Threat Level: E

Destructiveness: E

Killability: D

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Might: F

Survivability: E

Recovery: D

Mobility: E

Spark: D

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Powers: Enhanced Sight and Hearing, Sonic Blasts, Durable Arms, Metabolic Regeneration, Desert Jackal’s Reflexes

Classification: Bruiser/Stalker

Kaka refused to offer his stronger creatures for Danny’s training. He wanted to save them for a rainy day and only summoned rakshasas for him to fight. They felt like trivial opponents. He out sped them by a significant margin. Instead, Danny used Becca’s training facilities. Omicron and Beta’s combat drones proved themselves as better opponents.

During the training, Danny put strict limitations on himself. He refused to use the sonic blasts. Even though they were his strongest weapon and using them frequently improved his capabilities of firing more. However, they tired him out swiftly, and the discomfort from overusing the sonic blasts affected his combat afterwards. So, Danny looked for alternative ways of improving his fighting capabilities.

First, he worked on an idea Kabandha had given him. Danny had thought the muscles in his arm hollows could do little more than push out eyeballs and fire sonic blasts. That’s all Kabandha had taught him. However, Danny had figured out how to fire the compressed air projectiles all by himself. They were weak and ineffective. He doubted they’d ever get stronger, but it told him that he could make the powers his own.

When Danny learned how to fire the sonic blasts, Kabandha had instructed him to shout using the hand-mouths. In the dream, he mentioned using the arm hollows to hum. He hadn’t given it much thought at first, but saw the sense in it while studying supers with sonic power sets.

Some used high-frequency rhythmic pulses to disrupt their opponents’ inner ears, ruining their balance, or inflicted severe internal damage. He saw records of one villain using a signal called the brown note to make his opponents lose control of their bowels.

Danny doubted he could manage either. His control over the sound production was significantly weaker than that of either individual. Perhaps given enough time or the appropriate essence, he could get close to them, but the muscles were designed for shouting. They specialised in deep notes and volume. So Danny set his sights on emulating another super who had incredible power but lacked control over it.

Mindpunch.

Getting the arm hollows to hum and release a rhythmic pulse proved easier than expected. Danny started with a low frequency and was pleased to discover the air ripple around his hand mouths and forearms with each sonorous note.

“It sounds like a bass drum beating once a second and amplified through a subwoofer meant for a football stadium,” Beta said. “How does it not hurt your ears?”

“I suppose my body and ear drums are safeguarded against sonic effects.” Danny shrugged. “Meta genes make little sense, don’t they?”

“Powers that bend the laws of the universe tend to occur as a solitary power in an individual or surface as the most potent amongst a handful of minor powers. Yours is an anomaly in the general pattern. Being mostly immune to your powers isn’t a rare occurrence, though. What I don’t understand is the barrier.”

“I’d hardly call it that,” Danny said. The air rippled as he started the humming again. He could feel the vibrations all the way up his forearms and in his shoulders. When Danny swung his arms, they left ripples in their wake. He struck the weighted punching bang, and the seams ripped. Sand leaked from the tears.

“It’s nowhere as powerful as the sonic blasts,” Beta said, studying the tablet in his hands. “However, the damage is still significant.” He sighed when the ripples ended abruptly. “If you can make this consistent, I reckon your Might-rating could go up an entire rank.”

“What parameters do I need to achieve for that to happen?”

“Currently, you can get just under ten seconds at the cost of one sonic blast. Manage fifteen and it might just be possible. How’s your sonic sense—”

“I don’t like that name,” Danny said.

“Doesn’t matter. What happens to your sonic sense when you have the humming going?”

“I haven’t thought about it.” He closed his eyes and focused. Calling what he felt through his hands felt wrong. It was much more than that. Danny could almost see the source of every sound. “The image in my mind's eye is much clearer.”

“How do you feel about training with a blindfold?” Beta asked. “I reckon your abilities aren’t too far set from echolocation. Your brain might lack the prowess to use the information like a bat or dolphin, but I reckon it can still benefit you. Perhaps you can use them together to create a more complete image.”

Danny’s eyes widened as he processed Beta’s idea. “Has anyone told you that you’re an incredibly intelligent individual?”

Beta grinned. “There’s a reason I’m in charge when Mother is asleep.”

Instead of using the high-volume pulses, Danny went with a softer note. It drained him significantly less, but he got a similar effect. Once blindfolded, Danny tried looking through the floating eyes. It didn’t hurt like when he attempted through all four of his eyes at once. Instead, it disoriented Danny, making nauseous. So, he reverted to not looking through them and let the floating glassy spheres feed him information instead.

Fighting Omicron resulted in Danny taking too much of a beating and not making any progress at all. Beta came up with the idea of using a mixture of different combat drones. Floating drones shot bean bags or rubber pellets at him. While humanoid attackers came at him on foot. The training involved dodging the first and disabling the latter. He failed at it, too, but not as horribly as when going up against Omicron, but Danny kept at it.

The softer pulses lacked sensory range, but still gave him a clear image of his surroundings, helping him gauge distance between himself and the bipedal attackers. They did little to empower his punches, but Danny compensated with technique.

Instead of focusing on striking his opponents, he used grabbing moves. As a hero, Danny would often face opponents who he needed to capture. They wouldn’t necessarily be low-level henchmen or villains with no kill-order to their name, but also opponents with valuable intelligence. When the taser gloves failed, Danny would need to choke out his opponent like he had Ratling. Since his current combat-style demanded open hands, reducing his reliance on punches felt essential, too.

