Let’s say an afternoon of reckless tomfoolery in the vicinity of an irrational particle accelerator, a liquid lunch, and a pair of rubber bands causes an explosion. When you wake up, you find that, though your superficial physical appearance is little changed, you are, in fact, vastly different. You’re now immune to all diseases; you heal from any wound short of being vaporized in seconds; you’re as strong, fast, and agile as an eighteen-year-old Olympic athlete; and you no longer age. You are, in a word, immortal.
Firstly, I’d keep it secret - not wanting to end up in some sinister government facility with tubes up my arse.
It would have a hell of an effect on relationships, too. How long would you be able to remain friends or lovers with someone before it becomes obvious that only one party is getting older. A nomadic, rootless existence, for all eternity…
Bruce put on no cape in Unbreakable. And you have no other superpowers than immortality and fast-healing–not even Wolverine’s super-senses. Just because you’ll survive every fight doesn’t mean you’ll always win.
Well, this develpoment changes my day-to day existance very little, unless I decide to become a super-villain. No, i’m spending my time preparing for the future- earning money, learning skills that may come in handy, buying land cheaply in remote areas, and preparing for the day when I have to fake my own death and take a new identity. Given the powers specified, the most important things to aquire are patience and a long attention span. And spending my spare time calculating compound interest…
Ah, but remember that the immortaizing process has made you substantially (if not superficially) an early-adult, as strong, fast, and agile as, say, Lebron James; and your immune to all diseases, including, presumably, all sorts of cancer, diabetes, etc. Taking care of yourself is handled.
I always wondered what the physiological effect of having some sort of immortal type of healing like you mention in the OP. I think the writer of Unbreakable had those same questions, and presented them realistically. Your condition is that you heal from any wounds short of vaporization in seconds. When you stress your muscles while weightlifting, you damage the muscle fibers and in bodybuilding you wait a few days so they can heal up and you can do it again. You could, in hours or days, build up to your physiological maximum strength (whatever that is, but probably equivilant to the strongman contest contenders at minimum). You would also be nearly inexhastible in comparison. Damage done to cells and muscles during exercise would heal in seconds, and you could likely run at full speed until you need to sleep. (assuming healing in seconds doesn’t aleviate you from the need of REM sleep)
Just on the condition your body heals in seconds, you would have speed, agility and strength, as well as unnatural endurance.
Oh, forgot to add: With those conditions, you could win every fight. Take up boxing, martial arts and the like, whats to stop you?
Imagine fighting an opponent that is in the top levels of human strength, doesn’t tire, wounds you give to him heal in seconds, and even shooting him in the heart wont but slow him down. How could you win? You aren’t strong enough to subdue him by grappling (and somebody like that could easy gain the fighting skills to keep you from having an advantage skill wise), you can’t outlast him, and you certainly cannot kill him (unless you have a thermonucular bomb in your pocket). (him… or her, sorry)
Do I get retractable claws? Can I teleport? Read peoples minds?
What are my mutant abilities? I mean, what is the point of being an immortal if I can’t have cool powers?
Oh, I’m am so not wearing a cape. That’s just gay.
Why, yes, I’ve been reading Xmen books, why do you ask?
I’d continue doing the same things I’m doing now, anyway. I’d just do them for a lot longer. Maybe after a few centuries I’d tire of theoretical physics, but let’s cross that bridge when we come to it.
Nobody else going down to the Death Chance Store in that other thread that’s going around? Why, yes, I’ll drink a vial. I’ll drink all 20. Now, my 20 billion dollars?
Not good. Becoming dead is one of the few certainties in life, I’d feel robbed - hey give me back my impending death… once I got used to it, I’d do a sort of Valhalla thing fighting bad guys every day
Are you immune to pain as well ? If not, I’d be very careful; being pinned under a rubble heap, half crushed by the weight yet unable to die doesn’t appeal to me.
Outside of that, I’d combine self indulgence with long term investments. Unprotected sex, endless junk food and so on won’t hurt me, after all.