A single white cloud was floating through the blue sky. Partly hiding behind the tall buildings, it was slowly making its way toward an unknown goal. Periodically flickering with an odd yellow light, it surprisingly had a defined shape. Almost as if the cloud tried to show something, turning into some kind of Rorschach test. Unfortunately, Robert failed to see anything specific in it, focusing more on the beauty of the calmness that the cloud carried with itself. Unworried about anything, following the flow, it had no signs of annoyance. No irritation about the surroundings. No strong emotions, only the tranquility of the old monks near the end of their lives.
I wish I could just enjoy the world like you…
“Hey, are you listening to me? I said – stand down and surrender…,” sighing and turning his head back to the speaker, Rober once again faced a strange man, dressed like on a masquerade. However, the fact that the unknown appeared right in front of him from nowhere was the best confirmation that the man had something behind his words, and not just spilling nonsense.
“I just want to leave peacefully, so, please, get lost, boy.”
“Well, I can’t do that… You see, the nude giant, who just killed two dozen government agents can’t walk away on my watch, pretending that nothing happened. I’ve just joined the ranks of elites, and simply can’t allow any mishap to taint my reputation,” Shaking his head, the superhero explained not changing his confident expression.
“Are you ready to die for how the others see you? That’s stupid,” measuring his opponent, Robert saw no signs of fear. Only the same confidence in his own strength that was on the verge of turning into delusional overconfidence – the same that he saw in quite a few now-dead challengers in the Tower. Rob could admit that he didn’t notice how the man had appeared, but it didn’t mean anything. No matter how athletic the man was, he barely reached Rob’s middle of the belly even in his heavy-looking shoes, which paled in comparison to Robert’s huge frame. And that was what Rob decided to point at, not even trying to be polite, “Maybe grow first, before attempting to throw your weight everywhere, shorty.”
“I have a statistically average height!” The reaction was immediate as if the topic was the painful spot for the man, “I am twenty-two, and have more than enough to kick your ass, dickhead! You will rot in prison for the rest of your life!”
“Violence it is,” Nodding to himself, Robert sighed, before clenching his fists. His steel was already crawling across his body to the right palm, turning into the one-edged cleaver with a wide blade. The latter was covered with a barely visible layer of destructive energy, kept by Rob’s mental effort. However, before both opponents moved toward each other, the loud gunshot resounded from above. Instantly reacting to the threat, Robert a moment too late to raise his head. In the next second half his head exploded, throwing him off balance.
The high-caliber bullet penetrated his forehead, pierced his brain, and tore the back of his skull, creating a huge hole. The attack could be fatal for anyone, but Robert. The pang of pain, the need to stabilize his position after the sudden hit, and that was it. He wasn’t even blinded, as his eyes were not damaged. There was no halt in a thought process when he assessed the situation. An instant later after stabilizing his position, Rob was already moving. Simultaneously, his wound was in the process of closing, repaired under his mental command.
It seems all my entity is indeed concentrated inside the reactor core…
The thought lingered for some time in his mind, while Rob was swinging his cleaver toward the shorty. However, the costumed man simply smiled, rolling backward in a swift motion. Pushing his legs upward, the superhero ended on the handstand before standing back on his feet. Such demonstrative actions appeared possible only because two more bullets hit Robert’s body, halting his attack from severing the man’s head.
Fucking snipers! Okay, no blade, or else they will kill me without a doubt… They clearly seem to use not ordinary rifles – the force behind each shot is much bigger than from APC’s machine gun because of the explosive nature.
Continuing his motion, Robert threw his fist toward the superhero, who once again rolled to the side. This time the dodge was made at the last possible moment, almost touching the face with the smile. That made to drop the grin, turning the man serious. Kneeling for a moment, the superhero pressed the black lines on his costume. There was a short glow, and then two long knives were formed from what earlier appeared to be a simple fabric. Returning the grin, the man squeezed his eyes and slightly leaned forward.
Anticipating the attack, Robert braced himself. His obsidian steel was already sucked inside, leaving him empty-handed, but instead raising his chance to survive as the construct was finishing the process of creating an additional rib cage around his reactor core in an attempt to protect his single weak spot. It appeared a good idea as the next shot was aimed at his heart. Entering his metallic flesh, the bullet cut through in a fraction of an instant before being smashed against the black steel. Bouncing against the tougher surface, it tore his inner organs apart before leaving the body from the stomach. All of it happened so fast that Robert barely registered the fact. However, he had no chance to react as the superhero made his own move.
