THE MOMENT
"What do you mean that's the point?" Ella was about to be frustrated; her voice pitched up at the end as she held it back. "You have no super powers, there are no super villains. You can't even fight street level villains because they all have guns! The only weapon you're legally allowed to carry is 2.5 ounces of pepper spray!" To his credit, Webster had always known how to keep a cool head, even if she'd only gotten the hang of it recently. He stood there idly, enjoying the warm sunlight in his backyard while she expressed her feelings on his latest scheme. She finished the mini-rant by asking the question one more time to make sure he knew it was an actual question. "None of us know; what possessed you to become a hero in real life?"
"It's kind of funny, isn't it," Webster grinned. "We've been friends since Elementary. I know that you know I don't have any powers. But, don't you think it's interesting how everyone seems to know that? Like... EVERYONE? And NO ONE seems to know why? They're kind of blanket statements, don't you think?"
"You're going to get yourself killed!" He sometimes missed obvious details.
"Not if I don't do any heroics," Webster answered with a shrug.
"What..? Then.. what's the point? Did you just want... what a super hero name?"
"Yeah!" Webster replied and patted her on the shoulder. "That's exactly why." He answered and offered her a transparent glass card. She didn't see where he pulled it from, but suddenly the sunlight glinted in his hand as he presented it. "Here, take this."
"Wait, do you actually have a superpower?" Ella asked and accepted the card. It was perfectly clear, except for bright green digital numbers displaying the time. It was far thinner than any smartphone she'd seen, but she swiped up out of habit, and it revealed some sort of home screen with several icons. "Did you make this?" She trusted Webster after an almost 40-year friendship, and she was instantly curious if he wanted to reveal something like this.
"No, that's called a 'node'," he said. "You're going to have a boatload of questions, and I promise I have answers. But, that's nanotechnology that allows communication with, and travel to, alternate universes. I've been to alternate universes," he added.
"Is that why you became a hero? Are you a hero in an alternate universe?"
"Kind of, but probably not in the way you're thinking," Webster nodded.
"The short version is, there's a super immersive game played across alternate universes known as the 'AlterNet'. I stumbled into discovering my way there, and on a different Earth, a different Server, I'm a Superhero. The reason I became a hero on this Earth, is because the AlterNet is coming here soon. When I say 'stumbled my way', it was more like I found an 'Early Access' site and signed up. But, since it was kind of a testing phase, I couldn't reveal anything, even to my best friend," he nodded at her with a smile. She was still trying to keep up, and returned the gesture automatically.
"Testing phase is over, and they're going to start rolling out soon. So, I wanted to claim my hero name first, you know? The NDA has been lifted and I really want to show you how to make your character and travel the multiverse."
"So.. do you have powers or not?" She needed at least one solid answer.
"Well, no, not right at this minute. There are no supervillains here yet either, yet everyone now knows there's a registered hero in existence. Everything's changing very soon," he made a gesture with his hand. Ella thought she saw him throw something, then a black portal opened on the grass, like a hole. Then, he stepped onto it like a solid surface and encouraged her to join him. "Wanna see what it's going to look like?"