2012

Manhattan, New York

East Harlem

Alleyway Behind The Red Fish Blue Restaurant

One Day Later

(Omniscient POV)

The night sky was dark and ominous as the moon hung low in the sky, casting its eerie glow over the city as Brock stood in the dirty alleyway behind a subpar Italian eatery awfully dubbed the Red Fish Blue restaurant.

A small figure could be seen seated on the ground in the corner of the dimly lit alley, hunched over a bowl of soup as he ate ravenously.

Brock had been watching the young boy for the past few hours as he sat there eating his food. Zeru appeared to look a lot better as he now donned a clean pair of jeans and a shirt that hung loosely off his small frame.

Brock watched as the young man finished his meal and began wiping his mouth clean before tossing the container toward one of the nearby dumpsters.

"T-thank you. I appreciate it," Zeru says as he stands up and brushes himself off.

"Don't mention it," Brock replies simply.

"Uhm...so when's your friend supposed to show up?" Zeru asks him as he looks over at him.

Brock shakes his head and sighs.

"She should be showing up here soon." He answers.

Zeru furrows his brow and looks at him curiously.

"Who are you talking about?" He asks.

Brock shrugs and remains silent as he continues to observe the boy curiously.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to pry.," Zeru apologizes

"It's alright," Brock replies as he stares back at the boy with a knowing smirk. "But since you're in such a talking mood, why don't you explain to me a little more about your power?"

At those words, Zeru furrowed his brow as he looked back at Brock and tilted his head slightly.

My power?" He asks.

Brock nods his head.

"Yes, your power," He tells him. "Tell me more about it."

Zeru stares back at him in confusion as he tries to find the right words for what exactly it is that he can do.

"Well, I...uhm. It's a little hard to explain even for me..." He admits as he furrows his brow.

"Okay," Brock Replies. "Then show me."

"Huh?" Zeru gasps in surprise. "L-like right now? Here?"

"Yes," Brock replies bluntly. "I'm curious to see what you can do."

Confused by the sudden request, Zeru hesitates for a moment before nodding his head.

"....A-alright," Zeru says reluctantly as he closes his eyes and concentrates all his senses inward.

After a few moments of intense concentration, he opens his eyes and looks over at Brock. His face is blank and devoid of emotion as two thumb-sized silver orbs of liquid metal float out of his body and hovers above the ground in front of him.

"What are those?" Brock asks curiously as he observes the floating orbs. "I expected you to make something like that teddy bear."

"These are the original manifestation of my power..." Zeru explains. "I call them Nodes."

He then extends a hand toward one of the 'Nodes' and focuses intensely on it. "I use this power to create them as a means of self-defense. They are basically constructs that are completely Techno-Organic in nature, which allows me to manipulate them however I see fit."

Zeru seemed more confident as he spoke, his attention entirely focused on the Nodes in front of him, as if they were having a conversation.

"They act as a sort of 'conduit' for my abilities," He adds. "Allowing me to control them in a telekinetic fashion, as well as scan and alter the sub-molecular chemical chains within them and other things."

"Interesting..." Brock remarks, not fully understanding what the boy just said, as he studies the small orbs with curiosity.

"Thank you," Zeru replies with a smile, happy to have his abilities genuinely appreciated by someone for the first time in his life.

"Anyway," He continues. "I don't really know everything my power is capable of, the FoH weren't really keen on teaching me much about it. I know that I can use these Nodes to do a whole bunch of stuff, including creating weapons and Armor, but I was hoping you could teach me how to use it properly."

"Me?" Brock responds with a puzzled expression.

"Yeah, you're the only person who's ever tried to help me. I figured you might be able to teach me a lot more than the FoH could." Zeru states confidently as he looks up at Brock with a hopeful look on his face.

Brock seems taken aback by the young boy's sincerity and honesty.

"Well..." He finally says. "I don't really know what I could teach you, my powers are completely different from yours."

"Really?" Zeru asks as he tilts his head to the side in curiosity. "How so?"

Brock furrowed his brows in thought for a moment before responding.

"Well, mine are more based on physical strength rather than mental like yours seem to be," He explained.

Zeru frowns at his response as he tilts his head to the side once again as he tries to understand what his 'Hero' meant.

"Physical strength?" He repeats. "Like lifting or something?"

"Sort of," Brock replies. "But not quite. My power is more situated toward combat, and requires a lot less thought."

"Like Superhuman strength and speed?" Zeru questions excitedly. "That's so cool!"

Brock smiles at the boy's enthusiasm.

"Little more to it than that, but generally speaking, yes," He says as he watches the boy closely.

"Cool! So, if you can't teach me how to use my power, can I learn how to fight?!" Zeru exclaims happily.

