The silence in the pawn shop was heavy, broken only by the frantic tapping of fingers on a holographic keyboard.
Old Man Vulture was sweating. Thick, oily beads rolled down his forehead, bypassing his mechanical eye to drip onto the counter. He didn't dare look up at the young man standing in the shadows.
"Done," Vulture croaked, his voice trembling. "20,000 Credits. Transferred to an untraceable crypto-chip. Just take it and go."
Noah picked up the small, black chip from the counter. He didn't smile. He didn't say thank you. He simply slid it into his pocket.
Ding.
[Quest Complete: The Logic of Currency] [Reward: System Storage Upgrade (Level 1 -> Level 2)] [Mental Load Capacity Increased.] [Current Mental Load: 14% -> 7%]
A wave of relief washed over Noah's brain. The constant, low-level static pressure he had felt since stealing the "Heat" concept evaporated. It was like taking off a tight helmet he'd been wearing for years. His thoughts became sharper, faster.
"The information," Noah reminded him, his voice devoid of emotion.
Vulture swallowed hard. He tapped a few more keys, bringing up a 3D map of the Sector 4 Docks.
"Warehouse 12," Vulture whispered, as if afraid the walls were listening. "The Ironblood Gang is moving the shipment tonight at 02:00. They think it's just military-grade alloy. But... my scanners picked up weird energy signatures from those crates. It's not just steel."
"Who is the buyer?"
"I don't know! I swear!" Vulture yelped as Noah took a half-step forward. "The transaction is anonymous. But the Ironblood boss, 'Hammerhead', is personally overseeing it. That means it's worth millions."
Noah memorized the map layout in a single glance.
"One last thing," Noah said, pausing at the door. He turned his head slightly. "If you try to restore the 'connection' to your security system before I'm gone... I'll steal the connection between your heart and your brain next."
Vulture turned pale as a sheet.
Noah stepped out into the rainy night. As the door closed, the "Concept of Connection" he had stolen dissipated from his grasp, returning to the ether. Inside the shop, the droids jerked back to life, but Noah was already gone, melting into the neon-lit crowd.
Sector 4 Docks - 01:55 AM
The smell of salt water mixed with the stench of rusting metal and diesel fuel.
Noah crouched atop a shipping container, the rain plastering his hair to his forehead. Below him, Warehouse 12 was a hive of activity.
Massive floodlights cut through the darkness. Two dozen armed men patrolled the perimeter. They weren't ordinary thugs; they were equipped with exo-skeletons that boosted their lifting strength.
In the center of the loading bay stood a massive truck. And beside it, shouting orders, was Hammerhead.
He was a giant of a man, standing nearly seven feet tall. His skin wasn't skin at all—it was a thick, grey organic metal. A classic mutant-type Villain.
[Target Identified: Hammerhead (Rank C+)] [Primary Concept: Organic Metal / Hardness] [Theft Probability: 68%]
"Move it, you maggots!" Hammerhead roared, slamming his fist against the truck. The metal dented like clay. "The buyer will be here in ten minutes! If this crate isn't loaded, I'll turn your bones into powder!"
Noah narrowed his eyes. He wasn't interested in the thugs. He was interested in the crate they were terrified to touch. It was a black box, reinforced with runes that glowed faintly purple.
That's not steel, Noah thought. That's a Containment Unit.
Whatever was inside was dangerous. And valuable.
Noah stood up. It was time to test his upgraded capacity.
He dropped from the container, landing silently in the shadows behind a stack of pallets. He needed to clear the pawns before taking the King.
Two guards walked past his position, their exo-suits whirring.
"Did you hear something?" one asked.
"Probably just a rat," the other grunted.
Noah stepped out. He didn't use a weapon. He reached out with his left hand towards the ground beneath the guards' feet.
[Concept Targeted: Friction] [Action: Reduce to Zero]
The laws of physics governing the interaction between their boots and the concrete vanished.
"Whoa!"
The first guard slipped as if he were standing on wet ice. His legs flew out from under him, and he crashed face-first into the concrete. The second guard turned, trying to aim his rifle, but his feet found no purchase. He flailed wildly, sliding uncontrollably across the floor until he slammed into a metal beam with a sickening crunch.
"Intruder!" someone shouted.
The element of surprise was gone. Noah didn't care.
"Kill him!" Hammerhead bellowed, pointing a metallic finger at Noah.
Six guards raised their rifles. Muzzle flashes lit up the night. Bullets tore through the air at supersonic speeds.
