The next day, a soft knock echoed on Aahan's door. He opened it but found no one in the hallway. Puzzled, he glanced around, only to spot a parcel placed neatly beside his door.
"What's this?" he mumbled to himself. His curiosity piqued, and he bent down to examine it.
Inside the package, he discovered a bag filled with clothes. An ID card bearing his name and photograph caught his attention. A handful of information about him was mentioned, along with a few things that he didn't know what they meant.
Most intriguing of all was a note securely attached to the bag. Aahan carefully set the backpack on the floor and read the letter.
[Aahan, I formally welcome you to our Ashram¹, where you'll learn more about Asuras, humanity and the war we have been fighting for thousands of years.
Here, you'll be trained to take on challenges that no ordinary human can and excel as a Rathi. While there are details I can't summarise in a letter, just know that you aren't alone and never will be. We are a family, and now you will be a part of it.
Hopefully, you'll get along with your peers. Get dressed in your uniform; this year's orientation will start soon. The directions to the auditorium have been engraved within your ID. Just click on your photograph, and it'll show you the way.
Gurudev.]
"And here I thought I would never have to step foot inside a school ever again..." Aahan mumbled as he carried the backpack inside the room.
It didn't take long for Aahan to find the mentioned uniform. For an ashram, the uniform provided to him was pretty modern. A white formal shirt and black pants combo with a black collar and a hint of orange thrown here and there.
Aahan was a bit worried about the size of the clothes, but to his surprise, they expanded to fit his physique when he tried them on. Aahan had never seen anything like it before and was intrigued by the technology the so-called Ashram had.
Next came his ID card. As Gurudev suggested in the letter, Aahan pressed his photograph on the ID, and a blue luminescent light blasted from the card, blinding him.
"Did you just assume my gender?" Aahan couldn't help but blurt it out as more text appeared from his ID in the form of holographic texts.
"Is there anything about me that's not unknown...?" Aahan mumbled while scratching his cheek.
He had no idea what was happening, but it wasn't like he had any choice other than to let the card do what it was.
"Finally..." Aahan mumbled and headed outside.
As Aahan headed towards the auditorium, he could again feel everyone's eyes on him. Although Gurudev had already warned him about it yesterday, it still did not make him feel much better as people kept staring at him like he was an alien there.
'Eh, whatever. Let's just pretend they are jealous of me-' the thought made Aahan chuckle. 'Who am I kidding?'
As Aahan finally found the auditorium, his eyes immediately went to the hundreds of people dressed in similar uniforms as his. However, a reasonably high number of people were dressed in varying uniforms.
Most of them were even carrying weapons that ranged from Gauntlets to crossbows. However, all of the weapons were from the olden times. No one was carrying a gun or some other modern weapon.
The weapons struck him as odd, but Aahan remembered their true purpose was dealing with Asuras, so it made sense that the student had their own weapons.
'Gee, thanks! I was thinking I had to turn back around now.' Aahan thought as he joined the crowd ahead.
The gates to the auditorium were shut close, but no one seemed bothered by it as they calmly waited for the clock to strike ten o'clock.
In the meantime, Aahan decided to familiarise himself with the surroundings. After all, he had walked to the surface after a long time.
The area surrounding the massive auditorium looked like a park with trees, birds and even small animals like rabbits going about their day. Surprisingly, they did not feel uncomfortable or intimidated by the humans around them.
While Aahan was lost in the beauty of his surroundings, the doors were flung open, and the students slowly found their way inside. The auditorium was even bigger inside and looked like a football stadium... without the grass and the stands.
It was a barren land, starkly contrasting what Aahan saw outside. Apart from a stage and a massive screen behind the stage, there was nothing else to be seen there.
It was then a man who appeared to be in his mid-fifties stepped on the stage. The screen flickered as the man's face appeared on the screen.
"It really is him!" the guy standing next to Aahan exclaimed, awestruck by the man.
Aahan quickly noticed that the guy beside him wasn't the only one reacting that way. Almost everyone looked up to the man as if he were a movie star.
'Am I the only one who doesn't know him?'
As he said that, he looked at the man's face on the screen. Judging from the man's physique and scarred face, it was clear that the person was or had been a Rathi in his past. Maybe because of that, the rest knew about the man when Aahan didn't.
"Any other instructors would welcome all the aspiring Rathis gathered here," the man declared sternly, his face devoid of emotion. "However, I do not entertain those who pose as lions when they are but rats.
The man continued, "If you seek my welcome, demonstrate your merit. Prove that you are worthy of my time, and then... perhaps I'll treat you like the dust beneath my feet."
'...what is this guy on about?'
Then Aahan heard the doors closing behind them while new doors appeared before each individual. Aahan's eyes were wide open when he noticed the marking on the doors... they were fissures, carrying a hint of the smell Aahan had grown familiar with.
"Enter the fissures and bring me the head of the demon within," the man roared over the whispering noises. "Do that... and you'll qualify for the next round. Giving up is not an option because I expect my Rathis to kill the evil or die trying. Now, go!"
***
Chapter Glossary:
1. Ashram: A place of religious and spiritual learning. However, in the past, it was also known as a place to gain knowledge and skills regarding various aspects of life, including Politics, Philosophy, Warfare and more.
In the novel, an Ashram is a place where Rathis are trained in both warfare and knowledge about dealing with Asuras/demons.