Chapter Five

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Pov - Lee

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Perhaps caution is the better part of valour. That was the quote, right? Well, whatever. Point is, I'm not about to put myself anywhere near the barrel of a gun or near a guy that possibly has a knife. There are also security cameras as well. Can't exactly go around showing the world I can use superpowers. While it's doubtful that the government will strap me down on a table, it could get them knocking on my door. That's never a good thing.

"I would like to remind you that the loss of your existence would be regrettable, Lee," Fim suddenly chimes in. "While I could find another host, I've already settled inside you."

...

"Is that you're way of saying you don't want me to die?" I say, a chuckle rolling off my lip. This should be easy and there shouldn't be any chance of me being hurt, well, aside from accidentally shooting myself. Still, my hands are trembling.

Is that from fear or excitement?

"Death is a concept I never really thought about," Fim shoots back. I reach for the golden energy within me, stretching it out toward the McDonalds. "Still, as I said, I've grown comfortable here, and you've been quite helpful."

Yeah, yeah. Whatever.

Still, a smile worms its way onto my face.

The golden energy finally passes through the glass. Saying it's hard to guide it now would be an understatement. It's like trying thread a needle, but thankfully, I do manage to get it around the guy's arm. His patience finally runs out and he raises the gun to the poor clerk's head.

It's now or never.

I focus, take a breath and pull. A heavy weight drops into my waiting hands and I reflexively wrap my fingers around it.

It worked!

I quickly turn around and see the robber looking around in a panic. Thankfully, I was already calling the cops. They'd be here in a few minutes, but until then, something had to be done about the robber. Instead of doing the smart thing and running away, he was actually yelling at the poor kid! He sent him a haymaker, which the kid thankfully managed to dodge.

Well, I was hoping to stay away, but just standing around doesn't feel right. The kid might still die.

I stand up and quickly head for the restaurant's door, only to realize that I have a damned gun in my hand!

Shit...

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I burst through the doors, phone raised in the air. The idiot thief turns and spots me.

"The police are on the way, you stupid idiot!" I shout, making it more than obvious that I'm a far bigger threat than some sixteen-year-old. Rage ignites within the man's eyes. He turns and rushes toward the door, towards me.

Oh shit.

No, wait-

As he's just a few feet from me, I quickly send a hand of the golden energy coiling around my fist and make to punch the idiot straight in the chest. He keeps his shoulder forward, so when my fist meets his flesh, I try and replicate the same thing as last time, though a bit less potent. Instead of breaking bones, this time I send the man crashing to the ground like if I were some wrestler.

To him, it must have felt like hitting a concrete wall. His back smashes into the floor and he lets out a painful moan before passing out. No broken bones or anything of the sort. How? What changed?

He wakes up a few moments later and tries to get back up, but falls to the ground, screaming in pain as he holds his hip.

Ah... there's the other shoe. He did break something.

A moment later, the terrified young man rushes to my side, phone up against his ear.

"Y-Yes, t-there's been a robbery!"

It seems he was also calling to cops. Thankfully, it doesn't take very long for them to arrive. Both of us get asked a few questions, but nothing much comes of it. The idiot of a robber gets taken away in handcuffs, moaning all the while about his broken hip. For my trouble, the kid buys me a special with an extra-large coke. Well, nothing wrong with free food I always say. Besides, Fim really seemed to like it.

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As I trudged toward home, a thought came to mind. In just the last two days I had run into a mugger and then a robber. That's more "excitement" than I've had in the last year! All of it started not a few days after having a certain alien god abruptly come into my life.

"Hey, Fim, are you-"

"No," He answers before I can even finish. "While it's possible that the 'gift' I gave you subconsciously has you moving toward situations where you can use it, I'm not purposely getting you into conflict and it's not 'messing' with your mind."

...

"So you're saying these powers have a mind of their own?" What? How?! Aren't they just powers?

"In a way," Fim replies. "They're essentially part of me, and that makes them alive."

So not really then? Alright, maybe the biology of gods isn't my strong suit. I'll just try and focus on what I can control.

"Anyways, would it be fine If you told me more about these 'other worlds' we saw this morning?" Fim suddenly asks.

Again?

"Like, the anime?"

He gives me an enthusiastic nod.

"You said your world was quite mundane and had no 'supernatural powers,' right? So what else could that have been but another world?"

"It's just a story someone created," I tell him with a sigh. "It's not real."

A disappointed expression falls over him.

"Still, I would like to know more," he pauses. "Is there a specific world you like? I believe we'd both find speaking about that more enjoyable, yes?"

And so, as the moonlight shines down on the two of us, I start talking about 'other worlds' with an alien space god. Life can be so weird at times.

