What the heck?

~Do exactly as you like, that is the true meaning of pleasure~ These are the words of a great man, nay king. Life is too short to hide in the shadows of others. Everyone dies eventually, whether they have power or not. That's why you need to think about what you'll accomplish while you're alive.

Michael Bryce, my old shelf hasn't accomplished anything worth mentioning. I am just your average normal guy. If I disappear, like who cares? Nobody cares, seriously.

That's okay, that's life, I guess.

But this second go at life changed my perspective on life and on the world. On earth, I was born in a decent family and I guess I lived as a loser. Yeah loser, because throughout my 39 years of life it has offered up these tad bits of opportunities to do something big & different from the normal populace but I never grabbed those opportunities, too coward to take a leap into the unknown.

Life is already tough for me and I'm just tired of being disappointed at each step. I'm tired of being trying to change because however much I do try or change, I'm left with me at the end of the day. I don't have parents to motivate me nor do I have the love of my life to hold my hands when I needed or to celebrate my success.

I'm tired of people's bullshit, these toxic peoples are the ones that make life harder than it seems.

It's always these people, if you speak too much, they'll say you're cheap. If you don't speak as much, they'll say you have an attitude. If you speak just as much as required, they'll say you're a selfish person or mean.

Whatever you do they'll always say the bad things about you, and those who say people's words or opinions of you are none of your business is a bunch of lying mofo's.

No matter how much you ignore words cut deeper than any blade, we show that we don't care, but deep down we know it hurts.

I knew what the right path was, without exception. But I never took it… It was too damn hard for me.

But I have no complaints although it was filled with hardships and pain, it did give me an important lesson in return & that is life is short, fragile and sometimes there is no next time, it is now or never.

Things change, friends leave, heartbreaks, but life… life doesn't stop for anybody, you have to keep on moving no matter how tough it is.

But in this life, I don't want to miss those opportunities, I have no wish to be number one or be at the top of the world. I just want to live this life with my own rules, and out of the shadows of others, this time I wanna stand out of the norm and not waste moments of life.

That will be like smearing shit on the chance God has given me, and if I die, I don't think I will be able to face the Almighty Father.

This time, I will live by my own rules, and enjoy it to the fullest.

****

The day started, as usual, I woke up, did my morning routines, and had breakfast with Rumi & later on I was left alone in the house all by myself.

And, if by chance you are wondering why I don't go to school like a normal middle schooler, well apparently the original Minato have already completed his middle school a month before he got stabbed, so I was spared from that hell hole. A school is a nice place and all, but having to deal with teenagers, OOF! That is a task impossible for me.

But, being treated as a teenager is kind of annoying you know, nonetheless, I did get accustomed to it by now.

Also, I don't know how to say it but being doted on by a person is a very odd feeling, I don't how to describe it, the last peopled who showered with me that kind of attention is my parents.

Don't get me wrong, Rumi is a great person and takes great care of me, but I really don't see her as an elder sister, she is thirteen years younger than me & it's simply not possible for a grown-ass man like me to be in the shoes of a teenager.

I guess it will take time, but I am 100% sure that my thoughts on this will remain the same. But she is trying her best to be the perfect sister for me, and I don't have the heart to say no to that, so I decided to make amends with my past, and with slow steps, I also started to return that favor back.

Today I plan to get myself accustomed to "SHAZAM'S" powers. So, after locking the door I jogged my way deeper into the woods behind our house, away from the prying eyes & the CCTV cameras mounted throughout our property.

You see, not until I figure out how to transform without losing my original clothes, I don't plan to reveal this power. Right now, if I decided to reveal it before Rumi, I don't have any hard facts to describe the appearance of the infamous "Shazam" Suit.

Quirks don't work like that, and I can just lie to her or play the surprise card for my adult form. But this suit will dump a lot of problems on me and garner suspicion from both Rumi & the public. So, I either have to hide this power or while transforming I have to mind my surroundings so that I don't gather the suspicion of the govt folks.

I have read too much of the X-men series and believe me it never goes right for the mutant's race, those people were seen as the freaks of nature, no matter how far they try to run and hide from the govt, those people will surely find you like the pack of bees, and once they get their nasty hands on those poor souls, they would either perform inhumane experiments or brainwash the mutant to submission.

I am strong, strong enough to destroy this world with brute strength alone and I am sure no one can stop me, not even the No-1 SMASH Boy, the man simply doesn't even stand a chance in front of Shazam's might.

But the problem is I am not a psychopath or a cold-hearted man, I am a normal person & I would ponder hundreds if not thousands of times if I should walk on that path.

But one thing is sure if they mess with me, I am not going to seat idly & just hand my ass on a silver platter. If ultimately that is written to my fate, then sooner or later there will be hell to pay and the loyalty will be tested.

That day, I will see if Rumi chooses her family over the world or stands against it. Only time will tell the course of the future, and what it holds for me.

***

Finally reaching the desirable spot, I took a deep calming breath and uttered the magic word with purpose, belief, and good intention.

"𝕊ℍ𝔸ℤ𝔸𝕄!" A huge bolt of lightning descends down from the sky & struck me, kicking up a mighty dust storm and once the dust settled, I looked down at my transformed body.

"KRAKKKL!" "KRAKLLL"

As the power of living lightning crackled around my body. I can feel it, power, unlike anything I have ever felt or experienced pumping through my veins.

But after a few seconds, the living lightning calmed down and seeped back inside my body, giving me the full view of that glorious piece of armor.

"This is cool..."

***

So instead of trying out the cooler abilities that I knew I had or act like an idiotic kid, I wanted to try out the magic first, which billy never dwelled on, I guess as a kid the boy would rather have flashy abilities than cast some spell that could and indeed change the fabric of reality.

Shazam is a creature of pure and ancient magic. This allows him to resist and cast magic spells, Zeus's Lightning being the most notable & combine with his knowledge of Solomon, he can cast any spells at their most optimal shape.

But the problem is I don't have access to the vast knowledge kept inside the rock of eternity, not in this world.

Thus, I can't cast any spells at the moment. I guess I will just have to try what Billy did in the comics.

"UH, Powers of Shazam… Lend me your power, ALA-KA-ZAMM!" I waited, & waited some more, but nothing happened even after few minutes.

So.

Maybe I did something wrong, didn't I? I have to believe in his powers… but I did, then why didn't it worked? Let's just calm down and give it another try, and this time believe harder.

"Powers of Shazam… Lend me your power, ALA-KA…" Before I can complete my words, a blue transparent screen popped up in my line of sight.

[Michael Bryce, Username: "UselessNeet" has invited you, Champion of the Magic to a group chat]

"HUH?" What the heck?