By the time they arrived at the site of the F rank gate, the sun was already leaning toward the afternoon. The area was surrounded by a tall fence, and two guards stood at the entrance, both armed and clearly on alert. Talon and Blake walked up the short path leading to them, and without hesitation, both of them pulled out their IDs and showed them to the guards.
The first guard took a quick glance at the cards and gave them a nod. "Alright, you two are clear. Go on in," he said while stepping aside.
Talon gave a polite smile, even if he was already focused on what lay ahead. "Thanks," he replied casually, walking forward as the shimmering surface of the gate appeared in front of him. Without pausing, he stepped through, and Blake followed closely behind.
The moment they crossed over, the environment changed completely. The urban backdrop of buildings, cement, and traffic vanished in an instant, replaced by a thick forest filled with tall, twisting trees. The air was humid and filled with the sound of distant insects and rustling leaves.
Talon's heart started racing with excitement. This was his first real chance to test himself in a new world. He glanced over his shoulder at Blake and grinned. "Alright, Blake. Let's get started."
Blake nodded, his face as unreadable as always. "Understood, boss," he said quietly, falling into step beside him.
They moved deeper into the forest. After walking for about fifteen minutes, they came across a group of creatures gathered around something on the ground. The monsters were hunched, goblinoid beings with twisted limbs and oversized mouths. Acid dripped from their fangs as they chewed and slobbered all over rusted, broken down swords. Their teeth scraped metal with shrill sounds that made Talon wince.
"Those things are disgusting," Talon muttered, raising his hand slowly with his palm pointed toward the group. As he did, the air behind him shimmered, and about fifteen long, needle like crystals of burning red flame began to materialize in the air. They crackled and flared with heat, suspended behind him like a deadly halo.
He narrowed his eyes and tilted his hand downward slightly. The needles blasted forward all at once, streaking through the air and hitting the spitlings directly. A loud crack rang out as the explosion swallowed them up.
[10 F Rank Life Energy Points have been consumed]
The notification echoed in his mind, but as the smoke cleared, the bodies hadn't changed much. They were scorched and slumped over, but still somewhat intact.
He turned to Blake and pointed at one of the surviving spitlings. "I want you to kill one of those things for me real quick. I need to confirm something."
Blake didn't hesitate. His right arm began to bulge as thick muscle expanded, then orange fur with black stripes rapidly grew across his skin. His fingers lengthened into claws, each one gleaming with a faint metallic edge.
Four spitlings that had survived the first attack noticed them and charged forward, shrieking. Blake stepped ahead of Talon, then swung his arm in a wide arc. A powerful gust of wind followed the motion, and his claws slashed through the creatures effortlessly. Their bodies split apart with minimal resistance, and the ground was painted in steaming green fluid.
[1 F Rank Life Energy Point has been consumed]
Talon raised an eyebrow at the alert. "Hmm… so I only get a quarter of the energy when one of my creations kills them. That's manageable, I guess."
They continued through the forest, pushing deeper into the gate and fighting off creatures along the way. Four hours passed in what felt like one. Talon didn't bother challenging the gate boss yet. He had already earned a decent haul and didn't feel like risking unnecessary injury right now.
By the time they exited the gate, the guards gave them a nod of acknowledgment. Talon returned it with a brief wave, and the two of them made their way home.
When they entered the house, it was quiet. Rolan wasn't there. A quick check of the kitchen showed that he had gone grocery shopping. Talon and Blake headed into Talon's room. Blake sat down in the desk chair, the metal frame creaking under his weight, while Talon dropped down onto the bed and let out a breath.
'So I gathered 350 F Rank Life Energy Points,' Talon thought, his eyes narrowing. 'But how do I actually use them?'
As if responding to his thoughts, a system menu appeared automatically in front of him.
[LEP List:]
[25 F Rank LEP = 1 E Rank LEP]
[10 E Rank LEP = 1 D Rank LEP]
[10 D Rank LEP = 1 C Rank LEP]
[20 C Rank LEP = 1 B Rank LEP]
[30 B Rank LEP = 1 A Rank LEP]
[50 A Rank LEP = 1 S Rank LEP]
[??? = ???]
