Age of Asura [Progression, LitRPG, Apocalypse]

[shreek007]

Chapter 1 – The Beginning of the End

"Uruvi? Uruvi!"

Uruvi was snapped back to reality by a soft smack to her arm. She found herself standing in front of the copy machine, staring at a scenic painting that hung on the wall across from her. She looked to the left to see the fuming face of her manager.

"Zoned out? Again?" asked the manager, in a sharp, shrill voice. "I asked you get the printouts a while ago!"

They looked down at the machine, which was still scanning the large stack of documents.

The manager looked to the clerk and asked, "can't this go any faster?"

The clerk, who had heard this question a thousand times, said, "no."

She rolled her eyes and said to Uruvi, "get this done fast and come upstairs. We are already behind schedule."

She walked out through the glass door and vanished up the stairs, leaving Uruvi alone with her thoughts.

'You were the one who constantly delayed the drafts with your nitpicking, and now you are rushing the team. What a joke!' As much as she hated her manager. She was the least of her problems. 'I will just get these documents to her, and everything will be alright.'
She let out a dull sigh. No, everything was not alright, and she desperately needed some help. But she had already tried, and no matter who she spoke to, they always gave her the same answer – "You are doing just fine! Just think about your future and aim to stay on it." The word future would be replaced by something like - career, marriage, family, or children, depending on whom she was talking to.

But she wasn't fine. She hadn't been for well over a year. She was twenty-nine, and in nine months, she would be thirty. People around her age always appeared to have their lives in control. They were moving up, getting promoted, buying homes, finding love, getting married, and some were already having children. And then there was her, earning a decent wage, spending most of her time at work, drinking herself to sleep at night, and binge-watching web serials in her free time. Her life was stuck in a cycle, and she had no motivation to break out of it.

It was 7 P.M. on a Thursday. She should have been home by now, but here she was working in a bustling office, and it didn't appear like she would be going home anytime soon.

'I am happy… right? No… who am I kidding… I am a complete mess.' She bent over and slammed her forehead against the copy machine.

"Please don't hit the copy machine!" said the clerk.

She snapped back up, rubbing her forehead. Her cheeks flushed red in embarrassment.

The second floor of the basement was reserved for the utilities department of the company. Everything from stationery to the computer service department was crammed into this one single floor. As a result, the floor was always working on full load. People from the six floors above constantly flowed down for their needs. With no natural light reaching the depths, the entire floor was drenched in fluorescent white. The cold air of the entire building sank to the bottom, making even the scorching summers feel like the dead of winter. Several petitions were made to move the department to the first floor, but it was continuously ignored by the management, who didn't want a messy hardware department interrupting their aesthetic workspace.

The machine began spitting out sheet after sheet, creating a stack of documents that were to be submitted for approval. Just as the first stack was about to be completed, the machine stopped, and the entire floor was drenched in darkness.

"Fuck!" she cursed out loud. However, the silence that followed made her reevaluate her choice of words.

"Relax, the generators should kick in any second. The machine will pick up from where you left off," said the clerk.

She awkwardly adjusted her throat and replied, "thanks."

Suddenly, loud booming erupted from outside the building, sending tremors through the whole floor.

"What was that?" asked one of them.

Urvi felt a shiver travel up her spine, the dead silence made her skin crawl, and her stomach turn. She stood still and held her nerves, hoping for it all to just blow over, for it to be nothing more than a busted transformer.

More loud explosions rocked the building, sending the furniture and some of the people tumbling. The screams got louder and more frequent. Urvi could hear people making a run for it. Their footsteps sounded like a burst of rain had just hit the ground. Her heart began to race, beating against her rib cage. She could not handle it anymore; fear overwhelmed her.

She quickly spun around and made her way to the exit. In the pitch dark, it was nearly impossible to tell where she was going. However, she had worked there long enough to draw a rough path towards the flight of stairs. She weaved her way through the stationery's furniture, and she felt someone rush past her, knocking her over a table. She recovered fast, landing on her toes and palm, before pushing herself off the floor.

She felt the glass divider and used it as a guide to find the door. However, the second she exited it, she found herself swept up in the crowd that formed before the elevator. Cries of people filled the air as the panicked crowd struggled to find the door to the elevator. Uruvi felt herself getting squeezed in the crowd that was being pushed around.

She quickly began to feel breathless as the pressure on her chest increased. She wanted to scream, asking them to stop, but no words came out. Her arms were pinned by the people around her, making it impossible to push them off her. She felt her throat closing as her chest was getting compressed.

She felt like she was on death's door, when there was a sudden and loud thump followed by the sound of cracking wood. The crowd thinned almost immediately, and Uruvi could breathe once again. She was swept up by the moving crowd, forced to adjust to the movement of it. Just as things seemed to be going the right way, she felt something hard hit her on her forehead. The noise disappeared, replaced by a loud ringing, before being engulfed by the dead silence of darkness.

***

When Uruvi woke up once again, she found herself staring at a pair of white lights shining down upon her. As she tried to move, her body began to scream. Every muscle in her body was aching, while a splitting headache caused her vision to turn into a blur briefly.

"Ow, ow, ow…" she said out loud, as she pushed herself off the ground.

She hunched forward with her legs spread on the floor. She brushed her hair aside and gently touched the left side of her forehead. The skin was broken from the hairline down to the eyebrow. It was sour to the touch, but the bleeding had stopped.

"What in the world hit me?" she wondered out loud.

Memories of the events before her blackout flooded in. Her eyes wandered about the place, only to find it devoid of any life. It looked like they had evacuated but left her behind. "They abandoned me?" Her blood boiled just thinking about it.

She grunted out loud as she got back up on her feet with great difficulty. As she stood up, her knees were bent, her legs and arms were slightly twisted, and her feet were awkwardly placed. She struggled to pull herself back together, as every movement of her body sent a shot of pain radiating through her body.

She checked her pockets before pulling out her phone. The time was 10 A.M.

"What the fuck…" She had been knocked out for an entire night. The phone showed that there was no network. Being two floors under the ground, the network was always weak. However, this time the phone showed that there was no connection whatsoever.

She cursed under her breath and put her phone back into her pocket.

The elevator was right in front of her. To its right was the door to the flight of stairs, which was torn down from its hinges. She remembered the crowd and the feeling of claustrophobia that had consumed her for that brief moment. She shut her eyes and her whole body shuddered. "Never again," she said before lunging forward towards the door. She had a slight limp in her right leg, as if someone had stepped over it. However, it wasn't bad enough to hinder her at the moment.

