Flickering lights surrounded a man strapped to a chair.
"Heart rate at 150, I repeat, heart rate at 150." A voice spoke, reporting the status of the man strapped to the chair.
"It's still within constraints." A woman replied.
His skin turned an unhealthy shade of red by now.
Only ragged gasps echoed, each breath like that of a dying animals.
Tense silence set in, the scientists still monitoring the man's condition.
Crack.
A crack rang out, and the man started thrashing in the chair, the restraints sinking into his skin.
"Rejection! It's gone over 200 now, still rising! Other vitals also going awry!"
Flailing in the chair, still bound by restraints, the man's eyes were rolled back.
Crack. Crack. Crack.
More cracks rang out, the mans limbs having been bent at unnatural angles.
"Mercy him." a female voice spoke.
The screen froze, a replay button appearing in the middle.
The boy holding the tablet handed it back to the woman in front of him, unease written all over his face.
"Now, do you understand why you are advised against trying to take the superhero awakening route, Cassian, my dear? And why it is called mercy to execute failed test subjects?" the same female voice spoke.
Facing him stood an attractive woman wearing office attire, leaning back in her chair. Her most striking features were her red hair and the round sunglasses she wore.
Vera, the overseer of this facility, dispatched by the hero association to ensure nobody is forced into the superhero awakening.
"Doesn't the same thing happen with the grunt serum, aunt?" still frowning, Cassian asked.
"It does, but the rate of rejection is much lower compared to this. One in ten explode due to the grunt serum. It's nine out of ten for trying to forcefully awaken." Vera spoke softly, before leaning in.
Cassian also leaned forward.
"And, if by some miracle you live through it, you will be in for one hell of a time. Even the lowest level grunts get treated better than synthetics, whether by other capes or normal people. The chance of upgrading your powers is miniscule, and..."
She wanted to continue, but noticed Cassian was looking back at her, as if he had made up his mind.
He shook his head.
"I won't go back to the slums. I won't freeze through another winter. I won't fall sick again. And, I won't be trampled anymore!"
"I made my choice the day I signed the contract. My whole life I've been just scraping by. And now! I would be a fool to not take the shot, to not throw the dice!"
"I want to be a somebody!"
The room became quiet.
After a minute of silence, Vera relented.
"Haaa... Whatever. Go on ahead then, I've done my job as the overseer. You've inherited your mother's stubbornness, Cass."
Standing up from the chair, Cassian sincerely thanked her.
"Thank you for giving me this opportunity, and for having taken care of me. If I ever make it as a hero I promise I will pay you back for-"
"Just go, don't raise death flags!" annoyed, the woman waved him away.
---
Firmly restrained, he felt awkward.
The cold metal chair he was tied to was the same as the man from the video.
The same chair where someone died an hour ago.
Binding his legs and arms were leather straps, preventing any movement.
As for his head, it was held in place using metallic arms.
Taking a deep breath, he took in the scenery of the sterile room, smiling.
He would much prefer dying in this place compared to some dirty alley.
Not long after, a robotic voice rang out.
"Subject 16. Cassian Slin. 18 years old, registered for the forced awakening procedure using Dr. Damian's thesis."
"Begin procedure."
Unlike the man before him though, a needle pierced first into the back of his head.
His consciousness instantly grew hazy, the world he viewed starting to twist and turn.
He senses stopped working correctly, going haywire.
Sight, smell, taste...
One by one his senses overloaded, pulling him into a living nightmare.
From the ground, twisted human shapes started emerging, their eyes filled with malice as they looked at him.
Biting him, clawing him, tearing his flesh.
Ghosts of the past who came back to haunt him.
The bodies of his family among them, forcing him to recall that dreadful day.
"No... THIS ISN'T REAL, NONE OF YOU ARE REAL!"
"AAAAAAH!"
---
Watching him from behind a one way mirror, a group of scientists monitored the spacing-out Cassian.
Among them, Vera was looking on worriedly at him.
"How long do you think he's gonna last?", one of them said.
"Dunno, probably not long. His body is practically untrained, and he only recently stopped looking like a stick bug hahahaha."
"I give it a minute until he blows." One of the senior researchers spoke. He was also the one responsible for the facilities research.
"Alright, I bet he's going to pop after the second injection." another replied.
"Daring aren't we!" the senior replied.
A minute passed, and Cassian showed no further abnormalities.
"Alright, he's pumped full of drugs now, so we can begin the proper awakening." the researcher said, annoyed he lost the bet.
"Awakening injection : commence.", another robotic announcement resounded.
Cassian, lost in his own world, suddenly felt a painful sensation spreading from back of his head.
Like a million icicles stabbing him, the pain quickly spread out from the injection site to encompass his brain.
Foaming at the mouth, his eyes rolled back and he kept convulsing in agonising pain.
Yet he couldn't pass out due to the drugs in his bloodstream.
Forming coherent thoughts at this stage simply wasn't possible for him.
Every single bad memory, every single traumatic event was being relieved by him. As if a hand was burrowing into his brain and extracting his lowest lows, the pain magnified yet again.
His life, his very identity as Cassian started playing in front of him. Mixed in were other memories he had no recollection of.
"150 and rising. He's holding on pretty well for now. Maybe one of his parents had been a superhero so he's gona pull through?" a scientist spoke.
"How's the genetic readings?" The overseer asked.
"The awakening is progressing smoothly so far, miss" came the reply.
Turning her gaze back to Cassian, Vera kept hopefully looking on.
Agonising seconds passed, before there was a change.
From deep within his skull, a new sensation appeared. Accompanying it came a light blue glow, spreading out of Cassian.
Unlike the previous horrific chill, a warm current started spreading in his head. Wherever it passed the chill lessened, allowing him to think somewhat clearly.
The rest of the pain left his body as quickly as it came, leaving an exhausted Cassian gasping for breath.
Besides being exhausted, he also felt a different sensation. A new sense, like an sphere with him at the center.
'I...'
'Did I... Succeed?'
'Am I... A super now?!'
He wanted to cry out in joy.
"I... Succe-"
Crackle!
Sparks covered his body for an instant.
A second surge of power came from his skull, and like greased lightning, it passed through his body.
He only heard Vera's panicked scream.
He passed out.