That morning, Alexia sat on the sofa, staring blankly at the wall, her mind swirling with thoughts. She had to figure out how to handle these new heightened senses—super hearing and now super vision. Freya’s gift had given her some control, but that gift would only last for six months. After that, it would be all on her to master them.

Her super strength had been easier to grasp. That was something she could relate to—cars. She thought of it like horsepower. Regular strength was like a 100-hp car; her super strength, more like 2000 hp. It all depended on how much she pushed it.

But these senses? They were something else entirely.

“Alright, let’s do this,” she muttered to herself, determination flickering in her voice.

She pressed her ring finger, activating both her super hearing and supervision at once. Immediately, her senses exploded. The sharp burn in her eyes returned, and her ears were assaulted by layers upon layers of noise. She heard everything—birds chirping in the distance, the rustling of leaves, military cars driving down streets miles away. Every little thing was amplified, turning her mind into a chaotic mess.

“Come on, focus…” she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut, but that only made it worse.

Her vision zoomed in uncontrollably; one moment she saw microscopic details on her coffee table, the next she was seeing through the walls, the beams of light refracting in infrared, ultraviolet, and x-ray spectrums all at once. It was chaos, and her head throbbed with the effort to rein it in.

There was only one way out of this—focus. But it was far easier said than done.

“Okay, Alexia, you’ve done this with strength, now do it with your senses. One step at a time,” she coached herself internally.

She tried to focus on her hearing first, to isolate it. She clenched her fists, trying to focus on the immediate world around her. “One thing at a time,” she reminded herself. She concentrated on the ticking of the clock across the room, forcing her hearing to latch onto that one, singular sound. It helped a little—the background noise dulled, the world settling just a bit. And then she focused on the sound of birds miles away, back and forth. It was on the easier side as she had some control before.

Next, her eyes. She blinked, narrowing her focus to the glass of water sitting on the coffee table. For a second, her vision blurred, then snapped into place. She could see the condensation on the glass, the tiniest droplets forming and trickling down the side. Progress.

The pressure in her head began to ease as she continued focusing. But every time she slipped, the noise and the chaos returned with a vengeance, making her vision swing wildly and her hearing scatter to the farthest edges of her surroundings.

Hours passed, though she hardly realized it. Her muscles were tensing, her mind straining from the effort. Her senses kept slipping—her hearing would catch a random sound far away, her vision would suddenly zoom in on a speck of dust across the room. But every time she lost control, she pulled herself back, little by little.

Finally, her stomach growled, breaking her concentration.

“Oh crap… I’ve been at this for hours,” she muttered, glancing at the clock.

Her powers faded back to normal as she pressed her finger again, “Well, that’s one way to train,” she muttered. Standing up, she stretched her arms and headed toward the kitchen. “Now, let’s get some food before I collapse.”

As she walked, though, she couldn't help but feel a spark of pride. It wasn’t perfect, but she was learning. “I can do this,” she thought. “I just need time” and time was all she got.

As the sun dipped below the horizon and the soft glow of moonlight spilled across the yard, Alexia’s stomach growled fiercely. After hours of training, she was ravenous. Heading to the kitchen, she quickly whipped up two steaming bowls of fried rice, grilled five thick steaks, grabbed four bananas, and poured herself a large glass of milk. Not forgetting the two liters of water, she laid everything out like a feast, her muscles aching for the fuel.

She wolfed it down without much thought, the sound of her fork clinking against the plate drowning out the eerie quiet outside. As she took the last bite of steak, she lazily raised her hand—and right on cue, the turrets around her house hummed to life. The flashing red lights and the distant rumble of the cannons signaled the return of the undead ogres.

Alexia sighed, not even sparing a glance at the security monitors. "Give it a rest already." She wiped her mouth, casually making her way to the living room as if an army of undead ogres wasn’t tearing through the streets.

Plopping down on the couch, she clicked on the TV, the background noise of sonic booms and turret fire barely registering. "Probably another hero tossing Necromancers into space again," she muttered, almost bored by the thought.

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Stretching out her legs, she settled in with the remote, scrolling through channels. "Maybe there's something good on tonight."

She took a sip of milk, sinking deeper into the couch, as another distant sonic boom shook the windows.

As Alexia flicked through the channels, the sounds of celebration filled her living room.

"…and once again, Metal Bat Wonder swoops in and—"

Clicked

"—just tossed another one into the abyss, I mean, can you believe how effective—"

Clicked

"—Necromancers won’t be causing trouble anymore from space! I’ve never seen anything—"

Clicked

"—proving that heroes are our best line of defense. Who else could—"

Clicked

"—and that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you solve the undead problem, one Necromancer at a time!"

She rolled her eyes, leaning back on the couch. "Same thing on every channel," she muttered, stuffing another bite of banana into her mouth as the distant booms of battle continued outside. "Guess space is getting pretty crowded now.”

"Maybe there's something new on the international channels," Alexia muttered to herself as she flicked through the programs.

The first news channel she landed on showed a chaotic scene. The reporter’s voice was shaky, the footage behind her was a mess of smoke and debris. “In Valmeron, despite the heroes’ best efforts, the necromancers managed to summon waves of undead. They’ve lost three of their top-level heroes in the battle.”

She switched to another channel. The anchor had a somber look, as aerial footage displayed cities overrun with towering creatures. “In Branth and parts of Eastern Alcoraan, entire regions have been overrun. The governments are calling for immediate evacuation, though escape routes are scarce."

