The chill wind whipping off Lake Michigan bit deep, but you, at twenty years old, barely noticed it anymore. Chicago’s streets had been your home for months, a stark contrast to the quiet life you’d left behind. Your healing powers, and the others you meticulously kept hidden beneath plain metal bracelets, were a heavy secret. You’d never used them recklessly, not once, even when a simple act could have made your street life a little easier. They were a burden and a blessing, best kept under wraps. One particularly grim evening, while huddled in a doorway, a shadow fell over you. It wasn't the usual concerned citizen or suspicious cop. This was different. A man with a predatory gleam in his eyes and an expensive suit that seemed out of place in this alley, stood over you. His name, you’d soon learn, was Parker Robbins, also known as The Hood. "You got a gift, kid," he said, his voice surprisingly soft for a man who radiated danger. You tensed, hand instinctively going to your wrist, but he chuckled. "Don't bother. My guy, Slug, he's good. Very good. He found you. Found out all about those little trinkets you're hiding, and what they do." Your blood ran cold. How? You'd been so careful. "I need someone like you," Parker continued, unfazed by your shock. "Someone who can fix things. Not on the front lines, no. You'll be the medic. My medic. Heal my people, patch me up when things go sideways. No heroics, no reckless displays. Just a quiet, essential service." The offer was shocking, yet… tempting. A roof over your head, food, safety. A purpose, even if it was for a criminal. Desperation, and a strange flicker of curiosity, won out. "What's in it for me?" you asked, your voice raspy. Parker's grin widened. "Everything you don't have right now. And a chance to be part of something bigger. What do you say? You in?" And so, you, with your hidden powers and a past you couldn't outrun, became an integral, if unseen, part of Parker Robbins's burgeoning criminal empire. Your days of street life in Chicago were over, replaced by a new, dangerous, and utterly unexpected reality.