Jessie hitched his pack onto his shoulder, and made his way upstairs. The library was huge, it took up three floors in the tower. There were books of all sizes, scrolls, maps, and even curiosities and artifacts.

Instructions - I write some stuff, give you some options and you vote for it. First option to reach ten votes wins, the option in the lead will win after twenty-four hours. Suggestions will be taken into consideration. Ties may be resolved with branching.

He grabbed a few maps, and some travelling books. He was about to leave when he noticed a large crystal. It was a vibrant lavender and seemed to sing to him. He was about to touch it, but decided to wrap it in cloth at the last moment.

Who knows what kind of weird effects it could have, best to stay safe for now. It could always be tested later if he can't identify it. He stuck it deep in his bag.

There were other things of course, but he couldn't afford to get too greedy. Having a Mage for an enemy is never a good thing.

He left the tower and made his way to the business quarter. Eric Winfred L'etoile opened his shop a couple of years ago, it sold a variety of potions, trinkets, and artifacts.

He was a very skilled spagyrist and herbalist. Jessie knocked on the door. “Eric, you there buddy?” The door opened and Eric popped his head out. “Jessie? What's up man?”

Eric invited him in and started some tea. “I need your help.” Eric looked up from the stove he was fiddling with. “Eh?” Jessie took a deep breath. “I've decided to become an adventurer.” Eric rolled his eyes. “And you want me to help you 'escape' your miserable life as the heir to a wealthy and noble family.”

Jessie frowned. “Everything I have is my father's, I want something to call my own. This store here, it's yours. You made it happen, it's a testament to your life's work.” Eric shrugged his shoulders and poured the tea. “The craftsmen and labourers made this happen, and my old master is the reason I'm as skilled as I am. The only difference between me and you is that I'm happy with my life.”

Jessie frowned, and drank his tea. “But you'll help me right?” Eric nodded. “Of course.”

Eric looked through his inventory. “Well, you have some options.” He walked through the aisles of his store, collecting more and more potions and ingredients.

“Okay, you can either drink these.” He handed Jessie a basket filled with potions of all different sizes, there were at least thirty. “Over the course of eight hours, chugging one potion every fifteen minutes.”

He walked behind his work desk and dropped a selection of ingredients. “Or, you can drink this potion once and be done with it.”

Jessie folded his arms and huffed. “What do they do?” Eric smiled awkwardly. “Well, I don't have any disguise potions as such... But a lot of women come in here asking for things to make their hair longer, give them fairer skin, wider hips, fuller lips... So on and so forth. I have a lot of those kind of potions in stock.”

He gestured to the basket. “If you drink every single one you will be feminine enough that even your father wouldn't recognize you. However, it would make you just feminine enough that you could appear to be one gender or the other based on how you presented yourself.”

Jessie raised an eyebrow. “So it would make me a girlie man?” Eric nodded his head. “Pretty much.” Jessie sighed. “The other potion?” Eric grimaced. “It... will make you a woman.”

Jessie groaned. “Men don't have those kind of potions?” Eric scratched his chin.”Well, I could cure your baldness, give you a larger whatsit, bulk up your muscles, or change your hair colour. But only to blue and/or red. Not the natural hair colour either, I mean crimson.”

Jessie gave him a flat, annoyed, look. Eric shrugged his shoulders. “What? I get like five guys a month coming here for anything other than those, and they are usually willing to wait a few weeks for me to brew stuff from scratch.”

Jessie walked over. “But you can brew a woman potion? How is that easier than just making me a different looking man?”

Eric frowned. “Well, I have a whole bunch of potions based around making people more feminine. I can distill those with a few added ingredients to affect a gender reversal. That would take twenty minutes tops. It would take months to brew the incredibly specialized potions needed to give you a face different enough that someone wouldn't recognize you... And that's if I had the ingredients, which I don't.”

Jessie plopped himself on Eric's couch and thought about his options, he could:

A - Take the many potions needed to make him androgynous.

