After the mini karaoke session with Staress, Leland intensified his speaking practice with Maggie. They spoke almost every day, covering a wide range of topics, and the more they conversed, the more he came to realize just how distinct she was from him.

Maggie seemed to have her whole future planned out. She had several goals and worked towards them. Similar to Staress and Mark, she was confident and knew what she wanted which extended to a level Leland thought was silly. She knew how many kids she wanted. She knew where she wanted to live in the future. She had a bucket list of all the things she wanted to do before she died.

Leland was jealous of Maggie’s certainty— to have the confidence to point in a direction and charge forwards like a raging bull— while with each passing day, he himself ended up doubting more and more things. He doubted his chances of becoming a competent doctor or even going to university. Regardless of how disciplined or knowledgeable he was, how could someone treat patients with poor interpersonal skills? How could someone enter a profession that involved in-depth talking to strangers on a regular basis when he couldn’t even talk to strangers?

Sometimes, Leland felt like he was sure of only one thing— eradicating the mental blocks which mocked him with every sentence.

He fidgeted in bed with a laptop in front of him, shaking his head. Focus.

Every night, Leland practiced his superpowers by reading out loud, and tonight he decided to read the coolest sections from one of his favourite TV shows, Daredevil. The superhero had always fascinated him. Not only were his powers cool. But there was something fascinating about losing a sense to enhance all the others. Most superheroes gained their ability with no negative effects.

Leland opened the door in his mind and the familiar sensation tingled around his body. He read the first excerpt between a young Matt Murdock who had just gained his powers and Stick, the mentor figure…

“Young Matt Murdock: My dad. They paid him to lose against Creel. But... But I wanted him to win. So he did it because of me. Because of me. I just wanted him to come home.”

Leland paused, firmly keeping open the door in his mind.

“Stick: But he didn't and he never will. We all pay for our choices, kid. Maybe your old man fought for you, maybe he did it for himself. The only thing you know for sure is he's gone now. But I'm here. Now, get up. Time to stop taking a beating and start giving one.”

Leland took a deep breath. The burning sensation was fine. He had grown accustomed to it. But his mind was getting pummeled with every second, making it harder and harder to sustain. Speaking with the strange voice was easier without using an ability which made a lot of sense. He could almost envision his body cells altering dramatically, ready to produce a monstrous superpower at any moment.

The stamina improvement he achieved was significant. Realistically, he could probably speak nonstop for three to five minutes without stuttering or passing out. But that wasn’t enough. If he couldn’t speak fluently one hundred percent of the time, then there was no point.

His phone rang. Immediately, he picked it up. “W-what do y-you want? We’re not scheduled to speak.”

Maggie laughed, which involved a fair amount of snorting. “Do you hear yourself?” She proceeded to impersonate a nerdy man’s voice. “We’re not scheduled to speak. Our next meeting to hang out is in approximately forty-nine hours.”

Leland frowned. “I-it is though.”

“Friends talk to each other whenever! Stop being weird.”

“I’m not b-being weird. You’re interrupting m-my practice. You’ve got to give me a h-heads-up at least.”

“It’s not a big deal.”

“No, but it is. That’s like g-going to knock on a friend's house without calling first. You’ve got to m-message first. ”

“I actually wouldn’t call. I would show up randomly to surprise them.”

Leland tutted. “Of course you w-would.”

“If I’m close friends with the person, they would appreciate it!”

“W-what do you want?”

“ What’s with the hostile energy? You’re talking like I’m a complete stranger.?”

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

Leland laughed at the absurd comment. “I’m not.”

“You are.”

Too tired to argue, Leland remained quiet. There was a brief, somewhat peaceful silence.

“How did the practice go then?” Maggie asked.

“It was o-okay. I’m making progress, but it’s g-going to take a lot more reading sessions to m-master.”

“I didn’t mean the reading. Didn’t you say you were going to talk to at least one stranger a day and join your debate club? How’s that going?”

Leland’s face tensed. “I-I’m getting around to it.”

“You still haven’t spoken to anybody yet?”

“And for g-good reason. I’m n-not ready yet.”

