Chapter 3: The Forest That Was Erased from Maps

The forest did not exist anymore.

At least not officially.

Shruti Talwar stared silently at the glowing satellite screen inside the private jet while rain clouds moved beneath them like dark oceans.

Northern India stretched below.

Mountains.

Fog.

Ancient forests.

But the region William had sent her…

Was blank.

No protected zone.

No wildlife reserve.

No villages.

Nothing.

Just empty digital terrain.

As if someone had cut an entire forest out of reality itself.

Her fingers moved across the touchscreen rapidly.

She checked archived environmental records again.

Same result.

No data.

No biodiversity registrations.

No official government ownership.

No migration tracking.

But that was impossible.

Because leaked underground reports mentioned thousands of endangered species living there only two years earlier.

Including snow leopards.

Rare wolves.

Black tigers.

And elephants.

Now everything had vanished from public systems.

Erased.

Not destroyed.

Deleted.

By AI.

A cold feeling spread through Shruti’s chest.

Only extremely advanced intelligence systems could manipulate environmental databases at that scale without detection.

Systems like Talwar Global Technologies.

Outside the jet window lightning flashed across distant mountains.

Her phone vibrated.

A secure encrypted message from Ridhima appeared.

“Three environmental activists disappeared after entering that zone.”

Another message followed.

“No bodies found.”

Then—

“People there call it Ghost Forest.”

Shruti swallowed slowly.

For the first time since leaving Singapore…

Fear felt real.

Not social fear.

Not media pressure.

Real danger.

Yet strangely…

She kept moving forward.

Because every answer somehow led back to one person.

William Singh.

The jungle ghost.

—

By midnight the jet landed secretly near a remote mountain airstrip.

Cold air hit Shruti immediately as she stepped outside wearing dark cargo clothes instead of her usual luxury fashion.

No makeup.

No bodyguards.

No billionaire identity.

Only silence.

The local driver waiting nearby looked nervous the moment he heard her destination.

“You shouldn’t go there, madam.”

Shruti closed the jeep door quietly.

“Why?”

The old man hesitated before answering.

“Animals disappear.”

“That happens everywhere.”

“No,” he whispered.

“You don’t understand.”

Rain tapped softly against the windshield while the jeep moved through narrow mountain roads surrounded by endless darkness.

The driver continued nervously:

“People say machines watch the trees there.”

Shruti looked toward him sharply.

“What kind of machines?”

“Flying eyes.”

Drones.

Her stomach tightened.

The driver avoided eye contact.

“Some villagers saw lights scanning faces at night. Then forest guards came and warned everyone never to speak again.”

He paused.

“After that… people vanished.”

The jeep finally stopped near an abandoned checkpoint buried beneath vines and rusted warning signs.

Beyond it—

Only jungle.

The driver refused to go further.

Shruti stepped out carrying a backpack and flashlight.

The old man suddenly grabbed her wrist.