The Haunting Safari: Periyar’s Dark Secret

Dhruv and John were eager for their jungle safari in Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala . They had heard countless stories of the lush landscapes and breathtaking views. Starting their journey from Kollam , they passed through Munnar and Kottayam , eagerly anticipating the adventures awaiting them.
The duo arrived at Periyar and were immediately entranced by the dense forest. The sun was beginning to set as their guide led them deeper into the jungle, telling tales of wild elephants and lurking tigers. Dhruv and John felt a thrill of excitement, but the atmosphere quickly grew eerie as the shadows lengthened, casting strange figures across the trees.

Suddenly, their jeep stopped. The engine stalled, and the guide looked nervous. "We shouldn't stay here long," he whispered, eyes darting toward the darkening trees. Dhruv and John laughed it off, assuming the guide was just trying to add a little fear to the experience. But when a distant, bone-chilling cry echoed through the jungle, the smiles faded.
As the guide fumbled with the engine, John noticed a figure moving in the trees. "Dhruv... did you see that?" he asked, his voice shaky. Dhruv turned to look, but the figure was gone. Their guide, now pale, insisted they leave immediately. But the jungle had other plans.
A thick mist began to rise, enveloping them. Strange whispers filled the air, coming from all directions. The figure reappeared, closer now—an old, weathered man with hollow eyes, standing still, watching them. His gaze was fixed on John. Paralyzed with fear, they couldn't move. The old man raised his hand, pointing into the heart of the jungle, before vanishing into the mist.
Suddenly, the engine roared to life, and the guide sped away, his hands shaking on the wheel. As they left the cursed spot, he told them of the legend: a forgotten tribe that once roamed these woods, now lost to time. They say the spirits of those who entered the jungle at night never returned.
Dhruv and John exchanged uneasy glances. They had come for an adventure, but they left with a chilling memory they would never forget.
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The Haunting Safari: Periyar’s Dark Secret (Part 2)
Dhruv and John tried to shake off the unnerving experience as they returned to their camp later that evening. They joked about how the guide must have been exaggerating the legend to scare them. But the eerie feeling of being watched lingered, especially for John, who couldn't forget the old man's hollow eyes.
That night, as they lay in their tents, the jungle was unusually quiet. The usual sounds of chirping insects and rustling leaves had been replaced by an unsettling silence. John couldn't sleep; his mind kept drifting back to the figure in the mist. Every time he closed his eyes, he felt the man's gaze burning into him.
Suddenly, John heard a faint whisper outside his tent. His heart pounded. He strained to listen, but the whispering was too soft to make out. Gathering his courage, he unzipped the tent and stepped into the moonlit night. The forest was still, but as he scanned the trees, he saw it again—the same old man, standing in the distance, watching him.
“Dhruv!” John shouted, backing up. His voice was shaky, but he needed his friend to see what he was seeing. Dhruv stumbled out of his tent, rubbing his eyes. "What's going on?"
John pointed toward the trees, but the figure had vanished. “He was there… watching me,” John whispered. Dhruv tried to calm him down, but John's panic was contagious.
Then, just as they were about to return to their tents, a loud crack echoed from the jungle, followed by that same bone-chilling cry they had heard earlier. It sounded closer now, almost human, but twisted with pain. The ground beneath their feet trembled slightly as if something massive was moving through the forest.
Suddenly, their guide rushed into the campsite, his face drained of color. "We need to leave. Now!" he urged, not bothering to explain. He led them toward the jeep, but before they could reach it, a dense fog rolled in, covering the path ahead.
In the fog, Dhruv saw flickering shadows, not just one, but many—figures moving silently between the trees. John froze, recognizing the old man among them. This time, the figures were not just watching—they were approaching.
“We're not alone,” Dhruv muttered, his voice barely a whisper.
The Kerala travel guide , now panicking, shouted for them to run. But no matter how fast they moved, the figures seemed to glide effortlessly closer, their whispers growing louder, filling their ears with incomprehensible words. Dhruv felt a cold hand brush his arm, and in the mist, he saw a glimpse of ancient, haunted eyes staring back at him.
John tripped, falling to the ground as the figures loomed over him. Desperate, Dhruv grabbed his friend and pulled him up, but something was wrong. John's face had gone pale, his eyes wide with terror. “I saw them... I saw their faces,” John whispered, his voice cracking. "They're not human."
The jeep came into view, and they scrambled inside, slamming the doors behind them. As the guide sped away from the cursed jungle, the whispers faded, but the terror remained etched in their minds.
Dhruv glanced at John, but his friend was staring blankly out the window, unblinking. Whatever they had encountered in Periyar was far from over. And in John's haunted eyes, Dhruv knew the jungle had marked them.