We don't know how supers came to exist. We do know when, however.

March 1st, 1960, the first super was born.

"What's the situation, officer?"

The officer in charge of the scene let out a sigh of relief as he looked up at the superhero who had landed next to him.

"Dynama, thank the gods, it's you. We have a code S fourteen in progress. A young woman's powers activated for the first time inside the store gave everyone a real fright. She didn't hurt anybody. She caused some minor property damage, though. She is refusing to leave the store, and her powers robbed her of any ability to talk, so we are having trouble communicating."

Dynama, a hero from the first generation, crossed her arms and frowned. A Woman of eighty years with only the silver hair to show for it, she was a staple of the International Hero League and had been around for a long time.

"Am I the first telepath on-site?"

The officer, a well-built Hispanic man in with thick black hair, silver streaks from age running down the side of his head, gave her a nod.

"Yes, ma'am, do you want us to escort you into the building?"

Dynama shook her head and started forward.

"No, officer, I'll take it from here."

Dynama crossed the parking lot that the police officers had cordoned off with swift and confident strides, the automatic doors of the Jc.Penny opening with a warm and cheerful chime. While the outside of the store had looked reasonably normal, the interior was trashed.

A quick investigation by Dynama showed that most if not all of the store's damage had come from people rushing toward the exit in their panic to get out of the building.

Following the trail of knocked-over manikins and discarded clothing, Dynama found herself outside the women's dressing room. Here at least, she found some evidence of what had caused everyone in the store to panic and flee.

Large claw marks had been gouged out of the floor in front of the dressing room area, and once inside, lead to the first door in a line of changing rooms.

Knocking on the changing room door and not at all worried for her safety Dynama sent out both a telepathic call, not bothering to try using her voice. The police had already informed her the new super couldn't talk.

[Hello, this is Dynama with the IHL. I need to know what happened here.]

From within the dressing room, Dynama could hear scraping as something large and heavy shifted its weight around. And a low-pitched but loud and inhuman groan escaped the dressing room.

~Fear/Sadness/Embarrassment~ [Hello? I'm sorry, It was an accident!] ~hope~ {Please be able to help me.}

Dynama winced at the intense emotions. Of course, she had expected them, and it wouldn't be fair to assume the person she was speaking to knew anything about telepathic communication. Still, this is why she preferred to use telepathy with other heroes. They were trained on how to prevent feedback.

[Everything is going to be okay, why don't you start by telling me your name? And then explain what happened.]

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

~Hope/worry~ [My name is Jessica.]

~Fear/Sadness/Despair~ [I transformed into a monster. And then people started screaming...so I started screaming...and...and then I ran into the dressing room to hide.]~Desperate/Anxious/Sad~{I just wanted a nice shirt for my birthday, why is this happening.}

Dynama felt for the kid, the first time a power activates, it can be a pretty jarring experience, to have the bad luck of having it happen in public and for it to change your physical appearance enough to scare everyone around you? Damn, near one in a million.

[You did the right thing in isolating yourself, new powers can be dangerous, especially when we first get them, what you did probably saved lives. The police tell me you're refusing to leave the dressing room. I want to assure you of your safety and that whatever trouble your in will be minor. The IHL and America have a healthy relationship, and there is a budget in place for first-time supers coming into their powers.]

Dynama got a brief flash of a myriad of emotions, too swift and far too complicated for her to parse through before the mystery girl replied.

[I would love to come out...but...um...I'm ...stuck. I don't really have thumbs, and I can't open the door without breaking it down...I've uh...been trying.] ~humilation~ {Please let me out.}

Dynama had to resist letting out a chuckle. She'd been called in for a lot of things, but being the only one able to use a doorknob was not one of them. The police were taking proper levels of precautions in her mind, a new super refusing to leave a building, no idea what their state of mind might be? Unable to communicate? Makes sense to call in a pro.

[Alright, I'm going to open the door. I want you to do your best to stay still, no sudden movements now.]