B - Chug the gender swap potion

C - Examine the crystal with Eric

D - Try to escape the city on his own

E - Explore the town

Jessie got up from the couch and walked over to Eric. “I... Need a little time to think about this.” He remembered the gem in his bag. “Oh, I found something for you to look at.”

Instructions - I write some stuff, give you some options and you vote for it. First option to reach ten votes wins, the option in the lead will win after twenty-four hours. Suggestions will be taken into consideration. Ties may be resolved with branching.

Jessie pulled out the gem covered in cloth, Eric grabbed it and brought it to his artificing work desk. He unwrapped it, and used clamps to place it on a stand. He hit it with a hammer and listened to the sound it made. “You said it 'sang' to you?” Jessie nodded.

Eric went to the back room and came back with a book, and what looked like a tuning fork connected to a horn. He connected the fork to the gem, then struck it again with the hammer. A haunting warble filled the room. The noise sent shivers down their spines.

Eric flipped through the book until he found the page he was looking for. “It's a soul gem, I'm sure of it. By the colour I'm guessing it was harvested from a nymph, and a powerful magic user based on the size and clarity.” Jessie looked at it closer. “A soul gem?”

Eric lifted up the book to show him, inside was the same gem except a deep red. “This one is from a drake, they are a very rare reagent. Highly valuable, and sought after by practitioners of many magical arts.” Jessie whistled appreciatively. “So how are they 'harvested,' and what can we do with it?”

Eric picked it up and handed it to him. “The book says that they are sometimes created when magic users, or people with strong spirits, are burnt to ash. They are typically found in funeral pyres. As for what we can do with it... They are very useful for bartering, as there's a high demand and low supply.”

Jessie nodded, then frowned. “What was that noise then?” Eric frowned as well. “That was the Nymph, probably screaming at us to release her.” Jessie poked it. “Is there anyway we could understand her? I don't speak Nymphic.”

Eric pointed at his distiller. “I can brew an elixir of tongues, and I'll even cook up that gender potion. Even if you don't use it, it'll still be worth a few bars.” The varied potions for feminization were poured into the distiller along with some other ingredients. The language potion was brewed in a simple cauldron.

When they were done, Eric bottled them and put a stopper in the gender change potion. The other he handed to his friend. Jessie drank the potion, and waited for it to work.

After a few minutes he pointed at Eric. “Say something in a language I don't know!” Eric scratched at his chin. “Uh, this is in to be saying Vera.” Jessie raised an eyebrow. “You speak Vera?” Eric shook his head. “Not very well, but enough.” Jessie nodded. “Then it's working.”

Eric set up the ausculater, and hooked the gem into it. “Can you understand me?” Jessie nodded, but the gem didn't say anything for a while. “You nodded didn't you? I can't see you, speak to me if you want to answer.” Jessie sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. “Yes, I can understand you.”

The gem laughed, Eric couldn't understand but the sound made him happy. “Young one, if you free me I will teach you how to make more gems like this one. Ones of pure essence, untainted by souls such as mine.” Jessie relayed the information to his friend.

“I will release you, is there a proper way to do that?” The gem pulsed slightly before answering. “Just shatter the gem and I will be free, but first let me teach you those magicks.”

For the next hour Jessie was coached through a surprisingly simple spell, once the gem spirit seemed happy with his energy manipulations she requested a small animal. Eric brought them a chicken and Jessie captured it's essence.

It didn't make a gem, instead he got a pile of sparkling dust. “Store it in a jar, it's less concentrated than a gem but it has the same properties and is still extremely valuable to the right people. More powerful creatures and people will have either more dust, or varying sizes of gems depending on spiritual potency and magical reserves.”

Jessie was about to unplug the gem when it said one last thing to him. “The demon below awaits, bring him a full jar of spirit dust. He will grant you power should you seek it.” Jessie shattered the crystal, and the pieces dissolved into nothingness.

What should Jessie do now:

A - Go to the undercity and barter with the gatekeeper, after filling his jar of course

B - Chug the gender change potion and get an adventuring licence

C - Try to sneak out of town

D - Explore the town

Jessie looked at the potion for a bit, then popped the lid off it and drank it before he could change his mind.

