Erythropoiesis 2.4
I shifted my gaze from the annoyed Indira to the smiling superheroine, who seemed to deliberately look as joyful and relaxed as possible. It felt as though she wanted to simply anger the woman more than actually lure me into a stupid show. And, trying to interrupt this whole circus, I took the floor.
"Umm, I'm glad to meet you, but I just don't understand why you came to me specifically? I don't have some interesting or cool superpower, just simple enhanced physical strength," I asked, shrugging slightly. However, my argument clearly didn't convince her, for the "Princess" simply waved her hand as if I had said some nonsense.
"No need, dear, I know perfectly well about your abilities. Believe me, intellect is a far more useful weapon than the ability to turn invisible. Besides, knowing that you are exceptional is the first step to success. It will give you confidence in your own actions, which is, essentially, the only necessary thing in a hero's career. Without it, not only will you be unable to achieve fame, but you won't even be able to simply perform in front of the public or fans. You can't be a hero without confidence in yourself and your powers, because without it, you won't even be able to save victims—if you know your hand will tremble at the very last moment, it's better not even to start."
I chuckled upon hearing her, noting an important point for myself. Interesting how late she mentioned helping people, placing it far behind meeting fans. But before she continued, one of the men in business suits spoke up. He cleared his throat slightly, then raised his papers and began to speak in a maximally monotonous voice. At the same time, he kept looking at the heroine, as if expecting her approving reaction. Except her cold gaze showed anything but that.
"Ahem, I ask permission to intervene and note how exceptional this offer is. At the moment, more than a hundred possible candidates are being considered, the best of the best, literally future heroes. And it is safe to say that Mark belongs specifically to the category that as many viewers as possible will want to see. According to our statistics..."
The heroine sharply raised her hand and made a sign with her fingers, clearly suggesting he shut his mouth.
"Ah-ah-ah, Tony, no one gave permission to speak. I very strongly ask you to keep quiet for a bit and let real heroes speak. Okay?"
The man didn't react negatively in any way to such treatment, as if to a servant, simply lowering his gaze to the floor. But what interested me especially was Indira's reaction to all this. She frowned and pressed her lips together, and her heart began to beat much faster. And the heroine, turning back to us, only fueled her anger.
"So where were we? Ah, yes, the show. I just want to say what a unique opportunity this is, and when I was just starting my journey, I dreamed of such a chance. Of a direct path to fame, without bumps and wrong turns, without getting bruised from mistakes that could easily have been avoided, and with an immediately well-established image. All this made me who I am, but smart people learn from the mistakes of fools, right? And therefore I truly want Mark to have the opportunity from the very beginning to have what I could only dream of, for I see enormous potential in him."
The "Princess" spoke theoretically kind and supportive words, but everything was ruined by the smile on her face and the look she directed at Indira. It was as if she was savoring the moment and deliberately using her position. However, when my adoptive parents could no longer restrain themselves, the heroine sharply clapped her hands, then looked around as if she had realized something. Except it still looked too staged, causing any positive emotions towards her to vanish.
"Oh, forgive me, this is probably all too complicated. I understand, at your age I too only thought about how not to do homework and have a cool time. However, trust me—filming can be unrealistically interesting! You know... as one of my fans, I can even tell you one very important secret."
She leaned slightly towards me, so there were only five to ten centimeters between our faces, after which she spoke in a conspiratorial tone.
"This show will be the first appearance on the big screen for me too, as I was given the role of host. And you know, it would be really cool if you take part in the filming. There are few children like you, and I would be happy to work with you. But even if you refuse, that's nothing bad. I'm sure a very bright future awaits you."
After that, she winked at me and straightened up, turning towards my adoptive parents. Indira looked more and more annoyed by the second, and only Paul helped her control herself by holding her hand. It seems everything has a limit. However, before she could say a single word, the heroine smiled and giggled.
