chapter 28 : Awakening

[Later in the night]

 It was 7 p.m. when Amber came back with Britney and she was introduced to everyone.

 When she was introduced to Lucas, a smile appeared on her lips because he was a prodigious fighter that she had always dreamed of facing but he had no power at the time and the fight would have been imbalance.

 When she learned after his death that Lucas was FEAR, Britney had been plunged into immense regret not because she really liked FEAR but because if she had known that Lucas had powers, she would have sought him out to fight him. .

 Britney was a very pretty woman with short silver hair, she had a sporty look and the appearance of a sexy woman approaching forty. She looked at Lucas and smiled in a charming way, it was weird.

 Britney: Hello Mr. Grayson, we finally meet. (shakes Lucas's hand) It's certainly something to meet King, the Emperor of the Pits.

 Lucas: Ms. Britney, it is a pleasure to welcome you here. Amber told me you were her friend and teacher, thank you for taking care of her.

 Britney: Your girlfriend is an interesting girl with a talent for fighting, she beat my best student here pretty quickly in less than a year and I wanted to make her my assistant but she declined the offer.

 Lucas: She certainly had other plans but that's not the main thing. Please come in and be welcome. Make yourself at home, we were getting ready for dinner so we hope you will join our table.

 Amber: I'll guide her to her room.

 Lucas: Okay, once again, you're welcome here Ms. Britney.

 Brit looked at Lucas one last time with appreciation, she knew he was a handsome young man, that he was a fighter like no other but she was impressed by his politeness and manners.

 With Amber, she arrived at her room where they chatted a little, reminding Amber that she was lucky to be with Lucas, he was exceptional according to her and yet her standards are very narrow when it comes to men.

They went to join the others at the table where they got to know each other better.

 The next day, everyone started the trip to Africa by car at the chosen time. Lucas had bought a custom camper van where the others had stayed, it was spacious and luxurious enough for everyone to be comfortable inside.

 Of course they didn't drive but Lucas carried the car without even feeling the weight before flying to Africa with Mark next to him, they knew the location of the place perfectly because it is This place that Lucas brought them together for his ecological project which brought Mark and Eve together at the beginning was in the Tanzanian Savannah .

 They arrived there very quickly and the natives welcomed them very well. Lucas and the others had made this place a true paradise like almost everywhere in Africa, mainly thanks to the powers of Eve who could easily manipulate the atomic structure of objects.

 The residents of the village not far from Eve's mansion had maintained Eve's house out of pure gratitude and she sincerely thanked them for that.

 His relationship with them was extremely good because these people had much purer values ​​than the inhabitants of big cities.

 The change in climate was felt very quickly, especially for Art even if he was very fascinated by the environment around him and he very quickly got along well with the natives just like Deborah.

 As for Saeko, in no time she was surrounded by the smiling village children who tried to get to know her, it slightly stressed her to see so many friendly and smiling faces around her, except with her family, she had never experienced this.

 Two days later, a rather interesting video circulated on the African airwaves which stressed a large number of political people.

 The video was that of FEAR announcing his return to Africa and that he was going to pay a short visit to these countries to see if the governments had been fair to the population.

 More than a year ago, he had massacred a number of leaders and corrupt leaders who had plunged their own country into misery.

 Now, after a year where they all thought he was dead, Lucas was going to return to these countries and this time, he will no longer do anything in the shadows and will organize public meetings with the population of each country to find out more.

 When some leaders understood this, they sweated profusely and began to act in an exemplary manner towards the population so that their testimonies would be favorable.

 Others began to attack Lucas, demanding support from the international community for FEAR's actions because they were sovereign nations but Lucas wanted to dictate to governments how to act.

 They called Lucas a settler, an invader and other terms but the fact was that Lucas didn't really care because he was an antihero and an outlaw from the start.

 In addition, government opinion had no weight against Lucas because the opinion of the population of these countries was highly favorable to him, he was a hero in the eyes of all these people who had been abused by the corruption of their leaders.

 They spent very peaceful days there and the day of taking the pill came for Amber and Art who had decided on this date to get powers, they had taken some time to prepare because of the Deborah's warning that the process will certainly be short but very painful and trying.

 Amber swallowed the pill in the room she shared with Lucas who was there to assist her just like Debbie did with Art on their side and things began.

 As Deborah had told them, they were exposed to hellish pain for a time before falling into some sleep with the assistance of others.

 Art was the first to wake up later and was amazed at his body's new abilities.

 He felt energetic as he had never been in his youth and just like Deborah, his appearance had been slightly rejuvenated and beautified to the great happiness of Debbie who was happy for him.

 He had gained 7 times the abilities of a normal human. However, where everyone's curiosity went was to know what his additional power was and within a few hours, Art accidentally discovered his special ability and it shocked everyone.

 His power was terrifying because he could copy the physical powers of others by touching them but only one power at a time.

 The process was quite simple although impressive, Art could copy onto his body the same physical or biological powers of what he touched at will.

 For example, if he touched Mark or Lucas, he would have the same powers as them because these are directly engraved in their bodies but he could not copy psychic powers like those of Eve, Saeko and Deborah.

 The limit of his power was limited to the basic level of the ability. Where the Viltrumite by nature had their evolving powers, Art's level remained basic and fixed, he could have the same powers as Lucas for example but at different levels.

 Where Art would have the fixed strength and toughness of an average Viltrumite, Lucas remains stronger than him because he is much more powerful than an average Viltrumite and will be able to continue to get stronger unlike Art. It was strange but it was a pretty impressive power.

 All this had been done with the knowledge of Brit who was nevertheless external to the family and the group but the fact was that Lucas didn't care, even if she reported to the American government what she had seen, what what the government or anyone could do ?

 From the beginning, he never intended to hide, it's just that this place was a calm and good environment for them.

Now that the family no longer had any weak links, he would like to see who would try anything against them.

 Amber woke up almost 24 hours later to the concern of Lucas and the others but it was not for nothing, she had gained nine times the abilities of a normal human and had the most terrifying power of all, it was the power to nullify all powers.

Much like Art, the discovery of her special ability had been accidental but later to the point where others thought she had had no special abilities.

 As the days went by, she learned to control it at will and the process was quite simple. Amber produced a sort of aura around her that robbed everyone else of their powers, making them normal.

 This aura could currently be projected 50 meters around her and it was as simple as flipping a switch, it didn't seem to exhaust her and she could maintain the aura even while sleeping.

 Lucas looked at his girlfriend and understood all the potential she could have both for them but also against their enemies.

 [13th days in Africa]

 Right now, Lucas was facing Brit for a friendly fight. She had asked him for this exchange for days but he had asked her to wait until the others were used to their powers.

 That being done, it was time for him to keep his word and satisfy Britney's desire to compete with him.

 Honestly, Lucas also couldn't wait to fight against her because she was completely the ideal training partner with her great invulnerability, her lack of fatigue and her superhuman strength not to mention her hand-to-hand combat skills.

 The two got into a fighting stance and it was Brit who attacked with a very serious face, she knew that the young man in front of her had totally terrifying fighting skills and she took him seriously from start.