Level UP Hero

Level UP Hero

G.D. Cruz · Ongoing · 343.2k Words

1k
Hot
1k
Views
308
Added
Add to Shelf
Start Reading
Share:facebooktwitterpinterestwhatsappreddit

Introduction

In a world where the gods gift a chosen few with great powers, Sam Shepard could be counted among the weakest of the weak. His crappy healing ability can’t even cure minor injuries without having to drain Sam’s own life force to do it. Hero society doesn't think Sam's useful, and after failing to heal those he was tasked to save, Sam couldn't help but agree. But it turns out that giving up the hero's life isn’t easy. Not when one’s caught in the machinations of the gods themselves.

After Sam gets pulled into rescuing the hero Thunder, he inherits a strange ability from her: the training system that taught Thunder how to become a top hero. Triple-A apparently holds the secret to leveling up one's power, a feat previously thought to be impossible. Not that it'll be easy to achieve...

A series of challenging missions and the occasional hero lesson from the system’s creator guarantee a lot of cuts and bruises in Sam's immediate future. But at least he finally gets the chance to go from zero to hero. Oh, yeah, there are also ghastly horrors and megalomaniac supervillains to contend with on Sam’s path to becoming the symbol of hope that humanity needs.

Chapter 1

“Excuse me!” Sam Shepard apologized as he slipped his way into the back of the crowd. “Media coming through!”

‘Media’ was a bit of a stretch, but being a twenty-one-year-old beat writer for the city’s number one newspaper had its perks. Namely being able to ignore the dirty looks people gave him as he shoved his way through the crowd of civilian onlookers and first responders.

In the distance, the thunderous booms of explosions going off one after the other rang in his ears, drowning out the police sirens and terrified screams. A horrific shriek shook him to his core, threatening to turn his legs to jelly.

“This isn’t how my first day in the Herald was supposed to go…” he sighed.

Soon enough, Sam managed to push his way into the very front of the crowd which was pressed tight together like a can of sardines right at the edge of the police line. He nearly choked at the sight before him, chilled to the bone from the image of such jaw-dropping destruction.

Ruined buildings on either side of a torn-up street gave one the impression that an earthquake had just struck this unfortunate part of New York City. There were fires everywhere, so many in fact that the night sky glowed with a fierce orange tinge.

Sam gulped. “Holy Zeus…”

Focus, Sam. He reminded himself. You have a job to do.

Blinking away his shock, the young reporter pulled out his smartphone from his pants pocket and started recording the view.

“What in Hades are you doing, Shepard?” came the growl from right in front of him.

Sam sighed right before he pocketed his smartphone and turned to confront the police officer who he imagined had a stick perpetually rammed up his butt.

“Just doing my job, sarge,” Sam replied.

Police Sergeant Andrew Graham glowered at him, his eyes like headlights pinning Sam into place. The glower was the thickset, black man’s most defining feature; one Sam didn’t enjoy being aimed at him.

“You know the rules, dumbass,” Sergeant Graham snarled. “No unauthorized video recordings of extermination zones!”

Sam flashed his press badge at the sergeant. “You know you’re impeding freedom of the press, right?”

Graham spared it the barest glance. He seemed unimpressed.

“I work for the Herald, man!” Sam complained.

This declaration only worsened Graham’s glower.

“I don’t have time for the whining of a little shit stain who was too cowardly to stick to doing the thing that really matters,” Sergeant Graham scoffed. “And as if you couldn’t go low enough, now you’ve joined the yahoos who put up headlines that make our heroes look bad!”

Sam couldn’t blame the sergeant for thinking poorly of him because he had a point. Being a hero was a duty that could never be forsaken and yet Sam had run away from it. Not because it was too tough a job or because he was scared, but because he'd failed at it so badly that his weakness caused the death of others.

“I didn’t do anybody any good on the front lines, Sarge…” Sam knew he deserved the ridicule but he couldn’t help but repeat the lines he’d used to defend his actions for months now. “I was a crappy heal—”

A scream cut through the clamor, shocking most of those watching into silence.

“H-healer!” a woman cried, desperation and pain stuttering her words. “I n-need a healer! P-please, somebody h-help me!”

