EXT. SACRED GROVE – NIGHTFALL
A dense mist cloaked the village, turning torchlight into halos. A hush blanketed the air, pierced only by crackling fire and the distant howling wind. The villagers had stopped gathering near the temple long ago. Fear and awe don't often mix well.
Bobby climbed the final moss-covered step and entered the grove where the Heart Tree towered. Beneath its colossal roots lay the crystal cocoon — pulsing faintly, like a slow heartbeat of something not quite human.
He crouched beside it, running his fingers across its warm, glassy shell.
> BOBBY (whispering):
"It's been ninety-nine days. You haven't blinked. Haven't moved. But I keep coming back…
You'd laugh if you could hear how crazy I sound. Talking to a sleeping fruit."
He chuckled under his breath, then fell silent. The cocoon flickered — soft, golden light glowing gently beneath the surface.
> BOBBY:
"They think you're cursed. That the flame chose wrong. They don't know what I saw that day in the Cave of Grief…
You felt alive. You felt like… hope."
Footsteps crunched behind him. A trio of villagers approached — Elder Sarin, Maati the herbalist, and young Jai, the blacksmith's apprentice.
> MAATI (sternly):
"You've come every day, boy. What do you think you'll gain from this vigil?"
> BOBBY (without turning):
"I'm not here to gain. I'm here to keep a promise."
> ELDER SARIN (with a sigh):
"She's not like us. Born of fire, not flesh. You should not get attached to something we can't understand."
> JAI (nervously):
"What if she wakes and… she's not human? What if she's dangerous?"
> BOBBY (finally facing them):
"Then I'll protect her. And I'll protect you — from yourselves if I must.
She isn't dangerous. She's… lost. Like me."
> MAATI:
"Your parents died in the last storm, didn't they? That pain clouds your judgment."
> BOBBY (quiet but firm):
"No. That pain made me see clearer. When the world breaks you, you either burn… or become the flame."
The villagers murmured among themselves. Sarin stepped forward.
> ELDER SARIN:
"We worry for you. Not because we hate her. But because magic like this — it always has a price."
> BOBBY (stepping closer to the cocoon):
"Then let it cost me. Not her."
Suddenly, a loud crack echoed from within the cocoon. The roots trembled. The villagers froze.
> JAI (panicked):
"It's moving! It's breaking!"
> MAATI (backing away):
"Get away from it!"
> BOBBY (holding out an arm):
"No one touches her. No one moves."
Light burst from the cocoon as it opened like a blooming flower. Inside, a girl sat up — hair of flame, eyes of light.
> ROOP (softly):
"It's cold…"
> BOBBY (in awe):
"Roop…?"
> ROOP:
"Your voice… kept me alive."
> MAATI (whispering):
"Goddess protect us…"
> ELDER SARIN (staring):
"No… she is the flame."
> BOBBY (wrapping her in his cloak):
"She's not the end. She's the beginning."
She leaned against him, but her body trembled. Her eyes shifted — first warm, then startled.
> ROOP (gripping her temples):
"No—too many voices—too much—!"
Her flame pulsed dangerously. A wave of fire pushed Bobby back.
> BOBBY:
"Roop! What's wrong?!"
> ROOP (eyes glowing red-orange, voice layered):
"They're afraid… they want to hurt the flame…"
The cocoon shards lifted and spun around her like orbiting stars. She rose into the air, hair ablaze.
> JAI (shouting):
"She's attacking again!"
> MAATI:
"Stop her before she burns us all!"
> BOBBY (shouting over the roar):
"No! This isn't her! She's scared!"
Roop's power surged. Trees ignited. The Heart Tree shook.
> BOBBY (raising a glowing hand):
"Forgive me… Shanti astra… nidra bindu!"
His aura blazed blue. A cooling energy surrounded Roop. Her flame flickered — then dimmed. She dropped into his arms, asleep.
> BOBBY (softly):
"You don't have to fight. Not anymore."
The villagers stared in stunned silence. Bobby gently laid her head on his shoulder.
> ELDER SARIN:
"What… have we just witnessed?"
> BOBBY:
"The beginning of something far greater than we're ready for."
And somewhere deep in the village sky, stars shifted again.