2 Power Galore

I felt tired was all I could think about as I groggily opened my eyes.

' Argh... must have fallen asleep last night. Shit! I forgot to plug in my iPad before I fell asleep.'

A number of things immediately made themselves clear as I came back to the waking world. One, I was outside since I could feel damp grass under me. Two, my chest didn't ache nor did I feel my heartbeat flutter as I was used to due to my arrhythmia.

I was also wearing different clothes, from what I fell asleep in, and apparently, I had a bag laying beside me that I didn't recognize.

After a slight panic attack of not waking up in my hospital bed, I assessed myself and learned that I was wearing: a blue shirt that had the sleeves rolled up to my elbows, black jeans, and a pair of white Nike shoes.

It felt like summer in the park; the dawn lighting up flower beds and play sets. The area was semi-wooded; the branches shade most of it except for the flowers and a circle around a wooden staging area. On the other side of the park, cars were passing by to my left.

It looked like I was in the middle of a big city. Which was weird. Considering the proportions felt a little off like everything was a bit bigger than it was supposed to, be and a bit more futuristic.

Also, everything almost seemed brand new. Plus, there was a massive statue of a man tinted in gold, and steel standing proudly in the middle of the park—rising up towards the sky.

A quick examination of the stage where the statue was propped on looked eerily similar to a man quite familiar along with a brass plaque plastered on the bottom that read.

"In honor of our city's greatest Protector—

Superman."

Below that was a little engraved crest that read "Metropolis Park".

The next few minutes saw me sitting next to the base of the statue, as I tried to figure out where do I go from here. Things were getting a bit surreal for my tastes, and I found myself wondering if this was all a dream, or perhaps had I passed on in my sleep.

Having nothing better to do. I started to look through the bag I had on me. For some reason, I was eerily calm since it still hadn't registered in my mind that this was really happening.

I felt healthy. My scars were nowhere to be found. I was alone in a world that I just discovered moments ago was real and in fact, had Superman as one of its heroes.

I couldn't help but notice that although the bag I had with me was light. It was also a lot sturdier than what I was expecting and I almost fainted when I zipped it open.

I took out what was inside the bag, blinking at some of the objects I found. A mask, which I wasn't sure I have seen before, and a plaque that housed objects with carvings of different animals on the surface of each of them.

I slowly, gently, placed them on the ground. Then I reached for them. One, two, three, four, five...

12 Talismans, each with a different animal drawn on it, but the same size. Next, was an angry Red Oni Mask.

I had no idea how those got here, and as I was looking at them. I traced my fingers over them and noted they would shimmer slightly whenever I ran my fingers on them.

I also found some cash, about a few hundred bucks, an ID, a passport and a note.

[ Dear OtherWorlder

You're dead! But, rejoice this is your second chance at life. There wasn't really enough time to explain things in person, so I had this letter sent along with your chosen powers/ items.

Each Talisman has a special ability, but it's your decision on how you use them. I threw in the Oni mask as a bonus for not doing this in person, but be warned it's a lot more dangerous than it seems. These items and powers were selected based on the latest works of fiction you have viewed. So, have fun in your new world and try not to die too quickly, since even with all 12 Talismans you aren't invincible.

Sincerely,

- Your friendly neighborhood Rob]

I cursed in my mind at my own luck, since judging by the letter I'd just read I could have gotten Kryptonian powers or even possibly any of the powers I saw in the Smallville series.

But, I guess I couldn't complain too much after all based on the show; the Talismans proved to be pretty powerful. The episodes were still fresh in my mind, so I decided it was best I took this opportunity to get familiar with them before I decided to do anything with them.

I still didn't know which version of DC I ended up in, but based on my surroundings it didn't look like a hell world or something straight-up apocalyptic which was always a plus in my books, not that it narrowed it down in the slightest.

The first thing I needed to do was to find shelter and gather some information. I also needed to find a stable source of income.

I was still unsure how I felt about all of this, sure I fantasized about it more than enough, but this wasn't a game. Sure, who wouldn't like the opportunity to become a hero and use their powers for good? But, was I really the kind of person who would risk his life for random strangers?

And, even with the talismans, I had no doubt I could still die.

The Talismans although powerful could still be stolen and fall into the wrong hands, and if not the talismans themselves could be destroyed if struck hard enough. After all, they were just made of stone.

I picked up the bag and made sure it was secured on my back and started heading in a random direction that would hopefully guide me somewhere outside of the park.

It was dawn, and I didn't want to get robbed by some random thug or something.

Half an hour later, I found myself standing in a room I managed to rent using the money I had on me.

Luckily Rob, as much of an asshole as he was for just dropping me here without any warning or explanation. At least saw fit to leave me with an ID and a passport.