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BREAK

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Perhaps it wasn't the best choice to take a gun with me. Just thinking about being caught with it had me sweating as if I'd just run a marathon. Sure, my powers were out of this world, but they still wouldn't stop a squad of police officers from arresting me. Hell, considering how things go, they might even shoot me for just having a gun!

Whatever the case, I still slept soundly that night. My worries and stress had taken a back seat. Unfortunately, having superpowers didn't suddenly make me rich. Thus, when Monday came about, it was back to work.

"Lee, can we leave?"

A sigh slipped from my lip.

"No. We've still got another four hours to go."

"Lee... this is incredibly monotonous and boring, as your kind says."

Yet another thing he picked up? Maybe it was from our short gaming session last night?

"I know, but I have to do it If I want to keep living a somewhat comfortable life."

Without money, a lot of luxuries and necessities are cut off. Might as well just go live on the street at that point.

"At the very least, I'm learning something new..." Fim eventually said. Thus, time simply slipped by.

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"Freedom!" Fim cheered. "Tell me we do not need to return there for at least five more passes of your world's star?"

What? Oh, does he mean days?

"Sorry, but we'll be going back tomorrow, and the day after that. Four more days in total."

He flinched and slowly hovered on to my shoulder.

"Oh no...."

Yep. Work sucked, but it had to be done. A part of me felt bad for the little alien god, but then I realized what I just thought.

I sighed and shook my head.

"How about we watch some more of that anime you liked so much last night?"

The little monster's eyes rose.

"Since you've got my sense of taste and touch, we can eat some ice cream and, ugh, play with a stress ball?"

I still had no idea what the hell was so entertaining about the later. Clearly, what he found "fun" was completely different than what a normal person did.

"Very well," Fim hummed. "Truth be told, your kinds' imagination has likewise roused interesting ideas from within me!"

"And that means, what exactly?"

Fim's lips curved upward as he floated closer to my ear.

"Quite honestly, I never considered the possibility of other worlds," he takes a moment to consider his next words. "After watching those little moving drawings you like so much, I decided to run a little experiment."

...

I already knew where he was going with before he said another word. Was it a good idea? Would it even work? A number of questions and worries swirled within my mind. Fim was eager, practically bouncing on my shoulder. From the short amount of time I knew the little abomination, he had shown himself to have an abundance of curiosity; the smallest of things could get the biggest of reactions from the alien. It's hard to forget how he urged me to throw everything he could see into the blender. There's curiosity and then there's that. Something tells me he'd end up with all sorts of bruises and cuts if he really did have control of my body.

"So you're thinking of opening a path to another world, or something?"

Fim's face fell.

"Have you picked up my little talent for mind-reading?"

I could barely hold back the laughter building inside my throat. The one time he wasn't trouncing within my thoughts and they slip right past him.

"Nah, I just kinda guessed you were going in that direction."

Fim hums and then nods.

"Well, yes, that's exactly what I was planning on doing," he answers with calm precision. "However, I'll probably need your help."

Oh? My help? To be fair, he did lose most of his power from the whole suicide thing. What he can do is already pretty insane, so maybe ripping a hole through space-time would take a bit more energy than he has right now.

"Need me to gather more of those pockets of your essence?"

"Correct."

Fim flies around me, gently coming to rest on top of my head. That's not a seat, you little gremlin!

"Perhaps not, but I find that it gives the best a perfect vantage point! Besides, you cannot feel my weight or anything like that."

Darn, he has a point there.

"So... how many of these things do I need to go looking for?"

And, more importantly, did that mean I'd be getting more powers?

Fim shook his head.

"This is my first attempt, so I belive two should suffice, just to be safe."

"The two others you told me about are, like, halfway across town..." That's going to take a long time to get to. It's already five.

"No need to worry," he began, with the air of someone about to enlighten me. "Those particular pockets have dissipated and new ones have sprung around your local living space."

"My room?"

"No, as in, this large 'town,' as you call it. As luck would have it, there's two located reasonably close." He pauses, brow furrowing in confusion. "There's also a lone pocket that's twice as potent as normal, but that one seems to... be moving?"

"I assume they shouldn't be doing that?"

"No," Fim says, a small amount of concern within his voice. "Though they are a part of me and share my will, they shouldn't be able to think for themselves and move around. Thus, something must be moving it. At least that's my hypothesis."

That... sounds very worrying indeed. If someone else is moving the pocket of energy, does that mean they can see and interact with it? Could they be able to use powers as I do?

...

I'm not sure If I want to go meet someone that can shoot fireballs from their hands or something like that. Then again, It might not be such a good idea to let another super-powered person roam about.

"Could you eat that energy like the others?"

Fim nods.

"If you were to subdue them, yes. On another note, the energy I require for my experiment can't be used to enhance your own abilities."

Ah. Bummer.