Aarav stood in his room, the familiar scent of home a strange comfort after the alien plain. He squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them. Nope, still here. His gaming PC, his dusty books, the slightly-too-soft bed. It was real.
He took a deep breath. For a second, he almost felt... peace.
"Hey, Sharma! You gonna just stand there or are you going to help me get off this ledge?" Sarah's voice, muffled through the window, shattered his brief moment of zen.
Aarav groaned. So much for peace. He walked to the window. Sarah was still perched awkwardly on his window ledge, a frown on her pretty face.
"Don't you have, like, a front door?" Aarav asked, genuinely confused.
"It's faster this way," Sarah said, giving a small jump and landing lightly inside his room. She dusted her practical clothes. "Besides, I needed to confirm the Panther Link wasn't some kind of cosmic prank. It works." She glanced at her wrist, where a tiny, glowing arrow on her personal UI pointed towards Aarav. "And your house is just... right there. Literally."
"Thrilling," Aarav muttered, rubbing his temples. "So, you're just going to randomly appear in my room now?"
Sarah shrugged. "It's a two-way street, Sharma. You could appear in mine. Don't worry, I won't. Unless it's an emergency. Or I need your 'Adaptation' for something." She walked towards his bookshelf, scanning the titles. "You read a lot of fantasy, huh? Makes sense. Big imagination for all that... adapting."
Aarav narrowed his eyes. She was certainly comfortable.
Just then, the familiar System voice boomed, not in their minds this time, but out loud, echoing through the air, vibrating through the walls of his very house. His mother probably heard it downstairs.
[SYSTEM ANNOUNCEMENT: BREAK PERIOD. PLAYER GROWTH INITIATED.]
[NEW OBJECTIVE: PLAYER POWER DEVELOPMENT.]
[NEW MECHANISM: DUNGEONS.]
Aarav and Sarah exchanged glances. This wasn't going to be a quiet break.
[DUNGEONS ARE APPEARING ACROSS PLANET EARTH.]
[ENTER DUNGEONS TO EARN EXPERIENCE, NEW SKILLS, AND LOOT.]
[DUNGEONS HAVE 10 RANKS OF DIFFICULTY: RANK 1 (EASY) TO RANK 10 (EXTREME).]
[WARNING: DUNGEONS ARE DANGEROUS. DEATH WITHIN A DUNGEON IS PERMANENT TERMINATION.]
"Permanent termination?!" Aarav exclaimed. "What happened to just being kicked out of the game?"
Sarah nodded, her previous easygoing attitude gone. "This is serious. No second chances inside."
[PLAYER UI UPDATE: NEW TAB 'DUNGEON MAP' ADDED]
Aarav mentally pulled up his UI. Sure enough, a new tab glowed. He clicked it.
[DUNGEON MAP (EARTH)]
A detailed map of Earth appeared, dotted with glowing red circles. One was very close.
[DUNGEON: THE SUNDERED RUINS (RANK 1)]
[LOCATION: NAGPUR, MAHARASHTRA, INDIA (APPROX. 5 KM WEST)]
"Oh, perfect," Aarav mumbled. "Right down the road."
Sarah leaned over his shoulder, looking at the map. "Huh. My closest one was a 'Wasteland Anomaly' in Arizona. Rank 1. But since we're linked, I got pulled here too." She looked at him. "Looks like your 'Sundered Ruins' is our first Panther mission."
Aarav groaned. "Already? I just got home."
"Tough luck, Sharma," Sarah said, a small smirk playing on her lips, but her eyes were sharp. "This is our break period, remember? It's for getting stronger. And as your designated adult, I say we start with that Rank 1 dungeon. We need the XP."
"And you just happen to be in my bedroom already?" Aarav pointed out, a hint of sarcasm.
Sarah crossed her arms. "Convenient, isn't it? Now, let's get you some actual combat experience. You're good at adapting, but you're too reliant on seeing others. We need to find you some skills that don't need a live demonstration."
Aarav stared at her. His perfect, lazy break was officially ruined.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION: ATTENTION PLAYERS!]
[YOU WILL BE RETURNED TO THE SPECIAL PLANET IN 10 EARTH DAYS.]
[USE THIS BREAK PERIOD WISELY. CLEAR DUNGEONS AND BECOME STRONGER.]
[GOOD LUCK, PLAYERS.]
The System's voice faded, leaving only the distant sounds of Earth, now mixed with the low hum of the new Dungeons. Aarav and Sarah looked at each other, the unspoken challenge clear in their eyes.