Faster and Stronger

"Opening my eyes, all I saw was a blur," I mumbled, the shower pelting my face as I lay on the floor.

Grabbing the wall handle to pull myself up, a crack echoed in the bathroom. "Oh... yeah, I forgot about that," I muttered, examining the now-bent handle in my hand. It was an aluminum bar, wall-mounted with screws. Pulling it out like this made me think one thing: "I hope this place is mine and I'm not renting it."

Struggling to my feet and closing the shower, I took a moment to assess the change in my now-evolved super soldier body. Standing at an imposing 6'4", shredded and intimidating, I felt a surge of power that mad me euphoric.

[Evolution completed]

[You have gained a superhuman body]

[New Evolution requirements set]

[Complete 4 system calls of higher difficulty]

"I expected something like this, but still, risk and reward," I mused, scanning the room. new sensations washed over me; my vision, my body, everything felt enhanced. Not wanting to damage my already-worn-down place, I decided it was time to put myself to the test.

Dressing quickly, I headed down to a cluster of abandoned warehouses nearby. "Looks cliché as fuck, but... whatever," I shrugged. Starting with a sprint, I lowered into a stance and pushed with all my might. According to my GPS app on the phone, my speed was clocked in at 90-100 km/h. "Haha, that's great... for a start."

Moving on to vertical jumps, I reached heights of around 10-15 feet with a running start. Eyeing the top of a nearby warehouse, roughly 2 and a half stories high, I crouched down and prepared to take off.

Crouching down, I got ready and took off running at full speed. Anyone seeing this would probably mark me as a meta due to how fast I'm moving. My legs pounded the ground like pistons, each impact reverberating through the concrete. My lungs worked in perfect harmony with my body, but surprisingly, the exertion wasn't as draining as I anticipated.

"Haaah!" I leaped, soaring higher than any non-meta has a right to be. But then...

"SHIT!" I collided with the zinc roof heavily and tumbled down, the impact tearing my hoodie. "Aaaahhhhh!" Pain shot through me as I struggled to catch my breath, bruises forming on my torso from the impact.

"Very impressive, young man... seems like you got the basic super package," a voice echoed from behind. Startled, I turned to see a security guard standing there. "What, you thought you were the only bright meta to come to such a cliché place to test your powers? Pffff, please."

"Listen, man, could you, uhhh, forget what you..." Before Arthur can finish, the guy cuts him off.

"How far did you test?"

"Excuse me?"

"Looking at the indentation on the side of that zinc roof, seems to me like you are testing jump height ... right?"

Seems like the black security guy was standing to the side, watching Arthur for god knows how long.

"Yes, I just tested my jumping. I know you saw me get knocked on my ass."

"No excuses on how that dent got there? I thought you would try harder 'cause I heard some pretty creative stuff in my time... Anyway, good. Follow me; it will be worth your time." The guy starts walking slowly towards the edge of the warehouses.

"Whatever game you're playing won't pan out the way you think." Arthur himself is ready to pounce on the guy in a split second as they walked for a while.

"There is no game, son. Believe it or not, being a guard to these warehouses is boring as shit, but over time I noticed a trend. Newly awakened metas like to show up and test their shit here. So, to keep it short... I thought I could give them an outlet to test their powers." The man reaches an inconspicuous warehouse and opens the side door. What was inside shocks Arthur.

"Huh... sweet." Metas all around the warehouse training; a werewolf is benching a steel beam, being spotted by a rock guy.

On the side, ladies were exchanging energy blasts and blocking at the same time. The guard looks at Arthur and says, "Many more warehouses are scattered with different facilities. They are, of course, ghetto as shit compared to organizations that deal with supers. But here, we offer something a bit special that I think you might appreciate, and that's NETWORKING. A new super like you can make connections, build a team, or join one while making a name for yourself." The man pats Arthur's shoulder.

"What's the catch? Seems too good to be true." Arthur was indeed skeptical about this whole thing, but what the man said next put him at ease.

"This whole thing is crowdfunded and run by me. All I need is your word that when we help you, if and when you make it, you won't forget your roots, kid, and help us help other people." The man then puts his hand forward to shake Arthur's. "Welcome to the Warehouse Project, kid. Name's Frank. Just Frank."

"Well, Frank, I'm a man of my word, and I like what you're selling, especially since it's free. My alias is Soldier Boy. Expect to hear about me soon." Arthur shakes the man's hand.

"But, Frank, this whole no-strings-attached thing can't be profitable, right? I mean, really, how many keep their word?" Arthur wasn't convinced that this whole business model would work.

"It's simple, Soldier Boy. The ones that don't care about their fellow supers don't last long in your line of work. Think of it as me investing in a bunch of people, and only one needs to make it big for this to work."

"And who exactly made it big?" Arthur was curious how big is big for Frank.

"That's confidential, haha, but think of it as the people who invest in me get a first insider look at potential talents for recruitment. Naturally, this is by no means a secret because I don't do shady shit, and that's a Frank promise." He then points at the hulking men benching.

"Superheroes are becoming an industry and where there is an industry there is profit to be made, that man right there is the one example of corporate greed and he will be your spotter for today."

"Show us something good, kid. Big Mass! Spot the kid for me, start with one beam." The dark-skinned hulking man was probably around 8 feet tall, his body freakishly muscular to the point of being grotesque.

"Sure thing, Frank. Come here, new guy, give us a show." The setup was crude, a bench made of steel beams while benching steel beams that are held with steel wires.

"A makeshift smith machine? Huh. this can't be safe." I lay down and prepared to give it my all.

"It's safe because I'm here, One beam is 3 tonnes. We have normal plates if that ain't on your level." Big Mass was grinning, probably flexing that he was benching 9 tonnes with ease the moment I walked in.

"Let's give it a try. Also, don't crush me." I see the beam get lowered down as I place my hands on each side. It felt hard to grip, but as it weighed down on me, my biceps burned. My first thoughts were it was too much for me to handle, but soon...

"You're holding good. Now, bench that shit." I lower my hands;as the beam touches my chest.

"Haaah!" I push the beam up with all my strength, and it slowly lifts back up until my arms reach full length.

"Good shit, dude. You are already well-built, and with the right training, we can probably add a ton to your lift." Big Mass raises the bar off me with ease as he grins like a madman.

"I will make a man out of you, newbie. Just don't break." Big Mass looks at Frank, while the other huge rock guy seems to be not giving a shit about the whole ordeal.

"Welcome to the club, kid. Big Mass is our resident coach; he will set you right. But for now, let's introduce you to some of the people you might have to train with." Following Frank, we make the rounds, meeting other metas that work with him.