The first responders standing just on the other side of the police line glanced nervously at each other. It was obvious to Sam that they could hear her too, but none of them jumped at the chance to go out there and help. Well, that wasn't true for at least one officer stepped up to Sergeant Graham looking like he was ready to do his job.

“I think we can get to her, sarge,” a young, brown-haired, gray-eyed police officer told Sergeant Graham. “She might not be too far from the line. The scream sounded close and I—”

“Officer Nolan.” Sergeant Graham turned his scowl on this policeman, cutting him off. “Are you a healer?”

“N-no, sir,” Nolan frowned. “But—”

“So what are you gonna do, Officer Nolan? Drag her through the rubble and fire?”

“I—”

“Did you just suddenly get super strength or flight? Is that how you were going to save her?”

“No, but—”

“Then we follow protocol!” the Sergeant barked. “And protocol says wait for more heroes! They’ll handle rescue operations!”

At the word hero, Officer Nolan glanced in Sam’s direction. The implication was clear: what are you doing? Sam scratched at the mess of dark brown hair atop his head.

What am I doing, Sam wondered. I can help, but that might finally kill me.

“But that woman needs our help, Sarge,” Nolan began, but his sergeant quickly cut him off.

“You think I enjoy hanging out here doing nothing but preventing idiots like Shepard here,” he pointed a thumb at Sam, “from wandering into an extermination zone and getting themselves killed?”

After a brief pause, Officer Nolan shook his head. “N-no, sarge…”

“That’s right,” Sergeant Graham huffed. “But I do it because I have to. I got a wife at home, you know? So I do what I can to get back to her. Besides, I’m not a gifted like Shepard... not that he’s been any use tonight.”

Sam was just about to reiterate that not being of any use was exactly the reason he quit his old job, but then the horrific screeching started up again. The sound of it was like sharp nails raking across a chalkboard, leaving Sam and everyone around him feeling more unnerved than they were a second ago.

“P-please!” the woman yelled. “S-someone, please! Help me!”

Through the scattered fires and widespread destruction of the extermination zone, Sam thought he could see a pale hand rising mere inches off the ground. It could have just been his imagination but…

“Sarge… I think I see her,” Sam reported. “Officer Nolan’s right. She’s not too far…”

Officer Nolan nodded, but Sergeant Graham ignored him, pointedly turning his back on the reporter.

“Sarge…” Sam’s tone was insistent now. “I really think—”

“I don’t care what you think, Shepard,” Sergeant Graham snapped. “You stand there and wait for the real heroes to come.”

Startled by the agitation in his tone, Sam looked his way.

Graham’s wide-eyed stare was glued to the carnage, sweat dripping down his forehead. Like most of the non-gifted around him, the destruction beyond the police line was too much for them to bear. It was a lot to take even for Sam. And yet, he found himself stepping forward, his legs trembling only slightly.

Shit, he thought. I can’t do this. I can’t risk my life that way again.

Contrary to Graham’s view of him, Sam was no coward. In fact, he was built to do the brave thing. All gifted were as it was one of the requirements for becoming a chosen of the gods. Sam’s problem wasn’t fear. Something graver held him back. But hearing that woman and her desperate plea for help, it awakened something in him that he thought he’d sufficiently suppressed by now — and that was the will to answer the call.

Don’t do it, Sam. You’ve already quit the hero life, you useless punk. He chided himself. You’d only make things worse for her and you!

A shrill cry sounded once more before abruptly cutting off. Throwing logic out the window, Sam ducked under the police line and jumped headlong into the heart of danger.

“Shepard!” Sergeant Graham yelled after Sam. “Get back behind the line, you idiot!”

Sam paused in his tracks, tempted to listen to the gravelly voice urging him to come back. No, he shouldn’t be going to play hero now when he ran away when things got too hard the first time.

But then Sam heard the woman’s voice a third time. It was much weaker. She was running out of time.

Despite the sweat dripping down his brow at the thought of risking his life yet again, Sam kept on running.

“Shepard! Get back here!” Sergeant Graham screamed.

