Photographer's Nightmare

It was dark, I was riding my bike at max possible speed the road supported. All that was in my mind was to reach my small hometown before it crossed midnight.

I heard a loud thundering noise, within minutes it started raining heavily. I told myself it can't get worse than this.

The heavy rains were striking my helmet at full speed. I couldn't see with helmet visor closed and with helmet visor opened it felt like getting slapped hard left and right by someone for something which you didn't do. There was no choice, but to continue riding.

That cold drink which I had in the evening was forcing putting pressure to take the nature call. I started looking for some safe place to stop, I was around 100 miles away from my place. All along the journey, I was only greeted by thunder noise, there was not a single vehicle.

I continued riding faster, at a far distance, I saw a vehicle stopped on the roadside. Seeing the vehicle I was shocked, that was the first vehicle that I saw from the past hour. The first thought which came to my mind was, am I going to be a victim of kidnap and murder. Suddenly I applied the brakes and slowed my bike and moved further as slow as I can and I concentrated as much as I can to see whether there was someone inside the vehicle or some movement around the vehicle.

In the Dark Night, in the pouring rain, in midst of thick forest road, all I wished for was not to see any human being. I was scared, for a moment the shivering from the cold stopped, my heartbeat started rising. I narrowed my eyes, kept gazing at the vehicle, I couldn't see anything. I was in no situation to go back, suddenly a thought came to my mind, why not switch off the bike. Instantly I switched off my bike, moved my bike from the road into deep inside towards trees, almost hid it from other's view. Slowly I started peeping from the side of my bike to see at the vehicle to see if there is any movement or sound from it. My all hope was on the light from the vehicle.

2 to 3 minutes passed by and suddenly I could see few men getting out of the vehicle, in the brake light of the vehicle, I saw some box kind of thing being taken out of the vehicle, It felt like, in movies, I could feel the shivers inside my body. I was happy that I didn't make the move past them and I was scared of being spotted [although I was safely in midst of thick grown small trees].

I made a small plan, to wait for a few more minutes and as soon as they disappear from that vehicle, to take out my bike, slowly push toward them on the other side of the road and once I am close to 30 feet, I wanted to start and zoom off as fast as the bike can go and never to turn and look back until I reach home.

Things happened as I wished, I could no longer see anyone and I started pushing the bike towards the road and started going further towards the vehicle, it was all going as per the plan and there my luck flew away, the habitual mind made my hand go towards the bike key and turned it on, the light went on. I realized what had just happened and I switch off the light as quickly as I can. The next thing was what I didn't expect to happen. I saw 3 men looked to be wearing a black dress started moving toward the center of the road, they started spreading themselves covering the road. I could see the lights from the torch, it was all GREEN, they realized that someone is there and they started coming towards me. Every step made that light more GREENER.

I froze, not knowing what to do. I stood still until a person came close enough and asked who I am. I said a hobby photographer who traveled a long way from his city to take a series of photographs. I told them it was part of my assignment work and I started pointing at the camera, all my cells in the body were trying to convince them that I was innocent. They weren't convinced, I heard a sound similar to what they show in the movies while loading a gun. I was hell scared, they started dragging me towards their vehicle.

When the vehicle was close enough, the first thing which caught my attention was the number plate was covered, that is when I said goodbye to myself, I was becoming surer of they killing me, I realized it's just a matter of some time.

One guy among them started searching my pockets and took out all I had, opened my backpack and checked to find something to disapprove my innocence. I never resisted a bit. They said only one sentence if you want to live, come with us. They started taking out more stuff, the thing which looked like a box was a big backpack. As soon as they took out all the stuff, the vehicle left.

Now, these guys started moving deep into the forest, after around 2 hours of trekking and traveling they identified the place. It was marked with some little shiny cloth. One guy took off the cloth which was tied to the small branch, they dumped their backpacks on the ground and started looking around to see if there was someone.

They slowly started taking out a small shovel from the backpack to dig the land, that is when I started doubting what is they up to, have they found some hidden treasure.

