"How early is 'early?'" Mike said, his skepticism evident. I smiled and brought up memories depicting the usage of the precognitive sense spider people, of which I was now a member (needed to remember that), were so famous for.
"Imagine I'm walking down a street with headphones on, blasting music and completely deaf to the world. A car comes barreling onto the sidewalk behind me, people are screaming and scrambling to get out of the way.
I wouldn't be one of those people, and I wouldn't get hit either. Spider Sense would warn me before the car even turned the corner. And it wouldn't just prompt me to the danger, it would also guide me away from it.
And it goes beyond that even. Watch this."
Leaping onto my feet, I closed my eyes and dashed across the room. Mike's voice grew alarmed, but my enhanced speed and this small apartment meant I arrived at the wall before he got the majority of his words out.
With my eyes still closed, I kept moving, letting my superpowered intuition guide my movements. Throwing my feet up and upper body backward, I ran up the wall all the way to the ceiling, only stopping when I ended up upside down with my arms spread wide.
"See, even if my senses are impeded, Spider Sense will guide me perfectly," I said and started walking around on the ceiling like I did on normal ground, completely vertigo and disorientation free. "Notice how I haven't hit a single light, the smoke detector, or the fan?"
Taking Mike's silence as proof of my demonstration's effectiveness, I disabled the sticking ability. On the short way down, I realigned myself with a twist, executing a perfect flip and landing right in front of the couch.
"That… was an impressive display," Mike finally said, sounding convinced and also excited, the latter emotion expressed in an obvious yet measured way. "I see why you like it so much. I must admit, I like it too."
That was a surprise. "Really? Why?"
"Even though your goal is not to be a superhero, the path you've chosen is no less fraught with danger. And these horrors you said exist in this universe… I'm just glad you have an extra layer of protection."
"...I feel the same, trust me," I said, narrowing my eyes. "But why are you talking that way? Like you're dismissing yourself?"
"...."
"I'm just a tiny bracelet. If it comes down to it, my life is inconsequential compared to yours."
"So you acknowledge that you're alive."
"...."
"I'm no psychiatrist, but even I know it's unhealthy to live like your life doesn't matter."
Mike didn't respond, and the urge to jiggle the bracelet he inhabited was strong. The talkative A.I. suddenly going quiet wasn't something I was comfortable with, surprise surprise.
Refraining from doing that—if he was a human I wouldn't shake him for answers—I instead thought of what to say next.
"I guess what I'm trying to say is, don't think of yourself that way. Because I don't."
"...."
"Thank you. I'll keep that in mind."
"No problem. What are friends for?"
"To cheer their buddies on while they show off?"
Slowly getting used to these antics, I just chuckled and shook my head.
"So… what are your plans now?" Mike asked after I stopped shaking my head to scroll down my phone. I kept exploring this world's equivalent of youtube and answered.
"My original plan is in the dump now," I paused and looked up from the screen. "Well, not entirely. The perks have jumped me through many hoops in one go, but I still need money and training. I came here for that; work the warehouse job for a bit, save up some money, and then enroll in a combat academy I scouted in Vegas."
"Vegas?"
"Yeah. Las Vegas. It's a city in the state of Nevada. We're in Reno though. I moved here after sending the letter to Batman as a way to cover my tracks.
I managed to land a job, rented an apartment, and found a suitable place to learn, all in this state, so I took the chance. Besides, I'd never been to the land of entertainment, and I wanted to see it."
"Land of entertainment?"
"Yep. Casinos, fancy hotels, high class resorts, and a very "rich" and "expressive" night life from what I've heard," I said and stood up, quickly finding where I put my clothes. "The terms must be confusing huh."
"Some of them."
"We need to get you a crash course on Earth and human customs asap."
"And how will we do that?"
"Through the internet obviously," I said and threw on my jacket, whipping it forward a few times before I realised it didn't fit me as it did before.