His heart pounding in his ears drowned out the sergeant’s protests. Each beat, growing louder and louder as he grew closer to the center of the extermination zone.

Don’t worry, Sam. It’s just routine delta-level extermination. You’re here for experience! It’ll be just like a light jog. The ‘wise words’ of his editor fell short when faced with the task set before him. Yeah, right…What in Hades is routine about all of this?

He had a point. This wasn’t what usually happened — heroes lying on the ground bleeding from wounds they may never recover from, and a horror set loose on the city that no one seemed able to stop.

A heavy whoosh drew him out of his thoughts. On instinct, Sam dove forward and narrowly avoided decapitation via the wheel of a truck that had been sent flying his way. He scraped his palms on the broken asphalt and he cursed at the pain.

Raising his hands to check them, Sam cringed at the dark blood dripping down his sun-kissed forearms. There was too much of it to be his.

“Styx,” he breathed.

He looked down at the ground, aghast to see the pool of blood inching toward him. His eyes drifted to the source: a group of lifeless bodies surrounded by the thick red liquid. There was so much of it that the iron scent caused his nose to wrinkle.

“What in Hades am I doing?” he asked himself.

Sam glimpsed movement in the corner of his eye. His gaze snapped toward it, body tensing as he prepared to leap to his feet. But it was just a body stirring on the ground.

“Nothing to worry about… Don’t get spooked,” he reminded himself. “Wait, what?”

It was a woman. Her short blonde hair framed a bloody, heart-shaped face. Her eyes were a dazzling sky blue, and they were staring right at Sam’s own teal-colored irises.

“Help me,” she whispered, her weak voice barely carrying over the distance.

“Oh, man,” Sam breathed, shuffling over. “I found you…”

When he reached her side, Sam scanned her body, the state of it easily observable through her ruined costume. Her fair skin turned paler by the second, likely an effect of the blood hemorrhaging out of the huge gash on her side. There was a deep cut on her brow too. It leaked blood down the side of her cheek.

“Holy Zeus… You-you’re Thunder…” Sam realized.

Thunder — it was the name of the alpha-level hero who was ranked seventh in the national charts.

But there’s no way. Thunder wouldn’t go down like this, Sam thought.

Thunder was an unstoppable force of nature whose recent and sudden meteoric rise had made her legendary among this year’s crop of new heroes. So how could that woman, the gorgeous and brave hero whose face was on the poster plastered on Sam’s bedroom wall, be reduced to such a state?

“Help,” Thunder mumbled. Tears rolled down her cheeks, streaking through the drying blood that covered her.

The sight of his idol looking so uncommonly vulnerable forced Sam to get a grip.

“I-it’s okay,” he said as reassuringly as he could. “I’ve got you. It’s gonna be okay... I hope.”

Last Chapters

You Might Like 😍

Game of Destiny

Game of Destiny

1.1m Views · Completed · Dripping Creativity
Amie's wolf hasn't shown herself. But who cares? She has a good pack, best friends and a family who loves her. Everyone, including the Alpha, is telling her she is perfect just the way she is. That is until she finds her mate and he rejects her. Heartbroken Amie flees from everything and start over. No more werewolves, no more packs.

When Finlay finds her, she is living among humans. He is smitten by the stubborn wolf that refuse to acknowledge his existence. She may not be his mate, but he wants her to be a part of his pack, latent wolf or not.

Amie cant resist the Alpha that comes into her life and drags her back into pack life. Not only does she find herself happier than she has been in a long time, her wolf finally comes to her. Finlay isn't her mate, but he becomes her best friend. Together with the other top wolves in the pack, they work to create the best and strongest pack.

When it's time for the pack games, the event that decides the packs rank for the coming ten year, Amie needs to face her old pack. When she sees the man that rejected her for the first time in ten years, everything she thought she knew is turned around. Amie and Finlay need to adapt to the new reality and find a way forward for their pack. But will the curve ball split them apart?
Omega Bound

Omega Bound

1.3m Views · Completed · Veronica White
Ayla Frost is a beautiful, rare omega. Kidnapped, tortured, and trafficked to rogue clans and corrupt alphas to do with as they pleased.  Kept alive in her cage, broken and abandoned by her wolf, she becomes mute and has given up on hope for a better life until one explosion changes everything. 