"Alright, I've said everything I wanted to say. I won't insist, and you can decide whatever you want. Besides, I'm sure your parents will help you make the right choice. After all, their duty is exactly to give the child what he wishes, right? No matter what you choose, Mark, I wish you luck and hope you become a great hero. I'm sure someday you'll even surpass me."
She turned to me one last time, winked, snapped her fingers, and the men in suits stood up abruptly, taking all the papers with them, after which the whole company headed for the exit. Once they left our house, there was silence inside for a while, which Indira broke. With the heroine's departure, she lost her fighting spirit and now simply looked tired. She walked over to me, took my hands, and started looking into my eyes.
"Mark, I want to say that we wish you only the very best. And we support your desire to become a hero or whoever you want to be. However, any goal can be reached through different paths. And the path that this... woman offers you is not the right one. Yes, it looks convenient, fast, and leading to a good life, but it will not bring happiness. I have met many people like her and I can say—they are all only pretending to enjoy their lives. The problem is that it's like a race where the fuel always runs out at the most inopportune moment. And this 'heroine' came here without any goal of truly helping you, but only because she has personal issues with... Never mind, the main thing is that she can say whatever she wants about her intentions, but you cannot believe them. Just trust me."
I simply shrug my shoulders, looking at her. Right now Indira looked as if she truly worried about me, and it was visible in her eyes. And also by her pulse, blood pressure, muscle contractions...
"Well, I wasn't going to agree anyway. They badgered me about this at school too, but I refused. I guess shows like that just aren't for me."
She smiled at me, after which she let go of my hands. I stood in place for a while longer, processing what had happened. My power was working at full capacity, which made me certain—just now she was completely sincere. Well, another mystery, but for some reason I am now sure that it has nothing to do with me specifically. It's even pleasant, for a change, honestly.
. . .
I spent the rest of the day and evening resting from the difficult day. Mostly I read books or comics, but sometimes I just sat at the computer. I didn't watch TV, because the main channels always aired the most boring, bland, and simply dull shows and series about heroes. I mean, yes, Homelander using his powers was very interesting, since it's hard to even imagine all his strength, but it gets boring quite quickly.
By the third episode of his show, I realized that he is practically a god among humans, and practically no one is capable of giving him a worthy challenge. Because of this, I always preferred to follow highly specialized heroes or simply those who hadn't achieved great fame for some reason but possessed potential. For example, Mesmer, a kid capable of reading thoughts and memories upon touch, who used to have his own detective series. Yes, the show is old and full of clichés, but at least it had some creative elements, and the story arc with his parents was very interesting.
And what does The Seven show? They are the strongest, undeniably, but it's not particularly interesting to follow their adventures knowing perfectly well how everything will end. Six heroes will suffer fighting even fake villains, after which Homelander will fly in at the end and defeat the enemy with a couple of punches. At most, you can laugh at a few of Translucent's jokes and wonder if The Deep can become a worthy replacement for Lamplighter? Even the old propaganda films of Soldier Boy and Payback are more interesting.
After the general family dinner, I returned to my room, did my history and English homework, which unfortunately I couldn't completely dodge, after which I proceeded to my most favorite activity—the full-fledged use of my power. Yes, the whole day I was engaged in simply improving my understanding of the body and the composition of blood, but it wasn't particularly spectacular and didn't look like a real superpower. However, I didn't want any unnecessary problems, so special preparations were needed.
Checking that the door was locked, I went to my desk where I did my homework, set all the notebooks and books aside, then opened the bottom drawer, taking out a small kit with everything necessary. Mostly there were disinfectants, bandages, test tubes, and a set of needles. I understood perfectly well that using my powers on myself is very dangerous even for my superhuman body, which is why I approached this as seriously as possible.
Taking a needle, I disinfected it with special agents, then brought it to my finger. My skin was tougher than an ordinary human's, so to get even a single drop, I had to press quite hard. I could have tried to simply draw a drop from a vessel, but over time, such experiments led to an unpleasant numbness, so I stopped them. A small prick on the finger, and I saw the scarlet liquid.