Just as she reached for the door, words suddenly appeared in her vision. 'Initializing System…'

"What's this?" She tried to reach for the words floating in the air, but there was nothing there. They seemed to move as her eyes moved. 'Have I finally lost my mind?' she thought as she pressed her palm against her forehead.

A loud ding drew her attention towards the elevator. She could hear the motor running and the gears turning. The number on the floor panel began counting down from 1 until it finally reached B2, her floor.

She held her breath as the doors parted ways revealing a humanoid creature standing inside. Her body froze, her chest caved in, and the hair on her skin straightened.

It was as tall as her, covered in grey skin from head to toe, with patches of hair spread all over its body. It lacked any eyes or ears; its gaping mouth stretched from what looked like its forehead down to its throat. The teeth that surrounded the lining of its mouth appeared sharp, like those on a shark. A pink ribbon-like muscle stuck out of its mouth, whirling around as it let out a loud screech.

She let out a blood-curdling scream before turning around and making a run for it. The monster, with its skinny arms and legs, chased after her. It was slow and sluggish, limping as it tried to catch up to her.

The stampede had left the place in a mess, with furniture scattered all over the place. She picked up a stray wooden chair lying on the floor by its leg. In one swing, she threw the chair right into the monster's face, sending it crashing onto the floor, before taking a hard right. She passed through a doorway and quickly slammed the glass door shut. Her hand searched for a lock of any kind but found none. She grunted in frustration as she searched for a way to block the door.

Her eyes caught a glimpse of the creature getting back up on its feet, which made her heart leap to her throat. She reached out to the short wooden desk that sat next to her. It was light and moved easily, which helped her push it against the door. She quickly stacked two more desks just as the creature reached her from the other side.

The monster appeared to look at her before swinging its arms wildly at the door. The glass creaked and shuddered but did not shatter. She took the opportunity to run deeper into the room, through the maze of cubicles, until she reached a wooden door sitting flush against a wall.

The door led to the janitor's closet. It was small, but so was Uruvi. She squeezed in with ease and shut the door, cowering in fear.

"It's okay… It's okay… It isn't smart to find me here…" she told herself. But no matter what she said, her heart shuddered every time she heard the monster bash itself against the door.

'Initializing System…' In the chaos, she had forgotten about the words that were plastered to her vision. After a brief few seconds, the words finally vanished, and in their place, a new set of words began to appear one after another.

Welcome.

Please wait while we formally induct you into our system.
Name – Uruvi
Race – Human
Age – 29 Years
Height – 153 cms
Weight – 52 Kgs
Class – Undefined
Traits – Empathic, Stubborn

…

Uruvi watched the words with bated breath when, suddenly, a horizontal line appeared.

"Greetings, Uruvi," a voice spoke.

Uruvi's heart jumped to her throat. She covered her mouth with both her hands to keep from screaming. "Who was that?"

The line before her began to bend whenever the voice spoke. "I am the Grand Advisor. You are the lucky few to have been chosen by the system to take part in the Grand Experiment. And I am here to help you induct into the system."

Uruvi was not in the best mental state. "What the fuck is going on?"

"Oh my! It may help if you could tone down the cursing," said the voice. It sounded like an automated call trying to sell her a new credit card.

"How about you tell me what is going on? Am I dead? Is this hell?" asked Uruvi.

"Are you dead? No. Is this hell? Yes. Your world has been chosen to be a part of the Grand Experiment! As a consequence of that, the world you currently reside in has been infested with creatures of all shapes and sizes, with the sole intention of killing as many humans as possible."

Uruvi's chest turned cold. "What…?"

"Yes. The lucky few who survive the initial onslaught have been given the chance to officially induct into the system!" It tried to sell every sentence like it was a deal of a lifetime.

"Hold on. Back up! What do you mean by initial onslaught?" asked Uruvi.

"The details will be presented to you in due time. Meanwhile, your building has been marked as a Tutorial Area. All the creatures in this building are level three or less. Defeat the monsters, gain experience, and level up. Once you level up to level five, you will receive a bonus gift. Leave the tutorial level without clearing it, and you will be removed from the system. You will have an assistant to help you with your journey. We wish you all the best!"

"Wait! Wait! Before you leave, please tell me this. Are my parents alive?" Uruvi held onto her nerves, praying for some good news.

"Hmm… Father – Vikram. Mother – Savitri. Status – Alive. It appears both your parents are alive. If that is all, I will be on my way. Farewell!" With that, the line before vanished as well.

She felt like a heavy weight was removed off her chest, letting her breathe easily once again. 'Okay. One headache resolved…'
A screen popped up before her. It had a photo of a scrawny, young girl with long black hair and equally black irises. She had a lean face with a sharp chin, painted in a dark shade of brown. "Hmph! I wish my ID card had this good a photo."

Besides, it was her name and the details she first saw pop up on her screen. "This looks just like a game… an RPG? What the hell?"

In college, she crushed on a guy so hard, she learnt to play Video Games just to get a chance to talk to him. While the relationship only lasted eight months, her fondness for RPGs is something she carried to this day.

She smirked unconsciously as she clicked on the next button.

Possessions:
Weapon – none
Armor – Plain T-Shirt and Jeans (+10 Defense)
Charms - None
Pet – none

Base Stats:
HP – 500
MP – 100
Attack – 80
Defense – 90
Speed – 110
Special Attack – 50
Special Defense - 50

"Well… we got the basics covered…" She clicked on the next button and saw more stats. She tried reading a few, only to find herself overwhelmed. "Okay… okay… this is too much information at once."

The loud banging from outside continued.

She bit the tip of her thumb and wondered, 'this… this might just work…' At that moment, she did not understand why, but she felt a rush of energy and excitement. The only two people she cared about were safe, and now, her only job was to survive. It was rudimentary… No. It was primal. But that is exactly what she needed.

Her skin crawled at the thought of getting into a fight. However, her mind had already been made up. 'My only way out is to kill that thing. Either I die in this closet, or I die fighting… Come on! It is the end of the world! It would be a shame to die without bleeding a little!'