Thane Knight is the alpha of the Midnight Pack of the La Plata Mountain Range, the largest wolf shifter pack in the world. He is an alpha by day and hunts the shifter trafficking ring with his group of mercenaries by night. His hunt for vengeance leads to one raid that changes his life. 

Tropes:
Touch her and die/Slow burn romance/Fated Mates/Found family twist/Close circle betrayal/Cinnamon roll for only her/Traumatized heroine/Rare wolf/Hidden powers/Knotting/Nesting/Heats/Luna/Attempted assassination
Falling for my boyfriend's Navy brother

Falling for my boyfriend's Navy brother

1.7m Views · Ongoing · Harper Rivers
Falling for my boyfriend's Navy brother.

"What is wrong with me?

Why does being near him make my skin feel too tight, like I’m wearing a sweater two sizes too small?

It’s just newness, I tell myself firmly.

He’s my boyfirend’s brother.

This is Tyler’s family.

I’m not going to let one cold stare undo that.

**

As a ballet dancer, My life looks perfect—scholarship, starring role, sweet boyfriend Tyler. Until Tyler shows his true colors and his older brother, Asher, comes home.

Asher is a Navy veteran with battle scars and zero patience. He calls me "princess" like it's an insult. I can't stand him.

When My ankle injury forces her to recover at the family lake house, I‘m stuck with both brothers. What starts as mutual hatred slowly turns into something forbidden.

I'm falling for my boyfriend's brother.

**

I hate girls like her.

Entitled.

Delicate.

And still—

Still.

The image of her standing in the doorway, clutching her cardigan tighter around her narrow shoulders, trying to smile through the awkwardness, won’t leave me.

Neither does the memory of Tyler. Leaving her here without a second thought.

I shouldn’t care.

I don’t care.

It’s not my problem if Tyler’s an idiot.

It’s not my business if some spoiled little princess has to walk home in the dark.

I’m not here to rescue anyone.

Especially not her.

Especially not someone like her.

She’s not my problem.

And I’ll make damn sure she never becomes one.

But when my eyes fell on her lips, I wanted her to be mine.
Accardi

Accardi

739.3k Views · Completed · Allison Franklin
“I thought we discussed this earlier, Weakness? I warned you. His death is on your hands.”
“I thought you said you were done chasing me?” Gen mocked.
“I am done chasing you.”
Before she could formulate a witty remark, Matteo threw her down. She landed hard on her back atop his dining room table. She tried to sit up when she noticed what he was doing. His hands were working on his belt. It came free of his pants with a violent yank. She collapsed back on her elbows, her mouth gaping open at the display. His face was a mask of sheer determination, his eyes were a dark gold swimming with heat and desire. His hands wrapped around her thighs and pulled her to the edge of the table. He glided his fingers up her thighs and hooked several around the inside of her panties. His knuckles brushed her dripping sex.
“You’re soaking wet, Genevieve. Tell me, was it me that made you this way or him?” his voice told her to be careful with her answer. His knuckles slid down through her folds and she threw her head back as she moaned. “Weakness?”
“You…” she breathed.


Genevieve loses a bet she can’t afford to pay. In a compromise, she agrees to convince any man her opponent chooses to go home with her that night. What she doesn’t realize when her sister’s friend points out the brooding man sitting alone at the bar, is that man won’t be okay with just one night with her. No, Matteo Accardi, Don of one of the largest gangs in New York City doesn’t do one night stands. Not with her anyway.
The Prison Project

The Prison Project

931.6k Views · Ongoing · Bethany Donaghy
The government's newest experiment in criminal rehabilitation - sending thousands of young women to live alongside some of the most dangerous men held behind bars...

Can love tame the untouchable? Or will it only fuel the fire and cause chaos amongst the inmates?

Fresh out of high school and suffocating in her dead-end hometown, Margot longs for her escape. Her reckless best friend, Cara, thinks she's found the perfect way out for them both - The Prisoner Project - a controversial program offering a life-changing sum of money in exchange for time spent with maximum-security inmates.

Without hesitation, Cara rushes to sign them up.