[??? = ???]
Talon raised his eyebrows at the chart. "Well, I guess this helps. Does this mean I can make three hundred and fifty F Rank characters?" he asked aloud, sounding a little hopeful.
[Warning: The host cannot make anything below D Rank]
"Oh. Well, shit." He let out a sigh, clearly disappointed. "Guess I'm grinding gates for a while."
Later that night, Rolan returned home, bags of groceries in both hands. He had stocked up heavily, clearly planning for Talon's new reality as a Super. After helping put things away, Talon and Blake headed back into the room.
Blake slept on the floor that night, using an extra thick blanket and two pillows that Talon had tossed his way earlier. He didn't complain. The man was built for discomfort.
The next morning, Talon didn't bother going to school. There was no need anymore. As a registered Super, he had more freedom than most people his age, especially with a C rank power. Instead, he decided to head out early and managed to find something rare for the area. It was a Free E Rank gate. Those didn't show up often, and when they did, they usually disappeared fast.
When they entered, the temperature jumped immediately. Blake began to sweat just from stepping inside, wiping his forehead with the back of his arm. Talon, however, looked completely unaffected.
"Heh. Perks of having a fire type power, right Blake?" Talon said with a grin, clearly enjoying the difference.
Blake didn't respond. He just kept walking in silence, which made Talon laugh a little before catching up.
Eventually, they encountered a group of beasts. Five massive slugs crawled through the molten terrain, each of them a meter tall and glowing with internal heat. Their trails burned the ground behind them, leaving a path of flames wherever they moved.
"Haha, what are they gonna do, run me over real slow?" Talon joked, summoning a long fire crystal spear in his right hand. Without any buildup, he hurled it directly at the nearest slug.
The spear hit one of the creatures dead center and exploded violently, engulfing all five slugs in a searing blast.
[5 E Rank Life Energy Points have been consumed]
Talon raised his arm to shield his eyes from the intense heat and flying debris. Blake, standing nearby, moved quickly. He stepped in front of Talon, swiping his large clawed arm through the air and knocking away several pieces of molten rock that had been flying straight toward them.
"Ahh. I think I need to learn some control, huh?" Talon said with a smirk, lowering his arm.
"Mhm," Blake replied with a short nod.
They continued through the gate, fighting everything that appeared in their path. After a brutal trail of defeated enemies, they finally reached the gate's boss. It was a massive slug, twice the size of the others, sitting in a lava covered clearing.
Talon cracked his neck and gave Blake a glance. "Alright Blake, stand back. Watch a master in action."
Blake obediently stepped back several feet and folded his arms.
Talon raised both hands this time and summoned ten fire crystal swords. They hovered around him, glowing with heat. With a flick of his wrist, he sent them hurtling toward the giant slug.
The boss reacted instantly, tucking its entire body into its molten shell. The blades exploded against the surface, cracking the outer layer but not breaking through.
"Damn it. I forgot slugs could do that," Talon muttered.
The boss peeked its head out slowly. Its body began to heat up even more, and Talon noticed a fireball forming in its mouth.
"Wait, it can make fireballs too? What the hell kind of slug is this?" he said, launching a crystal spear toward the creature. The spear hit the fireball mid formation, creating a chain explosion that blew the slug's head apart. The rest of the spear pierced into its body and detonated again from the inside.
[1 D Rank Life Energy Point has been consumed]
Talon lowered his hand and chuckled. "Seems like I'm a natural at this fighting stuff."
As the boss's body collapsed, a small chest materialized on the ground beside it. It was no bigger than two adult hands. Talon's eyes lit up, and he jogged forward to grab it. Inside was a pendant necklace with a glowing red blade design.
"I'll need to get this appraised at the SRB," he said, turning back toward Blake.
They exited the gate and headed straight to the SRB. As soon as they walked inside, Talon's body tensed.
"Goddamn, I need to buy a coat just for this place," he muttered, rubbing his arms.
