It was nearly midnight by the time the hospital staff finished their initial examinations.

Lauren had been taken to another department for scans and neurological monitoring, while Luke was sent to a private treatment room. He disliked being separated from her, but the nurse assured him that her injuries were not serious.

The heroine assigned to Luke stood beside the examination bed, studying the readings on a tablet. Her name was Dr. Mira Vale, though most people knew her by her hero name, Pulseweaver.

She appeared to be in her late twenties, with honey-blonde hair pulled into a thick ponytail that fell between her shoulder blades. A short clinical coat covered part of a fitted white-and-teal medical suit designed to leave her arms free while she worked.

The suit had a high collar and long sleeves, but the material followed her full chest, narrow waist, and shapely hips closely enough that Luke had to remind himself not to stare.

Mira caught the brief movement of his eyes. A trace of amusement appeared in her expression, though she kept her attention on the examination.

"Try not to move," she said. "I’m checking how your body responds before I finish closing the deeper injuries."

Her ability was officially classified as Healing, though Mira shaped the energy into glowing threads that extended from her fingertips and disappeared beneath Luke’s skin. Each strand allowed her to guide the healing energy through damaged tissue with careful precision.

Warmth spread through Luke’s ribs as the threads moved deeper. The sensation was not painful, but it felt strange, with pressure building beneath his skin while his muscles shifted into place.

When the energy reached his shoulder, something tightened near the joint.

Luke clenched his jaw.

"Pain?" Mira asked.

"More like pressure."

"That’s normal. The muscle was partially torn, and I’m reconnecting the fibers."

The warmth spread again. A faint itching sensation followed as the cut near his temple closed, while the dark bruising along his ribs slowly faded.

Mira withdrew the last thread and checked the tablet.

"That should take care of the immediate damage."

Luke flexed his fingers, then carefully rolled his shoulder. The pain was gone, replaced by a dull tingling beneath the skin.

"I feel much better. Thank you."

"You’re welcome."

Mira placed two fingers against the inside of his wrist. A soft teal glow entered his skin, and her expression grew more focused.

"Is something wrong?" Luke asked.

"Your recovery rate is unusual. Your body had already started repairing itself before I treated you. Not enough to heal completely, but much faster than normal."

She moved a compact scanner over his forearm and across his chest.

"Your muscle density is also higher than your medical history suggests, and there are early signs of reinforcement in your bones and connective tissue."

"So Powerforge made me stronger?"

"It appears that way, but I’m not ready to confirm the cause after one examination. The game, your awakening, and the stress of the fight could all be involved."

Mira set the scanner aside.

"You created a physical reinforcement skill inside Powerforge, correct?"

Luke nodded. "Reinforce."

"And you used it during the attack?"

"I think so. It felt similar."

"How similar?"

"In the game, it made my body feel lighter and stronger. In the café, it wasn’t as clear. I only knew I could move faster than I should have."

Mira entered the answer into her tablet.

"Any dizziness, nausea, or muscle weakness afterward?"

"A little dizziness and a lot of exhaustion. No nausea."

"Did you lose consciousness?"

"No."

"That’s useful."

Luke waited while she added another note.

"Can I use the ability again?"

"I don’t recommend trying until we know more."

"Why?"

"We don’t know what fuels it." Mira looked up from the tablet. "Inside the game, you have a visible mana reserve and clear skill limits. Your real body doesn’t provide that information."

"So I could run out of something without knowing."

"Exactly. You could exhaust yourself, damage your muscles, strain your heart, or trigger another reaction we haven’t seen yet."

The strength had felt natural during the fight. Hearing Mira describe what might have happened made it seem much more dangerous.

"I’m not saying you should be afraid of your ability," she continued. "Just don’t experiment with it alone."

"That might be hard to promise."

"It usually is."

Mira pulled a stool closer and sat across from him.

"Most awakened people spend weeks or months learning how their abilities affect their bodies. You gained yours overnight through a system no one fully understands, so we have to be more careful than usual."

"Have other players changed like this?"

"A few. Some developed physical traits related to their classes, while others displayed versions of their game skills."

"Did they recover this quickly?"

"Some did. Others became sick after using their abilities."

Luke’s posture stiffened, but Mira continued before he could assume the worst.

"You aren’t showing those symptoms. Your temperature is normal, your heart rhythm is stable, and there are no signs of organ stress."

"So I’m fine?"

"You’re stable," she corrected. "That isn’t the same as saying everything is understood."

Luke released a quiet breath.

Mira stood and checked the final readings.

"I want you back tomorrow. I’ll compare the results and see whether the reinforcement is continuing."

"Is that mandatory?"

"For now, yes. Powerforge awakenings are being treated as unknown medical cases."

Luke glanced toward the door.

"Can Miss Lauren come too?"

"The woman who developed precognition?"

"Yes. Her ability affected her after she logged out."

Mira’s expression sharpened. "How?"

"She saw something that had already happened. At least, she thought she did. Her temples hurt afterward, and she was dizzy."

Mira immediately added another note.

"She needs a neurological follow-up. Precognitive and sensory abilities can place unusual strain on the brain, especially when they first awaken."

"She can come with me, then?"

"She should."

Mira closed the tablet.

"You’re more worried about her than yourself."

Luke did not answer.

"That isn’t criticism," she added. "Just remember that you won’t help her by ignoring your own limits."

"I know."

Mira raised an eyebrow.

Luke looked down at the healed skin over his ribs. "I’m working on it."

"That’s a better answer."

She moved toward the door, then paused.

"If either of you experiences sudden pain, weakness, confusion, another uncontrolled vision, or an ability activation you can’t stop, come back immediately."

"All right."

"And don’t test Reinforce in the hallway."

Luke looked at her. "I wasn’t going to."

Mira gave him a knowing look but did not argue.

"You’re cleared to continue with the psychological assessment."

Luke slid off the examination bed. His body felt almost normal again, though a faint warmth remained beneath his skin where Mira’s energy had passed.

"Thanks again."

"You’re welcome, Luke. I’ll see both of you tomorrow."

Mira returned to her tablet as he left the room.

A hero had healed him. Luke knew he should be grateful, and part of him was, but another part remembered the alley where he had called for help while people walked past.

That bitterness returned as he stepped into the corridor.

The hero hospital looked nothing like an ordinary medical center. Reinforced doors lined the hall, each one thick enough to contain a patient whose ability might flare out of control.

A nurse guided a floating stretcher past him while blue restraints held a man whose skin had turned to rough gray stone. Farther down the corridor, a woman in a scorched red uniform argued with a doctor while thin trails of smoke continued to rise from her hair.

Heroes and sidekicks moved between the rooms in bright uniforms. Some were injured, while others laughed with nurses or spoke into their phones as though fighting villains and surviving disasters were part of an ordinary shift.

Luke had once looked at people like them with awe. Now he wondered how many of them would have ignored him on the street.

The thought followed him until he reached the next room.

A bronze plaque beside the door read:

DR. EVELYN CROSS

AWAKENING PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT

Luke knocked once.