21Chapter 2
My awakening was not a big event. I did not wake up inside a hellish landscape or foul-smelling alley. I was inside a small pristine room with white walls bare of anything, two black sliding doors and with wooden floor so clean I could see reflection. I would have appreciated how clean everything was if I were not in a fetal position crying my eyes out in denial. Kind easy to see that I was not happy with my sudden change in lifestyle.
"This can't be happening; this cannot be happening! what did I do to deserve this!?" I screamed aloud as I stared at my new child sized hands. It was not just my hands. My voice, my hair, my whole body was new. And with it came the realization that I had lost everything. I have lost my original body (Ok, that was not so bad), my friends, family and even my treacherous cat who got me into this mess. The fear and uncertainty were so overwhelming it was a miracle that I was coherent at all.
I do not know for how long I stayed like that could have been hours, days, or even longer not that I cared at all. All I did was wallow in my own misery until I could not. I did not know what it was that made me pull myself back together. It could be I had run out of tears, or I was sick of sounding so pathetic whatever the reason I sat up and got myself under control.
"Is It funny how most people in real life would have killed for this opportunity and here I have feeling nothing but regret. I have absolutely no idea what I am going to do now but lying on the floor is not going to help me." I said, as I gathered what little courage I had and made my way to the sliding door.
Sliding the doors open I found myself in another room. Like the previous room was bare have anything but a desk and two chairs. Sitting in one of the chairs was a man in a black suit and white tie, he was a man I recognized who all people should not have been here. A man who started clapping as soon as I walked into the room. The doors behind me closed by themselves as soon as I was inside.
"Impressive, most people take longer to get themselves under control. So, take a seat so we can begin about why you are here and what is going to happen next. I am sure you have loads of questions. Feel free to ask anything you like." The man said as he tried so fix his tie to appear more presentable.
"Yeah, I got loads of questions but the ones at the top of my head is who you are, why do you look like a young Brad Pitt!" I cannot help but screech seeing one of my favorite actors in real life.
"I thought you liked this form seeing how you watched all this guy's movies. You especially liked it when he was shirtless." giving me Brad's trademark smile. My face was red with shock and embarrassment. Shocked by his appearance and embarrassed that he knew I was a Brad fangirl. Getting myself under control I put on a deadpan face.
"Not going to lie, that I dislike what I see but I would appreciate it if you had any more private tidbits about me, you would keep them to yourself. so can we get on with this. I am not in the mood for mind games." I said, as I sat in the chair in front of him trying to look tough not that my new body was helping and the fact, I had on pink pajamas with white bunnies on them was not helping either. Brad gave a small chuckle but then got serious.
"Very well, introductions are in order, I am the Avatar of Training. And from now on I will be your personal trainer and tester. This training ground was made to help prepare those wishing to go to another world and my job is to teach you everything you wish to learn no matter the subject. Questions?" he paused staring at me.
"Are you going to look like that forever? what do you mean by subjects? Do you pick the subjects or do I? Is this the Hell-mode that was in the survey and why is it called that? Why do I still have my memories, the survey said I was going to lose them? what do you mean by tester. I will get rewards if I complete this training? why do I look like a kid?" I blurted out all my questions in a hurry. His hotness must be getting to me.
"Well, that was a mouthful, but I will answer all your questions in order. First, I can stay like this if you want me to, but I can change my form at will. I learned a long time ago that shape shifting into the same species as the people who come here put them at ease. Another power that I have is Life History as the name implies, I learned the entire life history of whatever comes here. This allows me to pick the best form when meeting someone for the first time. which is why I look like this.
The Subject can be anything from hand-to-hand combat, engineering, singing, anything. You can choose the subjects you want to learn but I may add more if I feel you need them. How I teach you it is up to me.
The reason this place called Hell-mode is because the requirements for passing the tests of this place are the hardest. The training here is extremely hard and time consuming. I will warn you now very few people have ever completed this training, but should you do so it will mean you are fully prepared for the challenges of ahead in your new life.
