Built Different [Cyborg Superhero ProgFant]

Cold sweat ran down my body as I tried to hold the convulsing techie still.

Roxy swore under her breath repeatedly as she administered the third vial, injecting the liquid directly into Clara's neck. "I am so annoyed with her."

Despite her claim, the worry on her face had overwritten any actual ire. Clara stopped shaking and sighed deeply. Unconscious still, but now stable. She had put on a wristband that relayed her vitals to us both before she…

Well, it was perhaps the most shocked I had been in my living memory. Halfway through a conversation about the intricacies of my finger joints, her eyes had just switched off. I caught her as she fell, and then Roxy pulled her over to the makeshift bed she had made in the garden. Since my fine motor controls were still a work in progress, she administered the three drugs to save the techie.

Roxy sighed and sat down on the grass beside her. "I saw you fire off a few shots as I came out. Was her self destructive rush so that you could be functional for tomorrow?"

[If I had known she was going to do this, I would have made her wait until after this week.]

Clara wanted the big reveal to happen on stage at the Arena. Not just for me, but for her technological accomplishment as well. There wasn't enough time, and she was already burning the candle from both ends. Pushing this final step just on drug-fueled fumes was reckless and unlike her… but the results spoke for themselves.

[Allow me to explain.]

It turned out the reason that the moles didn't chase us out of their underground den was because the artifact was the power source behind the ability to teleport to and from the surface. After we stole it, they were stuck down there. I assumed they could probably dig themselves out, but Roxy just gave me a dismissive shrug - wanting me to continue on with my explanation.

Clara had half-mumbled, half-slurred the description of what she had actually done, but the results were simple enough to understand.

Inside the storage warehouse was a series of racks full of my various ammunition types. All connected to mechanical conveyor belts or long clips - I didn't quite catch and hadn't looked for myself. This array of shells fed into a part one of the artifact powered device.

Part two was located within my new arm.

I had been skeptical at first, but all the prior testing and questions slowly coalesced into a reasonable explanation. Of course, trying it out for myself was proof enough to believe her.

My arm-mounted teleportation device connected through my synapses. If I thought of a specific ammunition type, the mad sequence of magic and technology pulled through the exact shell I wanted into the V-Force powered barrel in my arm. I had questioned the distance, but had been assured that it wouldn't be an issue… although Clara had drifted away from the subject without elaborating further.

"So that's what she did with her finger," Roxy said, shaking her head. "Must've teleported it by accidentally having it in the danger zone. Hells damn it. Well, give me a demonstration, babe."

She looked overwhelmed and drained already, clearly not having the energy to really question anything further.

I formed a fist and pointed my arm out to the wasteland. The barrel had already extended, and the comforting hum of V-Force energized me.

[Smoke shot.]

The barrel fired, and the shell caught the ground some distance outside of our protective dome. A cloud of gray smoke burst and grew from the impact site.

[Flash shot.]

I fired again and a bright white light illuminated the billowing fog.

[Bread shot.]

This time I aimed near my feet, and a shredded loaf of stale bread bounced from the dry dirt.

"Damn," Roxy said. "Does it work with your special abilities?"

[Clara assured me that Triple shot and everything would work, but I should explicitly avoid attempting it at this stage of recovery. Any high amount of stress on my synapses could be… problematic.]

"What about using your V-Force?"

[She left that to my discretion.]

The super narrowed her eyes. "I was going to suggest you come sit with me to relax, but I can tell that's not what you're thinking."

I tilted my head to glance over at the training dummies. She read me like a book. Most of the nerve pain had all but subsided now. I ached all over as if I'd been hit by a truck, but my new potential was driving me to learn and grow as soon as possible.

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If I was supposed to be carving through a threat to Goldarch tomorrow, I needed to make sure I was able to fight.

Roxy put up a token resistance, but allowed me to go ahead. I walked over to the nearest dummy and stood before it. Closed my eyes. At first, I powered up the familiar V-Force drive that I had been a part of me for years. Then, the two in my legs. My whole body vibrated with potential energy.

Lastly, my mind grasped around for the connections to my newest one. It felt more awkward than the others. Something about how it was orientated, maybe. It shuddered slightly, as if the pattern of minute vibrations were offset against the other drive in my arm. I only powered this one up to around 25% before I let all of them cool down.

I had been reckless with my legs, but I would approach this with a little more caution. Motor skills first. I raised my fists and adjusted my footing. The connection allowed me to keep the barrel hidden away. I could feel a tendril of energy that wanted it to pop up - but I suppressed it. It was my mastery of synapse control that allowed me use of such intricate tech.

A few punches that were rather stiff, before my muscles eased into it. I wasn't focused on power for now, just the movements. The fact that I had a fist was still partly unbelievable.

