The taxi drove Blake across town, north of the loop, to a small fire station near a private airport. He left his driver parked outside, crossed the road, and entered the firehouse.

He found himself in a large common room with a full kitchen, which included a refrigerator, sink, and dishwasher. To his left were multiple unused twin beds. On his right was a round table with four young men seated around it. Piles of poker chips were next to the players, and each held a hand of cards. They were so focused on their game, they were oblivious to his entry.

“I’ll raise by a hundred,” the man with his back to Blake said confidently to a chorus of groans.

That’s Montgomery!

He would recognize that voice anywhere. To his relief, Jeff was also present at the table, although Blake did not recognize the two others.

“Fold.”

“Fold.”

Jeff, silently followed suit and slammed his cards face down on the table.

“Aww, come on,” Montgomery said as he raked his winnings toward him. “Why do you always fold every time I raise?”

“Because you never raise unless you have an amazing hand. I’m telling you, you’ve gotta learn to bluff.”

Jeff nodded in agreement.

The man across from his friend finally noticed Blake, and asked, “Can I help you kid?”

“No, I’m here to talk to Montgomery and Jeff.”

Jeff looked him up and down and frowned in confusion. Montgomery, however, never bothered to turn toward him. While he organized his chips, he said, “Tell Jeremy I’ll pay him the money I owe him on Friday.”

“I’m not here for money.”

“Oh good,” Montgomery replied and finally turned. “Then what can I… what the hell are you wearing?”

Blake glanced at the curious two unknown men.

Better not to risk it.

He knew his friends well and planned to tell them everything. That included the warrant out for his arrest that he failed to mention to Jessica. Blake hoped to talk to them alone so he did not have to censor his words.

“If you and Jeff come outside, I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

Montgomery gave him a strange look and turned back to his game. “Hard pass, I’m not into LARPing.”

“Trust me, you and Jeff want to hear me out.”

“Whatever, I don’t know you, dude. Just tell me what you’re sellin’, so I can say no, and we can get back to our game.”

“You may not know me, but I know you.”

“Oh really,” Montgomery glanced over his shoulder with a smirk. “Then please, tell me all about myself.”

“You volunteered for the fire department because you’re a pyromaniac,” Blake began.

“He’s got your number there,” said one of the firemen with a smirk.

“All firemen are pyros.” Montgomery retorted.

“Not like you,” his buddy disagreed.

“You and Jeff have been friends since elementary school, and you have the annoying habit of speaking for him.”

“Also true!” the unknown man barked and laughed. Jeff raised his eyebrows.

“Your favorite food is pizza,” Blake continued.

“Pfftt.” Montgomery snorted. “Everybody loves pizza.”

“Yeah, but not everyone likes pineapple on it like you do.”

One firefighter mimicked gagging, while the other responded, “Seems like he really does know you.”

“Whatever,” Montgomery shook his head. “He probably just talked to my mom.”

You know what? He asked for it.

“Oh really?” Blake grinned evilly. “Does your mother know about your ‘Brony’ interest?”

The entire table, including Jeff, began laughing. Montgomery turned beet red, and denied his claim. “Ha Ha. Nice try. You obviously don’t know anything about me, but you’ve got me interested. Let’s head out back, and you can tell me and Jeff what you want.”

When Montgomery’s previous confidence turned to nervousness, Jeff’s guffaws slowly ended, and he turned to his friend with raised brows.

Montgomery stood and motioned to his friend. “Come on Jeff. Let’s go see what this kid wants.”

Blake was amused that he kept referring to him as a kid. His two friends were only a few years older than he currently was, and they both still lived with their mothers.

As they walked, Blake scrutinized their familiar appearances.

Like Blake, Montgomery was thin and tall. That, however, was where their physical similarities ended. Montgomery sported a buzzcut, a tattoo of a roaring fire on the back of his neck and arms, was clean-shaven, and walked with a swagger.

In contrast, Jeff was short at only five-six, very muscular, with a full blond beard that matched his shaggy hair. Jeff wore his customary shorts and tank top, while Montgomery was in jeans and an old t-shirt.

Once they exited the back door into the fenced back lot, Montgomery whirled around and demanded, “Okay kid, now what do you want?”

He extended his hand. “The name’s Blake.”

His former friend frowned, but returned the shake. “Despite your lame joke, you seem to know me already. How?”

While their hands were momentarily clasped, he transferred over a mega-nano and initiated Montgomery into the Collective. He then shook with Jeff, and repeated the process.

You know what, let me try something different.

Rather than avail the two with the coming dystopian future, he instead winked and said, “Watch this.”