I am well fully aware of what was on your survey. You seem to have forgotten that your memories will altered after you leave this place. You kept your memories about the world you are going to till now as they will grant you an advantage in choosing subjects that are the most beneficial to you. With your knowledge you can train in the skills needed to overcome your enemies or just help you in life. You will still remember who you are and your past life only information pertaining to the DC world will extracted.
While I cannot tell you why your memories will be altered that is above my pay grade, I can offer you guesses.
One of the main reasons it is psychological. Often when people go to worlds that they think are fictional it makes it harder for them to connect with the people living there. They are unable to view people as people. So, losing all the information that this world is fictional will help you so see the people living there as real.
Another reason could be to make your life more interesting. Without your knowledge the entire world will be one big mystery to you. You will be shocked and amazed by all the wonders that world has to offer and nothing the ruin it for you. Keep in mind these are all just guesses on my part.
Why I am a tester is for the simple reason that I will be evaluating you on all the subjects you have learned during your training. Should you pass, you will receive your rewards. I will talk more about that later.
The reason for your appearance is to help you adapt to your new body as you grow and boost your learning ability. Your new body will be much different than your old one in height, reach, and body proportions you will need time to adjust. Things like muscle memory are better off learned at an early age. If you if you do not have any more questions, I would like to get your training ready." Brad said, leaning back in his chair.
"How old is this body and how long do you think this training is going to take?" I asked, while going over all the information in my head. I already had an idea all the things I should learn.
"You are five years old, and the length of time varies based on which subjects you wish to learn but if you want an example on the length of time it took for one of the most well-known heroes (Batman) to finish his training. He started training at eight years old and it took him 12 years to master everything he needed. But thanks, the mental abilities you asked for in the survey you should be able to reach his level in about in 13 years." Brad said, sounding pleased with the abilities I chose.
(Writer note: I looked on online and found Bruce Wayne trained for 12 years and became Batman at 26 in the Year One story line. Just in case you are wondering.)
"By abilities you mean,Omnilingualism, A natural aptitude for having natural aptitudes, Indomitable will? I Picked the second for learning things fast and last to overcome my limits but how is the first one useful." I asked, puzzled. I thought it was only good for speaking.
"Omnilingualism, can be used for more than just learning a spoken language but the body language as well. Being able to read a person's body language it is extremely useful in a fight. If you use the skill well enough, you will be able to learn how to predict what your opponent's next move will be ahead of time." Brad said, trying to make me understand my skill's value.
"Wouldn't in my spider sense do the same thing?" I questioned, I could see the ability's worth, but my spider sense was a passive skill, so I did not need to train it.
"Your spider powers will be sealed away until you become a teenager." Brad said, looking stern with his arms crossed.
It took more self-restraint than I knew I had not to be angry at him. I had planned to use my spider powers to my advantage in my training. Using them would have saved me years. But I had to remember that he has been doing this for years so he must have had a reason to seal my powers. Still, I had to ask.
"Why do you need to seal them?"
"Because I do not want you to become too reliant on them. There have been cases when a person's ability was negated leaving them helpless. They had grown to accustomed to using their abilities that they did not bother to train in anything. You have seen this happen before." Brad said making his point.
"You're not wrong, there been various heroes and villains that had been subdued once their powers stop working. So, you want me to master most if not all my skills as a pure human being?" I inquired; I did understand his point of view.
Black Widow, lady Shiva, Katana and Talia are an example how powerful a fully trained woman could be. They do not need powers to win their battles. If I could fight at the same level as them without my powers, then I would be better than them with my powers. That would make me a superpowered martial arts master.
"Correct, but later you will train to master your spider powers and how to best use of them in any given situation. Controlling your power is also of upmost importance since with your enhanced strength you may inadvertently kill someone who is not your enemy." Brad said. I could not help but notice his words at the end. From the sound of it he was not against me killing someone if it was a conscious choice.
"I understand everything so far, I may have questions later but for now I am ready to start my training. You were right about my memories being useful I have been using them to remember the skill sets of the most skilled men and women in DC Comics and making a list all the skills I need." I said, as I arranged everything in my head.