Which was good I guess, since I had no idea where to start to find someone who could do a forgery. Plus, If I wanted anything half decent it would have probably cost a lot of money.

My thoughts were drawn back to the 12 Talismans I currently had displayed on my bed, along with the red angry Oni mask.

Firstly, the mask was a brownish-orange color more than it was red. It also had strange green/yellowish eyes, and a large, white beard with what seemed to be unruly eyebrows and a mustache. It also had black marks on the corners of its mouth and its eyes.

I was wary of it, since the warning I got in the letter was too vague, and didn't give me a clue as to what it was supposed to do. Just that it was dangerous. I guess one way to find out was to just put it on, and see what happens. But, I just got this new body and didn't fancy risking my life after getting a second chance at life.

Next, my gaze moved to the main stars of the show. 12 stone talismans neatly lined up, with a different animal engraved on each of them. The Twelve Talismans themselves were a set of powerful magical artifacts, each represented by an animal of the Chinese zodiac.

In the show, the Talismans were originally created by Lo Pei when he cast a chi spell to imprison Shendu who was some sort of demonic/dragon creature in statue form. Effectively ending the demon's reign whilst dividing and encasing his powers derived from the Noble Animals into the form of Twelve Talismans.

Each Talisman contained a different magical power, allowing one to utilize its respective power upon holding and activating the Talisman. In order:-

The Rooster Talisman: Gave the user the power of Levitation and Telekinesis.

The Ox Talisman: Gave the user the power of Super Strength and Durability.

The Sheep Talisman: Gave the user the power of Astral Projection, by giving the user the ability to eject the soul from the body and wander as a spirit. In this form, one is invisible, inaudible, and able to fly, pass through walls, and enter a person's dreams (where one can be seen and heard).

The Rabbit Talisman: Gave the user the power of super speed.

The Dragon Talisman: Gave the user the Power of Combustion and Pyro-kinesis, allowing the holder to shoot beams of explosive flaming energy to be discharged from the talisman.

The Rat Talisman: Gave the user the power of Animation; breathing life into inanimate objects.

The Horse Talisman: Gave the user the power of Healing and could even cure the user of foreign bodies (i.e. germs, viruses, etc). It could also heal physical injuries, repair broken objects and instantly relieve physical pain and disorientation.

The Dog Talisman: Gave the user the power of Immortality by negating the "effects" of aging, while making the user immune to death, but not damage. (If you were shot by a bullet or a taser gun you would still feel it.)

The Snake Talisman: Gave the user the power of Invisibility.

The Pig Talisman: Gave the user the power to shoot powerful beams of energy from their eyes. It can also be used to see everything as heat (heat vision). It can be seen as a reverse to the snake talisman due to the fact that it can detect someone who is invisible.

The Monkey Talisman: Gave the user the power of Shapeshifting. Any item/person/animal may be changed into the shape of any animal by saying the name of the intended animal's shape.

The Tiger Talisman: Unlike the others, was meant to balance the other 11 Talismans, and also had the ability to split the user into two; an evil and good version of themselves.

So, essentially Strength, Speed, Flight, Telekinesis, Invulnerability, Immortality, Healing, Heat Vision, Shape-shifting, invisibility, Pyro-kinesis, and animation. All in all 12 powers.

An excited grin broke out on my face and I could barely stave the elation I felt as I thought about the future. 'This almost feels like an all-that-you-can-eat buffet for superpowers.'

It took me a few moments to settle down. I reined in my excitement since I was starting to get ahead of myself.

There were still a lot of things to test and I couldn't just go out there half-clocked without at least testing the limits of each Talisman. The show was a bit vague on the details; it didn't really specify the scale or range of the powers. Or if they could even be used together.

I decided to test the Talismans, but I was still stuck on which one to try first. My eyes immediately moved towards the Talisman that could definitely help me right now.

My hand went towards the sheep talisman since it was more suitable for my current goal, which was gathering information without drawing too much attention to myself.

I made sure to pack all my Talismans, hid them under the bed, and barricaded the door in case a hotel maid came in to clean my room or something. I also used a bunch of salt packets I bought from the store and sprinkled them around the bed to form a circle. True I didn't know if it would protect my body from evil spirits or whatever, but it's not like I had anything to lose by taking precautions. Let's just hope the Winchester brothers from the show 'Supernatural' weren't full of shit.

I then took a deep breath before laying on the bed whilst holding onto the talisman. Since the talismans were magical in nature I focused my intent on activating them and imagined myself entering my Astral form.

It seemed I did something right since I could see the talisman shimmering slightly before I blacked out.

(Chapter End)

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