They walked up to the front desk, and Talon leaned forward. "Hey. Miss, do you have an appraiser available right now?"
The woman looked up and smiled. "Call me Linda. And yes, lucky for you, I'm an appraiser myself," she said confidently. "Do you have something you want me to look at?"
Talon reached into his pocket and pulled out the pendant. "Yeah. Got this from an E Rank gate."
Linda took it in her hands and examined it carefully. Her eyes widened slightly. "Oh my. You've found something very impressive."
Talon tilted his head. "Huh? I just got that from an E Rank gate. Really?"
"You're extremely lucky," she said while still studying the item. "This is a D Rank artifact. It's called the Crimson Fang Pendant. The blade portion of the pendant glows slightly when intense emotions or nearby danger are present."
She continued, turning the pendant over in her hand. "It was forged from a sliver of fire beast blood and enchanted steel. It increases attack speed by a small amount, and the wearer's movement becomes a little quicker, especially when using melee weapons."
She looked at him again, her expression more serious now. "It also has a passive ability called Burning Edge. If you get badly hurt, your next three melee attacks will deal minor fire damage."
Talon blinked. "That's… actually really good."
"It is," Linda said with a nod. "Better than most D Rank items out there. Even some C Rank Supers would want this, especially sword users. It could sell for about a million."
Talon's jaw fell open. "One million?" he repeated, stunned. His dad was barely scraping together the rent each month, and now he had something worth that much just sitting in his hand.
"Uhm, can I sell this to the SRB?" he asked, scratching his head.
"Absolutely," Linda said. "Just a moment. I'll get your check ready. Go ahead and have a seat."
Talon sat down with Blake again and checked his system. He fused all of his Life Energy Points, combining his F Rank LEP into E Rank, then his E Rank into D Rank, and soon the screen displayed in his face.
(Talon Reeve)
(Power: Emberglass)
(Rank: C)
(LEP: 7 E Rank, 3 C Rank)
'So I can make three C Rank characters now, system?' he asked mentally.
To his surprise, the system answered with a simple check mark.
'Oh?' he thought, raising an eyebrow. He decided to think about it later.
About five minutes later, a different lady walked over and handed him a check. Talon's eyes widened at the number written across the front.
One million.
He waved to Linda, thanked her, and left the building with Blake. They went straight to the local bank, got the check verified, and soon enough, Talon had the money transferred onto a new bank card.
Back at the house, Rolan learned about the million and had a big grin on his face. "Haha, I knew my boy would come through," he said proudly, giving Talon a strong pat on the back.
But then something unexpected happened. A surge of red energy burst around Rolan's body for a brief second before vanishing into thin air. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he was smiling even wider.
"I just awakened my power!" Rolan said, excitement clear in his voice.
Talon lit up too. "What?! What power did you get? What rank is it?"
"It's called Blazing Sovereignty," Rolan said, practically glowing. "And it's a B Rank."
Talon stared at him for a second. "What the fuck? That's not even fair," he said, laughing.
"So what does it do?" Talon asked after a moment.
"Well," Rolan began proudly, "I can control every bit of fire in a fifteen meter space around me. That area is called my Flame Domain. In there, fire doesn't follow normal rules. I can summon it from nowhere, change its shape or color, hold it in place, make it into weapons, or even harden it into solid forms."
"Okay now that is actually cool as hell," Talon admitted, shaking his head. "Why didn't I get something like that…? Fuck it, I'm going to my room. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Mhm," Rolan mumbled, still smiling to himself as he left the house, heading toward the SRB for his own registration.
In Talon's room, Talon sat comfortably in his gaming chair, leaning slightly forward as the glow of the computer screen lit up his face. His fingers tapped rhythmically against the keyboard, eyes locked onto the search results that popped up one after another.
Blake was nearby, sitting cross legged on the floor with his arms resting on his knees, silently watching Talon with curiosity.
Talon furrowed his brow and leaned in closer. "I'm searching for people with powers that let them renovate buildings," he muttered, half to himself. "But nothing's coming up. Not even one. What the hell?" He sat back with a frustrated sigh, resting his chin in his hand.