"Go ahead, just remember I will add something to your training if it is needed." Brad replied.
"The skills are, hand to hand combat, weapons, escapologist, tactics, computer science, computer hacking, marksmanship, stealth, theft, disguise, tracking, chemistry and acting. Well, the last ones are just for personal reasons, singing and cooking.
"Do you have a reason for picking these? Brad inquired, while looking at me with in curiosity.
"Well, a great deal of people there are expert fighters, and they can use weapons.
"Escapologist is in case I ever get captured by my enemies or the Polices arrest me."
"I need Tactics to the best use my skills and environment."
"Information is power, and the best info can be inside a computer, and the best info are inside heavily encrypted computers. And it does not hurt that I have two degrees in my past life that have to do with computers. So why not learn even more."
"I need to be able to hit my target when they are moving or not. like shooting a web to catch someone falling or to hit an enemy."
"Stealth for sneaking into or out of dangerous places.
"Do not let that theft thing fool you. Stealing dangerous items from dangerous people will save innocent people from getting killed. Of course, stealing enormous amounts of money from evil rich people is not a terrible thing either."
"Disguise for blending in or infiltrating group. Sneaking into a high-class party for free food would be a nice hobby.
"Being able to tracking someone with skill alone would be a tremendous help if technology fails. Especially if someone took something I want or care about. More importantly if they owe me money."
"Chemistry would allow me to make all kinds of things, like Web Fluid. Even if I can make it from my own body, I might need diverse types in the future."
"Acting, so can be a completely different person when the situation demands it."
"Singing: I was gifted a wonderful voice it would be a shame not to use it well."
"Cooking: I do not want to live off TV dinners for the rest of my life and I need to take diligent care of my new body."
Brad had a dumbfounded look after I finished giving the reason for choosing my skills. My skills were not picked at random I have seen heroes do everything that I had just listed in the comics. Ok, so maybe I was not going to live a virtuous life once I get my powers but that did not mean that was not going to save people. Just that I would help myself to. I had seen the lives of various spider people and I found them wanting. They were poor, had dozens of enemies trying to kill them and their love lives were down the toilet all because they put others above themselves. I do not want a life like that.
I was not going to live by the ideal "with great power comes great responsibility." this phrase taught Peter Parker to use his powers wisely but it also caused him to lose his jobs, he neglected his friends, family and even got his lover Gwen Stacy killed. I will not deny that he did save the world on more than one occasion, but his personal life was still shit. I will not make the same mistakes he did, I will use this training to live a better life then him.
I only snapped out of my bout of self-realization after hearing Brad laughing loudly. I had been so caught up in my own thoughts that I forgot he was there. My face was on fire by the time he was done laughing.
"That was by far the most interesting if not outright weird explanation I have ever heard. The subjects you chose were also the ones I would have picked. The thing is I feel that your focused on training your physical skills then your mental ones.
I have chosen subjects to fix that, engineering, mathematics, biology, technology, and physics. Mastering these subjects will close the gap between you and those who have genius level intelligence. And you will be able to build your own equipment without any outside help."
"So that's about everything, so how are you going to train me?" I ask, I was not too happy with the last subjects but if it raises my chance of survival, I will put my all into studying. I just finished asking my question when Brad stood up from his chair and without a word walked to the doors. He put his hand on the sliding door.
"Please follow me into the next room and I'll give you an explanation on how we will proceed with your training." He said, as he slides the door open and walked inside, I followed him. As soon as I entered the room, I was shocked.
The previous room that I had been in was no more. In its place was a massive Dojo/Gym the size of a football field. The walls were covered in white stone and floors were a dark wood. A multitude of various weapons could be seen hanging from every wall, swords, knives, whips, Bows, even guns. I could see every type of gym equipment that I knew of and those that I did not. There were modern ones like dumbbells, treadmills, exercise bikes, and home gyms. To the more traditional types, Wing Chun wooden training dummy, human dummies with all vital points listed, Kung Fu rings, and buckets full of sand or water. There were huge obstacle courses that you would find on television. There was even a fighting pit at the center of the room. it took me a moment to stop gawking.
