by Nolan Fury
I walked a few blocks, taking in the sights and sounds of this bizarre city. The fantastical place was home to more than just humans. Aliens of all shapes, sizes, and colors roamed the streets. I saw aliens with tentacles, some had four arms, others had three eyes. I saw one with a set of antennas. There were creatures from all across the galaxy.
I began to think that maybe someone had put a hallucinogen in my punch.
My mouth was pasty and dry. The alcohol had dehydrated me. My bladder was about to burst. I needed to find a place to take a leak. I ducked into a convenience store hoping to get a bottle of water, or a soda. They had to have water on space stations, didn’t they? Wherever I was, these people and aliens needed to drink.
I felt for my wallet, then realized I didn’t have it. No money, no keys, no phone, nothing. Another wave of panic rushed through me. How was I going to survive in this strange place with no currency?
I hovered just inside the doorway of the store. It wasn’t all that different from a store on Earth. There were rows and rows of packaged items. There was a cooler in the back with all sorts of beverages. A woman stood behind the counter at the cash register.
Her eyes widened, and she looked at me with fear. My face crinkled, confused. Was I considered ugly? Did I somehow look menacing?
When I felt the barrel of a gun placed against the back of my skull, I no longer had any question about why she was afraid.
“Don’t try anything stupid, and nobody gets hurt,” the would-be thief barked. He turned his attention to the clerk. “Give me all your money, or I’ll blow Pretty Boy’s head off. Then I’ll shoot you next.”
Pretty Boy? Was he talking about me?
The clerk’s hands trembled as she opened the cash drawer of the register. She scooped up a small wad of bills and held them across the counter. The paper money shook.
The face of the bills had holographic images that scrolled like a rolling billboard. They were some type of digitized currency.
The thief’s associate brushed past me and marched toward the counter. He wore a mask, obscuring his face. He snatched the money from the woman’s hand. He thumbed through it quickly, and rage filled his eyes. “Is this all you’ve got?”
She stammered, “We don’t get a lot of cash transactions.”
“What about the safe?”
Her face crinkled, confused. “We don’t have a safe?”
“Bullshit!”
“I swear!”
The goon glanced to his buddy that was holding the gun at my head, looking for guidance.
“Waste her,” the goon behind me said.
My face tensed as the thug took aim at the cashier. He brought the pistol to her forehead, and his finger wrapped around the trigger.
Again, life seemed to move frame by frame. I don’t know what came over me. But I had to do something. All of my senses were hyper-aware. I moved with blistering speed. I spun around and elbowed the creep in the face, and stripped the weapon from his hand. I don’t even know how I did it. It all happened before the other goon could shoot the cashier. Before I knew it, the barrel of my pistol was aimed at the thug, and I had squeezed the trigger twice.
His chest erupted, spewing geysers of blood as he tumbled to the ground.
The cashier shrieked with terror.
Muzzle flash flickered.
The creep managed to get off two shots before he expired, slumping against the cabinet that held the fountain drink dispenser.
I felt the sharp sting as the bullets slammed into my chest. The impact knocked the wind out of me, and I staggered forward a few steps. I gasped for breath. It felt like I had been punched in the sternum by a 900 pound gorilla.
I clutched my chest and looked down expecting to see blood, but there was nothing there. It hurt like hell, but I was still alive, and seemingly unharmed.
I grimaced as I spun around toward the other thief. He stared at me in disbelief then ran out of the store.
My eyes found the ground, and I saw flattened copper rounds on the floor. The bullets had bounced right off my chest.
How was that even possible? This was a real gun, and those were real bullets.
I looked to the clerk, and she was equally stunned. “You saved my life.” Her voice was shaky.
My eyes flicked from her to the gun in my hand. Smoke wafted from the barrel. I had never fired a weapon before. I was here for less than 20 minutes, and I had already killed someone. I didn’t know what the laws were in this place. My body filled with nervous energy. It was the same feeling that I had when I got called to the principal’s office back in high school. How could I not be in trouble for killing someone? It seemed like justifiable homicide, but I didn’t really want to stick around to find out.
I glanced to the doorway and saw the angelic woman standing there. She was the last face that I had seen back on Earth. She had perfect skin and full lips. Her vibrant purple hair almost glowed. She had long pointy elf ears, and she wore a bodysuit that looked almost painted on. It accentuated every curve on her body and left nothing to the imagination. Glowing blue strips accented the outfit. They seemed more than just decoration.
“I’ve been looking for you,” she said, her stunning blue eyes piercing into me.
Needless to say, I had a lot of questions.
7
“Are you okay?” The purple-haired woman’s concerned eyes surveyed me.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m not sure how, but I’m fine.”
The worry vanished from her eyes after she scoured my body. She grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the store. Her hand was soft and smooth, but strong. Her touch felt energetic. Maybe I was just excited to hold a beautiful girl’s hand.
The clerk smiled and waved. “Bye.” Her tone was appreciative and hopeful.
I shoved the gun in my waistband. I figured it might come in handy later.