Blake activated Spatial Step and disappeared. He teleported past his friends and exited the maneuver facing them to observe their reactions.

They did not disappoint.

Both young men jolted in surprise and searched the area in confusion.

“Back here,” Blake announced with a cocky grin.

They whirled around in with wide eyes and jaws dropped.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“How the hell did you do that?” Montgomery demanded.

“Magic.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Montgomery rolled his eyes. “I’m serious.”

“So am I. I’m also strong enough to lift a car, and I’m kind of bulletproof.”

As usual, Jeff remained silent and let Montgomery do the talking for him. “That’s stupid. How can someone be ‘kind of bulletproof’?” He emphasized the question with air quotes.

“Well, there’s a big difference between a nine millimeter pistol and a sniper rifle. A bullet from a pistol will leave a bruise, while a sniper will probably punch right through.”

“Sure kid...” Montgomery nodded toward a nearby parked car and folded his arms across his chest. “Why don’t you go ahead and prove it? Let’s see if you can bench press a car, skinny guy.”

Blake shrugged. “Why not.”

He strode over to the compact car, rolled under the front of the vehicle, and slid on his back under the front axle. After a deep breath, he grasped the axle with both hands and pushed.

With the heavy engine above, the task was far more difficult than he expected. He was forced to fully exert himself before the car began to slowly rise. A second later, his arms were fully extended, and the front tires were almost a foot off the ground.

“Holy shit…” Jeff muttered.

“Damn kid…” Montgomery swore. “How is that even possible? You on ‘roids?”

Blake slowly lowered the axle down to the ground and slid out from under the vehicle. He climbed to his feet and dusted off his hands. “Nope, just nanomachines.”

“Nanomachines? Like, some sci-fi shit?”

“Yep,” Blake confirmed. “They even have an alien origin.”

Any moment now.

Montgomery turned to Jeff and hiked his thumb at Blake. “Can you believe this guy?” A moment later, he stumbled backward. “Woah”

Shortly after, Jeff’s eyes crossed. He raised his hand before his eyes and waved it through the air.

“Looks like the nanomachines kicked in,” Blake said knowingly. “Welcome to the Collective.”

“What did you do to us?” Montgomery demanded. “How do I turn this shit off?”

“Just concentrate on making it go away, or think ‘dismiss’,” Blake answered. “And, all I did was initiate you two into the Collective four months early.”

“Four months? What are you talking about?”

“This is going to be hard to believe, but I come from ten years in the future.”

“Okay, future-boy,” Montgomery said mockingly. “Show me your phone. Let’s see what the xPhone will look like in the future.”

“I didn’t physically travel through time, only my memories came back. It’s why I’m eighteen instead of twenty-eight like I should be. And phones don’t work in the future, anyway.”

“Uh huh.” Montgomery smirked. “So, you got no proof. How convenient.”

“What the hell do you mean I have no proof?!” Blake said in exasperation. “I literally bench pressed a car, teleported across the lot, and gave you a heads-up display made by nanomachines. What more do you want?”

Montgomery shrugged. “What else can you do?”

Blake shook his head. “Un-freaking-believable!”

“Wait, you said you were bulletproof, right?” Montgomery asked.

“Uh, yeah?” Blake replied.

“Okay, give me a minute.” Montgomery approached the small car he had bench pressed, opened the back door, and began to rifle through the back seat.

Whatever.

While Montgomery searched his car, Blake turned his back to his obstinate old friend and addressed Jeff. “So Jeff, what about you? Do you believe me?”

The shorter man shrugged.

“Well, I have a couple of other things I could show you for proof, but they aren’t as flashy as a teleport.”

Jeff’s eyes suddenly widened. A moment later, an impact to the back of Blake’s head rocked him forward. He stumbled a single step before he caught himself and whirled around.

“Holy shit! You ARE bulletproof!” Montgomery replied, metal baseball bat in hand.

“What the hell, man?!” Blake cried in disbelief as he rubbed the back of his head. His scalp was fine, no bruise was left.

“What? You said you were bulletproof. I didn’t have a gun, so this was the best way to prove it. Good news! I believe you now.”

“What kind of bullshit logic is that?!” Blake sputtered. “You didn’t believe me, right?”

Montgomery frowned, but nodded.

“You just swung a baseball bat at my head. If you were right, and I was faking it, I’d be either dead or in the hospital!” Blake threw his hands into the air.

“Oh,” Montgomery scratched his head. “That’s a good point.”

Blake was surprised when real remorse seemed to flash across his face. His friend had always been impulsive, and rarely regretted his own actions, no matter how reckless they were.

