Echoes of the Fallen Gods: The Astra System

10 Years Ago...

The city of Neo Delhi buzzed with life under the scorching sun. The towering skyscrapers gleamed with holographic billboards, and flying vehicles zipped through the sky. Somewhere in the midst of this urban chaos, a small, run-down building stood wedged between two megacorporation offices.

A neon sign flickered above the entrance:

EMBER GUILD – No Job Too Small!

Inside, the air was thick with the scent of oil, metal, and old electronics. The guild hall was more of a garage than an office—half workshop, half storage room. Various weapons, tools, and equipment were scattered across the workbenches, and a large mission board hung on the wall, filled with job listings.

In the middle of the room, a young man sat on a chair, arms behind his head, legs propped up on a table. His sharp, dark eyes scanned the ceiling with a lazy expression. His jet-black hair was tied back loosely, and his lean, muscular frame spoke of years of training.

This was Agastya, 21 years old.

Across from him, his cousin, Vibhav, leaned against the mission board, flipping through a tablet. He was the same age, but his build was stockier, his face always carrying a mischievous grin. Unlike Agastya, Vibhav had an elemental core, giving him the ability to manipulate earth.

"Bro, look at this," Vibhav chuckled, showing Agastya the screen. "Some rich guy lost his pet sabertooth and is offering 10,000 credits for its safe return."

Agastya groaned. "A pet-recovery mission? We're bounty hunters, not babysitters."

"We're broke, dude."

Agastya sighed. He glanced around their tiny guild hall. The Ember Guild wasn't much—just a ragtag group of misfits with nowhere else to go. There were only eight members, including him and Vibhav, all scraping by with odd jobs.

Skarn hunting. Escort services. Delivery work. Whatever paid the bills.

But this wasn't where Agastya saw himself in the future.

He had bigger dreams.

A Dream Beyond Earth

Agastya sat up, stretching his arms. "Forget the Skarn job. I want something big."

Vibhav raised an eyebrow. "Bro, even if we landed a 100,000 credits worth job, we wouldn't be able to relocate to the moon that easily."

Agastya's lips shrunk in displeasure.

The Moon—the dream destination of every ambitious person living on Earth. It was the safest place to live, a utopia for the rich and powerful. Unlike Earth, which was plagued with corruption and skarn, the Moon was a sovereign nation, governed by its own elite council and surprisingly free of corruption despite the fact that it was riddled with wealthy.

To get there, though, was a luxury beyond imagination.

"60,000 Earth Credits just to visit," Vibhav muttered. "And five million just to live there. You do realize we barely make 30,000 credits a year, right?"

Agastya shrugged. "So? We just have to work harder."

Vibhav snorted. "You don't even have an energy core, much less an elemental core. How do you think you can earn so much money just by relying on honesty?"

Agastya's expression darkened slightly.

It was true. Out of every 100 Neo-Humans, only 10-12 of them will be born with an energy core, which is necessary to store the energy absorbed from the sun into their bodies. And only 1 in every 100 will be able to form an elemental core, giving them the ability to use their respective element of fire, water, lightning, etc…

And like the majority of Neo-Humans, he wasn't born with an energy core. He is what you call a plain folk.

So, he can only depend on absorbing energy from the sun to use it for his needs. He can't store the energy.

At night, he was just a human without any powers. Hence, he had to depend on external weapons such as energy cannons to defend himself in the night.

But fortunately, there is a piece of technology that can artificially plant an energy core and even an elemental core in one's body at the right price.

So, as long as one has money, they can indeed change their fate. 21-year-old Agastya was also looking for the opportunity to change his fate too.

"I don't need an energy core to survive," he said, grinning. "I just need a plan."

Vibhav shook his head. "And what's your brilliant plan?"

Agastya leaned forward. "We need to take higher-risk jobs. If we keep playing it safe with Skarn hunts and delivery missions, we'll never get rich."