After 1 hour of digging everyone heard the thud noise, it felt as if shovel was hitting some hard substance. They were excited, they started taking the soil out from their hands, and one guy among them took his small torch and directed the light towards it. We all saw shining and reflecting thing.

After further struggle, finally, they were about to take the big heavy box out. Out of nowhere, we heard footsteps, everyone got alert, looked at the direction, took out their guns, and started staring that direction. Few minutes passed by and there was no sound of footsteps.

They signaled at me to go in that direction. Inside voice of me was like "WTF do whatever I wouldn't move an inch", but I was in such a hopeless state, I started walking slowly in the direction the sound came. 2 to 3 people footsteps sound was heard, I stopped moving. I was shivering out of fear. One guy from the group took the torch and flashed it at the direction the sound was coming, I was there many feet in front of these guys, I could hear the footsteps coming towards me. It was about 10 feet distance, that is when I saw something blurry. Few more feet and that is when I saw the horrible thing. The thing I saw made me scream at the top of my lungs. Standing a few feet distance from me were few 6 feet tall, dark men with scarred scary face, with some painting on their face, holding a red-blooded axe in one hand, and chopped heads in another hand. I kept screaming even more as I saw fresh dripping blood heads started approaching me. The next second I collapsed to the ground.

In that short time of my body hitting the ground, I heard some bullet sounds. The moment body hit the ground I felt peaceful.

Next day when I opened eyes, I could see my left side of my head hurting, when I barely managed to pull my hand towards head, I could feel the pain, it was the impact of me hitting the stone on the ground. It was bloody mess.

I was shocked to see myself alive, It took me few minutes to understand what had happened last night. My head was heavy and hurting, I slowly managed to get up and stood on my foot. The piercing sun rays from the small gaps of the trees, showed the horror which had happened.

I could see bodies lying around with axes next to them. It was close to a mini battle. I start counting and saw almost 8 dead bodies. I hoped that they are dead and was praying for no surprises. I slowly moved towards the place where digging had happened, and found that glittering thing is no more and instead had 3 heads in that pit. I realized it’s the same 3 people who had bought me to this place, I was able to surely say it was their head because of the headless black jacket worn bodies lying next to the pit.

I just vomited, don’t know whether the vertigo from the hard hit I got or seeing the headless bodies. I was so tired, I just laid on the floor on back to recollect the thoughts. I realized that those axe man who looked like jungle men have taken all the gold and diamonds and in that fight they also lost some men.

My inner voice started screaming, run. Run from this place before someone comes.

I found my backpack at some distance, took water bottle, it was the first sip of water in last 12 hours. I couldn’t find my camera anywhere.

I started slowly walking in the direction my intuition told, with my baby steps, with no clue or direction to trace back. It took me hours to find the way out. Almost it started getting dark, that is when I finally saw the hope, the road from which it all started. My heart beat, the pace at which I walked increased, suddenly there was energy inside me and I started walking briskly.

Finally after 30 minutes, I was next to the spot where my bike was, and the it was getting dark. It was close to 20 hours of ordeal battle which took toll on both my body and mind.

I slowly pushed my bike to the road, sat on it, saw the skies and tried starting my bike, finally after few minutes the engine came to life. I had so much terror feeling inside me, I cant’ even remember the speed at which I rode the bike. In an hour, I was back to the known comfortable place, my home town.

When I could breathe in relief, I was hit by flash of light. I was hell scared, I was like did the same men came back for me… are they not dead… am I hallucinating… By that time I saw a guy running towards me with camera in hand. That’s when I realized I had photo bombed. The guy saw my face wounds and asked whether I was fine.

All I could say was through sign language, pointed my hand towards bike trying to indicate that it was accident and only word I could utter was sorry and left pushing my bike towards my home.

It’s been close to 1 year from that incident and still flash of light from camera or torch, increases my heart beat, send chills down my body.

Till date a question keeps coming to mind, that is

WHAT DID HAPPEN AT THAT NIGHT & WHERE IS MY CAMERA.

Only the dark knight and the moon which witnessed it has the answers for it