The third news flash made her pause. “Both Astaor and Clarenthia attempted to send the Necromancers into space, mimicking the tactics seen in Vorenthia. But without the silencing helmets… some of their heroes were obliterated mid-flight by the necromancers' spells.”

Then something made her freeze. She blinked at the screen, recognizing a familiar face—the same host, Henry, who had criticized President Kane’s policies before. But now, he wasn’t behind a desk. Henry was in the middle of a warzone, face pale, eyes wide with fear, barely able to speak.

Explosions echoed in the background. Armed guards flanked him as he stammered through his report. “We… we’re trying to get out of here, but they’re closing in. It’s—it's chaos. I—I don’t know if we’ll make it. Th-they're everywhere," he said, his voice shaky, the camera panning briefly to show the undead ogres tearing through the city behind him. "I—I’m not sure how much longer we can hold them off. This… this is out of control.”

Alexia leaned forward, her brow furrowing. "Well, Henry, guess you didn’t think it’d be this bad, did you?" she muttered to herself, before flicking the channel again.

From the other side of the world, where the sun still ruled the sky, the situation was slightly better—at least for now. Alexia flipped to a live broadcast from the country of Valenra, where their military and heroes stood united, preparing for the inevitable.

The news anchor, a woman with sharp features, spoke in a measured tone, her voice steady despite the looming threat. “Here in Valenra, heroes from our capital and neighboring nations like Fereth and Arkaal have come together. The undead ogres are expected to reach our shores by nightfall, but preparations are well underway.”

The camera cut to rows of soldiers lined up in formation, their expressions grim, but determined. Behind them, several heroes in battle suits were gearing up, their glowing weapons and shields casting an eerie light on the gathering forces.

One of the military commanders was being interviewed. “We’ve reinforced our defensive lines,” he said, gesturing toward a massive energy dome projected over the city. “Our heroes are prepared, and with the support of our neighbors, we’re confident we can hold our ground.”

The camera then shifted to a hero in a sleek suit of gold and white armor, standing beside the commander. “We’ve been trained for this,” the hero said, their voice carrying through the screen. “The key is teamwork, combining our military expertise with our abilities. It’s not just about power—it’s about strategy.”

Alexia watched as more troops rolled in, their preparations methodical. It wasn’t chaos, but a careful, calculated response.

The anchor’s voice returned, her calm demeanor reassuring. “The death toll here is minimal, with losses closer to those in Vorenthia rather than the widespread devastation seen in the other western nations. The coordinated efforts between military forces and heroes are proving effective, but all eyes are on the night ahead.”

Alexia let out a breath, feeling a bit more grounded after seeing this. Maybe there was hope, at least in places like Valenra and Vorenthia.

Shutting off the TV, she stood up and stretched, the events of the day weighing on her. The steady rhythm of cleaning the dishes and putting things away helped her unwind. She ran a hand through her hair, feeling the tension ebb slightly, but the reality of the lockdown remained a dull throb in the back of her mind.

After washing up, she padded into her bedroom and climbed into bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. The chaos outside was still alive but it was somewhat peaceful that it was under the heroes control. Her body ached from the day's unexpected training, and her eyes began to droop.

"Just one night of rest," she whispered to herself, hoping for a good night as she drifted off into sleep.

The next morning, Alexia fell into her new routine—training to control her powers. It had been a few days, and if it weren’t for the challenges of mastering her abilities, she would’ve succumbed to boredom. Her super hearing and vision were getting more manageable, but they still slipped out of control at times, and the burn in her eyes reminded her that Freya’s gift wasn’t something to take lightly.

The news continued to update her about the lockdown. The latest reports announced that if there were no ogre attacks during the day, the restrictions would soon be lifted during daylight hours. “We’ll only have lockdowns at night if things stay quiet,” one anchor said with a hopeful smile.

Alexia smiled to herself. The thought of being able to go outside again felt like a long-lost freedom. The silence of the past few days had been deafening, broken only by the occasional phone call from Clayton, who, like her, seemed desperate for conversation to dull the monotony.

“You still surviving over there?” he had asked the other day.

“Barely,” Alexia had replied with a laugh. “I’ve been tempted to rearrange my furniture just for something to do.”

“Careful, or you'll develop a superpower in interior design,” Clayton had joked, which had earned a genuine chuckle from Alexia.

A few technicians also stopped by to install UV lights around the perimeter of her house. “It’ll help against the undead ogres,” they had said, and she hadn’t hesitated to agree. “Better safe than sorry,” she thought, and their installation proved effective during the nights that followed. The faint hum of the UV lights had become part of the ambient noise around her home.

Finally, after a few weeks of waiting, the news broke—the lockdown during the day was officially lifted. Alexia felt a surge of happiness that had been absent for so long. It had been weeks since she had driven her car, and now, she could almost taste the freedom of the open road.

She celebrated by throwing on a casual dress, ready to take her first drive in what felt like forever. Grabbing her keys, she headed toward the garage, but just as she reached for the handle, a sound stopped her in her tracks.

It was faint, a low, guttural moan coming from outside her front door. Alexia’s brow furrowed. "A neighbor, maybe?" she thought. She commanded her defense system to open the fortified door, expecting to see one of her neighbors, but what she saw froze her in place.

Standing there, swaying on unsteady legs, was not a neighbor, but something far worse—an undead human. Its skin was pallid, eyes clouded over, and it wore tattered clothing, remnants of the life it once had. Its mouth hung open, a chilling groan escaping its lips.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Alexia muttered under her breath, her shock quickly turning into frustration.