---

Chapter 2 – First Blood

The screen before her took the shape of a rectangular box, resembling a web browser. The top bar was lined with the main menu items – Base Stats, Attributes, Skills and Spells, Inventory, Map, Data Bank, and Guide. She quickly flipped through the contents of the tab to get an idea of what each contained.

She could hear the glass creek, sounding like it was ready to shatter at any minute. It was a miracle that the glass held up for so long.

'All the numbers are well and good. But how the hell do I fight?' Uruvi had some experience in self-defense. A year ago, her company, or rather their marketing head, had arranged for self-defense classes for all the women in the marketing team. As it happened, she was a part of the marketing team. Although reluctant at first, she ended up having a good time learning to defend herself. But those classes taught her only the basics and focused mainly on defense.

She tapped on the Guide tab and was greeted by a cute robot face with two horns. Beneath it was written – 'How can I help you?' There was no bar to type in a question. 'I guess I ask.'

"How do I fight?" she asked out loud.

A tiny arm appeared before the robot's face, making a tick as its eyes rolled to the top. The words beneath it changed to – 'Thinking'.

As the face returned to normal, it began to speak in a very monotonous and robotic tone. "You currently have no skills equipped, nor any available. However, you have experience in beginner-level self-defense. All contestants are also given basic combat skills by default. Use a weapon of your choice to fight your way through the enemies."

"Are you kidding me?" she whispered under her breath. "How do I acquire skills?" she asked.

"You can acquire skills by leveling up and earning skill points."

"Great… so I am left to figure this out on my own… what weapon do I pick?" she asked.

"Any object can act as a weapon. Its attack power may vary depending on what it is."

She looked up and saw a broom sitting in front of her. She quickly reached out and grabbed it. "Can this be a weapon?"

The screen switched to Inventory, and her equipped weapon now read – Broom [Blunt Weapon] (+6 Attack). Things began to click into place in her mind.

She looked around the closet, which was filled with janitor's equipment. Her eyes were drawn towards a metal pole mop. 'Steel is better than wood, right?' She dropped the broom and grabbed onto it, and the weapon slot changed to – Mop [Blunt Weapon] (+5 Attack).

'What the hell? How did the attack drop?' She shook the pole and it bent easily. 'I guess it is flimsy.'

She switched back to the broom and took a deep breath. "No way out. Must fight… Let's do this…" she told herself and pushed the door open. White light flooded the tiny space as she crawled out of it, before standing up.

She looked past the cabins and saw the monster banging its head against the glass door like a maniac. 'Man, you are really weak!'

Her eyes shifted to her screen, which she switched to guide. "Hey robot… what is that?" she asked.

"Name – Pisacha. A meat-devouring creature that grows in strength with the amount of meat consumed. It deals physical damage. It has no specific weakness."

"Meat devouring? Sheesh!" Uruvi said. 'But it looks sluggish… and weak… maybe it hasn't eaten anyone yet.'

The entire glass divider shook violently. She could see small cracks on the edges, where it met the metal frame. 'Time is short. Must work fast.' She turned her attention towards the cubicles, scouring through them for anything that could replace her broom. Most of them were filled with laptops and stationery items. She began picking them up one by one and found none of them to even register as weapons.

She let out a grunt, frustrated at the lack of choices. She looked at the broom and said, "guess it is just you and me."

Suddenly, her eyes caught a glimpse of a black jacket sitting on one of the chairs. She quickly picked it up and wore it. Her Armor changed to - Plain T-Shirt and Jeans (+10 Defense), Black Bike Jacket (+5 Defense). It wasn't much, but it was still progress. She wondered if she could just stack as many clothes as she could to stack defense.

She turned towards the door where the monster appeared to be wailing. She held the broom with both her hands, its head facing towards the ceiling. Shivers crawled up her skin, making her jitter. She took a moment to slow her breathing before taking a step towards the door.

The monster seemed to have noticed her as it returned to attacking the door, trying to tear it down, but to no avail.

A giant number '1' appeared on the monster, with a red bar beneath it.

"I guess that is the monster's level and health bar?" she said out loud. The robot did not react. "Robot?"

"Yes. Every enemy is marked by their level and health bar. Additional bars, such as a stamina bar, may appear when applicable," said the voice.

'Right. Mission seems straightforward. Get that thing down to zero.'

The desks she had stacked in front of it seemed to have done their job well. But now they stood in her way. She reached out to the first and moved it out of the way. The door jerked open, creating a small gap that the monster used to poke its hand.

A sly grin appeared on her face. She put both her hands on the remaining two desks and, mustering all her strength, she pushed the desks back against the door. The door slammed shut, slicing off the monster's hand, which fell to the floor as the monster staggered back, wailing. She saw the opening she needed.

She quickly pulled the desks out of her way before reaching out to the door and opening it. Thrusting the broom forward, she charged at the monster, letting out an angry roar. The head slammed into the belly of the monster, knocking it down onto the floor. She climbed on it and brought the broom head down onto the monster. She repeatedly smacked the monster in the head with the broom, letting out a cry with each hit. Her eyes shifted to its health bar that was slowly depleting.

'It is working! It is working!'

Suddenly, the bar glowed red, taking her attention away from the monster. The monster swung its intact arm wildly, nearly knocking the broom out of her hands. She quickly staggered back, letting the monster back on its feet.

"Fuck!" she cursed out loud. 'That thing is more of a distraction!'

The monster let out a cry before charging at her once again. It swung its arm around, trying to scratch her. Uruvi tried to block the attack with her broom, but instead found it safer to just jump back. She found herself being pushed back, past the door. 'No… can't let myself get cornered…'

She rotated the pole, bringing the bottom end of the broom up, smacking the monster's face with it. She followed it up by thrusting it forward, hitting it right in the mouth. The monster staggered back, but its teeth quickly latched onto the broom's end as its tongue began to wrap around it.

Uruvi tightened her grip and swung the pole to her left, using herself as the pivot. The creature stumbled forward before smashing into the glass divider, which finally gave up. A loud crash filled the silent floor as shards of glass rained down over them.

Neither of them let the broom go, instead playing a tug of war with it. "Come on! Let go of it, you bastard!" The monster's grip proved to be too strong as the broom refused to budge.

"Fine! Take it!" she shouted and thrust the broom forward. She put her entire body weight behind it, running the monster back until it smashed into the wall next to the elevator. The head of the monster cracked open, and a split appeared over its mouth.

The grip on the broom finally loosened, letting her pull it back. She spun the broom around, smashing its head with the broom's head. The monster fell onto the floor, wailing.