"Look, I know you want to go into a deep explanation right now, but do you think you can change your form I do not think I can train with you looking like this. Not to be insulting but you are more a distraction than help." I was being honest; I would ogle his sweat-soaked abdominals like nobody's business.
"I was going to do so anyway, how is this?" He said with a snap of his fingers. In the blink of an eye Brad was gone and in his place was an old shaolin monk. He was a short man with tanned skin, long white hair, and beard. He wore only an orange robe. If anything, he looked like a monk version of Pai Mei from the Kill Bill movies.
"I can live with this if you did not try to gouge my eye out." I said, feeling a little creeped out. He had a small smile on his face meaning he knew what I meant.
"I am glad you approve. From now on you will call me Master. Now follow me as I give you a tour of the facilities and explain your training from now on. This facility has three rooms, not counting your personal quarters and the kitchen. Inside each room you will find everything you need to master your chosen subjects. You will also be assessed in each room and passing will give you a reward. You can claim your rewards at the end of your training.
Where are we right now is the Dojo where you will learn everything there is to know about combat, weapons, marksmanship and training your body to peak physical condition.
In my long existence I have mastered every martial art known to man and because of this I can create a fighting style that is perfect for you. It is the Apex Style.
This style is a harmonious mix of various martial arts. It has the perfect balance of offense and defense. It allows the user to use every part of their body as a weapon. When you have mastered the basics will I use my powers to summon a variety of different opponents for you to fight within the pit. The level of their skills will go higher as you improve. To pass my test in this room must master your fighting art and defeat the best martial arts masters." He said as we left the Dojo behind. The next room was as huge as the first. I was sensing a trend here.
This room was a mixture of library and science lab. The room had red brick walls and white marble floors. All the walls had bookshelves. As I read the titles on each book, I learned all of them were based on different subjects. All the technology in the center of the room would be a mad scientist wet dream, there are computers, microchips, chemicals, and pieces of hardware I do not even know the name of. I was so out of my depth it was not even funny. I was going to say just that when Master had changed his form again. He looked like Reed Richard from the Fantastic Four movie.
"I will be changing my form based on what I am teaching you. I chose this form since you believe him to be the smartest man in his world. Anyway, let us move on, this is the Knowledge room where you will learn all manner of scientific fields, computer base skills, and how to use them in practical applications. You will be taught how to build your own gadgets. Unlike the tests in the last room which is based on combat here your intelligence will be evaluated. You must get a PhD in all your chosen subjects and hack your way through Pentagon level computer security system." Reed said, as we continued the tour.
I was surprised that the next place was so normal. It was a large kitchen. The floor had black, white tiles and the walls were a gray stone. Like any other kitchen it had with the basic equipment, refrigerator, oven, sink, and countertop. The only thing that made this place stand out were the diverse types of kitchen appliances that you would find inside a high-class restaurant, and the two huge spice racks that had what looked to be every cooking spice known to man.
"You know this already, but I will say it anyway. This is the kitchen where you will learn to master the art of cooking. You will learn various cooking methods, types of cuisines, plating and how to make the best use of spices. Since this training has no major effect on your survival there will be no test or rewards. But I will still train you to the best of my ability." He said, while looking like Gordon Ramsay.
"That's fine, this was about feeding myself anyway. I could barely boil rice in my last life. Watching Master Chef on TV showed me how terrible I was as a cook." I admitted, I lived off takeout throughout my adult life. I thought of all the food I had turned into biohazards with my horrendous cooking skills as we moved on to the next place.
We arrived at auditorium. It was one of the most beautiful places I had ever seen. The ceiling had paintings based on renaissance art. The walls were a mix of yellow, sliver and white. The floor was black with a red carpet going down each lane. The room had dozens of seats. The thing that caught the most attention was the massive stage to which we were walking toward. It was the kind of opera theatre that any actor would give anything to be on. The moment we stepped on the stage Master had transformed into Harry Houdini.