“What do you mean you’re not ready yet?” Maggie pushed. “You walk up to someone and ask them a question. Stop being a…”

She trailed off, but she didn’t need to finish the sentence.

“I feel like you’re a lot more confident on the phone now,” Maggie said in a softer tone. “There’s no reason why you can’t do this.”

“I n-never said I couldn’t,” Leland said. “I just want to speak m-more fluently first. That’s all.”

“Alright then. Next call, you better have done something, otherwise… um… err… I will serve a tennis ball across the globe right in your jaw.”

“Okay, tennis super v-villain,” Leland said, smiling. “Good n-night. Have a nice day.”

“Good night, Lee. Sleep well.”

----------------------------------------

Thud… Thud… Thud

Volengi slowly banged his head against one of the prison cell walls.

Thick, green fog engulfed the alien maximum security prison with a rare toxin designed to incapacitate and inflict excruciating pain towards the most violent criminals. Its toxicity alone was enough to force Volengi’s body to evolve into a stronger form.

Unlike the Solarian’s first form, the second was much more striking. First, he rose to a height of twelve feet, an abnormal characteristic for most organisms capable of interstellar travel. The soft charcoal skin hugging his body completely shredded to reveal crimson, pulsating flesh. Thousands of muscle fibres condensed and fused together, resulting in four glistening limbs. The triangular scars peppering his face were now more clearly defined. They were deep and periodically squirted purple particles.

Now his body was really active. This was a Solarian’s battle form and in this state, Volengi had conquered many powerful foes. They had given him a real challenge and even physical scars that he wore like a badge of honour.

Annihilating the filthy slug planet in such a state would shame all of them. He couldn’t.

Volengi’s senses were significantly dulled, but he already knew where he was. It was Soluple — the universe's most dangerous prison. His dream location.

The strongest criminals were there. If you wanted a challenge, if you really wanted to prove your strength, this was the perfect place to go. The only problem was that the prison was notoriously difficult to find, as it teleported every twelve hours. It was governed by a group of pretentious type three civilizations who Volengi had tracked down numerous times.

Every time they fled. The cowards.

Thud… Thud… Thud

Volengi continued banging his head. Staress’ cheerful voice bounced around his skull.

“The next portal you fall into will not be a random location.”

Staress had sent him here. Even though he was desperately trying to annihilate her species off the face of the universe, she had gifted him the one present he couldn’t find himself.

Why? Why won’t any of you fight me?

“King Volengi. I hoped to never see you again.”

Volengi froze, inches away from headbutting the wall again. “Omamu? This is where you’ve been hiding?”

An oval-shaped blue cloud with two hands and two legs waddled towards the prison cell. “I never hide! I’m the chief warden of Soluple.”

Volengi scoffed. Inhaling the green gas had destroyed one fifth of his body, but his regenerative abilities countered the damage.

“I’ve been watching your attempts,” the warden said. “You’re a fool. You should have let go of your pride and invaded the planet.”

Volengi's head snapped up, but he sighed shortly after, remembering it would take at least six months to eliminate the gaseous life form. “What do you think of them?”

“Two threads are keeping them alive. They’re one in a trillion slug planets. It’s absurd, but it happens. I would say you’re unlucky, but then again…”

“What?”

Omamu made a gesture with his arms, stretching them both wide. “You’re here, aren’t you? You’ve been looking to infiltrate this place for centuries, and you can test your might right here. We both know I can’t stop you.”

Volengi gripped his teleporter bracelet. He finally realized Staress’ game. She was giving him a choice. He could stay here and live his warrior’s fantasy for possibly years, or he could leave and potentially never find the prison again.

“Our reputation,” Volengi spat. “The most important thing my father entrusted me with, the one thing I cared about the most… they stole it without even engaging in combat. They represent everything I despise. Inaction. Passivity. Laziness. Complacency.”

“So you’re leaving? Thank goodness. Go away.”

“Let me finish my monologue!” Volengi snapped.

“Sorry, continue.”

“You mentioned two threads keeping the planet alive. You are wrong. There is one more and in a few days time, I will face him in a duel! Apparently, they’re humanity’s strongest and enjoy playing a strategic battle game called chess. They must be an elite general.”