After taking two bites, Mark set down his knife and fork and picked up a napkin, wiping the corners of his mouth.
He then looked up at his parents with a carefully timed smile, one that blended excitement with a hint of uncertainty.
“Guess what?” he said in a light, slightly mysterious tone.
“Whose superpowers awakened today?”
The faint clinking of silverware against porcelain immediately stopped.
Debbie froze for a moment before her eyes widened.
She covered her mouth with both hands, unable to contain her excitement.
“Oh my God!
No way!
Mark, you mean…?!”
Across the table, Nolan’s hand paused with the steak knife still in it, and even his chewing came to an abrupt stop.
It was as though someone had pressed pause on him.
The smile on his face stiffened, and for a brief instant, his expression became unusually complicated.
Shock.
Realization.
A deeply buried concern.
And a tension that Mark caught immediately, the tension of a carefully arranged plan suddenly being pushed forward ahead of schedule.
Nolan didn’t look at Mark right away.
Instead, his eyes settled on the steak in front of him, though it seemed he was staring far beyond it, toward thoughts only he could see.
For several seconds, the dining table fell silent except for the faint hum of an appliance somewhere in the kitchen.
Debbie noticed her husband’s unusual reaction.
Under the table, she tapped Nolan’s foot twice with her slipper, not hard, but enough to remind him that everyone was waiting.
Only then did Nolan Grayson seem to return from his thoughts.
He lifted his head abruptly, his facial muscles quickly reshaping themselves into the familiar warm and proud smile known throughout Earth.
“Oh!”
His voice boomed with exaggerated surprise.
“Fantastic!
Ha!
That’s my boy!”
He reached across the table and firmly patted Mark’s shoulder, carefully controlling his strength so the gesture felt encouraging rather than painful.
“I knew this day would come!
How do you feel?
Any discomfort?”
Mark felt the warmth of his father’s hand and the incredible power hidden beneath it, power capable of crushing steel.
He shook his head and followed along.
“I feel…
different.”
“I can feel this extra energy inside me.
On the way home, I kept wondering if I could lift a car with one hand now.”
He laughed lightly.
“Maybe something even heavier, but I wasn’t about to test it.”
“Of course you’re not going to test it!”
Debbie immediately cut in, her voice filled with both pride and concern.
“Mark, don’t do anything reckless.
What if you hurt yourself, or someone else?”
Even so, her eyes sparkled with happiness.
In her mind, her son had inherited his father’s extraordinary abilities.
Whatever happened in the future, he would at least be better able to protect himself.
“Don’t worry, Mom.
I’ll be careful.”
Mark reassured her before turning toward Nolan.
“Dad, I think you’re right.
I definitely need some guidance.”
“This power feels a little out of control.”
Nolan maintained his smile, though the complexity in his eyes never completely disappeared.
He nodded.
“Of course, son.”
“Awakening your powers is only the first step.
Learning how to use them is what really matters.”
“Since they’ve finally appeared, let’s see where you’re starting from.”
He glanced through the window at the darkening sky.
“After dinner, we’ll head out to the yard.”
“We’ll do a basic assessment tonight, and starting tomorrow, I’ll train you personally.”
“That sounds perfect.”
Mark smiled and picked up his knife and fork once more, as though they were discussing nothing more significant than after-school tutoring.
Inside, however, everything was crystal clear.
The stage had been prepared.
The first act, Father-Son Training Time, had officially begun.
Dinner ended amid Debbie’s endless stream of excited questions and Nolan’s somewhat distracted, though determined, efforts to keep the conversation pleasant.
After helping clean up the table, Mark followed his father into the spacious backyard.
Night had already settled in.
The lawn lights switched on automatically, illuminating the trees and the old swing set.
In the distance, the city’s lights stretched across the horizon like a field of stars.
Nolan rolled his neck, producing a faint click.
He made no dramatic preparations.
He simply lifted off the ground with effortless ease, hovering about three feet in the air.
The hem of his loungewear fluttered gently.
“Fly up, Mark.”
His voice was exceptionally clear in the quiet backyard.
“Use your will.”
“Don’t think about forcing it.
Think about relaxing.”
“Imagine you’re lying in bed, completely weightless, free from gravity.”
“That’s not exactly easy to picture.”
Mark smiled, trying to keep the atmosphere light.
“You know my sleep habits.
The second my head hits the pillow, I’m unconscious.”
“I’ve never had any experience floating around while sleeping.”
Despite the joke, he followed the instructions.
Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and gradually relaxed every muscle in his body.
At the same time, he focused on the strange new power that had awakened inside him, a force that seemed naturally opposed to gravity itself.
Almost immediately, he felt it.
Not through touch, but through a deeper instinctive awareness.
The space around him seemed to become elastic.
An invisible field spread outward from every cell in his body, gently lifting him upward.
Carefully, he adjusted the sensation.
Then the solid feeling beneath his feet disappeared.
Mark opened his eyes.
The ground was moving away.
Slowly.
Steadily.
He was flying.
Although he hovered only a few feet above the grass and swayed slightly, like someone standing on a boat drifting across calm water, he had truly left the ground.
A mix of excitement, wonder, and genuine accomplishment filled his chest.
Even with all his preparation, personally experiencing flight was something entirely different.
It was extraordinary.
Seeing his son rise steadily into the air despite the slight wobbling, and noticing the clear focus in his eyes, proof that he was consciously controlling the movement rather than drifting helplessly, Nolan gave a nearly imperceptible nod.
“Not bad.”
There was genuine approval in his voice.
“Achieving controlled hovering on your first attempt is impressive.”
He floated closer and slowly circled halfway around Mark, studying him like an expert evaluating a valuable work.
“You should know that on Viltrum, from the moment a child’s abilities first emerge to the point where they can fly steadily…”
He paused briefly.
“…it’s comparable to a human child learning how to walk.
It usually takes one or two years of practice and adaptation.”
“Of course, your situation is different.”
“You’re already grown.
Your understanding of your body and your ability to control it are far beyond that of an infant.”
“That gives you a much better starting point.”
“But even so, this level of control deserves recognition.”
Nolan stopped directly in front of him.
“But this is only the beginning, son.”
“You still need time to adapt.”
His encouraging smile returned.
“Think of it like learning to ride a bike when you were younger.”
“At first you’re unsteady.
Then one day the balance clicks, and before long you’re speeding around without even thinking about it.”
As he spoke, he gently tapped Mark’s chest with his fist.