Instructions - I write some stuff, give you some options and you vote for it. First option to reach ten votes wins, the option in the lead will win after twenty-four hours. Suggestions will be taken into consideration. Ties may be resolved with branching.

Jessie doubled over in pain, it was as if his insides were on fire. The changes happened quickly, and soon Jessie was a woman. She sat down, woozy from the change.

Eric said nothing, but walked up to his small flat upstairs. When he came back down he had some clothing. “Here, get dressed.” Jessie looked up, and gave him an odd look. “Why do you have women's clothes just lying around?” Eric was perturbed, but answered quickly. “They were my sister's... She left them here.”

She chose a chemise, a simple blouse, a workable gown, and some sensible leather shoes. They fit well enough, but were loose around her frame. That confused her, she had pretty much the same build as before. If differently curved. “How beefy was your sister?”

Eric grimaced. “The beefiest, she's a cow.” He laughed awkwardly then clapped his hands loudly. “So, adventurer's licence. Let's go get one!” Eric grabbed his bag, then pushed Jessie out of the door.

Jessie and Eric walked down the streets of Demonshire, the licencing bureau was nearly on the other side of the city so it took over an hour. Jessie looked back at Eric. “Why are you coming along?” Eric smirked. “Simple, neither of us could actually pass that test. However, if we do it together we could get it done.”

Jessie glared at him. “I could get the license!” Eric shrugged. “You have no combat training, no battle magic, no experience.” Jessie reluctantly nodded, and Eric crossed his arms. “So were you expecting to talk your way out of every situation?”

Jessie sighed and got into line, Eric was right behind her. “How do you expect to deal with combat? You're not any more trained than I am.” Eric shook his bag, potions and such were clinking about. “I have some tricks.”

Jessie looked back at him. “So, you're coming with me?” Eric frowned. “I don't know, maybe. I have my business to think about, but you're my friend. You are also a woman now, and one with little actual experience. There are things you'll have to worry about, and I don't think you quite understand that.”

They applied for licences as a pair, and were sent for testing. In Demonshire prospective adventurers are sent on tasks, if they complete their task they are granted licences. The examiner gave them some options, they could:

A - Retrieve an artifact from the middle of the maze of trials

B - Collect a bounty of at least five bars

C - Win a quarterfinal match in the local fighting tournament

D - Defeat a licenced adventurer in fair combat

Blood, Dust, and Silver - Chapter 2

After four days of travel Tanson was starting to regret the whole cloak idea. It was heavy to carry, hot to wear, and the colour clashed with his boots.

Dorian's ears perked, and he pointed toward some dunes in the east. He pawed at the ground, and whimpered. Tanson smiled, and pulled the water from the sand. Being able to smell water was a handy ability, that was probably the main reason Dorian travelled in that form.

Tanson topped off their water supply, and used the rest to make a small bathing pool. Dorian jumped straight in. Tanson took off most of his clothing, leaving the wrap around his chest, and joined him.

The two of them relaxed for a while. Now that Tanson had a moment to think, he reflected on his changes. Physically he was pretty much the same, with two big exceptions floating about in front of him. The mental changes were less obvious, at least to him.

Earlier that same day, Tanson found himself annoyed with his penis. He had some similar thoughts since his spirit quest, but that was the first time he caught himself. He swung his hips back and forth in the water, the feeling between his legs was alien and disturbing. Even though he had a lifetime of experience with one, his body felt it was something that should not be.

“Dorian, how long will it take us to reach the border?” Dorian shifted back into a man, then shrugged his shoulders. “Walking? Eight months, a year... Longer, it depends really.” Tanson nodded, they would have to be careful not to be found out during that time. That meant spending most, if not all of it in disguise.

He thought about having that strange appendage hanging between his legs, for that long, and shuddered. He took a deep breath and looked away from Dorian. “The next town we get to, I'm going to see their Alchemist.” Dorian raised an eyebrow. “About what?”

