1 Ch1: Software successfully installed

The sky was as dark as midnight, echoing with the rumbles of thunderstorms. Down a narrow street, a person stood, entirely drenched in blood, gripping a knife.

The blade, originally a deep shade of silver, now appeared stained in crimson, courtesy of the blood that coated it.

In the backside of that person, numerous officers lay unconscious, their bodies bearing fatal wounds, rendered unconscious by the violence that had unfolded.

Among them, one officer was kneeling, bearing wounds, though not as severe as his fallen comrades.

And before that person, many bodies were scattered, each displaying a distinctive sliced wound, seemingly inflicted by the very knife clutched in the hand of that person.

Abruptly, a torrential rain poured down upon them. As the rainfall intensified, the blood covering the person's body began to mix with the cascading water.

With each drop, the rain washed away the crimson stains, revealing an unexpected sight—there wasn't a single wound on the person's body. The blood adorning him was not his own but belonged to those he had slain with the knife firmly gripped in his hand.

As the heavy rain poured down, mixing with the blood, tears rolled down from hiseyes. To understand why he found himself in this chaotic situation, we need to rewind three years back and uncover the events that led to this moment.

3 years before...

Arjun came out of the interview feeling really down as he was rejected. His head was low, and you could see he was upset. He walked out of the building and just kept walking along the sidewalk.

It was like he didn't notice anything around him; he just stared at the ground. All he could see were his own feet, and he was trying really hard not to cry.

The disappointment was written all over his face as he moved along, carrying the weight of the rejection.

His eyes were glued to the ground, as if he could hide there. He didn't want anyone to see the tears he was trying hard to hold back.

Every step he took felt heavy with all the feelings he couldn't put into words. The path under his feet became a sort of silent story of hopes that broke.

Arjun finished his commerce studies with decent grades. He had a dream: to do an MBA at his dream college, IIM Ahmedabad, which is a really special and prestigious college in India.

Arjun put in a lot of effort to make his dream come true, working really, really hard for eight hours every day. He gave up all the comforts and other things in his life, just to study. But, sadly, it didn't work out.

He tried for five whole years, and even though he aimed for IIM Ahmedabad at first, taking only the CAT exam, he didn't see any success. So, he decided to try other exams, hoping for different results, but it ended up being the same story.

Arjun managed to pass some exams other than CAT, but the tough part was the interviews. This was his fifth interview, and unfortunately, he didn't make it again. Even though his parents were there for him, but the constant failures were really getting to him.

He had the admit card for the upcoming CAT exam, just a few months away, but this latest rejection made him doubt himself and feel less confident about it.

Lost in his thoughts, Arjun continued walking until he reached a hill. Unmindful, he kept going, eventually finding himself in a beautiful valley.

The place was like a green paradise, with lush plants and a refreshing absence of pollution. The cloudy weather added a touch of romance to the surroundings, creating a picturesque scene. But Arjun, caught up in his thoughts, couldn't appreciate the beauty around him.

Feeling utterly tired, Arjun decided to take a break. He sat down on the grassy slope of the valley. In a moment of frustration, he tossed his files to the side and laid back on the ground.

Placing his hands on his head in a gesture of deep sadness, gazing up at the sky, lost in his own sadness, as if the sky held answers to the questions that burdened his mind.

As he gazed at the sky, Arjun observed the clouds slowly engulfing the sun's radiant beams, much like his tears were clouding his vision, creating a blurry view of the surroundings.

The clouds thickened, and soon, gentle rain began to fall. He lie there, getting soaked in the downpour, and surprisingly, the raindrops seemed to join forces with his tears, as if nature itself conspired to wash away his sorrows.

As tears merged with the raindrops streaming down his face, Arjun let out a desperate cry, "Why? Why? Why does it keep happening? No matter how hard I work, why can't I find success? How much do I study? Yet, why do I struggle to remember anything during exams?" His voice echoed with frustration and disappointment, a profound sense of brokenness evident in his words.

The weight of his failures bore heavily on him, leaving him shattered inside, especially the inability to recall what he had diligently studied.

Noticing his phone ringing, Arjun saw his mom's incoming call but chose not to answer. Instead, he stared at his phone, revealing a wallpaper featuring Einstein.

With a contemplative tone, he mused, "Einstein, you once said not to worry about remembering everything. Just study when you need it. But why doesn't that work in real life? Why does it seem like only remembering stuff from books is important in the real world? Why is it like that? Why?"

The questions lingered in the air, a reflection of Arjun's inner turmoil and quest for understanding.

Amidst his tears, Arjun stretched out his arms and continued gazing at the sky, allowing the raindrops to mingle with his teardrops.

Suddenly, thunder rumbled, producing frighteningly loud sounds, yet it seemed to have no impact on him.

Amid his contemplation, Arjun raised his hand, picked up his phone, and opened the AI app he often used to solve doubts. Looking at the app, he murmured, "Maybe, just maybe, if I had knowledge like you, AI. If my memory was as powerful as yours, if I could solve problems like you, if I could answer any question like you—only if."

He let out a frustrated sigh, shouting out as he held his phone. In an unexpected way, the phone slipped from his grip, landing with a thud on his head.

He made no attempt to pick up his fallen phone, leaving it where it landed. Lost in his tears, he couldn't hold back the overwhelming emotions.

Suddenly, a thunderous sound echoed, and the force of the thunder struck him, causing him to lose consciousness.

As Arjun drifted into unconsciousness, the last thing echoing in his mind was the phrase, "Software is installing..."

As Arjun lay there, unconscious and vulnerable, the rain ceased, gradually withdrawing like a silent witness to the tumultuous event.

In the aftermath of the thunder, his once-reliable phone lay broken, a casualty of the sudden strike.

Arjun rested in the midst of his scattered documents, forming a scene of disarray, with his broken phone on one side and the scattered documents on the other.

The fading echoes of the thunder seemed to resonate with the emotional turbulence within Arjun. The raindrops, now just a memory, left behind a stillness that mirrored the introspective pause in his journey.

Unconscious amidst the remnants of his aspirations, the contrast between the broken phone and the scattered documents painted a vivid picture of his shattered dreams and the emotional storm that had overtaken him.

Software Successfully Installed...

#####

Hello folks, as an author I always wanted to try new things, but it's tough to succeed sometimes. I'm working hard to learn more, and this book is one result of that effort. I am saying in advance that I may be not able to upload chapters regularly, but I'll try to upload 3-5 chapters each week. 

It's possible that very few of you have had the chance to read the earlier draft of my novel titled 'My Life with AI'. In that version, I aimed to establish a typical storyline, but I found myself unable to progress beyond the first few chapters.

However, after several months of intense brainstorming, I experienced a breakthrough that led to the creation of the current iteration. I hope you can relate to and support this new direction for the book.

Once again, Thank you so much for your support.

#####

avataravatar
Next chapter