A flurry of hits rained down on it until the last portion of the health bar disappeared, and the monster finally stopped moving.

She watched it with bated breath, praying it would not move. The creature began to slowly turn into dust. Her eyes shifted to her screen, upon which her empty experience bar began to fill up. It reached about ten percent before the bar stopped moving.

Uruvi let out a loud cry. For the first time in a very long time, she felt alive. She was breathless, her muscles ached, her heart was restless, but she felt amazing. She paused, letting herself take the moment in before exhaling. "Oh yeah. This is the therapy I needed."

---

Chapter 3 – System

With the battle complete, the office space returned to dead silence. The only sound was that of the buzzing of the fluorescent lights. It was eerie and felt like she was in a horror movie. But she felt no fear. In fact, it felt peaceful and quiet. It also gave Uruvi the time to breathe and plan her next move.

She plopped onto the chair that sat next to the glass door and took in a deep breath. It felt good to relax a little, but she knew she had little time on her hands. According to what the assistant had told her, she needed to at least make it to the ground floor if she had to get out of this place, which meant more fighting. She figured it was best to use this time to understand the system before jumping into combat once again.

She peered at the screen and switched to Base Stats tab.

Name – Uruvi
Race – Human
Age – 29 Years
Height – 153 cms
Weight – 56 Kgs
Class – Undefined
Traits – Empathic, Stubborn

It had gotten all the details, even her weight and height. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the word – class. "Robot. What does Class mean?" she asked.

"Class defines the role of a contestant. It is based on their strengths and contributions during battle and in an adventure group. Examples of a Class are Warrior, Mage, and Ranger."

It was pretty much as she suspected. "How do I get a class assigned?"

"To get a class assigned, you must reach level two."

She moved on to traits, which surprised her a little. Traits seemed to have been auto assigned by the system, and theorized that it must have been based on her real-life personality. 'Empathic? Am I really that empathic…? I wonder what these do…'

She clicked on them, and the section expanded, showing a description of her two traits.

Empathic – increase base points of the attribute Empathy by 10.

Stubborn – resistant to psychic attacks by 20%. Also, get access to skill – 'Last man standing' without spending any skill points.

'Sweet! I seemed to have got access to a really good trait.'

There are more entries below.
Talents – none
Blessings – none
Curses – none
Boons – none

She switched to the next tab, attributes, and saw a very familiar diagram on the screen. Seven circles, each one having a unique etching and name inside, were lined one below the other.

They went – Crown -> Third Eye -> Throat -> Heart -> Navel -> Sacral -> Root.

'These… these are chakras!' She recognized them very well. A concept of Hindu philosophy and something everyone learns during Yoga.

She saw that each Chakra had two attributes attached to it. There was also a third attribute that it shared with an adjacent Chakra. All the Chakras and Attributes had numbers beneath them.

Her nerd brain kicked in, and she was able to make sense of how this system worked, kind of. 'I see. In order to raise my Chakra levels, I need to raise its corresponding attributes.' She wasn't sure about how the math worked, but it wasn't something she needed to worry about.

However, there is one Chakra that did not have any attribute attached to it. The Crown Chakra. "Robot. How do I level up my Crown Chakra?"

"To level up the Crown Chakra, you must level up all the other six Chakras."

'Whoa! That is a tall ask.' She thought she only needed to focus on one or two Chakras, but all of them sounded like quite the grind.

"Okay, how do I acquire Attribute points?" she asked.

"One can acquire attribute points by leveling up, completing quests, and getting achievements. They can also raise specific attributes by doing tasks connected to it. For example, earn Strength attribute points by doing strength training."

'That makes sense.' She remembered how each Chakra was connected to an element. "Robot, does raising Chakra get me access to the element associated with it?"

"Negative. To gain elemental powers, one must acquire blessings."

"Okay, how do I get those?" she asked.

"To get blessings and boons, you must complete quests giving out the special deities like the Asuras. Check the map to find more details."

Uruvi's mind began to spin. "What that f…! Asuras? Are you for real?"

"Yes. The world is now inhabited by the Asura, following their victory over the Devas (Gods)," the robot explained.

"The Devas were defeated? That is impossible! The world would have gone to shi… well, I guess it all makes sense now," Uruvi thought. A cold chill travelled up her spine.

Legend says there will come a time when evil gets out of control and the world sinks further into despair. When that day comes, the God of Perseverance shall be reborn, only to bring an end to the world and start it anew.

'Are we in an apocalypse. Or is the worst yet to come?' she wondered. She violently shook her head. 'Focus Uruvi! I need to first get out of this building alive!'

She turned her attention back to the screen. She tapped on 'Skills and Spells' next and was greeted by a blank page. "Hey, robot. What happened to all my skills and spells?"

"The Skills and Spells page is open once a class is acquired."

"Well, that is a bummer," she said.

"The Skill tree and Spells list changes depending on the class. Each Skill or Spell will also need a certain level of Chakra to be able to access it."

Uruvi's jaw dropped at the revelation. "So, I need to level up my attributes, to level up my chakras, to be able to access the skills and spells, so that I can spend my points on them. I got this right?"

"Preciously."

She slouched back onto the chair, letting out a loud grunt. "Why is this system so overwhelming?"

"Suggestion. It is advised to focus on two Chakras to set up a good foundation."

"Yeah… I understood that." She sat up straight and continued, "I just suck at picking from so many options."

"Suggestion. Based on your traits and first battle, the system advises you to focus on the Root and Navel chakras. This will give you a balance of Physical and Mental Strength."

She switched to the Attributes tab and took notes of the attributes she needed to focus on. Strength, toughness, Renewal, Valor, Dynamism, and Serenity. She also noticed that her Empathy was at 20, while the rest were at 10.

'I got a head start on Empathy. Maybe I should focus on that… but then again… what do I really want to do?' Her heart ached for more battle, hands-on combat. She was surprised by how much she enjoyed fighting, especially since she was a very lazy person.
She fell silent as she quietly debated with herself. She seemed to enjoy the fight, but what if the fighting got tough? Would she still want to walk that path?

"Decisions… decisions…" She suddenly stood up, wearing a determined look on her face. 'Let me fight my way up… at least till the ground floor. Then maybe I will make a decision, one way or the other.'

