Chapter 24

END OF THE TUTORIAL

Alexander had come to accept the loud, absurd parts of his new reality.

Superheroes? Check. Aliens? Sure. Gaining stats like reality is a game? Why not? Go big or go home!

What he was still struggling with was the most boring part of it all.

Why the hell am I four or five years younger?

He’d been born in 2053. It was 2079 when he died and woke in this reality, wearing his own stolen body.

One of the key divergences in this timeline was the jump drive test. In his reality, the first manned mission had been a failure, and the pilot lost. Or dead. Here, the jump had been a success, and that had changed everything that came after. First contact, followed by the discovery of a frankly busy galaxy.

The next major divergence, ignoring all the alien stuff, came two decades later. The first successful superpower serum injection, in 2066.

It was now 2075.

Does time flow differently in each universe? Or did I sign up for both a different reality and a trip back in time?

Lately, he’d even wondered if the spike in ‘accidents’ from his old world, like the one he suffered, was linked to how people here sometimes died when awakening powers. After all, it was what happened to him. Why wouldn’t others suffer the same fate?

When he’d shared his theories and the big secret with Augustus and Talia, they’d entertained him, but ultimately had nothing to contribute. Momentary death during the awakening of powers was just a fact of life, and none of them had ever heard of someone gaining knowledge from an alternate reality. Or worse, supplanting themselves with a different version of themselves.

Shaking his head in the mirror, he finished cleaning up. He didn’t have time for a headache this morning. Not before his big pitch.

Padding into the kitchen, he found the usual: Auggy’s perfect breakfast spread. Somehow, the man always portioned it exactly right, even factoring in Annie’s black hole of a stomach. Talia had once grumbled that Annie clearly had four powers after watching her devour enough for two.

It had been two weeks since they’d moved into the estate. Alexander had decided it was time to discuss something important with the team.

He sat down, waiting until Annie was satisfied with her mountain of food and Talia had her tablet ready.

“I want us to start training.”

Annie paused mid-chew, eyes flashing to him.

Talia looked up, brow raised. “Training… physically?”

“As in all of it,” Alexander said. “Powers. Teamwork. Sharing knowledge about the implants. Ascension. I keep thinking about Flashpoint and how we struggled, how we barely scratched him… and what would’ve happened if Auggy hadn’t shown up. Now, with one well-placed lie, he’s turned the world against us. At this pace, we won’t be ready for what comes next.”

He braced for pushback.

Instead Annie grinned, swallowed, and leaned forward. “Hell yes. Finally.”

Not the response he’d expected.

Augustus entered from the kitchen with a fresh pot of coffee. Rolled sleeves on his forest-green sweater made him look like the world’s most practical wizard-dad-librarian.

“Training, is it?” he asked, topping off Talia’s mug before filling his own. “Excellent idea.”

Alexander blinked. “Just like that?”

“It’s sound,” Auggy said. “I’m actually surprised you waited this long to tell us the next step in our plan.”

Talia nodded, sipping her coffee.

“‘Our plan,’” Alexander muttered. “I’m not happy with how we keep reacting, keep running. And now you two have been cast as villains with us, all for doing the right thing.”

“Told you he’s the man-with-the-plan,” Annie said through a grin.

“I think we’re all in agreement, Alex,” Talia murmured.

Alexander leaned back, arms crossed, eyes closed. “Alright. Let’s go around the table. Powers, knowledge, implants. Annie and I share the same implant, but I know yours are different.”

Annie jumped in first, eager.

“Okay, so! MetaMetal Adaptation! I can phase parts of my body out and replace them with liquid metal. And I’ve got Thermal Flux Control and Density Flux Control. Still learning, but they’re great for hitting hard and not getting roasted by Flashprick.”

“Prickpoint,” Alexander corrected automatically.

She glared at him. “Flashprick is obviously better.”

Talia was already taking notes. “Heat concentration. Density spikes. Freezing touch. And capable of ignoring some thermal attacks, as we’ve seen. You’ll be a nightmare in close quarters.”

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“Already am,” Annie said, puffing out her chest.

Alexander gave a pragmatic overview of his Technopathy and Electrokinesis, finishing with the theory that a third power was still dormant.

“It was obvious early on,” Auggy said, “that powers fall into harmonic, chaotic, or synergistic combinations. You can train chaos into harmony, harmony into synergy… but only tri-power sets start synergistic by nature.”

He glanced up, almost apologetic at seeing Alexander’s confusion. “I was an early adopter, nine years ago. The Space Force was building a superpowered unit, and I volunteered immediately. How could I say no to superpowers?”

“And you totally became a wizard,” Annie gushed.

“Actually, it was called Sorcery at first. Now it’s Arcane Seeker.”

Alexander’s eyes snapped open. “Your power changed names? Why? How?”

“It happened after I ascended my Willpower,” Auggy explained.

Annie gasped. “You’re an ascended wizard?!”

He smiled. “Perhaps. I cannot be certain, but I think it occurred because I’d come to understand the nature of my power and aimed to push it beyond what it could do. It happened after I learned to cast portals.”

Silence followed, broken only by coffee sips and Annie’s crunching.

“What did ascending Willpower give you?” Talia asked.

“That,” Auggy said slowly, “you’ll have to discover yourselves. I’ve ascended both Willpower and Endurance, a few years apart. Some benefits were immediate, others subtle.

