"Taylor Hebert, you have been chosen."

Taylor stumbled out onto the street, hardly able to believe what had just happened.

That had to be some sort of crazy dream, right? It couldn't have happened.

It was just…impossible.

But it wouldn't hurt to say the word then, right? A little voice whispered in the back of her mind. A voice that wasn't entirely her own.

Right. She could just say the word, and when nothing happened, she'd know it was just a dream. Just some wild hallucination, not real.

She just had to say the word.

Taylor hesitated for a moment longer, before finally-

"Shazam."

The instant the word left her lips, there was a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder, even though the sky was a clear vivid blue, the sun shining brightly above.

And as the lightning struck her, Taylor felt alive.

The sensation was indescribable. It felt like someone had poured lightning into her veins. Like every cell in her body was lighting up. But…it didn't hurt like being electrocuted should.

It felt good. Amazing, even. She was blinded by light, but she didn't feel uncomfortable or confused but energized. She felt as if she had just had the best meal and bath of her life, no, as if she had gone on the world's most amazing vacation.

And even as the light faded and she was able to see again, the sensations didn't fade.

It was as if she had been stuck inside a cave full of mud her whole life, and she was finally free to see the light of day.

The whole world seemed so much brighter and sharper. Taylor could pick out the tiny cracks on the pavement below, so small as to be invisible. She could hear people talking across the street, inside the building opposite of her. The smell of the sea wafted through her nose even though the docks were far away from where she was right now.

And the feeling of lightning coursing through her veins didn't fade. There was this amazing power just humming under her skin, waiting to be used.

It finally occurred to Taylor to look at herself, turning around the corner of the alley to find a reflective window, and she couldn't help but gasp.

She had always been tall for her age, but now she was taller, much taller, easily over six feet. Her arms looked as if they had been sculpted from marble, and she was wearing some kind of red tunic decorated with golden lightning bolts, knee-high red boots, and a flowing white cape trimmed in gold.

She hurried closer to the window, and couldn't restrain the sharp intake of breath as she stared at herself in the glass.

Is…Is that me?

The woman in the mirror was beautiful, with perfect skin large brown eyes, full red lips, and curly raven hair that fell to her shoulders.

She looked like Mom-

Taylor pushed the thought away, even as she reached up to touch her face.

She didn't even wear make-up normally, but now it was as if she had been transformed into a supermodel.

Except no supermodel had muscles that large and defined, like those ancient Greek statues.

Is this what being Alexandria was like? Taylor wondered dazedly, staring at her reflection.

But even as she thought of the famous heroine, another thought struck Taylor.

Can I fly?

The man had said she would be able to. She had thought he was just a crazy old man, but…

Turning away from the window, Taylor looked up at the sky. All her childhood dreams of being a cape came rushing to the forefront of her mind, of pretending to fly while playing heroes and villains with Emma.

Licking her lips nervously, Taylor screwed her eyes shut, bending her knees…and then she leaped into the air.

She expected to come crashing down any second and faceplant on the pavement. But when nothing happened, she hesitantly opened her eyes.

And the sight that greeted her was breathtaking.

Below her was Brockton Bay. Taylor had no idea how she had leapt so high, but even the tops of Brockton Bay's skyscrapers were below. She was surrounded by fluffy white clouds, and Taylor couldn't resist touching them, feeling her fingers grow wet as they passed through the water.

From up here, the city looked like one of Emma's expensive Lego models. Taylor had the absurd thought that maybe she could just knock one of the buildings over if she wanted.

Then it finally hit her.

She was flying.

She was flying.

Taylor let out a hysterical giggle at the thought. All her dreams of being like Alexandria and Legend, of flying like this…she had never thought they would be anything except dreams.

It occurred to Taylor she should have been feeling cold or maybe struggling to breathe at this altitude, but there was none of that. The sunlight was pleasant against her skin, and she was able to breathe as easily as she ever did.

Deciding to try out her abilities, she flew around and her giggles became delighted laughter as she realized it was so easy.

She flew through the sky, looping around, going up and down, standing upside down just because she could. She flew through the clouds, and as she grew bolder, she rose higher and higher into the air, until the blueness of the sky gave way to the darkness of space. Eventually, the air grew so thin that Taylor stopped, not daring to go any further as she retreated to safer heights, but her heart was still hammering with excitement.

It was the most amazing experience of her life.

Nothing could compare to it. If anyone ever asked her, Taylor wasn't sure how she'd even put it into words.

Laughing, Taylor dove towards Brocktown Bay, feeling a rush as she hurtled towards the city, accelerating as she did so.

At this speed, she should have crashed but just before she reached the ground, Taylor pulled up.

It wasn't even hard. It was as if she had known how to do this all her life.

Letting out a whoop, Taylor flew through the city, eyes darting around. People passed her in a blur, even the cars below were unable to keep pace with her.

Maybe she should have been more careful but she couldn't help it. This was all her childhood dreams come true, and it was impossible to explain how good it felt.

Taylor might have stayed like this forever, giddy and delighted, but then she heard something that cut her through joy.

"STOP!"

Stopping abruptly, Taylor spun around, searching for the source of the voice. It had come from that inside one of the buildings below her, she realized, a large grey building, seemingly entirely unremarkable.

But the scream had come from inside, Taylor was sure of it. As she focused, Taylor could also hear sobs, people whispering, begging for someone to save them. It should have been impossible to hear through the thick walls of the building, but with her new powers, the sounds might as well have come from someone floating right beside Taylor.

Maybe Taylor should have been more careful. Should have thought things through.

But as she heard another scream, Taylor threw all caution to the wind.

Bursting into the building, the walls shattering like dust against her form, Taylor strode inside and nearly threw up at what she saw.

There were cages everywhere, and there were people inside them. There were men and women and children, all of them in tattered clothes, many of them wearing shackles and chains, staring at her fearfully. They had been shoved in there, so many of them that they were barely able to fit inside the cages, The stench of human waste and blood was strong, almost suffocating.

This was a place of hate and misery, of pain and terror. Many of them were shrieking at the exploding wall, covered in dust, plaster, and brick.

Taylor felt her blood boil as she saw one of the smaller children inside the cages. A little girl who couldn't have been more than five years old, clutching with tiny hands wrapped in chains at what was presumably her mother, both of them sobbing

Around the room were a bunch of skinheads, wearing symbols of white supremacy and Nazism, all of them gaping at Taylor in shock.

And in the center of the room was a tall, bulky man, with long blonde hair, shirtless and shoeless, wearing only a pair of jeans and a metal mask that concealed his face.

Hookwolf. Member of the Empire 88. Serial-killing psychopath. Taylor had seen him on the news before. He was a monster and had been sentenced to the Birdcage before, but he had always escaped.

More importantly, he was holding a terrified dark-skinned girl by her hair, one even younger than Taylor herself. There was a bruise on her face, and her mouth was bleeding, with tears streaking her face. She must have been the one to scream.

But the instant he laid eyes on Taylor, Hookwolf let go of the girl, morphing into a gigantic wolf of silver blades, loping across the floor on all-fours to lunge at her faster than should have been possible. His entire body was a blur as his metal began to move at high speeds, a living buzz-saw.

Taylor didn't hesitate for a second. She drew her fist back and punched.