Flashing with a green light, the man disappeared from the spot. An instant later came a loud bang as if the sound couldn’t catch up with the action. And then Robert felt as if he was falling on the ground, failing to keep himself on his feet. Dropping on his knee, he finally noticed his separated leg that had already started to disperse into nothingness. Acting on instinct, he grabbed it before locking it with what seemed to be a perfect cut before trying to reconnect it. The moment he finished the regeneration, Rob heard the cough from behind. Turning around he was met with a blade that went through his face. The whole world rotated a few times before starting to fade. However, Robert’s thoughts didn’t stop running.
Looks like an insanely fast charge on a straight line… Not a full speedster, hopefully.
Blindly finding the upper part of the head, Rob put it back before attempting to stand up. Two more gunshots from the invisible shooters destroyed his knees, pushing his legless torso back to the ground. Still, there was no pain, just annoyance. Raising his head and meeting his eyes with the superhero, Robert made a scared face. At least he tried, as he wasn’t even sure how believable his expression might be. Luckily, the change in his attitude was enough for the superhero to stop. Making a stopping motion into the air as if commanding the snipers to halt the shooting, he squatted near Robert.
“Have you heard the saying – the bigger you are, the harder you fall? It fits perfectly to you, my dear BOY. So, don’t make others waste their time and just surrender,” arrogantly grinning, the unknown superhero proclaimed.
“Is being a moron a necessity to become an elite? Or is it just your personal feature?” Completing the rebuilding of his body, Robert started to stand up, “And what about such thick shoe soles? Is it how you fit the average values of height?”
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
The answer was an angry roar. Grimacing from hatred, the superhero was already in motion. Both his knives were set to the sides, while his body was leaning forward, hardly pressing on the ground. Glowing with green light, he looked like a compressed spring a moment before the release. Tensed muscles, white fingers because of a strong grip, and the killing gaze from the eyes. In the next moment, he disappeared, beheading Robert in one swift motion. The scenery attempted to darken, but Rob was fast enough to reconstruct the damaged neck while turning around and hastily rising.
His opponent didn’t look good. The emotional outburst and his overconfidence caused him to miss a tiny needle that was protruding from Rob’s leg, crossing the trajectory of the attack. Enveloped in destructive energy, it was barely visible under the sun despite its length. Especially when the superhero wasn’t looking down, focusing on Robert’s face as his primary target. Therefore, when the man accelerated to cut Rob, he simultaneously bisected both his shins, ending on the floor. Still, the inertia from the insanely fast launch was there, pushing him forward and resulting in a horrible picture. Leaving a huge trace of blood, the superhero simply grated his face against the road, almost reaching the bones.
Wailing from sudden pain, he tried to stand up not understanding the futility of such an act, but Robert was already stomping onto his back, pushing a pike from his heel. The metal penetrated the flesh, breaking the spine and immobilizing the opponent. At least he thought he did, but the man instinctively activated his ability once again. Gripping the asphalt with his fingers, the superhero pushed himself forward, crawling at his insane speed and vanishing from the spot. The problem was that the spike was still present in his body, tearing it butt and splashing the blood everywhere.
Fuck, that’s gross!
Stepping back in shock from the horrible picture in front of him, Robert tried to swing his leg a few times to throw away the blood from his heel. However, this was the moment when snipers decided to remind him of their existence. Hitting his back, and finding an unprotected gap between the ribs, the bullet stroked his reactor core, causing a tremendous wave of pain. Luckily, the force shield managed to withstand the attack. Still, that dropped Robert back to the ground, which in return helped him to avoid a second shot. Unfortunately, the third projectile hit the back of his head.
Shattering his teeth, it made him spit out the blood and the remnants of the bones. Still, the remnant of the bullet was stuck inside his mouth. Robert realized it only after a few seconds when his body almost finished regenerating. However, there was no pause for him as the moment he got up, his eyes caught sight of quickly approaching shadow, coming from above. Diving down from the sky, it crashed into Rob without a single pause, shouting some insults in the process. Pushing him backward, a newly emerged superhero slightly twisted his trajectory. In the next second Robert felt he was flying, being carried by another freak in a costume. And, considering, a quickly rising height, the plan of the attacker seemed to be quite straightforward – to drop him from the sky. Or maybe to carry him somewhere else. Rob didn't know, nor did he wish to know.
Therefore, Robert wished his weight to return, increasing it at once with the help of the reactor core. To the superhero’s credit, the unknown almost managed to stabilize the flight in time. Almost, as both of them crashed into the nearest building. Breaking through the stone wall, they continued their way through the office area, destroying everything in the process. This was the moment when Rob’s steel finally finished forming a dagger. The weapon was immediately used, but only to bounce back, failing to penetrate the skin. The attacker – the mustached middle-aged man in aviator’s glasses – attempted to mock an unsuccessful attack. At least he managed to produce the first few words before Rob spat out the bullet right into the opened mouth.
