House Of Vices

Six youngsters ventured into a secluded territory. Nobody had dared to visit this unknown place but these youngsters showed the courage to explore the unvisited place. They happened to see a glittering mansion which captured their attention. It loomed large in the middle of a forest-looking area. Akshay, Anoop, Dayana, Ritika, Virendra, and Ayush made up their minds to visit the mansion. Upon reaching the large door of the mansion, they happened to see a watchman flicking on a switch to open the door. He motioned them to enter. They were taken aback at the sight of a seven-foot-tall man who had sported a grin on his face. He invited them in and asked them to occupy the steel chairs that were aligned together.

"I am surprised to see people showing the audacity to visit our mansion. We never disrespect our guests and you guys have won a chance to enter the six houses of our mansion."

All six looked at each other curious to know what lay hidden beneath the cloak of those six houses.

"There is a catch. All houses have their own set of rules which will not be revealed. The only caveat I can give is do not succumb to your temptations. With that in mind, I would request all of you to render your signatures on this document before embarking on a new ride."

The six youngsters had always enjoyed daring adventures and they believed they would have a great time in the six mysterious houses. They stamped their signatures on the document all set to unravel the mystery. The seven-foot-tall man flashed a smile, "May the best survive."

Another door was opened by the flick of a switch and the six youngsters materialized at house no 1.

House 1: Beauty Paradise

The enchanting paradise adorned with glistening gold and diamonds welcomed the six guys who looked astounded by the grandeur of the paradise. Why are we here? What are we supposed to do here? What can happen here? How long can we be here? Minds was riddled with a plethora of questions that had no answers. Just when they scratched their heads trying to understand what was in store, a beautiful lass appeared out of nowhere. Her curly hair messily touched her shoulders. Her twinkling eyes seemed to have stored the magical powers. She looked drop-dead gorgeous in a white gown and the twinkling jewellery accentuated her look. She waved her hands at the six youngsters drawing their attention. The beautiful lass invited the boys to enter a romantic house. Virendra had fallen head over heels for her beauty and he simply couldn't control his temptations. The warning issued by the seven-foot-tall man evaporated into oblivion as he quickly ran towards the girl. His mind was clouded by lust and he never realized that he had fallen straight into the trap. Others tried to prevent him from entering the romantic house but the time had already faded. Excitement coursed through his body as he stepped into the room with the girl. The door was closed and vanished in a jiffy. Others shared apprehensive glances at each other before they were compelled into house no 2.

House 2: Anger Land

Five remained and they wondered what was in store in this land. Virendra had lost his life since he couldn't grapple with his temptations. Now these five had new challenges to face and they have to be on their toes to remain alive.

This house gave a vibe of zombies since redness had engulfed around. With a pin drop of silence and no words exchanged between them, an eerie feeling seemed to have crept up. Out of nowhere, a man who looked to be in his early forties came up to confront the youngsters. He had a stern look on his face and his gaze set on Dayana as if she was his target.

"You are a useless girl who is born for nothing. You are the weakest person out of the five here and I wonder what made them befriend a moron like you. If I had seen you before I would have put you on a blazing fire and burnt you alive. You are an ugly-looking girl who is bound to die alone. You always propagate lies and nobody knows your hidden agenda which is to betray others to fulfill your ugly requirements. I hope you die like a mad dog right now," he was pretty much clear with his task which was to provoke her.

Dayana's trigger points got activated and she retorted back in her inimitable style.

"You are a zombie-looking creature who deserves to beg in the streets and you know what nobody will give you even a penny because you are fit for nothing. You are not even equal to the granules of sand lingering in my boot. I hope you die like a cat in front of my boots," her anger had exploded testifying to her failure to control herself. Others tried to calm her down but to no avail. This was all the opening the man needed as he took her along with him only to vanish. The remaining four quickly materialized at house no 3.

House 3: Money Hall

Virendra and Dayana fell prey to the tactics of the house since they couldn't control themselves. The remaining four who had come to the mansion flashing smiles looked groggy after what happened to their close friends. They had no time to dwell on the experiences of the previous houses. They could hear the printing sound that came out of a hall. They were taken aback when they peered into the hall. The original money notes are getting printed. Thousand rupee notes, two thousand rupee notes. The hall indeed had enough money that help any family survive anywhere without having to work. Ayush widened his eyes at the money notes since he always had to borrow money from others for even simple work. A desire was planted in his mind and it fueled him to fill his pockets with loads of money so that his life would be settled once and for all. He visualized making trips abroad and living a lavish life without having to churn even a drop of sweat. Others issued him the warning but it just fell on deaf ears. He loaded his pockets with money and the persistent smile he carried reflected his greed. Out of nowhere he too perished unable to hold his horses. The remaining three appeared at the doorstep of house no 4.