Blake looked up at him, tilting his head slightly. "So powers haven't reached that point yet?"
"Apparently not," Talon said, rubbing his face. 'I guess I'll have to use one of my C rank creations to make someone with that ability. But now I've got to figure out what the other two creations should be.' He thought to himself
He spun his chair slightly, staring at the floor as he thought 'I should make an… uhhhh… oh! I can make a guy with the power of decay,' he thought, his eyes lighting up. 'And maybe a craftsman too. I haven't seen anyone with crafting abilities either'
Talon, now opening another tab. "It's like the world skipped over that entire concept."
After a few minutes of browsing and planning, Talon minimized his tabs and began searching for property. He scrolled through dozens of listings, rejecting most of them without hesitation, until something caught his eye. He sat up straighter, blinking at the screen in disbelief.
It was a 1.5 acre plot of land, and sitting on it was a broken down five story building. The structure was in terrible shape. Mold clung to the walls, vines had overtaken much of the exterior, and none of the lighting or electronics worked. But surprisingly, the pipes and internal systems were still intact.
What made it even crazier was the price. They were asking for only three hundred thousand dollars for the entire thing.
Talon didn't waste a second. He grabbed his phone, found the contact information listed on the page, and immediately called the owner. The man picked up right away, and the two got into a serious discussion about the property. Talon leaned forward in his chair, speaking with a mix of excitement and urgency. The call went on for half an hour, and by the time it ended, Talon's bank account was three hundred thousand dollars lighter.
But now he owned the land. The building, The whole property.
Shutting off the computer, Talon stretched his arms and let out a long breath. The sky outside was dark, and the quiet of the night settled around him. Without saying anything, he got up, climbed into bed, and let himself drift off to sleep with a small grin on his face.
The morning sunlight crept into his room through the curtains, casting soft lines across the floor. Talon sat up in bed without hesitation, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He took a moment to breathe in the quiet, then immediately entered his creation space.
He didn't waste any time.
Within minutes, he was putting the final touches on his newest creation. The man stood tall, lean but clearly toned, with loosely tied red hair that reached the back of his neck. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of tinted glasses, and his hands were covered by sleek gloves. A confident smile played on his lips, not cocky but sure, as if he already knew what needed to be done. He wore a black outfit that gave him a professional, almost tactical look.
(Picture Here)
Talon gave a nod of approval, then moved to the system interface.
[→ Appearance: Male, lean but toned, 6'1", wears tinted glasses and always has gloves on]
[→ Power: Renovator's Instinct]
[→ Rank: C]
[→ Specialty: Urban Control & Structural Enhancement]
[→ Personality: Quietly confident, obsessed with order, always assessing buildings or surroundings for flaws, loyal to Talon and values efficiency over anything]
[Auto Generated ID: "Silas Reign"
Background Inserted: Former underground architect from West Sector 9, abandoned a high paying contract to follow Talon, believed to be responsible for turning several rundown bases into fortified strongholds.]
[CREATE] [CANCEL]
Talon didn't hesitate. He clicked yes.
[The C Rank creation "Silas Reign" has been created and will come to you shortly]
He exited the creation space and stood up, stretching his arms before walking out of the room. In the living room, Blake was sitting quietly on the couch, watching something on his phone.
Talon walked in and joined him without saying much, just a slight nod exchanged between the two.
A couple minutes later, a soft knock echoed from the front door. Talon stood up from the couch with a stretch and walked over to answer it. When he opened it, Silas Reign stood just outside, his nose wrinkled slightly like he had just smelled something unpleasant.
"Boss… this is quite the place you've got here," Silas said, stepping inside while glancing around the small, cramped space. He gave a short whistle as he took in the peeling walls and stained carpet.
Talon waved him in and shut the door behind him. "Ah, yeah, don't worry about any of this. We're actually about to head out. I bought a building last night, and that's where we're going now."
Silas raised an eyebrow as he turned to face him. "Oh? So what are we waiting on then, boss?"
Talon ran a hand through his hair and glanced down the hall. "We're just waiting for my dad to wake up. Actually… screw it, I'll go wake him. This is kind of important."
