Chapter 6

'Poor ducks, they used to get bread now they get frozen peas.'

Rick felt pity for the poor ducks, previously people had stuffed them full of bread until their intestines almost burst.

Then, once scientists discovered that shockingly, a man-made product, wasn't the healthiest option for semi-aquatic birds, people instead decided to hurl frozen vegetables at the poor animals.

Rick looked to his left and saw a small boy gleefully pelting an unfortunate duck with frozen sweetcorn.

After quacking at the top of its lungs several times in furious protest, the duck finally gave in to its anger and charged towards the boy.

Seeing the small feathered missile flapping towards him at full speed, the little boy unsurprisingly panicked.

The slippery mud underneath the boy's feet immediately became his downfall as he faceplanted into the soggy earth.

"Oh god Jimmy are you alright?!" A woman called out anxiously, rushing forwards the fallen boy.

The child's cries were loud and irritating, Rick's smile at the boy's deserved misfortune quickly became a frown.

"You bastard! You see a little boy in the mud and you just sit there!" The woman shouted angrily, jabbing her finger like a small pudgy dagger at Rick.

"Me?" Rick said incredulously.

"I'm going to report you for this you know!" The woman continued, waving her hands about in the air.

Rick took a moment to appreciate his astonishment at the NPC like behaviour of the woman.

"Perhaps you should teach your son not to throw sweetcorn at the wildlife before you try accusing me of a made-up crime!" Rick responded coldly, pointing his finger at a security camera on a nearby lampost.

[ Check in complete! Congratulations you have received: Space Manipulation Level 1. ]

'FUCK!'

Rick completely ignored whatever nonsense the woman was spouting and focused on the new connection that was rapidly developing between him and an unknown force.

Just like when he'd received Flame Control, Rick immediately had an innate understanding of his new power.

'I've got a new favourite lake!'

Space Manipulation Level 1 was a horrifyingly overpowered ability. Despite it's low level, it already granted Rick the ability to teleport small items within a 1 meter range.

While this didn't sound too powerful, once you took into consideration that the heart was well within the size of a small item, it became an instant killer.

Flame Control Level 1 and Space Manipulation Level 1 were both First Level powers, but it was obvious at a glance which was more powerful.

Additionally, whereas Flame Control required an external source of fire, Space Manipulation could be used instantaneously in any conditions.

'Jackpot!'

In 4 days Rick would be able to upgrade Space Manipulation to level 5. By that point the power would be countless times stronger and more versatile.

Space Manipulation Level 5 would not only remedy his badly unbalanced stats, it would also grant him a completely new and more flexible style of combat.

Making things out of fire was every teen boy's dream, but fire was decidedly an aggressive force.

Unless Rick planned to save Robin from A-Train by killing her first and turning her into a human marshmallow, Flame Control was of no use.

Space Manipulation was a game-changer.

'I could save her in a dozen different ways if I wanted to!'

Rick rapidly thought of a variety of ways in which he could prevent A-Train from killing Robin.

Teleporting her away from the curb.

Teleporting a moving car straight into A-Train's face.

Teleporting a knife straight into A-Train's face.

Teleporting several dozen knives into A-Train's face!

Rick had a feeling that killing a Supe using Space Manipulation would be much more challenging than a regular person. 

Ordinary people couldn't deflect bullets with their bare skin, it would be foolish of him to think that he could simply teleport a tennis ball into Homelander's skull and get everything over and done with.

"Are you even listening to me?!"

The shrill voice of the angry mother snapped Rick out of his daydreaming.

Without saying a word Rick stood up. His face was emotionless as his eyes locked onto the woman's face.

The woman's voice suddenly caught in her throat.

"You-get away from me!"

Fear overcame the furious woman, her anger immediately dissipating and being replaced by terror.

The man who she'd so carelessly provoked, he could kill her. He could kill her without batting an eyelid!

Instinct was a powerful force. In times of crisis 99% of people would resort to listening to whatever their body told them.

Even extensive training could not necessarily allow a person to overcome their instincts.

The woman's instincts screamed at her to get away.

The man in front of her wasn't human, he was a wild beast who's claws could rip her apart in an instant!

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Tears streamed down the woman's face and she grabbed her son's hand with a vice-like grip.

Not caring about her son's crying or the mud dirtying her shoes, the woman pulled her son by the hand and ran as fast as she could.

Rick watched in surprise as the previously arrogant woman slipped and fell repeatedly on the wet ground as she desperately tried to get away.

All he'd done was draw ever so slightly on his connection to fire and he'd somehow managed to scare the woman half to death.

'That's new.'

Rick wasn't afraid of his powers being exposed from such a minor encounter, if the woman went to the press claiming that a random Supe had harassed her in a park then she'd probably be silenced by Vought in a matter of hours.

Moreover since Rick knew full well that there wasn't an ounce of Compound V in his system, it didn't matter if Vought were to check his records. The only thing they'd find was the mediocre life of a mediocre individual.

'4 more days.'

Rick couldn't help but smile as he imagined the system's voice announcing that Space Manipulation had reached Level 5.

After that he could continue to stack Super Durability until it was upgraded to Level 6.

Super Durability Level 6 alone certainly wasn't enough to defeat Homelander, but it would definitely make it harder for the superman wannabe to kill him.

'4 more days!'

Whistling as he walked, Rick headed back to his car.

"Highway to the danger zone!"

The lyrics burst out from the speakers and filled the car.

Rick's smile widened and he immediately began to sing along to the radio.

The gravel in the car park was churned up into a spray of rocks as Rick pulled out many times faster than was necessary.

There wasn't anyone around to witness his small act of defiance, but it nonetheless gave Rick a small taste of freedom.

'4 more days!'