Brock nods his head.

"Sure, why not?" He says with a warm smile.

"Yes!" Zeru cheers as he claps his hands together. "Can't wait to start learning!"

He then takes a deep breath as he looks back up at Brock with anticipation in his eyes.

"So, when do we start?" He asks eagerly.

Brock chuckles softly as he looks down at the young boy. "You're asking the wrong person."

"H-huh?" Zeru stutters in confusion. "What do you-"

His question is cut short as he suddenly feels a hand on his shoulder. Zeru turns around, startled by the sudden touch, and finds himself looking into the five glowing red eyes of Ava's mask.

"Hi," She greets him in her ghostly deadpanned voice.

"What the hell!"Zeru exclaims as he quickly backpedals away from the costumed woman.

"W-who are you?!" He asks nervously as he looks between the two adults.

"I'm Ava," She replies simply.

Brock steps forward and places his hand on the back of Zeru's neck, gently pushing him forward and presenting him to the woman.

"Calm down," He tells the boy with an amused smile plastered on his face. "She's with us."

"Oh..." Zeru replies as he looks up at the masked woman with wide eyes.

Ava nods her head in acknowledgment at Brock's words, before turning her gaze over to Brock.

"So...this is him?" She asks curiously.

"This is him." Brock answers.

"He's...a kid?" She questions as she looks Zeru up and down, before eyeing the small sliver orbs that were floating around him.

"Yep," Brock confirms.

"And you brought him all the way out here...To join us?" She asks incredulously.

"Not exactly," Brock replies. "He's not at all ready for the stuff we get into... at least not yet. "

"Why would you want a kid like this?" Ava asks, doubtfully of how helpful this child could be.

"Because he has a unique power I want to learn more about," Brock answers simply. "Plus, I think he'd make a good addition to our little team."

Ava stares at Brock for a moment in silence, her expression unreadable under her mask.

"Fine," She finally says. "It's your call anyway."

Brock nods his head in agreement.

"Glad you see it my way." He says with a grin. "Now, before we move on to the real meeting place..."

Brock peers down at Zeru and the small orbs. "Those things allow you to interface with tech, right?" He asks.

"Not exactly...but yeah," Zeru replies with a nod.

"Good." Brock states. "Then I need you to take a quick look at her suit for me."

Zeru furrows his brows in confusion as he looks up at Brock. "Her... suit?"

"Yep," Brock replies. "I want you to look for anything that allows others to track her movements."

"Track her movements?" Zeru repeats as he tilts his head to the side in confusion.

"Just do it," Brock instructs him. "We'll talk more later."

"Um...okay," Zeru replies as he tilts his head to the side. "I'll try."

He closes his eyes and focuses intently on what he wanted to do. Suddenly, the small orbs that were hovering around him began to move toward Ava. They start moving around her rapidly, emitting a bright purple grid as they scanned through various parts of the armor.

After a few minutes of intense searching, Zeru opens his eyes and looks back at Brock. The orbs had moved across the entire length of the armored suit before stopping in front of its chest plate and hovering there momentarily.

"There," He declares with a smile. "Some sort of device is embedded in the chest plate that is capable of transmitting her location...but it doesn't seem to be active."

Brock eyes the boy for a moment, slightly in awe of his efficiency, before nodding.

"Can you take it out?" He asks.

"Maybe..." Zeru replies. "I'm still not used to using my powers, but I can try."

As soon as he utters those words, a thin line of light shoots out from the orb, connecting itself with the metal alloy of Ava's armor. After a few seconds, the lines of light disappear as they merge into each other.

The orbs then float back over to Zeru's shoulder, where they continued to hover around him. "Finished."

"Well done," Brock praises.

"Thanks," Zeru says with a shy smile as he holds his arms out and lets the orbs drift back into him.

"Let's get go-" Brock abruptly stopped talking as he sensed a group of people emerging from the back door of the restaurant.

Brock, Ava, and Zeru all turn their heads to see Three men dressed in black suits exit the building. Each man looked to be of average height and weight, though none of them were particularly muscular or strong looking. Their hair was short, ranging from being shaved bald to having a crew-cut style. They all wore dark sunglasses over their eyes, making it impossible to see their expressions.

Brock narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the men as they walked out and spotted their strange group standing in the alley.

"Hey!" One of them calls over to us in a gruff voice and heavy New York accent. "What the fuck you doing back here?!"

Brock raises an eyebrow at the man's tone.

"Who the fuck are you?" He asks coldly, his tone matching the icy look in his Hazel eyes.

"We're the guys telling you to fuck off!" The man snaps back at him. "This area is off limits!"