House 4: Envy Kingdom

Akshay, Ritika, and Anoop are the only surviving ones among the six who started. House no 4 resembled an ensnaring kingdom that was a feast to anyone's eye. A guy who looked similar to Anoop occupied the throne of a kingdom. His courtiers penned poems to describe his valor and virtues. Anoop was shocked to see someone like him receiving praise from people. How did he become a king? Why can't I replace him? I am looking like a common man while he is getting royal treatment over there. His jealousy knew no bounds. He quickly scurried to his kingdom and confronted the king.

"You don't deserve to sit here or receive praise from people. Do you? I believe I must enjoy the royal treatment here, not you. By hook or by crook, I must be better than you. I must get more respect and earn more money than you. I am too jealous to see a guy like you who is doing better in life," he accepted unabashedly that he was jealous of the king exposing his vulnerability. As a punishment, he lost his life. Akshay and Ritika glanced at each other with no iota of expressions running in their countenances. They got dragged to house no 5 where there was no option for complacency.

House 5: Drug Mill

Ritika had enough of seeing her friends disappear one by one thanks to the tactics of the houses. The onslaught of depressing thoughts refused to subside. She could hearken to the grinding noise wafting from the mill. She and Akshay scampered over there to see white powder dropping on a bucket. It did not take much time for them to realize that it was nothing but drugs. Akshay pleaded with Ritika not to go and consume the drugs since he did not want to lose his only remaining friend. Accumulation of nasty thoughts was too much to take for Ritika who ignored the advice of her friend and went to consume the drugs. She felt the drugs could cure her mind that had been taken for a ride courtesy of losing her friends. Subsequently, she went ahead and gobbled up the drugs but did not die. Every twenty minutes she kept on consuming drugs thereby proving her attachment to the substance. She had indeed gotten addicted to the substance which was enough for the house to consume her life. The lone survivor Akshay jumped to house no 6.

House 6: Pride Park

It became crystal clear to Akshay that all these houses represented vices. All his friends fell into the deception trap of the vices. He knew the present house resembled pride and he never exercised ego in his life so it was not at all a challenge for him to overcome any challenge posed by the house.

"You are the winner and nobody apart from you could survive here. You are the best in the world and how do you feel now? You are not a common man anymore. You are anointed as a God hereafter who is better than all human beings," an anonymous voice seemed to check his ego.

"I am not here to prove that I am the best amongst my friends. I know I am just a speck in the universe who is just born here to serve my purpose. I am not a God and I don't deserve to be called a God. I am just a servant of God."

Akshay had won the chess game of the house. He had successfully overcome the obstacles tossed by the house of vices. The door clicked open and he came out of the house victorious.

Akshay was the only one who could control his temptations and come out unscathed. Others just succumbed to their temptations thereby digging graves for themselves. The seven-foot-tall man was surprised to see Akshay come back because he expected everyone to die. He applauded Akshay for being the winner but the latter looked hopeless after losing his friends. A saint-like figure appeared out of nowhere.

"I hope you have understood the significance of these six houses. These houses stand for lust, anger, greed, envy, attachment, and pride which are the six vices that have always allured human beings into delusional traps. If none of you had survived the temptations offered by these houses perhaps all of you would have died by now," he continued. "You have weathered all the storm which is a testament to your strong mindset that doesn't get swayed by the vices. We do not want to disappoint you. As per the rules if someone comes out victorious they will get back all their friends who also ventured into the house along with them."

Akshay who was in a state of despair invited hope back into his mind.

"The miserable crimes that are prevalent all over the world are due to the domination of the vices. A human being who can't control his vices and who always falls prey to them is bound to live a miserable life. A true yogi has overcome the temptations of the vices and nothing in this world can control him. Congratulations! You have won our hearts and there you see your gift."

Out of nowhere, a door opened and Akshay's friends came out of it. Akshay had tears on his face which reflected his love for his friends. His friends felt proud of him for not only being their savior but also for his ability to fight the vices. They promised Akshay that they would not fall for vices hereafter. All of them left the glittering mansion that seemed to illuminate their hearts and minds.