Even the greatest of us were not so from the start. To walk in the shoes of those before you, there is no other way than to take that first step.

- Vince Carter, Conference of Supers

The city of Newhold was built in the middle of the Changed Lands. A series of PATs still experiencing echoes of the past. The city itself was unique in that it endured the conventionally harsh landscapes. Power-affected-terrains, as a rule, were avoided. They were too dangerous and unpredictable to actually settle, save for a few exceptions.

Like every responsible and conscientious super, Ludus, of course, did not report himself as a newly originated metahuman. Maybe, maybe, he would have if his power was anything supremely dangerous.

Supposedly, there were a lot of factors that went into the origination of new powers. Location, time, immediate surroundings, emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual state, even things as esoteric as the alignment of the moons, which was particularly baffling since one of them was a duplicate of the original. All speculations, mostly, since originations happened seldom enough for anyone to study them with any real scrutiny.

Nevertheless, it was easy for Ludus to trace the nature of his power.

The newest console by Reality Tech had been especially alluring to him. A virtual reality headset that promised full-dive technology. When Reality Tech promised new technology they came through with it. Their research team was headed by the famous Richter Reality, who also happened to be the CEO. Of larger note, he was a high-mind genius type rated in the 9’s, that was enough to turn heads anywhere.

Ludus remembered staring at the fried piece of technology. He’d spent months saving only for the console to end up a smoking mess. He spent a small fortune and waited months for release. Now? His room was black and charred, he could almost trace the electricity across his wall.

As it turned out, a super had originated that day. Well, one of two that Ludus knew. A day worker who manned the security shift at one of Newhold’s power plants. His origination had knocked out the entire sector, Ludus’ place included and had garnered much more publicity than Ludus’ own. It had also been the exact same moment Ludus had decided to put the headset on.

Miraculously, the power outage and resulting electrical overcharge left Ludus unscathed, despite the damage it wrought across his room. He remembered breathing in the acrid air, dumbfounded, shocked—literally, and silenced at the localized thunderstorm that had visited his room.

He’d been in the center of it, after all.

That was the day he’d originated. Too fast to even realize it. He didn’t—couldn’t—understand or process what was happening until it concluded. As it so happened, that was also yesterday.

Ludus stared at himself in the mirror. “I don’t look any different.” He said to himself. He really didn’t.

Familiar green eyes stared at him, a rare color in mundanes. There were, of course, supers that were marked by their powers, changes in eye color happened often enough, but Ludus’ irises were naturally green.

His figure—his physique—didn’t change in the slightest. He was still somewhat fit, lean certainly, and without the excess mass that a life of luxury might afford. He knew that some originations altered the physical form. The mental state as well but that didn’t feel different either. The fact of the matter was that Ludus felt entirely normal.

Which was odd, given the display of data before him. A spread of information he intuited that only he could see. He stared at it with some intent and he was surprised to see everything shift in the mirror. It coalesced into a single sheet, floating by his head if the reflection was anything to go by.

Despite that, he knew he could’ve recalled the information with his eyes closed. He also knew that anyone looking above his shoulder wouldn’t see anything. It was only for him.

Name: Ludus Rowth

Level: 1

Titles: None

Traits: [Lightning Touched]

STR: 4

CON: 5

DEX: 4

AGI: 6

PER: 8

INT: 8

WIS: 8

WIL: 5

CHA: 6

LUK: 4

Stat Points: 1

Skills: [Lightning Magic]

It was almost disconcerting how fast the world changed. One moment, he was excited about the newest VR game. What young person wasn’t? Especially when the name Reality Tech was thrown around in the same sentence. Then the next moment...

He was staring down at—what, a character sheet?

“No, that’s exactly what it is.” He blinked, a shot of excitement taking over him. He’d only meant that as an offhand joke but there was immediate truth to it.

His words were hurried and eager. “It is a status sheet. With some differences.” He muttered, growing in tentative excitement. He could actually reach out and touch it, expanding descriptions and viewing other information. “There’s no hitpoints, no mana. No visible experience either, but there are levels. Traits, Titles, and Skills are all familiar, but they could mean anything at this point. What if—”

He had focused on the highly suspect Trait with the slightest intention of finding out exactly what it meant. Could it have anything to do with yesterday? His mere attention and barest intent were apparently enough.

