Wolfram

It was late afternoon when the first sign of trouble appeared. Jake had just finished his last class of the day and was heading back to the dorm when he saw them. A group of three men stood at the entrance to the building, all wearing dark clothing and masks. Their presence sent a shiver down his spine.

"Jake Rogers," one of them called, his voice rough and low. "We know you're in there. Come out quietly, and this won't have to get ugly."

Jake froze. There was no mistaking it—they were after him. His heart began to race. He hadn't expected them to come this soon. His first instinct was to run, to hide, but then he remembered Lucy's words.

*You don't have to do this alone.*

Taking a deep breath, Jake clenched his fist. The tungsten-covered hand felt solid, unyielding. Maybe, just maybe, it could help him face whatever was coming.

He stepped forward, his feet feeling heavy with the weight of his decision. "What do you want?" he called out, trying to sound confident, though his voice wavered slightly.

One of the men—the leader, by the looks of him—smiled under his mask. "We want the serum, Rogers. The one that's coursing through your veins right now. Hand it over, and we'll let you walk away."

Jake's mind raced. There was no way they knew the serum was in him, not unless they'd been tracking him. Still, there was no time to question it.

"No," Jake said firmly, the word feeling foreign on his tongue. But with a sudden surge of determination, he raised his tungsten-covered arm. "If you want it, you're going to have to take it."

The leader sneered. "So, you want to fight? Fine. We can do this the hard way."

Before Jake could react, one of the men lunged at him, his fist crackling with energy—some kind of electrical power. Jake barely had time to react. The fist collided with his chest, but instead of feeling the sting of a blow, Jake felt a strange, numbing sensation. The tungsten in his arm absorbed the impact, and he felt no pain—only the weight of the electric current pulsing through his body.

His heart skipped a beat, but he quickly regained his composure. The man's arm was still locked around his chest, and Jake instinctively shoved him away with his tungsten arm. The impact was like a hammer blow. The villain was sent sprawling to the ground, his back slamming into the pavement with a sickening thud.

The other two villains hesitated, clearly shocked by Jake's unexpected strength. Jake took a step back, realizing that this was his first real test, and he had passed it with flying colors. But he couldn't let his guard down yet. They were still dangerous.

"Get up!" the leader shouted, his voice filled with fury. "We're not done here!"

Jake's mind raced. He had no idea what they were capable of, but he wasn't about to find out the hard way. The more he thought about it, the more the idea of fighting them terrified him. He didn't know how to use his new powers properly. He was just... Jake.

Then, in the corner of his eye, he saw her.

Lucy. 

She had been trailing behind, watching from a distance. The moment she saw Jake in trouble, her eyes narrowed, and she moved with purpose, stepping forward.

"You're not doing this alone," she called out, her voice filled with resolve. "Get back, Jake!"

Before he could react, Lucy threw something at the villains—a small, metallic sphere that exploded with a loud *crack*. It wasn't an explosion of fire, but a pulse of energy that sent the villains reeling. The leader gritted his teeth and stumbled, temporarily blinded by the burst.

"Go!" Lucy shouted at Jake.

Without thinking, Jake reached out, grabbing Lucy's arm and pulling her back toward the safety of the alley. They didn't need to be told twice. As they ran, the two villains shouted curses behind them.

"What was that?" Jake gasped, still trying to process everything that had just happened. His heart pounded in his chest, and his legs felt like jelly. He had never been in a fight before—let alone a fight with people who could potentially kill him.

Lucy glanced at him, a small smile tugging at her lips. "You're not the only one who knows a thing or two about fighting. Come on, we need to get to a safer place and figure out what we're dealing with.