Vibhav frowned. "Dude, you know what happens to people who take those high-risk missions, right?"

Agastya smirked. "Yeah. They either get rich… or they get dead."

Vibhav groaned. "That's not comforting."

"Come on, one big job. That's all we need."

"Yeah? And where do we find this magical 'big job' that'll solve all our problems? Who will trust a plain folk like you and a Tier-4 Astron warrior like me?"

Agastya stood up and tapped the mission board. "I think it's time we start looking off-world. A client from the moon or missions to Ishtar and Nergal are our best bet. Post ads on the web that state that we are giving 50% off to such missions. Of course, we will guarantee the success of the mission or else we will be giving appropriate compensation to the party, too. That will surely bring the customers."

Vibhav sighed, rubbing his temples. "Fine. You win. But if we end up broke and homeless, I'll sell you to that Baroness who likes handsome fellas like you."

Agastya grinned. "Deal."

Life in Neo Delhi was a grind, but for Agastya and Vibhav, it was a game of patience.

Their dream of moving to the Moon wasn't impossible—it was just expensive. They took on jobs, saved credits, and planned their next steps carefully. Their promotions bring quite a bit of success. In no time, they started raking in tens of thousands of credits every mission, ensuring atleast one of the guild members is always on the job.

And then the day of life changing fate arrived.

The Ember Guild was unusually quiet that day.

Four of their guildmates were out on separate missions, leaving only Agastya, Vibhav, and two other members behind.

The two guildmates, Rishi and Zara, were lounging around, waiting for new jobs. Rishi was a skilled marksman, while Zara specialized in technology and hacking.

The four of them sat around the table, chatting lazily, when the front door creaked open.

A stranger stepped inside.

The man was tall and lean, wrapped in a heavy cloak. His face was hidden behind a metallic mask, only his sharp, calculating eyes visible.

Without a word, he walked up to the mission board, pulled out a black card, and pinned it to the wall.

Agastya and the others immediately took notice.

It wasn't just any job request. The reward amount displayed in glowing red letters was staggering—

"Bounty Mission: 420,000 Earth Credits"

A record-breaking sum for a guild like theirs.

Vibhav let out a low whistle. "Damn. That's the biggest payout we've ever had."

Agastya narrowed his eyes, studying the stranger. "What's the job?"

The man's voice was deep and emotionless. "I need someone captured alive."

Rishi folded his arms. "Who's the target?"

The man hesitated for a second before speaking. "A runaway scientist. A man who stole valuable research from an organization he used to work for."

Zara leaned forward. "What kind of research?"

The man's gaze flickered toward her before he replied, "That information is classified."

Agastya frowned. "And why come to us? This sounds like something you'd take to a professional bounty-hunting guild."

The stranger tilted his head. "Because professional guilds ask too many questions and it attracts too much attention. I need it to be done in a discreet manner. And of course, the main reason is because your faces are not known. You guys will be perfect to infiltrate into the town and bring him to me."

Vibhav glanced at Agastya. 420,000 credits.

That was more than enough for one of them to atleast travel to the moon and stay there for a few months on an immediate temporary work visa and earn some money. The payout on the moon is almost ten times that of your average city on the earth, for the same work.

Vibhav was naturally excited to take up the job. Agastya, however, didn't like how vague the job was.

A scientist on the run.

A classified project.

A client who refused to share details.

Something didn't feel right. But at the same time, this was their chance.

One mission. One capture. And one of them could finally leave Earth behind.

Agastya exhaled slowly. "Where's the target?" He questioned.

The masked man smirked slightly. "I'll send the details if you accept the job."

Silence stretched in the room for a moment. Vibhav clenched his fists. "Agastya, we should take it."

Zara hesitated. "We don't know what we're getting into."

Vibhav shrugged. "For 420,000 credits? It's worth the risk."

Agastya remained deep in thought.

This one decision…

Would change everything.