"Welcome to showbiz. In this place you will learn how to be an actor, escape artist, a Master of disguise and singer. In this place I will call forth the best experts in their respective fields. They will pass on all their knowledge and skills to you. You will perform in front of an audience using everything we taught you. This will help you build your experience when dealing with crowds. To pass the challenge of this room you must best your teachers in their own skills and escape a series of extremely lethal death traps." Harry said, as we exited out the back door.
As soon as we walked outside, my eyes were blinded by a bright light. It took me a moment to realize that it was the sun. Once I had my bearings, I realized we were inside a city. An awfully familiar city judging by the fact that I stood in the exact same place various times in my past life. The building that we had come out of look like your everyday theater.
'Welcome to New York City and Times Square." a female voice said next to me. My master had transformed into a young Asian woman. I could not tell who she was at first, but the spider-based theme costume had given it away. Standing next to me was Cindy moon also known as Silk. No one paid attention to us as we walk the crowded streets. We walked the streets for a short while then entered a burger joint that I have never been in before. She led me to a table covered in food. She made a single hand gesture and I started eating the food in front of me. I was ravenous all this walking made me hungry. Cindy gave me a small smile before entering lecture mode.
"You realized this already I am sure, we have now covered most of the subjects you chose. All that remain are tactics, stealth, and theft. You will be trained in these skills once you reach a decent level in everything we covered so far, and when your spider powers are unlocked. The day your spider powers are unsealed, using this form I will teach you how to use your powers in a variety of diverse ways.
Once you have mastered everything that I had to teach you this city will serve as your final testing ground. Your final challenge Is to survive one year in this city we have nothing put the clothes on your back. Law enforcement and the criminal underworld will see you as an enemy and will actively hunt you down. Use everything you have learned to survive. This test will serve as a reminder of what your life may be like if you walk the path of a hero or villain." Cindy said, with an "I am sorry" look on her face but not sorry enough not to give me this test. The only redeeming feature of this whole conversation was that I have a full stomach before losing my appetite.
"Hell-mode lives up to its name." I said, in a vain attempt at humor. "This whole learning experience is going to be brutal isn't it." it was not a question.
"But not as brutal as the world you are going to. There is no plot armor or last-minute saves in that place. Good does not always win and evil does not always lose. It is the strong that win and if you want to win you need to be a strong as possible in both mind and body. Become an expert at everything there is to learn here, and you will be." Cindy meant every word she said. Taking a deep breath, I asked a question that I did not want to ask.
"When do we start?" I asked, dreading the answer.
"Tomorrow and once you're done eating, I will take you to your personal quarters and get you situated" Cindy said, as we made our way back to the theater. I would remember this moment as one of the most peaceful times I would have for the next 13 years.
13 years later of the most intense, backbreaking, mind numbing, Insane, suicidal training imaginable. The type of training you would not do unless you were a masochist and I am many things, but I am not that.
I could give you a long-drawn-out explanation what I did for the last 13 years but living through it once was traumatic enough. so here are the Cliff notes.
In the Dojo, I bled, had my bones cracked, broken, dislocated, and I injured myself with almost every available weapon, the most memorable being breaking my nose with a pair of nun chucks. I can safely say that my pain tolerance is sky high now. I spent most of my time getting my ass-whooped in the pit. There was some crying here and there do to physical and emotional pain. What can I say I was a cream puff in my past life not some hardcore warrior. It was mostly thanks to my skill Indomitable Will that let me endure everything till the end.
So yes, I am now a martial art master and swordswoman who can now fight with the best of them. I can even hit a moving fly with a sewing needle. FYI, my master's healing powers was the only reason my body was not covered in scar tissue.
In the Knowledge room I felt as if my brain was going to liquefy. All that studying was murder on the eyes. I originally thought this would be easier than what I must do in the Dojo, but I was wrong. I had to get my Associate, Bachelor, Master's degrees before I could even take on the last degree. I could honestly say I thought my computer hacking skills were good, but the high-level security systems showed me I was lacking. Had this been anywhere else I would have had the police knocking on my front door by now. Gadget making and chemistry went well, if you do not count the times I was electrocuted or nearly blown up.