Tanson bit his lip, and blushed. “I... Look, it's not important. Just something I have to do.” Dorian looked a bit worried, but nodded. “If it's something you have to do, that makes it important. Problem is we're broke.” Dorian pulled out his coinpurse and shook it. There were a few coins jingling but barely enough to buy a draught of febrifugia, let alone a specially brewed fleshcrafting tonic.

Tanson nodded then pulled himself out of the water, they'd have to stay in town for a few days to get some work but it was easily doable. Dorian shifted back to his wolf form, then clambered out and shook the water out of his fur.

They walked for most of the rest of the day, camped for the night, and repeated that for six days. They arrived in the town of Castover at around midday on the seventh day, the first place they went to was the town hall. The bounty board listed five bounties. Two were small time, one was claimed already, one was too far out of their way, but the last was ripe pickings.

Fifteen gold bars for the live capture of a man named Oliver Kisky, wanted for questioning related to counts of unwarranted and/or obscene necromancy. Tanson and Dorian made their way to his last known address, and looked around. Dorian smelled clothing and personal affects.

Tanson found a ring of keys and a box of nails, both of which went right into their pack. Dorian led Tanson to a cave just outside of town. There was a skeleton near the entrance, it wasn't walking around or anything but Tanson roasted it just in case. The cave itself was more of a crack in a rock, but was big enough to enter.

The inside of the cave was a smallish chamber with a shoddy fort made of piled rocks. A man was lying on a hammock, Tanson looked at the wanted poster and confirmed that it was the man they were looking for. “Alright, let's do this easy-like. Hands on your head, no sudden movements”

Oliver jumped up and flung a burst of greenish light at them, Tanson recognized it as an entropy spell. He intercepted the spell with a jet of fire from his hands. Dorian ran forward toward the necromancer, and Tanson kneeled to the ground and concentrated.

Dorian jumped out of the way of several bursts of entropy magic, and got behind Oliver. Dorian growled at the man, and showed his teeth. As Dorian was keeping Oliver's attention, Tanson reached into the earth around them and called it to move.

Dorian sensed the ground moving and lunged at Oliver, the man in question charged up a burst of entropy and took aim. Tanson buckled the rock under Oliver's feet, causing him to miss Dorian entirely. Dorian was not so impaired, and sank his teeth into his arm.

With his casting arm in the mouth of an angry wolf, Oliver was a tad more cooperative. Tanson stomped on the ground and made a small cage around their captive. “Don't turn me in, they'll kill me!” Tanson shrugged his shoulders. “The wanted poster just said you were to be questioned.”

Oliver just sighed. “I just... Wanted to see my mother again.” Tanson shrugged again. “Explain that to the city officials, not really my place to judge.” Tanson kicked the cage out of the cave.

Tanson pulled two ropes out of his bag. He tied one rope around a rock, and made sure that Oliver was watching. He incinerated the rope, and the rock was scorched. He then tied the rope around Oliver, and removed the cage. “Move.”

Oliver didn't need to be asked twice. The walk back to town was a short one, and Tanson walked his prisoner straight to the Sheriff's office. Tanson turned in Oliver, and received ten barstamped gold coins and five gold bars worth of silver coins.

Tanson went to the town's Alchemy shop and nervously waited outside the door. He took several deep breaths then told Dorian to stay outside.

He opened the door to the shop, and hoped he wasn't closing the door on his old life.

To be continued...

Blood, Dust, and Silver - Chapter 3

Tanson walked out of the Alchemist's with a swing in his, now wider, hips and a smile on his, now fuller, lips. He spent three bars worth of gold, but his body now felt right to him and that's worth more than all the gold in the Wastes.

Dorian plodded up and took a sniff of him, then tilted his head. His amber eyes shone with curiosity. Tanson scratched him behind the ears. “We'll talk later.”

Tanson finished restocking, and left town just before sundown. Once they were suitably far away from town, Dorian shifted back to his human form. They walked together in silence for a while, before Tanson rounded on him. “You obviously wanted to talk about something earlier, what is it!?”

