringing getting stronger and louder in my ear. I tried to grab the air that I couldn't quite see, but my body felt heavy and my head kept throbbing. Through my blurry vision I squinted to see who the intruder was. What I saw was a man with a short chubby build, a receding hairline, and bulging eyeballs, wiping the saliva dripping from his panting mouth. Looking for any strength I could salvage felt pointless, in front of this horrifying figure. My head continued throbbing as the blood trickled down my head.

  "Did we get her?", a woman's voice entered my ears. Her silhouette approached the man from the kitchen, and I slowly started to see her figure behind him. She was slender and much taller than her partner, a middle aged woman in her 40s.

  "He he...honey, it looks tasty...". The man turned his gaze towards her, drooling.

  "Control yourself, Careful! Your carelessness will be the last of us!", the woman seemingly disgusted, turned his head towards me.

  "Hnnnghh", the pain made me groan.

  "It didn't pass out completely. This is what I was warning you about! Always make sure to get them with the first hit!", she complained.

  The man turned and looked at the woman, "... hehehe, oh c'mon, who cares ?? It will end up as sliced meat anyways.", he laughed slightly and continued, "More importantly did you find the knives?".

  "No", the woman looked behind her in the corridor. "I didn't get the time. You had to make noise while breaking in!". she sounded very annoyed.

  The man looked a bit disturbed, "Well, it was the window-".

  "Nevermind!", the woman interrupted, "the kitchen is more fantastic than her entire apartment. Grab her! Let's talk there.".

  I felt disoriented but I was sure I didn't know these people and by their conversation it didn't bode well for me. "Who are... you and, why are... you do-.. doing this...?", my voice quivered.

  Silence.

  They both looked at me. The man then turned to the woman and asked, "What is she saying?". The woman fixated her gaze on me, "Do you think I understand?".

  They can't understand me?

  "Besides whether it speaks or not, it doesn't matter to us", she replied.

  Thinking made me nauseous, and the lightheadedness made me want to vomit. But before the pain in my throbbing head intensified, the man had gripped my ankle. At that moment my body turned cold in terror.

  My corridor wasn't in a state to have things dragged over them.

  As the man dragged me through the rough concrete, the friction scraped off the skin of my back. The immeasurable pain made me want to break free, but all I could do was scream and writhe in pain.

  After a long time, the feelings I thought I had lost, resurfaced.

  I was scared.

  "... ple... please let... let go...." I begged them, yes, that was the best thing I could do. Yet the grip on my ankle grew tighter and the pain felt stronger. Fear of something I didn't know crept up in me and I found myself in tears.

  Why was I crying? Was it because of the pain, or the fact that no one could help me? Or the reality that my pleas fell on deaf ears, or was it simply fear?

  ".... Help- aargh...".

  Ah! No one can save me now...

  That is when in my blank head, his traces replayed silently. That man and his words which slowly devoured my roots, rotting it till it reached the gates of hell.

  ' "I love your smell! It's so mesmerising!" '

  ' "So I will see you at your place at 8pm then! Tuduloos!" '

  The manager...

  ' "Oh, and with all the strange missing cases going around, be careful huh!" '

  Asra..

  The man released my leg and it fell to the ground with a loud thud. I couldn't feel the pain in my ankle, it had gone numb.

  'Hnnn aa...gh...leave.. me... ple... please...", I mumbled, wriggling on the kitchen floor in agony.

  "Argh, this girl! What is she saying?!", his sanguinary eyes shook my soul to the core.

  "How the heck am I supposed to know? I understand it as much as you do! This is exactly why you are supposed to hit them unconscious!", the woman sounded irritated, she started opening and shutting the kitchen cabinets furiously. She probably couldn't find the knives.

  "Fine! Just don't shout!", they started bickering.

  The woman kept complaining about how reckless he was while the man kept pointing at how impatient she was.

  Amongst the bickering and fading in and out of consciousness and the pain, my mind repeated his words.

  ' " Be careful huh!" '

  Asra...

  Why was he the only person I thought of? Was it my suppressed feelings, my anger, my remorse? Or was it my hatred? Why did he linger in my thoughts?

  The woman had finally found the knives I kept hidden in the lowermost corner of the kitchen cabinet.

  "Ah, will you shut your mouth and just take these damned knives! Who the hell keeps them at a place like this?!", she screamed.

  "Okay! You are the one shouting!", the man responded, he took out the thickest one out of the 3.

  "Make sure to slice it nicely!" the woman urged.

  "Hopefully the meat looks presentable, you know how everyone is so picky nowadays with the meat they eat!" the man continued.

  .

  .

  EAT?!