A week of training passed with no calls from Becca or the League. His arm-hollow’s muscles developed significantly. Danny’s sonic-blast count reached twelve for his left arm and thirteen for the right. Even though he hadn’t used the attacks at all, the growth didn’t surprise him. More importantly, he improved the sonic barrier’s capabilities at its maximum power. He failed to reach the fifteen second target but could consistently maintain it for eleven while just reducing the respective arm’s counter by one.

It was on the eighth day of his training when he finally received any correspondence regarding a job. Becca didn’t come down to talk to him. Instead, she sent a message directly through the HoloLens.

Becca: The League has requested you as an asset for a mission based in Islington, Hackney, and neighbouring boroughs. Your sensory abilities were deemed necessary due to the investigative nature for the mission and possible need for infiltration. Do you accept the job?

Danny: Who’s in charge?

Becca: You will serve under Fenrir and Druid. Will that be a problem?

Danny: Not at all. Just wondering what to expect.

Becca: Meet them at 23:45 on tomorrow, the 2nd of April. Fenrir will ping you regarding the location closer to the time. I’d advise meeting Beta an hour prior to the meeting time. He’ll take care of outfitting. If there are any tools, consumables, or weapons you require, submit a request as soon as possible.

Danny: Understood. Thanks again.

Becca: Don’t thank me yet. I’m taking a chance here. Don’t let me or this agency down.

Danny’s lips spread into a wide smile. He immediately made a list for Beta. Many supers carried grappling guns, flash bangs, and at least one weapon. Danny decided against them. He wanted to stay light. Instead, he got a couple of quick-hardening foam grenades, smoke pellets, several high-calorie power bars, and zip ties. Most of the bindings were plastic, but Beta gave him a couple high-durability cuffs, too.

Most of the requested items fit into the new tan coat. Beta supplied Danny with a high durability utility belt, too. The compartments proved perfect for storing smoke pellets and meaty bite-sized snacks. They wouldn’t power Metabolic Regeneration to the same degree as the power bars, but they’d be quicker to consume.

Before going home to spend a day resting, Danny trialled the full costume. Beta had left the gloves, boots, and trousers untouched. The new coat had more padded sections especially around the collar and forearms, shielding the vulnerable areas. Beta had patched the chest armour around the abdomen, but after a coat of electric blue, it looked as good as new. He had coloured mask and mouthpiece similarly.

“What do you think?” Beta said.

“It’s amazing,” Danny said. “I feel ready. We could do more with the suit, I think, but it’s perfect for a debut.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Kaka asked when Danny told him about the asset contract.

“I think so,” Danny said, wondering whether to admit to his growing doubts regarding life as a superhero. “I’ll have to join the League sooner or later. To put the Vedas to rest, I’ll have to get close to Vish. There’s no way around that.”

Kaka nodded, staring thoughtfully at the full dinner plates between them. “You’re right. There’s no way around that. Since there is no stopping you, I suppose I might as well help you.”

“Help me?” Danny’s eyes widened. “You’re going to fight—”

“I’ll only enter the battlefield when you face Vish. I hope that’s far away, but it’s inevitable.”

“What are you proposing, then?”

“Essences,” Kaka said. “My current store of rift creatures isn’t overly diverse. The creatures I have are either much too powerful for you or too weak. The rest are essential—” Kaka paused. When he looked up from his plate, Danny could see a hint of sorrow and heartbreak in his uncle’s eyes. “I was holding onto Rin for an emergency, and I have others like her. They’re for certain inevitabilities and I can’t spare them. However, I have access to a wide network of collectors, Keepers, and allies that spawns across Europe. If there is something you want, I can look into acquiring it for you.”

“Range,” Danny said after some thought. “Or more speed. When facing opponents like Malfunction, I need a method of returning fire or closing the distance before they can inflict significant injury. I don’t want to be a sniper, of course, but something that will let me disable a foe from halfway across a basketball course.”

“The challenge will be finding something that fits with your current power set. Finding an essence that gives you a ranged ability won’t be difficult at all. Something that works with sound might demand a fair bit of hunting.”

“A wind-based projectile could work. My current compressed air projectile has inconsistent range and power. Beta can’t make sense of the physics behind it and isn’t sure whether it’s something I could use as a weapon.”

“There are several myths with creatures that use wind as weapons. There’s Garuda in India. Japan has the kamaitachi. They’re yokai with wind sickles known for flaying people alive. I’ll do some research on harpies and sylphs, too. I can’t make any promises, but that’s possible. Is there anything else you want?”

“Mostly speed and anything that will improve my control over sound. I’ve figured out a new attack using it, but it’ll take quite some time to nurture into something reliable.”

“I might as well go to Greece.” Kaka chuckled. “Sirens, sylphs, and harpies. They might have everything you want.”

“Don’t put yourself out, Kaka,” Danny told his uncle as the pair finally dug into their dinners. “This is my journey—”

“No.” Kaka cut him off. “This our journey. The dimension is out of balance because of our family’s failing. We’ll deal with this together. I held you back long enough. There are still things that I’m not ready to discuss.” He sighed. “It’s still too difficult for me. But, I can help you prepare. It’s the least I can do.”