The purple-haired woman marched down the sidewalk, and I struggled to keep up.
“You should try not to draw attention to yourself.”
“I didn’t really have a choice in the matter. Do you want to explain to me what’s going on?”
“I’m not real good with teleportation, so I lost you when I transported you here.”
“Where is here?”
“Vega Station.”
“I gathered as much from my stat screen. Do you want to tell me what that’s about?”
“You ask a lot of questions.”
I scoffed. “You would too, if you were in my situation.”
“I’m not in your situation.”
She was hot as fuck, but not exactly friendly. She moved with a purpose and didn’t slow down for anything.
“Who were those guys back on Earth… in the alley? I assume they were trying to kill me?”
She ignored me.
“Why did you bother to save me if you’re not going to talk to me?”
“Because it’s my job.”
“Job?”
“Professor Zyrco believes you’re…” Her voice trailed off.
“Believes I’m what?”
“He believes you could be useful.”
“I’m still kind of in the dark here. How did you even find me? I wouldn’t even recognize myself here.”
“I recognized your energy. Your true self.”
I gave her a skeptical glance. It all sounded hokey. But so many unbelievable things had already happened, I just started to go along with it.
“Where are we going?”
“I’m taking you to the Academy. You’ll be safe there.”
Safe sounded good to me. “Do you have a name?”
“My friends call me Surge.”
“Surge. I like that.” She didn’t seem to care whether I liked it or not. “I’m Ben.”
“I know who you are. And for the record, I don’t think you’re anything special.”
My face twisted up. “I never said I was special." I never thought of myself as anything more than average. Maybe not even that. “I think
maybe we got off on the wrong foot. Thank you for saving my life.”
She stopped and finally looked at me. Her expression softened a bit. “You’re welcome. I’m sorry if I’m a little—”
“Rude?”
Her eyes narrowed at me. “Professor Zyrco believes you can help us. But I just can’t allow myself to get hopeful. I don’t know whose side you’re on, or where your loyalties lie. I hardly know you.”
“I hardly know you, so we’re even.” I smiled.
She didn’t smile back.
I followed Surge to a train station. It reminded me of the subways in New York, but above ground. We waited on the platform for the next train to stop. A million questions raced through my mind, but I tried to keep quiet. I didn’t want to annoy her any further.
I held out for as long as I could, but then I broke my silence. “So, let me get this straight—”
“We’re in an alternate dimension,” she said, seemingly knowing what I was going to ask. “The Ultraverse.”
“Ultraverse, right. And the stat screen?”
“Think of it like this. In your world, you only see the user interface. Here, you can see the back-end code as well.”
“Is this some type of simulated reality?”
“It’s as real as the world you left behind.”
That was the kind of answer that made me wonder if the world I left behind was real.
“This dimension exists alongside yours. This station orbits above Earth. But it can’t be seen from your dimension. There are areas in the Ultraverse where the two dimensions merge. If you want more answers than that, you’ll have to talk to the creator.”
“Who is the creator?”
Surge shrugged.
I pondered this for a moment. But thinking about the nature of the universe always seemed to wrap my brain in knots. The infinite possibilities were mind-boggling. I let it go and just accepted this strange new world for what it was.
“My powers aren’t strong enough on Earth. If I didn’t bring you here, you’d have died.”
“Thanks again.” I paused a moment. “But I don’t see how I’m going to help you. Maybe you can explain to me why I got shot in the chest and didn’t get hurt?”
“Professor Zyrco will be able to tell you more.”
The train pulled to the platform, and the monorail whisked us across the station. It was sleek and fast and crowded. I gazed out the large windows, taking in the sprawling city. Towers of metal and glass streaked by. The train snaked through the futuristic city and dumped us off on a platform a few blocks from the Academy.
The sun was dipping down over the horizon. I can only assume that the station rotated to replicate a night and day cycle. I began to wonder what was on the other side of the ground-plane.
“There’s a mirror city underneath us. We like to call it Under-Vega,” Surge said as I asked.
“So, what’s this. Over-Vega?”
“Upper-Vega.”
We entered the main gate of the Academy. The plaque on the wall read: Vanden Academy.
Holy shit! No wonder I could never find anything about Vanden Academy. It didn’t exist on Earth. My mind began to bristle with questions.
Towering walls guarded the campus like a fortress. Inside, there was a sprawling courtyard with green grass. Students frolicked about. It wasn’t all that different from a college campus back on Earth. The architecture was more modern. And I had never seen a student back on Earth levitate books like a girl was doing in the courtyard. She juggled them without touching them, and they swirled around in a strange orbit.
I stared at her, somewhat surprised. The unusual was becoming less shocking, but it was impressive nonetheless. My intense gaze caused a stat screen to appear in my field of view.
[Name: Olivia Martin.]
[Nickname: Feather.]
[Power: Telekinesis.]
[Level: 2]
[Special Attribute: None]
“I just stared at that girl, and a stat screen appeared,” I said.
“Concentrate on objects, and you can learn about them. Most of the time.”
My eyes fixed on Surge and another screen appeared.