Chocking from a sudden foreign object in his throat, the superhero missed the moment when the energy-coated blade found a way inside his inner organs. Grasping from pain and lack of air, he tried to push Rob away only to feel how the blade started to rotate, simply burning a huge hole inside his stomach. In the next moment, Robert headbutted the superhero, resulting in a chaotic fall.
Rolling on the floor and smashing any obstacles in their way like office furniture, a huge printer, or a water cooler, they both ended up crashing into the window on the opposite side of the building. Not releasing each other from the forceful hugs, they rotated a few times in the air before dropping on the road. Unfortunately for the superhero, Robert appeared to be on top, cracking not only the surface but something inside of the flying super. Still, adding another incompatible with a life hole in the neck of the enemy, Rob pushed himself upward, trying to wipe the blood.
“Obey me! Stop!”
They are like flies that found fresh crap… And you, Robert, are exactly that crap. Damn it! Why don’t you leave me alone? Am I asking a lot?
“I command you to stop!”
Turning around and finding the petite woman in a purple suit with a short cape, Rob sighed. Skinny, with a huge mask that had a third eye painted on her forehead, she didn’t give off any dangerous vibes. Ebony skin, and cherry lips, she looked like a typical model on a fashion show with a superhero theme. On the other hand, that couldn’t be said about her deeds as each of her words resonated with the thoughts inside Robert’s mind, sounding like they came from his own self. As if it was his wish to lay down and obey any words, coming from the woman. He did feel it – this stream of foreign thoughts that tried to overwhelm his mind with sheer power. The thing was that he had multiple such streams running simultaneously to keep his own existence from crumbling, and no matter how strong her will was, it couldn’t win over the number superiority.
It's like a twisted reflection of the situation I experience right now… What a joke!
Shaking his head as if he was struggling to keep his thoughts, Robert made a first step toward the woman. Catching the balance in the last moment, he was showing how hard it was to fight the mental attack on his mind. And it seemed his act looked quite believable, as the heroine immediately reacted.
“Flame Touch, be ready to burn him! I can’t hold much longer!”
“I will burn him to a crisp for what he has done!”
With a twisted grimace, the new guy, dressed like a mixture of orange from children’s fruit performance and a firefighter, ran out from the cover, pointing both hands toward Robert. His red-colored hair threatened to thrust the skies, shining because of the overuse of hair wax. The sparks of the fire were flying from the palms, only to turn into a stream of flame a moment later. Washing over Robert’s body, the flame enveloped him, slowly growing in intensity. The asphalt was the first to fail the temperature test, melting under the heat. The surrounding area turned hot, making each breath a challenge. And it was the reason why the heroine failed to stop her mate in time, making an effort to produce each word.
“Stop! We need… him… alive… not killers…”.
“He killed others! He is a threat that we need to put down no matter the cost. He is too dangerous to…,” Turning around, Flame Touch tried to convince his colleague, but such a distraction cost him dearly. Suddenly shortening the distance, Robert grabbed both palms and squeezed. Surprisingly, the man didn’t have any toughness improvement, making his bones as fragile as glass. Instantly shattering under the pressure, it halted the ability. Before the orange man screamed, his body was already thrown toward the woman.
Rotating a single time, he blew down the heroine, wounding both of them in the process. Immediately the voice in Rob’s mind was cut off, signaling the broken connection. The hit appeared to be strong enough to knock her out, while the flaming man was crying from the pain, completely abandoning any thoughts about fighting Robert, as not only his palms were turned into a ruined mass of blood and meat, but his leg broke, pushing the bone outside in a gruesome picture. Still, that didn’t stop Rob from moving toward them to end the threat. His experience was telling him to never underestimate the enemies, not giving them any chance to strike back. However, another voice was against it.
“You better find someone your size, villain!”
Loudly shouting as if Robert was deaf, the muscular and tall guy ran through the distant police barricade, jumping over it in one swift motion. Dressed like a typical white collar, he was indeed big, but not even near to Rob’s size. A moment later his words started to make sense, when the man began to grow, tearing his clothes apart. In just several seconds a real five-meter giant emerged in front of him, showcasing a defined frame of a professional bodybuilder, ready to step on a stage. It looked like each of his muscles was worked out to the peak of its potential, turning the man into an ancient statue of the god. Still, Robert couldn’t stop himself from asking.
“Who are you? A stripper?”