She exited the glass divider and stood before the elevator. 'No elevator in case of emergency.' Her gaze shifted to the busted door beside the elevator, which led to the stairs. She took in a deep breath and headed out, past the broken door and up the flight of stairs.

The stairs wound around the elevator shaft till they came up on another door. This door, which led into the level 1 basement, was intact. It had a small glass window, allowing Uruvi to peer through.

She saw that the entire floor was filled with more Pisacha. Much like the one she had fought, they appeared to be scrawny and sluggish. Her eyes shifted to the number above them. They were Level 1.

'Okay… I can do this. But I need to prepare…' She quickly tiptoed back to Level 2 Basement and began rummaging through the place for more items. Anything that gave her an advantage.

The floor wasn't scarce for things to find, but none were particularly useful for the situation. However, it wasn't too long until she found her first addition. It was a black bike helmet. It looked big and heavy, and when she tried it on, she nearly tipped over because of its size.

Armor - Black Bike Helmet (+5 Defense)
Total Defense - 100

She wasn't sure if it was worth the hassle, but she figured that any increase in defense was worth the addition.

'Weapon… I need a good weapon…' She put the helmet aside and continued her search, which led her to a cupboard tucked into the corner of the floor. Opening it revealed an inventory of sports equipment. Her eyes lit up at the sight of so many options. Her hand immediately reached out for the cricket bat. It was massive, almost half her height, and felt like it was half her weight. She tossed it aside and picked up one of the hockey bats. Holding it and spinning it around brought a big smile on her face. "This… feels just right!"

Weapon - Hockey bat (+15 Attack)
Total Attack - 95

She picked up a pair of gloves that added another 3 Defense, bringing her defense to 103. When she was finally equipped with all her armor and weapons, she felt clumsy, but safe.

"Right. Let's fucking do this!" She said, hyping herself up as she charged up the stairs.

 

[shreek007]

Chapter 4 – Fighting Spirit

Uruvi stood behind the door, peering through the window at the Pisacha that slouched around before the door. She carefully took note of the floor. The door led into a long, empty aisle that travelled till the other end of the floor. An endless sea of cubicles occupied the floor on each side. The floor was once again devoid of any humans, but the Pisacha roamed the paths that cut through the cubicles. They all looked weak and sluggish.

'These things don't seem to have eaten any humans either. I wonder what happened to everyone in the building?'
She tightened the grip on the bat as she eyed the massive handle used to unlock the door. Her legs trembled, and fear crept into her heart. 'Not backing down now.' She grabbed onto the handle and pulled it down. The door clicked open, and the Pishachas on the floor turned their attention towards her. She paused and watched the Pisacha before the door approach her.

Just as it reached her, she pushed the door with all her strength, smashing it into the monster's body. It let out a cry as it crashed onto the ground, failing like a fish out of water. Uruvi immediately jumped onto it and smashed its head with a bat. This time, the head buckled like it was made of playdough. She took another swing, bringing down the bat with all her might. The creature's head splat on the floor, and its limbs stopped moving. Her XP bar grew by another 10 percent.

All the Pisacha on the floor began to rush towards her. However, they were slow, which gave her enough time to deal with one at a time. Her eyes focused on the one right across the aisle. It ran towards her, swinging its arms wildly. She caught a glimpse of the sharp claws. 'They may be weak. But those things do not need much force to do damage.'
As the monster reached her, it swung its right arm at her. She dropped beneath the arc of its attack and smacked it in the belly with the J end of the bat. It let out a cry before looking down at her and twisting its body. She replied with a sharp jab with the bat to its face, causing it to stagger backwards. Hopping back up on her feet, she swung the bat at the monster's face at full force. She felt the crunch of the monster's inside shattering, before it crashed through a cubicle wall.

A sly smirk appeared on her face. 'I am getting good at this!'
She turned around to see that another one of them was already up against her face. Her heart froze for a second, and in a blind panic, she smacked it in the head with the bat. The monster staggered backwards before it steadied its footing and lunged back at her. However, it was still too slow. She used the opening to deliver another powerful blow to its belly, causing it to bend over. With its head in the open, she delivered an uppercut to its head, sending its lifeless body back onto the ground.

'Three down. Who is next!'
Three more Pisacha reached her at once, appearing to surround her. They jumped at once on her, only to bump into each other and tumble down like bowling pins. Before she could even grin at the goofy creatures, two more leapt at her with their claws at the ready. She leapt back just as they reached her, managing to avoid their claws.

As her feet touched ground again, she pulled the bat over her head and brought it down onto the head of the monster on the left. It slammed into the ground, whereupon the head cracked and turned into mush. The other monster lunged forward, head-butting her in the belly.

Blinding pain erupted from her stomach, almost causing her to puke. She crashed onto the ground, slamming her back against the floor, though her head survived the whiplash. She grit her teeth to tolerate the pain, letting out a low grunt in the process. The monster climbed over her, bringing its face against hers.

Fear gripped her heart, and her adrenaline kicked into high gear. Her body began to feel hot, as her skin felt like it was burning. The monster's tongue shot out but was blocked by the helmet's visor. "Get off me!" she cried out. Gripping the bat with both her hands, she slammed the head into the side of the monster, throwing it off her as she managed to get onto her knees.

Another Pisacha jumped on her, striking her shoulder with its claw. She let out an angry grunt, fury flooding her body. As it came down on her with a second strike, she dodged it by leaning back. She followed it up by lunging forward, jamming her injured shoulder into it. The monster was weak enough to be pushed back, slamming into the two others that stood behind it. All three crashed back onto the ground.

Blood oozed down her white shirt, staining it bright red. The pain was sharp but bearable. Her heart was beating against her chest, and her breathing was heavy, but she felt in control. She turned around to face the Pisacha that threw her to the ground, which was still trying to get back up on its feet. She swung the bat from below, smashing it into the monster's face. She followed it up by bringing the bat onto its head, smashing its head onto the ground, and killing it.

"Two strikes!" she shouted.

Turning back towards the last three, one of them lunged at her head first. "Not this time," she said, before slamming her knee into its head. The monster paused, letting out a low growl. She followed up with a sharp jab to the back of the monster's head, before another slam from the head of the bat.

The other two were struggling to get back on their feet, which caught her off guard. 'They look much weaker than the others.' She simply shrugged and proceeded to deliver two fatal blows, killing them.

