Arc 2: Magic! YAY!
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Please Vote Power Stones!
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"Sorry but we are full." Apologetically said the red haired woman wearing a blue coloured vest with a F.E.A.S.T logo on the left side.
"I... see..." I managed to say out and walked out dejectedly.
There was no point in protesting, if she said that it was full then it WAS full.
They had no reason to lie after all.
And even if I did. All I would manage to achieve was being thrown out by the big muscular dudes that help out here and also get banned for life.
Plus, I had to admit, I was kind of at fault here too. I should've just gone to F.E.A.S.T when I had arrived rather than go to the Cyber Cafe for research (I could've done it later too!).
And now I was paying for the consequences of my actions.
...
'What do I do now?' I thought dejectedly with a pit in my stomach as I walked on the streets of Chinatown.
It was '7:50 PM' right now. Almost all the shelters would be full. And even if they had a spot or two left, it would take me too long to get there.
I also didn't have enough money left to buy a hotel room (and even if I did, I didn't have a valid ID).
All paths seem to lead to a dead end.
'I guess I would have to sleep in public tonight.' I sighed in defeat.
Feeling the sadness in me, my two loyal companions responded by sending feelings of assurance and understanding through our bond.
"Meow!" "Bark!"
I smiled lightly and sat down on a bench of a nearby park.
Sitting there I quickly considered my options.
I would have to sleep outside tonight. There was no doubt about that and there was nothing I could do to change that unfortunately.
But...
'I could make it easier for myself.' I thought as I remembered an idea that I had come up with just a few hours ago.
It was still early by city standards, and most if not all shops would still be open right now.
In my research I had jotted down names and addresses of as many POI (People Of Interest) that I was able to remember or find on the internet.
One of them was a man named Luke Cage.
The bulletproof man himself.
Carl Lucas, or better known as Luke Cage, is a strong superhuman with the super-power of having super strength and seemingly unbreakable skin. After some very sad events where he was framed, almost killed and then experimented on, he escaped to New York, changed his name to Luke Cage, married the love of his life and opened up a bar named 'Luke's'.
From my research, I was able to find the address to Luke Cage's Bar on Google and my plan, if it worked, was to copy his powers.
Bulletproof Skin, Enhanced Physiology and a minor Regenerative factor would go a long way in making my life easier (and also keeping me safe).
I only needed to be in his close proximity (10 meters or so) for me to copy his powers and what better time to do it than when he's working?
With my mind made up, I headed off.
...
After a subway ride and many twists and turns, I had finally arrived in front of a small but clean looking bar with a yellow neon sign saying "Luke's".
After gathering my wits, I stepped up with as much confidence as I could to disguise my nervousness.
Why was I so nervous suddenly?
For one, this was going to be my first interaction with a known superhuman character. And it was also going to set a precedent for the future interactions.
But, eh... I was probably being too dramatic in that regard.
And that brought me up to the next and last reason for my nervousness.
That I was only 18, and this was a bar. In America. Where minimum age for drinking alcohol is 21.
See the problem?
Of course, I didn't intend to drink anything in the first place. But I didn't think they would just let me sit and not order anything even if I did manage to get in.
But looking at the entrance, there didn't seem to be a guard or someone to check the ID of the customers.
But to be honest, they probably didn't need a guard upfront when the owner was able to punch a man to his death and survive a bullet like it's just another Tuesday.
'Don't be nervous Sam. Everything will be fine.' I nodded to myself and slapped myself lightly for good measure.
After taking some deep breaths, I clenched my buttcheeks, squared my shoulders and walked in like I owned the place.
From the first impression, Luke's was a very neat and tidy bar with nice and joyful atmosphere. There was a replay of a football (American football) match playing on the TV, and there were a few groups of people enjoying drinks and overall having fun.
On the far side of the shop there was the bar counter, with many different types of alcohol sitting on the wall behind it. And there he was, Luke Cage behind the counter working as a bartender.
Luke Cage was a tall, bald, dark skinned man with a trimmed beard and a big muscular body. He looked to be above 6"3 and was wearing a black jacket with a yellow shirt.
He seemed relaxed and happy from the first glance. But there was something about him that told me that despite his relaxed and joyful demeanor he could easily break a person in two.
Not letting my nervousness show on my face, I quickly sped up and sat on a seat next to the counter, I quickly read the small menu that was laying there. A few seconds later he walks over and asks.