For some time I simply looked at it spellbound, comparing the information coming to me through my eyes and through my "blood vision." Of course, the former was clearer and simpler, however, my power provided such volumes of knowledge that I was only once again convinced of the limitations of my own eyes. I felt its chemical composition and every reaction happening in such a tiny drop. One thought, and it began to rise from my hand.
It's funny that the tiny wound on my finger had already healed. Accelerated regeneration was a very curious thing, however, I was afraid to test it, because I didn't know if it would affect my lifespan. With supes, everything regarding this was generally strange. Someone like Soldier Boy could go decades without aging, while another supe, for example, his closest friend, Crimson Countess, aged like an ordinary person. I suspected the matter lay in the set and level of powers, as almost every supe had enhanced regeneration, but the ability to heal a scratch and the ability to regrow a lost limb are completely different levels. Therefore, I was also curious if there was a way to enhance my abilities? But I put this question on the shelf, for I clearly have no time for it right now.
I examined the rising drop, which trembled slightly in the air. After that, I began the already familiar procedure to improve the control of blood manipulation itself—the drop began to change, stretch, and form the most diverse shapes I could imagine. A long bloody thread? Elementary. An icosahedron out of it? Already difficult, but quite possible to create. A toy in the shape of a little vampire? The limit of my capabilities in creating bloody objects. However, this was far from the only thing I could do with it.
With a wave of my hand, the drop lost its shape and became a perfectly round sphere, which I started moving quickly around me. It spun around me, and with every revolution, the speed only increased, right up until it practically began to blur. Over the past years, I had managed to test many theories related to the limits and possibilities of my power. For example, I learned that the larger the volume of blood I work with, the slower it moves and the harder it is to control. Correspondingly, this is exactly why I worked mainly with small drops—it was a significantly more effective way to develop specifically the control of the power.
Over the years, I had quite succeeded in this matter, however, there was still one method of using the power that I hadn't touched. So far I don't know how I will work with the blood inside someone's body, for I haven't conducted experiments. Risking myself was the most idiotic idea possible, and I had a thought on how to simultaneously develop this facet of my power, do a good deed, and gain some fame, however, this, like many other "grandiose" projects, is a matter for tomorrow. Which, I hope, will pass with a far fewer problems than the ones that tumbled out today.
In general, I engaged in such play for about an hour and a half to two hours, until a mild headache appeared. This was the best signal that it was time to finish my training. Besides, night had already fallen, and so I had to go to sleep. Right before bed, Paul and Indira checked on me, after which I finally fell asleep.
. . .
The next day passed as quietly and calmly as possible, for it was devoid of any drama unnecessary to me. The principal seemingly forgot about the conversation that took place, which is why my lessons were also maximally boring and familiar. The superheroine didn't appear either, I saw no crazy men, so one could safely say that the day went fundamentally well. Not great, but simply well. However, today I had a day off at the dojo, giving me the opportunity to do something very interesting and useful. It's time to start executing the first part of my plan. Leaving school, I immediately got on a bus and headed to the outskirts of the city. I resumed reading my medicine books, refreshing my knowledge once again. I felt a slight nervousness and tried to chase it away as best I could. Whatever the Princess might have been doing there, part of her words were true. If I want to be a hero, I must be confident in my powers. Especially me.
The whole trip took over forty minutes, after which I arrived almost at the very border of the city. Exhaling heavily, I stepped out and looked around. Because our town was basically on the outskirts, there were practically no truly tall buildings here, but in this specific place, one could only see a clear green field, a forest in the distance, and only one building stood out here. It was a low but rather large structure, and even from afar, one could spot a few people caring for animals. I started walking towards them, and after fifty meters, I could read the writing on a large sign at their entrance.
"Abandoned Animal Care Center."
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