The warehouse on 19th Street looked abandoned — but you knew better. Infrared scans showed heat signatures inside. Armed. Spread in formation.
"I count twelve," Spider-Man whispered from above, clinging to the brick facade. "Four with internal mods. The rest? Grunts with military training."
Daredevil stood beside you in the alley. "They're watching the perimeter. No sign of Phantom."
"That's because he's not inside," you muttered. "He's watching too. Testing me again."
You cracked your knuckles and stepped forward.
[Copy & Adapt – Active]
– Tactical Mode: Enabled
– Targets within range: 12
– Potential skill integrations: 4
You slipped through the shadows, mimicking Daredevil's stealth movements with uncanny accuracy. Every silent step, every breath control technique — yours now. You moved like him, but faster. More fluid. Like his years of training condensed into minutes inside your muscle memory.
At the rear loading dock, a guard turned. Too slow.
Your fist struck his temple, and you caught his body before he dropped. One down.
You reached his rifle — custom tech. As you touched it, your ability pinged.
[Weapon Familiarity Gained: Modular EM Rifle (Lv.1)]
– Increased accuracy and recoil control with energy-based firearms.
"Copy that," you whispered with a grin.
Inside, chaos began.
Spider-Man dove from above, webbing two guards to the ceiling as Daredevil disarmed another. You kicked through the front, energy charging in your hands from the adapted Echo unit tech earlier. A single pulse sent two more flying.
But that's when the lights died.
Then the walls shifted.
Gas hissed from hidden vents, and metal panels slid open — revealing four new soldiers.
Not mercs.
Echo Units 06 through 09.
Each one bore a slightly different skull design. Their suits were sleeker. Faster. This was the upgrade.
And all four locked onto you.
You didn't wait.
You charged.
The first unit raised a shield — energy-based. You slid under his stance, twisting your wrist to release a shock pulse. It blasted upward, frying the shield generator. He staggered, and Daredevil finished him off with a crushing baton strike.
The second lunged — faster than expected. Spider-Man caught him midair and twisted, slamming him into a wall.
That left two.
You grabbed the downed soldier's gauntlet as the third fired an arc shot at you. The gauntlet reconfigured in your hand.
[Adapted Ability: Arc Flare Discharge (Lv.1)]
– Releases an electrical burst in a 45-degree cone. Effective vs. tech-based targets.
You fired.
The third Echo Unit seized up, twitching violently before collapsing.
But the fourth—
He wasn't like the others.
He talked.
"You're not ready," the voice said through the suit.
And he moved like lightning.
Your eyes barely tracked the blur before he appeared behind you. He struck, hard — you flew through a metal beam, pain flaring in your ribs.
But you stood up.
You coughed, wiped the blood from your mouth, and let your eyes narrow.
"Let's see how fast you are when I adapt your speed."
You launched yourself forward.
He dodged once. Twice. Then you copied it.
Every step he took, your body mimicked. Your cells aligned. Your nerves synced.
[Adaptation Synced: Reflex Velocity Mk.2 (Lv.1)]
– Enhanced reaction time and muscle twitch acceleration. Duration: 60 seconds.
This time, you caught his punch.
You pulled his arm forward, drove your knee into his chest, and spun him overhead. The floor cracked from the impact.
"Got him!" you shouted.
Daredevil chained a baton strike with yours — and Spider-Man webbed the final Echo Unit to the floor.
Silence.
Then the roof speakers crackled.
Phantom's voice echoed through the warehouse.
"Impressive. You're starting to understand."
You looked up. "Stop hiding."
"Oh, I'm not hiding," Phantom said, amused. "I'm building. And you just passed your final trial."
"What trial?"
"To see if you're ready."
"For what?"
"To face me."
Then—boom.
The warehouse exploded from the far side. Controlled charges. The team barely escaped as the blast tore through the foundation.
Smoke billowed into the street as sirens wailed in the distance.
You stared into the fire, fists clenched.
Next time… Phantom wouldn't be watching from the shadows.
You were done playing his game.
You were going to end it.