Dorian sighed, he hated talking about awkward things while nude. “It's not really my business to intrude, but don't you think you're taking this a bit too far?”

Tanson shifted, unconsciously crossing his arms over his breasts. “I... Don't know what you're talking about.” Dorian frowned. “Listen, if you want to be a woman that's fine. I can accept that, but you are lying to me.”

The ground under Tanson's feet was churning as he walked. “I'm a man! I don't want to be a woman, that's crazy talk!” Even as he said it, he knew it was as far from the truth as possible.

Dorian laughed. “Tell me that again once you've stopped ovulating. The smell is rather distracting.” Tanson blushed and turned away. “I just... It's the soul of a woman thing, I just felt uncomfortable having a... Well, you know. Though I didn't think the Alchemist's potion would be quite so thorough.”

Tanson sighed, and shook her head. “No, I... Am a woman, at least for now. I guess I just-” Dorian spun around and whacked Tanson in the face, as Tanson fell she saw a jet of flames roaring past her.

The torrent of fire hit Dorian straight on, but he managed to put his arms over his eyes and most of his hair before it hit him. The entire front of his body was covered in charred flesh and rapidly healing burns. They had stumbled into the nest of a drake.

Tanson took a moment to check their surroundings, they apparently crossed the border into the Gale Waste while they were talking. She reached into her bag and threw Dorian his guns and his bullet pouch.

Dorian caught them and he quickly hung the pouch around his neck. He scanned the skies and slowly spun around as he loaded his pistols. The drake was circling them, and Dorian never took his eyes off it. It was huge, spiny, and gangly.

Tanson tied her hair back and got into a low stance. The drake swooped down toward her and she stomped the ground. A pillar of earth shot up and the drake slammed into it, one of its wings tore off and it thrashed about in pain when it hit the ground.

The drake righted itself and swung its tail at Tanson and she took a solid hit from it. Dorian shot at the drake to get its attention. The drake roared at him and sent flames his way. Dorian rolled out of the way of the flames, but got a bit singed.
Dorian shot the drake many times, but his bullets did nothing. Tanson had some broken ribs, but was pretty much alright. She took a deep breath and focused on controlling her emotions. She tapped in to the winds around her, this place wasn't called the Gale Waste for nothing.

The drake began to inhale for another round of fire breathing, and Tanson forced the wind down its throat as hard as she could. The drake was stunned and Dorian took the opportunity to shoot it in the eye. The drake reared up and rampaged with pain and anger.

The effort caused Tanson to pass out. Dorian cursed, and started shooting at the drake's other eye. He stopped when he was down to one bullet in either gun. He looked up at the extremely angry drake. “Crap.”

Dorian rolled over toward Tanson and grabbed her, he hefted her over his shoulder and ran. The drake chased after him, and let loose a burst of smoky fire. Dorian shifted Tanson so that he took most of the fire damage but she got some burns just from being so close to the fire.

Dorian was making a beeline to a cave he spotted in the distance, the drake's injuries were such that it couldn't run, fly, or breathe fire too well so he actually made it. Luckily the cave was too small for the drake to enter, but Dorian was worried nonetheless. If the drake was smart enough, or if he was unlucky enough, it could decide to breathe fire into the cave.

For the moment it seemed content to lick its wounds and stand guard outside the cave. It was cold in the cave, and dark, but Dorian stayed in his human form until he was far away from the entrance. Once he felt they were suitably safe, he shifted to wolf form and curled up next to Tanson.

Several hours passed before Tanson woke up. She lit her hand up so she could see, and checked on Dorian. He didn't look good, he regenerated more than his body could handle. He would need food soon, or he wouldn't make it.

Tanson looked left, then looked right. She couldn't tell which way they went in by looking, so she picked the way that seemed right and began her journey deeper into the cave.

To be continued...

I woke up about twelve hours later, and felt immensely better. There was a care package on the stand next to the bed. It had a note from Ichor on it.

'A little something to help you out. Even if you don't join us, keep it. I feel I owe you for not being able to help you more. - Captain Ichor.'