It was again thanks to my mental abilities That I was able to learn everything. I do not know if this body had it to begin with or my skills gave it to me but somehow, I ended up having a photographic memory. It is the only reason I remember all this crap.
With the second trial done, I have the skills to make my own web shooters and anything else I may need. I can hack into any database on the planet. Oracle and Seer are going eat my dust now.
While learning to cook was not a matter of life and death it was still challenging considering how horrible my cooking skills were to start with. Add a hot-tempered master chef to the equation was a disaster waiting to happen. The fact that I was forced to eat all my failed attempts lead to a great deal of vomiting.
It took a great deal of time but by the end of it I was able to make him say it was **** Delicious to all my cooking.
I have never been on stage in my life. I do not have an actor's bone in my body. I never even been in a school play before. It took more courage than I thought possible to stand on stage or in front of a camera and sell the illusion of being someone else. To make people feel the way you want them to feel. I was awkward, clumsy, and emulating my chosen characters was difficult. Whenever I got off stage my teachers would point out every flaw in my disguise or break in character. So, I would not make the same mistakes twice. I had to be Adaptable to any unforeseen events.
To be a true escape artist I had to escape from anything. I was handcuffed, place in straitjackets and every type of binding device possible. I was placed inside false prison cells where I had to escape with no tools or gadgets at all. The traps they put me in were magician level to the ones you see in horror movies. I had to overcome my fears or lose a body part.
Singing was the only thing I found enjoyable while I was on stage. learning how to hit high notes and low notes and how not to waste my energy. To sing a variety of different genre like opera, pop, even the most well-known movie songs. Even learning how to play a variety of different musical instruments. Being able to move people to tears was my greatest joy.
After the third test was over. I could be anyone, be it the center of attention or ghost in the crowd. I could make you believe that I was a person you thought I was even when I am not. Freedom should be my middle name since there is nothing from which I cannot escape. In singing I could make the world stage if I wanted to. Not going to happen but it is nice to know I can.
New York was the city I was born and raised in. I thought I knew it well, but it was not until I got my spider powers that let me get a bird's eye view show me how amazing it was. With Cindy Moon as my coach, I was able to learn all the things my spider powers could do. Web sling was the hardest to learn due to all the free falling and learning where to aim your next web line. Aim at the wrong place that cannot support your weight and you could end up street pizza.
Once I had my spider powers trained to decent level Cindy took me to places, I could train my remaining skills. High-rise buildings under construction seems to be the ideal place for shady deals. I used several tactics here from dropping heavy objects on someone, to making noise that led people into ambushes, and proximity web traps that web enemies that pass by.
Museums, government buildings, police stations to name a few of the places I had to sneak into and steal something inside. For stealth I had to just sneaking up on people and take them down as quietly as possible but also get through entire buildings full of security undetected. To be a Master Thief I had to reach my target no matter what. Meaning I had to get past laser grids, booby traps, security guards, motion detectors and every security device available without leaving so much as a clue that I was there.
The final challenge was where I almost died the most times. Everything that I did during my training in New York was revealed to the population at large. A bounty was placed on my head that only grew larger as time went by. Well, the police officers were easy to evade do to having to obey the law, but the underworld called all types of people to hunt me down. From your basic thug to bounty hunters, High class assassins and even people with powers. It was like the world was waiting for me to have spider powers before other people with power started to showed up. For entire year I had to fight tooth and nail to survive. Everything I learned from the past 13 years was used.
(Hopefully, that was enough to tell you how my training went. So, we will never speak of this again for the sake of your sanity and mine. So, let us get back to the present.)
If you think the first thing I did after completing my training was to collect my rewards the answer would be no, Hell no. I suffered for an entire year there was no way I was going to jump into a new world without taking a vacation first. I managed to milk three months' worth vacation time from my trainer. He had the power to change Hell-mode into anything he wanted, so I had him change it to the best vacation spots on earth. France, Italy, China, Japan, and Russia were some of the places I visited. I played tourist and learned the languages as I enjoyed myself. I was spending my last days in Tahiti. The place was just as impressive as I dreamed. But like all good things it had to end. As I found my trainer walking towards me as I laid in a lounge chair by the beach. He looked like Ryan Reynolds.