Noah didn't dodge. He ran towards them.
As the bullets approached, Noah focused. He couldn't steal the concept of "Momentum" from twenty bullets at once—his brain would melt. But he could change the environment.
[Concept Targeted: Visibility / Light Refraction] [Location: Immediate Vicinity]
Noah grabbed the concept of "Light Direction" around his body and bent it.
To the guards, Noah appeared to be two meters to the left of where he actually was. An optical illusion created by stolen logic.
The bullets shredded the air where his "ghost" was. Concrete exploded into dust.
By the time they realized they were shooting at a mirage, Noah was among them.
He moved with ruthless efficiency. A palm strike to a throat. A kick to a knee joint. He didn't need super strength; he used their own confusion against them.
One guard tried to swing a combat knife. Noah caught his wrist.
[Skill: Minor Theft] [Target: Structural Integrity (Knife)]
The steel blade shattered into a thousand shards of rust. The guard stared at his empty handle in horror, just before Noah's elbow connected with his temple.
Within thirty seconds, twelve men were groaning on the ground.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Hammerhead walked forward, crushing a wooden pallet under his metallic boot. He didn't look worried. He looked amused.
"Impressive parlor tricks, kid," Hammerhead grinned, his metallic skin glinting under the floodlights. "You messed with physics. Cute. But can you mess with this?"
He flexed. His skin hardened further, turning a dark, impenetrable charcoal color. He was a walking tank. Bullets bounced off him. Rockets merely scratched him.
"I am the ultimate shield," Hammerhead bragged, cracking his knuckles. "Nothing can break me."
Noah adjusted his gloves. He felt the familiar throb in his head—Mental Load was climbing again, currently at 25%. He had enough runway for one big theft.
"Ultimate shield?" Noah repeated, his voice cold.
He walked toward the giant.
Hammerhead charged. He moved surprisingly fast for his size, winding up a punch that could level a small building. "DIE!"
Noah stood his ground. He watched the metal fist coming toward his face. The air pressure alone was enough to bruise.
At the very last fraction of a second, Noah reached out. His hand didn't block the punch. He placed his palm gently against Hammerhead's chest.
"Your logic is flawed," Noah whispered.
[System Alert] [Target Concept: Hardness (Organic Metal)] [Magnitude: High] [Theft Initiated...]
Noah's eyes blazed with blinding blue light. "Soften."
Hammerhead's eyes widened in confusion. The punch never landed. Because the arm throwing it had suddenly lost all its rigidity.
The "Hardness" was ripped away. Hammerhead's metallic skin didn't disappear, but its property changed. It became as soft as wet clay. As pliable as marshmallow.
The giant's momentum caused his own body to fold. His legs, no longer able to support his massive weight without their hardness, buckled like warm wax.
"What... what did you do to me?!" Hammerhead screamed, his voice muffled as his jaw literally sagged out of shape. He tried to stand, but he was a puddle of floppy metal.
"I stole your strength," Noah said, stepping over the helpless villain.
He walked past the defeated boss towards the mysterious black crate. The battle was over. Logic had won.
Noah placed his hand on the scanner of the crate. It required a fingerprint, but Noah simply stole the concept of "Locked" from the mechanism.
Hiss.
The hydraulic seals opened. The lid lifted.
Noah looked inside, expecting weapons, gold, or drugs.
His eyes widened. The cold expression finally cracked, replaced by genuine shock.
Inside the crate, packed in blue suspension gel, was a severed arm. But not just any arm.
It was golden. Radiant. Glowing with a holy light that illuminated the entire warehouse.
Noah recognized the gauntlet. He recognized the DNA signature that the System was frantically analyzing.
[System Alert] [Divine Material Detected] [Source: "Atlas" - The First Hero]
"Why..." Noah whispered, staring at the glowing limb of his enemy. "Why is a gang smuggling the severed arm of the world's greatest hero?"
Suddenly, a red laser dot appeared on Noah's forehead.
"Step away from the cargo," a voice said from the catwalks above.
Noah froze. He hadn't sensed anyone else.
He looked up. Standing on the railing, aiming a sniper rifle that hummed with magical energy, was a woman with silver hair and an eye-patch. She wore the uniform of the Hero Association Black Ops.
"You've seen too much, thief," she said.
[Warning: Lethal Threat Detected.] [Mental Load: 65%]
Noah gritted his teeth. This night just got a lot more complicated.