"Damn. Now I need new clothes," I lamented as I looked down at my bare ankles, the end of my pants hanging above them. I was already tight on money from the move and everything else.
I didn't even have enough to buy a low-end laptop. And I asked around. Those things cost 300 to 500 dollars. Thankfully, the sudden arrival of the perks gave me a wider range of options now.
Stepping out of my apartment and locking the door behind me, I switched my communication with Mike from verbal to mental. "Obviously, the plan has now changed. There are a couple of things we need to note down. Mike, if you would."
"I'm listening. Go."
"First things first. I need to learn how to hack. This is practically a no brainer now that I can read code. I wonder how miniaturization and efficiency will fit into coding though. Guess we'll see.
Two, start tinkering. I'm gonna need tools, materials and a workshop or station. I also need sample tech to analyse and work my magic on. For this one, I think I'll have to wait for my first paycheck.
Number three, test my limits. I registered at a nearby gym, and though I don't need it anymore, I can still do some light testing there. For the heavy duty stuff, I'll need a large and secluded place. That will require exploring the area.
Number four: research web fluid and web shooters. There's a knock off spiderman here called Black Spider, but that's all I can remember. He has webs and shooters, but l don't even know where to start looking for him.
Wait, actually I do. He works for The Light, but it's not like I can just waltz to Luthorcorp or Queen Bee's palace in Bialya and demand to see him. File this one under the name, Webs, bracket open, Black Spider, bracket close, question mark.
Number five, find out how to get more perks. If giving the Justice League a heads up got me these, what else can I do to get more? Destroy The Light? Succeed in creating SHIELD?"
"You're assuming you can get more."
"Why not? There's a lot more things, more impressive things I can do than just tattling to the league."
"Maybe approaching them?"
"...."
"What are you trying to say?" I stopped right outside my apartment building, coming to my senses and noting that I'd walked down multiple flights of stairs and not bumped into anyone or anything.
"I'm saying, why don't you approach the league? If it was before, I'd understand. You didn't have power, just knowledge. The heroes would not take your goal seriously, considering your ordinary, albeit, unique status and their own responsibilities.
Now that you have both, they can't afford to not take you seriously. You could do some real damage if left to your own devices…. is what I'm assuming they would say."
"So you want me to leash myself?" If I didn't have the candle flame burning in my mind right now, I'm certain my tone and expression wouldn't be so calm.
"No. Permit me to say this: you don't strike me as someone who likes being told what to do."
"I don't."
"I guessed so, that's why I was suggesting something else. Cooperation. Support. It's true the Justice League will not be happy about a superpowered person running around laying the foundations for a paramilitary organization, but if you let them in your idea and maybe even join them, not only would you have people in favour of your idea, you would have an easier time bringing it fruition and also face less pushback and danger."
"Join the Justice League? Work with them?"
As much cynicism I held towards the heroes of this reality, I couldn't deny that the mere notion of joining their ranks sent an excited rush through me and put a grin I failed to hold back across my face.
"I really, really don't want what you said to make sense."
"No matter what you decide, you'll have my full support."
"Thanks," I said and started walking again. "I'll think about it."
"That's all I need to hear. On the subject of earning more points and perks, what else did you have in mind? Because I doubt there are many things on the level of giving the Justice League a detailed account of the future."
Looks like I needed to educate someone on the absurdity of a superhero world. "The're definitely multiple somethings, you'll see. This is a comic book world. The insanity abounds. I just need to find the right situations, insert myself in them, and mess things up for the bad guys."
"Hmm. You are strong enough to survive these insertions."
Somewhere in an alternate universe, I'm sure a powerless version of me tripped over their feet. "We're not gonna ignore the innuendo."
"I merely stated a fact."
"Hm," I eyed the bracelet with lidded eyes. "Of course you did."
"Can we focus on the matter at hand?"
"Sure, go ahead. I'm not forgetting this though."