~Fear/Anxiousness/Hope~ [Okay.]

As Dynama stepped up to the dressing room and gripped the round doorknob, pulling it open slowly, not wanting to spook the young woman inside. She kept her face entirely schooled. She had been in the business of hero work for too long to not have a good poker face.

Inside the dressing room was a sizeable, black scaled, reptilian quadruped with a long sinuous tail and neck. On its back of all things was a pair of large bat-like wings with fleshy membranes. It was also almost entirely curled upon itself to fit in the tiny dressing room. At a glance, Dynama put the length of the new super at somewhere between ten and twelve feet.

In short, Dynama was starring at a dragon from European folklore, one that trembled at the sight of her and pulled its head back, letting out a throaty and bestial hiss of fear.

[It's going to be okay, you don't need to be scared of me Jessica, I'm not going to hurt you.]

~shame/embaressment~ [I uh..can't control it...that was mostly just my body acting on its own. I'm so sorry....um...you wouldn't know how I could change back, would you?]

Dynama shook her head but offered the young...dragon an encouraging smile.

"I can't help you with that, no, but I know a few people at the IHL who can help you come to terms with your new powers. Standard procedure is at least three weeks of training for all new supers. I apologize for asking, but how old are you, Jessica? Do I need to contact a parent or guardian?"

Right around when Dynama mentioned Jessica's age and parents, she felt a considerable spike in emotions from the girl, and the dragon in the dressing room unwound and sat straight up so quickly for a half-second Dynama thought she was under attack.

~Panic/fear/shame/despair~ [Oh no! My parents! They are going to kill me!{Disown me} I..I...um...I'm Eighteen. Today was my birthday. I can't ...my mouth it...it doesn't form words right, can...can you call them for me?] ~Hope~

Those thoughts were accompanied by flashes of images and emotions, and despite Dynama doing her best to preserve the girl's privacy by pushing past them, she was still able to glean that perhaps she didn't have the most stable home life. None the less Dynama gave Jessica her most comforting smile and a nod.

"Sure thing Jessica, I don't mind translating for you. For now, let's get you out of this store and let the police know they won't have any more issues from us today, hmm?"

"Ah, but we might want to get you a course for ASL. It could come in very handy for you in the future."

________________________________________________________________________

Jessica's point of view.

Jessica had sat in the back of an ambulance a couple of times in her life. She had been a lot younger then, and it had been decidedly awkward talking to the paramedics.

Sitting outside and talking to the paramedics via translater because you had somehow turned yourself into a monster that wouldn't fit inside the vehicle at all was much worse.

She really wished she could just curl up and disappear. All of these people were starring at her, and they kept asking questions. Not to mention the fact that her parents were on their way. She couldn't even begin to imagine a scenario where that ended pleasantly.

To distract herself from the Sword of Damocles that would be her parent's arrival, Jessica was trying to get used to moving her new body. She started with just the claws on her hand, opening and closing them slowly. Not having proper thumbs made gripping certain things a real issue for her. She had been utterly stumped about how to get out of the dressing room and couldn't even remember how she had managed to get the door closed behind her in the panicked flight to get inside the dressing room.

"Jessica? Jessica?" [Jessica? I know this is a lot, but I need you to nod your head yes or shake your head no as to whether you want them to administer any calming medications]

The world's newest and only dragon blinked at Dynama for a moment and then looked to the two EMTs standing in front of her. Looking as awkward as Jessica felt, she shook her head at them and nearly tripped them as they turned to walk away when her tail attempted to curl around her feet.

~Anxiety~ [Oh Gods! Dynama, can you tell them I'm sorry?]

Why did this happen to me? Jessica lamented to silently to herself as she looked around for anywhere she might be able to slink away to hide. She just wanted to have her old body back. But no matter how much she willed herself to be human again or tried to grasp some invisible power, nothing happened.

That was when she spotted