With the battle complete, she stood over the bodies of the monsters, panting, as they slowly turned to dust. She took off her helmet and looked at her screen. The XP bar had reached 90 percent, and the health bar was down by fifteen percent with a drop of blood symbol on top. 'Crap! Still not enough.'
"Warning! Staunch bleed, else lose 5 HP every 2 seconds," said the helpful robot.

"Thanks, Robot…" she said.

"New achievement! Deathblow. Defeat a full health enemy with one single hit," said the robot.

She saw her XP grow once again, filling the empty space. A loud ding echoed in her ears as the level changed from 1 to 2.

"New Level attained. 10 Attribute points, 2 skill points, 2 spell points gained," said the robot.

Suddenly, the pain vanished, and her health was restored. She looked at her injured shoulder to find a lack of blood, just a torn shirt and jacket. 'Whoa! I am healed?' She felt refreshed once again. The feeling of euphoria slowly began to die down. As the adrenaline receded, she was left with a feeling of doubt and uncertainty.

"Hey, robot. How strong were these creatures compared to what is to come?" she asked.

"Analyzing… the Pisacha defeated by you are comparable to training dummies in the Video Games you have played."

Her blood turned cold, and sweat poured down her forehead. "Training dummies? Are you serious?"

"Affirmative. There are no monsters on the ground floor. Floor one has enemies of Level 2. Suggestion: increase attack and acquire new skills and spells."

She scratched her chin as she slipped into deep thought. 'That does make sense. My stats are still at base. I should probably focus on building my character first.' She looked towards the door next to the elevator. 'It did say the ground floor was empty… so…'
She rushed through the door and up the flight of stairs, reaching the ground floor. As she pushed through the door, she stepped into a sunlit open space. Fresh air filled her lungs, and rays of sunlight kissed her cheeks. She felt alive once again.

The ground floor was nothing more than a glorified reception center, flanked by an office space on one side and the entrance to cafeteria on the other. At the center of the floor was a large circular table where receptionists sat. Beyond them lay a large glass-paneled front section with an eight-foot-tall double door cut at its center.

She walked past the reception table, glancing at the empty floor. There was not a soul in sight. "Hey, robot. Is there any human on this floor?" she asked.

"Negative."

"Are there any humans in this building?"

"Affirmative. Human presence found in third, fourth, and fifth floors."

She paused and asked, "are they also contestant?"

"Negative. No other contestant in this building."

Her eyes gazed at the wonderful outside. A beautiful green garden sat just outside the door. It was built to block the busy road outside the building. She walked up to the door and held onto the handle when suddenly there was a loud ding.

"Warning! Leaving the building before reaching Level 5 will force you to forfeit the system. You will lose all your powers," warned the robot.

"What are the consequences of leaving the system? Apart from losing my powers?" she asked.

"Consequences – unknown. System has been instructed to warn contestants not to leave the system if they wish to save the world."

'Save the world…?' She pondered on the word 'Contestant'. 'There is a reason why we are called the Contestants.' She looked at the blue sky, which was now tainted by whisps of black smoke. 'With everything gone to shit, what normal life is there outside, anyways?'
She exhaled, letting go of the handle. "Robot. I will level up to 5 if I clear the building, right?"

"Affirmative. This building has enough enemies to reach the XP required."

"Wonderful," she whispered under her breath as she wiped the sweat off her nose.

---

Chapter 5 – Rules of Battle

The complete lack of humans made the place quite peaceful. The eerie silence of the basement floors was replaced by the ambient sounds of nature from the garden and the world outside. Uruvi sat on the chair behind the reception desk, laying back lazily as she planned her build. She remembered the explosions from the previous day, powerful enough to rock the whole building, but now it was nothing but peace and quiet. The chaos appeared to have died down for the moment.

She shifted her focus back to the screen before her. She had some big decisions to make, as the choices she made now would be permanent. Or were they?

"Hey robot, do I have the option to reset my class or any points allocation I make?" she asked.

"Negative. The class, once chosen, cannot be reset. So, do the points."

"I guess the points make sense. By the end, I need to level up all my Chakras. Okay, robot, I think I have made my decision. But can you list the classes once again?"

"Affirmative. The options available to you are – Warrior, Ranger, Magus, Sage, and Rogue."

Warrior (Yodha) – A close-range/Melee combatant who thrives on physical strength.
Ranger (Dhanvi) – A ranged combatant who relishes calmness and precision.
Magus (Mantrik) – A magic user who focuses more on using Spells than Skills.
Sage (Rishi) – A magic user who balances the mind and spirit to cast devastating spells.
Rogue (Kapati) – A deceiver who uses power in illusions and trickery.
(*The names in the brackets are the original Sanskrit translations.)

She went over them several times to make sure she understood what each class does. "That is a small pool to choose from," she said.

"Affirmative. These are the primary Classes available to you based on your past experiences and personality. Gain more talents, blessings, and boons to pick a secondary Class."

"When do I get to do that?" she asked.

"At Level 45."

"That is quite a while away…" But she ultimately concluded it was a good thing. Too many choices can spoil the mind. "Very well. I am going to pick the Warrior Class."

"Affirmative. The Warrior Class is a very good choice. Shall I assign this class to you?" asked the Robot.

She shut her eyes and took in a deep breath. "Yes!"

"Completed. You have been assigned the Warrior Class. Bonus obtained – Base HP increased by 50 points. Base Attack increased by 10 points. Strength increased by 2 points. Toughness increased by 2 points. New Skill – Charge, acquired. New Spell – Domino, acquired. Congratulations on obtaining a class."

"Whoa, that is a whole lot of new stuff!" she said, bouncing in her chair with excitement.

She clicked on the Attributes and saw the two Attributes – Strength and Toughness, raised by 2. She also noticed the 10 unused attribute points mentioned at the top. 'I will get back to you.' She tapped on 'Skills and Spells' next and was greeted by a web of tiny icons. The sheer number of them was overwhelming. "So many of them!" she said out loud as she scrolled through them. The page was divided into two. Skills on the top and Spells at the bottom.
The skills section had three sub-sections: Body, Mind, and Spirit. In each, there was a web of icons, neatly arranged, and each web formed a unique shape. The first icon in each was drawn in white line, while the rest were greyed out. Each skill icon had dots beneath it, along with the icon of a chakra and a number attached to it. The layout of spells was similar, except that instead of a web, it was a simple layout of tiles. Here as well, each icon had dots, the symbols of chakras, and a number associated with the chakra.

