The ghost of the sword hand

After solving the case in Tonida, Bharath and Charan found themselves drawn to a new case in Munnar, Kerala. A college student had been brutally murdered, and the victim’s girlfriend, Jane, claimed that the attacker was invisible. Intrigued, the brothers decided to investigate. When they arrived in Munnar, they learned that Jane was the daughter of a local church priest, Father Mathew. Posing as followers seeking spiritual guidance, they managed to gain the priest’s trust and access to Jane.

That night, Jane was reluctant to leave her home, still shaken by her boyfriend’s death. However, her best friend, Meera, insisted on taking her to a party to help her forget her pain. Reluctantly, Jane agreed, and at the party, Meera pushed her to drink alcohol despite Jane’s reservations. Unwilling to disappoint her friend, Jane finally gave in.

The next morning, the brothers were woken early by a commotion in the village. Meera had been found brutally murdered, with injuries that eerily resembled those of Jane’s boyfriend. Suspicious, Bharath and Charan began to piece together the details. Both victims were connected to Jane, and both had been killed by something sharp and precise, as though a sword had been used.

The brothers theorized that the killings were linked to Jane and delved into local lore for answers. Their research led them to a chilling discovery. In the 1800s, a priest named Father Elias had committed a series of heinous crimes. After losing his hand in an accident, he had a sword forged to replace it. Consumed by madness, Elias killed thirteen prostitutes with the sword, claiming he was purifying them of sin. He was eventually captured and executed, but rumors of his restless spirit persisted in the village.

Believing Father Elias’s vengeful spirit was behind the murders, Bharath and Charan decided to find and destroy his remains. They located his grave in an old cemetery outside the village and salted and burned the bones, hoping this would put his spirit to rest. But their relief was short-lived. That same night, the spirit attacked Father Mathew in his own home, nearly killing him. Bharath and Charan arrived just in time to repel the ghost with rock salt and iron-loaded shotgun rounds.

Realizing that burning the bones wasn’t enough, the brothers concluded that the sword Elias used must also be destroyed. Their research revealed that after Elias’s execution, the sword had been donated to the village church and melted down to create various silver items, including ornaments and ritual objects used in the church’s services. This revelation complicated things—every piece of silver from the sword would need to be destroyed.

As they planned their next steps, Father Mathew reprimanded Jane for attending the party, blaming her for Meera’s death and questioning her moral choices. Jane, guilt-ridden and terrified, turned to the brothers for help. Charan reassured her that none of what was happening was her fault, while Bharath focused on uncovering the locations of the silver items.

The brothers discovered the church’s forge, where many of the items had been created. Charan set about gathering and melting down every piece of silver they could find, while Bharath stayed behind to protect Jane and her father from the increasingly aggressive spirit of Father Elias. The ghost, furious at their interference, launched a brutal attack on Bharath, who barely managed to fend it off with salt and iron.

While Charan destroyed the silver in the forge, the spirit's strength seemed to weaken, but it did not vanish. Bharath fought valiantly, but the ghost's attacks grew more savage. Charan returned just in time to help his brother, but the brothers quickly realized they had missed something important.

Desperate, Bharath and Charan interrogated Jane and Father Mathew, asking if there was any silver connected to the church that they hadn’t accounted for. Jane hesitated before lifting a silver pendant from around her neck. “This was a gift from my father,” she said quietly. Bharath’s eyes widened as he examined it—it was intricately engraved with symbols matching the church’s artifacts. Realizing it was forged from the same cursed silver as the other items, the brothers knew they had to destroy it.

The ghost of Father Elias appeared again, this time more enraged than ever. He lunged at Jane, but Bharath and Charan fought him off with everything they had, buying precious moments to destroy the pendant. Charan grabbed the pendant and hurled it into the blazing forge. As the silver melted away, Elias’s ghost let out a piercing scream, his form flickering and disintegrating before vanishing entirely.

Silence fell over the forge. Jane broke into tears, overwhelmed by relief and grief, while Father Mathew quietly thanked the brothers for saving his daughter and the village. Bharath, battered and bruised, leaned against the wall, his breathing heavy. “I swear, these spirits are getting harder to kill,” he muttered, earning a small smile from Charan.

As they packed up to leave Munnar, Jane approached the brothers. “Thank you,” she said sincerely. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

Charan gave her a comforting pat on the shoulder. “Stay strong. And remember, none of this was your fault.”

The brothers drove off into the misty hills of Munnar, their bond stronger than ever, ready for whatever dark forces awaited them next.