"Having fun?" Ryan asked, while giving me a mocking leer. I rolled my eyes at him and stretched my body giving him a full view. I was wearing a modest one-piece blue bikini. Puberty, years of training, and my spider powers had changed my body what I call the three T's. Tall. Toned, and Thicc. I could be considered Diana's equal if I did not have a baby face.
"I take it this is not a social call." I asked, crossing my arms under my bust.
"I am afraid not; my next student will be arriving soon. So, I cannot keep you here any longer. It is time to choose your four rewards and for you to move on to your destination." Ryan replied, as he handed me a computer tablet.
I could not help but stare at it. "A tablet? Seriously this is the best you can come up with?" I expected a little more flair. It is not like I was asking for a parade or something but this kind of feels like a cop-out.
"Don't let its common appearance fool you. What you hold in your hands is one of the most powerful tools in the universe. It has the power to give you any of the rewards you want with limitations."
"Limitations? let me guess, it can't kill people, bring back the dead, or make anyone fall in love with me." I said amused while looking at the tablet with more interest.
"If you are done quoting Aladdin, I will explain more. The limitations are simple, you cannot ask for superpowers or overpowered items like the Infinity gauntlet. You can only have things that have existed on earth, any earth. And no, you cannot keep your memories of the D.C. world as a reward." Ryan said seeing through me.
I cursed a little after hearing that. It was worth a shot I thought as I flipped through the screen.
All the items on screen were put into categories. Weapons, tools, vehicles, technology, and much more were listed. Picking any category would give me an infinite number of items to choose from. I could only get four rewards, so I had to choose carefully. I turned to Ryan.
"Any recommendations?" I asked.
"Don't pick anything that is too complex for you to use, or you cannot build yourself. Anything practical that you can use for the long and short term would be good." Ryan said. I could see his point. if I picked for a spaceship for example. Where would I hide the thing or get fuel in case I run out. so, let me go with practicality. if I am going to a comic universe, I need a costume. Lucky for me there was a search engine on this thing, so I looked up female spider costumes.
"There are so many styles to choose from it is giving me a headache just trying to decide. Should I go with something scary, or something a little more friendly. I do not want to scare little children, but I do not want to be seen as a joke. The one that Jessica Drew had in our last adventure the black and red one will do. It was cool, but I want to make some modifications." I said as I started making changes to the full body spider suit.
Remove the triangles, change the red parts to silver, add a black hood with silver on the inside, and a black Spiderman mask with silver eyes. I would have gone with a half a mask, but my hair color would give me away. Now change what the suits made of. The outer layer will it be spandex, and the inner layer will be titanium dipped tri-weave. This will let me show off a little and protect me from anything I cannot dodge. For the final change adding some tech. A voice modifier, night vision, and a zoom function for my mask, make the suit self-repairing, and lastly some web shooters in case I ever need something more than basic webbing.
Once I hit the done button on the tablet the suit appeared on my body replacing the swimsuit I had on. Stepping away from Ryan I began giving the suit a workout. I punched, kicked, and did all kinds of acrobatic maneuvers. After a few minutes I stopped.
"Everything checks out, it is easy to move in, it is breathable, so I will not sweat to death, nothing rides up and everything stays in place when I moved round. My private parts are covered in extra layers not to make them visible. So, I could where this thing with or without underwear if I feel like it." This is good enough I thought. With the costume out of the way a weapon next. Guns are not my thing so a sword it is. Since everyone is packing one lately.
I chose a double-edge blade made of the Eighth Metal. It was indestructible, forever sharp and can cut through supernatural beings like ghosts, demons and even gods. It can change its size from a full-size sword to a pendant. Makes it easy to carry around. Appearance wise it looked like the sword that Blade used in his movies.
That is another one down I thought as my sword appeared around my neck in the form of a pendant.