Without wasting another second, he walked over to Rolan's bedroom door and gave it a few firm knocks.
From the other side, a raspy and tired voice responded, "I'll be out in a minute… give me a second."
While they waited, Talon headed to the fridge, grabbed a bottle of juice, twisted the cap, and took a sip. He leaned back against the counter, keeping one eye on Silas and the other on the hallway.
Two minutes later, Rolan finally emerged, shirt still wrinkled from sleep and his hair sticking up on one side. He rubbed his eyes and walked over to the couch, where he spotted the unfamiliar face beside Blake.
"Ahh," he muttered, squinting. "And who's this, Talon?"
Talon took another casual sip before answering. "That's Silas. He's going to be part of my super organization. Same as Blake. He's a C rank super."
Rolan gave a small nod, eyes flicking between the two younger men. "Got it."
Talon straightened up and tossed the empty juice bottle in the trash. "Anyway, Pops, we're heading out to check out the building I bought last night. You coming?"
Rolan shrugged once, stretching his arms overhead. "Yeah, I'm good. I'm ready now."
Without another word, all four of them made their way out of the house together.
They eventually arrived at the property, and the size of it immediately stood out. It stretched out across a large clearing, with trees surrounding the entire area just enough to give it some privacy without completely boxing it in. A cracked and weathered pathway led directly to the old abandoned building ahead of them.
The building stood five stories tall, worn down by time and neglect. Vines crawled up its sides, most of the windows were shattered, and the outer walls were a mess of crumbling bricks, graffiti, and black mold.
Silas tilted his head slightly and looked at it for a long moment. "So… this is the building you bought, boss?" he asked, voice flat with a tinge of disbelief.
Talon grinned and stepped forward, walking toward the double doors at the front. "Yup. Looks comfy, doesn't it? Real warm and welcoming." He laughed softly to himself.
Rolan stood back, arms folded, staring up at the mess of a structure. "And how exactly is your organization supposed to get anything done from inside this dump?" he asked, giving Talon a look like he was waiting for the punchline to a bad joke.
Talon didn't even turn around. He just kept smiling and gestured behind him. "That's what we've got Silas for. Right, Silas?"
Silas sighed quietly as he walked closer to the building, his boots crunching against the gravel and debris. "You do realize I can only do this once a month, right? So don't start thinking I'm gonna be out here flipping twenty buildings for you every time you find a new piece of trash on the market."
Talon shrugged. "I figured there'd be a catch, so that's fine. Once a month is more than enough."
Blake stood quietly near the back of the group, hands in his pockets, listening to the conversation without saying a word.
Rolan furrowed his brow, looking from Talon to Silas with clear confusion written across his face. "Okay, hold on. What exactly are you two talking about? I feel like I'm three steps behind right now."
Talon turned slightly to glance over his shoulder. "We're talking about Silas's power. He can completely renovate a building. Not just clean it up or give it a paint job, I mean really change it. Like, turn an abandoned husk into something that looks brand new, with tech and everything."
Rolan blinked. "Wait. There are powers out there that can do that? That's a thing?"
"Probably more than you'd expect. Most of them are probably keeping their heads down though," Talon said as he turned back to the door. "Anyway, Silas, go ahead and get started."
Before moving, Silas asked, "What's the name of the organization going to be?"
Talon paused, rubbing his chin as he thought for a second. "Hmm… Foundation of Unity. Yeah. I haven't heard of anyone using that name before, so it should work. We can go with FOU as the short version."
Silas gave a small nod and walked to a portion of the wall that looked relatively stable. He placed his gloved hand flat against it. A few seconds later, a deep red aura began to spread from his palm, washing over the entire structure. The glow shimmered across the surface like heat waves before the building itself began to shift and change.
In less than a minute, the transformation was happening right before their eyes.
What used to be a mold infested, vine covered wreck with shattered windows and dead lighting slowly became a modern, clean, and fully reinforced structure.
