Hyderabad, Call center cellar, 30th September 2025.
"Rudra! Move aside! He's got a knife!"
But it was too late. I felt a sharp pain as something pierced my stomach. Just as I was regaining my senses, another sharp pain, and then another, followed. I felt very dizzy as I slowly collapsed to the ground. I could vaguely see three figures approaching me and another figure tackling my attacker to the ground.
I could vaguely hear my colleague shouting to call for an ambulance while trying to stop the bleeding. I could feel the life slowly draining from me as my vision darkened. Gradually, my breathing stopped. And that is how my mediocre-at-best life came to an end.
"Ahhh..."
I have so many regrets. Who will take care of my mother now? How will they survive in this dangerous world without proper safety? I wasn't able to pursue the field I wanted to be in. I was unable to provide for my family as I wished. I couldn't even keep together a simple relationship with the girl I liked. I was unable to live up to my late father's expectations. There is nothing I can be proud of in my life... well, there is one thing: saving a colleague's life.
"Well, at the very least, I'll get to see the deity I like and worship so much."
I was suspended in a void for what felt like an eternity. I tried to move, even though I had no body. I tried to see, even though I had no eyes. After a while—I didn't know how long it had been, maybe a minute—I thought, "Wait a second, if this is a void and there's no light, then how can I even calculate the time? What am I even thinking about? Haaa... I think I'm losing my mind. Wait, I'm dead, so I shouldn't have a mind. Then how am I able to think? Well, let's just say it's the will of the gods."
Just then, I felt someone chuckling. I couldn't hear it, but it felt like someone was chuckling at me. Then, a bright light began to manifest in front of me, and I could hear a voice. "Don't worry, dear child. You asked for me every day in your prayers, and I am here in front of you."
I couldn't believe what I was experiencing in this void. I felt a vast, infinite energy that felt both chaotic and incredibly calm and protective... just like that of a strict, strong, but loving and protective father. I had only ever felt this kind of feeling with two people: my own father and the deity I revere, Lord Shiva.
"Lord, is that you? Am I, a lowly being, truly being given a chance to be in your presence, you who are the protector of the world and father to all that exists? I am so thankful for this opportunity."
"Now, such language is unnecessary. If you consider me your father, how can I bear to hear my son degrading himself in front of me?"
"Sorry, my lord, but that is what I am. Even after getting a chance to live a life as a human, I did not fulfill the duties I was supposed to."
"Yes, I understand your regrets. That is why I am here. I am here to give you another chance at life, but it will be in another world. I am going to grant you two boons, but they will be activated after you turn 10 years old in your new world. Now, ask for the boons you want."
"My lord, if it is not too much, can I ask you where and when I will be born?"
"That is not a problem at all. You are going to be in the same place as your last birth, but this time you will be born in the year 2000 instead of 2005."
"Then, my lord, I wish to ask for a system which would be technologically advanced and help me build everything I need. And my second wish is for my parents to live a full and healthy life until their natural deaths."
"Tathastu... but that will not be enough. I am also going to grant you another boon, this one from your mother Parvati. She has blessed you with an extraordinary body and intelligence. Now, go and live your life to the fullest, child."
Suddenly, I felt like electricity was coursing through my body. Then, everything went black.
"Well, let me give you an introduction before my other life starts. My name is Rudra, and I was 20 years old. I was a mediocre kid who dropped out of a diploma college and worked in a call center to support my family. I have a mother and an elder sister; my father passed away in a bike accident. I had a dream to become a computer engineer or an aeronautical engineer, which was crushed due to a lack of proper study in main subjects like math and science. This was partly my fault, partly due to my schooling life during the COVID-19 lockdown, and partly my math teacher's fault. I was a bright student, competing with two other toppers for the first position in our classes. But I was just a loser with low conviction and motivation who couldn't get what he desired in math and science, even when he worked hard. After reality slapped me like a champion, I threw my arrogance of being a topper in the dustbin and started to support my family, which was suffering from the lockdown issues.
As you know, I was stabbed to death by one of the CCEs at our call center. You may ask what the reason for such brutality was. Well, it was just that my colleague confronted a CCE who was being a nuisance on the floor and told him to get out. But he became aggressive toward my female colleague, and I had to step in to escort him out of the floor. He left for a while, then called us and told us to come down to the cellar to talk. We thought we could resolve the issue, but after an argument between him and my colleagues, he tried to hit my colleague. I stepped in between them, and after some ruckus, he escalated the issue and stabbed me. I think he was somewhat mentally ill and short-tempered, and that is how I died."