At the top of the page, she could see that she had two Skill points and two Spell points.

"That is a lot of Skills… and Spells… Where do I even begin?"

"The available Skills and Spells are highlighted in white, the rest are grey. Activated ones have a blue glow to them. To unlock new Skills, you must unlock the previous Skill and meet the Chakra requirements. Spells do not have a sequence and can be unlocked anytime."

"I see…" She noticed two Skills in the Body chart, Charge and Last Man Standing, were already unlocked. She had the option to add another point to them or to unlock the next item in Body – Reinforce. She also could have picked the first Skill from Mind – Calm Mind, or Spirit – Empower. After a good few seconds of thinking, she picked Reinforce and Calm Mind.

Picking a Spell proved to be a far more difficult choice. There were twenty-seven choices, of which one had been activated. 'Spoilt for choice once again…' "Hey robot. You seem to be wise. What would be two good spells to pick?" she asked.

"Affirmative. The best Spells should focus on your chakras and combat style. Your best choice would be Rejuvenate and Taunt. One heals you in dire need, while the other can reduce your enemy's defense."

She read the fine print for both, and Taunt worried her. "Yeah, right. But increases its attack!"

"In battle, there is always a give and take. An enraged opponent cannot think straight, leading to exposed weakness."

She grunted lowly and said, "fine. I will heed your words this time." She tapped on them, and they began to glow white. She switched over to the Attributes page. 'The robot said my best Chakras would be Root and Navel. Now then… which Attributes do I invest in?'
After much deliberation, she decided to give Strength and Toughness 1 point each and split rest 8 points evenly between Valor, Dynamism, Renewal, and Serenity. All the attributes seemed to match the Skills and Spells she had picked. 'Now that I think about it… I should have done this in reverse.'
"Right then. I am done with my choice," she said.

"Affirmative. Shall I save these changes?"

"Affirmative, my trusted robot."

The icons and numbers froze while she was submerged in bright white light. She felt a surge of new energy, and her body felt strange, but in a good way. She looked down at her hands but could not notice any changes.

"I feel… Different…" she said.

"Affirmative. Your body has undergone metamorphosis thanks to the attributes you have picked."

There was a bright smile on her face, which curled into a smirk. "Now then, let's go test this new body out!"

She hopped off the chair and swiped the helmet off the table. She felt a little giddy from all the excitement as she rushed up the flight of stairs, reaching the first floor in a jiffy. The speed was unprecedented. She was always known as the quick one, but wasn't really that quick. Boys could outrun all the girls, and some of them would run backwards just to tease them. But this was different; this was pure speed. She felt like she could run a marathon at the speed of a cheetah.

She came to a stop before the door and peered through the window. More office floor space with more cubicles. Only this time, the white, fluorescent light was replaced by the natural sunlight. Her focus shifted to the monsters on the floor, more Pisacha, only these looked bulkier. Their scrawny limbs were now close to the size of a young adult man. The torso was larger; some looked like they had a belly, while others appeared fitter. The heads were larger, so were their mouths. Sharp protrusions covered the circumference of the mouth, which now housed two more tongue-like limbs.

"Nasty creatures," she whispered. They had the number 2 on their heads and counted a total of six monsters. 'Keep your head calm and aim for their head instead.'
She pulled the lever down and unlocked the door. 'Just like last time…' She pushed the door open and rushed in, sprinting towards the first Pisacha her eyes fell on. A golden hue appeared around her as she reached the monster, which seemed to have just noticed her presence. However, before it could even turn to face her, the monster's head was smashed through by the hockey bat, sending pieces of it flying about as it collapsed onto the floor.

Skill – Charge. Increase speed and attack temporarily, reaching a maximum of 20 percent. This increase is reset with the first hit. Cooldown – 10 seconds.

'One shot! Come on!'
Her excitement came to an abrupt stop when a flash from outside the building caught her eye. She walked up to the edge of the building and peered out through the glass pane at the carnage that laid on the street before her building.

Vehicles of all shapes and sizes littered the street, toppled, broken, and some were even burning. It looked like a riot had passed through the place. There was no sign of humans there either, just shadowy creatures, roaming about looking for their next prey. The buildings across were in no better condition. Busted doors, broken windows, fire, and smoke covered several others.

She could sense the monsters converging upon her. She quietly exhaled before turning around to face the Pisacha.

---

Chapter 6 – Upwards

Uruvi spun around and saw three of the remaining five Pisacha sprinting towards her. They were no longer flailing like an inflated balloon, instead looking and acting like more humans. She tightened the grip on the bat, waiting for the two monsters to reach her.

She pulled the bat behind her back and uttered, "Domino." She slammed the head into the chest of the first Pisacha, filling the air with a loud screech. Almost immediately, the chest of Pisacha behind it also collapsed as it bent forward in response. The hit propagated to the third one as well, but the effect on it seemed to have waned.

Domino – A portion of the attack on an enemy can be transferred to a nearby enemy. Damage limit: 40 percent. MP cost: 10. Cooldown: 5 seconds.

She couldn't stop herself from grinning. Before the monsters could recover, she delivered yet another blow, this time right to the face. The Pisacha staggered back, falling onto its fellow mates, who immediately propped it back up.

"Tch!" She said, looking at the health bar of the monsters. The first one was at sixty percent, while the other two were at a healthy green. 'I guess that is the end of easy thrashing.'

The Pisacha before her swung its right arm at her, slamming the back of its hand into her. The blow was powerful enough send her crashing into the cubicle wall. Dull pain radiated from her back, making her grit her teeth. 'Thank god it used the back of its hand. Otherwise, I would have had a wide-open wound on my chest.'

The three monsters bumped into each other, staggering as they tried to regain balance. 'They may be an upgrade, but they still seem uncoordinated.' She hunched down and slipped under the gaze of the Pisacha, landing before the elevator. Hopping back onto her feet, she delivered another hit to the monster at the back. "Domino!"

The monsters staggered forward as their health bars were drained. The Pisacha countered by whipping its hand at her, but she leapt back and dodged it with ease. She delivered another hit to the monster's head, staggering it momentarily.

Her eyes shifted to the Pisacha stumbling about in the maze of cubicles. 'Wait… I can use the landscape to my advantage.'

