Nico’s heart pounded in his chest as he felt the rush of power surge through his body. The copy was complete. He could feel it—the agility, the strength, the fire. Kyle Jenkins, the guy who had humiliated him time and again, had no idea what was coming.

Across the basketball court, Kyle was laughing with his friends, completely unaware of what Nico had just taken from him. Fire manipulation and Taekwondo—Kyle’s two most prized abilities. And for the next five minutes, they belonged to Nico.

He flexed his fingers, feeling the fire stirring beneath his skin. It was strange, like holding the raw energy of a storm inside his body, ready to explode. He could barely contain it. He hadn’t practiced, hadn’t learned how to control it. But that didn’t matter. He had power now—Kyle’s power.

And for the first time in his life, Nico was going to fight back.

“Kyle!” Nico called out, his voice more confident than it had ever been.

Kyle turned, surprised to hear his name from Nico’s mouth. His smirk quickly turned into a sneer as his friends snickered behind him. “What do you want, Brauer? Here to make a fool of yourself again?”

Nico didn’t answer. He didn’t need to. Instead, he moved—faster than he’d ever moved before. In an instant, he closed the distance between them, throwing a punch that Kyle barely managed to block. The force of the impact still sent him stumbling back, his expression switching from amused to confused.

“What the hell—” Kyle started, but Nico didn’t give him a chance to finish.

He pivoted on his heel and delivered a sharp roundhouse kick to Kyle’s side, the movement so clean and precise it felt like muscle memory. Of course, it was muscle memory—but not his own. It was Kyle’s. The Taekwondo skills Kyle had honed over years of training were now under Nico’s control.

Kyle grunted as the kick landed, but he recovered quickly, his eyes narrowing. “What… how are you—?”

Nico didn’t answer. He couldn’t afford to. The clock was ticking, and he knew he only had a few minutes before the borrowed power faded. Five minutes of glory. Five minutes to show Kyle—and everyone watching—that Nico Brauer wasn’t the joke they thought he was.

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Nico launched another attack, his fists flying with a speed and accuracy he’d never known. Each punch, each kick, was perfectly timed, driven by the skill he’d taken from Kyle. The guys standing around the court stared in disbelief as Nico—Nico, the guy they’d all laughed at—pushed Kyle back with a flurry of blows.

Kyle’s face twisted in fury. “You think you can take me down with my own moves?” he growled. “Let’s see you handle this.”

Without warning, flames erupted from Kyle’s fists, bright and wild. He charged forward, fire trailing in his wake, and threw a punch that blazed with heat. Nico barely managed to dodge, the heat from the fire searing the air around him.

The power was there inside him—he could feel it—but controlling it was another matter. Kyle had spent years mastering his fire manipulation, learning how to bend the flames to his will. Nico had only just copied it, and the fire felt like it was slipping through his fingers, untamed and dangerous.

Kyle threw another punch, and this time, Nico reacted on instinct. He raised his hand and willed the fire to respond. A flame sparked in his palm, just in time to meet Kyle’s blow. The two fists collided, fire against fire, and for a brief moment, Nico held his ground.

But the fire was too wild. It flickered and sputtered, and Nico could feel it slipping away from him. He was strong—stronger than he’d ever been—but he wasn’t Kyle. He hadn’t trained for this. He hadn’t earned it. He was just borrowing it.

Kyle grinned, seeing Nico’s struggle. “What’s the matter, Brauer? Can’t keep up?”

Nico gritted his teeth and tried to focus. He could still feel the fire inside him, but it was chaotic, uncontrollable. He needed to figure it out, fast. He lashed out with a roundhouse kick, trying to regain the upper hand, but Kyle was ready. He ducked under the kick and countered with a fiery uppercut that sent Nico sprawling to the ground.

Nico’s vision blurred as he hit the pavement, the taste of blood in his mouth. His body screamed in pain, but the adrenaline kept him going. He scrambled to his feet, but Kyle was already on him, his fists blazing as he closed in.

“Looks like you’re out of your league,” Kyle sneered, his voice dripping with contempt.

Nico tried to summon the fire again, but his hands were shaking, the power slipping away faster than he could control. He managed to spark a small flame, but it fizzled out almost immediately. Time’s running out, he realized with a sinking feeling. He could already feel the strength fading, the borrowed abilities slipping away.

Kyle didn’t give him a chance to recover. With a swift, brutal kick, he knocked Nico back to the ground. “You actually thought you could beat me?” Kyle laughed, his voice filled with derision. “You don’t even know what you’re doing.”

Nico groaned, his body aching from the blows. He tried to get up again, but his limbs felt heavy, sluggish. The timer had run out. The power was gone. He was just Nico again—powerless, slow, and vulnerable.

Kyle stood over him, his fists still glowing faintly with fire. “You’re pathetic, Brauer. Stay down, where you belong.”

Nico clenched his fists, anger and frustration boiling inside him. He’d had it. For those brief moments, he’d felt what it was like to be strong, to be capable, to fight back. But it hadn’t been enough. Not with the limits of his stolen power. Not with his inexperience.

Kyle smirked one last time and turned away, leaving Nico sprawled on the ground. His friends laughed and followed him off the court, casting one last glance at Nico before disappearing around the corner.

Nico lay there, panting, bruised, and defeated. The fire was gone. The power was gone. But something else remained—a flicker of determination, buried deep beneath the pain.

Five minutes wasn’t enough.

But next time? Next time, Nico would be ready. He would learn to control it. He would get stronger. And he wouldn’t stop until he had mastered the power he had been given.

Kyle Jenkins had no idea what he had just started.