Back at the workshop, Coach placed a few scraps of metal onto Bread’s arms and started welding away. Each and every spark caused him to wince.

“Why does it hurt?” Bread asked. He’d thought about it before, but he still couldn’t understand. It wasn’t even skin. Just like the warmth of the sun, he was feeling everything from heat to agonizing pain. Biologically, it didn’t make sense. There were no nerve endings in metal; that kind of tech shouldn’t have been possible yet. Were his records somehow outdated?

“Honestly, I don’t even know what to say to that, lad.”

“Not important,” Val cut in. “Bread, how did you do that? You know? When you shocked the lion?”

“I don’t know…” That spark, that weird taste in his mouth—it had all happened before. It was just like that time when he had shocked Coach. He could taste blueberries, beef jerky. And he saw those visions as if he were the lion. It felt like he was actually there feeling all those things, hurting all over.

He didn’t understand. Was it some part of his new body that was making it all happen? But which part? His head? Fingers? Core?

“Can you control it?” she asked.

He shook his head.

“Maybe it’s the new core? No, that doesn’t make sense. Coach, you said that something like this happened to you before, right?”

“We’re done.” Coach removed all of his tools from him. “I don’t know, lass. I don’t really know what’s goin’ on with his body anymore. It’s my handiwork, but all I did was piece some scraps together.”

Bread glanced at his arms. They were the same as before except for a few new scratches and patches. He’d had them for a while now, these arms. He was used to his new body, but sometimes, it just felt so foreign to him.

Coach grabbed Bread’s hands to inspect his patchwork.

Bread started to feel a familiar tingling sensation. “Coach?” he called. Then a sudden surge of energy. “Wait, no—” But it was too late. A burst of electricity coiled out from within his core. It wrapped around Coach’s hands, then shot its way up his arms.

Almost immediately, Coach collapsed onto the floor.

“Coach!” Val rushed to his side. She shook him around, but there was no response. And then—

Bread started to taste… ice cream? The smell—it smelled like earth and rain, scents of smoky cinders. He saw fireworks—flashes of blinding vibrance. Meerkats pranced around, spraying pebbles and sand all over his face. Then he saw Val rushing towards him. Her shirt was torn to shreds, blood gushing out her sides—

“W-what?!” Coach yelled.

Bread broke out of his trance.

“I’m up! I’m up!” Coach jumped to his feet. He bobbed his head around, looking like he was ready to knock somebody out. “Where’s the fight at?!”

“This!” Val exclaimed. She had a big grin smeared across her face. “I’m talking about this! This is exactly what I meant!”

…

“Okay.” Val brought out an assortment of locks from her bag. It had been a few hours since she’d gone out. “Smart locks, electronic locks. I got a bunch of ‘em ‘cause—you know, my side gig.”

It was past midnight. Bread really wanted to sleep.

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“Try it. You’ll eventually have to learn to fend for yourself, Bread.”

“Are you sure about this, lass?” Coach sat behind and watched, still recovering from the shock. “Ain’t it too young for him?”

“Look what happened to him today! What if that kind of shit happens again? We have to get him prepared.” She turned away from Coach. “C’mon, Bread. Try it out.” She handed over a lock. It looked like a traditional keypad. “Just… fry it or something. Like short circuit it.”

He stared at the digital contraption. Did she want him to electrocute it? He didn’t even know where all that energy had come from. His records told him that these types of electrical explosions he was producing shouldn’t have been possible without a significant power source, and he remembered hearing that his core was mid-grade. Was that really enough? Hadn’t Coach mentioned that there was a grade above it? A military-grade?

Val stared at him with intensity. Her fists were balled; she was still bleeding through the bandages around her stomach.

No, he couldn’t let her down. He had to at least try.

Okay. He placed his hands on the keypad and closed his eyes. It took every bit of strength to fight off the sleep. Then he tried to concentrate. Please work. He didn’t really know how else to do it. That tingling in his arms—he just had to recreate that feeling. Please, just work!

Nothing.

Please! He clenched his teeth and tightened his grip. The synthetic ligaments in his arms compressed and stretched, but… nothing.

Why didn’t it work? How had he done it before?

Before? It was instinctive before. Like the lion, Coach. It was all done naturally without him knowing. Naturally… He started to relax his arms just a little. He took a deep breath and exhaled. Calm down. And just concentrate… For a split second, he thought he’d felt something—a twitch. His chest shuddered, and the tips of his fingers went numb. No, it had a different sort of dull sensation, a slight itch…

Before it completely disappeared, he willed this feeling further down into his fingers, down into the keypad, and slowly, the feeling swelled. It felt like ice cubes were sliding through his chest and forearms. Then a spark flared up, encompassing the lock in a blinding flash. And then—

Symbols.

Words, numbers, letters—so much flooded into his mind like a stream of cold, wintry rain. Everything about the lock, he immediately understood. He could see all of its inner workings—the circuitry, the online database for DNA recognitions, even the applications used for software updates. He could even determine the physical components—the smooth rotors, jagged deadbolts, numerous maze-like magnetic pins, and the metal cylinder that held everything together.

Then he saw the system connect to a local security system, then regional, then state. State… He couldn’t decipher the next—his mind—something was wrong. He didn’t understand—lines, a bunch of lines—numbers, symbols he couldn’t recognize—

The lights blew out.

“Wow, a short circuit.” Val whistled. “Really just fried the whole thing.”

Bread dropped the lock onto the floor. His chest heaved; it felt like he couldn’t breathe.

“Bread, you okay?” Val reached over. “What happened?”

He finally started to catch his breath.

“Lass, you’re pushin’ him too hard.”

“Shut up! No, I’m not!” she yelled back. “Bread, I know you can do this. Look! You burnt the thing!” She placed the smoking lock in his line of sight.

He nodded. Everything was okay.

“Nice.” Val started packing her bags. “Bread, you’re coming with me. We’re going to test some limits.” She jogged towards the door, motioning for him to follow.

“W-where…” He was still out of breath. It was so tiring. How had he done this electrocution thing instinctively all this time?

“Are you really taking him out, lass?” Coach pushed himself to his feet but immediately fell back. It didn’t look like he had fully recovered. “Isn’t this too much for the boy?”

But what was Coach referring to?

“Dawn’s almost up. Perfect time for some practice.” Val had that signature fiery look on her face. Her eye looked like it was sparkling under the dim ceiling light.

“Lass—”

She ignored Coach. Instead, her eyes focused intently on him. “Bread?” she called out. There was a big grin on her face. “It’s time for some job-shadowing.”