Trait: [Lightning Touched] (Epic)

You’ve experienced, in some way or another, the unadulterated power of a fundamental force of nature on a level of lethality so pronounced it is a miracle you still breathe. Every cell in your body vibrates with energy. To be subject to lightning is to witness the sublime, to feel it and know it. An awakening like no other.

- 100% increase in lightning resistance

- 100% increase in reflexes and reaction speed

- 20% increase in efficacy regarding lightning-based abilities

- Gain random lightning-based Skill: [Lightning Magic]

“Whoa.” He whispered. “This is fucking cool. Lightning resistance? Does that mean I’m immune?”

He indeed hadn’t been hurt by the electricity yesterday. Had he gotten this Trait the moment he’d originated? Did getting zapped actually benefit him?

“And efficacy? That’s vague… or not.” He corrected himself in slow realization. He found that he did actually know what it meant. Power, range, the intended effect, control, efficiency. All those and more fell under the blanket term ‘efficacy’. It was an ‘everything lightning is better’ type of bonus.

“Wow.” He said in awe. “Reflexes and reactions too. Maybe something to do with electrical impulses? Hmm.”

This time he shifted his attention to the only other notable thing on his Status. And, consequently, the remaining effect of his Trait. The random Skill.

Skill: [Lightning Magic] (Epic)

The capacity to understand the flow of mana as it pertains to the element of lightning. Mana as power, raging in an ever-present tempest. The storm calls to you. The chaos of power absolute held in your mind as a shock of lightning. The air around you stands on edge, buzzing with anticipation, electricity dances.

In the same manner that he knew Traits defined an innate effect or characteristic of his person, he knew Skills represented an increased intuition, prowess, competency, and ease regarding a particular field.

It was in that manner, that he knew. He knew how to cast magic. The slightest concrete certainty and instinct. The idea of supernaturality. In his mind, a piece of new knowledge was budding even as he focused on it.

He stared in the mirror then his gaze slid to his palms. Like the rest of his body, no visible changes. And yet, he was [Lightning Touched], he knew [Lightning Magic]. He rubbed his fingers together, curious, amazed, awestruck.

Electrified.

When his fingers parted, crackling arcs of pure electricity connected them. A pitched hum engulfed the room and the scent of ozone tinged the air. Lightning in his hand. A spiderweb of power dancing erratically between his palm. It felt like his hand was both asleep and awake, basking in the energy running through it, yet also entirely numb to it. Hyper aware and entirely unaffected.

Ludus waved his hand around, turned it over and backward, then stared at it again. He brought his thumb and index together, watching the arc disappear. Then, pulling them apart again, he extended the tendril of electricity to the wingspan of his fingers.

Then he tripped over the Reality Tech headset and accidentally discharged the electricity into the wall as he caught himself. Nothing happened thankfully but he felt the power radiate through the wall.

“Are you stupid, Ludus?” He whispered to himself vehemently. “You idiot.” He hissed.

He’d just done the impossible and the first thing he did was trip. Typical. It didn’t detract at all from the excitement that ran through him like… lightning, really. His heart was racing and with his Trait he doubted it was a side-effect of handling the magic he just performed.

He freaked out. Just a little. Not a lot. Not a lot at all.

By the time he calmed down—if he ever truly did, he was, perhaps anticlimactically, watching the news. Luckily his TV was in a separate room, otherwise, he would’ve missed it. Idly, he played with the lightning in his palm, making sure to keep it controlled.

A woman was speaking, a familiar face whose name Ludus never bothered to remember.

“-entire South Hold district might be experiencing random power outages throughout the week. The extent of the damage done to the power plant is yet to be determined. However, the newly originated super has already been taken in by the right authorities, observing his rights by the Origination Act, he will be held responsible but not convicted of crime or felony.”

“Due to the nature of his power, we suspect he may end up serving Newhold’s power companies in some manner of public service in the future. We urge you to report any oddities in the coming days, new powers can always surprise.”

The scene cut to another person. This time, a man in a suit who normally commented on power-based news. Ludus recognized him too, supers were a hot topic anywhere in the world, which was why this man appeared often. He was an expert who offered insights normal superfans didn’t generally pick up.