"And what makes you think we care?" Brock retorts.

Ava steps forward, crossing her arms over her chest as she looks down at the man challengingly.

"Look guy, we don't care what kind of creepy shit you were bout to get into with a dressed-up whore and a kid," One of the other men interjects bluntly. "But we're here to do business, so kindly piss off and leave us alone."

Brock narrows his eyes even further as he glares at the man.

"We were about to leave anyway," He says, his voice dripping with contempt. "But I suggest you watch your mouth before I decide to show just how insignificant your life really is."

The three men exchange a glance briefly before one of them speaks up.

"Don't fucking threaten us, asshole!" He snarls angrily.

The man and his two companions stare down at Brock with contemptuous sneers.

"You little bitch! Do you know who we're with!?" One of them snarls as he pulls out a pistol and aims it at their group. "Get the fuck outta here before I blow your brains out."

Brock takes a step forward, putting himself between the gun and Zeru.

"Really?" Brock replies calmly as he eyes the small weapon. "You have no idea what you're dealing with here."

He glances back at Zeru and Ava before looking back at the man aiming the gun at him.

"If you were smart, you'd put that away," Brock states calmly as he takes a step closer to the man. "Or else you're gonna end up dead."

The man's eyes widen slightly in surprise as he realizes the threat Brock was implying even with a weapon pointed at his head. His friends also notice the change in his attitude and they quickly pull their own weapons out.

"What the fuck did you say to us?" One of them demands as he points his pistol at Brock.

Brock smirks at the man as he takes another step forward.

"I said... if you keep pointing that gun at me, your little life will end here, in this filthy ass alley." He states confidently as he continues to close the distance between them.

"Fuck this!" One of the other men shouts as he pulls the trigger of his handgun.

*Bang!*

The bullet speeds through the air and hits Brock square in the chest, burning a hole through his thin shirt, before bouncing harmlessly off of his toned muscles. As soon as the shot connects, Brock's eyes flash viciously as he glares down at the man holding the gun. Then, without warning, he rushes forward and grabs the man by the throat with one hand, effortlessly lifting him off the ground.

"I told you to stop," Brock whispers menacingly into the man's ear. His grip tightens around the man's neck, causing him to cough violently as he struggles futilely against Brock's ironclad hold. He grits his teeth as he tries to force oxygen into his lungs. His vision starts to become blurry as he gasps for breath.

*Snap*

Suddenly, Brock's hand releases the man's throat and his body drops lifelessly, hitting the ground with a dull thud.

"W-what..." One of the men mutters bitterly as he looks down at his fallen friend in disbelief.

"Fuck!" Another of the men curses as he raises his own gun and begins to unload rounds into Brock.

Brock doesn't even try to dodge the hail of bullets, letting them strike harmlessly against his thick skin as he charges forward. He spins around swiftly, catching the third man by surprise as he slams a powerful fist into his stomach.

"Aaarrrrghgh!!!!" The man cries out in pain as he looks down to see an arm protruding through his midsection, blood gushing out of his mouth and dripping onto the ground below.

As the life leaves the man's eyes, Brock pulls his arm free of his intestines then turns to face the third man and delivers a swift kick to his knee, snapping it out of place and sending him tumbling to the ground.

Brock then moves to stand over the man, who was now clutching his broken leg in agony.

"W-wait, please! You can't do this to us!! We're part of the Carbone-" The man's desperate pleas were cut off as Brock lifts his foot and brings it down hard on the man's skull, crushing his cranium like an eggshell. The man falls limp as Brock stands over him, not even breathing heavily as he observes the bodies of his fallen foes.

"Alright..." He breathes quietly, regaining his composure as he walks over to Zeru and Ava. "That's taken care of. You guys ready to go?"

Ava simply nods her head at his words, the brutal show of violence not even affecting her. But Zeru doesn't say anything for a moment as he stares up at brock with wide-open eyes.

"That was..." Zeru begins to mutter quietly, and for a second, Brock wondered if his display of force was too much for the young boy to handle.

"That was...FUCKING AWESOME!" He exclaims excitedly. "I've never seen anyone kill a group of armed thugs with nothing more than their bare hands before! It was like a movie! Where did you learn how to do that!? Can you teach me that?"

Brock smirks as he watches the boy cheerfully chatter away.

"Come on then, let's get going," Brock states as he turns away and starts walking towards the exit of the alleyway.

************

A/n: Hey Guys, Hope you are enjoying the story so far, and as always thanks for reading! If you like my work and want to support it, check out my P.A.T.R.E.O.N: /Swarthy or P.A.Y.P.A.L.me: /xSwarthyx every bit helps and is appreciated.