Free to Play

1.1 - Emma

'It couldn't be true, could it?' Emma thought as she absently elbowed her favorite loser out of the way. 'There's no way you can get powers that easily.'

Yet the mere suggestion of it was too tantalizing to dismiss. It looked like a joke at first. Some random person posting an ad in the Brockton Bay section of Parahumans Online about being able to obtain powers. No one believed it, just like no one believed in those ridiculous conspiracy theories about the Case 53's. People gained powers by going through a tragedy, something which changed you, made you stronger in a fundamental level. Her best friend Sophia never talked much about her circumstances, but Emma gathered enough about it that it must have deeply scarred her being.

Still, Emma wanted to become a parahuman too. She wanted it so badly. It would be a dream to be able to do more than listen to Sophia's adventures. How wonderful would it be to stand side-by-side with Shadow Stalker, kicking ass and cleaning up the filth that scurried through the streets? The more she thought about it, the more she was determined to chase this possibility.

The redhead waited until she had computer class. Not even bothering to look up at her assignment, she opened the browser and visited the PHO boards. She checked the Brockton Bay section, only to find out the thread's been locked by Tin_Mother for offering false advertising. No matter. She could still contact the original poster via a private message.

RealBeauty: Hello? i read your topic about getting powers, and im interested. Is it really true u can give others powers?

Having sent her message, Emma prepared to close the browser and turn back to her assignment. Before she did so, she received a reply. 'That fast?'

Free2Play: Everything I laid out in that topic is true. I can grant powers to anyone. Nothing too powerful, mind you, so don't get your hopes up about becoming the next Alexandria. I think you'll likely get a rating of 2 or 3 in a random classification in the PRT's threat assessment scale. No promises though.

RealBeauty: And u said u cant choose what powers i get, right?

Free2Play: I can't do that.

RealBeauty: bummer

Free2Play: Well no one has ever been able to pick their powers, so you're not missing out on anything in the first place. Just give it a try. It's absolutely free. I don't charge anything for my services.

While Emma knew better than to believe someone blindly over the internet, there wasn't any harm in following this up.

RealBeauty: Cool. But that's not the whole story rite? What do u get out of it?

Free2Play: It doesn't have to be once. I can do it again. And again. Every time I do it, you get a little stronger. But it also drains a little more out of me. So I've decided the first time is free, but after that I want something for my trouble. You have to understand that I got to pay the bills too.

This sounded rather reasonable. If Emma had the same powers, she would have charged people money for the first time as well, but who was she to question a gift horse in the mouth?

RealBeauty: that's great! So that means I can just meet up with u and get only 1 application and that's it? I don't have to come back to you for maintenance or refueling or something?

Free2Play: Nope. There's no strings attached. You don't have to spend a dime if you don't want to.

That really cinched it. Emma had to meet this Free2Play and see if she could actually gain powers. There was no harm in it even if Free2Play was talking out of his ass.

RealBeauty: ok, im convinced. lets meet.

Emma had some sense to determine a time and place somewhere public. She wasn't about to be led in some dark alleyway and be kidnapped by a bunch of ABBers. 'Tomorrow. It's going to happen tomorrow! I can't wait!'

Her day passed in a blur, and she went through school the next morning with nothing else but powers in her mind. What would she get after her meeting? Would she be able to shoot out lasers like New Wave? Become a speedster like Velocity? But then she shook her head. 'I shouldn't get my hopes up. This guy warned me I wouldn't become strong enough to go toe-to-toe with the likes of Lung.'

Still, gaining enough strength to to beat up gang members with ease was all she wanted out of this deal. If she was lucky, she'd be strong enough to equal Shadow Stalker, but even if she came short she would still be useful in some way. 'I can't wait until I show Sophia what I can do. Then I'll be a real predator like she always says I am.'

After school was out, she bid Madison and Sophia goodbye and went straight to the bus. Though the meeting was scheduled well over an hour later, Emma just couldn't restrain herself from arriving early. The old fountain at the edge of the Boardwalk was perhaps the least popular part of the landmark. That it was situated close to the entrance of the now-defunct ferry didn't help much in the matter. Still, a couple of tourists still wandered a bit too far before they got the hint to turn back, so it wasn't as if she was completely alone here. It was a safe, out of the way location that still looked sufficiently public for her to call for help if she needed it. 'If this is real, then I'll step out of this place as a new parahuman.'