[Name: Chloe Powell.]
[Nickname: Surge.]
[Power: Energy Manipulation.]
[Level: 9. ]
[Special Attribute: Undisclosed.]
“Chloe?”
“Like I said, my friends call me Surge.”
“I like Chloe. It’s cute.”
She glared at me. “Do I look cute to you?”
She was hot as hell. Cute didn’t even begin to describe her. “Is this a trick question?”
She rolled her eyes and continued marching towards the main building.
I thought about my own stats, and they appeared before me.
[Name: Benjamin Scott.]
[Nickname: None.]
[Power: Strength.]
[Level: 1.]
[Special Ability: Omni.]
“Omni? What the hell does omni mean?”
“It means you’re not limited. You can acquire other powers besides the one you are innately gifted with.” There was a hint of jealousy in Surge’s voice.
“Powers?”
“Yes.” She didn’t expound any further.
“It says your power is energy manipulation. What does that mean, exactly?”
“Haven’t you figured it out by now? The bullets bounced off your chest. That girl can lift objects with her mind.” Surge held out her palm and formed a glowing blue ball of energy. It swirled around like a galaxy in the palm of her hand. “I can manipulate energy. We’re all gifted. That’s why those men on Earth wanted you dead. They transported from this dimension to assassinate you.”
“Why me? I’m a nobody.”
“Professor Zyrco doesn’t think you’re a nobody.”
I pondered that for a moment. “So, what exactly is this place?”
“It’s an academy for people like us. To help nurture and grow our abilities. To keep us safe from those who would wish to do us harm.”
“Are there a lot of people who wish to do us harm?”
“Supers have always been persecuted. We’re different. And most people don’t like different. Different is scary.”
She looked me over with disapproving eyes. “You can’t meet the others looking like that. That outfit is ridiculous. I think I’ve got something you can wear.”
She led me to her dorm room on campus. It wasn’t anything like mine back home. Hers was nice. And she didn’t have a roommate. There was a small living area, a kitchen, and a floor-to-ceiling window that overlooked the campus. Surge slipped into her bedroom, pulled an outfit from the closet, and returned to the living room. She handed the garment to me. “It was my ex-boyfriend’s. He left it here when we split up. You two are about the same size.”
It was a formfitting black outfit with red sleeves and a red emblem on the chest. It looked like a superhero costume.
“About the size thing? How did I get so ripped?”
“This is another dimension. Who you are here is not who you were back home. You’re on the path to becoming your true self.”
It was a lot to process. I wasn’t sure about this whole true self thing. I still felt like a nerdy little kid inside.
“Why did you and your ex split up?”
“Did I mention you ask too many questions?”
“Just trying to get to know you. Seeing how you’re the only person I know in this place, you’re kind of stuck with me.”
She sighed. “Why does anybody split up? They lose commonality. They want different things. They become different people. He turned into an asshole.”
I chuckled.
“It’s not funny. He left the Academy and joined Titus.”
“Who is Titus?”
“A bigger asshole.”
“Sounds like there are a lot of assholes around here?”
“The men who tried to kill you were Titus’s underlings. You need to be c
areful.” She had a grave look on her face and her piercing eyes stared into me.
“I’ll do my best.” I paused for a moment. “You have anywhere I can change?”
“I’ll step into my bedroom and give you some space.” She closed the door behind her and left me alone in the living room.
I pulled off the jersey and unbuckled my pants and shimmied out of them. My eyes widened as I caught a glimpse of my package. My biceps weren’t the only things that had grown. A sly grin curled on my lips.
Awesome-sauce.
I was beginning to like the Ultraverse.
I put on the suit that Surge had given me and looked at myself in the mirror. I couldn’t resist. I had to flex my biceps and make bodybuilder poses. This was just too cool. No amount of steroids and pumping iron back home would have ever gotten me this big and ripped.
Of course, Surge stepped out of the bedroom and caught me mid pose as I was obsessing over my new form in the mirror. My cheeks flushed with embarrassment. I tried to act casual and struck a pose like a model in a catalogue, but I just looked ridiculous. “Just making sure the fabric stretches and fits.”
She rolled her eyes. “Come on. Let’s go meet the professor.”
8
Zyrco wasn’t what I expected. When Surge spoke of the professor, I envisioned a frail old man wearing a tweed jacket and a red bow tie. I figured deep lines would carve his face and that he’d have a large nose and small spectacles and speak in a soothing, dignified voice. But Zyrco was anything but old and frail.
The walls of his office were lined with holographic images of the professor with former students and various Academy related events. Large windows offered a nice view of the campus. The professor’s desk had two translucent display screens, and on the far wall there was a collection of old leather-bound books. Some looked ancient. Tattered and worn, probably containing knowledge from a lost age. They stood out in contrast to the modern decor of the office.
Zyrco was a walking, talking crystal. He looked like he could have been some type of ice monster from the North Pole, or a walking bag of crystal meth. He had sharp angular features, and the pointy crystals atop his head resembled a spiky haircut. I had to see this guy’s stat screen.
