The System Gave Everyone Superpowers

I walked into the Aegis Field Office at exactly 10:00 AM.

The office smelled like coffee, just like always. Miller was sitting at his desk reading a file.

"Sit down, Fawn," Miller said, pointing to the cheap plastic chair in front of his desk.

I sat down crossing my arms and waited.

Miller tossed the file onto the desk. It had my name on it.

"I read the police report from last night," Miller said. "You took down a Level 8 Blood Manipulator. The HRC cops said there was no collateral damage. No broken windows or destroyed streets. Just a frozen puddle of blood and a guy with a bump on his head."

"I told you, I'm efficient," I said.

"You're Level 4," Miller said, leaning forward. "You leveled up three times in three days. Most rookies take a month just to hit Level 2."

"I've been busy," I replied.

Miller sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Look, Fawn. I know Graves gave you a raw deal and the contract you signed is garbage. Sixty percent is robbery."

I raised an eyebrow. I didn't expect Miller to admit that.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked.

"Because you're too good for this dump," Miller said. "This office is for washouts. It's for guys with weak Blessings who just want to clear F-Rank Zones and scrape by. You have an S-Tier Blessing, and you're actually using it smart."

He opened a drawer and pulled out a new piece of paper. He slid it across the desk to me.

"I called Graves this morning," Miller said. "I told him you cleared your quota in one day and bagged a Level 8 Villain. Graves is a greedy snake, but he's not stupid. He knows that if he keeps treating you like a rat catcher, you'll just stop working and let him sue you."

I looked at the paper. It was an amendment to my contract.

"Graves is offering to drop Aegis's cut from sixty percent to thirty percent," Miller explained. "And he's waiving your weekly Zone quota. You don't have to clear F-Rank sewers anymore unless you want to."

I read the paper carefully. Thirty percent was still a lot, but it was much better than sixty. And not having a quota meant I could sleep in whenever I wanted.

"What's the catch?" I asked.

"The catch is that you don't work for this field office anymore," Miller said. "You're being promoted to the main tower downtown. You'll be taking on higher-level bounties. C-Rank Zones. Level 15 Villains. Real work."

I leaned back in my chair. Level 15 Villains. That sounded like a lot of effort and quite dangerous.

"I don't know," I said slowly. "I kind of like the F-Rank Zones. The sludge rats are easy to freeze."

Miller glared at me. "Don't be an idiot, Fawn. The bounties downtown are ten times higher. You'll make more money in one day than you made all week here. Plus, you get access to the Aegis corporate gym, free gear, and private Training Zones to level up safely."

Free gear. Safe leveling. More money for less actual time working.

That sounded like exactly what I wanted.

"Fine," I said, picking up a pen from his desk and signing the new contract.

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Miller took the paper back, relieved.

"Good," Miller said. "Report to the main tower tomorrow morning at nine. Ask for Captain May. She'll be your new handler."

I stood up. "Thanks, Miller."

"Don't thank me," Miller grunted, turning back to his computer. "Just don't die downtown. The paperwork for a dead S-Tier is a nightmare."

I walked out of the rundown office into the sunlight.

I had only been a Pro Hero for a few days, and I was already moving up. I had beaten the terrible contract and was heading to the big leagues.

I pulled out my phone and looked at my bank account.

I smiled.

But I was just getting started.

The next morning, I took the train downtown. I wore my hoodie and tactical pants. I left the baton at home. With 95 BP, my Blessing was the only weapon I needed.

I walked into the lobby of the Aegis Defense tower and headed to the front desk. "I'm Shay Fawn. I was told to ask for Captain May."

The woman at the desk typed on her computer. "Ah, yes. Take the elevator to the fifteenth floor. Captain May is waiting for you in the briefing room."

I took the elevator up. When the doors opened, I stepped out into a high-tech office. People in suits were rushing around, looking at holographic screens.

I found the briefing room at the end of the hall. The door was open.

I walked in. Standing at the head of a long glass table was a woman I recognized immediately.

It was Proctor May. The woman from the HRC who had run my physical exam. She was wearing a black suit instead of her gray one, and she had an Aegis badge pinned to her lapel.

"Proctor May?" I asked, confused.

She looked up from a tablet and smiled slightly. "It's Captain May now, Mr. Fawn. I left the HRC. Aegis offered me a much better salary to manage their new talent."

I sat down in a chair at the table. "So, you're my boss now?"

"I am your handler," May corrected. "I find the bounties, manage the PR, and you do the work."

She tapped a button on the table, and a holographic map of the city popped up between us.

"Miller sent me your file," May said. "Level 4 in three days. A perfect arrest on a Level 8 Villain. You are living up to your S-Tier potential, Shay. But downtown is different from District 9."

She zoomed in on a section of the map. It showed a wealthy neighborhood full of high-rise apartments and expensive stores.

"This is District 1," May explained. "The people here pay Aegis a lot of money for premium protection. We don't deal with sludge rats here, only organized crime."

"Organized Villains?" I asked. "That sounds like a lot of work."

"It pays a lot of money," May countered. "And the XP is much higher."

She pulled up a picture on the screen. It showed a man in his thirties with a shaved head and a thick scar across his cheek.

"This is Moby," May said. "Level 15. His Blessing is called Kinetic Armor. He can absorb physical impacts and turn them into a hardened shield around his body. The harder you hit him, the stronger his armor gets."

I frowned. "So, if I punch him, he gets tougher?"

"Exactly," May said. "He runs an illegal Zone-looting ring. He and his crew break into Private Zones, steal the Cores, and sell them on the black market. The HRC wants him stopped. Aegis wants the bounty."

"Why me?" I asked. "I'm Level 4. Send one of your elites in the fancy armor."

"Because our elites rely on physical force," May explained. "They hit hard. Moby would just absorb their attacks. We need someone who can bypass his physical armor. An Emitter who can fight smart."

She looked right at me. "We need you, Shay."

I leaned back in my chair. A Level 15 Villain. That was a huge jump from a Level 8 street mugger. If Moby hit me, he would probably break every bone in my body.

"What's the payout?" I asked.

"Ten thousand dollars," May said. "Plus, you keep whatever Cores he has stolen. And because you are on the new contract, Aegis only takes thirty percent."

Ten thousand dollars. Plus stolen Cores. That was a massive amount of money for one job.

"Where is he?" I asked.

May smiled. "He and his crew are currently breaking into an Aegis-owned Private Zone three blocks from here. I want you to go there, stop them, and secure the Zone."

She slid a small earpiece across the table.

"Put this in," May said. "I will monitor your progress from here. Do not engage him in a fistfight, Shay. Use your head."

I picked up the earpiece and put it in my ear.

"I don't do fistfights," I said, standing up. "They make me sweat."

I walked out of the briefing room. I was nervous, but I was also excited. I had 95 BP and my [Opportunist] title.

It was time to see what I could really do.

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