He glanced down into his cup. “I’m happy to share what I know about Endurance. Just not Willpower. I shared what I knew about it in the program, but when one man tried to copy my insights, his growth stalled completely. I left soon after. Stopped pushing myself. Lost touch with the others. Let the training and the mission… slip away.”

A heavy silence fell over the group.

“We’ll need to formalize our training,” Talia said, breaking the silence. “Especially if we want to hit Tier 2. The gap in power can be enormous, even among Tier 2s. Something to do with how high you’ve climbed. Even in AEGIS information about it was scarce.”

Annie jabbed her fork toward her. “So what’s your Tier?”

“I’m still Tier 1,” Talia admitted. “I’ve hit a few thresholds, but I’m holding off triggering them.”

Alexander frowned. “Wait. It’s a choice?”

Talia nodded, almost shy. “Yes. Once a core stat hits the threshold, you can trigger the change. I want to ascend all ten at once.”

“Why would you do that?” he asked. “It could mean the difference between life and death.”

She sipped her coffee, trying to hide a blush. “I think there’ll be a reward or something unique. No one’s documented someone doing that yet, as far as I could find.”

“A reward…” Alexander echoed.

“Duh,” Annie said. “Don’t you play games, dude? That’s literally an achievement in the waiting.”

Alexander let it go. “We’ll need a general routine for physical and cognitive training, plus focused regimens for our strongest stats. If we want to hit Tier 2 quickly, that is.”

They all agreed. From there, Talia and Auggy built the program. Their knowledge and experience complemented each other well.

Alexander trained Intelligence and Perception. Annie targeted Agility and Focus. Auggy coached them both, reasoning it was the best use of his experience. And Talia followed her own plan toward a perfect ascension.

Progress happened slowly. Whatever force was pushing them to aim beyond their limits seemed to favor real danger.

Still, they did progress.

If this reality were a game, this would’ve marked the end of their shared tutorial.

Two and a half months passed, and the world continued its slow spiral toward madness.

Daily news reports showed growing unrest in major cities across the world. Skybreaker’s attack was blamed, as though it had inspired villain groups everywhere. Rogue superhumans committed attacks across national and international borders, AEGIS propaganda swelled, and the feeds were filled with conspiracy theories and political rage.

In Argentum, Flashpoint’s press conference split public opinion. Some saw him as a beacon of law and order, overlooking the collateral damage. Others saw arrogance made flesh, the face of a superpowered elite. They claimed he represented the growing divide between the superpowered and the mundane.

Then one morning, while Annie sprawled on the sofa with snacks, a news report cut through the channels.

“…surfacing on superhuman forums today, this image captured minutes before the break-in and fire at an Argentum precinct appears to show Augustus Greaves, ex-Space Force officer and wanted supervillain implicated in the Hollowed Die Ambush.”

Annie sat up, mouth still full. “What the hell—?”

The screen zoomed. A grainy wide shot showed Augustus waving at three masked figures behind a chain-link fence.

Among them stood Annie. Masked. Arm raised mid-wave. Head turned just enough that it looked like she was waving at the camera.

“Oh no,” Annie muttered, crumbs spilling.

The others gathered. Alexander loomed over the sofa. “Annie,” he said carefully. “Why were you waving at them?”

“I wasn’t waving at them! I was waving at Auggy. He was seeing us off!”

Talia was already scrolling on her tablet. “We’re trending again.”

Alexander pinched the bridge of his nose. “What is it this time?”

“The Dapper Demons is blowing up. Followed by The Horned Assembly. Gentleman Fiends. And Team Fuck Flashpoint.”

“No way we’re being called any of those stupid names.”

“The good news is it’s split,” Talia added. “The bad news is… we have fans.”

Alexander took the tablet and regretted it instantly. The longer he scrolled, the worse it got. Love letters and marriage proposals poured in for Auggy. Annie had somehow gained a cult following.

Because of course Annie has started a cult!

He glanced over at the little gremlin.

“Y’know,” Annie said, “if they start selling merch, we should get a cut.”

She sprawled back down, tapping on her own tablet.

“Annie,” Alexander asked, wary, “what are you doing?”

She sat up with mock innocence. “Ordering shirts.”

It wasn’t all bad. Their STEPS Bounty Board profiles had cooled. For weeks after Flashpoint, each of them had hit the region’s top ten ‘Most Hunted’ list, but they’d since slipped quietly off the list.

Not that it had undone the damage.

Annie and Alexander’s bounties had spiked to 150,000 credits each. Annie was ecstatic until she learned Talia’s old bounty of 125,000 from her vigilante days had been reissued at 200,000, making her the team’s most wanted.

Surprisingly, Auggy was delighted by his own modest 100,000. Delighted enough to frame them all by the staircase like family portraits. Annie loved it. Alexander even caught Talia staring at hers a few times.

Days later, the first ascension occurred.

Alexander and Talia had been running perception drills: spotting tiny shifts in objects hidden around the mansion. The game spread to Auggy and Annie until the house descended into well-meaning chaos.

He was almost surprised when the implant pinged.

[ Veritus Praxis Neuroadaptive Noetic Implant: Series 1 - Ascensus ]

Congratulations, Alexander. Your Perception is ready to ascend. Ascension is the means through which you shall abandon mundanity, walk amongst the Stars, bend reality to your Will, and Continue your Dream.

Are you ready?

…