Their reward? A one-way ticket into the depths of a prison ruled by gang leaders, mob bosses, and men the guards wouldn't even dare to cross...

At the centre of it all, meets Coban Santorelli - a man colder than ice, darker than midnight, and as deadly as the fire that fuels his inner rage. He knows that the project may very well be his only ticket to freedom - his only ticket to revenge on the one who managed to lock him up and so he must prove that he can learn to love…

Will Margot be the lucky one chosen to help reform him?

Will Coban be capable of bringing something to the table other than just sex?

What starts off as denial may very well grow in to obsession which could then fester in to becoming true love…

A temperamental romance novel.
From Substitute To Queen

From Substitute To Queen

1.1m Views · Completed · Hannah Moore
For three years, Sable loved Alpha Darrell with everything she had, spending her salary to support their household while being called an orphan and gold-digger. But just as Darrell was about to mark her as his Luna, his ex-girlfriend returned, texting: "I'm not wearing underwear. My plane lands soon—pick me up and fuck me immediately."

Heartbroken, Sable discovered Darrell having sex with his ex in their bed, while secretly transferring hundreds of thousands to support that woman.

Even worse was overhearing Darrell laugh to his friends: "She's useful—obedient, doesn't cause trouble, handles housework, and I can fuck her whenever I need relief. She's basically a live-in maid with benefits." He made crude thrusting gestures, sending his friends into laughter.

In despair, Sable left, reclaimed her true identity, and married her childhood neighbor—Lycan King Caelan, nine years her senior and her fated mate. Now Darrell desperately tries to win her back. How will her revenge unfold?

From substitute to queen—her revenge has just begun!
A pack of their own

A pack of their own

1.6m Views · Completed · dragonsbain22
Being the middle Child ignored and neglected, rejected by family and injured, She receives her wolf early and realizes she is a new type of hybrid but doesn't know how to control her power, she leaves her pack with her best friend and grandmother to go to her grandfather's clan to learn what she is and how to handle her power and then with her fated mate, her best friend and her fated mate little brother and grandmother start their own pack.
Alpha Nicholas's Little Mate

Alpha Nicholas's Little Mate

642.1k Views · Ongoing · Becky j
"Mate is here!"
What? No—wait… oh Moon Goddess, no.
Please tell me you're joking, Lex.
But she's not. I can feel her excitement bubbling under my skin, while all I feel is dread.
We turn the corner, and the scent hits me like a punch to the chest—cinnamon and something impossibly warm. My eyes scan the room until they land on him. Tall. Commanding. Beautiful.
And then, just as quickly… he sees me.
His expression twists.
"Fuck no."
He turns—and runs.
My mate sees me and runs.
Bonnie has spent her entire life being broken down and abused by the people closest to her including her very own twin sister. Alongside her best friend Lilly who also lives a life of hell, they plan to run away while attending the biggest ball of the year while it's being hosted by another pack, only things don't quite go to plan leaving both girls feeling lost and unsure about their futures.
Alpha Nicholas is 28, mateless, and has no plans to change that. It's his turn to host the annual Blue Moon Ball this year and the last thing he expects is to find his mate. What he expects even less is for his mate to be 10 years younger than him and how his body reacts to her. While he tries to refuse to acknowledge that he has met his mate his world is turned upside down after guards catch two she-wolves running through his lands.
Once they are brought to him he finds himself once again facing his mate and discovers that she's hiding secrets that will make him want to kill more than one person.
Can he overcome his feelings towards having a mate and one that is so much younger than him? Will his mate want him after already feeling the sting of his unofficial rejection? Can they both work on letting go of the past and moving forward together or will fate have different plans and keep them apart?
The Human Among  Wolves