Sitting down at a nearby bench, she tapped a foot and waited for the hour to go by. Since she still had a half hour to go, she walked back and bought herself an ice cream cone to pass the time. When that disappeared in her nervous stomach, she had to count down the remaining minutes in unbearable impatience.

Finally someone else arrived who didn't look like a tourist. The newcomer didn't look like a cape, nor did he look like a vagrant or something else. Despite the mild chill and the temperate weather, this tall person was bedecked in layers and layers of old and unremarkable clothes. A hoodie and scarf along with thick reflective snowboarding goggles completely obscured the head. Frankly, the fashionista in Emma was abhorred by the look, but the girl pushed it down as much as possible in favor of the purpose of the meeting.

"Are you.. Free2Play?"

The newcomer nodded, and spoke with a voice that very clearly came from some kind of voice distortion gadget. "That I am."

The voice, despite its artificial garbling, still sounded minutely feminine. Now that she thought about it, Emma could imagine that the person underneath all those layers was a woman. Well, who really cares whether the power giver was a man or a woman. "So... I don't have to do anything, do I?"

"You have nothing to worry about." Free2Play said as she removed a thick mitten from one of her spindly hands. "I only have to hold your hand, and it will be over in a minute. Now before I begin, are you absolutely sure you want to proceed? You can't undo the changes I will make, and you'll be stuck with your powers for the rest of your life. I haven't tested it but I suspect you won't ever be able to become a parahuman the natural way. Do you have any second thoughts?"

"I... I'm sure." Emma's resolve was as hard as steel by now. "I've tried so long to become a cape. If taking a shortcut means giving up a more powerful ability that I might never get, then I'll gladly take it."

Sophia never described to Emma the sensation of gaining powers. Considering all the drama that involved trigger events, it must not have been very pleasant. Perhaps it was something painful no one would ever want to live it again. Perhaps it was something so ethereal that no one really understood what they just subjected their minds and bodies to.

Emma experienced neither of those two possibilities. Instead, she experienced what in her limited life could only describe as Nirvana. Pure ecstasy shuddered through her veins as some otherworldly wave of power flowed from her hand, down her arm, and spread throughout the rest of her body. Her heart throbbed in excitement, her stomach growled in satisfaction and her brain radiated a moment of such complete zen that she felt as if she was a god.

Paradise didn't even compare to the sensations that thrummed inside Emma's being. With a child-like wonder she felt the energy probe her organs, sometimes passing them over but other times rearranging a few things here and there. The energies were practically rewriting her body on the spot, breaking the boundaries of what is human in order to go beyond. The whispers of angels caressed her ears, and Emma imagined they told her how strong she was, and how much stronger she would become after the changes have made their course.

She woke up a couple of minutes later. The waves of pleasure left her body and mind far too soon. For a second, Emma wasn't sure it was all real. What if this woman merely drugged her? But then she felt it. The thrums of power, though a pale reflection of what she experienced before, still sang throughout her being. Not sure what she was doing, she held out a hand and pushed the current out of it. Tiny drops of lights escaped from her palm and started to fly around her. Her mouth opened in amazement. 'They're beautiful!'

Like a child seeing fireworks for the first time, Emma marveled at the dozens of tiny stars that zipped around her in a globe. They flickered occasionally but shone bright even in the middle of the day. Some were blueish. Others green. More were yellow. They came in all the colors of the rainbow and she instinctively figured they possessed different capabilities. With a nudge of her mind, she sent a green one into the pavement before her feet.

It winked out without any further effect. Frowning, Emma plinked the same spot with a yellow orb instead.

That produced a small crack that broke the stone and showered her feet with pebbles. Though Emma yelped backwards from the explosion, she quickly forgot about it and instead grinned with satisfaction. That Free2Play woman was right. She had powers now! Even more, if her hunch was correct and each color had a different effect, then perhaps she got more than one different 'power' out of the exchange. Sophia wouldn't be able to shrug her off now!

After making sure nobody had paid attention to her shenanigans, Emma left the Boardwalk and headed back home. She had a lot to do before she could step onto the streets. She needed a costume, a mask, a name, and much, much more. Already she juggled half-a-dozen costume designs in her mind. Procuring the right materials would cost her a pretty dime, but she refused to go out into the streets with a bulky hoodie and jeans. Emma smirked. 'I'm in this to win.'