I woke up to the sound of Yuna's coffee maker and the aggressive thwack of a tablet being dropped on my chest. I groaned, trying to roll over and pull the pillows over my head but she dragged me out.

  "Come on, Voltana. Rise and shine! Your appointment at HeroHub is in ninety minutes."

  Cracking one eye open to glance around the room, I saw Yuna bouncing from foot to foot next to the bed. She was already fully dressed - her typical skirt and crop-top tee-shirt - her golden eyes red-rimmed with the look of someone who'd been awake since far too early and spent way too much time in front of a computer screen.

  "What time did you wake up?" I grumbled as I climbed out of the bed - at least I was wearing panties this time, and yet another hentai shirt. Yuna didn't bother turning or giving me a moment for modesty, she just handed over the leggings and gestured for me to follow her out into the living room for breakfast.

  "Early, but that's not important. What's important is making sure that you do a great job. Here, have some breakfast." She slid a plate of food in front of me and I ate, grateful that I had such an amazing friend in this strange world. Yuna seemed to have put her entire life on hold - at least far as I could tell - to help me get situated, and I was grateful for her assistance. I'm not sure what I'd have done without her.

  "So if they say I'm more powerful, what changes?" I mumbled around the bite of scrambled eggs, trying to eat quickly so we'd be ready to go. "I mean, I get a new ID, and obviously it's nice to be powerful, but ... what else?"

  Yuna sat perched on the edge of the table next to me, legs kicking idly as she watched me eat with a burning intensity in her eyes. "Everything, Kurumi. If you're a higher rank, HeroHub will give you jobs to do - and pay you for them. You'll get asked to go on patrols, which will mean fights against monsters and villains. And that will bring you attention."

  I slowly nodding, putting together the pieces of Yuna's plan in my own head, "And that's how we see if my powers increase."

  "Exactly," she said with a grin and hopped down, skirt swirling around creamy thighs. I found myself caught up, gazing at her thighs, before blushing and tearing my eyes away. Damn it, Kenji, I snapped to myself. Be a perv another time. This is our one friend. Don't fuck this up. I couldn't meet Yuna's eyes as I finished my meal, slurping down the cup of coffee gratefully. "Okay, time to put on your outfit and off we go!"

  I dressed quickly, only blushing briefly as I wriggled my way into the compression top, feeling this new body's breasts get shoved forward, on display, before covering them with the mesh and the hoodie parts of the outfit. It was still a little too bold for me, but it was the best compromise we'd come up with yesterday, so it would have to do. I shoved my feet into the boots, fastening the laces, and stood, looming slightly over Yuna as she smiled up at me, taking me by the elbow and tucking her arm within mine.

  Feeling Yuna pressed into my side as we walked through the streets of Bay City was growing to be a fast comfort. In the last two days, I'd have more physical contact with women than I had in twenty years - and was quickly becoming used to it. When I wasn't paying attention, it felt normal - almost as if I'd forgotten who I was. That I was Kurumi, and this was my life. Or is that the way it's supposed to be? If I can't go home?

  We reached the entrance to HeroHub's Bay City office, the building towering over us as we strode into the lobby once more, my boots squeaking against the polished marble of the floor.

  "Voltana, here for an appointment," Yuna said proudly, announcing me to the receptionist. She gave us directions to the same elevator I'd taken before, descending once more to the fifth basement sublevel. Once again, Yuna was separated from me and sent to a waiting room, but this time I was led into a conference room.

  An older American-looking man, probably in his fifties, with short-cropped gray hair and a HeroHub polo that stretched tight across a broad chest glanced up at me as I entered the room. He nodded toward a chair nearby and I sat, unsure of what to do next. The man had a folder in front of him and - while I couldn't make out all of the details - I saw what looked like a picture of the noodle shop I'd had the incident at two days prior.

  He slowly read through the page, then flipped to the next, repeating the process. As the minutes dragged on, I started to fidget nervously - first tapping my fingers, then kicking one foot against the table, then back to tapping fingers. Sweat was pouring down my back as he continued slowly reading.

  "Uhm," I broke the silence in the conference room and he glanced up at me, raising an eyebrow. "You asked me to be here?"

  "Yeah," he answered. It was a gruff voice - one that sounded like the typical "military big boss" from countless anime or games. One you'd expect to hear barking commands and I instantly felt myself shrinking in my seat, afraid of the implications. He resumed reading through the paperwork and I sat there, my nerves only intensifying.

  If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  Finally, he set down the folder and stood, gesturing for me to stand as well. "Kurumi, huh? Unique name. Haven't heard that one for a while."

  "It's ... uhm ... a family name?" Fuck. Japan doesn't even exist here anymore. How can I explain why I gave myself a Japanese name?