"So, what would you like?" He asks with a deep voice as he peers over at me. After looking at me up and down, he gains a sly smile. "You would need to show a ID if you want to have anything alcoholic." He says slyly.
"Haha." I nervously laugh. "No. I would like a... Chicken sandwich and a glass of orange juice."
Still smiling at me he agrees. "Sure. I'll get it right away." He says and heads through the kitchen doors.
I sighed in relief after he was gone, but quickly gathered my wits.
The mission was still in progress and it wasn't the time to relax.
I had completed the first objective of being near him so now I only needed to copy his powers.
I closed my eyes and focused on the inner feeling. Once again I felt the presence of my two animal-power companions and quickly selected the Pup.
In trance I whispered the magic words...
"[Power Manipulation: Activate]."
And suddenly I felt a jolt of electricity run up my body, and I gained an extra sense that wasn't available to me before.
I opened my eyes.
Physically there was nothing different. Everything was just the same.
But there was something...
A presence that I could feel but not see...
A Superpower.
A few feet in front of me.
Specifically, Luke Cage's Superpower.
I could feel it through the walls.
It felt Rocky and Strong. As if there was nothing in the world that could break it.
Unbreakable Skin, Super Strength and a Regenerative Factor.
With another mental command [Power Manipulation] began the process of copying his full powerset.
Before beginning, it notified me that it was going to take one and a half hours to complete. So he had to stay within my 10 meter radius at all moments.
'No problem.' I thought and sent my confirmation.
I was fortunate enough as it was that I didn't have to constantly touch him to copy his powers (even if that would've made the process much faster), so all of these small setbacks were an acceptable setback in my opinion.
Plus, I was pretty sure this place stayed open till atleast 11PM so there was no danger of him suddenly bailing out.
I just had to sit tight and enjoy my meal for the next hour and half.
Just as I was thinking this, he came back with a plate with my chicken sandwich and a glass of juice.
"Here you go." He says and puts the plate and glass on the counter. "Enjoy!" He smiles and walks away to greet another customer.
"Thanks." I murmured lightly as I dug in. I hadn't had dinner today and was feeling rather hungry because of the energy consumption of my powers, so at this point I was happy to eat anything.
'Man, this strangely delicious.' I thought as I chowed on the sandwich. To pass the time I ate slowly and spent most of the time watching the TV.
...
One hour and thirty minutes later the process had finished. Surprisingly without much fanfare.
I was almost sure that something would happen, afterall it just seemed how Marvel worked. But surprisingly nothing of note happened and the process finished smoothly.
'Maybe I've just watched too many movies.'
But despite it all, when it was finished I released a sigh of relief and deactivated [Power Manipulation].
I hadn't activated the copied powers yet as I waiting to get somewhere private to do it.
So I quickly finished my leftover juice and stood up to pay the bill.
...
"Please come again!" Said Cage as I exited the bar and took a breath of the cold New York air.
Despite it being April, New York's air was particularly colder than my hometowns. But fortunately, not cold enough to snow.
Walking down the streets I came up to a park. It was clean and well lit (for the most part). I sat on a bench that was under a few trees and wore the hood of my hoodie as a strong cold wind swept past.
So with just a thought, I activated Luke Cage's power.
A warmth spread through my body, and I knew at that moment that I now had the ability, the strength to protect myself.
To be Unbreakable.
Just to experiment with it, I took hold of the handle of the bench and bent it without much effort.
I smiled lightly. Super-powers always managed to amaze me. Still, I quickly bent the handle back to the way it was. I didn't want to be caught for destruction of public property afterall.
As I layed down on the bench and looked up at the dark and foggy sky of NYC, I felt particularly sad.
'I want to go home...' I thought sadly but also in slight acceptance. 'Watch over me mom, dad, brother... I am coming.'
And slowly, I fell asleep.
Under the moon's gaze and nights embrace...
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And Done!
I wrote this one particularly fast because my internet had been down for the last two days, and I guess my inner writer wakes up when the internet is down.
Leaving that aside, many of you dear readers have commented that the fic is going very slow. And I agree with you, so in the next few chapters I will quicken the pacing a little.
Hint, it's going to involve some magic demons.
Also don't forget to comment your thought.
Do you think the radioactive Spider from the Spider-Man movies can cure 4th stage Cancer? Let me know your thoughts!
And once again, see ya later!