She saw that the Pisacha in front of her was still preparing to attack. Seeing it as a window of opportunity, she took a sharp left turn and sprinted through the narrow paths between the cubicles. She noticed that her Charge skill had reset, and the monster seemed to have noticed her. She lunged at it, swinging her bat, aimed right at its head. The Pisacha swung its arm, its razor-sharp claws coming close to her throat. A golden hue appeared around her as the bat smashed into its head, crushing it. Its claw was carried forward by the momentum and struck her near the jaw and just above her shoulder blade.

She let out a loud cry as the sharp pain radiated from her shoulder blade. She placed her other hand on the wound, but once the initial pain subsided, she noticed that the wound was only surface-level. She ran her fingers along the lower half of her helmet and saw that a good chunk of it was exposed. 'Whoa! Would that have killed me?' Her health had dropped by a mere 5 percent.

She breathed easy as she turned to face the other monsters. One of them was rushing towards her through the narrow lane. Her eyes caught a glimpse of an office chair, sitting at arm's length away from her. She pulled it into the lane and pushed it into the path of Pisacha, who was stopped dead in its tracks. She rushed forward and pushed on the chair with her right leg, holding the monster back. It swung its arms wildly but was unable to reach her.
Just as it was about to bend down, she struck it in the head with an uppercut. It staggered backwards, letting her push the chair forward a little more. She put her foot down and leaned in, striking it once again. Its health bar fell to red.
She jabbed the monster's head, which seemed to irritate it. It began to swing its arms wildly, but she used the chair to maintain distance. "Calm down!" She kicked the chair with all her strength, knocking the monster backwards. With one mighty swing to the monster's face, she set the health bar to zero. The monster fell to the floor, turning to dust, revealing the other Pisacha heading towards her.

'Let's finish this level.'

She grabbed onto the armrests and pushed the chair towards the monsters. Just as she reached them, she stopped and kicked the chair towards them. The Pisacha stopped, almost falling over the chair. She sprinted towards them before using the seat of the chair as leverage to gain height over them. A golden hue appeared around her as she shouted, "Domino!" She swung the bat downwards, like the swing of a golf club, striking the first Pisacha in the head. The hit propagated forward, striking all three monsters. The first monster's head exploded, and so did the second one. But the third one fell back, its health bar in the red.

'It's not dead yet!'

She stepped on the cubicle's wall and leapt onto the Pisacha, bringing her bat down onto its head, crushing it. Its health dropped to zero as it laid on the ground lifeless before it began to turn to dust.

She felt breathless, but her body felt alive and hungry for more. Never before in her life had she felt this way. It was addictive. 'So, this is how gym rats feel… I like it.'

She looked at her screen and saw her XP grow; it was short of next level by about fifteen percent. "Onwards…"

***

She climbed up another flight of stairs, reaching Floor 2. She peered through the window to see two Pisacha roaming about. These looked even more human-like. They had faces like humans, but no eyes, nose, or ears, just large humanlike jaws with massive and sharp teeth. She took another look and saw no more monsters.

'Only two?' she wondered.

"Warning! Facing a new enemy, Manv-Pisacha. After consuming enough flesh, Pisacha evolve into more humanlike creatures. They are capable of greater strength and intelligence," said the Robot.

'Whoa! Need to be careful with these in that case.'

She pulled the lever down, and a click echoed through the floor, drawing the attention of the monsters. They looked at her and let out a loud roar before pouncing onto the door, slamming back at her. The window glass shattered, sending shards of glass at her, which bounced off her helmet and fell down onto the floor. The Pisacha gripped the door by the edge of the window and tried to rip the door open, only for it to swing open.

Uruvi used the opportunity deliver an uppercut, powered by the Charge skill. "Domino!" she shouted, and the hit propagated to the other Pisacha. The monsters stumbled backwards.

She eyed their health bars, both of which shrank by about twenty percent. She let out a battle cry and charged at them, delivering a flurry of swings. The monsters began to block her attack by crossing their arms. When one monster became defensive, the other would pounce at her. However, they were still slow, allowing her to switch up and strike the aggressor.

She could feel their bodies toughen up when she struck them. The previous ones felt squishy, like a punching bag. But striking these felt like she was hitting a human body, with flesh and bones. Nevertheless, as long as she was doing damage, she was good. The monster's swings were no longer wild and random; they were precise and timed well. However, she found them to be much easier to anticipate and dodge.

She began to understand the rhythm of the fight. Her skill and spell had the perfect intervals for an ideal rotation. Hit, hit, dodge, hit, cast spell, hit, dodge. Every ten seconds, she would hit them with a charged attack, getting to delete a massive chunk of their health.

"Domino!" she shouted as she smashed a charged hit into the Pisacha's belly, sending a chain reaction into the other one. The monsters froze before falling onto the floor with a dull whimper.

"Fuck… yeah!" she cried out, seeing them turn to dust. Her XP bar filled up.

A loud ding was followed by the announcement, "Progressing to Level 3. 5 Attribute points, 1 Skill Point, 1 Spell Point gained."

She felt like her battle instincts were getting better, and she knew the reason for their speedy progression. Skill – Reinforce. (Passive skill) Every successful battle reinforces the rhythm of battle into the body.

She did not understand it fully, but had an idea of how it worked. During her short time training, her master talked about how the body learns from experience and will adapt subconsciously. She expected this to work in a similar fashion, and it appeared that she was right.

'More points to assign!' She opened the Attribute tab and began to think about which ones to assign. After a good amount of thinking, she decided to choose Strength, Toughness, Renewal, Valor, and Dynamism. She figured it was best to hone in her existing skills before diversifying.

She switched to the Skills tab and immediately tapped on the Charge skill, only to be greeted by a soft, blaring sound. "What? Why?"

"Next level of Charge unlocks at Level 15," said the helpful robot.

She cursed under her breath. She really wanted it as it not only provided a 30 percent boost, but it also gave her 2 charges. "I guess it makes sense. Too powerful for a low level." Her eyes shifted to the Spirit tree. "Should I unlock it?" After much deliberation, she decided not to. Instead, unlocking the third skill in the Body tree – Adrenaline rush. It was a powerful, but dangerous skill. It, however, fit her playstyle.

Skill – Adrenaline Rush. Increase attack and speed by 15 percent for twenty seconds, but lose 10 percent of health.

When it came to Spells, she found herself in a dilemma once again. "Let's just upgrade Rejuvenate." It was a wise choice.

It was onto the next floor.