  Those hard eyes turned toward me and I felt myself shrinking back from his gaze once more. He nodded once and we walked through a door into a large open room, perhaps fifty feet to a side with a twenty foot tall ceiling. The walls appeared to be made of steel, with various scorch marks scattered haphazardly throughout. When we reached the middle of the room, he turned to me.

  "You don't know who I am, do you?"

  "N-no," I stammered, shaking my head. "I don't really remember anything until a few days ago."

  He grunted - and it sounded like a gunshot. "Senior Chief Bastion. I run Investigations for the Western District. And you, little lady, are an unusual case. I don't like anomalies." His eyes flickered over me, cataloging my second-hand apparel that I'd put together yesterday, as if judging how little it was worth. Cataloging every piece of me, trying to figure out what made me tick.

  "I ... " I felt like a noob in a video game, shoved in front of the General at the introductory cutscene, unsure of what to say. I could smell gun oil and coffee radiating from his pores as he loomed over me and I found myself wanting to apologize for taking up his time. "I'm sorry."

  Finally, he squared up, arms folded behind his back, and stared at me. "Hit me as hard as you can." I blinked in surprise, unsure of what to do. "Stop thinking about it and hit me."

  This is a trap, right? It's got to be a trap. I glanced around the room, looking for cameras. They were going to film me assaulting this important guy and lock me up in prison. I just knew it.

  "HIT ME," he roared and swung at me. I froze, in an absolute panic, and his fist came a millimeter from my chin as his right cross nearly took my head off. The wind from the sheer power behind his blow picked me up and flung me against the far wall of the chamber with a thud, then a second thud a second later as I fell to the ground.

  "Owwwww," I whined - more upset than actually hurt. "What the hell? That's not even possible!" Look, I love anime as much as the next Hikikomori, but even I knew that wasn't a move that worked in real life. Oh wait, I'm apparently in a superhero world... I've got to stop forgetting that.

  In the blink of an eye, Bastion was standing in front of me, his hand on my collar as he lifted me into the air and set me on my feet. "Hit me."

  I didn't want to hit him. I'm not a violent person, not really. Sure, I talk a big game online, and I want to stand up for people, but actually resorting to physical violence? This was deeply uncomfortable for me - and I think he could tell. Those two thugs who tried to rip my clothes off were an instinctive reaction - this body moved before I could panic. But now? Here?

  Swallowing hard, I balled up my right hand into a fist and stared at him. I can do this, I whispered to myself. Be strong like Kasumi. I tried to remember her moveset, the basic strikes, and I swung at him. Immediately, I felt pain in my hand and sank to my knees, clutching at my wrist as sharp pain radiated down my arm.

  I'd hit him - and hurt myself. From the confused expression he gave me, I'm not even sure if he felt the impact - but my wrist sure did. Apparently it was a lot harder to punch someone in real life than Dead or Alive had led me to believe.

  "Unusual," he muttered to himself, dragging me back up to my feet once more. "And yet..." He blew out a deep breath, sighing as he stared down at me, a mix of pity and disgust in his eyes. Bastion took his time, studying me and pacing back and forth in front of me. He pulled what looked like a medical scanner out of a cargo pocket, holding it toward me and pressing a button, then staring at the reading, frowning.

  "I'm sorry for this."

  Without another warning, he reached down and grabbed my breasts roughly through my top, tweaking my nipples. Pain flared, then pleasure, then rage. Violet arcs of electricity snapped across my body, discharging into his body with a loud *POP* noise. The new outfit didn't have a lot of exposed skin, but I could see the indigo circuit pattern across the backs of my hands, and static electricity danced in my vision.

  The Senior Chief took several steps back, raising his hands in surrender, patting the air to indicate that I should calm down. "I'm sorry, miss. It was all part of the test. I think we're done here."

  My heart was racing, my nipples ached, I felt a strange sensation between my legs, and the electricity wouldn't stop - wanting to burn something. I gritted my teeth, unable to calm down, and raised one hand, lightning crackling over my knuckles as I stared at him. How dare he grope me?

  He pulled a round object from a cargo pocket on his pants and threw it to me. Instinctively, I caught it and I felt my body discharge all of the electricity into it with a *ZAPPP*. As it did, I felt myself calming down, breathing easier, and I glanced down.

  "Rank D Power Output" was displayed on a small status screen.

  "Congrats on the new rank," the Senior Chief said as he took the object out of my hand and tucked it back away. "I'm not sure if we can explain what's going on with your powers, but I think we have a slightly better idea than before. Keep in touch."

  With that, he turned and strode out of the room, leaving me alone in a subterranean bunker, confused, and unable to explain what just happened.