I lashed out at the dummy with a kick, causing it to slide two feet across the sandy ground. My cybernetic hand came up, and I pointed at it, then flipped it off, then gave the dummy a thumbs-up. Feet then launched me forward, and I weighed into the target with a series of body shots. For as much as I was fighting five years of muscle memory of having a shotgun instead of an arm, part of my older past bled through into my brain.

Arm V-Force drive briefly flashed into life and immediately vented from my elbow. Hand jabbed forward and my fingers dug through the reinforced dummy's head, I tore their lower face off before striking them in the ruined remnants with a spinning back kick.

I paused and straightened up before looking down at my hand. Of course, it was much stronger than flesh. The mechas had been nigh-invincible, and even without their runic magic, the metal itself was unlike most other materials we had available. I'd need to be careful how hard I punched or grabbed people.

My eyes drifted over to Roxy. With a glance at the partially destroyed dummy, I walked back over to the super. She smiled through how tired she looked, warmth illuminating her fiery eyes once more.

"You should go to the combat classes with Roy. With what experience you already have, it'll make you one tough cookie close range." She bit her lip. "Or we could have a lot of fun sparring together."

[Is that what you're calling it now? It looks as though I will need to do a lot of in-field learning. Call the others over for nightfall.]

Roxy nodded and gave a glum look at the techie. "Clara will be annoyed about missing the gathering, but there's not much we can do about it. We'll need to leave here early to make it all the way north of Goldarch undetected."

[Let her sleep as long as her body needs.]

"She's stable enough where we could put her on the couch for monitoring while everyone is here."

I grunted an acknowledgement and turned my eyes to the side to see the small blob of fur trot over to me. The kitten wailed and glared up at me as if my absence had been personal.

[Look at me now, Warlock.]

After kneeling, I held out my hand for him to sniff. He did so before rubbing his chin along one of my extended fingers. There was feeling there. Maybe this was as good as it would get for cybernetics - I couldn't expect the degree of texture and sensitivity my fleshy hand had. At this stage, I didn't have the confidence to pick him up without my strength being fine-tuned.

"I'll move this idiot and let the gang know. Three hours?"

I looked up at the position of the sun. There was no telling how much recovery time I'd need. Initial results were positive, but more extensive use would be nice. I had a number of things I was worried about, and with Clara out of action - nobody to ask.

[Make it four.]

"Sure, Dubs." Roxy smiled as she hoisted the unconscious woman up, her eyes lingering on me briefly before she walked into the house. Warlock followed her in, probably after some food.

I sat down on the grass and closed my eyes. Not particularly tired, but some meditation would help me focus. I moved my fingers in a sequence, right hand mirroring my left as if I were playing an invisible piano. There was some slight delay at first, but after five or so minutes, they moved in tandem.

Next was switching from barrel over to barrel under. Occasionally, I'd send the signal to keep the barrel within my arm even as I raised my palm or bent my fist downward. Impressively accurate and responsive. I opened the chamber that otherwise sat perfectly flush with the rest of my arm. Loaded in a Nerve shot with a thought and immediately ejected it onto the grass.

Clara hadn't mentioned it, but I doubted that it was a two-way teleport system. I wasn't about to break the whole thing by trying, either. My thoughts turned to my outfit and tactical gear, and the fact that I wouldn't need to carry magazines or the drums anymore. Almost a shame, in some ways.

Roxy came out and supplied me with a fresh cannister, new stim pack, and a kiss on the neck for good measure. I gave her a hug to show my appreciation and then returned to the dummys.

I could tell that the super was keen to celebrate a little more, and if the situation wasn't so dire, maybe we would. Currently, she had to play nurse to the two people closest to her. There was also an element of apprehension in her tired expression.

This upgrade was clearly a power boost for my combat abilities, as well as granting me additional utility. Ignoring the simple fact that I now had twice the workable hands, I was now a stronger hero. But how strong? She wanted to find out how close to her level I had crept.

After a little more testing, maybe I'd satisfy her curiosity. As well as the other desire smoldering in the back of her fiery eyes.

But for now, I started punching the inanimate training figures.

With a thought, a Blank cartridge loaded into my arm. I got into a boxing posture and leveled a hook at the dummy, firing the shell as my punch connected. I twisted away as if I was dodging an attack, loaded a second shot as the spent one ejected out. Hand open, the barrel switched to my lower palm, and I grabbed the target's head. Point blank blast.

Given the material my hand was made of, it would be able to withstand doing that with a High Explosive shot. Punching and gripping had now become a surefire way of firing without having to swing a long barrel about awkwardly.

Smiling internally, I braced myself and started to power up my V-Force drives.