The note smelled like saffron, probably some of his famous ichor. I smiled, then opened the package. Inside was some clothing, shorts, a blouse, shoes, some underthings, and a watch. It also had walking around money, a driver's licence, passport, and even a birth certificate.

They put my name as Amelia Indigo. That was odd, how did they know my name in the first place? Did I tell them when I was all woozy?

Putting those questions aside for now I put on my new clothes, and was surprised to find they fit perfectly. The bra was a sports number, and was easily figured out. I strapped the watch on, and walked out of the room.

The Institute was huge. High ceilings, glass walls, polished metal, people milling about. There was a large man carrying a giant block of marble. He spotted me and waved, he dropped the block on a man who was leading him through the room.

I gasped as the man was brutally crushed by the block, blood very quickly pooled from underneath it. The big man cringed. “Darn, third time this month!” He picked the block up, and placed it sideways.

The crushed man started pulsing, and each pulse drew his blood back to his body. Once that was done, his body started rebuilding itself with horrible cracking and gurgling sounds. He was back into working shape in less than a minute. “Crash! You need to focus, what if you cracked the block!?”

Crash grimaced. “Sorry Steve, I was just excited to see the new girl.” Steve frowned. “Call me Morph when I'm in uniform!” I walked up to them. “Sorry about that.” Crash smiled, and shook my hand. “No problem little lady, it was my fault entirely.”

Morph was cordial, but I could tell he was in a hurry to get back to work. I waved goodbye, and went on my way. I left the Institute and hailed a taxi, I told the driver to take me to the OCH building.

I arrived at Ericson Square, which was a block or so from where I was going. I paid the driver, and walked the rest of the way. This place was a lot more sedate and formal. I grabbed a 'New Hero Application,' and filled it out. I used my new information. I listed my 'Powers and Abilities' as elasticity and resistance to super-science.

I couldn't think of a good codename, so I just jotted down Minion Eighteen. Hey, it's what I'm used to. I turned my paper in to the rather extreme looking woman at the reception desk. She tutted, to which I rolled my eyes, and sent me to the waiting room.

They called for me, as Miss Indigo, and I walked to the back rooms. An older guy wearing a trench coat met me, and ushered me to a room.

His office was amazing, leather chairs, real books, plasma television, lava lamp, a chess table, and a grandfather clock.

He pulled some cigars from his coat. “Do you mind?” I shook my head. He lit one with a small burst of fire from his finger. “Want one? They're Cuban.” I declined.

He took a draw from his cigar. “My name is Harry, they call me Jester.” I hadn't heard of him, which meant he wasn't one of my father's old enemies. “You Infenso's kid?” I nodded.

He scratched at his chin. “I used to run with your father. Of course, I was known as the Knave of Swords back then.” My jaw dropped. This man was the Knave, my father's Dragon. The only person he feared.

Harry sighed. “Kid, that was almost forty years ago. I'm not that woman any more. I can't undo the past, but the future is our own to forge. You should know that more than most” I nodded hesitantly.

“Why are you a man now, did you have an accident like me?” Harry shook his head then laughed. “No kid, I just decided to let the real me out.” We talked for a while about how he became the man he was today, which made me feel a lot better. He understood how I felt more than anyone.

He smiled warmly. “How about a game, and we can talk about you for a bit, sound good?” He motioned to the chess set. I smiled and moved my chair over. We played for a while, and he asked me a lot of questions.

About my father, my childhood, my schooling, my life as a henchman, Ferro's plans and anything I knew that could be of use, the last few days, and how I'm doing right now.

He won the match, but I put up a good fight. Harry nodded and clapped his hands. “Well, everything seems to check out. You have my vote.” He stamped my file, leaving a big red 'APPROVED' mark on it. “Now you just need to get an ID, stop by the Institute for power testing, and sign up for active duty.”

I frowned. “What about my uniform, do I have to make my own?” He chuckled. “Nah, just use the gauntlet.” He pointed to my watch. He saw my confusion and showed me his, he held a couple of the buttons. “Patrol mode.”