Next, I need a place to live. I will not have any identification when I arrive on earth so finding a home will be hard and I do not feel like paying rent anyway. My own secret hideout where I got keep my less then legal objects that I should come across. I know there is a House of secrets and mysteries they have all kinds of abilities. After searching the tablet, I found it the House of Wonders.
The House of Wonders is a two-story house. The house can change its architecture at will so its appearance is never set. To an outsider's POV the house may appear small but due to time/space magic the house holds over a dozen rooms. The house can fly and can enter a pocket dimension where technological or Mystic scans cannot perceive its location. The house is bound to its owner so no one can take ownership of the house while the current owner lives. No one can enter the house without the owner's permission.
"At least now I end up living on the streets." I said to Ryan as I waited for the house to appear. After a few moments of nothing happened. I gave Ryan a questionable look.
"The house is on earth. The house is already bound to you. You can summon it on command when you get there. Just choose your last reward so I can explain what is going to happen to you after this." Ryan said with forced patience. I gave him a snort and focus on the last item I wanted.
While the last three items were cool and useful. What I really wanted most was companionship. I did not want to be all alone on a new earth. The tablet will not let me summon a person, but it did have pets. which was fine by me. Already had a pet in mind when I read a webtoon years ago. After some searching, I found her. My Battle Sprite.
My last reward was a large white egg with pink dots. Biting my thumb, I added a few drops of my golden blood on to the shell. The reaction was instantaneous, the egg started to shake and glow. With a loud crack it opened. What emerged was a small round creature with two paws, ruby red eyes, white fur, and pink fur on top of its head. Once she got her bearings she jumped on my shoulder and started rubbing herself against my neck. She made happy chirp sounds as I petted her.
Snowball is her name. She was a battle Sprite possessing high level intelligence they give her the ability to understand the human language. she is fiercely loyal to their owner. Despite her cute and huggable appearance, she was quite deadly when threatened.
After giving Snowball a few more moments of love, I turned to Ryan. I was ready to leave. Seeing my resolve Ryan turned serious.
"Before we say farewell there is something you should know. As an additional reward for completing your training the Higher-ups have decided to give you one final reward. You get to choose which earth to go to among the D.C. multiverse, which city, and the timeline." Ryan said, as the beach around us disappeared only to be replaced with what appears to be outer space. Around us were infinite earths.
"Well, I do not know everything about the D.C. Universe, but I do know two major events that I want to avoid, the Infinity crisis and the Flashpoint. The universe got rearranged because these events happened. To sure I do not get erased from history, I choice New York on Earth prime of the new 52 verse and one year before the formation of the Justice League. That should be more than enough time to get used to this new earth." I said, hoping for the best.
I knew that everyone's origin stories already happened years before Darkseid's attack on earth so I cannot create a paradox by meeting them too early. They would not be friends and teammates yet that would leave a place for me if I felt like joining them. Even without memories of what was to come I knew myself well enough to know that there was no way I would not miss that fight. Being one of the heroes who saved the world has a nice ring to it.
With my decision made, the other earth's vanished Leaving only my chosen earth. Ryan gently pushed it towards me.
"All you must do is touch it and you will be on your way. But before you go, I want you to know I enjoyed our time together. You were by far the one of the best students I have ever trained." Ryan said, with sincerity.
I cannot help smiling after hearing him say that. Even though the training he put me through was Hell, I was better off because of it.
"There is one question I want to ask though. You never did tell me your name."
"You know my life history; you know what it is"
"That was your past life's name. I know you came up with a new one because you kept flinching every time, I called you by your old one.
"You know me well, you are right. Hearing you call me by that name was a constant reminder of what I lost. so, I came up with a new one so I could let go of my past life embrace this new one. I was gonna tell you what it was before leaving but you beat me to the punch." I said, as my hand was inches away from earth. I looked Ryan in the eyes.
"My name is Dahlia, and my code name is Apex." was the last thing I said. As I grasp the earth in my hand.
(Going to end things here. This chapter was about seeing what Dahlia did for her training. Almost all heroes have training before starting out. Reviews were kind of low, but I did not want to end my story just like that. The next chapter would be the battle against Darkseid and how see meets the league. But reviews are need for me to write.)