VOLUME 1 - CHAPTER 4

The tour ended there.

Students were herded toward the exit where the maglev trams waited, their excited chatter filling the hallway. Teachers called out instructions while the crowd shuffled forward.

But my feet felt heavier with every step.

My eyes kept drifting back.

Back toward the chamber.

Back toward the heart of Helios Dynamics.

“Ellie.”

Naomi tugged my sleeve.

“Come on. You’re lagging behind.”

I forced a smile.

“I’ll catch up. I wanna… go to the restroom really quick.”

Naomi frowned immediately.

“What? You should’ve asked when we were still inside.”

“I know, I know,” I said quickly, pretending to bounce on my feet. “I’ll just head in and ask someone where the restroom is.”

“Two minutes,” I added with an awkward laugh. “That’s all I need.”

Naomi studied me for a long moment.

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

Then she sighed.

“Fine.”

She started walking with the group again.

“Just make it fast,” she said over her shoulder.

“And don’t do anything stupid.”

I grinned sheepishly.

“Me? Stupid? Psssh.”

Naomi rolled her eyes and boarded the maglev tram with the rest of the students.

I waited until the doors slid shut.

Then I turned around.

Inside the facility again, I asked a passing technician for directions to the restroom.

After a quick visit, I stepped out and glanced down the hall.

No one was paying attention.

Perfect....

Instead of heading back toward the tram station.

I slipped behind a tall support column.

Then quietly walked in the opposite direction and avoided being detected by technicians.

Back toward the Core.

The chamber was nearly empty now.

Only a handful of technicians remained, tapping commands into holographic consoles. Blue light from their screens flickered across their faces.

No one looked up as I hurried past them.

My heart pounded faster with every step.

Soon I stood in front of the massive glass wall overlooking the chamber.

The Tesseract’s floated in the center.

A glowing blue Tesseract, suspended in beams of energy that shimmered like liquid light.

Its glow washed over my face.

“…You’re beautiful,” I whispered.

I glanced around.

The technicians were still busy with their work. One of them had already left the area entirely.

They probably wouldn’t mind if I touched it… right?

It’s not like it would explode or anything....

Right…?

My gaze drifted downward.

Toward the side of the glass wall.

A maintenance hatch.

And it was slightly open.

Just enough space for someone.

Someone stupidly curious.

To squeeze through.

I bit my lip.

Don’t do it...

Do it...

Don’t do it...

Ugh…

“Just do it.”

Before I could stop myself, I slipped through the hatch.

The air inside the chamber felt different.

Hot.

Heavy.

It pressed against my lungs as I crept closer to the Core, my shoes squeaking faintly against the steel floor.

Above me, the Tesseract floated silently.

Its blue glow painted my skin in ghostly light.

My shadow stretched across the chamber floor.

“…Whoa.”

“It looks even cooler up close…”

My mouth went dry.

“Just one touch won’t hurt anyone… right?”

Slowly…

I reached out my hand.

My fingertips hovered inches from the glowing energy.

Then—

“HEY KID!!”

A technician spotted me from across the room.

He shoved past the others, sprinting toward me.

“DON’T TOUCH IT!! YOU’LL DI—”

Too late.

My fingers brushed the light.

The room exploded.

BOOOOOOM!!

Then—

Pain.

Pure, unbearable pain.

The Core’s energy ripped through my body like wildfire.

My back arched as my body convulsed violently.

Different colored flames burst from my hands—

My eyes—

My mouth.

“ ahhhhhhhhh!!!!”

My scream was swallowed by the roar of power.

It felt like my entire body was being torn apart.

And rebuilt.

My human DNA twisted, shredded, and fused.

“What’s happening to me?!” I screamed.

“It hurts…!”

“It hurts…!”

“IT HURTS!!”

I collapsed onto the floor.

Flames of different colors licked across my skin, but they didn’t burn me.

Instead, they pulsed beneath my skin like living veins of fire.

My body glowed from the inside out.

My chest heaved as I gasped for air.

Even the oxygen around me started to ignite.

Alarms blared.

Sirens screamed throughout the facility.

“BREACH DETECTED.”

“ENERGY CONTAINMENT FAILURE.”

The chamber shook violently.

Containment fields sparked as they struggled to stabilize the Core.

Doors slammed shut throughout the facility.

Scientists shouted over one another, racing to their consoles.

I clutched my head, sobbing.

“What’s happening to me?!”

My voice cracked.

Flames burst from my throat like dragon fire.

Terrified, I rolled across the floor and stumbled out of the chamber through shattered glass.

Then—

CRASH!!

The ceiling above shattered.

A figure descended in a spiral of wind.

She landed beside me lightly.

My heart stopped.

“…Y-you’re…”

She looked down at me calmly.

“Child,” she said gently.

“Don’t move.”

My breath caught in my throat.

“It’s really you…!”

The legendary hero....

Storm....

“I mean it,” she said firmly, raising one hand as wind began swirling around her fingers.

“You’re power is unstable.”

The air around us distorted from the heat of my flames.

“Stay calm. I’ll get you out of here.”

Tears streamed down my face.

“Storm… it hurts!”

Storm’s expression softened.

“Don’t worry.”

Wind gathered around her like a protective shield.

“I’ll do my best to put out the fire.”

She prepared to use her wind powers.

Then—

BOOOOOM!!

The ceiling split open again.

This time with a crashing wave of water.

A second figure descended through the spray.

A young man in a blue-and-silver hero suit landed nearby.

His eyes glowed like the depths of the ocean.

The air instantly grew colder.

Steam rose where his water clashed with my flames.

Hydros.

The S-Rank Water Hero.

And The Number One Hero.

And the moment he arrived—

The entire room went silent.

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