“For those of you in South Hold, beware of any potential mutations the local wildlife may have undergone in light of the power surge. We’ve had a number of callers reporting electrical bursts or fires in their homes. And we’re all aware of what the Wild is capable of. Wildgrowth’s power is notorious for the mutations it brings about. Keep an eye out and report anything suspicious.”

The scene cut off to something else and with it, Ludus lost interest. South Hold referred to the southern district of Newhold. The part of the city that bordered The Wilds, one of the many PAT’s of the Changed Lands, and more specifically one of the four surrounding Newhold.

The Wilds were a PAT that was the result of a super named Wildgrowth who could enhance the vitality, lethality, and general hardiness of all wildlife. The exact vector of his power wasn’t entirely known, only that animals and plant life found in the Wild undergo accelerated evolution. And, as mentioned in the news, that wasn’t even considering the strange mutational variants.

It meant South Hold was notoriously more rampant in terms of growth. Supermarkets, fast food restaurants, and every other business in between were punctuated by abundant overgrowth. Grass growing from sidewalks, bushes and shrubbery sprouting from cement, trees rivaling nearby buildings. The term urban jungle came to mind. It wasn’t uncommon to find small animals scurrying about.

Ludus stepped out of his home. A small cabin that appeared to be secluded and isolated, surrounded by greenery. In reality, he wasn’t that far of a walk from the nearest neighbor, nor the commercial district of South Hold.

Newhold’s walls kept the worst of the Wild out of the city. However, some aspects of the PAT couldn’t be avoided.

“Rathounds.” Ludus frowned, watching a pack of three rummage through the brush outside his home. They were large as dogs and just as prolific as regular rodents. It was a blessing they ate each other as much as they scavenged Newholds streets. They were a mark of the Wild, having infested the whole city.

He considered for a moment if he could do something with his [Lightining Magic] but decided against it. It wouldn’t really do anything but potentially expose himself as a metahuman. That was something he wanted to strictly avoid doing. And three rathounds were barely worth the effort considering how many were in Newhold.

It was at this point that Ludus realized he had an innate awareness of the area. More so than just being familiar with it. Something tugged gently at his perception and his focus slid away to something.

“A minimap.” He said dumbfounded. Simultaneously within his vision and not. Present only if he sought it.

It was like a mental compass and GPS working off of pure intuition existed in the corner of his perception. Complete with a myriad of icons, ranging from ?’s to stylized shopping carts. A three-dimensional topographical map, all as instinctive as the notion of his Status. With a mental nudge, he could ‘zoom’ in or out. Everywhere he’d ever been was documented in the areas the map revealed, an obfuscating fog in the places he hadn’t visited in a while, and a light mist covering parts he’d been just yesterday. A radius around him, partially blocked by walls, trees, or other obstacles, was bright, representing his immediate perception.

There were symbols all over. Points of interest.

And there was a ‘?’ symbol in front of him. A mystery event. His gaze was drawn again to the rathounds. They were brown or grey or black, something between snarl, chitter, and squeak, escaping their mouths. Beady eyes darted around betraying their skittish nature. Pinkish, meaty tails, deceptively prehensile flicked about just as fleeting as the creature itself.

“You can’t be serious.” He said, sensing they were indeed the subject of interest.

New Quest: [Rats of South Hold] (Unusual)

Newhold is home to many oddities, among them the pesky rathounds of the Wilds. As prolific as their regular counterparts, with all the durability and hardiness of cockroaches, while simultaneously matching the size of medium dogs. A colony lives somewhere in South Hold, eliminate or sufficiently cull its numbers.

Colony destroyed: 0/1

Rathounds killed: 0/500

Rewards: Random (Unusual) Item

“Right, 500 rathounds, no big deal.” Ludus said flatly. That was just about within his reach as flying with Vector was. Or armwrestling Shieldwall. Both of which were about as likely as winning the lottery and subsequently getting struck by a wayward meteor.