The Human Among Wolves

397.6k Views · Ongoing · ZWrites
"You actually thought I cared about you?" His smirk was sharp, almost cruel.
My stomach twisted, but he wasn’t finished.
"You're just a pathetic little human," Zayn said, his words deliberate, each one hitting like a slap. "Spreading your legs for the first guy who bothers to notice you."
Heat rushed to my face, burning with humiliation. My chest ached — not from his words alone, but from the sick realization that I had trusted him. That I had let myself believe he was different.
I was so, so stupid.
——————————————————
When eigteen-year-old Aurora Wells moves to a sleepy town with her parents, the last thing she expects is to be enrolled in a secret academy for werewolves.
Moonbound Academy is no ordinary school. It's here young Lycans, Betas and Alphas train in shifting, elemental magic, and ancient pack laws. But Aurora? She's just...human. a mistake. The new receptionist forgot to check her species - and now she's surrounded by predators who sense she doesn't belong.
Determined to stay under the radar, Aurora plans to survive the year unnoticed. But when she catches the attention of Zayn, a brooding and infuriatingly powerful Lycan prince, her life gets a lot more complicated. Zayn already has a mate. He already has enemies. And he definitely doesn't want anything to do with a clueless human.
But secrets run deeper than bloodlines at Moonbound. as Aurora unravels the truth about the academy - and herself - she begins to question everything she thought she knew.
Including the reason she was brought here at all.
Enemies will rise. Loyalties will shift. And the girl with no place in their world...might be the key to saving it.
The Lycan Prince’s Puppy

The Lycan Prince’s Puppy

2.9m Views · Ongoing · chavontheauthor
“You’re mine, little puppy,” Kylan growled against my neck.
“Soon enough, you’ll be begging for me. And when you do—I’ll use you as I see fit, and then I’ll reject you.”


When Violet Hastings begins her freshman year at Starlight Shifters Academy, she only wants two things—honor her mother’s legacy by becoming a skilled healer for her pack and get through the academy without anyone calling her a freak for her strange eye condition.

Things take a dramatic turn when she discovers that Kylan, the arrogant heir to the Lycan throne who has made her life miserable from the moment they met, is her mate.

Kylan, known for his cold personality and cruel ways, is far from thrilled. He refuses to accept Violet as his mate, yet he doesn’t want to reject her either. Instead, he sees her as his puppy, and is determined to make her life even more of a living hell.

As if dealing with Kylan’s torment isn’t enough, Violet begins to uncover secrets about her past that change everything she thought she knew. Where does she truly come from? What is the secret behind her eyes? And has her whole life been a lie?
Invisible To Her Bully

Invisible To Her Bully

329.3k Views · Ongoing · sunsationaldee
Unlike her twin brother, Jackson, Jessa struggled with her weight and very few friends. Jackson was an athlete and the epitome of popularity, while Jessa felt invisible. Noah was the quintessential “It” guy at school—charismatic, well-liked, and undeniably handsome. To make matters worse, he was Jackson’s best friend and Jessa’s biggest bully. During their senior year, Jessa decides it was time for her to gain some self-confidence, find her true beauty and not be the invisible twin. As Jessa transformed, she begins to catch the eye of everyone around her, especially Noah. Noah, initially blinded by his perception of Jessa as merely Jackson’s sister, started to see her in a new light. How did she become the captivating woman invading his thoughts? When did she become the object of his fantasies? Join Jessa on her journey from being the class joke to a confident, desirable young woman, surprising even Noah as she reveals the incredible person she has always been inside.
King of the Underworld

King of the Underworld

114.1k Views · Completed · RJ Kane
In my life as a waitress, I, Sephie - an ordinary person - endured the icy glares and insults of customers while trying to earn a living. I believed that this would be my fate forever.

However, one fateful day, the King of the Underworld appeared before me and rescued me from the clutches of the most powerful Mafia boss's son. With his deep blue eyes fixed on mine, he spoke softly: "Sephie... short for Persephone... Queen of the Underworld. At last, I have found you." Confused by his words, I stammered out a question, “P..pardon? What does that mean?”

But he simply smiled at me and brushed my hair away from my face with gentle fingers: "You are safe now.”


Sephie, named for the Queen of the Underworld, Persephone, she's quickly finding out how she's destined to fulfill her namesake's role. Adrik is the King of the Underworld, the boss of all bosses in the city he runs.

She was a seemingly normal girl, with a normal job until it all changed one night when he walked through the front door and her life changed abruptly. Now, she finds herself on the wrong side of powerful men, but under the protection of the most powerful among them.