"If not for you, I would have let two people die on the autopsy table, and we would’ve never known why or how they died at all," Larissa said as she and Ning walked back into the station.

"I just happened to have a fresh set of eyes, while you were clogged with preconceived notions of what the case was about. It’s natural that you would have needed some time to come out of that thought process," Ning told her.

As they arrived back at her desk, Ning reached into his jacket and set one of the vials before her.

Larissa looked at it. Then at him. "What is this?"

"An Awakening serum," he said.

Larissa gave a justifiably confused look. "A what?"

Ning quickly explained what it was that he had placed before her. "The world doesn’t know it exists just yet, so don’t tell anyone just yet. It will be revealed to the public in a few months’ time."

The silence that followed had a particular quality to it. Larissa picked up the vial slowly, the same way she handled evidence.

"You’re giving me a power?" she asked.

"I’m offering you a chance to get one," Ning said.

She hesitated, her mind fighting the dilemma from both sides, unable to come to terms at all.

"I... I don’t know if I want a power."

"Why not?"

"Because I’m good at my job without one," she said. "And... powers change things. What if it’s a particularly good power? I would have to become a hero, won’t I? Look at you. You already moved on from your work."

Ning thought about that for a moment. "You’d still be you," he said. "The power doesn’t rewrite anything. It just adds something." He paused. "I had already moved on from being a detective, while you are still very much one. Besides, it could be a power to help you too. One person I know, a researcher, had a power where she could eat food once and be satiated and energetic for days, not even needing sleep or rest. Don’t you want something like this?"

It was hard not to be persuaded by such an offer. Larissa looked at the vial for a long moment before finally nodding. "You’re right. But... what if I get a bad one? Like that goblin from earlier?"

"You can die in a car accident on the way home. That doesn’t mean you’re not going to drive back home, are you?" Ning asked. "Just drink that tonight and get a good night’s sleep. After you wake up, you will have a power."

"You don’t know what power, though, right?" she asked.

Ning shook his head. "Each person is unique. The power isn’t in the serum, but in you. Only you can tell what power you will have."

"Alright then. Tonight," she said finally. "I’ll do it tonight." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Afterward, head over to the DPA and register yourself," Ning said. He hadn’t told her that this was a particularly enhanced version of the serum everyone was going to get, so he could only imagine just what sort of power she was going to awaken.

"I’ll call you in the morning then," Larissa said. "Thank you, Valen."

Ning smiled. "Take care. I need to find Mira and Jack next."

Mira and Jack were in the van, returning from the lower district where they were busy questioning the goblins. As they parked next to the street, Ning gestured for them to stay where they were and got into the van himself.

"Are the goblins really alive?" Mira asked as soon as Ning entered. "I can’t understand how they could possibly be alive. How can a dozen different people mistake two living, breathing people for corpses?"

"Well, for one, they were neither living nor breathing," Ning said, as he began to explain the situation with the goblins.

"A power to freeze time?" Jack asked, stunned. "That’s... quite strong."

"Powerful with the right usage, but we don’t know what limitations there are. It could be that they freeze themselves each time too, with no way to undo it other than a suppression field."

"Ooh, that is bad," Mira said before looking around the place. "So... what’s up? Why aren’t we leaving?"

Ning pulled out the two vials from his jacket, with a single one remaining now, and presented them to the two. He had to explain what they were the same way he did to Larissa, causing the two to gasp in surprise.

"Take it tonight," Ning said. "You should have a power by the morning."

"Is there a chance it goes badly? Like, will we get sick?" Mira asked with a somewhat hesitant look.

"I don’t care if I get sick, if I also get a power alongside it," Jack said, and meant it completely.

Mira paused for a moment and nodded fervently. She too felt the same way.

Jack was already putting his serum in his pocket with the focused care of someone transporting something extremely fragile. He looked genuinely delighted, which on Jack was a fun little look, as his draconic features made it look strange.

Once they put away the serum, Ning finally walked out of the van and watched as the two did their best to not act extremely happy.

With them gone, Ning placed his hand into his pocket, feeling the single remaining serum. He thought of who he could give it to and remembered that the chief would probably want one as well. The man had helped Valen during his worst days, so he was a good man.

Ning found the chief and entered, proposing the same idea he did to everyone else.

However...

"Were you not aware?" the chief asked. "I already have a power."

Ning paused. "You do? You never told me."

"I suppose I didn’t. It’s a weak power anyway, so unless it can improve that, I can’t use it," he said.

Ning stopped for a moment. "I see. Well... I guess I’ll leave then."

He walked out, still with one vial remaining. After considering for a bit, he realized something.

"Hmm... technically speaking, I don’t have a power either, do I?"