The world changed at the stroke of midnight.
On January 1st, 2093, 12:00 AM, AI-driven clocks across India registered a massive, system-wide anomaly, not in code, but in reality. From the frigid, eternal snows of the Himalayas to the submerged ruins of Dwarka, a silent, blinding wave of energy erupted. It wasn't electric or magnetic; it was metaphysical.
This was The Descent.
The energy, later christened Divya Shakti (Divine Power), pervaded the air, slipping past the sensors of the thought-invoked AI assistants, bypassing the firewalls of the hyper-advanced society. Humans present at ground zero absorbed it involuntarily. In a luxury penthouse over Mumbai, a socialite felt a sudden, terrifying pressure in her chest before a subtle warmth, granting her a brief, unstable glimpse into the minds of others—a compatibility of 12%. In Delhi, a street vendor near the Red Fort felt a jolt that nearly killed him, but instead, gave him the power to spontaneously ignite small flames—35% compatibility. Those who tried to absorb too much, too fast, simply vanished in a puff of smoke.
For weeks, the global AI and science community struggled to categorize the event. The most ancient minds in Indian science, however, began piecing together fragmented myths and sacred texts.
"It is... a restart," whispered Dr. Vimala Rao, holding a tattered, ancient palm-leaf manuscript. "The texts speak of this energy. It was the foundation of the Krita Yuga, the source of the weapons wielded by Rama and the power of the Kurukshetra war. The age of myth is returning."
Meanwhile, in a sprawling, highly-guarded estate in Delhi, Mr. Arjun Verma—in reality, the Asura descendant Virochana—felt a terror he hadn't known in centuries. His infiltration had been smooth, the human world a distraction. But this power... it felt like the breath of the Gods themselves. Did they find me? His fear curdled into predatory interest when he realized the energy was integrating, not attacking. If humans evolve, I must ensure they evolve under my boot.
As the world struggled to adapt, publishing basic Cultivation Methods derived from ancient yoga and meditation techniques, the maximum compatibility for new life began to climb, signaling the deep, irreversible integration of the Divya Shakti into the Earth itself.