His clothes shifted around. He still had the trench coat, but it became black, his pants became leather and heavier. Belts and straps appeared haphazardly, his shirt became a red and black affair. Knives, darts, and other small weapons started appearing.

A long and wicked looking sceptre was on his back, a domino mask was on his face and on his head was a three pointed hat. He activated the watch.”Stealth mode.” His civvies shifted back into existence. “The watches are nanite factories, they infuse our clothes and can manufacture weapons and armour and such at a moment's notice.” He handed me a pamphlet from his desk. “Destroy this after you memorize it.”

I put it in my pocket and activated my watch. “Patrol mode.” My clothes morphed into a jumpsuit. It was grey and red, I had heavy boots and gloves. I also had goggles, and my hair became feathery and a light brown. My chest was emblazoned with the number eighteen, and I got a utility belt! A quick check in the mirror showed my lips were the same red as my outfit, but they didn't feel any different.

Harry nodded. “You look good kid, now get. But, remember that you can talk to me whenever you want. Just ask for Jester.”

Getting the ID was pretty straightforward, I turned in my file and they took pictures of me both in and out of uniform. The card I was given reflected my information based on what guise I was in. I put it in my utility belt, the pouch closest to where my right pocket would be seemed appropriate.

I made a mental note to check what's in the pockets, and to pick up some stuff to put in it. I signed up for active duty at the front desk, and they said I'd be sorted into an existing squad based on my power testing.

I walked out to the street to find a hover transport waiting for me. The grizzled looking pilot waved me in. “Courtesy of the Good Captain.” Ichor again, he must feel pretty bad about not being able to 'rescue' me.

The pilot had Loverboy on the radio. “Nice uniform, my first one was crap.” I smiled. “Oh?” He nodded and laughed. “Yeah, short shorts and a cape.” I laughed as well. “So, you were a sidekick.” He shook his head. “Kid, I was the sidekick.” Ah, I wondered what happened to him. “So you were Calibre?” He nodded, and sighed. Gunslinging heroes were 'phased out' in the seventies, too many accidents.

He winked at me as I left, and I had the distinct impression he was watching me as I walked into the building. I flashed my ID to the guy at the front desk, and he said to head to the back. Once I arrived at the testing lab, a man wearing a labcoat led me to a exam table.

He had grey hair and was unshaven. “Wait right here.” He had a slight Irish accent and was chewing gum. He walked over to some cabinets and took out some boxes.

He rummaged around in it, and pulled out what looked like a tuning fork. He pressed a button on his gauntlet and my clothes went back to civilian mode. He poked me with the fork, and pressed a button. Sparks flew out from it, and it made a horrible cracking noise, but I felt nothing. “Hmm...”

He went back to the box and pulled out a blowtorch, he turned the knob and a small flame shot out. “Take off your shirt.” I was a bit nervous, but did as he asked. He moved the torch around on my back for just a second then pulled it away. He poked my back with his finger, and moved it around. He did the same on a spot that wasn't torched.

“No thermal degradation at one thirty, let's try one seventy.” That continued for about an hour, he got up to three thousand degrees before stopping. “Dang kid, you have a TPP rating at least as good as firefighting gear.”

Three hours, and countless tests, later he just finished testing my resistance to radiation. “Well, you seem to handle everything like a champ. It's a shame you still need to breathe, eat, and sleep though. Time for the last test!” He led me to the shooting range.

I stood at the far end of the range, and he took aim with a pistol. He shot me in the gut, and the bullet sank into me. I felt a pulling sensation for a second, before the bullet shot back out and hit the scientist right in the forehead.

There was a bit of blood dripping down his face, but he seemed fine. He grabbed a phone from the wall and spoke into it. His voice came to me form some speakers in the ceiling. “Alright, now come closer. I need to try the shotgun, and it's always more fun from point-blank range.”

To Be Continued...

AN: A boon to the first person ot figure out why Steve's codename is Morph, before I bring it up in the story anyway.