Urban Plundering: I Corrupted The System! - Chapter 267

Chapter 267: Destructive Controlled Time
The car hummed along the road, headlights cutting through the night. The city was alive outside—horns blaring, neon signs flashing, people living their messy little lives. But inside the car? Inside was its own weird little world.

Parker sat in the backseat, Tessa tucked into his side like it was the most natural thing in the world. Her head rested against his shoulder, and yeah, she was getting a little too comfortable. Not that he minded.

Elena was driving, Naomi in the passenger seat, the two of them caught up in their own conversation. Ere, perched on the center console, was watching everything with the same smug energy as a cat that just knocked over an expensive vase.

Parker nudged Tessa. “So?”

She made a soft noise, not even bothering to lift her head. “So what?”

He smirked. “How’s it feel?”

She blinked. “How’s what feel?”

“Having powers.”

That got her attention. Tessa exhaled and tilted her head up slightly, staring at the ceiling like it had the answers. “It’s… a lot.”

Parker gave her a look. “That’s it?”

She huffed. “No, obviously not.” She lifted her hand and flexed her fingers. “It’s like… my body isn’t even normal anymore. Everything is sharper, faster, stronger. My bones feel like reinforced steel, and my muscles? It’s like they’re constantly vibrating with energy, like I could punch through a brick wall and not feel a thing.”

Parker raised an eyebrow. “Can you?”

She smirked. “I mean… yeah.”

Naomi turned her head slightly. “Wait, so you’re not just, like, a magic user? You’re also physically enhanced?” That’s something she didn’t have, at least not what the limit of her power level allowed.

Tessa nodded. “I didn’t even realize it at first, but my reaction time is insane. I can process movements before people even finish them. If I focus, I can literally see the way their muscles tense and predict their next move. And don’t even get me started on my endurance. I ran full speed for over an hour the other day, and I didn’t even break a sweat.”

Elena let out a low whistle. “Okay, that’s kinda terrifying.” In her mind she thought that explains why they had sex like starved animals—shameless.

She smirked. “Right?”

“What else? Tell me more!”

“Fine, weirder than usual.” She shifted, pressing her cheek against his jacket. “One second I was normal—well, normal-ish, still hot, still superior, still debating whether I could get away with murder—and then bam. Suddenly, I can move things with my mind, freeze people solid, and mess with time.”

Parker raised an eyebrow. “That’s kinda terrifying, right? How things can quickly change. So, like, what’s it actually feel like?”

Tessa was quiet for a second, then let out a breath. “Like… like I have three different electrical currents running through me. One’s sharp and cold, like ice cracking under your feet. One’s this constant pull, like invisible strings attached to everything around me. And the last one? It’s the weirdest. It’s like I can feel the weight of time itself, like I’m standing outside of it and inside of it at the same time.”

Parker whistled low. “That sounds like a lot.”

She laughed softly. “It is. It’s like being on a rollercoaster that never stops.”

Parker exhaled slowly, his fingers idly brushing over Tessa’s shoulder as he processed her words. Freeze everything? That wasn’t just a speedster talking about moving too fast for reality to keep up. That was something deeper—something fundamental. He understood.

“How does it feel?” he asked, his voice quieter now, more curious than anything. “The energy, I mean. In you.”

Tessa shifted slightly, pulling back just enough to meet his gaze. Her eyes shimmered with an unnatural light—like the universe itself had tucked stars behind her irises. “It’s… loud,” she said after a moment, rolling her wrist as if trying to summon the right words. “Like a constant hum in my bones. A pressure, always pushing, always there. It’s not like muscles or reflexes—it’s like I exist in two places at once. Like I’m here, but also ahead, already moving before I even decide to.”

She flexed her fingers, and for a split second, the air around them shivered. “Omni Energy isn’t just speed. It’s everything. Motion, stillness, time, weight… I feel it all. Like if I let go, I could slip between moments, rewind them, push them forward, or freeze them in place.”

That sounded dangerous. Unstable. Like something that could spiral out of control if her emotions got the better of her but he knew her well enough to know how good she was and will only get better.

Tessa exhaled, tilting her head slightly as if listening to something beyond his perception. “It’s not just in my muscles,” she murmured. “It’s in my cells, my blood—like static before a lightning strike when I’m using my powers. It builds and builds, faster than thought, pressing against my skin like it’s trying to escape. And if I don’t control it…” She clenched her fist, and for the briefest instant, Parker swore reality around them lurched.

“…It detonates.”

“…You ever gonna do that?”

She smirked. “Dunno. Maybe if you piss me off.”

Elena snorted. “Boss does have that effect on people.”

Naomi grinned. “It’s like boss’s whole thing.”

Tessa hummed. “Yeah. Kinda makes you wanna deck him, right?”

Parker rolled his eyes. “Okay, cool, so we’re just slandering me now?”

“Not slander if it’s true,” Tessa muttered.

Elena glanced at them through the rearview mirror. “Nah, I wanna hear more about this hate thing. Like, do you really wanna murder him?”

Naomi smirked. “Yeah, spill.”

Tessa groaned and burrowed deeper into Parker’s shoulder, like she could physically escape the conversation. “No.”

“Oh, c’mon.” Naomi turned in her seat, eyes gleaming. “That means it’s good.”

“She won’t say.” Parker smirked down at her. “Which means it’s probably embarrassing.”

Tessa clenched her jaw. “Continue with what you were saying before I open the door and yeet myself out of this car.”

Parker chuckled, letting it go.

For now.

Ere, meanwhile, just flicked her tail, her eyes glinting in the dark. “Maybe she just doesn’t want to admit she actually loves him so much since we’re here and we could ruin the lovey dovey moment.”

Silence.

Naomi choked. Elena bit her lip. Parker raised an eyebrow.

And Tessa?

Tessa shot up, pointing an accusing finger at Ere. “Shut up, you demonic little whore-cat!”

Ere blinked. “That’s not a no.”

Parker smirked. “So you do love me that much?”

Tessa turned back to him with the most murderous look. “Drive the car into a lake.”

Elena laughed. “Damn. Just say you’re in love and move on.”

Tessa groaned, shoving her face against Parker’s shoulder again. “Fuck all of you.”

And just like that, the moment passed.

The car kept moving. The city stretched out before them. And somewhere in the mess of teasing, powers, and whatever the hell this was—things just felt right.