Where… am I?"
Samuel slowly opened his eyes.
Bright lights shined above him. The smell of medicine filled the air.
He looked around and realized he was lying on a hospital bed.
A drip was connected to his hand.
"How did I get here?" he whispered to himself.
Then suddenly he remembered the explosion.
His eyes widened.
"John… Emmanuel…"
He quickly sat up, feeling confused and scared.
"Where are they?"
Samuel looked around the empty room again.
No one answered.
His heart started beating faster.
He pulled the drip out of his hand and slowly stood up.
"I need to get out of here," he said quietly.
Samuel opened the door a little and looked outside.
The hallway was strange.
Scientists were walking around.
Robots were also moving through the building.
Samuel's eyes widened.
"Have I been kidnapped?" he whispered.
"What kind of place is this?"
He began sneaking through the hallway, hiding behind walls and equipment whenever someone passed.
He was almost near an exit when suddenly
"He has woken up!"
Samuel turned.
A female scientist stood there staring at him in shock.
"Get him!" she shouted as she pressed an alarm button.
Red lights began flashing.
Robots immediately moved toward Samuel.
Samuel panicked and started running.
As he ran, he suddenly noticed something strange.
He was faster than he had ever been before.
He dodged obstacles quickly without even thinking.
"What is happening to me?" he wondered.
But he had no time to think.
He ran toward a side exit.
Suddenly—
CLANG.
Robots blocked his path.
They stepped closer.
"You have nowhere left to go," one of them said in a cold robotic voice.
Samuel's heart pounded.
The robots attacked.
Without thinking, Samuel moved.
He dodged one.
Then another.
Then another.
Everything felt slow around him.
Before he understood what he was doing, Samuel threw a punch.
BOOM.
The robot flew across the hallway and smashed into the wall.
Samuel froze.
"What the—?!"
He looked at his hand in shock.
"How did I do that?"
But before he could think more, he ran again.
He saw a large gate ahead.
It looked like the way outside.
Freedom.
Samuel ran toward it.
Then suddenly—
"Samuel! Stop!"
He froze.
That voice…
He slowly turned around.
"Lilian?" he said in disbelief.
She smiled and walked toward him.
"You've finally woken up."
She hugged him.
"Welcome back to the world."
Samuel looked behind her.
CJ and Clinton were standing there smiling.
"Brooo! Finally!" CJ shouted.
Samuel stared at them in shock.
They looked different.
Stronger.
More confident.
And they were all wearing the same type of outfit.
"Where… are we?" Samuel asked.
"And how did we get here?"
Suddenly Samuel looked at his wrist to check for timr.
"My watch!"
He searched his hand.
It wasn't there.
"Where is my watch? What time is it?!"
"Calm down," Lilian said gently.
"Professor Gabriel will explain everything."
Samuel looked confused.
"Who is that????"
"How many hours have I been asleep?"
CJ laughed.
"Bro said hours."
Clinton shook his head.
"It's not hours."
He looked directly at Samuel.
"You've been unconscious for more than five months."
Samuel stood there speechless.
"Clinton!" Lilian said.
"You shouldn't have told him like that."
"Just come with us, Samuel."
They walked through the building until they reached an office.
Inside sat a dark-skinned man with grey hair.
He looked up.
"Finally."
Samuel gave him a puzzled look.
At that moment, another person entered the room.
"Elwin?" Samuel said.
Elwin smiled.
"Hello Samuel."
He was also wearing the same outfit as the others.
The man stood up.
"My name is Professor Gabriel, the founder of LINKS Lab."
"You are all here because of an accident that happened in my laboratory."
Samuel listened carefully.
"The explosion somehow reached your hostel and affected some of you."
"Unfortunately, some people died."
"But for a few of you… something different happened."
He looked at them all.
"You now have abilities."
Samuel is still with a puzzled look.
"Abilities?"
"Yes," Professor Gabriel continued.
"I like to call them Bio-Powers."
"They come from the biological abilities of rare organisms."
Samuel slowly remembered the robots.
"My punch destroyed one of the robots earlier," he said.
Professor Gabriel raised an eyebrow.
"Interesting."
"I guess you may have gained the abilities of a Mantis shrimp."
"Be careful with your punches."
He smiled slightly.
Then he became serious again.
"The government has selected you to help defend our country."
"If war ever comes, you will protect us."
"In return, we will provide everything you need."
"Training."
"Food."
"Shelter."
"You may continue your normal life, but this place will be your new home."
"Your powers must remain secret."
"If enemies discover them, you and your families could be in danger."
Samuel slowly raised his hand.
"What about my friends?"
"John and Emmanuel?"
Professor Gabriel nodded.
"They were examined."
"They did not receive any powers."
"They were sent back home."
Samuel felt relieved.
"And my parents?"
"They are fine," Professor Gabriel replied.
"They have called many times."
"We told them you are working on a project."
"You should call them soon."
Samuel sighed with relief.
Then Professor Gabriel took out a watch.
He handed it to Samuel.
"This is not an ordinary watch."
"Wear it."
"It will help control your powers and limit them so you do not harm yourself."
Samuel put it on slowly.
"Your training begins tomorrow," Professor Gabriel said.
"Your friends are already months ahead of you."
"You must catch up."
Samuel nodded slowly.
His mind was still spinning.
Yesterday he was just a university student watching Dragon Ball.
Now he had Bio-Powers.
And he was expected to defend his country.
"What a strange Day…" he muttered to himself.
He followed a worker who showed him his new room.
The room was beautiful.
There was a large TV, new phones, and even Arsenal F.C. posters on the wall.
"Wow…" Samuel said.
"This is nice."
"Emmanuel would have loved this place."
He picked up his phone and called his mother to explain things to her.
After the call, he lay down on the bed.
"What a strange day," he whispered.
Yesterday he was just thinking about finishing university and literally watching Dragonball anime.
Now everything has changed.
As he closed his eyes, he wondered if all of this was just a strange dream.
But deep inside, he knew one thing.
His life would never be normal again if this is real.