Rathounds could easily kill a mundane. If they didn’t have the propensity to flee at the first sight of danger, deaths in South Hold would be on the rise. Him clearing an entire nest? Dedicated professionals couldn’t—haven’t—accomplished that. Not because there didn’t exist a super who could annihilate droves of their number, Ludus could easily name a handful, but because they were pests. They kept coming back.

But it was enlightening. He could get Quests. That at least, he was familiar with. Tasks, goals, objectives, or missions, he could complete in order to get rewards and, he assumed, get more powerful.

In the same moment he understood these new instincts, he became aware of a few additional Quests. Some which had been there from the very beginning, in fact.

Quest Complete: [Game Start] (Unique)

In a world where mortal men and women are capable of miracles, where a fraction of the world are gifted supernaturality, you are also one such superhuman. For you, the world is a game and it’s time to start playing.

Acknowledge the game: 1/1

Reward: Common Skill, Common Item

As soon as he mentally regarded the prompt, it was like hours passed in a blink. Before he had even ‘opened’ the prompt, he had already completed the objective. And his choice of Common Skill and Common Item occurred somewhere between no time at all and hours long.

He didn’t stagger. He didn’t flinch, or jerk, or move at all to indicate anything really happened. One moment, he was standing, and the next he was rewarded. Or rather, he had already chosen his rewards within that span of a blink.

New Skill: [Acrobatics] (Common)

The performance of spectacular gymnastic feats. Actions of extreme dexterity and agility, characterized by considerable flair and coordination. The physical ability to exercise supreme motor control.

New Item: [Wildwood Wand] (Common)

A wand carved of a tree from the Wilds. Wildwood is a prime medium for spellcasting, conducting mana through stronger grain and superior vitality than any other mundane wood. The resultant wand acts as an ideal focus for beginners.

- 3% increase in spell efficacy

They weren’t random choices. They’d been made in an instant, and not. Ludus did have a reason for them. [Acrobatics] to allow him more mobility while synergizing with the effect from [Lightning Touched] that augmented his reflexes and reaction times. The wand was self-explanatory. They were his best choices, so he’d determined.

It was something of a starting loadout. He definitely would’ve considered different options had he not received the benefits of originating by electrical baptism.

In this whirlwind of new discoveries, he came upon another aspect of his power, namely the small detail that he had an inventory.

His wand had appeared in it and Ludus had instinctively known this. A series of ‘pockets’ or ‘slots’ that he sensed could hold a number of different things.

The notion of a personal dimensional space almost made Ludus faint. A decidedly terrible idea considering his proximity to nearby rathounds. It was like countless new limbs were waking up and he wondered if other supers had similar experiences.

And yet, there was still another pending Quest. No time to even consider his rewards yet.

New Quest: [Lightning Born] (Epic)

To be touched by lightning is to ever seek its rush. It is to know that instant connection between land and sky, infinity in a moment eternalized. Seek the storm as it seeks you and witness power sublime once more.

Stand in the eye of a thunderstorm: 0/1

Be struck by lightning: 0/30

Strike lightning: 0/1

Reward: [Lightning Magic] Active, [Lightning Magic] Passive

“And this one is even more unrealistic than exterminating the rathound colony.” Ludus frowned. “Or maybe not. I’m immune, after all, but the only naturally occurring thunderstorms nearby are in… Craggy Rock.”

He stared at the Quest. Or did the mental equivalent.

Craggy Rock was not exactly a safe PAT to tread. None of them were, really, at least none nearby. The Changed Lands were vast after all but not every power-affected-terrain was hostile. They just harbored an inherent unpredictability that regularly equated to danger. Craggy Rock, unfortunately, was a hostile PAT.

Of course, it wasn’t imperative that he do any of these Quests right this moment. He didn’t think there was anything compelling him to actually complete them. In fact, he felt he could just let them go. In any case, he could revisit them anytime.

For now… His hands itched with the need to try. To push the envelope.

He needed to go somewhere private to test his power. To really explore it, he wanted to find what he was actually capable of. Lightning wasn’t exactly the most inconspicuous of abilities. Again, he wasn’t keen on exposing himself as the second super in as many days.

His heart was beating fast. He was super now. The thought staggered him as it all came crashing down. He was a super. A metahuman. A person capable of miracles.

He knew where he was going. It was an instinct for every super.

He was going to experiment.