While Montgomery remained uncharacteristically silent, Jeff asked in his rarely heard deep voice, “What else you got?”

“I have Regeneration that lets me heal ten times faster. Well, I guess it's more like thirty times faster, since it scales off my Physical Stamina,” he corrected. “But, that’s not really something you can see. I also have Mind Blast, which works just like it sounds.” Blake looked back and forth between his two friends. “Either of you want a killer migraine?”

“Hard pass,” Montgomery answered.

Jeff shook his head as well.

“Okay, then my last spell is Flame Shield. I actually have it active right now. It keeps me safe from all forms of heat. The problem is, it doesn’t become visible until it's absorbed enough, and it just ain’t that hot outside right now.” Blake shook his head. “Unless you guys want to start a fire, this one's a dud, too.”

Montgomery snorted. “I thought you knew me? Of COURSE I want to start a fire! How much heat can that shield handle?”

“A lot.”

“Like campfire a lot, or like acetylene torch a lot?” Montgomery pressed.

Blake shrugged. “It can handle a campfire easily. But, I have no clue how hot a torch is.”

Montgomery grinned maniacally. “Let’s find out! I’ll be right back!”

His enthusiastic friend turned and fled back into the building. Blake turned to Jeff and asked, “Should I be worried?”

Jeff nodded.

Just a minute later, the door to the fire station burst open. Montgomery strode out with a metal wand in one hand and a large canister in the other.

“Let’s see just how fireproof you are,” he said with an evil grin. Montgomery sat the tank down and then turned multiple knobs on the industrial torch. He then retrieved a lighter from his pocket, moved it in front of the torch head, and flicked his thumb. The sparks lit the fuel, and flame jutted out of the end of the nozzle.

“Okay, this is normal fire hot,” Montgomery pointed toward the foot long flame. “You sure you can handle this?”

“Easily,” Blake smiled, and then inserted his palm into the center of the fire. Immediately, the jet of flame shortened as it failed to reach his hand. The flames hit an invisible wall an inch from his skin, and parted to each side of his palm.

“Hell yeah!” Montgomery cheered.

“Hell yeah!” Jeff echoed.

Blake smiled at the familiar epitaph. Slowly, as more flames were absorbed, Blake’s entire body began to glow with an orange light.

“Holy shit! You’re going super Saiyan!” Montgomery remarked.

Blake removed his hand from the fire, but his entire body continued to glow. He extended his palm. “See if you can shake my hand.”

Montgomery hesitantly reached forward with his empty hand. When he was only four inches away, he jerked his arm back and shook his hand. “Oww! That’s hot!”

“Yep.” He turned to Jeff. “You want to try?”

Jeff shook his head.

Montgomery extracted the tips of his fingers from his mouth and said, “Okay, let’s crank this baby up!” He turned a knob, and the foot long flame shortened until it was only a couple of inches in length. Montgomery pointed at the now blue jet of fire. “This baby can cut through steel. You sure you’re good?”

“Only one way to find out.” Blake once again reached into the flame.

“Damn!” Montgomery cursed, while Jeff whistled in appreciation.

As Blake held his hand within the short jet of fire, his Flame Shield quickly began to glow brighter. “Looks like magic beats tech,” he said with a smirk.

“That’s insane! Jeff, get your phone out and record this!”

“No!” Blake barked. “I don’t want the government or the cops to know about any of this. I’m in enough trouble with them already, and I don’t AHHH!”

Blake screamed and jerked his hand away from the torch. His Flame Shield absorbed too much heat and had expired. He quickly inspected his injured hand. Skin had sloughed away from his palm, which exposed the charred bones and tendons beneath.

He cursed and activated Regeneration.

“Holy shit, are you okay?” Montgomery asked.

Blake presented his palm to his friend. “Does this look like I’m okay?”

Montgomery’s eyes widened. “I’ll get the med kit, we gotta get you to a hospital!”

Suddenly, the minor burning sensation in his hand escalated into extreme pain. He gritted his teeth and shook his head. “No, I have Regeneration. It hurts like a bitch, but it’ll be healed by tomorrow.”

“If you say so,” Montgomery said doubtfully.

“Okay, that’s enough show and tell for now,” Blake stated, and then looked toward the closed back door to the fire station. “I’ve got a long story to tell. Are your friends inside going to miss you?”

“Naw, we aren’t actually on shift,” Montgomery explained. “We were just here to hang. I already told them we were gonna split.”

“What about your winnings?” Blake asked.

“Hah! What winnings? You think we can afford to play for real money? That was just chips. Naw, man, just give us the tea.”

Blake shrugged. “Okay. Well, it all started when I woke up in the middle of a classroom…”