Chapter 1: Death and Transmigration
[Original World, Apartment, Night – 2023]
The glow from the television was a familiar, comforting light, casting a soft blue hue across Adam Stiels' face. He was a man of simple pleasures, and his greatest was a deep, unapologetic dive into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Tonight's pilgrimage was Captain America: The Winter Soldier, a film he'd watched so many times he could recite the dialogue. As Steve, Sam, and Bucky fought on the helicarriers, a bittersweet thought crossed his mind.
"Man, Bucky and Steve… I'd give anything to fight like them, to be a real hero. Not just some guy who makes coffee." His life was a predictable cycle of lattes and witty banter. He had a reputation for pulling harmless pranks, a splash of chaos in a world that felt too mundane.
A sharp, metallic tang cut through the air. Adam sniffed, his brow furrowing in confusion. It smelled like gas. A muffled shout pierced the thin walls.
"Gas leak! Get out!"
A jolt of adrenaline shot through him. Adam scrambled to his feet, knocking a half-eaten bag of popcorn onto the floor. "Heroic last meal," he muttered with a wry, nervous laugh. He had to warn his neighbors. He reached for his phone, but before he could, a faint, almost melodic hum filled the room, a sound that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.
"Initiating transmigration…"
Adam froze, his mind reeling. "A voice? My hero moment?" The irony was thick and cruel. The world around him began to spin, the colors blurring into a chaotic vortex of red, white, and blue.
"Marvel was my life… now it's my end?" The thought was his last conscious one as the world dissolved into a blinding white.
[TRANSMIGRATION COMPLETE. WELCOME TO EARTH-199999.]
[Hell's Kitchen Alley, Night – 2014]
A sharp kick to the side of his ribs jolted Adam awake. He gasped, the stale, rain-soaked air of an alleyway filling his lungs. His body felt lighter, younger, and achy in places he wasn't used to. A strange, glowing text box shimmered before his eyes, its light revealing the grime of the brick wall beside him.
[RANDOM LIFE SIMULATION SYSTEM ONLINE. LIVE ALTERNATE LIVES TO GAIN REWARDS. KEEP MY EXISTENCE HIDDEN.]
Adam blinked, his mind struggling to catch up. The words resonated with the thousands of web novels he'd read. "A secret system? I'm in the MCU with a cheat!" A wild, chaotic grin stretched across his face.
A guttural voice cut through his nascent joy. "Give us your cash, kid!"
Adam looked up at two hulking figures, their faces obscured by the alley's deep shadows. He glanced at his own scrawny, 18-year-old body. A normal kid, in a very non-normal situation.
"Cash?" Adam said, his voice a little shaky but laced with his old sarcasm. "I just got a cosmic upgrade!"
"You're dead, punk!" the thug snarled, reaching for him.
"Dead? I'm rewriting the script!" Adam retorted, scrambling away. His eyes fell on a discarded broom. Acting on pure instinct and a decade of watching action movies, he kicked it out, tripping the first thug with a loud, satisfying thud. "Sweeping my way to glory," he muttered, bolting for the fire escape.
[UNLOCKED ACHIEVEMENT: QUICK WIT. REWARD: AGILITY (BASIC).]
[HELL'S KITCHEN AND A SECRET SYSTEM? LET'S ROLL.]
[Hell's Kitchen Rooftop, Night – 2014]
Adam clambered onto the rooftop, panting, his heart still pounding with adrenaline. He leaned against a cool concrete wall, the glittering lights of Hell's Kitchen a stark contrast to the grimy streets below. The floating text box remained, and he took a moment to examine its interface, feeling a surge of pure, unadulterated excitement.
[SIMULATIONS SPAN DECADES, GRANTING SKILLS, ITEMS, OR INSIGHTS. FIRST SIMULATION READY.]
"Decades? I'm gonna be a legend!" he whispered to himself, a manic glint in his eye. He was no longer just a fan. He was the main character.
A soft whoosh of air made him jump, and he spun around just in time to see a slender figure in a red and black suit swing past, a web-line a brilliant white against the night sky. She landed gracefully on a nearby ledge, her white-lensed eyes fixing on him. Anya Corazon, the Spider-Girl. She was even more stunning in person than the outline had promised.
"New guy, huh?" she said, her voice a teasing melody. "Don't fall off."
Adam couldn't help but grin. "Fall? I'm climbing to Avenger status."
Anya's mask-covered face tilted slightly. "Dream big, rooftop boy."
"Call me Adam, Web-Girl," he said, and then, feeling a burst of bravado, he struck a heroic pose. His foot slipped on a patch of wet moss, and he let out a yelp, his arms flailing wildly before he caught the ledge just in time, his feet dangling over the edge.
Anya let out a laugh that was a little too amused for his ego. "Yeah, dream big," she said again, then swung away into the night.
"Anya's cool. System's cooler. Hero time."
[Hell's Kitchen Safehouse, Late Night – 2014]
Adam managed to find a dusty, abandoned safehouse, a grim but effective hideout. He sat on a moldy mattress, the glowing system interface still before him. The system explained its mechanics with a cold, functional precision.
[SIMULATION: LIVE ALTERNATE LIVES IN TEXT PROMPTS. SURVIVE TO CHOOSE REWARDS.]
"Text lives? Like a game? Let's play!" Adam said, a surge of excitement coursing through him. He was a gamer, and this was the ultimate game.
[FIRST SIMULATION: EARTH-10005, ALEX MERCER. BEGIN?]
Adam's eyes widened. Alex Mercer? From Prototype? The perfect, non-mutant template for his powers.
"Mercer? I'm ready to shine!"
[CHOICES IMPACT REWARDS. KEEP ME SECRET.]
"Secret's safe. Let's be a hero," Adam promised.
"From fan to MCU hero. This is my shot." He leaned back, his excitement making him restless. He jumped up, knocking over a rusted lamp with a clatter, startling a mouse that scurried away.
[ENTERING SIMULATION… LOADING: EARTH-10005. ALEX MERCER. YEAR 1. AGE 18.]
The world dissolved into a sea of glowing text, and Adam felt his consciousness shift, pulling him into a new reality, a new life, a new beginning.