The dirty bricks covered in graffiti were replaced with sleek, polished walls reinforced with an unknown material that looked like it could take a direct hit from a tank and still stand strong. The new surface gave off a faint metallic gleam and looked completely resistant to bullets, fire, corrosion, and weather damage.
The old windows that once looked like someone had thrown bricks through them were now clear and smooth, made of a transparent alloy with full tint control and pressure based responses.
They looked strong enough to stop a bullet and still give a clear view inside or out depending on the settings.
Above the newly reconstructed entrance, clear lettering had formed in bold silver, spelling out Foundation of Unity across the top of the building.
But that was just what could be seen from the outside. The real surprise came once Silas pulled his hand away and stepped back toward the group. They stood just in front of the new security gate, which hummed quietly with energy.
They all stepped through what looked like a transparent field, and the color of the room turned a soft green as they passed through. A faint chime played above them.
"That was an identity scan. You put our identities into the system already?" Rolan asked, eyebrows raised in surprise.
Silas gave a smug nod and puffed his chest a little. "I am me, after all."
He turned and gestured for them to follow him. "Come on. Let me give you the full tour. I added a few things."
They followed him into the newly rebuilt building. The first floor now looked like the lobby of a top tier corporate office. There was a reception desk behind reinforced glass, and a large digital map panel sat in the center, displaying a live layout of the building.
There were also manually updated bulletin boards, a checkpoint with another scan field, and a small lounge area off to the side with an ID badge printer installed near the wall.
"This is the lobby and reception area," Silas explained as he walked ahead, giving them time to look around. "Simple setup, but secure."
They stepped into the elevator next, heading up to the second floor. When the doors opened, they walked into a wide open area with long tables, screens, and a large projection display.
"This is the operations hub," Silas said, motioning around the room. "It has a mission briefing area with projector access, map tables for planning, and a communications room behind those glass doors. There's a signal relay system and private radio terminals set up inside. We've also got filing rooms for mission logs and any tactical data that comes in."
After a thorough walk through, they returned to the elevator and moved up to the third floor.
"This one's the research and development floor," Silas continued. "I installed manual labs for building tech and crafting weapons. There are secure lockers for dangerous or prototype items, and testing chambers with sealed pressure doors just in case something goes sideways."
He didn't stop there. The fourth floor turned out to be a training and simulation level. It had multiple practice arenas, combat simulators, and a digital environment system that could create a variety of fighting scenarios, including urban combat, stealth operations, and outdoor terrain settings.
Finally, they reached the fifth floor, which was the executive wing. There were several sleek offices, meeting rooms, and a large, well furnished office space at the end of the hallway. That one, of course, belonged to Talon.
But they weren't done just yet. Silas then went into a staff only room and inside the office revealed a locked access panel. A few moments later, the staff only elevator hummed to life, and they descended into the underground level.
"Alright boys," Silas said as the doors opened. "Welcome to the underground level. Or basement. Doesn't really matter what you call it."
The space was massive, with reinforced walls and high ceilings. Silas walked them through each section slowly.
"This is the sub basement bunker. Completely sealed and reinforced. Over there is the armory. You can store everything there. Those are containment cells, built with suppression fields designed for supers, just in case we get any unwanted guests. There's a secure lab back there for sensitive experiments. And over here, you've got the utility bay for general maintenance and larger tools."
As they explored, Rolan looked around in disbelief. "Wow. I'm at a complete loss for words. How the hell did you manage to build all this in under a minute?"
Silas simply raised an eyebrow. "Because I'm good."
Once the tour was over, they made their way back to the main floor. Talon looked thoughtful for a moment before speaking. "I still need to register the organization. But wait… I almost forgot. We need at least four people. Right now, it's just me, Blake, and Silas. That's only three."
He turned to face Rolan. "Dad. You wanna join us?"
Rolan gave a small laugh, then smiled as he clapped a hand on Talon's shoulder. "Why not? Gotta support my son in style."
Talon nodded once and looked at the others. "Alright then. I need all three of you to come with me for registration."
No one disagreed. They all nodded and followed Talon as they left the building together.
—————————
(Rolan's Picture Here)