"On the subject of learning how to hack and the web fluid, I assume you want me to scour the internet."
"Yes. How will you do that by the way? I can't find any ports on you."
"Just make sure I'm touching the computer. So long as there's physical contact, I can use it."
"We need to explore the limits of that. Is it just the internet you can use, or is this technopathy?"
"It's more of the latter. Though I believe we'll have concrete data soon enough. Where are we going?"
"To find the nearest library. Travelling here, renting this place, and securing the job left me broke. The money I have left isn't enough for a good laptop."
.
.
.
.
Finding a library wasn't hard. I just had to get to the bus stop, and ask the driver to drop me off at the nearest one. To my absolute surprise and chagrin though, it was closed when I peered out the bus window as it slowed at the bus stop.
The damned driver stared at me with an expression of held back laughter, the red creeping up his pudgy cheeks. A face had never looked so punchable in that moment.
Kissing my teeth, I alighted and stared at the tightly shut doors for a good, long minute.
"It seems we were too enthusiastic."
"Hm."
"What do we do now?"
"Well, we can't just sit here and wait. So we walk," I said while directing my gaze higher, "Or we can jump."
"Ah, I see what you mean."
Shoving my hands in my pockets, I darted my gaze around and made my way to the side of the library building, ushering myself into the alley sandwiched between it and the building on the right.
Senses giving me an all clear on all fronts, I freed my hands and locked in on the rooftop ledge. I went down slightly and tensed my feet and calves before launching myself up like a bullet.
I overshot the ledge by a small, precise amount, allowing me to land on the concrete roof with both feet, steady and slightly winded, not from exhaustion, but sheer exhilaration.
"Amazing work. Test one, jump three storeys is a success."
"Ha," I chuckled and bounced across the roof, gravel crunching beneath my feet as they carried me to the edge.
"Now to find a large and abandoned place," I muttered as I took in the elevated view, noting down taller buildings to scout from should this one not serve my purposes. I also looked for places with less residential looking buildings, or no buildings at all.
It took a few minutes, but Mike and I narrowed down a couple of spots to check out. Stepping back from the ledge, I looked over at the row of buildings and immediately thought of test 2.
"Mike, time for test 2. Speed and agility."
"Starting…" he said, prompting me to take off. The wind whipped in my ears as I cleared the length of the roof and made my first building-to-building leap.
It succeeded without a hitch, my spider ingrained instincts and hyper improved mobility helping me land, roll, and jump onto my feet in one smooth motion.
Pushing the urge to shout joyfully into a wide smile and loud exhale, I maintained my speed and cleared the second rooftop just as easily, this time performing a sideways flip on my way to the next one.
Similar scenes took place on subsequent rooftops and in the gaps between them. I tried every flip, jump, and parkour move I'd ever seen, my body responding swiftly and perfectly like a well-oiled machine built for this express purpose.
By the time I arrived at my first stop, I had fully worked out the tiny, physical kinks that came with the radical change from a normal human to a spider mutate. I was by no means an expert on controlling my strength without the candle flame, but my body felt like it was truly mine now.
Crouched atop an electric pole, I took in Mike's words and watched for the power lines mere inches away. I wondered how he'd react if I told him I wanted to do a durability, endurance and healing test all in one.
Chuckling at my own musings, I stared at the abandoned lot filled with dust coated cars of all shapes and sizes and the equally abandoned warehouse building they were parked behind. "This place is perfect."
"Is this where I ask, 'what are we waiting for?'"
"Ha ha," I said and leapt off the pole, throwing myself towards the smaller building beside the warehouse. Wall crawling in full effect, I grabbed the edge of the roof and ran across the topmost section of its wall, leaping off it when I reached the end.
A loud crunch on the gravel covered floor heralded my arrival on the lot. I stood up straight after the crouched landing, dusting my hands while I read the giant inscription on the building.
"Morkhush Automobile Museum."