CHAPTER 1 — "THE FIRST SPARK"
Jaden Alexander Brooks had always been talented, but talent was normal in his neighborhood. Everyone could run fast. Everyone played ball. Everyone dreamed of making it.
But Jaden had something no one else had, a secret he did not even fully understand.
At sixteen, he already turned heads. His sharp jawline, golden brown skin, and hazel eyes that sometimes looked amber in the sun set him apart. His lean six foot two frame seemed made for highlights. His mother called him her miracle. His father said he was born for greatness.
Yet greatness did not help with midterms, and it certainly did not help being third string quarterback on a team that barely won games.
Tonight was different.
The night everything changed
Jaden's father, a former military researcher turned private consultant, had left him a small locked case before leaving on another long overseas contract.
"Open this when you are ready," he had said.
Jaden had never been ready until now. A fight with the coaches, a benching, and a burning desire to prove he was more than a backup all pushed him to the dusty attic where the case waited.
He opened it.
Inside lay a small stainless steel injector with a faint blue glow from its digital interface.
SUPER SOLDIER SERUM PROTOTYPE 0.7AUTHORIZATION BROOKS GENETIC LINE ONLY
"What is this?" he whispered.
Beneath it was a folded letter.
Jaden,If you are opening this, I trust you are ready. This serum is incomplete and unstable beyond a small percentage. Your bloodline is uniquely compatible. Do not exceed one percent at your age. Start with zero point two. It will enhance coordination, reflexes, and spatial awareness. Use it only to build yourself, not to cheat your future.You are meant for greatness.Dad
Jaden stared at the injector.
Zero point two percent. Just a taste.
He pressed the interface.
DOSAGE CONFIRMED ZERO POINT TWO PERCENT
The needle hissed as it pierced his skin. It did not hurt. It ignited something inside him.
His senses sharpened. The attic came alive with detail. Dust motes floated like stars. Lines became sharper, shadows deeper. Sounds he had ignored were suddenly distinct. His heartbeat pounded like distant thunder, but steady, deliberate.
Something inside him stirred. Instinct. Calculation. Awareness.
His fingers tingled. His muscles felt coiled and ready. His breathing fell into a rhythm he had not known before. It was as if he had trained for years in a single moment.
He stumbled to the mirror.
His eyes glowed, not brightly, but alive, watching him back with a presence he had never seen before.
The first spark.
Morning After
At practice, Jaden moved without thinking. The football felt lighter, the playbook clear. Routes that had once confused him became patterns he anticipated before they formed.
On the scout team, he fired a slant with perfect timing. The receiver tripped in surprise.
The head coach blinked. The offensive coordinator dropped his clipboard. QB one, a loud senior named Walsh, glared at him.
"What was that, Brooks?"
Jaden shrugged. "Just threw it."
Everyone knew it was not just a throw.
Coach Daniels called him into his office after practice.
"You look different," the coach said. "Focused. Composed. Confident."
Jaden kept his expression calm. "Just slept better, Coach."
The coach raised an eyebrow but did not push. "You will run second team tomorrow. Earn it, and we will see if you are ready to move up."
Jaden left with a small smile.
Later that night, he sat on his bed staring at his hand. Power pulsed beneath his skin, but fear pulsed alongside it. The serum was real, and he had no idea what it could turn him into.
He picked up his father's letter again.
Use it only to build yourself, not to cheat your future.
Jaden nodded. "No shortcuts," he whispered. "Just destiny."
A faint dizziness hit him, almost like a warning, but he ignored it. He did not yet know the risks. The spark inside him was only the beginning.